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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 217 records · Page 12
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1974

Evaluation of membrane filter field monitors for microbiological air sampling

Due to area constraints encountered in assembly and testing areas of spacecraft, the membrane filter field monitor (MF) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration-accepted Reyniers slit air sampler were compared for recovery of airborne microbial contamination. The intramural air in a microbiological laboratory area and a clean room environment used for the assembly and testing of the Apollo spacecraft was studied. A significantly higher number of microorganisms was recovered by the Reyniers sampler. A high degree of consistency between the two sampling methods was shown by a regression analysis, with a correlation coefficient of 0.93. The MF samplers detected 79% of the concentration measured by the Reyniers slit samplers. The types of microorganisms identified from both sampling methods were similar.

Fields, N. D.↗
NASA NTRS1973

Apollo experience report: Reliability and quality assurance

The reliability of the Apollo spacecraft resulted from the application of proven reliability and quality techniques and from sound management, engineering, and manufacturing practices. Continual assessment of these techniques and practices was made during the program, and, when deficiencies were detected, adjustments were made and the deficiencies were effectively corrected. The most significant practices, deficiencies, adjustments, and experiences during the Apollo Program are described in this report. These experiences can be helpful in establishing an effective base on which to structure an efficient reliability and quality assurance effort for future space-flight programs.

Sperber, K. P.↗
NASA NTRS1999

Nutrition and Foods as Related to Space Flight

U.S. space food development began with highly engineered foods that met rigid requirements imposed by the spacecraft design and short mission durations of the Mercury and Gemini programs. The lack of adequate bathroom facilities and limited food storage capacity promoted the development of low fiber diets to reduce fecal output. As missions lengthened, space food systems evolved, with the most basic design consideration always being the method of water supply. On the Apollo spacecraft, where water was abundant as a byproduct of fuel cell electricity generation, dehydrated food was used extensively. Such food has little advantage when water has to be transported to space to rehydrate it; therefore, more complex food systems were planned for Skylab, which used solar panels rather than fuel cells for electricity generation. The Skylab food system, the most advanced used in space to date, included freezers and refrigerators, increasing the palatability, variety, and nutritional value of the diet. On the Space Shuttle, power and weight constraints precluded the use of freezers, refrigerators, and microwave ovens. The availability of fuel cell by-product water was conducive to a shelf-stable food system with approximately half of the food dehydrated and the remainder made up of thermostabilized, irradiated, and intermediate-moisture foods.

Lane, Helen W.↗
NASA NTRS1972

Apollo experience report: Pressure vessels

The Apollo spacecraft pressure vessels, associated problems and resolutions, and related experience in evaluating potential problem areas are discussed. Information is provided that can be used as a guideline in the establishment of baseline criteria for the design and use of lightweight pressure vessels. One of the first practical applications of the use of fracture-mechanics technology to protect against service failures was made on Apollo pressure vessels. Recommendations are made, based on Apollo experience, that are designed to reduce the incidence of failure in pressure-vessel operation and service.

Ecord, G. M.↗
NASA NTRS1971

Fire safety design of a mobile quarantine facility

During the design phase of the Mobile Quarantine Facility (MQF), a primary consideration was fire safety. Therefore, appropriate criteria and ground rules were used in the design and construction of the facility. The fire codes and fire-requirement listings that are used by commerical airlines were supplied to the Manned Spacecraft Center (MSC) by the Federal Aviation Agency (FAA). After these codes were reviewed, a basic ground rule was adopted that flame protection for all combustible materials should be at least equivalent to or better than the standards for commercial aircraft. Because the MQF was designed to operate with an interior atmosphere of air rather than with an oxygen-enriched atmosphere such as that of the Apollo spacecraft cabin, the requirements for MQF material were not as stringent as those for the spacecraft.

Bass, R. S.↗
NASA NTRS1972

Convection in the tanks of a rotating spacecraft

A general study of convection and mixing of a stratified fluid in a rotating container is described, with application to the special problem of fluid heating and convection in a spacecraft tank. The analysis was based on a set of approximate equations for the Navier-Stokes description of fluid convection with small density variations in a rotating system, including effects of body forces due to temperature stratification (caused by a heater) and arbitrary time-dependent rotation of the tank about a noncentral axis. An efficient numerical finite difference scheme and computational method are described for the convection of vorticity and energy in a two-dimensional tank. Special procedures were developed for analysis of the thermodynamic states resulting from the approximate flow equations derived for small density variations. Results of the numerical simulation are presented for studying the effectiveness of rotation maneuvers in mixing stratified oxygen in the tanks of an Apollo spacecraft. Significant effects of the rotation maneuvers are discussed, including the reduction of the potential for pressure collapse.

Source record↗