IT astro brainboxes say they're on the track of tech which could greatly prolong the life of satellites, as well as helping them avoid banging into each other. They have illustrated this by fashioning a crude plasma thruster out of a Coke can and a glass bottle.
Needless to say, the MIT vid of the Coke bottle-rocket is available on YouTube
More: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/02/24/coke_can_plasma_rocket/
Sounds like a Deep Sky Camp Project.