Influence of material properties and structural parameters on the performance of near-space use lightweight insulation structure

We recently developed a lightweight insulation structure (LIS) which had a high request in thermal insulation performance and structural weight and was promising to be used as the thermal control element for a near-space aircraft. In the present paper, the effects of the material properties and structural parameters on the thermal insulation performance of near-space use LIS were numerically investigated in detail. In the proposed theoretical model, the equivalent thermal conductivities and specific temperature differences of LIS were studied to make detailed thermal features clear. Compared with the experimental and previous simulation data, the theoretical model has been validated, showing a good consistency. The results showed that the thermal conductivity of insulating material had a great influence on the specific temperature difference due to its strong effect on the equivalent thermal conductivity of LIS. In addition, it can be seen that the structural parameters mainly influenced the insulation performance of LIS by changing the areal density of LIS. The results demonstrated that the theoretical model suggested a pathway towards designing the structure parameters of near-space use LIS and selecting suitable insulating materials quickly.