SR-978

LIGHT-WEIGHT STRUCTURAL MATERIALS WITH INTEGRAL RADIATION SHIELDING, THERMAL CONTROL AND ELECTRONICS

Prakash B. Joshi, Alan H. Gelb, Mark R. Malonson, Eric J. Lund, and B. David Green Physical Sciences Inc., Andover, MA

Edward Silverman TRW, El Segundo, CA

Elizabeth T. Shinn Air Force Research Laboratory, Materials Laboratory, Wright-Patterson AFB, OH

Edward R. Long NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, VA

Presented at the 44th International SAMPE Symposium and Exhibition May 23-27, 1999 Long Beach, CA

Copyright 1999 by Physical Sciences Inc.

Published by Society for the Advancement of Material and Process Engineering with permission.

Reprinted by permission from the Society for the Advancement of Material and Process Engineering (SAMPE). Please contact SAMPE regarding permission to copy or republish.

LIGHT-WEIGHT STRUCTURAL MATERIALS WITH INTEGRAL RADIATION SHIELDING, THERMAL CONTROL AND ELECTRONICS
Prakash B. Joshi, Alan H. Gelb, Mark R. Malonson, Eric J. Lund, and B. David Green Physical Sciences Inc. Andover, MA Edward Silverman TRW El Segundo, CA Elizabeth T. Shinn Air Force Research Laboratory, Materials Laboratory Wright-Patterson AFB, OH Edward R. Long NASA Langley Research Center Hampton, VA

ABSTRACT
This paper describes a feasibility investigation for developing structural composite materials with integrated active thermal control and control system electronics for space applications. The materials were also designed to provide mass-effective shielding against space radiation. Graphite-epoxy composites with integrated variable emissivity solid state electrochromic tiles and impregnated with materials for enhanced radiation shielding were fabricated. The tiles were electrically connected to a Kapton panel which was bonded to the composite and incorporated conductor traces for electronics. Key emissivity, radiation (proton) attenuation, and mechanical property measurements were made on the integrated composite structure. Limited variable emissivity performance was demonstrated in the laboratory. Proton attenuation through the materials agreed well with design predictions. Preliminary measurements in flexure tests show high values of tensile strength and modulus for the integrated composite. The failure was initiated by cracking of the electrochromic tiles. The emissivity modulation range, mechanical ruggedness, and radiation attenuation per unit mass of the integrated composite can be improved by using thin-film conductive polymer electrochromics currently under development. KEY WORDS: Multifunctional Structures, Variable Emissivity Thermal Control, LightWeight-Space Radiation Shielding
Copyright 1999 by Physical Sciences Inc. Published by Society for the Advancement of Material and Process Engineering with permission.

1. INTRODUCTION
1.1 Multifunctional Composite Structures In recent years the trend in spacecraft design has been towards smaller, lighter, higher performance satellites with sophisticated payloads and instrumentation. The satellites use smaller launch vehicles, so they need to be packaged in a weight and volume constrained design. Over the past 25 years, lightweight, composite materials have been increasingly used to reduce the structural weight and volume of satellite components. However, concentrating solely on structural mass reduction does not lead to further lowering of spacecraft mass because the structure typically represents as little as 10 to 15% of the total mass. Miniaturization of avionics per se further reduces mass, but not the large parasitic mass associated with avionics containers, cables, structural support of packaged avionics, or connectors. These parasitic components can contribute as much as 50% of the mass of the spacecraft. Therefore, innovative electronics packaging concepts that are light-weight, reliable, and achieve smaller area and volume, must be developed. One solution to the above problem is to design structural elements of a spacecraft with multiple functions, or multifunctional structures (MFS). It is envisioned that the subsystem functions and components, such as thermal control, cabling associated with the command and data handling system, and perhaps even solid state batteries, can be integrated into the load bearing structure. Printed circuits can also be laminated integrally into the structural composite face sheets or panels. This approach, coupled with higher density electronics packaging technology, can substantially reduce the overall weight and volume of small satellites. The challenge is to accomplish this integration of multiple functions/components into the spacecraft structure at an affordable cost. During the work presented in this paper, we investigated the integration of electrochromic devices (tiles) and associated electronics for active thermal control into graphite-epoxy composites. Radiation shielding properties were incorporated by taking advantage of the attenuation through the electrochromic tile and the graphite composite. 1.2 Space Radiation Shielding The Earths radiation environment consists of Van Allen radiation belts composed of protons and electrons. These charged particles span a wide spectrum of energies, from tens of KeV to tens of MeV for electrons and from hundreds of keV to hundreds of MeV for protons. The fluxes of these particles also vary greatly depending upon altitude, latitude, and solar activity. The charged particles, especially protons, are also produced in great quantities during solar flare events. High energy protons and electrons penetrate spacecraft materials and systems, depositing some or all of their energy, as the craft orbits around the Earth or traverses interplanetary space. This energy deposition can cause detrimental short-term and long-term effects on space system components - in particular, electronics. Space electronics systems employ enclosures to shield sensitive components from space radiation. The purpose of shielding is to attenuate the energy of charged particles as they pass through the shield material, such that the energy per unit mass (or dose) absorbed in silicon is sufficiently below the maximum dose ratings of electronic components. The standard practice in space hardware is the use of aluminum as both a radiation shield and structural enclosure. Depending on mission altitude and inclination, and the dose rating of electronics, the thickness of aluminum necessary for shielding can substantially exceed that required for structural strength, resulting in significant weight penalties. To reduce the structural weight, satellite designers use composite materials which have higher strength-to-weight ratios than aluminum. However, conventional graphite epoxy composites

