Abstract
Mercury orbiter mission study results have shown that conventional silicon solar cell array technology is not adequate to produce power because of expected temperatures which range from - 90°C to + 285°C in about 50 min for 16 sun eclipses per day. The solar thermoelectric generator (STG), which requires relatively high temperatures, is being developed as a replacement power source. Several thermoelectric technologies (i.e., lead telluride alloys, bismuth telluride, copper and gadolynium selenide, and silicon-germanium alloys) have been examined for their suitability. Solar concentrator configurations (i.e., flat plate, Fresnel lens, compound parabolic, and Cassegrain types) were also studied as candidates for increasing incident radiation during Mercury orbital operations. Detailed results are presented, and show that an STG design based on the use of silicon-germanium alloy thermoelectric material and using high-voltage thermopiles with individual minicompound parabolic concentrators presents the optimum combination of technology and configuration for minimizing power source mass.
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