The SPARC Industries VSTRAP system is a high-fidelity, plug & play plasma simulation platform for electric propulsion (EP) engineering.

The aim of the platform is to reduce the time, costs, and risks associated with bringing a new electric propulsion system to market. It also enables the creation of enhanced plume datasets that EP manufacturers can provide to their own customers.

VSTRAP was developed based on direct input from electric propulsion manufacturers, plasma simulation experts, satellite manufacturers, public research institutions, and national space agencies.

The primary requirements of the researched group were translated into over 400 software specifications. Over 70 verification and validation tests have been employed to ensure the physical accuracy of the code, and this number is increasing, with implementations reviewed regularly by the European Space Agency (ESA).

VSTRAP is a combined hardware and software solution provided as an all-in-one package that is delivered ready to use, with everything pre-installed, pre-configured, and burn-tested, so it can be used the same day.

The system has the ability to run “base configuration” simulations immediately, enabling engineers to quickly test simple design variations. Automated numerical stability ensures that such simulations are correctly set from a numerical point of view.

Each simulation is accompanied by an automatic report displaying all solver violations that happened during the simulation. This enables operators to view the extent of the validity of the results.

The system makes use of industrial software development standards in order to minimize the cost per bug fix and allows for high feature-update frequencies.

The system has been designed to specifically address Hall Effect Thrusters (HETs) and gridded ion optics. However, other EP devices can be considered and, if necessary, extensions can be made to the modular platform such that the software works for the required application.

SPARC Industries also offers a range of complementary plasma engineering services built around the VSTRAP platform.