Carbon Nanotubes : Applications in Satellites

Space Exploration is one of the industries where the advancement of technology is at its peak, It helps us gain insights to the universe, explore new frontiers and also the technology that are developed leads to the invention of modern products and gadgets which are used in everyday life. One of the major objectives of space missions is to deliver payloads. The payloads are Satellites which is an artificial object that is placed in an orbit to do a certain job, this covers a wide range of activities including weather monitoring, natural calamities prediction, ocean surveillance, voice communication, navigation systems and others. The technology that is used in these satellites is updated with the latest in technology. Therefore, presenting a massive opportunity for consumer-focused space technology is Nanotechnology. Carbon Nanotubes are an advanced Nanotech material that is ideal for space usage. It exhibits high strength, conductivity, radiation resistance and unique properties such as ballistic electron conduction and low-voltage field emission. Carbon Nanotubes have been studied thoroughly for 25 years. Several laboratory breakthroughs and prototypes particularly for use in space have been demonstrated. This review intends to detail about the applications of SWCNTs in various components of satellites, the change in efficiency of each subsystem. The article explains how each property of nanotubes is being used in different applications. The electrical conducting property of the nanotubes is being used in antennas which increases the performance 20 times compared to those of the conventional ones, The same property is being utilized for Electromagnetic Radiation shielding. Batteries that use nanotubes as their electrode increases the energy density by 10 times as well as withstanding the extreme temperature. CNTs are used as an additive material along with a variety of materials to make space ready structures. Because of their high thermal conducting property, the nanotubes are being used as a black hole forming material which absorbs the light 99.965% which are further used to prevent stray light, the same coating is being used on solar panels to increase the light absorbing capacity. The critical element in the satellites is considered to be the thruster that propels the satellite. The nanotubes offer a great solution for their field emitting property. The current density is found to be as high as 4 A/cm ^{2} which also produces the electric field as low as 2 V/μm. By improving the performance of each subsystem, It increases the efficiency of the satellite as a whole.The special nanotube properties and applications have been thoroughly reviewed in this work.