Concentrated Solar Radiation Simulation For Space Solar Power Module Vacuum Testing

Space Solar Power (SSP) is broadly defined as the collection of solar energy in space and its wireless transmission for use on Earth. The implementation of such a system could offer energy security, environmental, and technological advantages. The Integrated Symmetrical Concentrator (ISC) and Modular Symmetrical Concentrator (MSC) concepts have received considerable attention among recent commonly proposed SSP implementations. Each concept employs an array of modules for performing conversion of concentrated sunlight into microwaves for transmission to Earth. Until the efforts of the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, no module prototypes had been subjected to the challenging conditions inherent to the space environment. The customized space simulation testing and the associated development described in this paper detail the efforts to test a prototype module in vacuum under multiple suns of solar concentration. A small vacuum chamber and 4000W Xenon light source were adapted to provide the desired test conditions. In particular, much effort was devoted to arriving at an effective, inexpensive solution that was consistent with the budget constraints of the project without compromising the fidelity and relevance of the tests.