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NASA NTRS2017

EVA Systems Technology Gaps and Priorities 2017

Performance of Extra-Vehicular Activities (EVA) has been and will continue to be a critical capability for human space flight. Human exploration missions beyond LEO will require EVA capability for either contingency or nominal activities to support mission objectives and reduce mission risk. EVA systems encompass a wide array of products across pressure suits, life support systems, EVA tools and unique spacecraft interface hardware (i.e. EVA Translation Paths and EVA Worksites). In a fiscally limited environment with evolving transportation and habitation options, it is paramount that the EVA community's strategic planning and architecture integration products be reviewed and vetted for traceability between the mission needs far into the future to the known technology and knowledge gaps to the current investments across EVA systems. To ascertain EVA technology and knowledge gaps many things need to be brought together, assessed and analyzed. This includes an understanding of the destination environments, various mission concept of operations, current state of the art of EVA systems, EVA operational lessons learned, and reference advanced capabilities. A combined assessment of these inputs should result in well-defined list of gaps. This list can then be prioritized depending on the mission need dates and time scale of the technology or knowledge gap closure plan. This paper will summarize the current state of EVA related technology and knowledge gaps derived from NASA's Exploration EVA Reference Architecture and Operations Concept products. By linking these products and articulating NASA's approach to strategic development for EVA across all credible destinations an EVA could be done in, the identification of these gaps is then used to illustrate the tactical and strategic planning for the EVA technology development portfolio. Finally, this paper illustrates the various "touch points" with other human exploration risk identification areas including human health and performance.

Johnson, Brian J.↗

NASA NTRS1990

Sensor requirements for Earth and planetary observations

Future generations of Earth and planetary remote sensing instruments will require extensive developments of new long-wave and very long-wave infrared detectors. The upcoming NASA Earth Observing System (EOS) will carry a suite of instruments to monitor a wide range of atmospheric and surface parameters with an unprecedented degree of accuracy for a period of 10 to 15 years. These instruments will observe Earth over a wide spectral range extending from the visible to nearly 17 micrometers with a moderate to high spectral and spacial resolution. In addition to expected improvements in communication bandwidth and both ground and on-board computing power, these new sensor systems will need large two-dimensional detector arrays. Such arrays exist for visible wavelengths and, to a lesser extent, for short wavelength infrared systems. The most dramatic need is for new Long Wavelength Infrared (LWIR) and Very Long Wavelength Infrared (VLWIR) detector technologies that are compatible with area array readout devices and can operate in the temperature range supported by long life, low power refrigerators. A scientific need for radiometric and calibration accuracies approaching 1 percent translates into a requirement for detectors with excellent linearity, stability and insensitivity to operating conditions and space radiation. Current examples of the kind of scientific missions these new thermal IR detectors would enhance in the future include instruments for Earth science such as Orbital Volcanological Observations (OVO), Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS), Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MODIS), and Spectroscopy in the Atmosphere using Far Infrared Emission (SAFIRE). Planetary exploration missions such as Cassini also provide examples of instrument concepts that could be enhanced by new IR detector technologies.

Chahine, Moustafa T.↗

NASA NTRS2010

Focusing Diffraction Grating Element with Aberration Control

Diffraction gratings are optical components with regular patterns of grooves, which angularly disperse incoming light by wavelength in a single plane, called dispersion plane. Traditional gratings on flat substrates do not perform wavefront transformation in the plane perpendicular to the dispersion plane. The device proposed here exhibits regular diffraction grating behavior, dispersing light. In addition, it performs wavelength transformation (focusing or defocusing) of diffracted light in a direction perpendicular to the dispersion plane (called sagittal plane). The device is composed of a diffraction grating with the grooves in the form of equidistant arcs. It may be formed by defining a single arc or an arc approximation, then translating it along a certain direction by a distance equal to a multiple of a fixed distance ("grating period") to obtain other groove positions. Such groove layout is nearly impossible to obtain using traditional ruling methods, such as mechanical ruling or holographic scribing, but is trivial for lithographically scribed gratings. Lithographic scribing is the newly developed method first commercially introduced by LightSmyth Technologies, which produces gratings with the highest performance and arbitrary groove shape/spacing for advanced aberration control. Unlike other types of focusing gratings, the grating is formed on a flat substrate. In a plane perpendicular to the substrate and parallel to the translation direction, the period of the grating and, therefore, the projection of its k-vector onto the plane is the same for any location on the grating surface. In that plane, no waveform transformation by the grating k-vector occurs, except of simple redirection.

