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NASA NTRS2016

Economic Readiness Level Considerations for a Robust LEO Economy

The reduced gravity environment of space provides a unique opportunity to further our understanding of various materials phenomena involving the molten, fluidic and gaseous states as well as life science applications where, contrary to earlier beliefs, microgravity induces changes in single cells and simple organisms; not only in large organisms with a complex overall response to gravity (or lack thereof). The potential breadth of commercial opportunities in microgravity thus spans over many verticals of the private sector with applications ranging from fiber optics, high-resolution crystals, microencapsulation, 3D organs to perfume and color dyes. Overall, products manufactured in microgravity hold the promise to have key properties surpassing their best terrestrial counterparts. Commercialization, also known as taking a new technology to market, is a journey in itself where the business, economic, market and technological components must align to generate a successful outcome. A business perspective is very different than technology maturation, which can be measured with the usual Technology Readiness Level (TRL) approach. In order for a technology to be ready for commercialization, it must not only be mature (high TRL), but it must also have a compelling business case, and the means to scale up production must be identified and practical. Creating a sustainable economy in an emerging market such as microgravity is especially challenging because of the complexity (high risks, lack of standardization) involved in predicting future growth. This complexity can easily overwhelm the fact that many of the products have an attractive touch of space which aids with branding and marketing.This paper builds upon the concept of the verticals of microgravity, capturing not only new lines of investigations but also promising killer apps originating from microgravity to discuss and define the notion of Economic Readiness Level (ERL). To advance in ERL, the technology itself may not necessarily need to mature at all, but the understanding of its economic potential does. Building upon ERL, a model that ultimately leads to the creation of pathways for infusion of private capital and a sustainable commercial microgravity LEO-Earth economy will be discussed.

Cozmuta, Ioana↗

NASA NTRS2018

Comparison of Mixing Characteristics for Several Fuel Injectors at Mach 8, 12, and 15 Hypervelocity Flow Conditions

CFD analysis is presented of the mixing characteristics and performance of three fuel injectors at flight Mach numbers of 8, 12, and 15. The Reynolds-averaged simulations (RAS) were carried out using the VULCAN-CFD solver. The high Mach number flow conditions match those of the experiments conducted as a part of the Enhanced Injection and Mixing Project (EIMP) at the NASA Langley Research Center. The EIMP aims to investigate scramjet fuel injection and mixing physics, improve the understanding of underlying physical processes, and develop enhancement strategies relevant to flight Mach numbers greater than 8. The injectors include a fuel placement device, a strut, and a fluidic vortical mixer, a ramp. These fuel injectors accomplish the necessary task of distributing and mixing fuel into the supersonic cross-flow, albeit via different strategies. For comparison, a flush-wall injector is also included. This type of injector generally represents the simplest method of introducing fuel into a scramjet combustor. The three injectors represent the baseline configurations of the EIMP experiments. The mixing parameters of interest, such as mixing efficiency and total pressure recovery, are computed from the RAS and compared for the three flight conditions and injector configurations. In addition to mixing efficiency and total pressure recovery, the combustion efficiency and thrust potential are also computed for the reacting simulations. Plotting the total pressure recovery and thrust potential as a function of mixing efficiency provides added insight into critical aspects of combustor performance as the flight condition and injector type are varied.

Shenoy, Rajiv R.↗

NASA NTRS2019

Gene Expression Measurement Module (GEMM) for space application: Design and validation

In order to facilitate studies on the impact of the space environment on biological systems, we have developed a prototype of GEMM (Gene Expression Measurement Module) - an automated, miniaturized, integrated fluidic system for in-situ measurements of gene expression in microbial samples. The GEMM instrument is capable of (1) lysing bacterial cell walls, (2) extracting and purifying RNA released from cells, (3) hybridizing the RNA to probes attached to a microarray and (4) providing electrochemical readout, all in a microfluidics cartridge. To function on small, uncrewed spacecraft, the conventional, laboratory protocols for both sample preparation and hybridization required significant modifications. Biological validation of the instrument was carried out on Synechococcus elongatus, a photosynthetic cyanobacterium known for its metabolic diversity and resilience to adverse conditions. It was demonstrated that GEMM yielded reliable, reproducible gene expression profiles. GEMM is the only high throughput instrument that can be deployed in near future on space platforms other than the ISS to advance biological research in space. It can also prove useful for numerous terrestrial applications in the field.

