[.90] RealHeat: Heat Transfer 101! [WIP]

[Goozeman]

Introducing Real Heat!

The mod where we've got all your heat transfer modes. Convection? Laminar and turbulent! Radiation? Solar and blackbody. Conduction? Well... we're working on it.

Currently without difficulty scaling for stock KSP, so you can't get much above 300*C on all but the most violent reentries.

Will probably work with RSS. Try it and find out, someone let me know?

Anyways, here are the links:

https://github.com/KinglyRedLion/RealHeat/tree/master

Instructions:

1.) Install FAR if you don't already have it.

2.) Download the zip from github and copy the RealHeat folder into your GameData folder.

Notes: Use this OR Deadly Reentry. Not both.

Thanks:

To NathanKell for bringing me onto the project.

To Ferram4 for putting up with my questions and for a lot of help.

To egg. For being a general pain in the butt.

Features: Implemented In Progress Planned

• Basic convective heating/cooling
  
• Basic radiative cooling of parts.
  
• Solar radiative heating
  
• Ablative heat shields
  
• Better atmospheric modeling to get local temperatures.
  
• Radiative heat transfer between parts
  
• Conductive heat transfer between parts
  
• Flow field mapping to provide better heating estimates, especially at M>1
  
• Tie tank temperature to boil-off rates of cryo propellants (RealFuels)
  
• Interaction with Kerbals. Don't let them freeze/fry!
  
• Electronic components cease to function outside certain temperature thresholds. Electrical usage also produces heat.
  

Licensed: CC-BY-NC-SA

Edited December 20, 2014 by Goozeman
update todo list

[NathanKell]

Thanks mostly go to Goozeman, for doing this!

(And for doing it awesomely, too.)

[JeffreyCor]

Sounds interesting. .90 compatible or soonish?

[Camacha]

This should be interesting!

[Guest]

Looking forward to it. Can there be some more information on how it works? A realistic heat system would be a wonderful addition to KSP. Not only reentry, but nuclear reactors, life support, engines...

Also, I've recently had an idea: external and internal temperature (I assume there's only one value per part at this time). This would enable simulating insulation, for example. An insulated part would have it's internal temperature be much less attached to external one. This would be very important for things like cryogenic fuel tanks and heat management for crewed parts (a pod could heat up a lot on reentry, but inside, the temperature would have to stay lower).

[Goozeman]

Looking forward to it. Can there be some more information on how it works? A realistic heat system would be a wonderful addition to KSP. Not only reentry, but nuclear reactors, life support, engines...

Also, I've recently had an idea: external and internal temperature (I assume there's only one value per part at this time). This would enable simulating insulation, for example. An insulated part would have it's internal temperature be much less attached to external one. This would be very important for things like cryogenic fuel tanks and heat management for crewed parts (a pod could heat up a lot on reentry, but inside, the temperature would have to stay lower).

There are plans for most of the items you speak of. NathanKell and I were talking about tying part temperature to cryo boil-off. I have been considering how to inside/outside temps.

There are also plans for things that generate heat (e.g. NTRs) to radiate that heat to the other parts. Where you put your cryo tanks may also be a concern.

So much to do, so little time.

[Nertea]

I saw this and was all "oh no! I did all that work on my system for nothing"!

But looking at your source, this is way fancier than mine. Way waaay fancier . Won't be much overlap!

[Whirligig Girl]

So it properly simulates heating of all kinds?Pics? Better description? Anyway, I'll try this. Seems neat.

- - - Updated - - -

Oh wait, can't try it yet. Still not for 0.90

Edited December 17, 2014 by GregroxMun
Edit: I mixed up 0.90 with 0.25.

[Goozeman]

So it properly simulates heating of all kinds?Pics? Better description? Anyway, I'll try this. Seems neat.

- - - Updated - - -

Oh wait, can't try it yet. Still not for 0.25.

Huh? It says .25 right up there. Better description to come.

[Whirligig Girl]

Huh? It says .25 right up there. Better description to come.

I meant 0.90. Oops. How did I mix that up?

[Drew Kerman]

very cool to finally see this in the wild after hearing about it for a while. Good stuff!

[Mecripp]

So is this like climate control for are kerbals or can it be ?

[Goozeman]

So is this like climate control for are kerbals or can it be ?

It isn't yet. Climate control may require some cross dependencies with TAC life support or something similar. I'll add it to the list.

Also, 0.90 compatible, make sure you get FAR .14.5

[JeffreyCor]

Nice! This is looking like the FAR of heat One idea to consider is disabling G force effect on crew. Not as a cheat but as mods like KeepFit focus very specifically on just G effects in detail and some may wish to use that instead.

[thereaverofdarkness]

You can type º with alt+167.

Cool mod, looking forward to seeing the finished product!

[Headhunter09]

So will this include things like coolant tanks (with ammonia or whatever) and heat pipes? And have electronic components sensitive to waste heat?

[Goozeman]

So will this include things like coolant tanks (with ammonia or whatever) and heat pipes? And have electronic components sensitive to waste heat?

First and foremost, there is no such resource as "Waste Heat." "Waste heat" simply makes a part get hotter. Eventually, this will mean that probes may need considerations for cooling. Additionally, probes may stop working below a certain temperature and require heating from an electrical source (or an RTG/NTR). Thanks for adding ideas to the To-Do list.

Also eventually, the electrical energy that probes consume will be converted to heat, a la 1EC/s = 1kW. Still a WIP.

So yes, there will eventually be coolant systems that run on ammonia, water, ethanol, or sodium depending on your preferred power transfer rate and operating temperature.

[BFGfreak]

Will it be radiator friendly?

[Goozeman]

Will it be radiator friendly?

Radiator friendly? I'm not sure how you mean, but yes, you will need radiators of some description to radiate heat into space if your heat load is too high.

[JeffreyCor]

I'm thinking (guessing) radiator friendly might be inquiring if this will be compatible with dissipating heat with this mod? I'm really interested in how this will progress.

I haven't noticed any performance issues, it doesn't seem to be any heavier of a load that DR.

[BFGfreak]

I'm thinking (guessing) radiator friendly might be inquiring if this will be compatible with dissipating heat with this mod? I'm really interested in how this will progress.

I haven't noticed any performance issues, it doesn't seem to be any heavier of a load that DR.

Yeah, I guess I should have worded it a little bit better. I just don't want to add a mod that adds heat without a way to get rid of said heat.

[Goozeman]

Yeah, I guess I should have worded it a little bit better. I just don't want to add a mod that adds heat without a way to get rid of said heat.

There is no heat addition from things like NTRs or life support systems yet. When there is, I'll make sure that there is a way to remove it.

Currently heating only occurs from atmospheric interactions. In space, you're fine.

[Ralathon]

Keeping a close eye on this mod and looking forward to updates.

temperature control is one of the fundamental aspects of spaceflight and outside of KSPI I don't know any mod that implements it.

[curiousepic]

Woo! So glad this is finally coming together!

Would this also eventually enable modeling of radioactivity and shielding?

Edited December 24, 2014 by curiousepic

[Quiana]

I am so very thrilled to see someone modeling what was mentioned before in the DRE thread, the actual heat mechanics in general. I know it says that the ablative shields are in progress, so does that mean that the heat transference is currently done well enough that carefully-built reentry profiles would be alright without the ablative shields? If so, I may go ahead and replace my DRE install with this, but want to verify before I start frying capsules on re-entry in my career. Otherwise, I'd be concerned about the heat building up too fast for the 'shield' and thus causing spectacular failure.