are not as efficient shielding materials as aluminum because of their lower density, that is, for the same mass, composites provide 30 to 40% less radiation attenuation than aluminum. Conversely, for the same radiation attenuation, the composites tend to be 30 to 40% thicker than aluminum. 1.3 Space Systems Thermal Control All spacecraft components have prescribed operational temperature ranges. The temperature ranges can be rather wide, -25 to 60C for passive electronics, or rather narrow, 5 to 40C for batteries, depending on the component. The objective of thermal control is to maintain the temperature distribution in the interior of a system, typically electronics, within certain limits to insure operation, survival, and long-term reliability. The designer selects coatings for the exposed surfaces with desired optical properties, resistance heaters, heat pipes to conduct away the heat, conductive couplings at mounting interfaces, and radiators to reject heat to space. Temperatures of exposed surfaces of the spacecraft and the heat rejected by radiator surfaces can be controlled using variable emissivity materials. Active thermal control with variable emissivity coatings also eliminates the need for bulky and heavy mechanical louvers for emissivity control, thus saving weight and volume of spacecraft systems. By reducing temperature swings, the variable emissivity coatings allow the use of commercial grade components (which have a smaller operating temperature range) rather than military grade parts in payloads. The severity of space qualification thermal testing which stresses and weakens the components prior to flight is substantially reduced. The result is reduction in development costs, improved longevity and higher reliability of on-orbit operations. 1.4 Electrochromic Materials We describe briefly the basic features of electrochromic (EC) materials and devices which make them attractive for thermal control applications. ECs possess the remarkable ability to change their optical properties (e.g., transmissivity) under the action of a voltage pulse. This change is reversible, i.e., the direction of change can be reversed by reversing voltage polarity. Furthermore, the optical property change is accomplished in a "pulse-and-latch" manner, that is, the voltage (typically less than 5 V) needs to be applied transiently to change the state of the material and continuous application of potential to maintain that state is not necessary. The power required for the change of state is minimal, on the order of a few milliwatts, depending upon the time interval over which the change is desired. Normally, time intervals on the order of hundreds of seconds will be adequate for spacecraft thermal control applications. There are several types of EC materials. We concern ourselves here with a tungsten oxide-based EC, the so-called solid state EC (SSEC). An EC "material" in actuality consists of layers of several materials. However, the optical properties are dominated by a single layer, e.g., tungsten oxide (WO3), in the example to follow. The EC layers can be created by several techniques such as evaporation, sputter-deposition, etc. The total thickness of EC layers is typically on the order of 1 to 2 m. A schematic of a WO3-based EC device is shown in Figure 1. The EC device consists of five layers, shown schematically in the figure. The outer layers, TC1 and TC2 (typically, indium tin oxide), are transparent electron conductors and act as the cell electrodes. The IC layer (such as LiNbO3) is an ionic conductor and electronic insulator. It is the cell electrolyte. In some cases, the electrolyte can be a polymer. The EC2 layer (such as LiCoO2) stores the ions for doping the electrochromically active layer, EC1, composed of WO3. The cell functions as follows. A small voltage difference is imposed between the TC1 and TC2 layers. Current flows via ionic conduction through the cell. The electrolyte layer, IC, composed of LiNbO3, transports lithium ions between EC1 and EC2. The EC2 layer is a layered oxide such as LiCoO2 which supplies the lithium ions. It is the injection and ejection of lithium ions to and

