A nonventing cooling system for space environment extravehicular activity, using radiation and regenerable thermal storage

Abstract

This paper outlines the selection, design, and testing of a prototype nonventing regenerable astronaut cooling system for extravehicular activity space suit applications, for mission durations of four hours or greater. The selected system consists of the following key elements: a radiator assembly which serves as the exterior shell of the portable life support subsystem backpack; a layer of phase change thermal storage material, n-hexadecane paraffin, which acts as a regenerable thermal capacitor; a thermoelectric heat pump; and an automatic temperature control system. The capability for regeneration of thermal storage capacity with and without the aid of electric power is provided.