Iazikov, Dmitri↗

NASA NTRS2012

Woven TPS - A New Approach to TPS Design and Manufacturing

NASA's Office of the Chief Technologist (OCT) Game Changing Division recently funded an effort to advance a Woven TPS (WTPS) concept. WTPS is a new approach to producing TPS materials that uses precisely engineered 3D weaving techniques to customize material characteristics needed to meet specific missions requirements for protecting space vehicles from the intense heating generated during atmospheric entry. Using WTPS, sustainable, scalable, mission-optimized TPS solutions can be achieved with relatively low life cycle costs compared with the high costs and long development schedules currently associated with material development and certification. WTPS leverages the mature state-of-the-art weaving technology that has evolved from the textile industry to design TPS materials with tailorable performance by varying material composition and properties via the controlled placement of fibers within a woven structure. The resulting material can be designed to perform optimally for a wide range of entry conditions encompassing NASAs current and future mission needs. WTPS enables these optimized TPS designs to be translated precisely into mission-specific, manufactured materials that can substantially increase the efficiency, utility, and robustness of heat shield materials compared to the current state-of-the-art material options. By delivering improved heat shield performance and affordability, this technology will impact all future exploration missions, from the robotic in-situ science missions to Mars, Venus and Saturn to the next generation of human missions. WTPS can change the way NASA develops, certifies, and integrates TPS into mission life cycles - instead of being a mission constraint, TPS will become a mission enabler. It is anticipated that WTPS will have direct impact on SMD, HEOMD and OCT and will be of interest for DoD and COTS applications. This presentation will overview the WTPS concept and present some results from initial testing completed.

Feldman, Jay↗

DOE OSTI2021

BETO 2021 Peer Review: 2.1.0.100 - Biochemical Platform Analysis

The objective of this project is to perform techno-economic analysis (TEA) to guide Biochemical Platform efforts, utilizing models for purposes of setting future R&D targets and tracking performance progress against those targets. Outcomes of our work are leveraged by BETO to guide program plans, as well as by other NREL/partner projects to quantify the impact of research on key technology barriers and to prioritize future efforts. This project provides high impact and relevance through establishing “bottom-up” TEA models as a basis for understanding the technical feasibility to meet “top-down” BETO cost targets. By providing a framework to translate technical performance to cost reductions in a biorefinery, our TEA models may be leveraged to maximize the efficiency of research funding towards the most economically impactful priorities, ultimately in support of BETO’s 2030 fuel cost targets below $2.5/GGE. In order to mitigate a key risk/challenge to this project in overly-constraining our analyses to a singular technology focus or TEA metric, our approach continuously re-assesses opportunities for better optimization and alternative technology pathway options, while maintaining close interaction with other BETO analysis partners. We have made numerous recent accomplishments rooted around identifying and working with the researchers to solve key technical and TEA/LCA challenges, reflected through notable improvements in State-of-Technology (SOT) updates over prior benchmarks.

biochemical↗

NASA NTRS2002

Evaluation of Impinging Stream Vortex Chamber Concepts for Liquid Rocket Engine Applications

