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Phase Four adopts iodine for next-gen Max-V engine

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Elderberry:
Space News by Debra Werner — October 13, 2022

Propulsion startup Phase Four is expanding its Maxwell plasma propulsion line by offering Max-V, an iodine-fueled engine.

Prices have surged in the last year for the noble gases that fuel conventional electric propulsion engines, which is one of the reasons Phase Four is betting on iodine.

Another is domestic production. In contrast to the noble gases often sourced from Ukraine, Russia and China, Iodine is available in Oklahoma.

“The U.S. is the third largest producer of iodine in the world and all of the U.S. iodine comes from Oklahoma,” Phase Four CEO Beau Jarvis told SpaceNews. “There are no supply chain constraints or volatile cost components.”

Under a contract awarded last year from the U.S. Air Force AFWERX program, Phase Four began working with iodine propellant.

More: https://spacenews.com/phase-four-adopts-iodine-for-next-gen-max-v-engine/

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