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443 records · Page 24

Evaluation of Superalloy 718 Additively Manufactured Lattice Blocks

Lattice block structures made up of high temperature superalloys could offer advantages in density, efficiency, and tailored properties. Three candidate lattice designs were screened through additive manufacturing of superalloy 718. Laser powder bed fusion was applied with 718 powder to produce lattice blocks for three-dimensional octahedral unit cell designs of three heights. As-designed versus additively manufactured 718 lattices were compared, including structural dimensions, densities, defects, grain structures, crystallographic texture, and surface residual stresses. Manufactured lattice I diverged the most from its design, with both corner and center nodes merged into continuous columns. Manufactured lattice III came closest to its design, though the actual nodes and struts were still larger in cross section than in the design. Only modest grain coarsening and negligible chemical segregation were observed for all three designs, suggesting uniform thermo-physical and mechanical properties are possible. Significant tensile residual stresses were present at the surface of the manufactured blocks, with highest stresses in the building direction. Current findings indicate this concept could produce useful superalloy structures for high-temperature-capable static components requiring tailored density, and thermo-physical/mechanical properties.

super alloys

Polymer Composite Material Testing for a Cryotank Application

Composite cryotanks will play a key role in enabling the next generation of efficient aircraft. Carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) composites have the benefits of reduced weight and potentially higher structural strength compared to traditional metallic fuel tanks. A material screening study was conducted to inform material selection for liquid hydrogen (LH2) fuel storage. Three composite materials were considered because of their aerospace grade toughness, strength, and existing data to compare against. These materials were a thermoplastic low-melt polyaryletherketone (LM-PAEK)/carbon fiber (CF), thermoset/CF, and hybrid thermoset/thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) veil/CF composite. Mechanical screening tests included tension, compression, in-plane shear (IPS), and tensile-tensile fatigue (TTF). Each material was tested at both a baseline (no liquid nitrogen/LN2 cycling) and 100 LN2-cycled conditions to determine the knockdown factor, if any, of each material when exposed to environmental loading effects in a cryotank. Results show minimal effects of the LN2-cycling compared against baseline values. The three materials behaved similarly in tension; however, the thermoplastic/CF had the highest IPS toughness. The hybrid thermoset/TPU/CF composite had the lowest IPS strength, compressive strength, and toughness. LN2-cycling had minimal effects on tensile-tensile fatigue performance of the thermoplastic/CF material. Mechanical data was captured to guide material down selection for future commercially viable hydrogen aircraft design. In its current state, there does not exist a consolidated, publicly available database for CFRP composite material performance data at cryogenic temperatures. The next step in this work is to test the thermoplastic and thermoset CFRP composites, as well as the neat resins, at LH2 relevant temperature (20 K) to capture this crucial material property data. These results are essential to inform cryotank design and modeling efforts. The process to start this next round of testing has begun. Planned mechanical tests include toughness (single-edge notched beam), tension (unidirectional and quasi-isotropic), thermal expansion, and thermal conductivity. Some tests will also be conducted at an intermediate temperature of 111 K relevant to liquid natural gas (LNG), another attractive fuel choice. The ultimate goal is to manufacture a sub-scale cryotank part that can pass relevant burst, fatigue, permeation, and thermal cycling tests. This work is a part of NASA’s Commercially viable Hydrogen Aircraft for Robust Growth in Efficiency (CHARGE) Project under the larger NASA Subsonic Vehicle Technologies and Tools (SVTT) Project.

composites

Mechanical Properties of Carbon Fiber Reinforced Composites Exposed to Cryogenic Conditions and Space Radiation via Simulation and Testing

