An Ice Phase-Change Buffer for Peak Thermal Loads on Mars: Latent-Heat Storage Sizing

This paper presents a sized design for a Mars surface system based on latent-heat storage in the melting and freezing of water ice. A tank of water that freezes at night and melts by day, absorbing peak thermal loads at nearly constant temperature. The study is SIMULATED, NOT MEASURED: all values are computed from stated assumptions and published Martian environmental data, and no hardware was built or tested. The principal computed results are ice mass kg of 2600, latent heat J kg of 334000, stored energy MJ of 868.4, stored energy kWh of 241.2. Further results include peak load kW of 4.2, buffer hours at peak of 57.43, sensible contribution kWh of 12.13, ice volume m3 of 2.84. The design is a computed study for peaceful surface operations — power supply, thermal control, radiation protection, construction and resource extraction for a crewed base — and it has no targeting or weapon application. Losses, deratings for dust and temperature, and the margin between capacity and the stated load are reported alongside the headline figures, and the limitations section states what a physical test would still need to establish.