Search NASA⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search NASA

Results for “nitrogen loss”

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.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 397 records · Page 22
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2007

Chemical Data Assimilation Estimates of Continental US Ozone and Nitrogen Budgets during INTEX-A

Global ozone analyses, based on assimilation of stratospheric profile and ozone column measurements, and NOy predictions from the Real-time Air Quality Modeling System (RAQMS) are used to estimate the ozone and NOy budget over the Continental US during the July-August 2004 Intercontinental Chemical Transport Experiment-North America (INTEX-A). Comparison with aircraft, satellite, surface, and ozonesonde measurements collected during the INTEX-A show that RAQMS captures the main features of the global and Continental US distribution of tropospheric ozone, carbon monoxide, and NOy with reasonable fidelity. Assimilation of stratospheric profile and column ozone measurements is shown to have a positive impact on the RAQMS upper tropospheric/lower stratosphere ozone analyses, particularly during the period when SAGE III limb scattering measurements were available. Eulerian ozone and NOy budgets during INTEX-A show that the majority of the Continental US export occurs in the upper troposphere/lower stratosphere poleward of the tropopause break, a consequence of convergence of tropospheric and stratospheric air in this region. Continental US photochemically produced ozone was found to be a minor component of the total ozone export, which was dominated by stratospheric ozone during INTEX-A. The unusually low photochemical ozone export is attributed to anomalously cold surface temperatures during the latter half of the INTEX-A mission, which resulted in net ozone loss during the first 2 weeks of August. Eulerian NOy budgets are shown to be very consistent with previously published estimates. The NOy export efficiency was estimated to be 24 percent, with NOx+PAN accounting for 54 percent of the total NOy export during INTEX-A.

Pierce, Robert B.↗
NASA NTRS2007

Runtime and Pressurization Analyses of Propellant Tanks

Multi-element unstructured CFD has been utilized at NASA SSC to carry out analyses of propellant tank systems in different modes of operation. The three regimes of interest at SSC include (a) tank chill down (b) tank pressurization and (c) runtime propellant draw-down and purge. While tank chill down is an important event that is best addressed with long time-scale heat transfer calculations, CFD can play a critical role in the tank pressurization and runtime modes of operation. In these situations, problems with contamination of the propellant by inclusion of the pressurant gas from the ullage causes a deterioration of the quality of the propellant delivered to the test article. CFD can be used to help quantify the mixing and propellant degradation. During tank pressurization under some circumstances, rapid mixing of relatively warm pressurant gas with cryogenic propellant can lead to rapid densification of the gas and loss of pressure in the tank. This phenomenon can cause serious problems during testing because of the resulting decrease in propellant flow rate. With proper physical models implemented, CFD can model the coupling between the propellant and pressurant including heat transfer and phase change effects and accurately capture the complex physics in the evolving flowfields. This holds the promise of allowing the specification of operational conditions and procedures that could minimize the undesirable mixing and heat transfer inherent in propellant tank operation. It should be noted that traditional CFD modeling is inadequate for such simulations because the fluids in the tank are in a range of different sub-critical and supercritical states and elaborate phase change and mixing rules have to be developed to accurately model the interaction between the ullage gas and the propellant. We show a typical run-time simulation of a spherical propellant tank, containing RP-1 in this case, being pressurized with room-temperature nitrogen at 540 R. Nitrogen, shown in blue on the right-hand side of the figures, enters the tank from the diffuser at the top of the figures and impinges on the RP-1, shown in red, while the propellant is being continuously drained at the rate of 1050 lbs/sec through a pipe at the bottom of the tank. The sequence of frames in Figure 1 shows the resultant velocity fields and mixing between nitrogen and RP-1 in a cross-section of the tank at different times. A vortex is seen to form in the incoming nitrogen stream that tends to entrain propellant, mixing it with the pressurant gas. The RP-1 mass fraction contours in Figure 1 are also indicative of the level of mixing and contamination of the propellant. The simulation is used to track the propagation of the pure propellant front as it is drawn toward the exit with the evolution of the mixing processes in the tank. The CFD simulation modeled a total of 10 seconds of run time. As is seen from Figure 1d, after 5.65 seconds the propellant front is nearing the drain pipe, especially near the center of the tank. Behind this pure propellant front is a mixed fluid of compromised quality that would require the test to end when it reaches the exit pipe. Such unsteady simulations provide an estimate of the time that a high-quality propellant supply to the test article can be guaranteed at the modeled mass flow rate. In the final paper, we will discuss simulations of the LOX and propellant tanks at NASA SSC being pressurized by an inert ullage. Detailed comparisons will be made between the CFD simulations and lower order models as well as with test data. Conditions leading to cryo collapse in the tank will also be identified.

