03.6 / Industries / A&D
Aerospace & defense
Fluid systems that keep working under vibration, in vacuum and in microgravity, where a pump is a liability.
The problem
Pumps add mass, power draw and a single point of failure, and they are hard to service once a platform is deployed. Some environments, like microgravity, make conventional flow control unreliable to begin with.
What we do
Capillary flow driven by surface gradients doesn't depend on gravity or orientation. We design and prototype passive thermal and fluid systems and document them for qualified manufacturing.
Device types
- A&D-01
Satellite thermal loops
Heat transport with no mechanical pump
- A&D-02
Propellant management
Positioning liquid in microgravity
- A&D-03
Sensor and avionics cooling
Compact loops on airborne platforms
- A&D-04
UAV fuel distribution
Orientation-independent flow
- A&D-05
Life support fluid recycling
Water handling in closed systems
- A&D-06
High-temperature structures
Thermal protection concepts
Design constraints we plan for
- Vacuum and microgravity
- Vibration and shock
- Wide temperature range