Optical load thermal control system applied to lunar exploration

Abstract

The invention provides an optical load thermal control system applied to lunar exploration. The optical load thermal control system comprises an optical assembly, an electronics box, a refrigerating unit, a heat pipe network, an externally-attached heat pipe, a heat collection plate and a radiation cooling heat dissipation plate. The optical assembly is installed with the electronics box and the refrigerating unit in a heat insulation mode. The electronics box is mounted on the base and radiates heat to an outer space through the outer surface of the electronics box and the base; the refrigerating unit is directly or indirectly connected with the heat collecting plate through a heat pipe network, the heat collecting plate is connected with the radiation cooling heat dissipation plate through an externally-attached heat pipe, and the radiation cooling heat dissipation plate radiates heat to the outer space. The mutual influence of the optical components, the electronics box and the refrigerator in different temperature index ranges is reduced through a heat insulation installation mode of the optical components, the electronics box and the refrigerator; the dispersed heat of multiple sets of refrigerators is collected to the heat collecting plate through the three-dimensional bent heat pipe network, efficient concentration of the dispersed heat is achieved, and dissipation of the heat of the refrigerators is facilitated.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of spacecraft technology, and in particular to an optical payload thermal control system used in lunar exploration. Background Art

[0002] With the advancement of space technology, humanity's exploration of the Moon continues to intensify. Compared to spacecraft in low-Earth orbit, lunar orbit spacecraft must not only account for solar radiation but also the vastly different infrared radiation levels on the lunar surface. The infrared radiation levels in the illuminated areas of the Moon are much higher than those in the illuminated areas of Earth, while the infrared radiation levels in the shadowed areas of the far side of the Moon are much lower. This significant difference in infrared radiation levels between the illuminated and shadowed areas further increases temperature fluctuations in lunar orbit spacecraft. Furthermore, consideration must be given to the unique space environment, such as lunar eclipses, making thermal control design more challenging.

[0003] The optical components of the infrared optical payload must operate at temperatures between -40°C and -20°C, and must be stored at temperatures between -50°C and 45°C. High temperature consistency and stability are also required. The total heat consumption of the refrigeration unit exceeds 100W, and the temperature during operation cannot exceed 10°C. Dissipating the heat from the dispersed refrigerators without affecting the temperature of the optical components is a difficult problem that needs to be overcome.

[0004] An existing Chinese patent, publication number CN103486784B, discloses a high-power satellite-borne Stirling refrigerator thermal control system, comprising: a compressor and its bracket, an expander and its bracket, a refrigerator mounting base, a compressor bracket heat pipe, a ground-facing heat sink, an expander bracket heat pipe, a sun-facing heat sink, and a loop heat pipe. The lower end face of the compressor bracket is externally bonded to one end of the compressor bracket heat pipe, and the other end of the compressor bracket heat pipe is externally bonded to the ground-facing heat sink for heat conduction. The lower end face of the expander bracket is externally bonded to one end of the expander bracket heat pipe, and the other end of the expander bracket heat pipe is externally bonded to the sun-facing heat sink for heat conduction. The loop heat pipe is thermally bonded to the sun-facing heat sink for heat conduction. This existing patent primarily utilizes externally bonded and loop heat pipes to dissipate heat from a single refrigerator.

[0005] An existing Chinese patent, publication number CN115291458B, discloses a satellite-based camera system with multiple differential power consumption refrigeration units, a combined thermal control method, and a satellite. The system comprises multiple differential power consumption refrigeration units and external heat pipes. The differential power consumption refrigeration units are positioned within a heat sink and connected to one end of the external heat pipes. The external heat pipes extend through the middle surface of the uniform temperature heat pipes. This patent primarily utilizes external heat pipes to transfer heat from the refrigeration units directly to the heat sink.

[0006] An existing Chinese patent, CN101424862A, discloses a temperature-based active thermal control method for a space camera. The method includes left and right heat transfer blocks and a movable heat transfer block. The movable heat transfer block alternately contacts the left and right heat transfer blocks via a telescopic rod's thermal expansion and contraction, thereby changing the heat transfer path. This existing patent primarily utilizes thermal switches to achieve heat transfer in different directions.