Field, Robert E.↗
NASA NTRS2015

Microgravity Flammability of PMMA Rods in Concurrent Flow

Microgravity experiments burning cast PMMA cylindrical rods in axial flow have been conducted aboard the International Space Station in the Microgravity Science Glovebox (MSG) facility using the Burning and Suppression of Solids (BASS) flow duct, as part of the BASS-II experiment. Twenty-four concurrent-flow tests were performed, focusing on finding flammability limits as a function of oxygen and flow speed. The oxygen was varied by using gaseous nitrogen to vitiate the working volume of the MSG. The speed of the flow parallel to the rod was varied using a fan at the entrance to the duct. Both blowoff and quenching limits were obtained at several oxygen concentrations. Each experiment ignited the rod at the initially hemispherical stagnation tip of the rod, and allowed the flame to develop and heat the rod at a sufficient flow to sustain burning. For blowoff limit tests, the astronaut quickly turned up the flow to obtain extinction. Complementary 5.18-second Zero Gravity Facility drop tests were conducted to compare blowoff limits in short and long duration microgravity. For quenching tests, the flow was incrementally turned down and the flame allowed to stabilize at the new flow condition for at least the solid-phase response time before changing it again. Quenching was observed when the flow became sufficiently weak that the flame could no longer provide adequate heat flux to compensate for the heat losses (conduction into the rod and radiation). A surface energy balance is presented that shows the surface radiative loss exceeds the conductive loss into the rod near the limit. The flammability boundary is shown to represent a critical Damkohler number, expressed in terms of the reaction rate divided by the stretch rate. For the blowoff branch, the boundary exhibits a linear dependence on oxygen concentration and stretch rate, indicating that the temperature at blowoff must be fairly constant. For the quenching branch, the dominance of the exponential nature of the Arrhenius kinetics reaction rate indicates that the temperature is critical.

flammability↗
NASA NTRS2005

The Gas Chromatograph Mass Spectrometer (GCMS) Experiment on the Cassini-Huygens Probe: First Results

The Huygens Probe of the Cassini Huygens Mission entered the atmosphere of the moon Titan on January 14, 2005. The GCMS was part of the instrument complement on the Probe to measure in situ the chemical composition of the atmosphere during the probe descent and to support the Aerosol Collector Pyrolyzer (ACP) experiment by serving as detector for the pyrolization products. The GCMS collected data from an altitude of 146 km to ground impact for a time interval of 2 hours and 37 minutes. The Probe and the GCMS survived the ground impact and collected data for 1 hour and 9 minutes on the surface in the near surface environment until signal loss by the orbiter. The instrument collected 5634 mass spectra during descent and 2692 spectra on the ground over a range of m/z from 2 to 141. Eight gas chromatograph samples were taken during the descent and two on the ground. This is a report on work in progress. The major constituents of the lower atmosphere were found to be N2 and CH4. The methane-mixing ratio was found to increase below the turbopause, about 35 km altitude, monotonically toward the surface to levels near saturation. After surface impact a steep increase of the mixing ratio was observed suggesting evaporation of surface condensed methane due to heating by the GCMS sample inlet heater. Other constituents were found to be in very low concentrations, below ppm levels. The presence of Argon 40 was confirmed. The results for the other noble gases are still being evaluated. Other hydrocarbons and nitriles were also observed and quantitative evaluation is in progress. Preliminary ratios for the major carbon and nitrogen isotopes were computed from methane and molecular nitrogen measurements.

