Post Cure: Composite assemblies orchestrate smaller satellite designs, payload flexibility

Cube satellites (CubeSats) have become key to space exploration, research and technology development, though they are often expensive to build and launch. Funded efforts like the DiskSat program aim at mitigating these challenges. The disk-like shape targeted makes it so the satellite could easily fit the circular cross-section of a rocket fairing. The DiskSat concept operates as both a solar array power generation panel and its own BUS structure for the payload.

Rock West Composites’ (RWC, San Diego, Calif., U.S.) development of four composite combination solar array substrate/backup structure assemblies for The Aerospace Corp. are serving as a base for the solar arrays on these DiskSat spacecraft. Each DiskSat assembly used RWC’s space-grade product, the STRATOSubstrate Leo class panel, which comprises HR40/NB321 unidirectional carbon fiber prepreg, NB301 film adhesive, perforated aluminum honeycomb core and 0.002-inch HN Kapton. The inserts for the deliverable were BR-127 primed aluminum bonded with EA9394. The final assembly is approximately 1 meter in diameter and 25 centimeters thick.

The RWC engineering team consulted on the design including layup, material selection, insert design, bonding methods and manufacturing strategy. In addition, the team used an insert design that achieved self-fixturing to a tight tolerance, avoiding a costly assembly fixture. The tolerances on the in-plane and out-of-plane inserts match to a global datum scheme, and tolerances were on the order of 0.010-0.020 inch positional.

Through STRATO, RWC achieved a lead time of only ~12 weeks from contract to delivery for the space flight-ready hardware.