Energy Production
is a micro-propulsion technology in which a layer of thermally expanded graphite (Arbok-TEG) is deposited on a flat surface with a proprietary spraying technology and impregnated with a volatile propellant (e.g., ethanol).
Technology brief
is a micro-propulsion technology in which a layer of thermally expanded graphite (Arbok-TEG) is deposited on a flat surface with a proprietary spraying technology and impregnated with a volatile propellant (e.g., ethanol).
The challenge
Primary: attitude-control and orbit-correction microthrusters for CubeSats and small satellites; collision-avoidance maneuvers; guaranteed deorbit (FCC 5-year rule compliance).
Secondary: ISRU schemes (impregnation with water from asteroid/lunar ice, ammonia), hybrid propulsion (TEG as matrix for electrostatic/electrospray systems, heat pipes, wicks), solar sails with thrust-vector control by dosed evaporation from selected areas of the black porous film.
Users: university labs, constellation operators, rideshare brokers, smallsat manufacturers.
ARBOK solution
NANODRIVE is a micro-propulsion technology in which a layer of thermally expanded graphite (Arbok-TEG) is deposited on a flat surface with a proprietary spraying technology and impregnated with a volatile propellant (e.g., ethanol). In vacuum the propellant evaporates not from the geometric surface but from the entire inner surface of the pores; the escaping molecules carry away momentum and create thrust. The system has no nozzle, no valves, no pressurized tanks and no high-voltage electronics. Realistic gain in mass flow and thrust: several-fold, up to an order of magnitude versus a smooth plate of the same external area. Black TEG absorbs sunlight (absorptance close to 1) and maintains evaporation temperature without dedicated heaters; the capillary effect holds the propellant in the pores.
A TEG layer (extremely porous, vermicular structure obtained from natural oxidized graphite) is applied to a flat face of the spacecraft and impregnated with a volatile liquid. In vacuum, evaporation proceeds from the whole internal pore surface; every TEG element contains 3 to 5 billion graphene platelets, each evaporating propellant. Thrust is determined by the number of molecules leaving the surface per second. Exhaust velocity is close to the thermal velocity of the vapor molecules: for ethanol at 20 °C ≈ 370 m/s (Isp ~37 s, estimate). Solar absorption (≈ 100 %) maintains working temperature; the system self-regulates (colder → lower vapor pressure → lower consumption).
Limitations: vapor escape from deep pores limits the thrust gain (several-fold to one order of magnitude, not proportional to area); low specific impulse class (thermal evaporation); thermal environment management in prolonged eclipse.
Market and application
In 2024 almost 2 800 small satellites were launched — 97 % of all spacecraft. A large share of smallsats still fly without propulsion, while the FCC 5-year deorbit rule (since 2022) and collision-avoidance practice (Starlink alone: ~50 000 maneuvers by mid-2024) turn propulsion into a condition of orbital access. NANODRIVE targets the lowest-cost, lowest-complexity segment of this market and the adjacent green-propellant transition away from hydrazine.
Material: TEG at 50 USD/kg, grams per spacecraft; propellant: commodity alcohol (hardware-store class), grams to ~1 kg per mission. Cost drivers shift from the propulsion unit itself (traditionally comparable to the spacecraft cost for electric systems) to integration and qualification, which is where most of the addressable cost now sits for a rideshare-class mission.
Use cases
Primary: attitude-control and orbit-correction microthrusters for CubeSats and small satellites; collision-avoidance maneuvers; guaranteed deorbit (FCC 5-year rule compliance).
Secondary: ISRU schemes (impregnation with water from asteroid/lunar ice, ammonia), hybrid propulsion (TEG as matrix for electrostatic/electrospray systems, heat pipes, wicks), solar sails with thrust-vector control by dosed evaporation from selected areas of the black porous film.
Users: university labs, constellation operators, rideshare brokers, smallsat manufacturers.
CubeSat scenario: TEG-coated face(s) impregnated before launch; short powerful recoil impulses for attitude control and orbit correction; passive thermal management via solar absorption; refuel not required within mission Δv budget (see §5 estimates). Constellation scenario: coating applied in the same production flow as the spacecraft; maneuverability scales with the series. ISRU scenario: porous matrix accepts locally sourced volatiles (water, ammonia).
Builds on ARBOK's industrial TEG production and deposition know-how (same material family as ARBOK oil sorbents, seals, thermal insulation, adsorbents, solar/thermal batteries, STEALTH coatings, EV fire blankets). Adjacent applications: field-emission cathodes, power-generating coatings for space objects (instead of heavy solar panels). Related cards: ARBOK-Stellar, TEG-based technologies.
NANODRIVE is a micro-propulsion technology in which a layer of thermally expanded graphite (Arbok-TEG) is deposited on a flat surface with a proprietary spraying technology and impregnated with a volatile propellant (e.g., ethanol). In vacuum the propellant evaporates not from the geometric surface but from the entire inner surface of the pores; the escaping molecules carry away momentum and create thrust. The system has no nozzle, no valves, no pressurized tanks and no high-voltage electronics. Realistic gain in mass flow and thrust: several-fold, up to an order of magnitude versus a smooth plate of the same external area. Black TEG absorbs sunlight (absorptance close to 1) and maintains evaporation temperature without dedicated heaters; the capillary effect holds the propellant in the pores.
Primary: attitude-control and orbit-correction microthrusters for CubeSats and small satellites; collision-avoidance maneuvers; guaranteed deorbit (FCC 5-year rule compliance).