Kianoosh Peyvan↗

NASA NTRS2019

The Unrealized Potential of Superhydrophobic Substrates in Advanced Life Support Systems

Nearly all water processing equipment aboard spacecraft is to a large extent controlled by capillary forces arising from substrate wetting conditions. Superhydrophobic wetting conditions provide an essentially passive means to keep water away from certain substrates providing a level of no-moving-parts phase separation and control. This work presents a host of non-wetting aqueous microgravity capillary fluidics phenomena arising from interactions with easily fabricated superhydrophobic substrates. The value of such phenomena for potential life support applications aboard spacecraft is clear, especially for substrate properties that are thermally robust, corrosion resistant, and self-cleaning for both long- and short term applications. Large length scale low-g demonstrations of the phenomena are provided in HD video format for the extensive drop tower tests conducted. The broader crosscutting impacts to numerous fluids processing operations for life support are discussed. Current practical applications addressed in light of superhydrophobicity include urine-processing, water recovery, fire safety, and others.

Superhydrophoic↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

RDE Nozzle Computational Design Methodology Development and Application

The rotating detonation engine (RDE) is currently under investigation as an approach to achieving pressure gain combustion for propulsion and power systems. The RDE typically consists of an annulus with one end open (or having a throat and/or nozzle) and the other end valved using non-mechanical, fluidic means. In this study, a total of 6 nozzle design variations were studied for the NPS combustor geometry, using the validated quasi-2D to 3-D coupled simulation approach.

CFD↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

BioLEAD: BioLogical Exploration via Autonomous Detection – Using Dielectric Spectroscopy to Monitor Biological Changes in Response to Deep Space Radiation

Leveraging the bio-fluidic hardware developed for BioSentinel, we propose a new payload for autonomous missions: BioLEAD – BioLogical Exploration via Autonomous Detection. With NASA's renewed focus to continue human exploration of the Moon (Artemis Program), the BioLEAD payload aims to investigate the effects of the lunar environment on biology, whether onboard a lunar lander, the Lunar Gateway, or as a free-flying CubeSat orbiting the Moon. In place of an optical detection system, BioLEAD will employ a miniaturized, non-invasive dielectric spectroscopy sensor to enable real-time monitoring of biological activity. The sensor operates by relating capacitance measurements to the dielectric properties of the cell, such as cell morphology, doubling time, and cell cycle stage. The implementation of this new sensor technology will address limitations of the optical measurement system used on BioSentinel. It will also advance the use of autonomous bioanalytical microsystems and reveal new information regarding biological responses to the Moon’s radiation environment. Most importantly, BioLEAD’s technology will be adaptable for a wide array of future missions.

Biosensor↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Autonomous Measurement of Electrochemical Redox Couples for In-Situ Characterization of Enceladus Plume Samples

A 3D-printed microfluidic electrochemical cell with integrated electrodes was developed to demonstrate autonomous in-situ electrochemical characterization of terrestrial seawater samples. The system is designed to extend the capabilities of the 2008 Phoenix Lander’s Wet Chemistry Laboratory (WCL) that analyzed the soluble chemistry of the Martian soil, by miniaturizing its fluidic architecture for analysis of µL-volume samples as expected from an Enceladus fly-by mission. The microfluidic device has a total fluid volume of 48 µL and includes dual channels each populated with 7 electrodes. Measurement of pH was measured using an iridium oxide electrode. Cyclic voltammetry with Au, Pt, and glassy carbon working electrodes was used to measure redox couples in synthetic seawater that contained inorganic and bio-organic molecules. Glassy carbon was found to have minimal risk of interference from constituents of synthetic seawater when measuring molecular organic redox species; however, care must be used to prevent interference due to potential oxidation or dissolution in the case of Au working electrodes. A completely autonomous end-to-end run including sample delivery was performed, to demonstrate the feasibility of microfluidic-based cyclic voltammetry measurements for in-situ characterization of redox couples in Ocean World samples.

