Research Progress of Thermal Insulation Materials Used in Spacesuits
Abstract
At present, multi-layer thermal insulation components are the most ideal materials for thermal insulation in high vacuum environments such as low earth orbit and the lunar surface, but further improvements are needed to improve the activity performance of spacesuits and the ability to adapt to the space environment. Fibrous materials have traditional advantages in spacesuit thermal insulation applications, but they fail to meet the thermal insulation goal of combining thermal conductivity and material thickness in deep space exploration for low vacuum environment represented by the mars mission. Aerogel materials have low thermal conductivity and good thermal insulation performance in low vacuum environment, but they cannot avoid dust pollution and mechanical durability problems on the surface of mars or the moon. The combination of fiber materials with appropriate scales and special void structures and organic aerogel materials with flexible and durable characteristics will become the main way to solve the thermal insulation problem of advanced spacesuits in the future. Therefore, this paper reviews the design requirements and related research of spacesuit thermal insulation materials based on the development status at home and abroad.