Ion Propulsion Drone Finalized, Too Powerful!

"Read information!"

After a brief grumble, Chen Yi chose the control technology for the particle thruster.

A vast amount of technical information and formulas flooded his mind.

"This is a design blueprint for a chip, along with algorithms for controlling electric and magnetic fields. The algorithms involve principles like magnetic field coupling, N-decoherence, and interference."

"This algorithm feels like it could be used in a tokamak device as well, significantly reducing magnetic field loss in fusion reactors and lowering their energy consumption."

"However, to fully unleash the algorithm's potential, a specialized chip is required."

It took him over two hours.

Chen Yi gradually understood and assimilated the information, a hint of emotion in his eyes.

"The previous Brainwave Virtual Consciousness Machine required a dedicated chip to perform at its designed capacity, and now Ion Control also needs a specialized chip.

It's easy to see.

As the technological sophistication of items continues to rise, more and more devices will require dedicated chips.

It seems I'll need to set up a chip production line and manufacture chips myself when I have the time."

Chen Yi first noted this down on his to-do list and then continued to adjust and upgrade the ion thruster.

The attributes being adjusted and upgraded this time were efficiency.

Reading the technical information, Chen Yi discovered.

This involved a low-resistance conductor material technology and a special coil configuration.

While it didn't match the zero resistance of superconducting materials, it was still over four orders of magnitude lower than the low-resistance copper materials used in daily life, reaching 1.34 x 10^(-12) Ωm.

Furthermore, this special coil configuration allowed for better coupling between the electromagnetic field generated by the current and the ions, resulting in superior confinement and acceleration performance for the ions.

Simply put, it meant consuming less energy to achieve greater acceleration.

One side reduced resistance loss.

The other side enhanced acceleration.

With both combined, the efficiency was 186% of the current HET-80 Hall Thruster on the Tianhe Space Station.

"Strength and mass cannot be adjusted and upgraded solely; I'll have to wait until the carbon fiber 3D printer is acquired before I can test those."

After sequentially adjusting the three core attributes of speed, control, and efficiency, and reading the technical information, half a day had already passed.

Chen Yi went out for lunch.

Upon returning, he utilized the drone components he had previously acquired, along with the radar components purchased through Professor Zhang.

He then re-adjusted and manufactured a batch of components for avionics main control, communication, and radar imaging.

At 2:30 PM, Qin Xiaoyu arrived with delivery personnel, bringing the five Ternary Lithium Electric Vehicles he had ordered, along with two high-precision carbon fiber 3D printers and two 3D metal combined printers.

The carbon fiber 3D printer was a relatively large machine on the market.

Paired with an automatic tracking worktable and an automatic altimeter, it could print workpieces with a maximum diameter of 2 meters.

The combined printers had two sets of different print heads.

One set was responsible for printing metal components, while the other could jointly print plastics and carbon fiber.

These printers were specifically designed for products that integrated multiple materials.

Chen Yi intended to use them to print and manufacture the ion thruster.

This was because the coils that generated the electric field inside the ion thruster were precisely integrated within the propellant.

"The technology read for the speed attribute brought about the structure, electric field layout, and orbital layout of the ion thruster.

The technology read for the control attribute provided the control algorithms; while there's no dedicated chip, a general-purpose chip can still be used.

The information read for the efficiency attribute introduced a new type of conductive wire material. This material cannot be produced and replaced for now, but the special coil configuration is feasible.

All these technologies combined are sufficient to produce a prototype ion thruster."

Chen Yi organized the technologies acquired through today's adjustments and upgrades, clarifying his thoughts before putting on the virtual helmet.

Beep!

The nearby computer booted up, opening the CAD software.

Under Chen Yi's virtual control via brainwaves, countless lines and structural components began to be drawn at an astonishing speed.

In less than an hour.

Chen Yi had designed and drawn two ion thrusters, one on each side, along with the drone's fuselage.

The engine design featured an adjusted intake duct, modified into a ramjet intake duct for superior high-speed performance.

The fuselage design referenced the Lunar Lander Drone's fuselage, which had a high attribute value of 40, and underwent certain scaling and adjustments to ensure structural stability and aerodynamic performance.

Da da da!

The computer connected to the 3D printer, and the printer's nozzle began to spew out scorching hot powder.

These powders were stacked together according to a specific trajectory and height ratio, fusing under high temperatures to gradually form components for ion thrusters and drone bodies.

It took over four hours, with four large 3D printers working at full capacity.