Planetary Instruments↗

NASA NTRS1999

MEMS Micro Valve for Space Applications

We report on the development of a Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS) valve that is designed to meet the rigorous performance requirements for a variety of space applications, such as micropropulsion, in-situ chemical analysis of the planet, or micro-fluidics experiments in micro-gravity.

MEMS↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Particle Interaction Physics Model Formulation for Plume-Surface Interaction Erosion and Cratering

As part of the Game Changing Development (GCD) Program, funded by NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD), the development of simulation capability for the prediction of extra-terrestrial Plume Surface Interaction (PSI) environments has been undertaken by the Fluid Dynamics Branch at NASA/MSFC. The Predictive Simulation Capability (PSC) Element is focused on creating simulation capability for the reliable and accurate prediction of PSI in Martian (~650 Pa) and Lunar (vacuum) ambient environments. In addition to the predictive simulation capability, the GCD Program also contains a companion Ground Testing Element for development of focused datasets for validation of predictive capability as well as a Flight-focused Instrumentation Element. This paper will present the status of implementing and maturing particle-particle interaction constituent physics models essential in simulating the landing surface granular material flow under PSI effects. This gas-particle multi-phase interaction modeling of plume impingement flow on the extra-terrestrial soil material is performed with the Gas-Granular Flow Solver (GGFS) addressed in a companion paper. The response of regolith particle flow induced by lander PSI requires accurate representation of the regolith granular material fluidic behavior and gas-granular interactions. The lunar regolith, as the extreme example, is poorly sorted with broad particle size distributions and large fines content. It has significant cohesion, due to interlocking particle shapes for the very jagged particles. The combination of particle shape and size distribution has been identified as major drivers in the complex particle flow response and resulting crater shape characteristics of extraterrestrial granular material. Constituent models for spherical particles can be formulated directly from particle kinetics theory. Complex particle shapes can be modeled by gluing together elemental spherical shapes into composite particles, requiring a Discrete Element Model (DEM) particle kinetics modeling approach to extract data and formulate constituent models. Mixture constituent models for poly-disperse mixtures (i.e, containing distribution of particle sizes) have recently been developed. The required non-spherical particle mixture granular material response closure models are then obtained through small-scale unit physics DEM simulations for the range of particle shapes, mixtures and packing densities. The granular material response closure models are then implemented in the Eulerian granular flow formulation. This DEM-based constituent model extraction process and formulation of poly-disperse particle mixtures has been successfully developed by small business and academic partners in the development of the Gas-Granular Flow Solver (GGFS) simulation program simulation framework. The currently implemented capabilities have reached the capability level of modeling bi-disperse, non-spherical particle mixtures is being continuously extended towards computational modeling of full range irregular particle mixtures. Under the GCD project, this technology is being further developed, transferred to NASA analysts, and matured towards application readiness. The predictive simulation capability team under the GCD project has acquired the modeling tools and processes of the DEM based constituent model formulation from the GGFS development team and is developing the capability to replicate the existing process. This is the first important step towards the ability of the NASA team to independently perform such model development in a production setting. Further efforts are underway to migrate the DEM based model simulation process performed with the academic based tools to more capable Open Source, highly parallelized simulation tools for efficient operation on NASA HPC assets. Evaluation of the currently implemented (such as mono-disperse and bi-disperse spherical and irregular shape particle constituent model applications) and continuously evolving full-range particle physics models in the GGFS tool is performed by the NASA team to advance application readiness of the simulations. Application testing for complex PSI erosions and cratering scenarios such as the Apollo LM is performed for axi-symmetric and full 3D simulations to aid the tool developers in achieving practical application readiness for NASA projects. Important validation and application testing will further be performed against experimental data generated under the GCD PSI project experimental component.

