Spacecraft Thermal Control Technologies

Advanced Cooling Technologies, Inc. (ACT) has a large portfolio of products for spacecraft thermal control, including Constant Conductance Heat Pipes (CCHPs), Space Copper Water Heat Pipes (SCWHPs), Variable Conductance Heat Pipes (VCHPs), Loop Heat Pipes (LHPs), Accumulators for Pumped Fluid Systems, Phase Change Material (PCM) Heat Sinks, SpaceVPX solutions and Cold Plates for Thermal Vacuum Testing. In addition, ACT conducts Advanced R&D for Spacecraft Thermal Control in Satellites, Landers, Rovers, Habitats and scientific missions.

Press Release: Surviving the Lunar Night

Advanced Cooling Technologies- Space Flight Heritage Timeline, since 2005

Constant Conductance Heat Pipes (CCHPs)

Aluminum-ammonia and aluminum-ethane CCHPs are used for spacecraft thermal control.

Variable Conductance Heat Pipes (VCHPs)

Aluminum-ammonia and aluminum-ethane VCHPs are used to maintain electronics within a narrow temperature band, over wide variations in power and sink conditions.

Space Copper-Water Heat Pipes

Space Copper Water Heat Pipes are suitable for direct contact with electronics, as well as improving the thermal conductance of spacecraft electronics chasses.

Loop Heat Pipes (LHPs)

Aluminum-ammonia and aluminum-propylene LHPs are used instead of CCHPs when higher powers and adverse elevations are required.

Phase Change Material (PCM) Heat Sinks

PCM heat sinks store heat during high power pulses or for cyclic operation, reducing the size and mass of the radiator required.

HiK™ Plates

High conductivity plates with embedded heat pipes. Engineered for spacecraft thermal management.

SpaceVPX

When operating in the vacuum of space, heat must be transferred long distances to adequate radiator surface area.

Accumulators for Pumped Fluid Systems

Accumulators are used to accommodate changes in the volume of a pumped loop across the broad temperature range experienced in spacecraft applications, from -40°C to +55°C. ACT also has designed and fabricated custom fluid/thermal test systems for ground testing.

Emerging Products

ACT continually conducts Advanced R&D for spacecraft thermal control, including:

Some of these R&D programs are advanced enough to be considered emerging products, read more below.

Momentum-Driven Vortex Phase Separator 
Momentum-driven Vortex Phase Separators (MVS) provide gravity-independent separation and inventory management of liquids, gases, and solids within a fluid system using a simple, cost efficient design with no moving parts or membranes.

ICE-Lok™ Thermally Enhanced Wedgelocks
ICE-Lok™ is an improved wedgelock for swappable electronics cards with a thermal resistance reduced by more than one-third when compared with conventional wedgelocks. Now available with online ordering!

 

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