Illinois teams take first, second in AIAA Space Design Competition

When asked to design a space-based solar power system, one Aerospace Engineering at Illinois team responded with a swarm of 24 satellites that could beam power to at least eight locations worldwide. Another team opted for four satellites sending power to the United States, India, and Australia, with the additional incentive of forging valuable partnerships among the three countries.

The two AE at Illinois teams recently came away with the top two places in the 2012-2013 Undergraduate Team Space Design Competition sponsored by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA).

“It is incredibly gratifying to see such excellent and hard-working students from Aerospace Engineering at Illinois receive these national AIAA awards,” said AE Adjunct Prof. David L. Carroll, who advised both teams. “They went ‘all-in,’ and the product reflected the amount of effort by and creativity of the two teams.”

SolPower

The first place team, “SolPower,” earned a $1,500 award from the AIAA Foundation for the swarming satellite proposal. The “SolPower” system called for the swarm to be divided so four satellites in six different orbital planes would travel 7,500 kilometers above the earth in configurations similar to the Global Positioning System network.

The plan proposed having two Falcon X Heavy Rockets deliver each SolMate satellite into orbit in two separate pieces, according to team leader Brian Levine. One launch would contain the hexagonal microwave transmitter, while the other would bring up the reflecting mirror, solar panels, and supporting structure. The smaller transmitter hexagon elements would unfold one by one to form a full-sized hexagon, while the solar panels and reflecting mirror would unfold like an umbrella. All of these actions, as well as the joining of the two units, would be completed automatically in orbit.

The satellites would transmit about 50 megawatts each via microwave beaming to deployable rectenna arrays called SolPatches that would be located around the world. Permanent locations proposed were Australia, Brazil, the Hong Kong area, North Carolina, Las Vegas, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, and Tunisia, while smaller ground stations could be transported to any location within 40 and -40 degrees latitude to receive power. “The portable SolPatches were created with military applications and national disaster relief efforts in mind; situations in which having quick access to a reliable source of electricity is critical,” Levine said.

The team realized that the plan would distinguish itself if it focused on the power system’s worldwide accessibility. “We increased the number of satellites, which allowed us to decrease the size of each satellite, the amount of launches required, total cost, and the risk associated with losing a satellite,” the team leader notes. “Once we got going down this road, the whole team bought into the idea and really produced something amazing.”

Throughout the process, team members learned they needed to compromise with one another to reach their goal. “We all really wanted to pick a size/mass/altitude and stick with it, but an issue in one system could only be corrected by changes made in many others,” Levine said.

The team was invited to present the design at the AIAA Space 2013 Conference and Exposition held September 10 in San Diego, California.

Team members include:

• Brian Levine – Lead Engineer
• Cory Cameron – Ground Stations
• Philip Freidin – Communications
• Izan Peris Marti – Structures
• Michael Reindl – Payload Power
• Jason Swenson – Spacecraft Power/Thermal Systems
• John Teuber – Launch Systems
• Ernest Company Vallet – Orbital Requirements

Future Power Systems

The AE team “Future Power Systems” took second place in the competition and a $750 prize for the design configuration, “Sienna403.” The design called for four sun-facing satellites orbiting 7,000 kilometers from Earth, and three receiving ground stations in DeSoto County, Florida; Charnka Solar Park, India; and Alice Springs, Australia.

“The Sienna403 system is unique in that it is completely scalable in three different ways: the number of satellites, the orbital configuration, and the number of power receivers on Earth,” said team leader Laura Richardson. “This ensures that a country’s particular needs are satisfied. It is (Future Power System’s) ultimate goal to achieve a configuration that is capable of providing power to homes and businesses in every country around the world.”

“Furthermore,” she continued, “during the deployment and operation of the four Sienna403 satellites, valuable partnerships will be formed between the U.S., India, and Australia that will set the trend for a future global alliance. This partnership is strengthened by the addition of more countries that will be eager to join FPS’s mission.”

The plan employed developing technology, including thin film solar arrays set on a Kapton substrate, coilable masts and booms, and foldable graphite-mesh springback (“taco shell”) antennas. At $17.6 billion, the design was kept under budget and would be operational by 2036, beating the 2040 deadline that the competition required, Richardson said.

Among the plan’s challenges was the size of the system. “In order to harvest 1 GW of solar power on Earth, the power collectors on the satellites need to be on the order of km2, regardless of collection type. Nothing of this scale has ever been launched into space before, so there wasn’t much to research or base our design off of!” Richardson said.

Future Power Systems’ team members:

• Laura Richardson – Lead Systems Engineer, Overall Mission Architect
• James Broches – Launch Systems Engineer
• Yolanda Dionicio – Ground Power Engineer
• Kevin Skender – Spacecraft Power/Thermal Engineer
• Tomasz Slota – Orbital & Coverage Requirements Engineer
• Nicholas Virgilio – Communications, Command & Data Handling Engineer
• Ariel Wilhelmsen – Structural/Radiation Shielding Engineer
• Joshua Zimmerman – Payload Power/Thermal Engineer

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Writer/Contact: Susan Mumm, editor, Department of Aerospace Engineering, 217/244-5382.

If you have any questions about the College of Engineering, or other story ideas, contact Rick Kubetz,editor, Engineering Communications Office, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 217/244-7716.