To pursue technology developments for future launch vehicles, NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) is examining vortex chamber concepts for liquid rocket engine applications. Past studies indicated that the vortex chamber schemes potentially have a number of advantages over conventional chamber methods. Due to the nature of the vortex flow, relatively cooler propellant streams tend to flow along the chamber wall. Hence, the thruster chamber can be operated without the need of any cooling techniques. This vortex flow also creates strong turbulence, which promotes the propellant mixing process. Consequently, the subject chamber concepts not only offer system simplicity, but also enhance the combustion performance. Test results have shown that chamber performance is markedly high even at a low chamber length-to-diameter ratio (LD). This incentive can be translated to a convenience in the thrust chamber packaging. Variations of the vortex chamber concepts have been introduced in the past few decades. These investigations include an ongoing work at Orbital Technologies Corporation (ORBITEC). By injecting the oxidizer tangentially at the chamber convergence and fuel axially at the chamber head end, Knuth et al. were able to keep the wall relatively cold. A recent investigation of the low L/D vortex chamber concept for gel propellants was conducted by Michaels. He used both triplet (two oxidizer orifices and one fuel orifice) and unlike impinging schemes to inject propellants tangentially along the chamber wall. Michaels called the subject injection scheme an Impinging Stream Vortex Chamber (ISVC). His preliminary tests showed that high performance, with an Isp efficiency of 9295, can be obtained. MSFC and the U. S. Army are jointly investigating an application of the ISVC concept for the cryogenic oxygen/hydrocarbon propellant system. This vortex chamber concept is currently tested with gel propellants at AMCOM at Redstone Arsenal, Alabama. A version of this concept for the liquid oxygen (LOX) hydrocarbon fuel (RP-1) system has been derived from the one for the gel propellant. An unlike impinging injector was employed to deliver the propellants to the chamber. MSFC is also conducting an alternative injection scheme, called the chasing injector, associated with this vortex chamber concept. In this injection technique, both propellant jets and their impingement point are in the same chamber cross-sectional plane. Long duration tests (approximately up to 15 seconds) will be conducted on the ISVC to study the thermal effects. This paper will report the progress of the subject efforts at NASA Marshall Space Flight Center. Thrust chamber performance and thermal wall compatibility will be evaluated. The chamber pressures, wall temperatures, and thrust will be measured as appropriate. The test data will be used to validate CFD models, which, in turn, will be used to design the optimum vortex chambers. Measurements in the previous tests showed that the chamber pressures vary significantly with radius. This is due to the existence of the vortices in the chamber flow field. Hence, the combustion efficiency may not be easily determined from chamber pressure. For this project, measured thrust data will be collected. The performance comparison will be in terms of specific impulse efficiencies. In addition to the thrust measurements, several pressure and temperature readings at various locations on the chamber head faceplate and the chamber wall will be made. The first injector and chamber were designed and fabricated based on the available data and experience gained during gel propellant system tests by the U.S. Army. The alternate injector for the ISVC was also fabricated. Hot-fire tests of the vortex chamber are about to start and are expected to complete in February of 2003 at the TS115 facility of MSFC.

Trinh, Huu P.↗

NASA NTRS2016

Tailoring NIST Security Controls for the Ground System: Selection and Implementation -- Recommendations for Information System Owners

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) invests millions of dollars in spacecraft and ground system development, and in mission operations in the pursuit of scientific knowledge of the universe. In recent years, NASA sent a probe to Mars to study the Red Planet's upper atmosphere, obtained high resolution images of Pluto, and it is currently preparing to find new exoplanets, rendezvous with an asteroid, and bring a sample of the asteroid back to Earth for analysis. The success of these missions is enabled by mission assurance. In turn, mission assurance is backed by information assurance. The information systems supporting NASA missions must be reliable as well as secure. NASA - like every other U.S. Federal Government agency - is required to manage the security of its information systems according to federal mandates, the most prominent being the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) of 2002 and the legislative updates that followed it. Like the management of enterprise information technology (IT), federal information security management takes a "one-size fits all" approach for protecting IT systems. While this approach works for most organizations, it does not effectively translate into security of highly specialized systems such as those supporting NASA missions. These systems include command and control (C&C) systems, spacecraft and instrument simulators, and other elements comprising the ground segment. They must be carefully configured, monitored and maintained, sometimes for several years past the missions' initially planned life expectancy, to ensure the ground system is protected and remains operational without any compromise of its confidentiality, integrity and availability. Enterprise policies, processes, procedures and products, if not effectively tailored to meet mission requirements, may not offer the needed security for protecting the information system, and they may even become disruptive to mission operations. Certain protective measures for the general enterprise may not be as efficient within the ground segment. This is what the authors have concluded through observations and analysis of patterns identified from the various security assessments performed on NASA missions such as MAVEN, OSIRIS-REx, New Horizons and TESS, to name a few. The security audits confirmed that the framework for managing information system security developed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) for the federal government, and adopted by NASA, is indeed effective. However, the selection of the technical, operational and management security controls offered by the NIST model - and how they are implemented - does not always fit the nature and the environment where the ground system operates in even though there is no apparent impact on mission success. The authors observed that unfit controls, that is, controls that are not necessarily applicable or sufficiently effective in protecting the mission systems, are often selected to facilitate compliance with security requirements and organizational expectations even if the selected controls offer minimum or non-existent protection. This paper identifies some of the standard security controls that can in fact protect the ground system, and which of them offer little or no benefit at all. It offers multiple scenarios from real security audits in which the controls are not effective without, of course, disclosing any sensitive information about the missions assessed. In addition to selection and implementation of controls, the paper also discusses potential impact of recent legislation such as the Federal Information Security Modernization Act (FISMA) of 2014 - aimed at the enterprise - on the ground system, and offers other recommendations to Information System Owners (ISOs).