[0007] An existing Chinese patent, publication number CN107995825A, discloses a heat pipe-based lightweight cooling system for high-heat-consumption satellite units. The system comprises a heat sink, a high-heat-consumption unit, and embedded heat pipes. The high-heat-consumption unit is mounted on the inner surface of the heat sink, and three embedded heat pipes are installed within the heat sink. This patent primarily utilizes the embedded heat pipes to dissipate heat from the high-heat-consumption unit to a cold space.

[0008] An existing Chinese patent, publication number CN107167774A, discloses a thermal control system for a dual-side-view, high-power, high-heat-flux planar phased array antenna. The system includes a transmitting and receiving chip assembly and a phase-change heat pipe. The transmitting and receiving chip assembly is thermally conductively mounted between the chip assembly and the pre-embedded heat pipe area of ​​the honeycomb panel. The phase-change heat pipe balances the temperature of the transmitting and receiving chip assembly and suppresses temperature rise. This existing patent primarily utilizes the phase-change heat pipe to suppress temperature rise in the chip assembly.

[0009] Therefore, the inventors believe that the thermal control measures in the existing technology are difficult to meet the heat dissipation requirements of high-power low-temperature optical payloads in lunar orbit, and it is necessary to provide a thermal control system that can efficiently collect the heat consumption of dispersed refrigerators and effectively dissipate it. Summary of the Invention

[0010] In view of the defects in the prior art, the purpose of the present invention is to provide an optical payload thermal control system for lunar exploration.

[0011] According to the present invention, an optical payload thermal control system for lunar exploration is provided, comprising an optical component, an electronics box, a refrigeration unit, a heat pipe network, an external heat pipe, a heat collecting plate, and a radiant cooling and heat dissipation plate;

[0012] The optical components are respectively installed with the electronic box and the refrigeration unit in a heat-insulated manner;

[0013] The electronic box is mounted on a base, and radiates heat to the outside space through its outer surface and the base;

[0014] The refrigeration unit is directly or indirectly connected to the heat collecting plate through a heat pipe network, and the heat collecting plate is connected to the radiant cooling heat dissipation plate through an external heat pipe, and the radiant cooling heat dissipation plate radiates heat to the external space.

[0015] Preferably, it further comprises a thermal control component, which comprises a plurality of electric heaters, which are respectively mounted on the optical component, the electronics box, the refrigeration unit and the radiant cooling heat sink.

[0016] Preferably, the heat pipe network includes multiple heat pipe groups, each heat pipe group includes multiple interconnected heat pipes, and the multiple interconnected heat pipes are arranged in parallel to back up each other;

[0017] The internally connected heat pipe is three-dimensionally bent, and the minimum turning radius of the internally connected heat pipe is 40 mm.

[0018] Preferably, the refrigeration unit includes a plurality of refrigerators, and any of the heat pipe groups is correspondingly connected to any refrigerator.

[0019] Preferably, the external heat pipe comprises an Ω-shaped external heat pipe;

[0020] One end of the external heat pipe is mounted on the radial cooling heat sink and is extended and bent multiple times in conformity with the radial cooling heat sink until the other end of the external heat pipe is mounted on the heat collecting plate.

[0021] Preferably, the external heat pipe includes a first heat pipe and a second heat pipe, and the first heat pipe and the second heat pipe serve as backup for each other;

[0022] The first heat pipe is S-shaped and attached to the radiant cooling plate;

[0023] The second heat pipe is U-shaped and attached to the radiation cooling plate.

[0024] Preferably, the refrigeration unit includes multiple groups, and the multiple groups of refrigeration units are divided into a first refrigeration unit and a second refrigeration unit. The first refrigeration unit is directly installed on the heat collecting plate, and the second refrigeration unit is connected to the heat collecting plate through a heat pipe network.

