Patent attributes
A thermal management system that includes an open-circuit refrigeration system having an open-circuit refrigerant fluid flow path is described. The open-circuit refrigeration system includes a receiver configured to store a refrigerant fluid, an evaporator configured to receive the refrigerant fluid at a evaporator inlet and to extract heat from a heat load that contacts the evaporator, and provide refrigerant vapor at a evaporator outlet. The open-circuit refrigeration system also includes a vapor pump device having a vapor pump inlet that receives the refrigerant vapor and having a vapor pump outlet that outputs compressed refrigerant vapor to an exhaust line coupled to the vapor pump outlet, with the receiver, the evaporator, the vapor pump device, and the exhaust line connected in the open-circuit refrigerant fluid flow path.
