Analytical and experimental studies of an all specular thermal control louver system in a solar vacuum environment

Abstract

Thermal control louvers are used on the ATS-F&G spacecraft to regulate temperature by varying the effective radiating area. Since solar energy on louvers has a detrimental effect on their ability to radiate energy, an analytical and experimental program was developed to evaluate the performance of an all specular louver system as a function of sun angle and blade angle. Solar simulation tests and analyses show a maximum effective absorptance of .25 for the full open condition. The application of white paint to the blades resulted in lowering the blade temperatures by 130 C without significantly affecting the system performance.