Secondary: ISRU schemes (impregnation with water from asteroid/lunar ice, ammonia), hybrid propulsion (TEG as matrix for electrostatic/electrospray systems, heat pipes, wicks), solar sails with thrust-vector control by dosed evaporation from selected areas of the black porous film.
Users: university labs, constellation operators, rideshare brokers, smallsat manufacturers.
A TEG layer (extremely porous, vermicular structure obtained from natural oxidized graphite) is applied to a flat face of the spacecraft and impregnated with a volatile liquid. In vacuum, evaporation proceeds from the whole internal pore surface; every TEG element contains 3 to 5 billion graphene platelets, each evaporating propellant. Thrust is determined by the number of molecules leaving the surface per second. Exhaust velocity is close to the thermal velocity of the vapor molecules: for ethanol at 20 °C ≈ 370 m/s (Isp ~37 s, estimate). Solar absorption (≈ 100 %) maintains working temperature; the system self-regulates (colder → lower vapor pressure → lower consumption).
Limitations: vapor escape from deep pores limits the thrust gain (several-fold to one order of magnitude, not proportional to area); low specific impulse class (thermal evaporation); thermal environment management in prolonged eclipse.
TEG specific surface area: tens to hundreds of m²/g. Density: only 1.5–2 times that of air. Solar absorptance: close to 1 (ideal black body behavior). A 5-mm TEG layer on a 10 × 10 cm plate: ≈ 0.1 g, ≈ 10 m² of inner pore surface (1 000× the geometric area). 2–3 g of material ≈ a tennis court (261 m²); 30–70 g ≈ a football pitch (7 000+ m²) of evaporating surface. Thrust/flow gain vs smooth plate: several-fold, up to 10×. Ethanol freezing point: −114 °C (vs +1.4 °C for hydrazine). Propellant estimates for a 4-kg 3U CubeSat (Tsiolkovsky, estimates): collision-avoidance maneuver (Δv ≈ 0.1 m/s) ~1 g of ethanol; one year of station-keeping (Δv ≈ 10–15 m/s) 110–160 g; guaranteed deorbit from 550 km (Δv ≈ 100 m/s) ~0.95 kg (1.2 l). Industrial TEG: purity 99.99 %, price 50 USD/kg.
TEG coating (sprayed onto rigid, flexible or foldable substrates — proprietary deposition know-how); propellant reservoir/impregnation system (capillary retention in pores, no pressurization); optional minimal heaters; substrate panel integrated with spacecraft face. Basic version contains no valves and no nozzles.
Technical: no pressurized tanks, no valves/nozzles, no high-voltage electronics; minimal mass (evaporator weighs next to nothing); solar-driven thermal balance; even evaporation via capillary effect; every eliminated valve is an eliminated failure mode.
Economic: cheap, safe propellant (alcohol vs toxic hydrazine); simplified ground handling and rideshare approval; serial industrial material base (TEG at 50 USD/kg); propulsion becomes "a panel you apply", scaling with production series.
Regulatory: enables collision avoidance and deorbit compliance (FCC 5-year rule) for platforms that today fly without propulsion.
Builds on ARBOK's industrial TEG production and deposition know-how (same material family as ARBOK oil sorbents, seals, thermal insulation, adsorbents, solar/thermal batteries, STEALTH coatings, EV fire blankets). Adjacent applications: field-emission cathodes, power-generating coatings for space objects (instead of heavy solar panels). Related cards: ARBOK-Stellar, TEG-based technologies.
CubeSat scenario: TEG-coated face(s) impregnated before launch; short powerful recoil impulses for attitude control and orbit correction; passive thermal management via solar absorption; refuel not required within mission Δv budget (see §5 estimates). Constellation scenario: coating applied in the same production flow as the spacecraft; maneuverability scales with the series. ISRU scenario: porous matrix accepts locally sourced volatiles (water, ammonia).
TRL to be established through vacuum-chamber and flight validation. Material base (industrial TEG production, deposition) is mature; the thruster application in space environment requires validation (vacuum-chamber thrust measurements, thermal cycling, flight demo).
In 2024 almost 2 800 small satellites were launched — 97 % of all spacecraft. A large share of smallsats still fly without propulsion, while the FCC 5-year deorbit rule (since 2022) and collision-avoidance practice (Starlink alone: ~50 000 maneuvers by mid-2024) turn propulsion into a condition of orbital access. NANODRIVE targets the lowest-cost, lowest-complexity segment of this market and the adjacent green-propellant transition away from hydrazine.
Material: TEG at 50 USD/kg, grams per spacecraft; propellant: commodity alcohol (hardware-store class), grams to ~1 kg per mission. Cost drivers shift from the propulsion unit itself (traditionally comparable to the spacecraft cost for electric systems) to integration and qualification, which is where most of the addressable cost now sits for a rideshare-class mission.
Physics/engineering: vapor escape limits thrust; low Isp class limits Δv-heavy missions; plume deposition on optics/sensors to be assessed; propellant retention and evaporation control across thermal cycles; long-eclipse operation.
Program: no flight heritage yet; qualification and rideshare acceptance path to be built.
IP/competition: evaporative and green-propellant microthrusters are an active field; ARBOK's differentiation rests on its material base (industrial TEG) and deposition process, which places a premium on maintaining that lead as competitors enter the space.
ARBOK-Stellar
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