LOW ENERGY COOLING TECHNOLOGY FOR A CUBESAT MOBILE

GROUND STATION

J Kamanzi and MTE Khan
Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Cape Town, South Africa

ABSTRACT

The French South African Institute of Technology
(FSATI), under the umbrella of the Cape Peninsula
University of Technology (CPUT), are developing small
satellites known as CubeSats; and the current satellite
system is using a fixed ground station for the ground
segment. A satellite mobile ground station (SMGS) is
yet to come for a broader use of cubeSats. Thermal
problems encountered in the SMGS were discussed in
this paper and a controlled solar cooling system was
chosen among the existing possible cooling technologies
that could suit the SMGS applications. This paper
presents the work in progress towards the design of the
cooling system. This project will benefit the South
African community in the fields of education and space
science.

1 INTRODUCTION

Since 2009, the French South African Institute of
Technology (FSATI) under the umbrella of the Cape
Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT), are
developing small satellites designated cubeSats. This
designation has been attributed to those small satellites of
which the shape is a scalable cube of 10x10x10 cm cube
and 1kg wet mass. In this regard, FSATI has already
developed a complete flight model product, ZACUBE 1, of
which the launch process is still ongoing and ZACUBE 2
of which the development is at an advanced stage. The
cubeSats offer the advantage of completing the same space
missions as bigger satellites at enormously lower cost and
shorter development time. The common space missions
whereby the satellites are called upon are communications,
weather forecast, debris monitoring, disaster prevention
and management, global positioning system (GPS); and in
all these types of missions, a satellite is constantly in
communication with the ground for data collection and
mission control purposes. At FSATI, a fixed ground station
is already set up and is located at the Goldfields building.
However, for broad use of cubeSats, mobile ground
stations are to be resorted to when it comes to the access to
remote areas, to the better quality communication in
broadcast and multicast and to the flexibility of operation
of the ground stations.

2 THERMAL NOISE AND ITS EFFECTS IN
SATELLITE COMMUNICATIONS

In satellite communications, concerns rise about the
quality of the signal and the lifespan of the equipments.
Yet, the signal gets interfered into by the noise on its way
from the transmit side to the receive side hosted in a
ground station and finds its quality become poor. Though
there are various sources that can contribute to the noise
at different stages of the communications systems, the
only worrying source of noise is the one located at the
receiving end (Figure 1.1) [1]. The noise at the receiving
end is mainly the result of thermal agitations of electrons
in the front end microwave Low Noise Amplifier (LNA).
The voltage and the power of this type of noise,
commonly known as thermal noise, are directly
proportional to the temperature where the LNA is
immersed (Equations 1.1 and 1.2) [2]. Thermal noise
represents the power measured when there is no input
signal applied to the amplifier; and it is quantified
according to the equation 1.2.

Moreover, the author [2] shows the relationship between
the input power, the output power and the noise floor
(Figure 1.2).The increase of the noise floor leads to the
decrease of the amplifiers dynamic range and this can
lead to the destruction of the amplifier when the received
signal is too powerful. Thus, the ground station should be
fitted with a cooling system so as to keep the temperatures
around the LNA and other electronics in allowable
margins.

When it comes to a satellite mobile ground station,
thermal issues must be dealt with in a particular way. In
fact, SMGSs are called to operate outdoors and are likely
to be exposed to harsh hot weathers. A SMGS structure is
also meant to be kept closed for the safety of the
equipments constituent of the ground station and as a
result, inside temperature is subject of increase. This can
affect quality of the signal and the comfort of the
engineers in charge of the SMGS operation. The impact
of the outside temperatures on the inside of the SMGS
was illustrated in figure 2.1.

The purpose of this paper is to develop a cooling system
suitable to a SMGS in order to mitigate thermal issues
related to the signal quality and to the lifespan of the
microwave amplifier at the receive side.

The research problem can be stated as How to develop a
cooling system suitable to a satellite mobile ground
station? The research was conducted in general but a
quantitative study was carried out basing on the
specifications of the FSATI ground station.

Regarding the research strategies, low technologies
utilized to buildings were overviewed as the SMGS
structure can be compared to a room in a house. Passive
techniques and clean energy were the only ones taken into
consideration. Passive methods are those running
independently of a source of energy whereas active
methods run on a source of electrical power. The choice

of passive and clean energy techniques is due to the
global concern regarding the energy shortage and the
environmental degradations caused by the use of fossil
fuels [4].

