TECHNOLOGY AREAS: Air Platform, Ground/Sea Vehicles, Electronics

ACQUISITION PROGRAM: F-35 Joint Strike Fighter Program; ACAT I

The technology within this topic is restricted under the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (ITAR), which controls the export and import of defense-related material and services. Offerors must disclose any proposed use of foreign nationals, their country of origin, and what tasks each would accomplish in the statement of work in accordance with section 3.5.b.(7) of the solicitation.

OBJECTIVE: Develop and demonstrate effective methods to supplementally cool high temperature transient applications.

DESCRIPTION: There are various portions of the flight envelope where the Environmental Control System or Thermal Management System for the F-35 can not provide adequate cooling capability to mission system or air vehicle equipment to meet requirements. Requirements can be met and reliability improved through use of novel ideas in phase changing materials that store additional thermal capacity for the air system. Innovative phase change materials or methods are needed to increase mission capability of the Power and Thermal Management System and Thermal Management System for extreme thermal missions where failure is expected. Materials or methods that utilize a vapor cycle system will not be considered. Goals for the operational temperature outputs of the cooling system are 100 degrees Fahrenheit for fuel system applications and 59 degrees Fahrenheit for Polyalphaolephin applications. Additionally, the transient cooling system should dissipate at least 5.0 kW of heat load and be operational for 30 minutes.

PHASE I: Develop an approach to develop a light weight, durable, phase changing heat rejection apparatus to accept high temperature fuel or polyalphaolephin. Demonstrate the feasibility of applying one such approach through modeling or showing an initial concept.

PHASE II: Provide practical implementation of a production-scalable process to implement the recommended approach developed under Phase I. Evaluate the approach by showing concept maturity, initial fabrication of a prototype, and capabilities validated. Develop an integration hardware design scheme to add a developed system to the cooling loop of the Thermal Management System.

PHASE III: Transition the approach to appropriate platforms and additional propulsion and high temperature applications such as hypersonic platforms.

PRIVATE SECTOR COMMERCIAL POTENTIAL/DUAL-USE APPLICATIONS: Development of transient phase change thermal materials could apply to various, similar, thermal problems within aviation and ships, both commercial and military.

REFERENCES:
1. Lui, Clarence (2003). "Dual Expansion Energy Recovery (Deer) Environmental Control System", International Conference on Environmental Systems, Vancouver, BC, Canada, Session: Aircraft and Transatmospheric Vehicle Environment/ Thermal Control.

2. Lillibridge, Sean T. & Stephan, Ryan (2009). "Phase Change Material Heat Exchanger Life Test", International Conference on Environmental Systems, Savannah, GA, Session: Advances in Thermal Control Technology.

3. Aldoss, Taha, Ewing, David Joseph, Zhao, Yan, & Ma, Lin (2009). "Numerical Investigation of Phase Change Materials for Thermal Management Systems", SAE World Congress & Exhibition, Detroit, MI, Session: Thermal Management Systems.

KEYWORDS: Phase Change; Thermal Capacitance; Full Authority Digital Electronic Controller Overheat; Endothermic Agent; Thermal Storage; Thermal Transfer

** TOPIC AUTHOR (TPOC) **

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