GOVERNANCE↗

DOE OSTI2024

The persistence of memory in ionic conduction probed by nonlinear optics

Predicting practical rates of transport in condensed phases enables the rational design of materials, devices and processes. This is especially critical to developing low-carbon energy technologies such as rechargeable batteries. For ionic conduction, the collective mechanisms, variation of conductivity with timescales and confinement, and ambiguity in the phononic origin of translation, call for a direct probe of the fundamental steps of ionic diffusion: ion hops. However, such hops are rare-event large-amplitude translations, and are challenging to excite and detect. Here we use single-cycle terahertz pumps to impulsively trigger ionic hopping in battery solid electrolytes. This is visualized by an induced transient birefringence, enabling direct probing of anisotropy in ionic hopping on the picosecond timescale. The relaxation of the transient signal measures the decay of orientational memory, and the production of entropy in diffusion. We extend experimental results using in silico transient birefringence to identify vibrational attempt frequencies for ion hopping. Using nonlinear optical methods, we probe ion transport at its fastest limit, distinguish correlated conduction mechanisms from a true random walk at the atomic scale, and demonstrate the connection between activated transport and the thermodynamics of information.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗

DOE OSTI2021

Bridging Power System Protection Gaps with Data-driven Approaches

Protection is a critical function in power systems to avoid equipment damage, maintain personnel safety, and support system reliability. However, current protective relay technology cannot adequately protect equipment and personnel from effects of some events; these deficiencies are termed protection gaps. In this research, a data-driven approach is proposed to complement traditional protection technology and distinguish fault conditions from transients caused by normal operations. A convolutional neural network (CNN) based fault detection approach is implemented to achieve data translation invariance of the time-series input data. As a result, the data-driven method can accurately detect system faults despite variation and noise in the input data. In addition, using the CNN–based method avoids the complicated manual feature extraction procedure required by many traditional data-driven methods. The effectiveness of the proposed approach is tested on four kinds of protection gaps: high impedance faults, transformer/generator inter-turn faults, distribution system PV circuit faults, and the mis-operation situations of Zone 3 line protection relays operating under system stress. Finally, a transfer learning method is also proposed to address the common issue of data-driven methods for which real-world training data are scarce. Extensive study results demonstrate that the proposed approach can accurately bridge power system protection gaps.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

DOE OSTI2024

Analyzing the Inflation Reduction Act and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law for Their Effects on Nuclear Cost Data

