Analysis on thermal control method of satellite in orbit based on self-driven thermostatic valve with sensitive wax

To improve the thermal control adaptability of spacecraft, a satellite single-phase fluid loop thermal control technology based on self-driven thermostatic valve with sensitive wax was presented. Then, two kinds of improved control strategies were proposed. One was the self-driven thermostatic valve with sensitive wax as the controlling object, the other was the combination control with mechanical pump and self-driven thermostatic valve with sensitive wax as the controlling objects. The mathematical model of self-driven thermostatic valve with sensitive wax, heat load, radiator and other components was built by lumped parameter method, temperature dynamic performance of this thermal control system was calculated by numerical simulation method under periodic disturbance of outer heat flux and step disturbance of heat consumption of electrical equipment when a satellite in the orbit. Result shows that, the thermal control strategy with combination of mechanical pump and self-driven thermostatic valve with sensitive wax can realize the precise thermal control of loop, which not only take the advantages of self-driven thermostatic valve to achieve the reliability requirements of the system and reduce energy consumption, but also overcome the disadvantage of self-driven thermostatic valve with sensitive wax, such as temperature limit and steady-state error.