As NASA missions extend beyond low Earth orbit, increasing reliance is placed on carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) composites for spacecraft structures where mass efficiency, durability, and long-term reliability are critical. In service, these materials are subjected to a combination of ultraviolet radiation, vacuum, ionizing radiation, atomic oxygen, and extreme thermal excursions under sustained mechanical loading. Flight systems such as the Boeing Starliner and SpaceX Dragon employ external composite structures that will experience these environments for extended durations. Although prior spaceflight and ground studies have reported limited changes in bulk mechanical properties, the synergistic effects of these environments on composite microstructure, particularly at the fiber matrix interphase, remain insufficiently characterized and represent a potential qualification and reliability risk. This study investigates the effects of short-term cryogenic exposure on a radiation shielding carbon epoxy composite, SC2020, as a ground-based analog for space relevant thermal extremes. The SC2020 material system has previously flown on the International Space Station under the Materials International Space Station Experiment (MISSE) program. Composite specimens were exposed to liquid nitrogen for 6 and 24 hours and evaluated using a multiscale characterization framework that combined ASTM D3039 tensile testing, Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) based interphase analysis, and helium gas permeability measurements. Tensile testing showed no statistically significant or permanent degradation in global strength or modulus following cryogenic exposure. In contrast, AFM measurements revealed reductions in interphase modulus, weakened adhesion, and increased nanoscale heterogeneity, indicating localized degradation mechanisms not captured by conventional bulk testing. Gas permeability measurements showed a progressive increase in helium diffusion with exposure duration, consistent with micro-void formation or partial interfacial debonding. The results indicate that cryogenic exposure initiates degradation at the fiber matrix interphase while leaving global mechanical properties largely unchanged over short durations. These findings underscore the importance of multiscale diagnostics for identifying early-stage damage mechanisms that may influence long term performance and qualification margins for spaceflight composite structures. The data presented establish a cryogenic baseline for comparison with forthcoming MISSE flight exposure results and support ongoing NASA Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) efforts aimed at improving composite qualification methodologies, risk assessment, and reliability prediction for space environments.

composite reliability

International Space Station Lithium-Ion Battery Status

When originally launched, the International Space Station (ISS) primary Electric Power System (EPS) used Nickel-Hydrogen (Ni-H2) batteries to store electrical energy. The electricity for the space station is generated by its solar arrays, which charge batteries during insolation for subsequent discharge during eclipse. The Ni-H2 batteries were designed to operate for ten years at a 35% depth of discharge (DOD) maximum during normal operation in a Low Earth Orbit. For service beyond that period, upgraded Li-Ion Orbital Replacement Units (ORUs) were designed. These are the largest Li-Ion batteries ever utilized for a human rated spacecraft. The first set of six Ni-H2 batteries was replaced by Li-Ion batteries in December 2016; the second set of six was launched in September 2018 and installed in March 2019. The third set of six were launched in September 2019. Three batteries were installed in September 2019, with the remaining three to be installed in January 2020. This paper will include a brief overview of the ISS Li-Ion battery system architecture, start up of the second and third set of 6 batteries and the on-orbit status of all 18 batteries, plus the status of the Li-Ion cell life testing.

Lithium-Ion

High-Precision Shape Control of In-Space Deployable Large Membrane/Thin-Shell Reflectors

This innovation has been developed to improve the resolutions of future spacebased active and passive microwave antennas for earth-science remote sensing missions by maintaining surface figure precisions of large membrane/thin-shell reflectors during orbiting. The intention is for these sensing instruments to be deployable at orbit altitudes one or two orders of magnitude higher than Low Earth Orbit (LEO), but still being able to acquire measurements at spatial resolution and sensitivity similar to those of LEO. Because active and passive microwave remote sensors are able to penetrate through clouds to acquire vertical profile measurements of geophysical parameters, it is desirable to elevate them to the higher orbits to obtain orbital geometries that offer large spatial coverage and more frequent observations. This capability is essential for monitoring and for detailed understanding of the life cycles of natural hazards, such as hurricanes, tropical storms, flash floods, and tsunamis. Major components of this high-precision antenna-surface-control system include a membrane/thin shell reflector, a metrology sensor, a controller, actuators, and corresponding power amplifier and signal conditioning electronics (see figure). Actuators are attached to the back of the reflector to produce contraction/ expansion forces to adjust the shape of the thin-material reflector. The wavefront-sensing metrology system continuously measures the surface figure of the reflector, converts the surface figure to digital data and feeds the data to the controller. The controller determines the control parameters and generates commands to the actuator system. The flexible, piezoelectric polymer actuators are thus activated, providing the control forces needed to correct any distortions that exist in the reflector surface. Piezoelectric polymer actuators are very thin and flexible. They can be implemented on the back of the membrane/thin-shell reflector without introducing significant amounts of mass or stiffness to the reflector. They can be rolled up or folded to accommodate the packaging needed for launch. An analytical model of the system, which includes the membrane reflector, actuator, and controller has been developed to investigate the functionality of this control system on a 35-meter-diameter membrane reflector. The performance of this system under external disturbances such as in space thermal loads and W-error due to inflation has been investigated. A subscale breadboard has been developed, and the functionality of this control concept has been demonstrated by this breadboard.

