Recommended Practice for Thrust Measurement in Electric Propulsion Testing.

Accurate, direct measurement of thrust or impulse is one of the most critical elements of electric thruster characterization, and one of the most difficult measurements to make. This paper summarizes recommended practices for the design, calibration, and operation of pendulum thrust stands, which are widely recognized as the best approach for measuring N- to mN-level thrust and Ns-level impulse bits. The fundamentals of pendulum thrust stand operation are reviewed, along with the implementation of hanging pendulum, inverted pendulum, and torsional balance configurations.