Niemann, H.↗
NASA NTRS2003

Land Use and Land Cover Change, Urban Heat Island Phenomenon, and Health Implications: A Remote Sensing Approach

Land use and land cover maps of Atlanta Metropolitan Area in Georgia were produced from Landsat MSS and TM images for 1973,1979,1983,1987,1992, and 1997, spanning a period of 25 years. Dramatic changes in land use and land cover have occurred with loss of forest and cropland to urban use. In particular, low-density urban use, which includes largely residential use, has increased by over 119% between 1973 and 1997. These land use and land cover changes have drastically altered the land surface characteristics. An analysis of Landsat images revealed an increase in surface temperature and a decline in NDVI from 1973 to 1997. These changes have forced the development of a significant urban heat island effect and an increase in ground level ozone production to such an extent, that Atlanta has violated EPA's ozone level standard in recent years. The urban heat island initiated precipitation events that were identified between 1996 and 2000 tended to occur near high-density urban areas but outside the I-285 loop that traverses around the Central Business District, i.e. not in the inner city area, but some in close proximity to the highways. The health implications were investigated by comparing the spatial patterns of volatile organic compounds (VOC) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions, the two ingredients that form ozone by reacting with sunlight, with those of rates of cardiovascular and chronic lower respiratory diseases. A clear core-periphery pattern was revealed for both VOC and NOx emissions, but the spatial pattern was more random in the cases of rates of cardiovascular and chronic lower respiratory diseases. Clearly, factors other than ozone pollution were involved in explaining the rates of these diseases. Further research is therefore needed to understand the health geography and its relationship to land use and land cover change as well as urban heat island effect. This paper illustrates the usefulness of a remote sensing approach for this purpose.

Lo, C. P.↗
NASA NTRS2010

Computational Analyses of Pressurization in Cryogenic Tanks

A comprehensive numerical framework utilizing multi-element unstructured CFD and rigorous real fluid property routines has been developed to carry out analyses of propellant tank and delivery systems at NASA SSC. Traditionally CFD modeling of pressurization and mixing in cryogenic tanks has been difficult primarily because the fluids in the tank co-exist in different sub-critical and supercritical states with largely varying properties that have to be accurately accounted for in order to predict the correct mixing and phase change between the ullage and the propellant. For example, during tank pressurization under some circumstances, rapid mixing of relatively warm pressurant gas with cryogenic propellant can lead to rapid densification of the gas and loss of pressure in the tank. This phenomenon can cause serious problems during testing because of the resulting decrease in propellant flow rate. With proper physical models implemented, CFD can model the coupling between the propellant and pressurant including heat transfer and phase change effects and accurately capture the complex physics in the evolving flowfields. This holds the promise of allowing the specification of operational conditions and procedures that could minimize the undesirable mixing and heat transfer inherent in propellant tank operation. In our modeling framework, we incorporated two different approaches to real fluids modeling: (a) the first approach is based on the HBMS model developed by Hirschfelder, Beuler, McGee and Sutton and (b) the second approach is based on a cubic equation of state developed by Soave, Redlich and Kwong (SRK). Both approaches cover fluid properties and property variation spanning sub-critical gas and liquid states as well as the supercritical states. Both models were rigorously tested and properties for common fluids such as oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen etc were compared against NIST data in both the sub-critical as well as supercritical regimes.

Ahuja, Vineet↗
NASA NTRS2000

Satellite Measured Solar Protons from 1963-1993 and Their Influence on Ozone in a Changing Stratosphere

The fluxes of solar protons have been measured by a series of Interplanetary Monitoring Platform (IMP) satellites since 1963. Eight IMP satellites have been launched since 1963 providing excellent coverage of solar protons with energies from a few MeV to several hundred MeV. IMP 8, launched in October 1973, continues to provide proton measurements, twenty-six and a half (26 1/2) years after launch. These high energy solar protons rain down on the earth's polar atmosphere sporadically, primarily during solar proton events (SPEs) which typically last a few days. Solar protons with energies of 30 MeV or greater are capable of reaching the stratosphere and causing increases in odd nitrogen (NO(y)) constituents at polar latitudes ($>$ 60 degrees geomagnetic) which last for several months to years past the events. These enhanced NO(y) species can lead to significant upper stratospheric ozone depletions $ greater than $10\% during the gigantic SPEs that occurred in August 1972 and October 1989. We studied the effects of SPEs on the stratosphere from 1963 to the mid 1990s. During this time period, the stratospheric chlorine levels changed from relatively small in 1963 ($\sim$ 1 ppbv) to fairly substantial amounts in the mid-1990s ($\sim$ 3.3 ppbv). Our recently improved two-dimensional chemistry and transport atmospheric model was used to compute the effects of SPEs in this changing stratosphere. The long-lived SPE-produced NO(y) constituents were transported to lower stratospheric levels during winter after the events and caused impacts in the middle and lower stratosphere. Generally, the SPEs resulted in a decrease in ozone. However, during periods of high halogen loading these impacts resulted in interference with the chlorine and bromine loss cycles for ozone destruction. This interference actually led to a predicted total ozone increase that was especially notable in the time period 1992-4, a few years after the October 1989 SPE.