Receiver
Satellite
Transmitter
Uplink
signal
Downlink
Signal
Signal source
Transmit earth station
Noise
Noise Noise
Noise
Noise

Figure1.1: Noise distribution in satellite communication. Adopted
from [1]

n(rms)
0
4 Volts (1.1)
(Watts) (1.2)
(Johnson or Nyquist noise)
V KTRB
N KTB
44
(W KTB

0
0
0
Where:
: Bandwidth (Hz)
: Boltzman constant ( K)
: Thermal noise power (Watts)
: Resistance of the circuit ( )
: Temperature ( K)
B
K
N
R
T
)


10dBm
10dBm
Pout
(dBm)
Pin
(dBm)
Dynamic
range
Saturation
BURN OUT
Ideal
AMP
Floor
noise
-70
-60
-70
Figure 1.2: Effects of the noise floor on the amplifiers dynamic
range. The floor noise typically ranges from -100dBm to -60
dBm but can be lowered by cooled elements [2]. At high input
powers, the RF amplifier burns out. At low input powers, the
signal is dominated by the noise floor. Thus, the signal cannot
be sensed and this results in information loss.

Solar
radiation

Figure 2.1 a: Example of a SMGS under solar radiation




Si
Ni
So
No
Badnwidth: B
Gain:G
Noise Figure:NF
Temperature To
Ti = To (NF 1)

Figure 2.1 b: Contribution of the external temperature (T
O
) to
the internal temperature (T
i
). Adopted from [2]

Figure 2.1: Illustration of the effects of the external
temperature on the RF equipment. S
i
and N
i
are
respectively the signal and noise powers at the input; S
O
,
N
O
are the signal and noise powers at the output. B is
bandwidth, G is the gain and NF is the noise figure.

3 LIMITATIONS AND CONSTRAINTS

The cooling technologies with regards to mobile ground
stations should take into considerations of various
restrictions or limitations related to the nature and the
mode of operation imposed to the mentioned stations.

3.1 PRACTICAL AND ECONOMICAL
RESTRICTIONS

The techniques to be developed to lower the temperatures
inside a mobile ground station should be in compliance
with the lightweight aspect of mobile ground stations.
In fact, for practical and economical reasons, the mass of
the SMGS must allow easy transport from site to site
within reasonable times and with low fuel cost. This can
only be achieved by making the mass of the SMGS as low
as possible with regards to the cooling system.


3.2 STRUCTURAL RESTRICTIONS

An SMGS must be in compliance with the traffic
regulations with regards to its size. Therefore, the cooling
systems should not be cumbersome or be shaped so as to
dictate sizes beyond the traffic fixed boundaries for
vehicles.

3.3 POWER CONSUMPTION

In terms of power consumption, conventional cooling
methods are electrical power reliant to work. In this
particular case of study, a mobile ground station should
preferably work without any external source of electrical
power as it applies to all portable or mobile apparatuses.
Alternatively, if the SMGS has to resort to any source of
power, the latter should be of a renewable type.

3.4 HUMAN AND ENVIRONMENT CONCERNS

The cooling system to be developed for SMGS must not
be harmful to human livings and the environment as
traditional techniques used in buildings do. There are
diseases sometimes deadly that are encountered in
building fitted with airconditioning systems. Those
diseases include the sick building syndrome, a sickness
associated to the living or work environment [3] [4].

Lastly, the cooling system in perspective should not resort
to openings in order to radiate out the heat from the
SMGS. The electronics inside the SMGS should not be
exposed to the effects of bad weather and debris in order
to avoid hazard shocks that can cause the spoilage of the
electronics.

4 OVERVIEW OF COOLING TECHNIQUES
SUITABLE TO THE SMGSs.

The technologies that can be applied for the cooling of a
mobile ground station may consist of cooling techniques,
solar control techniques, amortization techniques and
radiative cooling techniques [5].

4.1 COOLING TECHNOLOGIES

Cooling technologies are classified into two main groups
namely electrically powered cooling systems and thermal
driven cooling systems [6]. As both technologies can be
achieved by using solar energy, it is a great opportunity to
exploit the same solar energy, which is our research
problem, to solve the same problem. Electrically powered
cooling systems can be supplied thanks to the
photovoltaic cells to drive vapour a compression
refrigeration cycle, a thermo electric refrigeration cycle or
a stirling refrigeration cycle. With electrically powered
cooling systems down to freezing temperatures can be
achieved. Thermal or work driven systems are supplied in
heat via solar thermal collectors. Solar radiation is
converted into thermal energy used to drive an absorption
refrigeration cycle, an adsorption cycle, a chemical
reaction cycle, a dessicant refrigeration cycle, or an
ejection refrigeration cycle. Thermal driven cooling
systems suit the better the air conditioning and the cooling
food stuffs and vaccines than providing the freezing
effect. Temperatures ranging between 0C and 25C can
be attained. Among the refrigeration cycles used in
thermal driven systems, the absorption refrigeration cycle
offers better performance than the others [6]. Solar
thermal collectors are commonly used to heat water in
summer to save the electrical power allocated to the
geyser and to the other heating appliances. In the context
of a mobile ground station, solar collectors can be fitted
underneath the roof attic to provide the cooling effect by
means of evaporative cooling. Spectrally selective solar
absorbers coatings offer a better performance with regards
to maximizing solar heat gains and minimizing radiative
losses [7].

