The Ariane satellite launcher is embarking on increasingly long missions that require more energy than ever before, creating the need for innovative new sources of power. And the task is a complex one: when it comes to space missions, size and weight are crucial. Liten is working with Airbus Defence & Space to tackle the problem under a European Space Agency request for proposals. “We needed to find a technology capable of delivering the very high power required for the launch phase and able to operate at full capacity at temperatures from –20 °C to 70 °C,” said a Liten researcher.

Liten’s team came up with a very recent lithium-battery system that integrates a carbon monofluoride cathode and a lithium-ion battery with silicon at the anode. The cathode and anode technologies alone are capable of meeting the needs of four on-board applications: thrust vector command, pyrotechnics, functional power supply, and backup.

The chemical formulations the researchers selected look very promising. Proof-of-concept and functional prototype testing have been successful. “The temperature, aging, and vibration-resistance testing carried out in Ariane 6 launch conditions produced good results. These tests were carried out at cell-level. We extrapolated the results to pack-level and the outcome looks just as promising.”

Liten’s battery could very well be on board Ariane 6 in 2020. Stay tuned!