Shape memory alloy (SMA) passive temperature control systems and methods for aircraft electrical systems

An aircraft comprising:

• an airframe;
• a rotor assembly and/or a pair of wings attached to the airframe;
• an electrical system including a battery module with a module housing mounted to the airframe and multiple battery cells disposed within the module housing;
• and
• a thermal management system including:
• a cooling chamber movably mounted to the airframe adjacent the module housing, the cooling chamber containing therein a sublimable cooling agent;
• a biasing member projecting from a module-facing surface of the cooling chamber and pressing against a chamber-facing surface of the module housing to thereby bias the module housing away from the cooling chamber;
• and
• a smart material actuator mounted to the cooling chamber and thermally interfacing with the module housing, the smart material actuator being configured to extract thermal energy from the module housing and, once heated to a phase transformation temperature, contract the smart material actuator to thereby pull the cooling chamber into contact with the module housing.

A method of cooling an electrical component, the electrical component stored inside a module housing, the method comprising:

• movably attaching a cooling chamber adjacent the module housing, the cooling chamber containing therein a sublimable cooling agent;
• biasing the cooling chamber away from the module housing via a biasing member;
• selectively actuating a smart material actuator attached to the cooling chamber by thermally interfacing the smart material actuator with the module housing such that the smart material actuator extracts thermal energy from the module housing;
• moving the cooling chamber into contact with the module housing via the smart material actuator heating to a phase transformation temperature and thereby changing shape of the smart material actuator;
• and
• extracting the thermal energy from the module housing via the sublimable cooling agent by contacting the cooling chamber with the module housing.