Figure 1. Basic features of an EC device with typical materials [courtesy Reference (1)]. from the EC1 layer that varies the optical properties. The EC1 layer is composed of WO3. In its unlithiated state, it is highly transmitting at visible and infrared wavelengths. In its lithiated state, as LixWO3, it is highly reflecting at these wavelengths. Thus, by adjusting the transmissivity of the EC cell against a high emittance background, one can construct a variable emissivity devive. In our work, we employed tungsten oxide based ECs sandwiched between glass and germanium substrates, with the germanium (which is transparent in LWIR) coated with low solar absorptivity coatings facing space. The EC devices are electrically simple, with two electrodes across which bias voltage is applied. In an active thermal control system comprising numerous EC devices, an intelligent electronic system will be required to sense temperature distribution on a surface and control voltages on individual EC devices. The electronics must be miniature and integrable with the composite structure. 1.5 Electronics Embedding in Composite Structures Miniaturization and compact packaging of electronics is key to light-weight space avionics systems. Technologies such as ASICs, High Density Interconnects, hybridization, etc. have been developing at a rapid pace in recent years. Miniaturization can be prohibitively expensive unless high production volumes are anticipated. One of the growing trends in modern electronics, both commercial and space is to use flexible circuit boards instead of the rigid G10 or similar materials. This allows the board to be flexed and shaped as desired to conform with other hardware. Flexible ribbons cables, accordian-like stacking of stiff boards connected by flex panels are quite common in electronics today. While embedding conductor traces between layers of flexible material such as kapton can be readily done, mounting of electronic components onto a flex panel is not, especially on a multilayer kapton flex board. For the work described in this paper, we selected to embed conductor traces within a kapton epoxy.

2. COMPOSITE MATERIAL DESIGN

2.1 Radiation Shielding Design: General Considerations This paper concerns the technology of composite materials with integral space radiation shielding, active thermal control elements, and their control electronics. Given the current trend toward commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) components, the orbital lifetime of space systems is substantially reduced since these components are not designed for high radiation tolerance. Therefore, systems with COTS electronics require enclosures whose mass is determined by substantial shielding requirements, rather than structural requirements. Thus, significant weight penalties can result when shielding space systems that use COTS electronics and operate in high radiation environments. Our shielding technology is particularly effective in minimizing these weight penalties.

