RIT SPEX CubeSat Initiative Radiation Protection System: R15301
4. Gap Analysis The goal of the RIT Space Exploration (or SPEX)
team is to develop a CubeSat that uses the support and research of
its students body so that RIT can have a greater presence in space
in the future. One obstacle that will have to be addressed is how
to prevent radiation from turning the CubeSat into space debris.
Radiation in its many forms can be very harsh and unforgiving to
electrical components. Current testing is being carried out using
radiation barriers which enclose the electrical components in a
CubeSat inside a radiation resistant box. If the radiation barrier
method can be proved either more effective or less costly, it will
prove to be the better choice over the current practice of
radiation hardening. dfa Brendan Parke It would be more desirable
to have a radiation barrier system that could protect all the
electrical components in the CubeSat as opposed to having to RH
each component. This would cut down significantly on lead time for
this step of the design because CubeSats come in standardize sizes
meaning that a manufacturing process could be set up to pump out
sheets or sets of the barrier composite and have it on retainer.
For testing, all that is needed are blank radiation hardened
circuit boards and simple components so that the board can be
tested after being dosed with radiation to see if it still works.
Likewise, only small surface areas of the material would need to be
fabricated for testing. The inside of a 5 sided lead box would be
placed non-RH components with one face being the radiation barrier.
Have a fleshed out testing procedure equip with testing metrics
that can be used for future testing. Gather data on radiation
resistances of each concept through testing. The goal of the MSD
team is to benchmark and compare the lead time, resistance and cost
difference between using either a radiation barrier or radiation
hardened components an present the findings to the SPEX team in an
organized manner. Currently, the main method to combat cosmic
radiation is to use radiation hardened electrical components. The
building of these components each require specialized manufacturing
which has a long lead time. Building upon the research of CubeSat
radiation barriers that have been developed in NASAs Shields-1
CubeSat. The current issue with radiation hardening is that is a
special process that is run with a no surplus style specialized
manufacturing technique that makes it impossible for something to
add post-purchasing the non- RH component. This creates the a long
lead time for testing since testing cannot be run on the non-RH
component on ground and then sent in to be RH. This also leaves a
sizeable hole in the budget of any CubeSat design since it is very
costly due to the overhead involved in the manufacturing. A
manufacturing process that contains less overhead would be greatly
beneficial for both parties involved. Fig 4: Shields-1, a CubeSat
with a radiation shielding research payload. NASA, n.d. Web. 5 Mar.
2015. Touch base with NASA LaRCs CubeSat division to discuss use of
current technology as well as information about using the tantalum
radiofrequency application furnace. Contact Cornell or MIT to
discuss use of their radiation test laboratories. Meet with SPEX
team leads to relay the current cost analysis as well as keep them
up to date on any possible findings. Discuss testing procedures as
a team and set up a method for trial testing. Contact electronics
vendors for radiation hardened circuit boards and simple components
and industrial materials vendors regarding pricing for the
composite layers of the radiation barrier. 3. Target State 1.
Background 2. Initial State5. Proposals 6. Follow Up Fig
1:Functional Decomposition showing two of the possible avenues for
radiation protection of the CubeSat. Fig 2: Some of the layup
materials that would be used in the barrier. Shields-1, a CubeSat
with a radiation shielding research payload. NASA, n.d. Web. 5 Mar.
2015. Fig 3: An example of a radiation hardened electrical
component. "Rad-hard Space Electronics Hit the Mainstream." -
Military & Aerospace Electronics. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 May 2015.
4 32 1 Fig 5: Schematic of the Shields-1 3U CubeSat that is being
tested using radiation barriers. Shields-1, a CubeSat with a
radiation shielding research payload. NASA, n.d. Web. 5 Mar. 2015.
5