METAL HYDRIDE THERMAL MANAGEMENT TECHNIQUES FOR FUTURE SPACECRAFT AND PLANETARY BASES

METAL HYDRIDES ARE UNIQUELY CONTROLLABLE PHASE-CHANGE MATERIALS WITH THE POTENTIAL TO CONTROL AND USE HEAT IN FUTURE SPACE THERMAL ENERGY CONTROL SYSTEMS. HYDRIDES MANIPULATE HEAT WHILE CHEMICALLY ABSORBING AND DESORBING HYDROGEN OVER A BROAD RANGE OF TEMPERATURES. THE PHASE-CHANGES ARE CONTROLLABLE BY VALVING THE THE FLOW OF HYDROGEN, FROM ONE HYDRIDE TO ANOTHER, REGARDLESS OF TEMPERATURE. THE UNUSUAL CAPABILITIES OF HYDRIDE HEAT PUMPS, REFRIGERATORS AND THERMAL STORAGE DEVICES, RESULT FROM THE ABILITY OF THE GAS PHASE, HYDROGEN, TO "VAPORIZE" IN ONE HYDRIDE CONTAINER AND "CONDENSE" IN ANOTHER, AT VASTLY DIFFERENT TEMPERATURES, WITHOUT THE NEED FOR A COMPRESSOR. THIS PERMITS NOVEL HEAT COLLECTION, TRANSFER, STORAGE AND REJECTION STRATEGIES THAT ARE NOT FEASIBLE WITH OTHER PHASE-CHANGE MATERIALS. EXTREMELY HIGH THERMAL ENERGY DENSITIES CAN BE ACHIEVED, ESPECIALLY IN HIGH TEMPERATURE THERMAL STORAGE DEVICES. INTERMITTANT HEAT LOADS CAN ALSO UTILIZE THE UNIQUE PROPERTIES OF METAL HYDRIDES FOR ULTRA-COMPACT HEAT PIPES THAT COLLECT AND BUFFER PEAK HEAT LOADS. THIS PROPOSAL OFFERS A DETAILED EXAMINATION OF METAL HYDRIDEALTERNATIVES FOR FUTURE SPACE THERMAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS. THE RESULTS OF THE EFFORT WOULD BE PRELIMINARY DESIGNS WITH ESTIMATES OF MASS, VOLUME AND POWER REQUIREMENTS, FOR COMPARISON TO ALTERNATIVE CONCEPTS.