[0025] Preferably, the heat collecting plate includes a first side plate, a second side plate and a middle plate, and the first side plate and the second side plate are respectively arranged on both sides of the middle plate;

[0026] The first side plate, the second side plate and the middle plate are all provided with accommodating grooves, and the heat pipe network is fixed in the accommodating grooves by metal pressing blocks.

[0027] Preferably, the electronic box, refrigeration unit and radiant cooling heat sink are all sprayed with ACR-1g white paint thermal control coating.

[0028] Preferably, the optical component is coated with a multi-layer heat insulation component;

[0029] The radiant cooling and heat dissipation plate is coated with multiple layers of thermal insulation components on the side facing the lunar surface.

[0030] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects:

[0031] 1. The present invention reduces the mutual influence between the optical components, the electronic box and the refrigerator in different temperature index ranges by means of heat-insulating installation of the optical components, the electronic box and the refrigerator;

[0032] 2. The present invention collects the heat from multiple groups of refrigerators onto the heat collecting plate through a three-dimensional curved heat pipe network, achieving efficient concentration of the dispersed heat and facilitating the dissipation of the refrigerator heat;

[0033] 3. The present invention uses multiple Ω-shaped external heat pipes to transfer heat from the heat collecting plate to the radiant cooling plate. The multiple heat pipes serve as backup for each other, thereby improving the reliability of the entire system.

[0034] 4. This invention reduces the impact of lunar infrared radiation on the heat sink temperature by coating the radiant cooling heat sink with multiple layers of insulation on the side facing the lunar surface. A white paint heat dissipation coating is sprayed on the side facing the deep cold space to ensure the heat dissipation efficiency of the heat sink.

[0035] 5. The entire system of the present invention has high reliability and high process feasibility. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0036] Other features, objects and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent upon reading the detailed description of non-limiting embodiments with reference to the following drawings:

[0037] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a high-power low-temperature optical payload system mainly embodied in the present invention;

[0038] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the heat dissipation structure of the refrigeration unit mainly embodied in the present invention;

[0039] Figure 3 This is a schematic structural diagram of the first heat pipe mainly embodied in the present invention;

[0040] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the second heat pipe mainly embodied in the present invention;

[0041] Figure 5 This is a schematic structural diagram of a heat collecting plate mainly embodied in the present invention.

[0042] As shown in the figure:

[0043] Optical components 1 Heat pipe network 5 Heat collecting plate 7

[0044] Electronics box 2 internal heat pipe 501 first side plate 701

[0045] External heat pipe 3 Refrigeration unit 6 Second side plate 702

[0046] First heat pipe 301 First refrigeration unit 601 Middle plate 703

[0047] Second heat pipe 302 Second refrigeration unit 602 Accommodation tank 704

[0048] Radiant cooling plate 4 DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0049] The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to specific embodiments. The following examples will help those skilled in the art to further understand the present invention, but are not intended to limit the present invention in any form. It should be noted that, for those skilled in the art, several changes and improvements can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. These all fall within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0050] like Figures 1 to 2 As shown, the present invention provides an optical payload thermal control system for lunar exploration, including an optical component 1, an electronics box 2, a refrigeration unit 6, a heat pipe network 5, an external heat pipe 3, a heat collecting plate 7 and a radiant cooling heat sink 4. The optical component 1 is thermally insulated from the electronics box 2 and the refrigeration unit 6 respectively. The electronics box 2 is installed on a base. The electronics box 2 radiates heat to the outside space through its own outer surface and the base. The refrigeration unit 6 is directly or indirectly connected to the heat collecting plate 7 through the heat pipe network 5. The heat collecting plate 7 is connected to the radiant cooling heat sink 4 through the external heat pipe 3. The radiant cooling heat sink 4 radiates heat to the outside space.

