Abstract
Manned-spaceship and orbiting stations require light and reliable life-support systems as the crew is subjected to long space periods. Spaceship conditions are regulated by the Environment Control and Life-Support System. Maintaining a breathable and comfortable atmosphere in the spaceship is a critical function of life-support systems. Breathability implies oxygen content maintenance besides continuous dehydration and carbon dioxide removal. Manned-spaceship air dehydration is currently done by a Condensing Heat Exchanger refrigerated with 4 °C Cold-Water from a secondary cooling-loop, which, by its turn, discharges heat to a primary Cold-Ammonia cooling-loop that gets rid of heat through external radiators. The Condensing Heat Exchanger requires a hydrophobic film that loses performance overtime and needs replacement. In this study the supersonic separator is proposed as an alternative microgravity air dehydration device that reduces the heat-load of primary/secondary cooling-loops, dismissing maintenance due to absence of moving parts. Moreover, the supersonic separator is self-cleaning and promotes air sterilization via the supersonic normal shock. Two supersonic separator configurations are compared with the Condensing Heat Exchanger. It is shown that the supersonic separator is a lighter dehydration device, with lower radiator heat-load and lower mass-intensity, despite its slightly increased power consumption.
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