For future space exploration beyond LEO that is affordable, NASA and other commercial space exploration companies will require innovative lightweight structural concepts that use the least amount of metallic structures and larger percentages of polymer composite materials. Recently, Infinite Composites Technologies (ICT) and its partner Oklahoma State University has developed all-composite tanks (Figure 1) for storing cryogenic fluids, which if successful, could reach temperatures down to -340ºF (-206.7ºC) for storage of liquid oxygen (LOX), liquid methane (LCH4), among other fluids. The proposed innovation is an advanced reinforced thermally insulated cryotank (ARTIC). However, there are some challenges for such composite materials to be used in space, especially for cryogenic fuel storage, since they can be degraded due to the synergistic applications of environmental conditions such as very low temperatures, UV and other forms of radiation.
For future space exploration beyond LEO that is affordable, NASA and other commercial space exploration companies will require innovative lightweight structural concepts that use the least amount of metallic structures and larger percentages of polymer composite materials. Recently, Infinite Composites Technologies (ICT) and its partner Oklahoma State University has developed all-composite tanks (Figure 1) for storing cryogenic fluids, which if successful, could reach temperatures down to -340ºF (-206.7ºC) for storage of liquid oxygen (LOX), liquid methane (LCH4), among other fluids. The proposed innovation is an advanced reinforced thermally insulated cryotank (ARTIC). However, there are some challenges for such composite materials to be used in space, especially for cryogenic fuel storage, since they can be degraded due to the synergistic applications of environmental conditions such as very low temperatures, UV and other forms of radiation.
Providing all-composite, cryogenic tanks with low-loss boil-off that are lighter-weight than what is currently used would allow for new mass efficiency in a variety of areas for space use. Use cases which are shown in Figure 11, include being the fuel and oxidizer or methane tanks for upper stages of the rocket, used within various spacecraft such as lander propulsion, or for fueling depots to aid in longer more fuel intensive missions, or simply refueling continuous use spacecraft, in-situ resource utilization or the evolvable mars campaign.
Cryogenic pressure vessels can be used for a variety of liquid or gas storage such as:
Launch vehicles (small, medium, heavy), Propellant and Fueling depots (for in-space refueling/storage), Depositories (from asteroid or planetary mining), Satellites, Other spacecraft, Ground storage, Ground vehicles, Habitat system storage, Aviation LNG fuel storage.