"In the future, we will build a permanent space port in space, and now we are about to take the first step!"

Zhang Xingyang announced proudly.

Since the completion of the first manned space mission two years ago.

After two years of preparation, the second manned space mission is about to begin.

This time, the number of people will also increase from one person last time to three.

In fact, three people are standard for space missions.

Last time, because of various factors, Yang Hongwei was only allowed to perform the task alone.

The second space mission, in addition to the increase in numbers, also has a relatively special mission.

That's a spacewalk!

Spacewalks, in fact, are also a precondition for the preparation of the space station.

If you can't do a spacewalk, then you can't maintain the problems that arise outside the space station, which is deadly.

"What we are going to assume in the early stage is a small experimental space station that is no more than 100 tons."

Zhang Xingyang showed the space station construction plan to hundreds of participants in the audience.

"It will consist of multiple cabins, including a core cabin, an experimental cabin, a cargo cabin, and more."

"Of course, our first step is to build the core module, and we can take our time in the follow-up cabins!"

"For us, there are two main difficulties that need to be overcome."

"The first point is the research and development of the core cabin as the core of the follow-up cabin energy and data, and the second point is the development of the cargo spacecraft."

"As the core of the space station, the research and development of the core module is a top priority."

"There are only two countries in the world today that have developed this thing!"

"But no one can teach us how to build the core module!"

"Da Mao won't!"

"Eagle sauce won't!"

"They don't even take us to play on the International Space Station, which is known as an international station, so how can they take out their housekeeping skills!"

"Therefore, we can only rely on our own wisdom to overcome this difficulty!"

Zhang Xingyang's words were very inspiring, and everyone listened to them and stirred up the breath in their hearts!

The breath that won glory for the country!

Most of the people here joined the aerospace industry with such an idea.

Otherwise, to be honest, most of them will be able to have more abundant material conditions, instead of working overtime day and night every day, exhausting their youth.

It was for this idea that it was almost for love that they survived.

"During this time, I will climb over this mountain in front of us with all of you!"

Zhang Xingyang finally made his own promise.

After seven or eight years of development, everyone in the aerospace system has more or less heard of Zhang Xingyang's name in technology development.

Therefore, after hearing this sentence, people who were still a little afraid of difficulties also smiled.

As if any kind of technical problem was nothing in his hands.

"I announce that the Tiangong-1 project has officially begun!"

With such a simple sentence, hundreds of scientific research units across the country took action and received several or even dozens of scientific research tasks.

Tens of thousands of scientific researchers have also begun their hard work.

As the core of the Tiangong space station, the energy system is directly related to the life of the space station, and it is also a task that Zhang Xingyang attaches the most importance to.

Whether it is the previous space station of Maozi or the space station of Eagle Sauce, in terms of energy system, rigid or semi-rigid solar wing panels are used.

To put it simply, it is equivalent to folding several hard solar panels together, stuffing them into the core module, and finding a way to automatically unfold them after entering space.

The Sky space station, because of the development of technology, has abandoned these relatively backward technologies and is expected to use flexible solar films.

Compared with traditional solar panels, flexible solar films have better stretchability, and the same size of space can have a larger area.

As we all know, the power of a solar panel largely depends on the area of the solar panel.

This does not include the new materials developed by the material team led by Su Xiao to improve the utilization rate of solar energy.

According to Zhang Xingyang's rough estimate, the 20-ton core cabin only needs 140 square meters of solar wing panels to drive the normal operation of all the equipment in the cabin.

When the space station reaches a shadowed area on the far side of the Earth, it is powered by a battery.

High-efficiency lithium battery that can provide enough power.

"The research and development of flexible solar films is going well, and we have successfully prepared a single flexible film with a size of 20 square centimeters."

Zhang Xingyang said with a smile to Guan Shanyue, who was still making improvements to the energy storage system.

Guan Shanyue, an expert in power systems, has a lot of research in the field of energy storage.

"At present, the energy utilization rate has reached 12% in the laboratory environment."

In general, the utilization rate of silicon solar cells in the atmosphere is 10 percent.

Zhang Xingyang: They are simulating the space environment, and the sunlight is stronger than the ground, so the utilization rate is also slightly higher.

Of course, there are also some reasons for the application of new materials to improve energy efficiency.

"Our current R&D progress is also relatively smooth, after all, the battery technology itself has almost been thoroughly studied, and it is not difficult."

Guan Shanyue also talked about their R&D progress at this time.

The batteries used in the space station are not advanced or strange.

In fact, Zhang Xingyang, who has the vision of later generations, actually prefers aluminum-air batteries.

Compared with the common lead-acid battery or lithium battery, the energy density of aluminum-air battery is higher, which can reach 8100WH/kg, compared with the lithium-ion battery is only 400WH/kg.

However, aluminum batteries also have a disadvantage, that is, they cannot be charged and discharged repeatedly.

After all, it is the process of generating electricity by reacting aluminum and oxygen to produce alumina.

When the battery is depleted, it must be replenished by replacing the aluminum electrodes.

At present, the first stage of the space station, it will be more troublesome to introduce such technology.

After the construction of the subsequent large-scale space station is completed, it will be more convenient to use such technology.

This is because only a large space station has enough space to build a power plant capable of rerefining alumina into a 99.9% purity.

Therefore, Tiangong-1 can only use lithium-ion batteries

However, even lithium-ion batteries need to make certain improvements for the low gravity and high temperature difference environment in space.

It can even be said that space does not even require special processes in some aspects due to the lack of corrosion and other factors.

"The energy storage system is expected to be completed within three months." Guan Shanyue finally gave Zhang Xingyang a not too long time.