Houfei Fang

Lithium Nucleation of Anode-Free Solid-State Batteries with a Dry Compressible Interlayer

Anode-free lithium batteries offer promising advantages, including increased energy density and the ability to address common mechanistic failures within the cell, thus increasing safety. One way that can make this possible is to control lithium nucleation. This could be achieved by reducing the overpotential required and implanting lithophilic nucleation sites in an anodic interlayer to aid in lithium ion transport and plating. The concept has been utilized in solid-state battery systems where electrolytes are solids with further improved safety and structural longevity. In this presentation, we discuss the use of a silver-holey graphene-based anodic interlayer that can be fabricated via direct dry compression without the use of solvent or binder. The addition of silver to the holey graphene matrix creates a route to lithium plating via a lower-energy intermediate. This idea is supported by the presence of a lithium-silver alloy that forms during the activation step. It is understood that the embedded silver acts as a nucleation site for lithium ions, thereby assisting in even plating. This control, combined with the added cushion of the holey graphene itself, can help reduce dendrite formation, ultimately increasing the safety and lifetime of the solid-state batteries.

Solid state batteries

Timing the Flames: Geostationary Satellite Detection of Diurnally Shifting Stubble Burning in Northwestern India

Post-monsoon open-field stubble burning in northwestern (NW) India—a key agricultural region known as the “breadbasket”—is a longstanding practice used to clear fields. Satellite observations spanning over two decades have revealed significant upward trends in crop production, vegetative greenness, and the frequency of post-harvest fires, with this last contributing to hazardous air quality during the peak burning season (mid-October to mid-November). Since 2022, thermal anomaly data from Aqua-MODIS and SNPP-VIIRS sensors have shown a sharp decline in reported fire events—an observation that contrasts starkly with the concurrent rise in regional aerosol loading detected from space. This apparent discrepancy became particularly pronounced in 2024–2025, prompting a closer examination using high-temporal-resolution imagery from the Advanced Meteorological Imager (AMI) on the geostationary satellite GEO-KOMPSAT-2A. These observations revealed a clear spike in fire-related signals occurring around and after 4:00 p.m. local time, i.e., outside the typical noon to 2:00 p.m. detection window of the MODIS and VIIRS. A fire detection algorithm exploiting the fire-sensitive shortwave-infrared 3.8 μm signal and its contrast to 11.2 μm infrared observations is designed to adopt AMI observations and applied to its multi-year observations (2019–2025). The resulting fire dataset unambiguously shows a gradual shift in stubble burning activity toward the late afternoon hours beginning in 2022 which is underreported by polar-orbiting satellites. The orbital drift of NASA’s MODIS sensor on the Aqua platform allows detection of some of the gradually shifting fires during afternoon hours, but the MODIS still misses a large number of fires occurring around and after 4 p.m. The AMI’s relatively coarse spatial resolution (~4 km), a consequence of its slant viewing geometry over NW India, imposes inherent limitations on quantifying the full extent of fire occurrences. The operational air quality forecasting models currently assimilate satellite fire detections predominantly captured during early afternoon overpasses of the MODIS and VIIRS. The temporal shift in fire activity complicates such forecast, leading to a substantial underestimation of emissions. Intense stubble burning and the resulting air pollution highlight the need for effective crop residue management practices for mitigating the frequency of open biomass burning and thereby reducing episodic degradation of air quality and its associated public health and economic impacts.

post-monsoon stubble burning; northwestern India;

Design and Analysis of Battery Thermal Management Systems

Thermal management of battery cell packs is a critically needed technology. The purpose of this work is to design new and improved Battery Thermal Management Systems (BTMS) for use in electric airplanes. The BTMS should be 3D printable and hold twelve to sixteen 18650 batteries. To minimize aircraft’s weight, an actively air-cooled battery pack was chosen to avoid the excess weight of water-cooled and phase change material (PCM) cooled packs. As a result, significant changes were made to remove all metal in the pack and replace it with lower density polymer matrix composites (PMCs) which can be additively manufactured. Two air cooled battery pack configurations (traditional propeller fans & bladeless fans) were designed, modeled, and compared. These packs were first modeled in SolidWorks 2021 3D CAD, then imported into COMSOL MultiPhysics to be studied using the “Heat Transfer in Solids and Fluids” module. The design with the bladeless fans eliminated the need to use high conductivity heavy metal to remove unwanted thermal energy. These bladeless fans were designed entirely out of PMCs. This thermal pack design weighs 0.04 kg less than that of the traditional propeller fans design and has increased the battery pack energy density by 8.25 Wh/kg.