4.2 SOLAR CONTROL TECHNIQUES

Solar control techniques work by controlling the solar
radiation reaching inside a construction via the facades
and the roof. In a construction, solar control is essentially
achieved by using apertures and glazing. For the SMGS,
apertures are limited to avoid damages that can be
incurred by electronics from the rain and other kind of
bad weather. Glazings are the most solicited since the
SMGS is meant to have a certain area of glass windows to
allow the day light inside the container. These glazings
should be able to reject thermal radiation contained in the
Near Infra Red (NIR) band of the electromagnetic
spectrum and allow the visible light. The NIR
wavelengths are comprised between 0.75 m and 1.4 m
while the visible light wavelengths range between 390 nm
and 700 nm. Solar control coatings that spectrally
transmit the visible light and reflect the Near Infra Red
radiation are used to allow the day light in the structure
containing the ground station equipment and to minimize
overheating and glare effects [8].

The development of thin film optically selective surfaces
has made solar control possible in various applications
[9]. Thin films can be used in solar radiation control as
well as in the cooling processes in the context of the
SMGS. There are several ways whereby thin films can be
used in the process of cooling a SMGS. Thin films with
various optical features have been looked at concering
this research project.

Angular selective glazings are used to attenuate the
intensity of direct solar radiation. In summer, the sun is at
higher altitudes and the radiation strikes the roofs at
almost straight angles [10]. These glazings can be fitted
on the roof and windows of the SMGS to ensure that only
the acceptable amount of daylight is allowed inside the
structure and the near infra red radiation is reflected back
to the atmosphere.

Dynamic variable transmittance apertures are used to
control the solar radiation as well. The apertures can use
the property of some thin films that consists of reversible
color variation. The property is governed by the fact that

the solar absorption varies according to the color of the
receiving material. These apertures can be of the type
electrochromic, gasochromic or thermochromic [11].

4.3 HEAT AMORTIZATION TECHNIQUES

Heat amortization techniques can be achieved by using
the phase change materials (PCMs). Phase change
materials are made of materials that have a high fusion
point. They melt and solidify at relatively extreme
temperatures [12]. When the heat reaches the envelope of
the construction, it gets stored in the PCM and released
according to the principles of heat transfer. PCM based
cooling techniques are also known as free cooling [5]. In
the SMGS, PCM in the size of microcapsules can be
applied in attachment on thin wall boards inside the
SMGS. They can be applied under the roof as well. PCMs
can also be squeezed in between the metal panels of the
external envelope of the structure constituent of the
SMGS for better cooling performances.

4.4 RADIATIVE COOLING

Radiative cooling is the technique that consists of the heat
loss by long wave radiation from one body to another of
lower temperature. This technique is the direct application
of the heat transfer from source to sink. Radiative cooling
that can be either implemented by using a direct method
whereby the external envelope of the structure will be
used to reflect the long wave solar radiation or by using a
hybrid method [13]. For the direct radiative cooling, the
use of the white paint on the outer area of the SMGS will
provide the radiation of long waves during the day in hot
seasons. As for the hybrid radiative cooling, a movable
insulation on the roof of the structure hosting the SMGS
equipments will be resorted to in order to attenuate the
solar radiation getting inside the structure via the roof
during the day and be removed during the night. A flat
metal plate can be used in this regard.

Among all the technologies overviewed, solar thermal
cooling technology was chosen for the mobile ground
station. A controlled absorption refrigeration cycle was
preferred to provide temperatures varying from 0C to
25C. Thin films were recommended to be fitted on door
and windows of the SMGS to limit the NIR coming into
the SMGS while letting the visible light in. The white
paint was recommended to be on the body of the SMGS.

5 SYSTEM MODEL DEVELOPMENT

The system model development covers a quantitative
study of the thermal noise as a function of the
temperature, the system requirements and then the overall
structure of the cooling system.

A quantitative study of thermal noise was conducted at
the front end Low Noise Amplifier of FSATIs current
ground station. Simulations to show the effect of the
thermal noise were performed with the help of LabVIEW
2012 software package. A Graphical User interface (GUI)
(Figure 4.1) was developed to enter the LNA parameters
(Table 4.1) and display the values of the noise and the
eventual effects. The logic followed to develop this GUI
was used to set the control system for the cooling system.

