Design and qualification of the Cluster satellite propellant tankage

The Cluster propellant tank is an all titanium welded assembly used in identical form for both the monomethyl hydrazine fuel and nitrogen tetroxide oxidizer service. The tank is to be used on four flight Cluster spacecraft with six tanks per spacecraft. The theoretical design of the tank utilized a suite of computer aided design (CAD) tools for assessment of all environments. Initial design evaluation identified the primary design driven of tank fundamental frequency, static acceleration and sine vibration, commensurate with minimizing mass. The primary design driven are all a function of the tank's isostatic hardmounted boundary conditions. The Cluster propellant tank has undergone comprehensive Qualification test program. The test results have been used to validate the theoretical design.