Development and testing of a zero stitch MLI blanket using plastic pins for space use

New types of MLI blanket have been developed to achieve high thermal performance while maintaining production and assembly workability equivalent to the conventional type. Tag-pins, which are widely used in commercial applications to hook price tags to products, are used to fix the films in place and the pin material is changed to polyetheretherketone (PEEK) for use in space. Thermal performance is measured by using a boil-off calorimeter, in which a rectangular liquid nitrogen tank is used to evaluate the degradation at the bending corner and joint of the blanket. Zero-stitch- and multi-blanket-type MLIs show significantly improved thermal performance (ɛeff is smaller than 0.0050 at room temperature) despite having the same fastener interface as traditional blankets, while the venting design and number of tag-pins are confirmed as appropriate in a depressurization test.