Thermal Management System for Battery Packs

From Exploration Flight Test-1 to Artemis II--A NASA Langley's Orion Aerosciences Overview

The Orion Aerosciences program at NASA Langley has played a central role in advancing the aerodynamic and aeroheating prediction capabilities required for the Orion crew vehicle’s return from deep space. This presentation provides a technical overview of aerosciences contributions spanning Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1), Artemis I, and the ongoing post-flight analysis of Artemis II. EFT-1 provided the first high-energy entry dataset for Orion, enabling critical validation of aerodynamic force and moment predictions, static and dynamic stability characteristics, and aeroheating environments at relevant flight Mach and Reynolds numbers. Flight-derived pressure data were used to refine the Flush Air Data System (FADS) methodology for atmospheric density reconstruction and to improve Best Estimated Trajectory (BET) solutions. The EFT-1 data also offered key insights into heat shield performance, including char layer recession, in-depth thermal response, and material retention behavior under flight conditions, informing updates to both thermal response models and uncertainty quantification practices. Building on EFT-1, Artemis I extended the database to true lunar-return conditions. Observations of heat shield performance, including localized char loss, bondline response, and recession variability, provided an unprecedented opportunity to reassess Thermal Protection System (TPS) and aeroheating modeling assumptions. Aerodynamic reconstruction efforts incorporated improved FADS calibration, enhanced atmospheric modeling, and refined force and moment databases to reduce trajectory and load uncertainties. Aeroheating comparisons between pre-flight predictions and flight data enabled targeted model updates, particularly in transitional flow environments and wake heating regions. For Artemis II, these lessons were systematically incorporated into the pre-flight prediction process. Updates included refined aerodynamic databases anchored to flight-validated corrections, improved density estimation and BET methodologies using enhanced database interpolation algorithm and FADS modeling, and revised aeroheating design environments informed by Artemis I material response observations. By the time of the workshop, Artemis II post-flight analysis will be underway, and preliminary findings will be presented where available, including early comparisons of aerodynamic reconstruction, atmospheric density estimation, and thermal protection system performance relative to updated predictions. Collectively, this body of work is a testament to the dedicated and multidisciplinary team whose sustained efforts have contributed to the program’s success and to the progressive maturation of Orion aerosciences modeling through numerical modeling, ground and flight data assimilation. The integrated advancement of aerodynamics, trajectory reconstruction, FADS-based density estimation, and aeroheating analysis has reduced predictive uncertainty and strengthened confidence for future crewed lunar and deep-space missions.

Orion

AC and DC Fault Management for Megawatt Electrified Aircraft Electrical Powertrains - Task 2: Power Quality Filtering Using Nanocrystalline Soft Magnetic Inductor

The NASA RTAPS program on AC and DC Fault Management for Megawatt Electrified Power Train is a multi-year joint project with Pratt & Whitney (P&W), Collins Aerospace (CA), and RTX Technology Research Center (RTRC). This research program focuses on the high-voltage distribution issues that present a significant technological obstacle in the adoption of Electrified Aviation Propulsion (EAP) systems. One challenge to the adoption of high-voltage distribution systems with power electronic converters is the need for filter elements to limit the generation and propagation of noise, protect the cable systems from premature aging and prevent against excessive heating within subcomponents due to high-frequency induced currents. While increased distribution voltages aide in reducing the cable mass for a fixed power system, the associated mass with the filtering elements for power electronic converter can grow with increasing distribution voltages – thereby mitigating any benefit associated with increasing the distribution system voltage. To enable high-voltage distribution systems with high system specific power densities, new magnetic materials must be developed. Therefore, the second task of the NASA RTAPS program is associated with the design and application of advanced soft magnetic components for Megawatt class electric propulsion systems, specifically the motor drive system. This report covers the collaborative work between NASA Glenn Research Center (GRC), RTRC, P&W and CA in the development of three types of magnetic components over the span of the three-year program. These critical magnetic components are the DC side EMI filter, which limits the propagation of harmful electromagnetic noise to the rise of the distribution system, and the AC side damping with the dv/dt filter, which limits the fast rise time of the power electronic converter output voltage to limit the degradation on the cable/motor insulation systems. Each of these components are investigated from component level design and are optimized at the system level with a combined modelling and testing effort. In the final experimental evaluation of the NASA developed soft magnetic material with a dv/dt filter, a commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) magnetic core and the GRC magnetic core are optimized and loaded at 320Arms to evaluate their difference in performance. After a run time of 30 minutes in a MW-class motor driver at RTRC, the NASA GRC cores were found to not only offer a lower temperature rise of nearly 25°𝐶, but also a reduction in measured core loss of 25% (12.75W to 9.5W).

