Optimal mission planning of GEO on-orbit refueling in mixed strategy

摘要

The mission planning of GEO on-orbit refueling (OOR) in Mixed strategy is studied in this paper. Specifically, one SSc will be launched to an orbital slot near the depot when multiple GEO satellites are reaching their end of lives. The SSc replenishes fuel from the depot and then extends the lifespan of the target satellites via refueling. In the mixed scenario, only some of the target satellites could be served by the SSc, and the remaining ones will be fueled by Pseudo SScs (the target satellite which has already been refueled by the SSc and now has sufficient fuel for its operation as well as the fuel to refuel other target satellites is called Pseudo SSc here). The mission sequences and fuel mass of the SSc and Pseudo SScs, the dry mass of the SSc are used as design variables, whereas the economic benefit of the whole mission is used as design objective. The economic cost and benefit models are stated first, and then a mathematical optimization model is proposed. A comprehensive solution method involving enumeration, particle swarm optimization and modification is developed. Numerical examples are carried out to demonstrate the effectiveness of the model and solution method. Economic efficiencies of different OOR strategies are compared and discussed. The mixed strategy would perform better than the other strategies only when the target satellites satisfy some conditions. This paper presents an available mixed strategy scheme for users and analyzes its advantages and disadvantages by comparing with some other OOR strategies, providing helpful references to decision makers. The best strategy in practical applications depends on the specific demands and user preference.