Another attractive feature of our shielding techniques is its multifunctionality. The same metallic components embedded in composites for radiation attentuation can also provide greater thermal and electrical conductivity to the materials, thus providing thermal control and EMI shielding capabilities as well as reducing effecs of space systems charging on orbit. The materials can also readily incorporate surface treatments necessary for protecting against the space environment; for example, atomic oxygen and solar ultraviolet radiation. The processes of how charged particles interact with matter and lose their energy during passage through materials has been described by the classical theory of Bethe (2). From the theory it can be shown that to minimize mass of the shield, low atomic number (low-z) elements are most effective on per unit mass basis. If it is necessary to reduce the thickness of the shield, then high atomic number (high-z) elements are most effective on per unit thickness basis. The recent practice of replacing aluminum with composites for reducing structural mass fraction of spacecraft offers the possibility of taking advantage of the composites inherently low-z composition (hydrogen, carbon, and other elements) for mass-efficient radiation shielding. Therefore, the key aspect of our shielding materials is to select the formulation of the matrix (e.g., epoxy in graphite [carbon fiber]-epoxy composites) such that low-z components are maximized. Depending on the severity of the charged particle environment, the dose rating of the electronics, and the required degree of attenuation, the thickness of a purely graphite-epoxy shield can be 40% greater than aluminum. In some applications, this increase in thickness may not be acceptable. Our shielding technique reduces the thickness by embedding high-z materials into the epoxy formulation. The physical form and atomic number range of the high-z material is determined by the desired degree of attenuation and shield mass reduction relative to aluminum. The shielding design approach allows the composite materials to be tailored to the given charged environment and internal dose for the electronics. The design involves tradeoffs among shield mass, thickness, internal dose, and mechanical and other properties. Several formulations of graphite-epoxy composites were designed and fabricated into plates equivalent to 125 mils of aluminum in radiation attenuation. The designs were based on models developed at Physical Sciences Inc. (PSI) for attenuation of proton and electron energies as the particles traversed and interacted with the shield materials. The epoxy formulation used in graphite composites consists of a low outgassing, highhydrogen-content resin with very low viscosity to allow higher possible loading of embedding materials. Graphite fibers were introduced into the resin, 40% fibers to 60% epoxy by volume. Mid- to high-z elements or compounds were added to the epoxy. Percent loading is defined as the weight of additive to the total weight of the additive plus epoxy mixture. Several 15.2 x 15.2 cm plates of graphite-epoxy shields were fabricated. 2.2 Mechanical and Thermal Control Design We now discuss the mechanical and thermal control design approach. For a structure concept, we selected a rectangular rib stiffened panel due to its simplicity, ease of fabrication, and low cost. The rectangular grid was also compatible with the square EC tiles which were selected subsequently for thermal control due to their ready availability. To develop an integrated material concept with the above attributes, we started with the graphite-epoxy composite which was then impregnated with appropriate additives to enhance radiation shielding as described earlier. To impart variable emissivity to the space facing surface of this material, we seleted solid state EC (SSEC) tiles being developed by EIC Laboratories, Norwood, MA. We envisioned the electronics to control the tiles to be located on the back surface of the core composite, with electrical conductors passing through holes drilled into the composite. The conductor traces

connecting various electronics are encapsulated within a thin kapton layer in our concept. Surface-mount electronic components are soldered to this flexible kapton panel and the panel is adhesively bonded to the back surface of the composite. The rib stiffened panel and the integrated material concept are illustrated in Figure 2.

(a) Square rib-stiffened structure

(b) Integrated material

Figure 2. Integrated material and rib-stiffened structure concept. The material concept shows one method of enhancing radiation shielding, in this case an expanded copper mesh. The mesh allows the epoxy to seep through, providing good bonding for shear strength. The SSEC tiles, as described later, incorporate fairly thick germanium and glass substrates which contribute to additional radiation shielding. The aluminum ribs provide stiffness as well as radiation shielding between adjacent tiles. These multifunctional aspects of our material/structure design concept are listed in Table 1. Table 1. Functional Contributions of Various Layers/Components of Integrate Material
Function Layer/ Component  Graphiteepoxy


ThickStructural ness* Strength/ (mm) Stiffness 6 Yes 0.075

Cu mesh layer(s)

Kapton flex circuit panel with pins  Aluminum ribs

 

0.25

Thermal/ Radiation Electrical Emissivity Electrical Attenuation Conductivity Control Connectivity Yes, mass- In-plane Yes, through efficiency holes Bonding Protons, In-plane, crossthrough open electron thickness areas for shear conductivity strength possible with proper design Yes

1.60

Stiffness

EC tiles

1.60

Yes, between tiles Yes, Ge and glass

Yes

Electrical Yes components *Total thickness 7.92 mm selected to transmit <5 krad dose in 2000 x 500 km orbit.