Peter A Liever↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Growth Curve Parameterization of Metabolic Activity of Yeast Cells for BioSentinel

The goal of the BioSentinel small satellite payload is to measure the effect of deep space radiation on the growth and metabolic activity of yeast cells. Raw test data is generated by fluidics cards containing yeast cells rehydrated at different periods, with metabolic activity measured by the reduction of alamarBlue. Each card well has a sensor array that measures the amount of red, green, and infrared light transmitted through the yeast culture. This illumination data is then converted to absorbance values, which are further converted into concentrations. The ultimate objective is to convert these concentrations into biologically-relevant metrics that can be compared against one another to determine changes due to differential radiation exposure. Beginning with IR absorbance data (corresponding to cell density) from ground studies, three parameters from a sigmoidal growth curve were extracted and analyzed: 𝜆 (lag phase), 𝜇 (max growth rate), and A (max cell growth). The data was fit to the Gompertz model of microbial growth using non-linear regression (Minitab), as the fit error was reduced compared to the simpler logistic growth curve. Graphs showed that the data contained a discrepancy (drift) in the lag phase that is attributable to a slow, constant loss of moisture. Correcting this discrepancy by fitting the first 25 hours of the data to a power function and subtracting these values from the absorbance readings obtained a better statistical fit to the growth curve in the lag phase. A power fit was selected over a linear fit because it reflected the effects of constant volume loss. This correction to the BioSentinel data analysis pipeline will enable quantitative statistical analysis of the effect of different levels of deep space radiation on yeast cells. Future work includes automation of drift correction and curve modeling to extract these parameters directly from data.

Growth Curve↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

A Review of Recent Advances in Heat Exchanger Technology and Future Applications

This talk describes current and historical efforts concerning the development of condensing heat exchangers for use in space systems. These devices are used for a wide range of applications, including humidity/environmental control and multiphase fluid systems in Earth and in space. Therefore, keeping these systems running consistently and with minimal downtime/repairs is a high priority for exploration life support. Recent advances in low gravity capillary fluidics can be applied to newer systems and offer continuous operation in the event of a system pump failure or blockage. Additionally, new methods in femtosecond laser processing have been used to create microbial resistant surfaces with unique wetting characteristics. This research builds on experiments at both Glenn Research Center and Johnson Space Center. Future applications of this work will also be discussed, including water processing and plant growth systems.

heat exchanger↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

PowerCell aboard the EuCROPIS satellite - Results from the first synthetic biology experiment in space

Synthetic biology is the design and construction of new biological parts and systems not found in nature, a technology that we believe will be a game-changing technology for space exploration. The PowerCell concept is an ecology based on photosynthetic microbes taking advantage of in situ materials and energy to generate, on-demand, useful products (food, fuel, cloths, drugs, etc.) that satisfy specific needs of long-term human presence away from Earth. This first PowerCell experiment is testing this concept as well as several key mechanisms of engineering biology in a 48-well plate microfluidics system. NASA's PowerCell experiment was loaded in the fluidics system at NASA Ames in May 2016, and subsequently integrated on the DLR's compact satellite Eu:CROPIS (Euglena Combined Regenerative Organic food Production In Space), as a secondary payload. Launched into Earth’s orbit from the Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, USA, in December 3, 2019, the Eu:CROPIS platform has provided an artificial gravity through rotational acceleration, simulating gravity ranges compatible to those found on Mars and on the Moon, as well as microgravity in the absence of acceleration. Each set of biological experiments performed at Earth's orbit was compared to ground controls. Over 400 days' worth of mission data showed that all hardware and software worked as planned, and microbial growth was observed in all four gravity regimes, including growth on cyanobacterial cell extract in three out of four gravity regimes. The genetic transformation experiment was successful in microgravity and provided valuable long-term reagent stability data, including antibiotic efficacy. The demonstrated ability of hardy bacterial spores to recover from a long-term stasis period will be fundamental for deep human space missions. Lessons learned from hardware design to experimental operations are leading to improved designs and capabilities for future missions.