Jackman, Charles H.↗
NASA NTRS1994

Archean geochemistry of formaldehyde and cyanide and the oligomerization of cyanohydrin

The sources and speciation of reduced carbon and nitrogen inferred for the early Archean are reviewed in terms of current observations and models, and known chemical reactions. Within this framework hydrogen cyanide and cyanide ion in significant concentration would have been eliminated by reaction with excess formaldehyde to form cyanohydrin (glycolonitrile), and with ferrous ion to formferrocyanide. Natural reactions of these molecules would under such conditions deserve special consideration in modeling of primordial organochemical processes. As a step in this direction, transformation reactions have been investigated involving glycolonitrile in the presence of water. We find that glycolonitrile, formed from formaldehyde and hydrogen cyanide or cyanide ion, spontaneously cyclodimerizes to 4-amino-2-hydroxymethyloxazole. The crystalline dimer is the major product at low temperatue (approximately 0 C); the yield diminishes with increasing temperature at the expense of polymerization and hydrolysis products. Hydrolysis of glycolamide and of oxazole yields a number of simpler organic molecules, including ammonia and glycolamide. The spontaneous polymerization of glycolonitrile and its dimer gives rise to soluble, cationic oligomers of as yet unknown structure, and, unless arrested, to a viscous liquid, insoluble in water. A loss of cyanide by reaction with formaldehyde, inferred for the early terrestrial hydrosphere and cryosphere would present a dilemma for hypotheses invoking cyanide and related compounds as concentrated reactants capable of forming biomolecular precursor species. Attempts to escape from its horns may take advantage of the efficient concentration and separation of cyanide as solid ferriferrocyanide, and most directly of reactions of glycolonitrile and its derivatives.

Arrhenius, T.↗
NASA NTRS2014

Investigating the Sensitivity of Surface-Level Nitrate Seasonality in Antarctica to Primary Sources Using a Global Model

Determining the sources of total nitrate (TNIT NO-3 + HNO3) reaching Antarctica is a long-standing challenge. Here we analyze the monthly sensitivity of surface-level TNIT in Antarctica to primary sources using a global 3-D chemical transport model, GEOS-Chem, and its adjoint. Modeled seasonal variation of TNIT concentrations shows good agreement with several measurement studies, given that the lack of post-depositional processing in the model leads to an expected underestimate of maximum values in November through January. Remote NOx sources have the greatest impact May-July, during when the model background concentrations are sensitive to NOx emissions from fossil fuel combustion, soil, and lightning originating from 25S to 65S. In this season, NOx is transported to Antarctica as TNIT, which is formed above continental source regions at an altitude of 5-11 km. In other seasons, more NOx is transported as a reservoir species (e.g., peroxyacetyl nitrate, PAN) through the free troposphere, transforming into TNIT within a cone of influence that extends to 35S and above 4 km altitude. Photolysis of PAN over Antarctica is the main driver of modeled NOx seasonality. Stratospheric production and loss of tracers are relatively unimportant in monthly sensitivities in GEOS-Chem, driving only a few percent of surface level variability of TNIT. A small peak concentration in August is captured by the model, although some measured values in August fall outside the range of simulated concentrations. Modifications to the model to represent sedimentation of polar stratospheric clouds (PSCs) lead to increased surface level August TNIT concentrations. However, this simple representation does not explicitly account for PSC particle deposition or disappearance of the tropopause in the middle of winter, and thus the influence of stratospheric nitrate sources estimated in this study is likely a lower bound.