An example of the infrared reflectance range of an SSEC variable emittance device is shown in Figure 3. In the 8 to 12 m range, the reflectance varies from ~15 to 45% for a switching voltage of 1 V. Since transmittance equals (1-reflectance), the data in Figure 3 would indicate emissivity changes of about 0.85 to 0.6 in switching from -1 V to +1 V. 2.3 Control System Electronics Design The design concept for the active control of ECs is shown in Figure 3. Normal Reflectance range of a variable emissivity device fabricated with polymer lithium Figure 4. The operation of the control ion conducting electrolyte (EIC Laboratories system is quite simple. It incorporates data). a microprocessor which receives a command from the spacecraft to set a surface to a spectfic tempearature. Knowing the background (solar illumination, sun angle, radiative envrionment), the processor calculates the emissivity that the surface must attain. From the emissivity versus voltage database, and knowledge of the temperture from sensors incorporated onto the surface, the processor then calculates the voltage that must be applied to individual EC tiles. Via swiches, these control voltages are then applied to the ECs. The controller continuously monitors the current drawn by each tile and its temperature. When the desired emissivity state is achieved, the current drawn by the EC will drop significantly, and at point, the controller will switch off or remove the applied voltages, provided the surface has attained the intended temperature. If not, the voltage is adjusted again to reach a new emissivity value, and the process repeats until the surface attains the commanded temperature.

Figure 4. Design concept for active thermal control of ECs. The above control system design concept was applied to a 3 x 3, nine-tile configration. In actual fabrication, only the center tile was active. The other eight tiles were inactive, a choice dictated by funding constraints. 2.4 Radiation Shielding Design of Integrated Composite As mentioned earlier and shown in Table 1, the EC tiles contribute to radiation shielding, in addition to the graphite-epoxy composite. We also incorporated a copper mesh to demonstrate shielding design and fabrication technique in case SSEC tiles are not used in favor of other ECs which do not offer any shielding themselves, e.g., thin-film conductive polymer electrochromics (CPECs). The germanium (0.5 mm) and glass (1.1 mm) layers in the SSEC contribute most to shielding. The contributions of other layers are negligible.

We applied our radiation shielding design methodology to the composite in Figure 2. We selected a representative 2000 500 km elliptical orbit with 70 deg inclination for evaluating proton shielding performance. The results obtained using PSIs unidirectional flux proton transmission model are shown in Figure 5 in terms of transmitted annual dose (krad/yr) through the shield versus thickness of the graphite epoxy layer of the composite structure.

Figure 5. Transmitted proton doses through multifunctional composite and aluminum of the same areal densities for 2000 500 km, 70 deg inclination orbit. Calculations in Figure 5 show that for a graphite epoxy thickness of 0.6 cm (see Table 1), the transmitted dose through the composite is lower by a small amount (about 5%) than aluminum shield of the same areal density (g/cm2). This reduction of transmitted proton dose through the composite over aluminum is small due to the presence of high density germanium and glass substrates in the electrochemical tile. This limitation is imposed by tungsten-oxide based ECs. The thin-film CPECs do not need the germanium window and the glass substrate. Therefore, the multifunctional structures employing CPEC for thermal control will be significantly more mass-efficient radiation shields than structures employing tungsten-oxide ECs. We performed similar calculations for an electron rich orbit, 36,000 x 620 km, 7 deg inclination. Our conclusion from these calculations is that multifunctional structures made with tungstenoxide based EC tiles are equal or slightly better radiation shields than aluminum of the same mass. Of course, the aluminum does not offer the integrated thermal control capability that the multifunctional composite offers.

3. COMPOSITE STRUCTURE FABRICATION AND ASSEMBLY

Figure 6 shows the mechanical drawing of the integrated multifunctional composite structure based on the design concept of Figure 2. The structure incorporates nine EC tiles with the center tile active and the surroundg eight non-active. This panel measured 15.2 x 15.2 cm, although the actual fabricated panel measured 20.3 x 20.3 cm, with 2.54 cm of graphite epoxy extension all around the EC tiles for mounting fixtures, etc. Each tile has two leads across which bias voltage is applied. Underneath each tile, bonded to slots in the top surface of the compsosite, a temperature sensor in placed. The sensor has two leads. Thus, each tile location has four leads. A kapton flexible circuit panel which