Elecrified Aircraft Propulsion

A Comparison of Doppler Lidar Wind Sensors for Earth-Orbit Global Measurement Applications

Now, there are four Doppler lidar configurations which are being promoted for the measurement of tropospheric winds: (1) the coherent CO2 Lidar, operating in the 9 micrometer region using a pulsed, atmospheric pressure CO2 gas discharge laser transmitter, and heterodyne detection; (2) the coherent Neodymium doped YAG or Glass Lidar, operating at 1.06 micrometers, using flashlamp or diode laser optical pumping of the solid state laser medium, and heterodyne detection; (3) the Neodymium doped YAG/Glass Lidar, operating at the doubled frequency (at 530 nm wavelength), again using flashlamp or diode laser pumping of the laser transmitter, and using a high resolution tandem Fabry-Perot filter and direct detection; and (4) the Raman shifted Xenon Chloride Lidar, operating at 350 nm wavelength, using a pulsed, atmospheric pressure XeCl gas discharge laser transmitter at 308 nm, Raman shifted in a high pressure hydrogen cell to 350 nm in order to avoid strong stratospheric ozone absorption, also using a high resolution tandem Fabry-Perot filter and direct detection. Comparisons of these four systems can include many factors and tradeoffs. The major portion of this comparison is devoted to efficiency. Efficiency comparisons are made by estimating the number of transmitted photons required for a single pulse wind velocity estimate of + or - 1 m/s accuracy in the middle troposphere, from an altitude of 800 km, which is assured to be reasonable for a polar orbiting platform.

Robert T Menzies

GOES-R Lithium-Ion Battery Life Test & Workhorse Battery Performance

The GOES R series lithium-ion battery life test results are presented for the next-generation GOES R series weather satellites. Lockheed Martin is under contract to NASA Goddard to build and deliver four GOES-R series satellites which are operated by NOAA. In addition, Lockheed Martin is required to build a GOES R series flight battery to flight drawings and processes and perform an accelerated geosynchronous earth-orbiting (GEO) life test consisting of 30 real-time eclipse seasons and 30 accelerated solstice seasons. The GOES R series batteries are designed and built by Saft America, Inc. Space and Defense Division in Cockeysville, MD with Saft VL48E cells. The GOES R series life test battery which has been built to flight drawings and processes has undergone 21 seasons of accelerated GEO testing (which is equivalent to over 10 years on-orbit). This presentation includes a description of the life test and latest test results through season 20. The life test battery capacity measurements prior to cycling and after seasons 4, 10, and 20 which have shown little or no change are summarized. In addition, the performance of the GOES R series workhorse batteries performance are presented. These GOES R series workhorse batteries are used during spacecraft testing and have shown no discernable capacity loss after 7 years of mostly ambient operation and cold storage since activation. An overview of the electrical power subsystem and battery charge is, also, addressed.