stratosphere↗
NASA NTRS2002

The Role of Rotation in the Evolution of Massive Stars

Recent evolutionary models of massive stars predict important effects of rotation including: increasing the rate of mass-loss; lowering the effective gravity; altering the evolutionary track on the HRD; extending the main-sequence phase (both on the HR diagram and in time); and mixing of CNO-processed elements up to the stellar surface. Observations suggest that rotation is a more important factor at lower metallicities because of higher initial rotational velocities and weaker winds. This makes the SMC, a low-metallicity galaxy (Z= 0.2 solar Z), an excellent environment for discerning the role of rotation in massive stars. We report on a FUSE + STIS + optical spectral analysis of 17 O-type stars in the SMC, where we found an enormous range in N abundances. Three stars in the sample have the same (low) CN abundances as the nebular material out of which they formed, namely C = 0.085 solar C and N = 0.034 solar N. However, more than half show N approx. solar N, an enrichment factor of 30X! Such unexpectedly high levels of N have ramifications for the evolution of massive stars including precursors to supernovae. They also raise questions about the sources of nitrogen in the early universe.

Heap, Sara R.↗
NASA NTRS2007

NASA Tech Briefs, December 2007

Topics include: Ka-Band TWT High-Efficiency Power Combiner for High-Rate Data Transmission; Reusable, Extensible High-Level Data-Distribution Concept; Processing Satellite Imagery To Detect Waste Tire Piles; Monitoring by Use of Clusters of Sensor-Data Vectors; Circuit and Method for Communication Over DC Power Line; Switched Band-Pass Filters for Adaptive Transceivers; Noncoherent DTTLs for Symbol Synchronization; High-Voltage Power Supply With Fast Rise and Fall Times; Waveguide Calibrator for Multi-Element Probe Calibration; Four-Way Ka-Band Power Combiner; Loss-of-Control-Inhibitor Systems for Aircraft; Improved Underwater Excitation-Emission Matrix Fluorometer; Metrology Camera System Using Two-Color Interferometry; Design and Fabrication of High-Efficiency CMOS/CCD Imagers; Foam Core Shielding for Spacecraft CHEM-Based Self-Deploying Planetary Storage Tanks Sequestration of Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes in a Polymer PPC750 Performance Monitor Application-Program-Installer Builder Using Visual Odometry to Estimate Position and Attitude Design and Data Management System Simple, Script-Based Science Processing Archive Automated Rocket Propulsion Test Management Online Remote Sensing Interface Fusing Image Data for Calculating Position of an Object Implementation of a Point Algorithm for Real-Time Convex Optimization Handling Input and Output for COAMPS Modeling and Grid Generation of Iced Airfoils Automated Identification of Nucleotide Sequences Balloon Design Software Rocket Science 101 Interactive Educational Program Creep Forming of Carbon-Reinforced Ceramic-Matrix Composites Dog-Bone Horns for Piezoelectric Ultrasonic/Sonic Actuators Benchtop Detection of Proteins Recombinant Collagenlike Proteins Remote Sensing of Parasitic Nematodes in Plants Direct Coupling From WGM Resonator Disks to Photodetectors Using Digital Radiography To Image Liquid Nitrogen in Voids Multiple-Parameter, Low-False-Alarm Fire-Detection Systems Mosaic-Detector-Based Fluorescence Spectral Imager Plasmoid Thruster for High Specific-Impulse Propulsion Analysis Method for Quantifying Vehicle Design Goals Improved Tracking of Targets by Cameras on a Mars Rover Sample Caching Subsystem Multistage Passive Cooler for Spaceborne Instruments GVIPS Models and Software Stowable Energy-Absorbing Rocker-Bogie Suspensions

Source record↗
NASA NTRS2003

The Role of Rotation in the Evolution of Massive Stars

Recent evolutionary models of massive stars predict important effects of rotation including: increasing the rate of mass loss; lowering the effective gravity; altering the evolutionary track on the Hertzsprung-Russel Diagram (HRD); extending the main-sequence phase (both on the HR diagram and in time); and mixing of CNO-processed elements up to the stellar surface. Observations suggest that rotation is a more important factor at lower metallicities because of higher initial rotational velocities and weaker winds. This makes the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC), a low-metallicity galaxy (Z=0.2 solar Z), an excellent environment for discerning the role of rotation in massive stars. We report on a FUSE+STIS+optical spectral analysis of 17 O-type stars in the SMC, where we found an enormous range in N abundances. Three stars in the sample have the same (low) CN abundances as the nebular material out of which they formed, namely C=0.085 solar C and N=0.034 solar N. However, more than half show N approx. solar N, an enrichment factor of 30X! Such unexpectedly high levels of N have ramifications for the evolution of massive stars including precursors to supernovae. They also raise questions about the sources of nitrogen in the early universe. This study was supported in part by grants from NASA's ADP, HST GO-7437, and FUSE B134.

