Development of Rotary-Reciprocating Cryogenic Refrigerator for Space Applications.
Abstract
This interim technical report covers the work carried out during the first six months of an Advanced Development Program to develop a highly reliable rotary-reciprocating refrigerator suitable for long-term spaceborne applications. The equipment is to produce 1.5 watts of refrigeration at 12 K and 40 watts of refrigeration at 60 K while requiring less than 2500 watts of input power. It utilizes the reversed Brayton cycle and employs rotary-reciprocating compressors and expansion engines. Under the development program, a prototype refrigerator is to be designed, fabricated, and subjected to an intensive test program culminating in a 5000-hour continuous endurance run. The refrigerator consists of a compressor assembly (containing the compressors and aftercooler), an expander assembly (containing the expansion engines, the drive mechanism, and all cold-end components), and electronic power conditioning equipment to drive and control the compressor and expander pistons. This report discusses the selection of the thermodynamic cycle for the refrigerator and describes the design of the compressor assembly, the expander assembly, and the power conditioning equipment. Experimental results from tests with the first- and second-generation power conditioning equipment are presented. The calculated overall characteristics of the refrigerator (size, weight, power, etc) are summarized, and system operation is discussed. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jul 01, 1972
- Accession Number
- AD0907360
Entities
People
- J. E. Mccullough
- J. L. Coggins
- R. W. Breckenridge Jr.
- T. P. Heuchling
- W. P. Hidden
Organizations
- Arthur D. Little