| US 7,568,352 B2 | ||
| Thermally coupled liquid oxygen and liquid methane storage vessel | ||
| Gary D. Grayson, Huntington Beach, Calif. (US); Michael L. Hand, Huntington Beach, Calif. (US); and Edwin C. Cady, Tustin, Calif. (US) | ||
| Assigned to The Boeing Company, Chicago, Ill. (US) | ||
| Filed on Feb. 22, 2006, as Appl. No. 11/359,853. | ||
| Prior Publication US 2007/0193282 A1, Aug. 23, 2007 | ||
| Int. Cl. F17C 3/08 (2006.01); F17C 7/02 (2006.01) | ||
| U.S. Cl. 62—45.1 [62/50.1] | 19 Claims |
| 1. An apparatus, comprising:
a first tank comprising a first liquid propellant;
a second tank comprising a second liquid propellant; and
a thermal couplet between the second tank and the first tank for transferring heat energy between the first tank and the second
tank to substantially maintain the first liquid propellant and the second liquid propellant at a substantially similar temperature;
wherein the first tank, the second tank and the thermal coupler are employed in a space vehicle having a propulsion system
using the first liquid propellant and the second liquid propellant and wherein the thermal coupler comprises one or more metal
bands coupling the first tank to the second tank.
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