Figure 6. Integrated multifunctional structure assembly. encapsulates conductor traces for the electronics, is bonded to the back side of the composite. The flex ciruit incorporated a simplified version of the block diagram shown in Figure 4 for controlling the single active EC tile. The 20.3 x 20.3 cm graphite-epoxy panel with embedded copper mesh midway through the thickness was fabricated by Textron. Holes were drilled into the finished composite to pass electrical connections from the EC tiles to electronics. The kapton flex panel was fabricated by Minco. We assembled the multifunctional structure by integrating the EC tiles and the kapton flex circuit panel on to the graphite epoxy structural panel, Figure 6. The pins of the flex circuit panel passed through mating holes in the composite structural panel. The flex was bonded to the panel using a low outgassing pressure sensitive adhesive. The holes in the composite surrounding the pins were filled with a low outgassing, thermally conductive, electrically insulating epoxy. Next, nine thin-film resistance temperature detectors (RTDs) were bonded into slots milled out on the front side of the composite panel and the leads from these RTD were soldered to the appropriate pins of the flex circuit. These RTDs were located behind each of the EC tiles in the final assembly and used to monitor the tile temperatures. We then bonded the nine EC tiles to the front surface of the panel and soldered the electrode leads to the appropriate pins from the flex circuit. The EC tiles and RTDs were bonded to the composite panel using thermally conductive epoxy. Finally, the aluminum rib structure was bonded to the front surface to fill the areas between the tiles. This rib structure had sections milled out to accommodate the pins from the flex circuit. The ribs were designed to provide added stiffness to the panel and radiation shielding between tiles equal to the shielding available through the tiles. Figure 7 shows the photographs of the front and back surfaces of the assembled panel. As part of the assembly, we did not install electronic components on the kapton flex circuit panel. Rather, we used the pads provided at the edge of the kapton panel, as shown in Figure 7(b), to connect external electronics to operate the active EC tile and to measure temperatures of all tiles. This approach was considered sufficient for the proof-of-concept demonstration purposes.

(a) Space facing side with EC tiles

(b) Back side with kapton flex circuit panel

Figure 7. Photographs of assembled integrated multifunctional structural panel.

4. INTEGRATED MULTIFUNCTIONAL MATERIAL PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENTS

4.1 Emissivity Performance Measurements We subjected the integrated panel to a variety of tests to evaluate its thermal control (variable emissivity) and radiation shielding performance and its mechanical strength. An IR camera test was performed to measure the performance of the functional EC tile in the assembled system, in terms of emissivity variation versus voltage. We also measured the spatial uniformity of the tiles emissivity as a function of EC state, and qualitatively determined the EC switching time. The test setup is shown schematically in Figure 8. Wire leads were soldered to the pads on the back of the flex circuit to make connections to the RTDs and EC electrodes. On the back side of the panel, we mounted a 15.2 x 15.2 cm silicone heating pad, which had a maximum heat dissipation of 0.775 W/cm2. The pad was sandwiched between the panel and a thin aluminum plate, and was held on by two clamps along the edge of the panel. The power dissipation of the heater pad was controlled via a variable transformer. The leads from the nine RTDs in the panel were connected to a digital readout through a 10-position rotary switch, so that each RTD temperature could be read in turn.

Figure 8. Infrared camera test setup.

The EC electrode leads were connected to a potentiostat, which set the EC voltage and monitored the EC current. The panel was mounted vertically on the bench top, and an imaging microbolometer infrared camera was be pointed at it. This camera measures infrared radiance in the range of 8 to 12 microns of wavelength. It has a measurement precision of about 32 W/cm2. Because the tiles (both active and non-active) are moderately reflective in the infrared and are highly specular, we placed a blackened copper plate of known temperature in front of the panel at the specular reflectance point (relative to the camera). This plate gave us a known, constant reflected IR signal which we could correct for in the data. Next to the panel, we placed a calibrated blackbody of known high emissivity, which we used to calibrate the radiance measurement of the camera. The panel was heated to approximately 50C, and the EC voltage was set to +2.5 V to put the EC tile into its high emissivity state. The blackbody was also heated to 50 C. We waited for the temperature of the panel to stabilize and for the current draw of the EC to drop to a very low level (<20 microamps). Images of both the panel and the calibrated blackbody were captured with the camera, and recorded the temperatures of the nine RTDs in the panel. Then, we switched the voltage on the EC to -2.5 V to place it in its low emissivity state. We again waited for the EC current draw to drop to <20 microamps. We once again captured images of the panel and the blackbody, and recorded the RTD temperatures. It took about 1 hour for the current of the EC to drop to less than 20 microamps after the voltage was switched from +2.5V to -2.5V; however, the most of the change in radiance of the tile appeared to occur within the first 15 min, as determined qualitatively by viewing the image. The captured panel images are shown in Figures 9(a) and 9(b).