The energy storage system is very important, because the core module is the main living place of the astronauts.

Therefore, there are a large number of necessary facilities for life, such as the most important air circulation and purification system.

Astronauts do not wear fully enclosed spacesuits inside the space station.

Normally, they are all wearing a simple set of astronaut uniforms.

At this time, all the oxygen breathed comes from the supply of the core cabin.

Although when designing the core cabin, the emergence of extreme cases was taken into account.

Oxygen can also be supplied through a back-up gas tank.

But after all, there is no small danger.

In addition to this, the thermostat system also relies on the energy system.

The speed at which the core module orbits the Earth far exceeds the Earth's rotation.

Astronauts are in space, and they can see sunrise and sunset several times a day.

In this process, the space station will continue to oscillate back and forth from hundreds of degrees directly from the sun to tens of degrees below zero without the sun.

The shell made of metal is able to withstand such temperature changes.

However, as creatures who live within 40 degrees and above minus 20 degrees all year round, it is obvious that they cannot adapt to such a life.

This requires that the constant temperature system of the core module cannot be stopped when the astronauts are in orbit.

This also puts forward the requirements for the energy system to ensure continuous operation without errors.

"Next, it's time to develop the life cycle system!"

After Zhang Xingyang came out of the laboratory where Guan Shanyue and the others worked, he stretched his waist and muttered to himself.

The life cycle system is also very important in the space station.

After all, the core cabin is a place where everyone lives for a long time, and it is impossible for you to not live.

The circulatory system of life includes the air circulation system, the water circulation system, and so on.

In space, every drop of water is a very important resource.

Therefore, the urine produced by astronauts also has to enter this system.

Through layers of filtration and absorption, after purification, it will become a drinking water resource again.

It sounds a little disgusting, but this is also the stage that early space construction must go through.

The spacecraft has a valuable transportation capacity, and it also has to transport many more important experimental instruments and equipment.

Later, during the construction of the Tiangong space station, when the two classes of astronauts were handed over, some astronauts told their colleagues with a wicked smile that they had left them good things.

This refers to the filtered water they left behind.

It doesn't have any taste, but it's a little bit of a concern to drink.

Of course, after the space station is built, the conditions will be much better.

For example, after the completion of the Tiangong space station, astronauts will even be able to eat fresh fruits in the sky.

From the time the fruit is delivered to the launch base to the hands of the astronauts, it will not take more than 12 hours.

You can even feel like it's just been plucked from a tree!

As for the era of full-scale space development, that is, Zhang Xingyang's time.

The large space port has almost become a small ecosystem.

Fresh vegetables and fruits, hydroponic farms in space, can produce their own and no longer need to rely on transportation on Earth.

As for now, the water vapor breathed by astronauts has to be recovered by condensation!

Not to mention the waste liquid generated by other lives.

The whole water recycling system, in the design of the predetermined index, is that the recovery efficiency needs to reach 90%, the overall utilization rate is greater than 80%.

In addition to the water recycling system, the treatment of solid waste is a bit more complex.

However, it will also carry out a variety of treatments to ensure that the water in it can be utilized.

"As an important part of maintaining the orbital altitude, the power propulsion system must not be sloppy!"

Zhang Xingyang looked at Geng Bo, who was still developing the engine, and couldn't help but admonish.

"You can be so bold as to apply electric propulsion to a spacecraft!"

Geng Bo also raised his head at this time, and couldn't help but complain.

Electric propulsion, for the current aerospace field, is still a very front-end content.

Although everyone has come up with such a thing as a Hall thruster.

But basically no spacecraft have completed practical applications.

The reason is also very simple, that is, the thrust is too small.

It's really hard to propel a spacecraft!

Take, for example, the Hall electric thruster that Geng Bo and they studied.

The developed single Hall electric thruster can only produce 0.08 N of thrust.

What is this concept?

On the ground, not even a piece of paper can be pushed.

You blow casually, and it's more powerful than this!

In the design of the core module, four Hall electric thrusters will be installed on the tail bulkhead of the core module, capable of generating 0.32 N of thrust.

But for a spacecraft, such a small force can also do some things.

For example, maintain the height of the space station itself!

You know, all the current space stations are actually low-orbit space stations.

That is, the orbital altitude of the space station, which is below 500 kilometers.

In the case of the space station they are developing, the orbital altitude is expected to be 320 kilometers.

And at this altitude, the space station is still greatly affected by the gravitational pull of the Earth.

It is better not to use the engine to maintain the orbital altitude, then the altitude of the space station will be lower and lower day by day.

Until there is no way to maintain its own flight trajectory, so it falls to the ground.

Hall thrusters solve this problem relatively well.

Although the thrust is not very large, it is able to maintain the altitude of the space station by continuing this thrust in space.

Moreover, the energy conversion efficiency of the Hall thruster is extremely high.

Compared to traditional chemical fuel thrusters, only a small amount of radon or argon gas is needed to sustain it.

Traditional chemical fuels, in addition to increasing the burden of launching rockets, also produce a lot of carbon dioxide and water, which is also bad for spacecraft.

"Hall thruster is an important development direction of working fluid propulsion in the future, although the thrust is still very small, but it can still develop and grow."

Zhang Xingyang patted Geng Bo's shoulder and said.

Compared with today's people, Zhang Xingyang, who knows the direction of technological development, knows very well that Hall thrusters are a very important part of future space travel.

It's like investing heavily in R&D for internal combustion engines a hundred years ago, all of which are investments in the future.

Geng Bo glanced at Zhang Xingyang, didn't say anything, just said simply:

"Our Hall thrusters, which are currently able to reach a thrust of 0.6 N, are only one step away from the design goal!"

(End of chapter)