Heap, Sara R.↗
NASA NTRS1986

Release of noble gases and nitrogen from grain-surface sites in lunar ilmenite by closed-system oxidation

Noble gases and nitrogen were extracted from a 100 to 150 microns ilmenite separate from lunar soil 71501 by closed system stepped heating in approx. 10 torr O2 at 300 C, 400 C, 500 C, 600 C and 630 C, followed by stepped pyrolysis at ten temperatures between 680 C and approx. 1500 C. The five oxidation steps together liberated approx. 65% of the total He-4, 45% of the Ne-20, 23% of the N-14 and Ar-36, 12% of the Kr-84 and 8% of the Xe-132 in the sample; Ne-20/Ar-36 and Ne-20/Ne-22 ratios agree with the solar wind composition experiment, and Kr-84/Ar-36 and Xe-132/Ar-36 are within approx. 10% of Cameron's estimates for the sun and solar wind. The remaining gases, released above 630 C by pyrolysis, are strongly fractionated with respect to the SWC-Cameron solar wind elemental composition. Large concentrations of fractionated noble gases in grain interiors, their virtual absence in the relatively unfractionated surface gas reservoir, and the high N/noble gas ratio all imply that most of the solar wind noble gases initially implanted in grain surfaces are eventually lost by diffusion. Loss limits can be estimated by considering two given scenarios. It is concluded tat approx. 70 to 97% or more of the Ar implanted in 71501 ilmenite grains has diffusively escaped.

Frick, U.↗
NASA NTRS2006

The Effects of Lightning NO(x) Production during the July 21 EULINOX Storm studied with a 3-D Cloud-scale Chemical Transport Model

The July 21,1998 thunderstonn observed during the European Lightning Nitrogen Oxides Project (EULINOX) project was simulated using the three-dimensional Goddard Cumulus Ensemble (GCE) model. The simulation successfully reproduced a number of observed storm features including the splitting of the original cell into a southern cell which developed supercell characteristics, and a northern cell which became multicellular. Output from the GCE simulation was used to drive an offline cloud-scale chemical transport model which calculates tracer transport and includes a parameterization of lightning NO(x) production which uses observed flash rates as input. Estimates of lightning NO(x) production were deduced by assuming various values of production per intracloud and production per cloud-to-ground flash and comparing the results with in-cloud aircraft observations. The assumption that both types of flashes produce 360 moles of NO per flash on average compared most favorably with column mass and probability distribution functions calculated from observations. This assumed production per flash corresponds to a global annual lightning NOx source of 7 Tg N per yr. Chemical reactions were included in the model to evaluate the impact of lightning NO(x), on ozone. During the storm, the inclusion of lightning NOx in the model results in a small loss of ozone (on average less than 4 ppbv) at all model levels. Simulations of the chemical environment in the 24 hours following the storm show on average a small increase in the net production of ozone at most levels resulting from lightning NO(x), maximizing at approximately 5 ppbv per day at 5.5 km. Between 8 and 10.5 km, lightning NO(x) causes decreased net ozone production.

Ott, Lesley E.↗
NASA NTRS2004

Progress on the Plasmoid Thruster Experiment (PTX)

