Faculty of Science, Technology and Medicine
Faculty of Law, Economics and Finance
Faculty of Humanities, Education and Social Sciences
Interdisciplinary Centre for Security, Reliability and Trust
Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine
Luxembourg Centre for Contemporary and Digital History
Luxembourg Centre for European Law
Luxembourg Centre for Socio-Environmental Systems
The Doctoral School in Science and Engineering is happy to invite you to HUBERT DELISLE Maxime’s defence entitled
Novel compliant system for small satellite applications: design, modelling, and experimental validation for space debris capture
Supervisor: Assoc. Prof Miguel Angel OLIVARES MENDEZ
The increasing proliferation of space debris poses a major threat to the safety and long-term sustainability of space activities. Active Debris Removal (ADR) has therefore emerged as a critical strategy to mitigate risks and preserve operational orbits. This thesis addresses the problem through the design, modelling, and validation of a novel hybrid-compliant small-satellite application system tailored for capturing small uncooperative satellites in Low Earth Orbit (LEO).
A data-driven approach is first employed to characterise and prioritise orbital objects using large catalogues of space objects. By filtering, clustering, and analysing key parameters, small box-shaped satellites under 100 kg are identified as relevant targets for a one-to-many ADR solution. These findings provide a structured set of requirements for system design.
To meet these requirements, a hybrid-compliant capture mechanism is developed, which combines passive and active compliance with bio-inspired adhesive surfaces. Analytical modelling and optimisation demonstrate the ability of the system to extend contact time necessary for the adhesion process, reduce peak forces to keep the system sound, and adapt to variations in target properties. Simulation results further validate the robustness of the compliant design in a range of operational conditions.
Experimental validation is carried out in a 2D microgravity emulation facility, the Zero-G Lab, where the physical prototype is tested against representative materials. The results confirm the feasibility of the approach and show good agreement with the analytical models, while also highlighting limitations related to adhesive efficiency and dynamic interactions that need further investigation. The thesis concludes by synthesising the main contributions: a systematic, data-driven methodology for ADR target prioritisation; the design and analytical modelling of a hybrid-compliant capture system for small satellite application; the experimental verification and validation demonstrating the practical potential of the proposed concept. Together, these results advance the state of the art in compliant and bio-inspired space robotics, paving the way for scalable solutions to space debris mitigation.