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Quest’s IMLI Thermal Blanket Withstand 10 G-Force Launch Loads
PR Date:
April 1, 2008
To further explore the feasibility of insulating cryogenic propellants for extended periods of time, NASA awarded a Phase I Small Business Innovation Research grant to Quest Product Development Corporation. The mission: to create a prototype of an advanced, new thermal insulation system called “Integrated Multi-layer Insulation” (IMLI), within six months.
Quest Product Development Corporation partnered with Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corporation to design IMLI thermal insulation, which involved engineering a system with multiple layers of radiation barriers held in precise spacing by a polymer substructure.
One challenge for Quest was to ensure the multiple layers delivered consistent, predictable performance – a feat that required micromolded spacers to prevent the radiation barriers from bunching up or touching allowing heat transfer.
“There are very few micro molders in the world, Phillips Plastics being one of them. We know they’re experts at molding processes, and they’re the only micro molders we felt confident could actually pull off this challenge,” says Scott Dye, Mechanical Engineer, Quest, and Principal Investigator for the NASA project.
The micro molded spacer Quest needed from Phillips Plastics, called the “IMLI Matrix”, features microscopic posts with snaps for holding the radiation barriers in place. “From a manufacturability standpoint, the molding tool couldn’t be built to the initial database,” says Dave Munkwitz, Micro molding Manager, Phillips Plastics. “We had to go through the program in several parallel fashions in order to meet the timing NASA required.”
Phillips Plastics developed backup plastic material options and worked with Quest to develop part designs in case plans preceding them fell through. As a result of the design for manufacturability process and mold-flow requirement to creating the structural integrity the IMLI thermal blanket demands to withstand 10 g-force launch loads.