[0051] The present invention is applied to lunar exploration, wherein the electronics box 2 is a high-power electronics box, the refrigeration unit 6 is a high-power refrigeration unit, and the heat pipe network 5 is preferably a three-dimensional curved φ6 heat pipe network. The optical assembly 1 is thermally insulated from the high-power electronics box and the high-power refrigeration unit, respectively. The optical assembly 1 is coated with a multi-layer thermal insulation assembly. The high-power refrigeration unit collects heat from the three-dimensional curved φ6 heat pipe network onto a heat collecting plate 7. The heat collected from the heat collecting plate 7 is transferred to a radiative cooling heat sink 4 via externally attached heat pipes 3. The radiative cooling heat sink 4 radiates the heat to the outside world through its own heat dissipation surface. The high-power electronics box is mounted on a base, preferably a metal baseplate. The high-power electronics box radiates heat to the outside world through the heat expansion effect of its own outer surface and the metal baseplate. One possible embodiment is: the metal baseplate is preferably a titanium alloy bracket, and the optical assembly 1 and electronics box 2 are mounted on the titanium alloy bracket. The titanium alloy bracket serves as a support structure for the optical assembly 1 and electronics box 2. The optical assembly 1 is positioned above the electronics box 2, with the two mounted thermally insulated.

[0052] Specifically, if Figure 2As shown, the heat pipe network 5 includes multiple groups of heat pipe groups, and any group of heat pipe groups includes multiple internal heat pipes 501. The multiple internal heat pipes 501 are arranged in parallel and back up each other. The internal heat pipes 501 are three-dimensionally curved, and the minimum turning radius of the internal heat pipes 501 is 40mm, which is conducive to the layout of heat pipes in a small space. Preferably, the internal heat pipes 501 are Ø6mm round heat pipes. Each group of heat pipe groups is composed of three to four internal heat pipes 501 in parallel, which back up each other and enhance the reliability of the system. The refrigeration unit 6 includes multiple refrigerators, and any of the heat pipe groups is connected to any refrigerator. One end of a heat pipe group is connected to a refrigerator, and the other end of a heat pipe group is connected to the heat collecting plate 7. The heat pipe group is heat-conductingly installed with the refrigerator and the heat collecting plate 7.

[0053] Specifically, if Figures 2 to 4 As shown, the external heat pipe 3 preferably has an Ω-shaped cross-sectional area. The Ω-shaped external heat pipe 3 has its own heat dissipation fins, which increase its own heat dissipation capacity. One end of the external heat pipe 3 is mounted on the radial cooling heat sink 4 and extends and bends multiple times in contact with the radial cooling heat sink 4 until the other end of the external heat pipe 3 is mounted on the heat collecting plate 7. The external heat pipes 3 include multiple external heat pipes 3, and the multiple external heat pipes 3 serve as backup for each other. A feasible implementation method is to use two Ω-shaped external heat pipes 3 with a diameter of 10mm×50mm to connect the heat collecting plate 7 and the radial cooling heat sink 4. Both ends of each external heat pipe 3 are thermally conductively mounted. The two external heat pipes 3 serve as backup for each other, enhancing system reliability. One feasible implementation is as follows: the external heat pipe 3 includes a first heat pipe 301 and a second heat pipe 302, which serve as backups for each other; the first heat pipe 301 is arranged in an S-shaped orientation and attached to the radiant cooling heat sink 4, while the second heat pipe 302 is arranged in a U-shaped orientation and attached to the radiant cooling heat sink 4. It should be noted that the orientation of the external heat pipe 3 on the radiant cooling heat sink 4 is not fixed. The orientation of the external heat pipe 3 on the radiant cooling heat sink 4 is designed to improve the ability of the external heat pipe 3 to transfer heat to the radiant cooling heat sink 4, while rapidly dissipating the heat, increasing the heat exchange path and improving heat dissipation efficiency.

