Analytical and computational geometry optimization for nanosatellites magnetic damping systems

For CubeSat nanosatellites, rapid attitude stabilization after orbital deployment is critical for mission success. In this work, we optimize the geometry of hysteresis materials to maximize the dissipation of rotational kinetic energy. We developed an analytical-computational method to compare cylindrical rods and ellipsoids, using experimental data from an additively manufactured Fe-Si 3.7 wt% Si alloy. After optimizing a cylinder’s diameter via Finite Element (FE) simulations, we used its volume as a constraint for the analytical optimization of an ellipsoid. The results, validated by further FE simulations, indicate that ellipsoids yield superior energy losses. Specifically, the optimized ellipsoidal geometry showed a 28% increase in losses. This improvement leads to a significant reduction in attitude stabilization time of approximately 2 days, establishing ellipsoids as the preferable choice for designing compact and efficient passive magnetic attitude control systems.