Figure 9. (a) IR (8 to 12 m) image of integrated EC panel at high emissivity; (b) IR (8 to 12 m) image of integrated EC panel at low emissivity. We reduced the data from the images, and, based on the average radiance measurements of the center (active) tile, we solved for the tile emissivity at the extreme voltage states. The results were an average emissivity of 0.77 at +2.5 V and 0.66 at -2.5 V. While the radiance of the center tile in Figure 9(a) (high emissivity state) is very uniform, the radiance of the tile in Figure 9(b) (low emissivity state) is not very uniform. We analyzed the data in the brightest and darkest areas of this second image (low emissivity state) and found that the emissivity of the tile varies from approximately 0.59 to 0.74. We also solved for the emissivity of the inactive tiles, and found it to be 0.57, which is close to the theoretical value (based on the refractive index of Ge and the emissivity of glass) of 0.59.

4.2 Proton Transmission Measurements With the panel designed for a proton rich orbital environment, it was appropriate to perform shielding effectiveness tests in a proton beam. The proton shielding effectiveness tests were performed at Harvard Universitys Cyclotron Laboratory in Cambridge, MA. This facility delivers precisely controlled proton fluxes on the order of 108 p/cm2/s in a 1.9 cm diameter beam. The energy of the beam can be controlled by the use of lexan attenuators to specific energies from 29 MeV to 148 MeV. For each proton energy, we delivered a known fluence (approximately 3 x 108 p/cm2) of protons to the panel, and measured the transmitted dose with a PIN diode dosimeter located behind the panel. A photograph of the panel mounted in the proton beam facility is shown in Figure 10. We measured the dose transmitted through four locations on the panel: at the centers of two of the nonfunctioning tiles, at the center of the EC tile, and at the corner junction between four of the tiles (i.e., through the aluminum rib). Since the shielding effectiveness of the panel was theoretically equivalent to 0.56 cm of aluminum, we also tested an Figure 10. Experimental setup for proton aluminum plate of that thickness for transmission tests. comparison. The results of these tests are shown in Figure 11. The plot shows the measurements of transmitted dose versus energy (normalized to a fluence of 6 x 109 protons/cm2) at various locations on the panel. Comparison with transmitted dose through a 0.56 cm aluminum plate (equal to the integrated composite in g/cm2) and the model predictions for aluminum are also shown. The panel data matches the aluminum data and model prediction very well. The data from the center of the non-functioning and EC tiles appears to be shifted to slightly higher energies compared to aluminum, while the data from the tile junction (the rib) is shifted to slightly lower energies. This means that the tiles are providing shielding that is somewhat more effective than the

Figure 11. Measured proton transmission through multifunctional panel.

0.56 cm aluminum (i.e., equivalent to a thicker aluminum), while the rib location is providing less effective shielding. This result is not surprising, since the rib density is somewhat lower than the tile density, and since there were slight gaps between the ribs and the tiles which may have allowed some proton penetration. 4.3 Mechanical Property Measurements A flexure test was performed on a multifunctional material sample (3 x 1 tiles) to predict the strength and modulus of the integrated panel. A 20.3 x 5.7 cm piece of base composite material (the same material used in the multifunctional panel in Figure 7) was prepared, and three dummy tiles of glass/germanium were bonded to it using epoxy. The spacing of the tiles was identical to the spacing on the actual multifunctional panel. The test specimen was placed on the flexure test apparatus, supported at the ends at a span distance of 17.8 cm. It was loaded from the center of the back side of the specimen (opposite the center tile), and deflection of the surface of the center tile was measured using a linear variable differential transformer (LVDT). Load versus deflection was recorded on a chart recorder. Stress and strain were calculated from the measured load and deflection. The test setup is shown schematically in Figure 12. The resulting stress strain curve is shown in Figure 13.

Figure 12. Flexure test setup.

Figure 13. Stress versus strain for multifunctional composite with integrated EC tiles.