[0054] Specifically, the refrigeration unit 6 includes multiple groups, which are divided into a first refrigeration unit 6016 and a second refrigeration unit 6026. The first refrigeration unit 6016 is directly installed on the heat collecting plate 7, and the second refrigeration unit 6026 is connected to the heat collecting plate 7 through the heat pipe network 5. A feasible implementation is: Figure 2 As shown, the refrigeration units 6 include five groups, and the installation positions of the five refrigeration units 6 are dispersed. Two of the refrigeration units 6 are directly installed on the heat collecting plate 7, and the other three refrigeration units 6 are connected to the heat collecting plate 7 through three groups of heat pipe groups.

[0055] Specifically, if Figure 5As shown, the heat collecting plate 7 is U-shaped and is preferably made of aluminum-based silicon carbide material with high thermal conductivity. The heat collecting plate 7 includes a first side plate 701, a second side plate 702, and a middle plate 703. The first and second side plates 701, 702 are respectively arranged on either side of the middle plate 703. The first, second, and middle plates 701, 702, 703 are all made of aluminum-based silicon carbide material with high thermal conductivity. The first and second side plates 701, 702, and middle plate 703 are each provided with a receiving groove 704, and the heat pipe network 5 is fixed in the receiving groove 704 by a metal pressing block.

[0056] Specifically, the electronics box 2, refrigeration unit 6, and radiant cooling plate 4 are all sprayed with ACR-1g white paint thermal control coating. The optical component 1 is entirely covered with multi-layer thermal insulation components, and the radiant cooling plate 4 is covered with multi-layer thermal insulation components on the side facing the lunar surface.

[0057] Specifically, it also includes a thermal control component, which includes multiple electric heaters. The multiple electric heaters are respectively installed on the optical component 1, the electronic box 2, the refrigeration unit 6 and the radiant cooling plate 4. The electric heaters are used to maintain the temperature level of the load when it is not working.

[0058] The present invention collects the heat of multiple groups of scattered refrigeration units 6 onto the heat collecting plate 7 through a three-dimensional curved Φ6 heat pipe network, thereby achieving efficient concentration of scattered heat and facilitating the dissipation of heat from the refrigeration unit 6; through the thermal insulation installation method, the mutual influence between the optical component 1 and the electronic box 2 and the refrigeration unit 6 with different temperature index ranges is reduced; two Ω-shaped external heat pipes 3 are used to transfer the heat of the heat collecting plate 7 to the radiant cooling heat sink 4, and the two heat pipes serve as backup for each other, thereby improving the reliability of the entire system; the radiant cooling heat sink 4 is coated with a multi-layer thermal insulation component on the side facing the lunar surface, thereby reducing the influence of the lunar infrared radiation on the temperature of the radiant cooling heat sink 4, and the radiant cooling heat sink 4 is sprayed with a white paint heat dissipation coating on the side facing the deep cold space, thereby ensuring the heat dissipation efficiency of the radiant cooling heat sink 4; the entire system has high reliability and high process feasibility.

[0059] The thermal control system of the present invention has strong adaptability and good temperature control effect. The temperatures of the optical component 1 and the refrigeration unit 6 meet the index requirements. After applying this application, the following substantial progress has been achieved:

[0060] 1. In lunar orbit, when the payload is operating for a long time, the maximum temperature of the optical component 1 is -21.7°C, meeting the index requirement of not exceeding -20°C; the maximum temperature of the refrigeration unit 6 is 5.2°C, meeting the index requirement of not exceeding 25°C.

[0061] 2. In lunar orbit, when the payload is not working for a long time, the lowest temperature of the optical component 1 is -45.2°C, meeting the index requirement of not less than -50°C; the lowest temperature of the refrigeration unit 6 is -45.2°C, meeting the index requirement of not less than -50°C.

[0062] In the description of this application, it should be understood that the terms "up", "down", "front", "back", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inside", "outside", etc., indicating the orientation or position relationship, are based on the orientation or position relationship shown in the accompanying drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing this application and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as a limitation on this application.

[0063] The above describes specific embodiments of the present invention. It should be understood that the present invention is not limited to the specific embodiments described above, and those skilled in the art may make various changes or modifications within the scope of the claims, which do not affect the essence of the present invention. The embodiments of this application and the features in the embodiments may be combined with each other in any manner unless there is a conflict.

