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Polymeric materials for Solar Sail: The combined effects of polymer thickness, radiation, and temperature

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 February 2011

David L. Edwards  and
Mircea Chipara
David L. Edwards
Affiliation:
NASA MSFC Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Alabama
Mircea Chipara
Affiliation:
Indiana University, Bloomington, IN
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Abstract

The feasibility and the performance of solar sail depend critically on the availability of light materials and extremely thin polymeric films. The main requirements imposed on solar sail materials are analyzed in depth. The potential effects of the space environment are discussed in detail, with emphasis on the radiation-temperature-polymeric film thickness relationships. It is shown that the radiation component of the space environment triggers two competing degradation processes (erosion and depolymerization) and that both processes act towards the decrease in the glass transition temperature.

Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 851: Symposium NN – Materials for Space Applications , 2004 , NN1.6
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2005

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References

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