Modelling Dynamics of External Thermal Circuit in Stirling Engine of the Spacecraft Power Plant.

To be able to design modern power plants of spacecraft built based on Stirling engines, it is necessary to use calculation tools to simulate their operation in a wide range of modes, to take into consideration the influence of subsystems on each other and the final characteristics of the plant (power plan”). As part of the work, a thermodynamic model of an external thermal circuit was created, consisting of heat pipes, heat exchangers and radiator panels. A mathematical model of the Stirling engine of the first order has been also implemented. The developed models were independently debugged and then integrated into a single model of the power plant. The model is implemented in an open simulation environment of xcos/scilab. Numerical experiments were carried out to study the dynamics of the heating of the contour elements and the effect of the non-stationary thermal state on the engine performance. The article presents the basic equations for the thermal circuit and the design schemes, as well as some results of numerical simulation, including the dynamics of changes in the indicator diagram of the engine when the external thermal circuit is heated. The developed model can be used in the early stages of spacecraft design for a preliminary assessment of the main indicators of the power plant, its dimensions and thermal loads. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]