Bombshell Genius
Two views of a Zak ion drive
Image Source: [X]
Intent: To provide a battlecruiser-grade ion drive
Development Thread: Full Speed Ahead (25 posts)
Manufacturer: Ringovinda Systems
Model: Zak linear ion drive
Affiliation: Open market
Modularity: No
Production: Minor
Material: Alusteel, ion engine components
Strengths:
- Provides greater speed (and acceleration) when the emergency boost is in use
- Can also provide for the ship's life support systems when in use via the waste heat recovery device, thus providing energy savings for the mount ship
- Can only be mounted on ships 2000m and longer
- When emergency boost is in use, maneuverability suffers
- Requires a large amount of pipes to be mounted near the engine
Description: Originally codenamed the Creveld-6 in early stages of production, the name was changed when the legal department informed the design team of the Zak ion drive that keeping the original name would cause issues with Aurora Industries. It also features a Sabrina waste heat recovery device to allow reuse of the waste heat for life support: the main drawback of using its waste heat for life support is the sheer amount of plumbing required. And, as on all ion drives, it features accelerator coils to allow acceleration of the ions passing through the vacuum chamber so that it can provide thrust to the ship. Thrust vectoring is done through a ring array of magnets at the nozzle of the engine; the magnets in the direction of turning are powered down while the turn is effected.
Because of the Zak ion drive's sheer size, it can only be mounted on ships 2000m and longer and hence its production level is minor. It is also designed to provide extra thrust in an emergency, but when the extra thrust is provided, the maneuverability of the ship is reduced. In ratings terms, it would mean a +2 to maneuverability and -2 to speed for about 30 seconds, after which time an additional 30 seconds is required before the emergency thrust can be activated again.
Primary Source: N/A