Table 4.1: LNA Parameters
Parameter Lower limit Upper limit
Frequency (MHz) 420 450
Noise Figure 0.55
1db compres. (dBm) 12
1dB BW (MHz) 40
Supply voltage (V) 10 16
Currents Tx (mA) 10
Currents Rx (mA) 200
Attenuation max(dB) 0.5
Gain (dB) 16

As the temperatures of operation for the LNA have not
been specified, we, the authors, have assumed the LNA to
operate between -55C (218K) to +80C (353K). The
variation of thermal noise with respect to the variation of
the temperature was displayed in an Excel spreadsheet
(Table 4.2). Equation 1.1 giving the noise power in Watts
was converted in dBm to yield equation 5.1 and the output
signal power in dBm was given by the equation 5.2

o
o i
(dBm) 10log( ) 30 dBm (5.1)
(dBm) S (dBm) dBm (5.2)
N KTB
S G
10log( ) 30 dBm 10log(
i
S (dBm)
i


Table 4. 2: Variation of Thermal Noise through the Frequency
Range

T is the temperature; No1 and No2 are respective noise
powers for the lower and upper frequencies of the LNA.


Figure 4.1: Simulation of the effect of high temperatures on the
system noise.

According to table 4.2, throughout the frequency range
and over the range of temperature of operation of the
microwave amplifier, thermal noise change is of closely
2.5 db. But for the sake of the signal, the LNA system
should rather keep the temperature constant and allow the
bandwidth fluctuations over the prescribed bandwidth.
This way, thermal noise is kept at a certain acceptable
level and thus preventing the fluctuations in the signal
quality. Figure 4.1 illustrates the effects of critical
temperatures on the system noise.The choice of the
assumed acceptable temperature was done referring to the
room temperature that ranges from 20C (293K) to 25C
(298K). The average temperature of 22C (295K) was
chosen to yield the absolute thermal noise change of 0.4
db over the whole range of the frequency of operation of
the LNA.
The system requirements towards the system design were
made after the quantitative study.
The design is meant to maintain the temperature
inside the truck to the room temperature (295K) as
the ground operators will need to be in a comfortable
environment. In case the temperature exceeds the
room temperature, the cooling system must be started
off.
The maximum allowable thermal noise
corresponding to the room temperature was set to
-87.27 dBm. This is another case, where the cooling
system should be started off.
The system has to ensure that the LNA is safe even
for high power signals (Figure 4.2). The limit was set
to 23 db. This value was fixed referring to the
maximum input power and to the 1db compression
(Table 4.1). The controlled system will ensure that no
higher value than that limit is channelled to the LNA.
The whole system has to be controlled by using a
microcontroller. The microcontroller will be fitted with an
ADC and a DAC so as to receive the analogue quantities -
namely the temperature and the downlink signal, and to
ouput the analogue signal to command the cooling
systems thermostat and to channel the signal to the LNA
(Figure 4.3).


Figure 4.2: Simulation of the effects high input signal is too
high.


Table 4.3: Control System Requirements
Parameters Values (max)
Temperature [ K] 298
Input signal [dBm] 23
Noise [dBm] -87.27

Temperature from
the sensor
Input signal
ADC
CONTROLLER
DAC
COOLING
SYSTEM
LNA
Input
signal
Control
signal
(T>Troom)
Control
signal
Figure 4.3: Block diagram for the cooling systems control
system.

6 CONCLUSION

With the cubeSats becoming increasingly a research and
educational tool, this project will benefit the South African
community with regards to research in the field of space
industry through SANSA. Furthermore, the project will
also help extend the platform of space sciences in the sector
of higher education.

The use of the solar cooling system will involve once off
costs only but it will be cost effective on a long run. The
adsorption refrigeration cycle was chosen for its ability to
offer a cooling capacity ranging between 0C and 25C.
Simulations of the system development shows that the
project will respond to the problem stated in the
introduction of this paper.

7 REFERENCES

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rd
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8 AUTHORS

Principal Author: Janvier Kamanzi holds a BTech
degree in Electrical Engineering from the
Cape Peninsula University of Technology
and a BSc degree in the same filed from
the National University of Rwanda.
Currently, he is a part time lecturer at the
Cape Peninsula University of Technology.


Co-author: Professor MTE Khan holds a DTech degree
in Electrical Engineering from the Cape Peninsula
University of Technology. He is presently a professor
leading the Centre for Distributed Power and Electronic
Systems.

Presenter: The paper is presented by Mr. Janvier Kamanzi.