Tucker, Jon

Natural Fiber Simulations and Analysis for Composites

As the U.S. government and the aviation industry strive to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, the Sustainable Manufacturing of Aircraft (SUMAC) project, supported by the Convergent Aeronautics Solutions (CAS) program of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), aims to develop sustainably derived thermoplastic composites and manufacturing technologies for future aviation. A multidisciplinary team of experts drives this initiative through a collective effort. The team’s key focus areas are sustainably derived thermoplastic resins, natural fiber reinforcement, composite manufacturing, structural health monitoring, computational materials modeling, and systems analysis. This presentation will give an overview of the SUMAC project. Fiber-scale microscopy analysis characterized fiber cross sections finding that hemp and flax fibers are very deformable and non-circular (circularities of 0.2 were observed), and diameters range from submicron to 20 μm. Fiber shapes range from flattened, with aspect ratios Rlong/Rshort up to 5, to round, Rlong/Rshort =1. And Fiber core perimeters, which likely drives deformability, were calculated Pcore=7 μm. Explicit-fiber yarn simulations, parameterized from single-fiber measurements, resolved and identified slack as a cause for yarn strain-hardening tensile behavior. The bonded network model of PLA, PHA and PA11 resins captures tensile behavior, and can model an infused weave. Computational models of the weave unit cells matched the pattern (including plain, twill and triaxial braid), yarn ply (1to 2), and yarn twist from optical microscopy.

thermoplastic

Natural Fiber Simulations and Analysis for Composites

As the U.S. government and the aviation industry strive to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, the Sustainable Manufacturing of Aircraft (SUMAC) project, supported by the Convergent Aeronautics Solutions (CAS) program of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), aims to develop sustainably derived thermoplastic composites and manufacturing technologies for future aviation. A multidisciplinary team of experts drives this initiative through a collective effort. The team’s key focus areas are sustainably derived thermoplastic resins, natural fiber reinforcement, composite manufacturing, structural health monitoring, computational materials modeling, and systems analysis. This presentation will give an overview of the SUMAC project. Fiber-scale microscopy analysis characterized fiber cross sections finding that hemp and flax fibers are very deformable and non-circular (circularities of 0.2 were observed), and diameters range from submicron to 20 μm. Fiber shapes range from flattened, with aspect ratios Rlong/Rshort up to 5, to round, Rlong/Rshort =1. And Fiber core perimeters, which likely drives deformability, were calculated Pcore=7 μm. Explicit-fiber yarn simulations, parameterized from single-fiber measurements, resolved and identified slack as a cause for yarn strain-hardening tensile behavior. The bonded network model of PLA, PHA and PA11 resins captures tensile behavior, and can model an infused weave. Computational models of the weave unit cells matched the pattern (including plain, twill and triaxial braid), yarn ply (1to 2), and yarn twist from optical microscopy.

thermoplastic

Microgravity Game Changers: Recent Accomplishments of Microgravity Assisted Materials Experiments on the ISS

This paper discusses important new materials, devices and technology produced in low-Earth orbit (LEO) that have been developed with funding from NASA’s In Space Production Applications (InSPA) Portfolio. In coordination with the International Space Station (ISS) National Laboratory, InSPA supports innovative small businesses and other research & development organizations to develop microgravity-assisted applications that make significant impacts in a wide variety of industries on Earth. These technology development efforts are using the microgravity of orbital space to overcome gravity-induced defects on Earth to create high-value products for terrestrial markets in the areas of semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, and communications. Through 24/7/365 operation on ISS for 25 years, coupled with commercial space transportation and services to, in, and from orbit, the microgravity environment has enabled pioneering science and significant commercial applications, including novel medical advances. World-leading researchers, innovators, and space payload developers provide compelling evidence through demonstrations on the ISS that materials processing in microgravity improves outcomes for a wide range of materials and products at all levels of the organization of matter, from quantum entities such as Bose-Einstein condensates, to crystals, alloys, composites, thin films, and photonics, to stem cells, medical diagnoses, medical treatments, and medical devices for humans. As of 2026, numerous examples proved by demonstration on ISS show the potential of these technologies in various fields. In this paper, a summary of four important experiments is presented.

microgravity medical devices

Thermal Considerations for 2039 Opposition Class Nuclear Electric Propulsion/Chemical Propulsion Crewed Mars Mission

