Lightweight Thermal Insulation Systems in Medical Delivery Drones

Current medical delivery drones lack dedicated thermal insulation systems. While the lack of dedicated thermal insulation is acceptable for the short flights these drones currently operate, scaling up these operations will require a different system. This project's aim is to determine if other lightweight materials, like polyisocyanurate and polyurethane, could be used in lieu of polystyrene for a more robust thermal insulation system. To test, the drones were modeled as rectangular containers of the same thickness, blood products were modeled as saline solution, and the climate in Sub-Saharan Africa was modeled by a heated chamber at 40°C. Combinations of polystyrene, polyisocyanurate, and polyurethane were tested against a control of only polystyrene, which is the material used for the body of the drones today. Polyisocyanurate was shown to be the most effective at insulating heat without adding a noticeable amount of weight to the overall drone. Limitations to this experiment include the various parts of the drones that were modeled using easily sourced parts instead of the actual parts used on the drone.