Ivan Glaucio Paulino Lima↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Gateway bi-propellant refueling development testing and model validation activities

The Gateway is an upcoming long term lunar exploration program to be completed by NASA in partnership with ESA and other US and international partners. The system design of the Gateway contains both a high performance Xenon based Solar Electric Propulsion system, as well as a bi-propellant attitude control system. Both propulsion systems are designed for on-orbit refueling to enable long life performance of the Gateway. The ESPRIT-RM is a module which will expand the pressurized volume of Gateway, while also providing refueling capability for both the Xenon and Bipropellant propulsion systems, therefore extending the Gateway life on orbit. As part of the Gateway bi-propellant refueling system development, a simplified fluidic breadboard system was created to evaluate system performance and response using simulant fluids. The test plan includes verification activities with simulant (water, HFE-7100) to verify joined subsystem behavior in the critical operations, including propellant transfer demonstration between modules, transient tests and venting tests. Integrated testing occurred at TASUK in collaboration with NASA to support joint verification activities to de-risk the major functions of the ESPRIT BTS and the overall CONOPS of the refueling of the Gateway chemical propulsion system. Initially collected test data from the system testing is presented, as well as initial model validation, and correlated to collected high frequency test data and system response is shown. Initially collected data has shown the architected system performance is closing initial design assumptions, but much forward work remains to characterize and develop the system.

Christopher Daniel Radke↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Plant Water Management in Microgravity

The NASA Plant Water Management (PWM) technology demonstrations aboard ISS apply recent advances in microgravity capillary fluidics research towards the mundane yet problematic challenges of simply watering plants in space. Plant growth in a low-g environment is often hampered by inadequate aeration and oversaturation of the root zone. The present effort aims to exploit the passive capillary forces of poorly wetting liquids (i.e., contaminated water) within unique system geometries that effectively replace the role of gravity in providing sufficient aeration and hydration for simulated plants. Several flight demonstrations have been completed on ISS, including soil and hydroponic models in single and parallel channel networks. The results demonstrate proof-of-concept, system stability, limits of operation, more. The implications are discussed in relation to plant growth facilities for further near-term microgravity plant science research as well as automated food production for long duration human exploration missions.

microgravity↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Demonstration of Capability to Simulate Particle Irregular Shape and Poly-Disperse Mixtures Within Lunar Lander Plume-Surface Interaction

Plume-Surface Interaction (PSI) between lander engine plumes and regolith soil creates hazards in obscuration and contamination by particle clouds, high-energy ejecta streams, and landing area cratering damage. The MSFC Fluid Dynamics Branch is developing simulation tools to offer a predictive PSI capability to NASA customers such as the Human Lander System (HLS) and Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS). The Gas-Granular Flow Solver (GGFS) is the main application tool for coupled gas-particle two-phase flow simulations to predict the range of PSI effects from onset of surface erosion to deep crater formation. GGFS features an Eulerian-Eulerian modeling approach, treating both gas and granular material as interacting continuum phases. Modeling the lunar regolith granular material fluidic characteristics poses special challenges due to complex particle shapes and mixture composition. The lunar regolith is poorly sorted with broad particle size distributions and large fines content. It has significant cohesion, due to interlocking jagged particle shapes. Eulerian granular material flow modeling requires closure formulations for the granular material constitutive models (stress, friction, collisional and kinetic energy dissipation, drag, etc.). While closure models for spherical particles are available from particle kinetic theory, closure models for realistic non-spherical particles must be extracted from unit physics Discrete Element Model (DEM) particle interaction simulations and provided in the form of tabular datasets. The effects of particle irregular shape (non-spherical shape factors, angular particle surface roughness, and interlocking features) are simulated by approximating the particle features in the form of grouped elemental spheres to form composite particles in the DEM simulations. The effects of the wide range of regolith mixture particle sizes and the strong effects of the presence of the small particle sizes results in high cohesion and low porosity of the regolith mixture. The range of particle sizes is simulated by binning the particle sizes into an appropriate finite number of particle-size species and solving the problem as a species mixture. Combining these two modeling approaches enables simulations to capture both, the contributions of the irregular particle shape and the particle size distribution. The integration and maturation of the DEM-based constitutive model database generation process and poly-disperse mixture binning approach into the GGFS simulation framework are proceeding under funding by the NASA Game Changing Development program. The status of current capabilities will be presented in comparisons of crater characteristics resulting for spherical and irregular shape particles, and for mono-, bi-, and tri-disperse mixture simulations of Apollo LM plume-surface interaction. The computational results confirm the significance of including the particle shape and mixture effects. Going forward plans for the full implementation of the general poly-disperse regolith modeling capability and maturation towards NASA project application readiness under the GCD program will be presented.

