BHEL sets up facility for ISRO

BHEL has set up a facility at its Electronics Systems Division here in collaboration with the ISRO for assembling and testing Space Grade Solar Panels using high efficiency solar cells. Besides, BHEL has also supplied two sets of Li-ion batteries, each consisting of 40 Li-ion cells with a power storage capacity of 160 Ampere-Hours for GSAT-10, BHEL said in a statement. Both the solar panels and batteries were built and tested at the BHEL facility. They were subjected to rigorous tests such as vibration and thermal-vacuum tests at ISRO as part of ensuring space quality requirements to validate their mechanical, electrical and thermal performance. Earlier this year, space grade solar panels and Lithium-ion batteries assembled, tested and supplied by the electronics division of city-based BHEL to the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) were successfully deployed recently on GSAT-10 Satellite. The satellite, launched from French Guiana on September 29, is the heaviest Indian satellite built by ISRO and caters to the country’s telecommunications and TV broadcasting requirements, a company release said. The four solar panels, of each with 5.36 square metre area, supplied by BHEL for GSAT-10 comprise multi-junction solar cells in series and parallel combinations, with a total power generating capacity of 4,000 watts. BHEL has so far supplied 55 solar panels totalling to 250 square metres of area and 40 batteries for various satellites of ISRO. ref: http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/bhel-setsfacility-for-isro/489655/