1. The U-PHOS experience within the ESA student REXUS/BEXUS programme: A real space hands-on opportunity
- Author
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Alessandro Simone Viglione, Gabriele Meoni, L. Barsocchi, Federico Nesti, Pietro Nannipieri, Edoardo Pratelli, Federico Celi, Federico Baronti, Pietro Guardati, M. Anichini, Sauro Filippeschi, L. Buoni, G. Becatti, Carlo Bartoli, Edoardo Mancini, P. Fattibene, Lorenzo Quadrelli, Mauro Mameli, Paolo Di Marco, Stefano Piaquadio, Eugenio Ferrato, Salvo Marcuccio, A. Catarsi, Paolo Di Giorgio, Francesco Zanaboni, Roberto Di Rienzo, and Luca Fanucci
- Subjects
Engineering ,Passive systems ,Information Systems and Management ,German aerospace ,PHOS ,PHP ,PISA ,REXUS/BEXUS ,SOUNDING ROCKET ,STUDENT PROJECT ,U-PHOS ,Engineering (all) ,3304 ,Thermal management of electronic devices and systems ,Space (commercial competition) ,01 natural sciences ,010305 fluids & plasmas ,World Wide Web ,Phase change ,Aeronautics ,0103 physical sciences ,Agency (sociology) ,010306 general physics ,business.industry ,Test (assessment) ,business - Abstract
U-PHOS (Upgraded PHP Only for Space) is a project developed by a team of students from the University of Pisa with the goal to analyze and characterize the behavior of a Pulsating Heat Pipe (PHP), one of the most attractive two phases passive systems for thermal management in space applications. The PHP consists of a sealed serpentine capillary tube filled with a working fluid. The heat is efficiently transported by means of the combined action of phase change and capillary forces, so no extra equipment is required. The project aims at investigating the thermal response of such a device under a milli-gravity condition, in order to assess its effectiveness in space conditions. U-PHOS is one of the selected experiment of the REXUS/BEXUS programme, which allows European university students to carry out scientific and technical experiments on research rockets and balloons, thanks to a bilateral agency agreement between the German Aerospace Centre (DLR) and the Swedish National Space Board (SNSB) in collaboration with ESA. 19 students from the University of Pisa, with different backgrounds, compose the U-PHOS team. Students had the chance to completely design, build and test the experiment, which will flight up to space in March 2017. This paper intends to describe the work done by the students, their organization and how this experience empowered their careers, from both an academic and professional point of view.
- Published
- 2017