International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research, Volume 5, Issue 5, May-2014

ISSN 2229-5518

Design and Implementation of an Effective

Electrical Power System for Nano-Satellite
Mohammed Chessab Mahdi, Jaafer Sadiq Jaafer, Dr. Abd- AL-Razak Shehab
AbstractDesign of electrical power system for Nano-satellites is presented. The role of this electrical power system is to provide
electrical power for all the subsystems of KufaSat .This was achieved by the use of solar cells when the satellite is in direct sunlight and
by two Lithium Polymer batteries when the Sun is eclipsed .The batteries are charged by the solar panels through three battery charge
regulators which optimize the solar arrays voltages independently for maximum power transfer. Power is then transferred to subsystems
through a number of power buses, 3.3V, 5V and unregulated.
Index Terms: CubeSat, Electrical Power System (EPS), KufaSat, Nano-satellite

INTRODUCTION

Nano-satellites are gaining an ever increasing interest in the

academic and industrial space communities, because they
provide relatively fast and low cost access to space and can
be used as low cost technology demonstrators for advanced
space engineering concepts. The major difficulties with a
Nano satellite design are the volume, mass, and power
limitations.
CubeSats operate on a strict power budget because of the
power requirements and limitations in that they have
relatively limited energy sources (small area available for
solar arrays, limited mass and volume to accommodate
batteries).
The main task of the electrical power system (EPS) is to
provide the other subsystems with a reliable and continuous
power source. The main components of this system are solar
array, batteries and regulators which lead to conversion
from solar energy to electrical power, energy storage in
batteries, regulation of the electrical power, distribution the
power to other subsystem.
The EPS must not only be efficient but flexible. The ideal
EPS design is one that meets the power requirements of a
specific mission, and can then be used multiple times in
different missions, without having to be redesigned for each
mission [1].
A quick review to the literature of various EPS designs of
existing 20 (1U) cubesats through website of each cubesat to
know some important parameters of these systems like
power system implementation approaches , number of
voltage buses and the voltage rail values.
The most common power system implementation
approaches found on todays cubesats are Direct Energy
Transfer (DET) and Maximum Power Point Tracker (MPPT).
From 20 (1U) existing cubesats websites we get that:
Eight cubesats ( CUTE-I Tokyo Institute of Technology ,XIIV and XI-V University of Tokyo , SEEDS 1 Nihon
University, Hermes Colorado Space Grant Consortium,

AtmoCube University of Trieste, Goliat University of

Bucharest, OuFTI-1 University of Liege) are Direct Energy
Transfer (DET) power system implementation approach.
Eight cubesats (AAU Alborg University, MEROPE Montana
State University,CP1, CP2 and CP3,Cal Poly, Compass One
Fachhochschule Aachen, KySat Consortium of Kentucky
Universities, e-st@r Politecnico di Torino) are Maximum
Power Point Tracker (MPPT) approach.
Four cubesats (DTUsat University of Denmark, Sacred
University of Arizona, KUTEsat University of Kansas, and
HAUSAT Hankuk Aviatin University) are unknown
approach.
Three cubesats have one voltage bus and two have two
buses ,eight has three buses ,three have four buses , one has
five buses ,two have six buses , one have seven buses.
The most common regulated outputs voltage buses are 3.3V
and 5.0V, there are ten cubesats have 3.3V bus and fifteen
cubesats have 5V bus.
Kufasat is the first Iraqi student satellite project at
University of Kufa and has mission to imaging purposes. In
accordance with CubeSat specifications, it is 1U Nanosatellite with three voltages buses EPS and has a mass of
max 1kg, and its size is restricted to a cube measuring
101010 cm3. It also contains 1.5 m long gravity gradient
boom, which will be used for passive attitude stabilization.

IJSER
2

ELECTRIC POWER SYSTEM (EPS)

The electrical power system generates, stores, conditions,

controls, and distributes power within the specified voltage
band to all bus and payload equipment [2]. The EPS is
considered as an essential part of the satellite, because no
power will mean an end to the mission. So it is important to
have a stable and reliable power system. The required size
of the solar panels and batteries depends on the
requirements for the payload(s) and the lifetime of the
mission [3].

IJSER 2014
http://www.ijser.org

29

International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research, Volume 5, Issue 5, May-2014

ISSN 2229-5518

The EPS provides direct current (DC) power for all the
subsystems onboard the KufaSat by the use of solar panels
when the satellite is in direct sunlight and by two Lithium
Polymer batteries when the Sun is eclipsed.
The batteries are charged by the solar panels through three
high efficiency solar battery charger with embedded
maximum power transfer( MPPT) which build-in an input
source reverse polarity protection which prevents damaging
in case of reverse connection of solar panel at the input..
Power is then transferred from the battery or directly from
the solar panels through a number of power buses, rated at
5V, 3.3V and unregulated, to which the other subsystems are
attached. These regulated buses have over-temperature and
over-current protection, to prevent damage from any short
circuit, and the battery has under-voltage protection to
prevent a complete discharge.