The maximum composite material stress reached 31.5 MPa, and the strain in the tile reached 0.000635 mm/mm, before minor cracks in the germanium tile occurred. The stress was 70.3 MPa and the strain was 0.00127 mm/mm before the first major crack occurred. The test was run up to a maximum stress of 480.6 MPa (360 kg load) and strain of 0.0139 mm/mm (9.45 mm center deflection). The only damage that occurred was cracking, and some flaking, of the germanium tiles. Throughout the test, the tiles remained bonded to the composite, and the base composite material remained intact. As is apparent from shape of the curve, the tiles initially add some stiffness to the structure until the point that they begin to crack, at which point the overall stiffness is reduced. Note that the slope of the stress-strain curve is steeper before the major cracking occurred than it is after. The flexural modulus, based on the slope of the curve after the first cracks, is 34.5 MPa. (This modulus is based on strain calculated as above, using the overall thickness of the material. However, once the tiles crack, the strain in the composite should be calculated based on the thickness of the composite alone. Using that strain calculation, the modulus is 45.5 MPa.) The yield stress of the material, where the first cracking event occurred, was 31.5 MPa.

5. SUMMARY OF RESULTS
The development of light-weight structural materials with integrated thermal control, electronics and radiation shielding was investigated. We designed, fabricated, and measured key performance parameters of a graphite-epoxy structural composite with integrated EC devices and kapton-encapsulated electronic circuitry. Variable emissivity properties of the integrated thermal control structure were demonstrated in the laboratory. Improvements over the measured emissivity modulation range and the minimum emissivity value are expected with further developments in EC technologies. Preliminary measurements in flexure tests show high values of tensile strength and modulus for the integrated composite. The failure is initiated due to cracking of the germanium substrate of the solid state EC tiles. Thin-film CPECs, currently under development, are mechanically rugged and will not be subject to such failure. Measurements of proton transmission through the integrated composite verified our shielding design methodology for embedded materials. The integrated composite was found to provide proton shielding effectiveness per unit mass slightly better than aluminum. The weight savings over aluminum will increase substantially as lighter weight EC devices become available. Several technical issues have been identified during our work and are summarized in Table 2 along with the potential solution approaches and recommendations.

Table 2. Technical Issues and Solution Approaches

Technical Issue


Solution Approach (Recommendations) Use all solid-state EC materials with most recent advances. Substitute with CPECs when developed to sufficient maturity. Same as above Use next generation of solid state EC devices employing thinner glass substrate and silicon substrate or, use thin-film CPECs. Same as above, plus better bonding of devices to the structure with compliant adhesives Develop complete control electronics to operate all nine devices. Embed electronic components onto kapton flex panel, bonded to structural panel.

Emissivity modulation range and minimum emissivity of ECs 0 of 0.15 and 0min of 0.6 was achieved. Need 0min <0.3, 0 > 0.6. Uniformity of emissivity across entire surface of EC device Light weighting: Thick germanium and glass substrates are used in available solid state EC devices Mechanical fragility of solid state EC devices Electronics for fully autonomous control of several EC devices Preliminary design of electronics was developed to control nine devices, but implemented for one device to show feasibility. Control electronics was external to the panel. Database on mechanical, thermal, and other properties of integrated composites for structural/ thermal design and space qualification Only limited mechanical property data has been obtained

Measure strength/stiffness in tension, compression and shear before and after thermal/vacuum cycling. Obtain data on thermal/electrical conductivity, outgassing, electron transmission

6. REFERENCES
1. Grangvist, C-G., Electrochromic Tungsten-Oxide-Based Thin Films: Physics, Chemistry, and Technology, Mechanical and Dielectric Properties of Thin Films and Smart Materials, Phys. Rev. Letters, 301-369 (1993). 2. Knowles, G.F., Radiation Detection and Measurement, J. Wiley, 1989.

7. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This work was supported by NASA Langley Research Center under Contract NAS1-98046 with Mr. Edward Long as the Technical Monitor and by the Air Force Research Laboratory, Materials Laboratory, WPFAB, Dayton, under Contract F33615-97-C-5014 with Ms. Elizabeth T. Shinn as the Technical Monitor.