Decarbonizing to meet aggressive climate change mitigation targets requires energy transition within all sectors. In the industrial sector, emissions will need to decrease by 65–90% by 2050 to avert global warming greater than 1.5°C (IPCC 2022). The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), and Defense Production Act (DPA) have clean energy requirements and provide financial incentives to accelerate the use of clean energy technologies in the industrial sector. It is important to note that IRA is the most extensive action ever taken by Congress and the U.S. government to combat climate change (US CBO 2021, 2022). The energy system provisions comprise most of the estimated climate and energy support. A better understanding of those provisions in the above mentioned acts and laws is crucial to assessing their impact on the equivalent energy costs to the power plant owners (impact on net revenue in $/MWh) across different energy technologies, market deployment potential offered to different energy technologies applications, and energy system research modeling. The purpose of the report is to shed light on IRA and BIL provisions with particular attention to impacts on the nuclear industry. The report also seeks to understand potential equivalent energy cost savings for nuclear energy technologies from other laws and programs in conjunction with IRA, BIL, loan program guarantees, and DPA. The report reviews recent legislation on energy policy and translates that policy to impacts on equivalent nuclear costs for the purpose of modeling policy in energy scenarios.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

NASA NTRS1991

Software reengineering

Programs in use today generally have all of the function and information processing capabilities required to do their specified job. However, older programs usually use obsolete technology, are not integrated properly with other programs, and are difficult to maintain. Reengineering is becoming a prominent discipline as organizations try to move their systems to more modern and maintainable technologies. The Johnson Space Center (JSC) Software Technology Branch (STB) is researching and developing a system to support reengineering older FORTRAN programs into more maintainable forms that can also be more readily translated to a modern languages such as FORTRAN 8x, Ada, or C. This activity has led to the development of maintenance strategies for design recovery and reengineering. These strategies include a set of standards, methodologies, and the concepts for a software environment to support design recovery and reengineering. A brief description of the problem being addressed and the approach that is being taken by the STB toward providing an economic solution to the problem is provided. A statement of the maintenance problems, the benefits and drawbacks of three alternative solutions, and a brief history of the STB experience in software reengineering are followed by the STB new FORTRAN standards, methodology, and the concepts for a software environment.

Fridge, Ernest M., III↗

NASA NTRS2004

Enhancements to a Superconducting Quantum Interference Device (SQUID) Multiplexer Readout and Control System

Far-infrared detector arrays such as the 16x32 superconducting bolometer array for the SAFIRE instrument (flying on the SOFIA airborne observatory) require systems of readout and control electronics to provide translation between a user-driven, digital PC and the cold, analog world of the cryogenic detector. In 2001, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) developed their Mark III electronics for purposes of control and readout of their 1x32 SQUID Multiplexer chips. We at NASA s Goddard Space Flight Center acquired a Mark 111 system and subsequently designed upgrades to suit our and our collaborators purposes. We developed an arbitrary, programmable multiplexing system that allows the user to cycle through rows in a SQUID array in an infinite number of combinations. We provided hooks in the Mark III system to allow readout of signals from outside the Mark 111 system, such as telescope status information. Finally, we augmented the heart of the system with a new feedback algorithm implementation, flexible diagnostic tools, and informative telemetry.

Forgione, J.↗

NASA NTRS2001

Evaluation of Impinging Stream Vortex Chamber Concepts for Liquid Rocket Engine Applications

Trinh, Huu P.↗

DOE OSTI2023

Reverse-Bias Resilience of Monolithic Perovskite/Silicon Tandem Solar Cells

Metal halide perovskites have rapidly enabled a range of high-performance photovoltaic technologies. However, catastrophic failure under reverse voltage bias poses a roadblock for their commercialization. In this work, we conduct a series of stress tests to compare the reverse-bias stability of perovskite single-junction, silicon single-junction, and monolithic perovskite/silicon tandem solar cells. We demonstrate that the tested perovskite/silicon tandem devices are considerably more resilient against reverse bias compared with perovskite single-junction devices. The origin of such improved stability stems from the low reverse-bias diode current of the silicon subcell. This translates to dropping most of the voltage over the silicon subcell, where such a favorable voltage distribution protects the perovskite subcell from reverse-bias-induced degradation. These results highlight that, compared with other perovskite technologies, monolithic perovskite/silicon tandems are at a higher technology readiness level in terms of tackling the reverse bias and partial shading challenges, which is a considerable advantage toward commercialization.

