Thermal Management: Getting Rid of Waste Heat
How does a space solar plant get rid of the heat it produces, and why does that matter for mass?
Chapter summary
by radiating it into space, which requires surface area, and surface area means mass.
Key takeaways
- 1
In Setcoin's reference microwave chain, only about 18% of sunlight collected reaches the grid; most of the rest becomes heat in the solar cells, the power electronics and the amplifiers.
- 2
In space there is no air to take heat away, so it must be radiated from surfaces.
- 3
Solar panels radiate much of their own heat from their backs, but amplifiers and electronics produce concentrated heat that needs radiators.
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