CAREER: Origami-Inspired Reconfigurable Surfaces that Enable Controllable Radiative Properties

Brigham Young University, Provo UT

Investigators

Abstract

Modern telecommunications, astronomical discovery, and national security rely on space-based objects (e.g. satellites, probes, spacecraft, telescopes, etc.) that operate in extreme thermal radiation conditions. The goal of this CAREER project is to provide a way to control the amount of heat the surface of a space object radiates by changing the surface shape. Radiation of thermal energy affects surface temperature. Sun motion (e.g. orbit or daily solar cycles) results in a wide range of radiation conditions. This work will provide a way for a surface or component to respond to changes in the sun location and achieve a desired heating or cooling rate. An educational companion to the scientific objectives of this project is the creation of the Broadening Undergraduate Education in Science and Technology (BURST) Program to be implemented for the development of undergraduate researchers. Educational development activities for undergraduate classmen participating in the Spacecraft Group at BYU will culminate in the participation of BURST projects (undergraduate research) to assist students in the pursuit of a graduate education and provide a mechanism to explore the research project. Activities performed with students in the Spacecraft Group include outreach to underrepresented minority high school students by assisting with college preparation, K-12 STEM activities with low-income schools, and the creation of a website for access to data and instructional tools. The goal of this CAREER project is to provide dynamic control of radiative surface properties using origami-inspired surfaces. Actuation of origami can enable control of surface topography and corresponding cavity geometries to regulate net radiative heat transfer in response to changes in the radiative environment. Intrinsic radiative surface properties are static and therefore unable to adapt to changing thermal environments. Dynamically controlling the net radiative heat flux by controlling radiative properties would enable thermal management of surfaces where radiation is a dominant mode of heat exchange with the environment. Origami-inspired surfaces, comprised of tessellations (a tiled plane comprised of one or more geometric shapes), are able to provide an adaptable surface topography to modify the apparent radiative surface behavior. As the tessellations that comprise the unfolded surface collapse on each other during folding, deep grooves are formed which trap radiative energy due to the high-aspect ratio of the cavity. Controlling the cavity angle through mechanical actuation results in control of the degree of black-like behavior. To achieve the goal of providing thermal management through controllable radiative properties, the following objectives in the study of origami-inspired surfaces (e.g. Modified V-groove, Miura-ori, and Baretto Mars) will be pursued: 1) quantify and model emission of thermal radiation; 2) quantify and model absorption of thermal radiation; 3) predict and validate the net heat transfer rate at these surfaces; and 4) establish undergraduate research preparation through training activities that culminate in a research experience. Tools and analysis methods developed by this work will enable design for radiative thermal management through simple actuation methods and provide predictive relations for radiative behavior of angular topographies. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.