Pneumatically controlled wide heat load space radiator
AssigneeMartin Marietta Corporation
InventorStanley J. Hightower
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A three way valve selectively charges or discharges gas under pressure within the annular gaps between a series of transversely extending longitudinally spaced radiator tubes fixed to a radiator panel to control waste heat rejection and coaxial inner tubes which may comprise heat pipes or turns of a sinuous coolant flow tube for spacecraft, earth satellites and the like to thermal couple and decouple the heat pipe or coolant flow tube to the space radiator.
Claims7
A pneumatically controlled, wide heat load, space radiator assembly for a spacecraft, earth satellite, or the like, said radiator assembly comprising in combination:
- a heat radiator mounted to the spacecraft for thermal radiation to space, said heat radiator having a face,
- at least one tube array mounted to the face of the heat radiator in thermal conducting fashion, said array comprising concentric, radially spaced, longitudinally extending inner and outer heat conductive tubes,
- means defining a sealed annular gap between said tubes of a given longitudinal extent thereof,
- a coolant media within said inner heat conductive tube in thermal contact with said inner heat conductive tube and constituting the waste heat load for said space radiator assembly, and
- means for selectively supplying a gas under pressure to said sealed annular gap between said concentric tubes or for venting said annular gap to space to vary the thermal impedance between said inner and outer heat conductive tubes and modulate the waste heat rejection rate of said spacecraft radiator assembly.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.