DESIGN OF EPS

The power system design process starts with analyzing the

orbit parameters, the load power requirement, and heritage
data on similar satellites built and flown earlier.[2] The three
basic satellite parameters affecting the EPS design are the
orbit inclination, orbit altitude, and the mission duration.
These three parameters are used to determine the sunlight
and eclipse durations, orbit period, and the solar angle ()
between the orbit plane and the EarthSun line.
The electrical power system requirements are derived from
the spacecraft level requirements and in-house trade studies.
The EPS self-derived requirements are based on various
analyses performed on the power system under design. The
final requirements generally come from the operational orbit
analyses.
The orbit parameters and the load power requirement for
KufaSat project are listed in table 1 and table 2 respectively
TABLE I
THE ORBIT PARAMETERS

30

TABLE 2
THE LOAD POWER REQUIREMENT

Labcenter's Proteus was used to design the electric power

system of KufaSat. Proteus is software for microprocessor
simulation, schematic capture, and printed circuit board
(PCB) design.

EPS ARCHITECTURE

IJSER

The basic components of the EPS are the energy source,

energy conversion, power regulation and control, energy
storage, and distribution [1]. Fig 1 shows a simple block
diagram of these components.

Fig 1. Block diagram of EPS

IJSER 2014
http://www.ijser.org

International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research, Volume 5, Issue 5, May-2014

ISSN 2229-5518

The EPS developed in KufaSat uses a Maximum Power

Point Tracker (MPPT) system with a battery bus. The team
determined this to be the most versatile and efficient
topology, and is ideal for nano satellite. The MPPT topology
is implemented using a dedicated MPPT for each opposing
solar panel pair which allow using different solar cell
technologies on each panel.

31

Fig 3 shows the current placement of all solar cells on the

outer surfaces of the satellite in addition to payload,
communication antenna, end of boom, GPS antenna and sun
sensor.

5 EPS COMPONENTS
5.1 Energy Source (Solar panel):
Azur Space TJ Solar Cell 3G30C - Advanced and Spectrolab
UTJ TASC will be used as a hybrid design for the flight
model of KufaSat.
The Azur Space TJ Solar Cell will be used on all four side
faces which do not contain any components or devices. Each
cell has an efficiency of 29.5%, with an output of 2.4 V and
504 mA when maximum power point is achieved. Each
panel of these side faces of the CubeSat will have two solar
cells (4x8 cm) connected in series to form large panel.
The Spectrolab UTJ TASC cells will be used on the top and
bottom faces because they are smaller, and can therefore be
more easily fit around components and devices. Each cell
has an efficiency of 27%, with an output of 2.19V and 28 mA
when maximum power point is achieved. Each two solar
cells arranged within a rectangular area of 1.55 x 3.18 cm
and connected in series to form small panel. Four small
panels will be mounted on each of top and bottom sides.

IJSER

All large panels in opposite sides will be connected in

parallel to form two groups (+X,-X) group and (+Y,-Y)
group. All eight small panels in top and bottom sides will be
connected in parallel to form (+Z,-Z) group. Fig 2 illustrates
the connection of all solar cells. This configuration will allow
for power to be produced on every face, and will also allow
for the satellite to maximize the power produced with the
exterior surface area.

Fig 3. Outer surfaces of the satellite

Fig 2. Solar cells connection

5.2 Energy Storage:

5.2.1 Maximum Power Point Tracker (MPPT) and
Battery Charger:
Maximum Power Point Tracker (MPPT) is an electronic DC
to DC converter that optimizes the match between the solar
panels and the battery/ DC-Bus. Maximum power point
tracker is located between the solar arrays and the battery
pack .Its input connects to the solar cells and its output
connects to batteries. MPPT manipulate either operating
voltage or current of the solar array. It manipulates the
operating point of the solar array by controlling the
operation of the switching converter between the solar array
and the load [1].
The SPV1040 is a high efficiency solar battery charger with
embedded MPPT from ST Microelectronics. It is low

IJSER 2014
http://www.ijser.org

International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research, Volume 5, Issue 5, May-2014

ISSN 2229-5518

voltage, self-powered DC/DC converter that operates over

0.3 V to 5.5 V DC input voltage range and provides a single
regulated output voltage and current by sensing the VCTRL
feedback of the external resistor divider and the voltage
drop on the external sense resistor Rs respectively [4]. Also
it owns over-current and over-temperature protection which
disconnects the charger from its output terminal until it
reaches an acceptable level. The SPV1040 will be used in EPS
of KufaSat as MPPT and battery charger in the same time.
Fig 4 explains the application circuit of SPV1040.

