Passive PCB-Mounted Thermal Switch

One inner insulative layer, and one outer robust ablative layer comprise the AMTPS technology. When applying the heat shield to the surface of a spacecraft, the insulative layer is printed first and primarily functions to reduce the amount of heat soak into the vehicle. The formulation of the insulative layer has a slightly lower density (as compared to the robust layer) and is adjusted using a differing constituent ratio of phenolic and/or glass microballoon material. Both formulations combine a phenolic resin with various fillers to control pre- and post-cure properties that can be adjusted by varying the carbon and/or glass fiber content along with rheology modifiers to enhance the fluid flow for deposition systems. The robust layer is applied next and functions as the ablative layer that ablates away or vaporizes when subjected to extremely high temperatures such as those achieved during atmospheric entry. The formulation of the robust layer produces a gas layer as it vaporizes in the extreme heat that acts as a boundary layer. This boundary prevents heat from further penetrating the remaining robust material by pushing away the even hotter shock layer. The shock layer is a region of super-heated compressed gas, positioned in front of the Earth-facing bottom of the spacecraft during atmospheric entry, that results from the supersonic shockwave generated. Commercial space applications for this AMTPS technology include use on any spacecraft that transits a planetary or lunar atmosphere such as Mars or Saturn’s moon Titan. Additionally, the invention may be useful for launch system rockets to provide heat shielding from atmospheric reentry or to protect ground equipment on the launch pad from rocket exhaust plumes. As the number of government and commercial space missions to primary Earth orbits, the Moon, and the Solar System increase, there will be a growing need for cost-effective, on-demand, and timely fabrication of heat shields for space-related activities. AMTPS Formulations – Insulative and Robust Variation is at a technology readiness level (TRL) 5 (component and/or breadboard validation in laboratory environment) and is now available for patent licensing. Please note that NASA does not manufacture products itself for commercial sale.

The Thermal Ejecta Shielding System comprises strategically layered materials that fasten to the top of a Li-ion cylindrical battery pack casing. It can protect individual battery cells in a battery pack by shielding them from a neighboring cell’s hot thermal ejecta during a TR event while providing primary functions of connecting, insulating, grounding, and distributing power. In laboratory testing, this technology improved the resistance to TR collateral damage of a PPR battery pack by overcoming two primary drawbacks of its design. Modern Li-ion cylindrical battery cell packs comprise a nickel bus plate that aligns with and connects the positive buttons along the battery tops to distribute power. Insulating G10 composite layers sandwich the bus plate atop the cells, however, these are rendered vulnerable to burn-through during a TR event due to their thinness, and they can allow escaping thermal ejecta to penetrate the button cavities of neighboring battery cells within the battery pack. Additionally, the nickel and composite bussing layering is prone to separation, or "tenting", when subjected to extreme heat, as it relies solely on an adhesive bond to prevent delamination. The hot ejecta spray stemming from a battery cell undergoing a TR event can weaken this adhesive bond. These issues can lead to adjacent battery cell damage resulting in their reduced performance, zero-voltage, or susceptibility to a larger TR event. The Thermal Ejecta Shielding System for Li-ion Battery Packs was developed from a multi-pronged strategy to improve upon the drawbacks by introducing these novel components and accompanying features: • Capture Plate Cell “Chimney” - Redirects ablative ejecta away from adjacent cells and creates a volume for liquid “sealer” protection; • Adhesively Backed Mica Cell Donut - Provides an insulative layer to protect the positive bus plate from creating a short circuit to the negative cell can during TR; • Adhesive Transfer Tape - Provides an adhesive layer for a more uniform/reproducible bond between the nickel bussing, mica, the G10/FR4 insulating layer, and the aluminum layers; • Continuous Mica Cell Cover Sheet - Replaces individually installed mica covers (upper layer of G10/FR4) with a single sheet of perforated mica; • Rupture Sheet Cover Plate - Introduces a thin aluminum fastener plate above the Continuous Mica Cell Cover Sheet to prevent delamination of bussing sandwich layers; • Narrowed Bus Plate Tab - Introduces a narrowed tab to allow for unrestricted header expansion and severing/separation during TR; • Steel Ring - Protects cell from spin groove ruptures and redirects ablative ejecta away from adjacent cells; and • Liquid Cell Covers - Introduces a high temperature liquid “sealer” to fill the void between cell button and mica cover to prevent ejecta burn-through from compromising the seal.

The Multilayered Fire Protection system uses technology from the space craft flexible heat shield for future planetary missions. By optimizing this material for the fire environment, utilizing heat shield test methods, and experimenting with different materials, the NASA team developed a multilayered fire protection system. This system includes an outer textile layer which reflects over 90 percent of the radiant heat, an insulated layer which protects against convective heat and hot gases, and a non-porous film layer which is a gas barrier layer.

There has been much interest in developing polymeric nanocomposites with ultrahigh thermal conductivities, such as with exfoliated graphite or with carbon nanotubes. These materials exhibit thermal conductivity of 3,000 W/mK measured experimentally and up to 6,600 W/mK predicted from theoretical calculations. However, when added to polymers, the expected thermal conductivity enhancement is not realized due to poor interfacial thermal transfer. This technology is a method of forming carbon-based fillers to be incorporated into highly thermal conductive nanocomposite materials. Formation methods include treatment of an expanded graphite with an alcohol/water mixture followed by further exfoliation of the graphite to form extremely thin carbon nanosheets that are on the order of between about 2 and about 10 nanometers in thickness. The carbon nanosheets can be functionalized and incorporated as fillers in polymer nanocomposites with extremely high thermal conductivities.

The Cryostat-500 provides laboratory measurement of the steady-state thermal transmission properties of thermal insulation systems under conditions below ambient temperature. Liquid nitrogen is used as a direct measure of the energy going through the test specimen. Thermal insulation systems may be composed of one or more materials that may be homogeneous or non-homogeneous at boundary conditions from 77 K to 373 K and in environments from high vacuum (10E-7 torr) to ambient pressure (10E+3 torr). The Cryostat-500 provides a much wider range of thermal performance and covers the full range of environmental conditions for applications below ambient temperature. The instrument has been proven through extensive testing of foams, composite panels, multilayer insulation (MLI) systems, aerogel blankets, fiberglass, and many other types of materials. Both the quality and quantity of the thermal performance data for insulation materials and systems have increased even as the process and method has become more time efficient and cost effective. Further guidelines on the test method and equipment for the Cryostat-500 are given in ASTM C1774, Annex A3.