Commercial DC-DC power converters and filters were successfully used in the power supply of a Space Test Program (STP)mission on the International Space Station (ISS). The mission lifetime was designated for one year and the electronics have been operational in space since February of 2017. Resource limitations, particularly cost and time constraints, prompted the decision to use commercial, non-space qualified, components. The particular parts used were Vicor V110A28M400BS DC-DC power converters and FIAM110MS1 filters. This document will summarize the risks and challenges involved with using the commercial parts as well as measures taken to mitigate these risks. The mission requirement was to convert a 120 bus to 28V DC power for STP- H5 science experiments. Baseline designs planned to utilize a secondary bus on the ISS to provide the 28V power. However, performance limitations of the secondary bus were later identified and prompted concern that the scientific objectives of the mission could be subsequently hindered. The best solution was to add a separate 120V to 28V DC-DC power converters to an electronics box already in development, thus eliminating dependence on the existing 28V bus. Conventional flight qualified power supplies could not be obtained within the constraints of the mission. Several vendors were considered, but none could produce the power converters as quickly as needed. A custom designed power supply was considered as well, but resources, packaging challenges, and lead times for individual EEE parts made this approach unviable. Several other organizations were also contacted to consider using parts that had been purchased as flight-spares for other programs. It was determined that flight qualified power converters could not be obtained for this mission and commercial parts became the only viable option. A radiation study was conducted based on the orbit, mission life, and thickness of the electronics box that would house the power converters and corresponding filters. A relatively small total dose was predicted and the decision was made to move forward with commercial parts. As the designed moved forward, other studies and tests were conducted to mitigate risk as much as possible. Disclaimer: The Vicor Corporation does not support using their products in space or vacuum applications. Vicor products are designed and intended for aerospace applications within earth's atmosphere up to altitudes of approximately 70,000 feet.


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    Titel :

    Non-Radiation Tolerant Commercial Power Converters in Low Earth Orbit


    Beteiligte:


    Erscheinungsdatum :

    01.03.2019


    Format / Umfang :

    778656 byte




    Medientyp :

    Aufsatz (Konferenz)


    Format :

    Elektronische Ressource


    Sprache :

    Englisch




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