Fig 4. SPV1040 application circuit [5]

5.2.2 Battery:
The solar cells provide power to the DC-bus during
daylight, but during solar eclipse the solar cells cannot
provide power and therefore we need to have batteries. The
batteries also provide power during peak situations like
communication with the ground station.
Two batteries type Kokam SLPB 554374H was selected for
Kufasat. It is a Lithium Polymer Battery and was chosen for
its good specifications which listed in table 3.
TABLE3
KOKAM SLPB 554374H SPECIFICATIONS [6]

5.2.3 Kill Switch:

Kill switch is required by CubeSat standard. It should be
placed between the battery connector and the regulation
circuitry to stops the batteries from providing power to the
satellite during launch. The TPS2557 with auto-retry
functionality is implemented as kill switch in the satellite
because a MOSFET is considered to be more reliable. Kill
switch are implemented as two switches in parallel. In the
case of one of two switches is malfunctioning, the other
switch will complete the work.
TPS2557 device limits the output current to a safe level by
switching into a constant-current mode when the output
load exceeds the current-limit threshold. The FAULT logic
output asserts low during overcurrent and over temperature
conditions [7].

5.3 Energy Conditioning

TPS63001 and MAX8815A are used to provide 3.3V and 5V
respectively. The TPS63001 is a buck-boost converter which
operates over 1.8V to 5.5V DC input voltage range and
provides 3.3V fixed output voltage [8]. The MAX8815A is a
high-efficiency DC-DC synchronous step-up converter, low
quiescent current, with true shutdown and inrush-current
limiting [9].It operate over 1.2V to 5.5V DC input voltage
range and provides 5V fixed output voltage .

IJSER
6

POWER BUDGET

The power budget is based on the power requirements for

each subsystem, power generated in solar cells and power
stored in batteries. If the power generated during one orbit
is larger than or equal the power consumed during this orbit
then we have a positive power budget. If not we will have a
negative power budget, in this case the battery will be
gradually drained until it is empty.

6.1 Power Generation

The procured battery which will be used for the Engineering

Model of the CubeSat is shown in Fig 5.

Fig 5. Kokam SLPB 554374H

The amount of generated power available depends on solar

power flux, efficiency of the solar cell [10] in addition to
power supply unit efficiency, and effective area of the solar
cells and can calculated using equation 1
P = SKA
(1)
Where S is the solar power flux, K is efficiency of the power
supply unit, is solar cell efficiency and A is effective area of
the solar cells.
The generated power calculated with considering the
following points:
The solar power flux (S) in the earth's vicinity varies
between Smax = 1399W/m2 in early January and Smin =
1309W/m2 in mid-summer. An average value of S =
1353W/m2 is often assumed for design purposes. [10]
The power supply system consists of components that
dissipate energy such as the battery charger and power bus

IJSER 2014
http://www.ijser.org

32

International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research, Volume 5, Issue 5, May-2014

ISSN 2229-5518

regulators which lead to reduce the efficiency of power

supply unit. The calculated efficiency of the power supply
unit is 90%.
Two types of solar cells used in KufaSat EPS , Azur Space TJ
Solar Cell 3G30C - Advanced with efficiency 29.5% and
Spectrolabs Triangular Advanced Solar Cells (TASC) with
efficiency 27.0%.
The effective area of the solar panels is the total area of the
solar panels exposed to the Sun. The area is minimum when
axis of rotation of the satellite is pointing always to the Sun,
thus, only one side of the satellite is exposed. The area is
maximum when the corner between 3 faces points towards
the Sun In this case the effective area is equal to the area of
three faces. Table 4 explains the power generated in two
cases.
TABLE 4
MAXIMUM AND MINIMUM POWER GENERATED

33

SCHEMATIC AND PCB LAYOUT

The complete schematics of the engineering model of the

EPS card are shown in fig 6. All work with the PCB was
done on the computer using Proteus Design Suite V8. The
prototype was a two-layer PCB within the physical size of
89x95 mm with 1.25 mm board thickness and 50m feature
thickness.
Fig 7 explain artwork PCB layout, (A) Top Copper, (B)
Bottom Copper, (C) Two Layer, (D) Top Silk. Fig 8 is 3D
view (A) Without components, (B) With Components,(C)
Side view.

