Development of a Reliable Vapor-Compression thermal Management System for Airborne Applications with Steady and Transient Operation

Cooling requirements associated with ongoing developments in aircraft technology have exceeded the capabilities of existing thermal management architectures. In recent studies, vapor-compression systems have shown potential to meet these requirements through two-phase heat transfer and capabilities to reject waste heat to high heat-sink temperatures. One important issue that must be addressed prior to implementing this technology is determining how to operate these systems reliably in transient airborne environments. In Phase I, Mainstream will investigate the performance of a specific configuration which makes use of an advanced control system and is aimed toward modularity and reliability. The experimental system developed for this investigation will also serve to investigate the degree of vapor quality management that is necessary. The information that is gained from these experiments will be used to validate the potential of the proposed design and used to optimize the design of other configurations. In addition, Mainstream will perform an analytical evaluation of methods of vapor quality management that show potential for integration