halide perovskite↗

DOE OSTI2022

Grand challenges in low temperature plasmas

Low temperature plasmas (LTPs) enable to create a highly reactive environment at near ambient temperatures due to the energetic electrons with typical kinetic energies in the range of 1 to 10 eV (1 eV = 11600K), which are being used in applications ranging from plasma etching of electronic chips and additive manufacturing to plasma-assisted combustion. LTPs are at the core of many advanced technologies. Without LTPs, many of the conveniences of modern society would simply not exist. New applications of LTPs are continuously being proposed. Researchers are facing many grand challenges before these new applications can be translated to practice. In this paper, we will discuss the challenges being faced in the field of LTPs, in particular for atmospheric pressure plasmas, with a focus on health, energy and sustainability.

atmospheric pressure plasmas↗

NASA NTRS1998

Status of NASA High-Speed Research Program

This paper provides an overview of the NASA High-Speed Research (HSR) Program dedicated to establishing the technology foundation to support the US transport industry's decision for an environmentally acceptable, economically viable 300 passenger, 5000 n.mi., Mach 2.4 aircraft. The HSR program, begun in 1990, is supported by a team of US aerospace companies. The international economic stakes are high. The projected market for more than 500 High-Speed Civil Transport (HSCT) airplanes introduced between the years 2000 and 2015 translates to more than $200 billion in aircraft sales, and the potential of 140,000 new jobs. The paper addresses the history of supersonic commercial air transportation beginning with the Concorde and TU-144 developments in the early 1960 time period. The technology goals for the HSR program are derived from market study results, projections on environmental requirements, and technical goals for each discipline area referenced to the design and operational features of the Concorde. Progress since the inception of the program is reviewed and a summary of some of the lessons learned will be highlighted. An outline is presented of the remaining technological challenges. Emphasis in this paper will be on the traditional aeronautical technologies that lead to higher performance to ensure economic viability. Specific discussion will center around aerodynamic performance, flight deck research, materials and structures development and propulsion systems. The environmental barriers to the HSCT and that part of the HSR program that addresses those technologies are reviewed and assessed in a companion paper.

Allen H Whitehead Jr↗

NASA NTRS2003

Towards a distributed information architecture for avionics data

Avionics data at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL consists of distributed, unmanaged, and heterogeneous information that is hard for flight system design engineers to find and use on new NASA/JPL missions. The development of a systematic approach for capturing, accessing and sharing avionics data critical to the support of NASA/JPL missions and projects is required. We propose a general information architecture for managing the existing distributed avionics data sources and a method for querying and retrieving avionics data using the Object Oriented Data Technology (OODT) framework. OODT uses XML messaging infrastructure that profiles data products and their locations using the ISO-11179 data model for describing data products. Queries against a common data dictionary (which implements the ISO model) are translated to domain dependent source data models, and distributed data products are returned asynchronously through the OODT middleware. Further work will include the ability to 'plug and play' new manufacturer data sources, which are distributed at avionics component manufacturer locations throughout the United States.

Information architecture↗

DOE OSTI2021

Electric Drive Technology Trends, Challenges, and Opportunities for Future Electric Vehicles

The transition to electric road transport technologies requires electric traction drive systems to offer improved performances and capabilities, such as fuel efficiency (in terms of MPGe, i.e., miles per gallon of gasoline-equivalent), extended range, and fast-charging options. The enhanced electrification and transformed mobility are translating to a demand for higher power and more efficient electric traction drive systems that lead to better fuel economy for a given battery charge. To accelerate the mass-market adoption of electrified transportation, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), in collaboration with the automotive industry, has announced the technical targets for light-duty electric vehicles (EVs) for 2025. This article discusses the electric drive technology trends for passenger electric and hybrid EVs with commercially available solutions in terms of materials, electric machine and inverter designs, maximum speed, component cooling, power density, and performance. Additionally, the emerging materials and technologies for power electronics and electric motors are presented, identifying the challenges and opportunities for even more aggressive designs to meet the need for next-generation EVs. Some innovative drive and motor designs with the potential to meet the DOE 2025 targets are also discussed.

33 ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