HIGH THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY COMPOSITES FOR THERMAL ENERGY MANAGEMENT

THE ECONOMICS OF LAUNCH COST, COUPLED WITH POWER REQUIREMENTS FOR SPACE BASED WEAPONS SYSTEMS, MANDATE OPTIMIZATION OF THE RATIO OF POWER TO MASS IN SPACE POWER SYSTEMS. A LOW DENSITY, HIGH TEMPERATURE, RADIATION-COMPATIBLE MATERIAL WITH HIGH THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY USED FOR CONSTRUCTION OF THERMAL MANAGEMENT DEVICES WOULD OFFER A SUBSTANTIAL ENHANCEMENT TO THE POWER/MASS RATIO, AND TO THE COST OF DEPLOYMENT OF SPACE NUCLEAR POWER SYSTEMS. THE PROPOSED RESEARCH EFFORT IS TO FABRICATE AND EVALUATE ULTRA-THIN COMPOSITES DESIGNED TO HAVE EXTREMELY HIGH THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY, AND TO OPERATE AT ELEVATED TEMPERATURES IN THE PRESENCE OF OXYGEN. THE BENEFIT OF THE PROPOSED COMPOSITE IS THAT BY EXPLOITING THE HIGH THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY OF A NOVEL CARBON FIBER AND OF DIAMOND, SUBSTANTIAL WEIGHT REDUCTION CAN BE ACHIEVED FOR HEAT REJECTION APPLICATIONS.