IJSER

6.2 Power Storage

From the specification of Kokam battery which listed in
table 3 the power storage can be calculated using multiply
the nominal voltage by typical capacity for two batteries.
Power storage = 3.7x (1.25x2) = 9.25 W/h

6.3 Power consumed

Table5 explain the maximum power consumed by each
subsystem of KufaSat.
TABLE 5
MAXIMUM POWER CONSUMPTION BY EACH SUBSYSTEM

Fig 6. EPS Complete Schematic Diagram

IJSER 2014
http://www.ijser.org

International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research, Volume 5, Issue 5, May-2014

ISSN 2229-5518

based on the SPV1040 charger. It is a compact and simple

charging system. In spite of the variation of several
conditions over the orbit like temperature and irradiation
the SPV1040 allows to achieve the maximum efficiency in
terms of power harvested from the cells and transferred to
the output thanks to the embedded MPPT algorithm.
Tables 4&5 show that the minimum power produced over
orbit by solar cells is approximately equal to the maximum
power consumed over orbit in the subsystems. This makes
the power stored in the batteries a reserve power and can
compensate for what consumed from it easily during
periods in which the power produced is greater than the
minimum value. As a result, EPS becomes more reliable and
can withstand potential changes in the process of energy
consumption.

REFERENCES
[1]
[2]

Fig 7. A-Top, B-Bottom, C-Two Layer, D- Top Silk

Robert Burt, Distributed Electrical Power System in Cubesat

Applications, M.S. thesis, Utah State University, 2011.
Mukund R. Patel, Spacecraft power systems, CRC Press 2005 ISBN 08493-2786-5 .
Lars Erik Jacobsen, Electrical Power System of the NTNU Test Satellite,
M.S. thesis, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, 2012.
SPV1040 High efficiency solar battery charger with embedded MPPT. ST
Microelectronics Doc ID 18080 Rev 2, 2011. [Online]. Available:
http://data.datasheetlib.com/pdf1/61/68/616887/spv1040ttr_c5c3a74a
51.pdf?take=binary
AN3319 Application note - STEVAL-ISV006V2: solar battery charger using
the SPV1040 ST Microelectronics, DocID18265 Rev 8, 2013. [Online].
Available: http://www.st.com/st-webui/static/active/en/resource/technical/document/application_note/C
D00292052.pdf

IJSER
[3]

[4]

[5]

(A) Without components

Cell Specification Data, SLPB 554374H, Kokam Co., Ltd. [Online].

Available:
http://www.kokam.com/product/product_pdf/rc_070226/SLPB5543
74H_1250mAh_Grade.pdf

[7]

TPS2556, TPS2557 Precision adjustable current-limited power-distribution

switches, Texas Instruments, 2009. [Online]. Available:
http://www.digchip.com/datasheets/download_datasheet.php?id=11
49330&part-number=TPS2557

[8]

TPS63000, TPS63001, TPS63002. High efficient single inductor buck-boost

converter with 1.8-A switches, Texas Instruments, 2010. [Online].
Available: http://pdf1.alldatasheet.net/datasheet
pdf/view/465785/TI1/TPS63000/+3WWJ9JVRh7auSUzYBtN+/datash
eet.pdf

[9]

MAX8815A, 1A, 97% Efficiency, 30A Quiescent Current Step-Up

Converter with True Shutdown, Maxim Integrated Products, 2008.
[Online]. Available:
http://datasheets.maximintegrated.com/en/ds/MAX8815A.pdf

(B) With Components

(C) Side view

Fig 8. 3D view A- Without components, B- With Components,
C- Side view

[6]

CONCLUSION

The main task of the EPS module are to efficiently condition

the available power from the solar cells, to safely charge the
batteries, and to provide two regulated 3.3V and 5V power
rails. The power subsystem design described in this paper is

[10] Peter Berlin, Satellite Platform Design, Department of Space Science,

University of Lulea, Kiruna Sweden, fifth edition, 2007.

IJSER 2014
http://www.ijser.org

34

International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research, Volume 5, Issue 5, May-2014

ISSN 2229-5518

Mohammed Chessab Mahdi had his B.Sc.

degree in control and system engineering from
University of Technology Baghdad at 1984
and had his M.Sc. degree in space technology
from University of Kufa at 2013. He is full time
lecture in Technical Institute of Kufa Foundation of Technical Education Iraq and member of KufaSat
team - space research unit-Faculty of Engineering University of
Kufa. He has good skills in the design and modeling of attitude
determination and control systems using Matlab program. He has
been published more than 5 researches.

Jaafer Sadiq Jaafer received his B.Sc. in

Electrical Engineering at 1983 from the
Department of Electrical Engineering University of Technology- Baghdad. Currently
he works as a lecturer in Technical Institute of
kufa-Foundation of Technical Education- Iraq.

IJSER

Dr. Abd AL-Razak Shehab body of receive his

B.Sc. from Baghdad University at 1987 , M.Sc.
and Ph.D. from Saint Petersburg polytechnic
government university (Russia federal) at 2000
and 2004 respectively .Currently he is full time
lecture in electrical engineering department
(Head of department since 2007) Faculty of
Engineering Kufa UniversityIraqi ministry of high education
and scientific research. He has good skills in the design and
modeling of control systems and switched reluctance motor
(SRM). He has been published more than 8 researches.

IJSER 2014
http://www.ijser.org

35