Novel Thermal Energy Storage Concept for High Energy Laser Weapon Systems

Laser weapon systems enable unique warfighting capability on modern and next generation fighters but come with substantial thermal management challenges. Thermal loads characterized by high power, low duty cycles cannot be efficiently regulated using existing power and thermal management solutions. In addition, fighters are already thermally limited due to decreased fuel sink available from higher efficiency engines combined with limited interfaces to ambient for survivability. Novel solutions that minimize impacts on air vehicle performance and survivability are therefore needed to address the dynamic loads associated with future laser weapon systems.   The primary objective of the Phase II will be the demonstration of a novel thermal energy storage concept for future laser weapon systems. A rapid prototyping environment will be established enabling quick interchange and reconfiguration of components to enable optimization and direct comparisons against a baseline configuration. The successful completion of the Phase II will provide justification for full scale demonstration in a real-world system in a Phase II Enhancement leading to transition of the concept to DoD and commercial applications in a Phase III.