Integrated Variable Heat-load and External Environment TCS

ABSTRACT: The ORS program is designed to field a customizable satellite that can be assembled in a few days. Unfortunately, the TCS is typically custom built around the heat loads and operating environments. For an ORS mission, both the heat load and the operating environments will be unknown until the needs for the satellite are determined. Therefore the TCS must be flexible enough to handle a wide variety of loads in a wide variety of thermal environments. Paragon proposes to solve this issue by developing an integrated Variable Heat-load and External Environment TCS (VHEET) architecture that couples a radiator panel with variable conductance heat pipes (VCHPs). The VHEET radiator rejects heat to space and the VCHPs act as a thermal regulator, allowing more heat to pass to the radiators in high heat load/warm thermal environment conditions and less heat to pass in low heat load/cold thermal environment conditions. Because the VHEET components are self-contained and passively controlled there are no wire harnesses or fluids to install, facilitating quick installation. BENEFIT: Since the TCS is often the most customized system on a spacecraft, this concept could be expanded to better serve all DoD satellites, reducing both the time and cost to get the satellite in the air. Additionally, this TCS concept could be utilized to provide better thermal control of unmanned air vehicles (UAVs) whose use is expanding almost exponentially as both reconnaissance and weapons delivery platforms. Paragon is actively engaged with a number of commercial space companies and NASA to design their thermal control system. Being able to reduce the integration time will significantly reduce the development and operational costs, allowing these vehicles to reach maturity quicker and cheaper than current technology allows. The application of this proposed TCS could help solve problems associated with the wildly varying thermal conditions on the lunar surface that occur during the course of a lunar day.