PAI-DAE - ILC Dover

The Program to Advance Inflatable Decelerators for Atmospheric Entry (PAIDAE)

PAIDAE and ADT are programs designed to further develop technologies related to inflatable atmospheric decelerators. The program conducted a set of ground tests (wind tunnel and ballistic range), materials development studies, and system trade studies to advance various aspects of the inflatable decelerator technology. ILC has been a key partner to NASA for this development since the program inception in February, 2007.

ILC worked closely with the NASA Langley Research Center and the Georgia Institute of Technology to design and build an inflatable tension cone wind tunnel test article. The tension cone test article was tested in the NASA Glenn Research Center 10ft x 10ft Supersonic Wind Tunnel and provided good correlation for structural analysis being performed. ILC analysis results, coupled with test data, show that a low pressure inflation provides significant strength for reentry. A low pressure system means that smaller inflation components and lighter materials can be used. This provides significant mass savings when scaled up to the very large decelerators envisioned for ISS cargo return or for a Mars mission decelerator.

Additionally ILC worked with NASA Langley, Glenn, and AMES Research Centers to further develop flexible Thermal Protection Systems (TPS). The flexible TPS is used to protect an inflatable decelerator from the high heat loads that occur during re-entry. A key criteria for material selection for the flexible TPS is to be sufficiently robust to withstand both flight loads and handling loads on the ground. Past experience at ILC has shown that without proper care, the TPS can be easily damaged during fabrication, hard packing, and vacuum deployment. The processes we've developed for handling and integration ensure the survivability of the TPS layer after the numerous hard packs required for a flight program. NASA's testing in the LaRC 8' High Temperature Tunnel has provided verification that assembly and handling methods developed at ILC provides survivability from the extremes of an entry aerodynamic loading and aerothermal heating.