The Press Stories
University of Tel Aviv introduces a “smart material” space – a folded polymer, used by heating in its original form
Tel Aviv University’s TAUSAT-1 Satellite and Nuclear Research Center (MMG) will be launched into space on March 14 and will continue to make history: on April 9 at 7 pm (Israel time), the signal from the control center was delivered to Tel Aviv University – and the object is a smart Memory polymer (SMP) changes its shape and is suspended in orbit around the earth. Classified, developed, assembled and tested as part of the Nano-Satellite Center on the Nano Satellite Complex, a unique collaborative Ivy and Elder Fleischmann Faculty of Engineering and School Porter for the Environment and Earth Sciences, at the Perfect Science Faculty and Nuclear Research Center – Whistle.
This is the first time that smart material has been sent into space from Israel, and the deployment mechanism developed under the project could save the need to launch heavy-duty algorithms in the future – as well as solar panels and antennas. The smart polymer is one of five experiments conducted by TAUSAT-1 in a small laboratory, measuring 10 × 10 × 10 cm, developed by the Department of Space Environment at MMG.
“It’s an accelerator – a component for moving parts and systems – based on a shape-changing polymer,” said Noam Elias, professor of materials science and engineering at the Faculty of Engineering. “The actuator was created as part of Debbie Marco’s masterpiece and under the joint guidance of Dr. Ronan Worker of MMG Sorek and Shelley. On Thursday, April 9, they issued this order – and the actuator was successfully used in space.” Successful and some not, but this is the first time a satellite has been launched from Israel with a transforming polymer deployment mechanism. These polymers are smart materials that can return to their original shape by external stimuli such as light and heat. Electric field or magnetic field. “
Dr. Ronan Werker adds: “Smart products are a creative solution for the future to launch heavy metal deployment algorithms. Smart objects allow you to control the deployment process without physical contact and eye contact with the control center, and dramatically save the mass and volume of cargo launched into space. The actuator we developed was used in response to heat. In addition, the bending angle of the actuator also changes its electrical resistance – and by measuring the electrical resistance one can get an indication that it has actually been used successfully. “
TAUSAT-1’s aerospace laboratory includes other scientific experiments designed to study the aerospace environment to find the best solutions for launching and operating satellites and spacecraft in this environment, including measuring aggregated radiation using aggregate ionizing radiation using a dense oxide layer transistor detector. The test method measures the variation of the threshold voltage values for continuous operation of the transistor, thus enabling the measurement of very low radiation levels.
More on this topic on the Yatan website:
