Thermal Vacuum Chamber (TVAC) for In-Orbit Demonstrators (IoDs) and instrumentation testing IFAE

650.000 €

230.000 €

Gencat NewSpace funding

CERCA GINYS-III 014

Its useful volume, 1.5 m long and 1.3 m in diameter, supports satellites weighing up to 100 kg. The system reaches a residual vacuum of 10⁻⁶ mbar in less than five hours thanks to a mechanical vacuum pump and two turbomolecular pumps, extracting gases. Two thermal circuits (shroud and thermal plate) allow the article to be exposed to temperature cycles from −80°C to +100°C, replicating fluctuations during eclipses and solar exposure. The TVAC also features a cold plate that can trap suspended particles, as well as two integrated contamination analysis systems that ensure the cleanliness of the TVAC's interior in accordance with NASA and ESA standards. This infrastructure, unique in Catalonia, will offer competitive prices for academic and industrial entities, promoting the validation of space technologies. The TVAC is positioned as a strategic resource to accelerate the development and testing of space missions, reducing technical risks and unnecessary travel.

The TVAC arose from a joint proposal between the IEEC and the IFAE and is the essence of the collaboration that will continue to grow between these two centers. Both the IEEC and IFAE have participated in scientific space missions in the past and are familiar with the engineering and science behind the TVAC. Furthermore, i2CAT will also test space communications technologies at the TVAC, just as ICFO can also test advanced quantum communications instrumentation, among others.

The space sector has a significant social impact and contributes to society. Instruments such as cameras, thermal sensors, and radio frequency systems can analyze the state of vegetation and drought in agricultural fields, forests, river areas, and much more. Furthermore, space is key to studying Essential Climate Variables (ECVs), as is already being done through ESA's Phi-Lab initiative with the IEEC, a project aimed at promoting the best national Climate Resilience projects both industrially and academically. The TVAC will be a key infrastructure to ensure that all these technologies can be tested under the most demanding standards and reach the market sustainably.

The TVAC is expected to be useful for companies engaged in the development and integration of space components. Both companies dedicated to electric propulsion and others developing optics for satellites will be able to use the TVAC to perform vacuum and thermal cycling tests. This infrastructure will also be key for both the IEEC and IFAE to share their knowledge of space conditions, applicable standards, and everything related to increasing the technological TRL of the companies' projects.

The TVAC is expected to be a key infrastructure for testing new instrumentation and scientific missions. The space sector is booming, and so are all its scientific applications. One example is the IEEC's PhotSat mission, whose instrumentation will be tested at the TVAC to ensure that visible and ultraviolet cameras can capture stellar images while continuously monitoring space. It is hoped that other scientific missions will be tested at the TVAC in the future, thus fostering scientific competitiveness.