About the Possibility of Creating Large-Scale Structures in the Open Space Conditions

Abstract

The paper gives a brief overview of the history of the development of inflatable space structures. Further development should be the use of inflatable shells that harden in space. The possibility of using this technology in the framework of the use of simple tasks is considered in the article. On the example of thick-walled spherical and cylindrical shells, using Lame's analytical solutions, it is shown that the thickness of the shell can be thin. The thin shell design is much easier to inflate. No high pressure is required for this. Using the classical heat conduction equation, the temperature distribution inside a cylindrical shell is determined. When setting the boundary conditions, the flux of rays incident both from the side of the Sun and from the side of the Earth was taken into account. The radiation on the surface of the cylinder was calculated according to the Stefan-Boltzmann law. It has been established that a temperature occurs in the shell, the maximum value of which is in the range from 150 to 200 degrees Celsius. Prepreg casings require the use of a high temperature resin suitable for hot curing.