Intelligent Two-Phase Flow Phenomena Sensor for Enhanced Thermal Management Control

Two-phase flow fluids can offer more power to forced-convective heat transport, because such fluids utilize phase change to dramatically increase (or decrease) heat transport capabilities over single-phase flow convection. Unfortunately, two-phase flow systems are inherently unstable and can accordingly introduce significant management challenges in the reduced and variable acceleration fields that are typically present on spacecraft. While, in spacecraft, a stable separation of the fluid phases can be achieved in a phase-separator (i.e. via the radial acceleration about a vortex flow field), such stability is not easily available in the flow channels of implemented condenser or evaporators. The several flow regimes that can exist in two-phase flow channels (e.g. bubbly flow, slug flow, annular flow) are highly sensitive to the external acceleration field. Further, flow regime, flow rate, heat-flux, flow quality, and pressure drop, and temperature are all interdependent, where a change in one causes (potentially dramatic) changes in the others. This introduces a hard design and operational challenge due to the starkly different fluid and thermal properties that can exist as a function of the flow regime in a two-phase flow channel, and the risky thermal transients that can occur. This problem can be substantially reduced by an intelligent sensor that can discern the thermal and fluid characteristics in a two-phase flow channel and provide such information to an intelligent control system in real-time. This research develops such an intelligent sensor for two-phase flow implementations in spacecraft, providing a capability to both sense, and via intelligent control, precisely specify the flow regime and flow quality of a two-phase flow channel.

Spacecraft thermal management Spacesuit thermal management Space Habitat thermal management Human waste bio-processor Ranking cycle heat engines

Manufacturing (e.g. coatings, medicines, semiconductors) Industrial processing (e.g. metals, chemicals, foods) Satellite thermal management Spacecraft thermal management (space tourism)

This is early/mid-stage (TRL 4) — the most realistic path in is NASA SBIR/STTR, which funds small businesses and research institutions to develop technology aligned with NASA's needs (equity-free, phased funding). Check whether a current SBIR/STTR solicitation topic overlaps with this project's technology area, or contact the project directly (above) to ask.

None of these are guaranteed paths for this specific project — TechPort itself doesn't have an "apply" button. Reaching out to the contact(s) above with a specific question is usually the fastest way to find out what's actually open.