A plasmoid is a compact plasma structure with an integral magnetic field, that may be categorized according to the relative strength of the poloidal and toroidal magnetic field (B(sub p) and B(sub t), respectively). An object with B(sub p)/B(sub t), much much more than 1 is called a Field Reverse Configuration (FRC); if B(sub p) approximately equal to B(sub t), it is called a Spheromak. The thruster operates by repetitively producing plasmoids that are accelerated and ejected at high velocity. As this process is inductive, there are no electrodes. Also, the magnetic structure of the plasmoid should suppress thermal and mass losses to the wall, and improve detachment of the plasma exhaust from the thruster. This concept should be capable of producing an Isp in the range of 5,000 - 10,000 s with thrust densities of order 10(exp 5) N per square meters. The current experiment is designed to produce jet powers in the range of 5-10 kW, although the concept should be scalable into the MW range. In PTX, the plasmoid is formed inside of a single turn conical theta-pinch coil (17.58 cone angle). The coil is driven by a 640 nF, 35 kV capacitor bank, which rings at a frequency of 500 kHz. Previous experiments on PTX were conducted with a static-fill of propellant gas (6% H2 in He), and demonstrated reliable ionization over a pressure range of 40 - 200 mTorr. We are now adding a fast gas-puff valve to load the propellant, and a ringing pre-ionization circuit (f = 5 Mhz) to better control the plasmoid formation. An alternate coil (8.58 cone angle) will also be used, so as to investigate the effect of coil shape on performance. In addition, a variety of propellants will be used, including hydrogen, nitrogen, and argon. The plasmoid mass and velocity will be measured with a variety of diagnostics, including external B-dot probes and flux loops, a high-speed framing camera, and a HeNe laser interferometer. Internal B-dot probes and a quadruple Langmuir probe will provide additional measurements of the plasmoid shape and structure, as well as density, and will be described in a companion paper. The experimental results will be compared to calculations made using a 0-D coil-gun model and also a 2-D time dependent MHD code.

Martin, Adam↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Low Leakage Valves for Long Duration Missions

I.Nomenclaturemtypical_mission=internal mass of propellant lost over the course of a mission with Qtypicalmmission_goal=mass of propellant loss over the course of a mission with Qgoaltmission=theoretical mission durationQtypical=internal leakage rate found in commercially available valvesQgoal=internal leakage rate design goalρH2_STP=density of hydrogen at standard temperature and pressure.1NASA AST, Liquid Propulsion Valve Engineer.Valves, Actuators, and Ducts Design and Development Branch (ER14)2NASA AST, Liquid Propulsion Valve Engineer.Valves, Actuators, and Ducts Design and Development Branch (ER14)3NASA AST, Liquid Propulsion Valve Engineer (Retired).Valves, Actuators, and Ducts Design and Development Branch (ER14)4JSEG ESSCA, Engineering Specialist.Valves Actuators and Ducts Design and Development Branch (ER14)5NASA AST, Liquid Propulsion Valve Engineer.Valves, Actuators, and Ducts Design and Development Branch (ER14)6JSEG ESSCA, Valve Design and Development Engineer.Valves Actuators and Ducts Design and Development Branch (ER14) II.IntroductionCurrent aerospace cryogenic valves present challenges to potential long duration missions that utilize cryogenic propellants. Small interplanetary and long-life communication satellites typically utilize hypergolic propellants that operate at higher temperatures, making it easier to achieve very low internal leakage rates. Larger vehicles for long duration missions will likely need to utilize cryogenic-based chemical and nuclear systems to achieve mission requirements. Some early propulsion concepts are projected to require valves with a nominal size ranging from 3” to 10”.Currently available cryogenic aerospace valves typically have internal leakage rates which can range from 100 to 300 SCIM for 3” valves, or upwards of 2,000 SCIM for 10” valves. With just a few of these valves in a system, internal leakage could account for multiple tons of propellant loss over the course of a potential Mars mission, as shown in Figure 1.Figure 1 - Potential Propellant Loss Over the Course of a Long Duration MissionMost internal leakage rates can be attributed to inherent imperfections and misalignments, which result in imperfect contact between sealing surfaces, as shown in Figure 2.Figure 2 - Imperfections and Misalignments Between Sealing Surfaces The ER14 Branch at Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) has created a self-aligning seat and poppet design (shown in Figure 3) that allows a valve to be more tolerant of imperfect contacts. This design utilizes a metallic poppet head with five degrees of freedom that allows the poppet toself-align with the seat, reducing the need for tight tolerances.Figure 3 - Self-Aligning Seat and Poppet DesignIII.Test Valve DescriptionA series of development tasks have been conducted to study potential improvements to internal leakage rates. These tasks include 3 test valves (shown in Figure 4) to demonstrate the potential application to various configurations and sizes:A 3” isolation valve for liquid flows (similar to a fill and drain valve)A 3” relief valve for low temperature gas flows.An 8” pre-valve (similar to the engine isolation valve needed on a Nuclear Thermal Propulsion (NTP) engine).Figure 4 - Low Leakage Development Test ValvesThese valves have been developed and are currently being tested at liquid nitrogen (LN2) temperatures, and are anticipated to undergo testing at liquid hydrogen (LH2) temperatures in late 2022

