As a common intuition I thought about using laser pulses to deorbit space debris. Which is an idea well thought about. However, after reading this article Heat Accumulation in Laser-Based Removal of Space Debris I thought about alternative ways of cleaning space debris.
Sodium metatungstate (H₂Na₆O₄₀W₁₂) also referred to as sodium polytungstate (SPT) is widely used to produce "heavy liquid", due to its very high solubility in water (max. density 3.1 g/cm³). Its heavy density is ideal for momentum transfer for deorbiting. Aqueous SPT is non-toxic, non-flammable and has low viscosity.
I propose CubeSats filled with SPT to deorbit small space debris that are dangerous and hard to track. SPT can be jettisoned from the satellite with proper aiming to accelerate the space debris towards the Earth's atmosphere where it would be burned out before touching the ground. SPT can also be used as the cold propellent for the Cleaner Satellite. Simplifying the CubeSat design and reducing the cost. The Cleaner Sat should not contain heat resistant parts such as carbon fiber. When its SPT finishes, it should deorbit itself to Earth and completely burn out in the atmosphere. CubeSats, due to their compact size, can be deployed in large numbers by a single space launch and clean different regions in parallel.
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