Claims

1. An optical payload thermal control system for lunar exploration, characterized in that: It includes an optical component (1), an electronic box (2), a refrigeration unit (6), a heat pipe network (5), an external heat pipe (3), a heat collecting plate (7) and a radiant cooling plate (4); The optical component (1) is thermally insulated from the electronic box (2) and the refrigeration unit (6); The electronic box (2) is mounted on a base, and the electronic box (2) radiates heat to the outside space through its own outer surface and the base; The refrigeration unit (6) is directly or indirectly connected to the heat collecting plate (7) via a heat pipe network (5); the heat collecting plate (7) is connected to the radiative cooling heat dissipation plate (4) via an external heat pipe (3); and the radiative cooling heat dissipation plate (4) radiates heat to the outside space via its own heat dissipation surface.

2. The optical payload thermal control system for lunar exploration according to claim 1, characterized in that: It also includes a thermal control component, which includes a plurality of electric heaters, and the plurality of electric heaters are respectively installed on the optical component (1), the electronics box (2), the refrigeration unit (6) and the radiant cooling plate (4).

3. The optical payload thermal control system for lunar exploration according to claim 1, wherein: The heat pipe network (5) includes multiple heat pipe groups, each heat pipe group includes multiple internally connected heat pipes (501), and the multiple internally connected heat pipes (501) are arranged in parallel to serve as backup for each other; The internally connected heat pipe (501) is three-dimensionally curved, and the minimum turning radius of the internally connected heat pipe (501) is 40 mm.

4. The optical payload thermal control system for lunar exploration according to claim 3, characterized in that: The refrigeration unit (6) includes a plurality of refrigerators, and any of the heat pipe groups is correspondingly connected to any of the refrigerators.

5. The optical payload thermal control system for lunar exploration according to claim 1, wherein: The external heat pipe (3) comprises an Ω-shaped external heat pipe; One end of the external heat pipe (3) is mounted on the radiant cooling heat dissipation plate (4) and is extended and bent multiple times in contact with the radiant cooling heat dissipation plate (4) until the other end of the external heat pipe (3) is mounted on the heat collecting plate (7).

6. The optical payload thermal control system for lunar exploration according to claim 5, characterized in that: The external heat pipe (3) comprises a first heat pipe (301) and a second heat pipe (302), wherein the first heat pipe (301) and the second heat pipe (302) serve as backup for each other; The first heat pipe (301) is in an S-shaped direction and is attached to the radiant cooling plate (4); The second heat pipe (302) is U-shaped and attached to the radiant cooling plate (4).

7. The optical payload thermal control system for lunar exploration according to claim 1, wherein: The refrigeration unit (6) includes multiple groups, and the multiple groups of refrigeration units are divided into a first refrigeration unit (601) and a second refrigeration unit (602). The first refrigeration unit (601) is directly installed on the heat collecting plate, and the second refrigeration unit (602) is connected to the heat collecting plate (7) through a heat pipe network (5).

8. The optical payload thermal control system for lunar exploration according to claim 1, wherein: The heat collecting plate comprises a first side plate (701), a second side plate (702) and a middle plate (703), wherein the first side plate (701) and the second side plate (702) are respectively arranged on both sides of the middle plate (703); The one side plate (701), the second side plate (702) and the middle plate (703) are all provided with a receiving groove (704), and the heat pipe network (5) is fixed in the receiving groove (704) by a metal pressing block.

9. The optical payload thermal control system for lunar exploration according to claim 1, wherein: The electronic box (2), the refrigeration unit (6) and the radiant cooling plate (4) are all sprayed with an ACR-1g white paint thermal control coating.

10. The optical payload thermal control system for lunar exploration according to claim 1, wherein: The optical component (1) is coated with a multi-layer heat insulation component; The radiant cooling and heat dissipation plate (4) is coated with a multi-layer heat insulation component on the side facing the lunar surface.

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