The high specific impulse (Isp) of Nuclear Electric Propulsion (NEP) technology offers the potential for advanced space mission capabilities. However, the five critical technology elements of NEP vehicles have yet to prove technical maturity levels for consideration into mission design. In response to the critical reviews by the NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC) and the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM), NASA’s Space Nuclear Propulsion (SNP) project created an NEP Technology Maturation Plan (TMP) for focused development of NEP technology. The TMP called for a coordinated set of technology development efforts to meet this objective. The Modular Assembled Radiators for NEP VehicLes (MARVL) Early Career Initiative (ECI) project was initiated to develop a portion of the fifth Critical Technology Element (CTE) of the NEP vehicle: the Primary Heat Rejection Subsystem (PHRS). A target application of a 2039 human-rated Mars mission was outlined in the TMP. For the outlined mission, a NEP vehicle will experience several thermal environments which will impact the design and operation of the PHRS. To maintain radiator temperatures within the required effective temperature range, the effect of natural, induced, and NEP internally generated heat loads on the radiator panel must be well understood. Furthermore, this analysis is critical for analyzing the influence of various orientations and positions of the NEP vehicle relative to nearby celestial bodies throughout the mission. This study conducted a complete enveloping analysis of the thermal environments influencing the NEP vehicle throughout the mission. Thermal analysis was conducted for the radiator panels based on the defined mission environments. This thermal analysis concludes with the selection of ideal radiator orientations for the NEP vehicle, and the identification of worst case hot and cold environmental sink temperatures throughout the mission. For the target application, the environmental sink temperature while the reactor is powered OFF or powered ON ranges from 30 K to 353 K and 2.7 K to 243 K respectively. When considering interplanetary space, the minimum environmental sink temperature when the reactor is powered OFF and the radiators are oriented “edge to Sun” is 2.7 K. The environmental thermal models generated in this study will be used for future studies with the full vehicle system model. The environmental sink temperature curves generated will be used for future radiator and component analysis to predict transient performance in the space environment. The environmental sink temperature and heat rejection capability curves will inform the trade between commissioning orbits that are in consideration. The model may also serve as a useful tool as reference for future crewed space missions, missions involving radiators or temperature sensitive equipment, or other missions requiring analysis of natural orbital thermal environments.

Nuclear Electric Propulsion

Aerothermal Shape Optimization of Actively-Cooled Battery Packs Using Conjugate Heat Transfer

Thermal management for battery is important for electric aircraft because battery temperature is critically important to vehicle safety, and it also has direct impact on the efficiency of the battery system. Because ambient air is a readily available resource for aircraft, this paper considers an active cooling concept with forced convection of ambient air through the battery pack. Conjugate heat transfer analysis is used to solve the coupled aero-thermal problem, which consists of a finite-volume computational fluid dynamics solver for the fluid domain, and a conduction heat transfer solver for the solid domain. A mixed Neumann and Dirichlet boundary condition is developed for the fluid-solid interface, which allows the solid domain to completely submerge in the fluid domain. A gradient-based optimization method is adopted, and the discrete adjoint approach implemented in DAFoam is used to efficiently compute the gradients. The aero-thermal coupling for primal analysis and gradient computation is handled using the OpenMDAO-based MPhys framework. A constant heat source is prescribed for the battery cells, and the battery shape (design variable) is optimized to minimize cooling pump power and battery weight (composite objective function) while keeping the battery temperature below a threshold (constraint). The optimized design achieves a 44.6% and 1.5% reduction in the cooling pump power and battery weight, respectively, and the maximal temperature constraint is satisfied. This work has the potential to reduce battery-pack weight, improve performance, and reduce the weight of thermal management systems for electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft.

heat transfer

Aerothermal Shape Optimization of Actively-Cooled Battery Packs using Conjugate Heat Transfer

Thermal management for battery is important for electric aircraft because battery temperature is critically important to vehicle safety, and it also has direct impact on the efficiency of the battery system. Because ambient air is a readily available resource for aircraft, this paper considers an active cooling concept with forced convection of ambient air through the battery pack. Conjugate heat transfer analysis is used to solve the coupled aero-thermal problem, which consists of a finite-volume computational fluid dynamics solver for the fluid domain, and a conduction heat transfer solver for the solid domain. A mixed Neumann and Dirichlet boundary condition is developed for the fluid-solid interface, which allows the solid domain to completely submerge in the fluid domain. A gradient-based optimization method is adopted, and the discrete adjoint approach implemented in DAFoam is used to efficiently compute the gradients. The aero-thermal coupling for primal analysis and gradient computation is handled using the OpenMDAO-based MPhys framework. A constant heat source is prescribed for the battery cells, and the battery shape (design variable) is optimized to minimize cooling pump power and battery weight (composite objective function) while keeping the battery temperature below a threshold (constraint). The optimized design achieves a 44.6% and 1.5% reduction in the cooling pump power and battery weight, respectively, and the maximal temperature constraint is satisfied. This work has the potential to reduce battery-pack weight, improve performance, and reduce the weight of thermal management systems for electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft.

thermal management