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Continued Water-Based Phase Change Material Heat Exchanger DevelopmentIn a cyclical heat load environment such as low Lunar orbit, a spacecraft's radiators are not sized to meet the full heat rejection demands. Traditionally, a supplemental heat rejection device (SHReD) such as an evaporator or sublimator is used to act as a "topper" to meet the additional heat rejection demands. Utilizing a Phase Change Material (PCM) heat exchanger (HX) as a SHReD provides an attractive alternative to evaporators and sublimators as PCM HX's do not use a consumable, thereby leading to reduced launch mass and volume requirements. In continued pursuit of water PCM HX development two full-scale, Orion sized water-based PCM HX's were constructed by Mezzo Technologies. These HX's were designed by applying prior research on freeze front propagation to a full-scale design. Design options considered included bladder restraint and clamping mechanisms, bladder manufacturing, tube patterns, fill/drain methods, manifold dimensions, weight optimization, and midplate designs. Two units, Units A and B, were constructed and differed only in their midplate design. Both units failed multiple times during testing. This report highlights learning outcomes from these tests and are applied to a final sub-scale PCM HX which is slated to be tested on the ISS in early 2017.
Document ID
20150003500
Acquisition Source
Johnson Space Center
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Hansen, Scott W.
(NASA Johnson Space Center Houston, TX, United States)
Sheth, Rubik B.
(NASA Johnson Space Center Houston, TX, United States)
Poynot, Joe
(International Mezzo Technologies Baton Rouge, LA, United States)
Giglio, Tony
(International Mezzo Technologies Baton Rouge, LA, United States)
Ungar, Gene K.
(NASA Johnson Space Center Houston, TX, United States)
Date Acquired
March 24, 2015
Publication Date
July 12, 2015
Subject Category
Fluid Mechanics And Thermodynamics
Report/Patent Number
JSC-CN-33129
ICES-2015-188
Meeting Information
Meeting: International Conference on Environmental Systems
Location: Bellevue, WA
Country: United States
Start Date: July 12, 2015
End Date: July 16, 2015
Sponsors: Paragon Space Development Corp., Texas Tech Univ., UTC Aerospace Systems
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Public Use Permitted.
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