High Survivability Adhesive-less Photovoltaic Panel Assembly for Space Solar Arrays

ABSTRACT: Deployable Space Systems, Inc. (DSS), in partnership with Emcore Photovoltaics (EMCORE), proposes the development and TRL 5/6 validation of an adhesive-less photovoltaic panel assembly, termed"HSA"for High Survivability Array. Space solar array adhesives have been known to significantly outgass and become a major source of contamination, and after typical space environmental exposure will tend to have reduced optical transmission, degraded electrical dielectric and conductivity performance, and degraded elastic modulus and strength properties. Adhesives are the biggest contributor for thermally induced CTE mismatched mechanical strains. To mitigate these aforementioned concerns and to enable survivability under extreme high temperature threat conditions our teams"proposed HSA technology has been specifically developed to utilize NO adhesives. The proposed adhesive-less HSA technology offers superior mechanical, thermal, electrical, optical, and outgassing performance/properties, and promises to provide superior environmental stability with little degradation throughout a typical mission life or after exposure to rapid heating and/or long-term high temperature. The HSA panel integrates onto a flexible blanket, compactly stows in z-folded or rolled configurations, accommodates standard and advanced multijunction-PV photovoltaics, and can be integrated onto conventional rigid solar arrays. The adhesive-less construction significantly reduces panel assembly mass and dramatically increases temperature survivability to 500C+ sustainable extremes. BENEFIT: The proposed technology is applicable to all future DoD, NASA and commercial missions (including communications and earth observation) as a direct replacement for existing technologies. The proposed technology potentially provides the DoD with a near-term and low-risk solar array panel assembly that could enable ultra-high survivability missions where survivability from exposure to natural or man-made events such as rapid heating and/or long-term high temperature is required. The proposed adhesive-less technology promises to offer superior mechanical, thermal, electrical, optical, and outgassing performance/properties, and promises to provide superior environmental stability with little degradation throughout a typical mission life, and overall improved/enhanced mission capability for certain applications. In particular, for military space applications, the enabling features of the proposed technology and predicted performance metrics are incredible improvements over current state-of-the-art and state-of-the-practice technologies, and are mission-enabling for future DoD high survivability missions. The technology has the potential to replace every currently produced state-of-the-practice rigid panel solar array that is currently used for high survivability missions or missions that require high cleanliness. The most near military applications are a multitude of highly-classified DoD missions (which cannot be delineated herein) that demand ultra-high survivability for man-made threats and unique mission space environments. The proposed technology will enable these DoD missions.