Cooling process analysis using the energy-flow-diagram method for the complex heat dissipation network with a typical space station cabin

Abstract

The large thermal inertia, multiple mass storage links, and various heat dissipation modes will seriously affect the cooling process for complex spacecraft. The energy-flow-diagram method can reflect the flow relationship between each link, so this method is first applied in the thermal analysis of spacecraft to explore the proportion of heat transfer allocation between structures in this paper. Taking the “Tianhe” space station as an example, the heat transfer mode and flow direction in the process from heat source to cold source are analyzed, and then the thermal dynamic model of each link is established. According to the above model, the heat transfer and proportion of different heat transfer modes between sections can be obtained, and then the heat flow diagram of the spacecraft can be drawn. Finally, the heat flow distribution under typical instantaneous, full orbital periods and other working conditions is studied. The results show that the instantaneous heat absorption can reach 1.63 kW in the sunlit region and the instantaneous heat release can reach 2.26 kW in the shadow region. According to the transient heat flow in the sunlit region, only 5.18 kW of the 10 kW heat in the cabin is discharged, and nearly half of the energy is stored in the system. When the areal density of the radiator exceeds 11(kg/m2), the heat storage of the radiator will not be obvious. For pulsed heat consumption, when the proportion of high load time is between 0.5 and 0.7, the system shows a good heat transfer effect. In this paper, the analysis of heat flow distribution among spacecraft structures and the energy difference and time difference between heat source and cold source provide an important basis for spacecraft thermal management and optimization.