Finally, at 7 PM, all the drone components Chen Yi wanted were produced.

"It's different when it's made of carbon fiber, the feel in hand is completely different."

Chen Yi picked up a cooled component and weighed it in his hand. There was only one word for it.

Light.

The density of carbon fiber is generally 1.7.

This doesn't sound like much, but Chen Yi's lightest material before was aluminum alloy, which is usually 2.8.

If titanium alloy were used, the density would generally be above 4.5, and other nickel alloys exceed 7.5.

This difference in density means that for a drone with the same design, if one made of titanium alloy weighed 100 kilograms, one made of carbon fiber would weigh at most 40 kilograms.

"No wonder supercars all use carbon fiber bodies. This saved weight undoubtedly improves their performance and lap times."

Chen Yi sighed, picked up the printed components, along with the communication, radar, hydraulic wheel sets, and other accessories he had spent over 400,000 to upgrade, and began assembly.

After assembly, he adjusted the stability attributes to eliminate issues caused by printing precision.

Soon, a unique ion propulsion drone, one of a kind in the world, appeared before him.

The drone's wings and body were almost fused together, shaped like a sharp triangle, similar to the latest version of the J-8 or the opposing S72-Black Eagle.

[Item: Ion Propulsion Drone]
[Attributes: Energy x0, Speed x10.2 (2.8), Mass x21, Stability x35, Strength x14, Communication x31.7, Radar Imaging x36.6, Avionics x34.5, Aesthetics x9.8]
[Note: This is a maturely designed, one-of-a-kind ion propulsion aircraft.
Through a unique electric field acceleration chamber design, combined with powerful control technology, it replaces the combustion expansion work of conventional chemical engine combustion chambers, making it a unique electric propulsion drone.
Don't let its low speed fool you; paired with a high-capacity energy module, it can maintain sustained acceleration, easily surpassing existing atmospheric aircraft.]

"A speed of 10.2, and 2.8 in space is a pleasant surprise. I originally thought it would be at most 9-something in the atmosphere and just over 1 in space."

Chen Yi looked at the drone's speed attribute, a hint of surprise in his heart.

As the designer of the drone, he naturally knew.

The speed of 10.2 was achieved at low altitude with the ramjet intake ducts open, combined with ion propulsion.

The speed of 2.8 was in space, without external air intake, relying entirely on ion propulsion.

"Let's test the overall weight and thrust performance."

Chen Yi picked up the drone and walked to the floor scale nearby. After three repeated measurements, the drone's weight was determined.

13.9 kilograms.

Through a series of technical integrations, structural optimizations, reduction of unnecessary components, and the use of carbon fiber materials, the drone's weight had been reduced to an astonishing figure.

Even after equipping it with a high-energy battery, ion propellant, and a high-temperature resistant coating, the total weight would not exceed 40 kilograms.

"This is pretty impressive."

Chen Yi showed a hint of surprise and carried the drone to another test stand, connecting it to an external power source to begin testing.

After more than half an hour of repeated testing.

Finally, Chen Yi determined the thrust values of the ion thruster in different states.

In low-altitude, low-speed conditions, with maximum mass ejection and both engines firing concurrently, the thrust reached 8.46 kilonewtons. Calculated with a full load weight of 40 kilograms, the thrust-to-weight ratio was an astonishing 1:21.

With ejection velocity in the subsonic range, the thrust from both engines firing concurrently was 5.34 kilonewtons, a thrust-to-weight ratio of 1:13.

In the supersonic range, at this point, as the speed entered the maximum performance range of the ramjet intake, the thrust of both engines did not decrease but increased, reaching 5.89 kilonewtons, a thrust-to-weight ratio of 1:15.

This thrust increase would continue from supersonic speeds all the way to a spray velocity of Mach 3.5, after which there would be a rapid decline.

By Mach 5, the thrust from both engines firing concurrently would only be 2.85 kilonewtons, a thrust-to-weight ratio of 1:8.

However, in any state, as long as it was below 20,000 meters altitude and within the speed range of Mach 5.

The performance of this ion propulsion drone would not be weaker than the previous Space Sprint Drone.

If it entered space, its endurance and sustained acceleration capabilities would far surpass the Space Sprint Drone and the Lunar Lander Drone.

"Too strong!"

"These two weeks of study and hard work were not in vain!"

Chen Yi exclaimed excitedly, "Tonight I'll get a high-capacity energy module and add a thermal barrier protective coating to the drone. We can have the official test flight tomorrow!"

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