Cody L Gilliland↗
NASA NTRS1994

Short term responses of nitrogen trace gas emissions to nitrogen fertilization in tropical sugar cane: Variations due to soils and management practices

Nitrogen (N) fertilization of agricultural systems is thought to be a major source of the increase in atmospheric N2O; NO emissions from soils have also been shown to increase due to N fertilization. While N fertilizer use is increasing rapidly in the developing world and in the tropics, nearly all of our information on gas emissions is derived from studies of temperate zone agriculture. Using chambers, we measured fluxes of N2O and NO following urea fertilization in tropical sugar cane systems growing on a variety of soil types in the Hawaiian Islands, USA. On the island of Maui, where urea is applied in irrigation lines and soils are mollisols and inceptisols, N2O fluxes were elevated for a week or less following fertilization; maximum average fluxes were typically less than 30 ng cm(exp -2)/ h. NO fluxes were often an order of magnitude less than N2O. Together, N2O and NO represented from 0.01 - 0.5% of the applied N. In fields on the island of Hawaii, where urea is broadcast on the surface and soils are andisols, N2O fluxes were similar in magnitude to Maui but remained elevated for much longer periods after fertilization. NO emissions were 2-5 times higher than N2O through most of the sampling periods. Together the gases loss represented approximately 1. 1 - 3% of the applied N. Laboratory studies indicate that denitrification is a critical source of N2O in Maui, but that nitrification is more important in Hawaii. Experimental studies suggest that differences in the pattern of N2O/NO and the processes producing them are a result of both carbon availability and placement of fertilizer, and that the more information-intensive fertilizer management practice results in lower emissions.

Matson, P. A.↗
NASA NTRS2006

Increasing Efficiency at the NTF by Optimizing Model AoA Positioning

The National Transonic Facility (NTF) at NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) is a national resource for aeronautical research and development. The government, military and private industries rely on the capability of this facility for realistic flight data. Reducing the operation costs and keeping the NTF affordable is essential for aeronautics research. The NTF is undertaking an effort to reduce the time between data points during a pitch polar. This reduction is being driven by the operating costs of a cryogenic facility. If the time per data point can be reduced, a substantial cost savings can be realized from a reduction in liquid nitrogen (LN2) consumption. It is known that angle-of-attack (AoA) positioning is the longest lead-time item between points. In January 2005 a test was conducted at the NTF to determine the cause of the long lead-time so that an effort could be made to improve efficiency. The AoA signal at the NTF originates from onboard instrumentation then travels through a number of different systems including the signal conditioner, digital voltmeter, and the data system where the AoA angle is calculated. It is then fed into a closed loop control system that sets the model position. Each process along this path adds to the time per data point affecting the efficiency of the data taking process. Due to the nature of the closed loop feed back AoA control and the signal path, it takes approximately 18 seconds to take one pitch pause point with a typical AoA increment. Options are being investigated to reduce the time delay between points by modifying the signal path. These options include: reduced signal filtering, using analog channels instead of a digital volt meter (DVM), re-routing the signal directly to the AoA control computer and implementing new control algorithms. Each of these has potential to reduce the positioning time and together the savings could be significant. These timesaving efforts are essential but must be weighed against possible loss of data quality. For example, a reduction in filtering can introduce noise into the signal and using analog channels could result in some loss of accuracy. Data quality assessments need to be performed concurrently with timesaving techniques since data quality parameters are essential in maintaining facility integrity. This paper will highlight time saving efforts being undertaken or studied at the NTF. It will outline the instrumentation and computer systems involved in setting of the model pitch attitude then suggest changes to the process and discuss how these system changes would effect the time between data points. It also discusses the issue of data quality and how the potential efficiency changes in the system could affect it. Lastly, it will discuss the possibility of using an open loop control system and give some pros and cons of this method.

Crawford, Bradley L.↗