Peter A Liever↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

BioSentinel: NASA’s First Deep Space Biological Mission

Since Apollo 17 in 1972, NASA has sent no humans or other biological organisms outside of Earth’s protective magnetosphere. NASA’s current Artemis program plans to put astronauts back on the Moon and eventually land human missions on Mars. One of the major challenges to long-duration crewed travel and habitation in deep space is an in-depth understanding of the biological effects of space radiation, often convoluted by the impact of reduced gravity. Such missions will require significant countermeasures, likely both technological and biomedical, to protect organisms from chronic radiation exposure. Small satellite missions like CubeSats can inform these countermeasures by investigating model organisms in relevant space environments. The BioSentinel mission is comprised of four segments developed at NASA Ames Research Center: a 6U CubeSat (1U = 10-cm cube), an ISS payload launched in December 2021 and two ground units, one for the mission’s CubeSat and one for the ISS payload. The last three segments have been operational since January 2022 and serve as experimental controls. BioSentinel’s 6U CubeSat is planned to launch as a secondary payload on the Artemis-1 rocket. It will be deployed on a lunar fly-by trajectory and into a heliocentric orbit. BioSentinel will be the first interplanetary satellite to study the biological response to space radiation outside Low Earth Orbit (LEO) in almost 50 years. BioSentinel is a complete, autonomous spacecraft capable of conducting experiments in deep space. Its 4U BioSensor payload is a fully automated and adaptable platform that can perform biological measurements with a range of microorganisms in multiple space environments, including the ISS, free flyers, and other platforms like the Lunar Gateway and lander vehicles. Once it reaches its orbit, BioSentinel’s CubeSat will measure the DNA damage response to ambient radiation in a model organism, the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, which will be compared to information provided by an onboard radiation sensor and to data obtained in LEO (on ISS) and on Earth. Once in interplanetary space, fluidic cards containing desiccated yeast will be activated by growth medium addition at different time points throughout the mission. Growth and metabolic activity will be tracked continuously via optical measurements. This paper describes BioSentinel’s objectives, science, data management, and preliminary results from the ISS and ISS ground control segments.

BioSentinel↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Joint Development Testing of the Integrated Gateway-Esprit Bipropellant Refuelling System

The Gateway is an upcoming long term lunar exploration program to be completed by NASA in partnership with ESA and other US and international partners. The system design of the Gateway contains both a high performance Xenon based Solar Electric Propulsion system, as well as a bi-propellant attitude control system. Both propulsion systems are designed for on-orbit refuelling to enable long life performance of the Gateway. The ESPRIT-RM is a module which will expand the pressurized volume of Gateway, while also providing refuelling capability for both the Xenon and Bipropellant propulsion systems, therefore extending the Gateway life on orbit. As part of the Gateway bi-propellant refuelling system development, a simplified fluidic breadboard system was created to evaluate system performance and response using simulant fluids. The test plan includes verification activities with simulant (water, HFE-7100) to verify joined subsystem behaviour in the critical operations, including propellant transfer demonstration between modules, transient tests and venting tests. Integrated testing will occur at TASUK in collaboration with NASA to support joint verification activities to de-risk the major functions of the ESPRIT Bipropellant Transfer Subsystem (BTS) and the overall CONOPS of the refuelling of the Gateway chemical propulsion system. Initially collected test data is presented and has shown the architected system performance is closing initial design assumptions, but much forward work is identified to continue to characterize and develop the system.

Sebastian Hill↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Demonstration of Capability to Simulate Particle Irregular Shape and Poly-Disperse Mixtures Within Lunar Lander Plume-Surface Interaction

Peter A. Liever↗