Re-entry analysis of critical components and materials for design-for-demise techniques

Thermite-for-Demise (T4d): Experimental Analysis of Heat Transfer Principles and Preliminary Sizing of an Application

“…On equipment level, the most critical components are identified and solutions to aid their demise are provided. Typically, the most robust components are propellant tanks, valves, gyroscopes, reaction wheels, optical payloads, and solar array drive mechanisms [19].…”

A Fast Thermal 1D Model to Study Aerospace Material Response Behaviors in Uncontrolled Atmospheric Entries

“…The Design for Demise (D4D), as promoted, e.g., via the European Space Agency's (ESA) Clean Space initiative [1], is gaining attention as one of many approaches towards reducing the amount of debris that pollute the Low Earth Orbit (LEO) environment. Indeed, expended launcher stages, decommissioned satellites and exploded or collided spacecraft have created a large amount of space debris leading to an increased risk for future space missions [2][3][4]. Recent studies have analyzed the evolution of the amount of space debris, which is ever growing [2,[5][6][7][8] and will continue to do so if no effective mitigation strategies are adopted [2].…”

“…During re-entry, the space debris can break-up in small fragments that may impact the ground if they do not burn up completely [4]. Performing a controlled re-entry (i.e., the spacecraft undergoes an actively performed de-orbit maneuver to impact within an uninhabited area) is not always an option due to the increased costs and issues of technical reliability associated therewith [4,9].…”

“…During re-entry, the space debris can break-up in small fragments that may impact the ground if they do not burn up completely [4]. Performing a controlled re-entry (i.e., the spacecraft undergoes an actively performed de-orbit maneuver to impact within an uninhabited area) is not always an option due to the increased costs and issues of technical reliability associated therewith [4,9]. Therefore, a passive approach is arguably preferable, wherein the spacecraft's constituent components burn up to a degree that the ground risk emanating from the sum of residual debris items is considered non-critical [4,10,11].…”