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

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At least 469 records · Page 26

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NASA NTRS1992

Publications of the exobiology program for 1990: A special bibliography

The Exobiology Program is an integrated program designed to investigate and understand those processes related to the origin, evolution, and distribution of life in the universe. The Exobiology Program is broad in scope, covering the following subject areas: cosmic evolution of biogenic compounds; prebiotic evolution; early evolution of life; evolution of advanced life; solar system exploration; search for extraterrestrial intelligence; planetary protection; and advanced programs in biological systems research. A listing of the 1990 publications resulting from research supported by the Exobiology Program is presented.

Source record↗

NASA NTRS1990

Frame synchronization at 300 Mbps and beyond

A prototype frame synchronizer card and its supporting VLSI components under development at the Goddard Space Flight Center that will operate at a minimum 300 Mbps while providing a full suite of programmable functions are presented. Cumulative quality data generation, onboard self diagnostics, and status/control processing are all integrated in this single card design. Consideration is given to the telemetry frame synchronizer subsystem and high-rate frame synchronizer specifications.

Wunderlich, Kristin↗

NASA NTRS1994

Integrated design of structures, controls, and materials

In this talk we shall discuss algorithms and CAD tools for the design and analysis of structures for high performance applications using advanced composite materials. An extensive mathematical theory for optimal structural (e.g., shape) design was developed over the past thirty years. Aspects of this theory have been used in the design of components for hypersonic vehicles and thermal diffusion systems based on homogeneous materials. Enhancement of the design methods to include optimization of the microstructure of the component is a significant innovation which can lead to major enhancements in component performance. Our work is focused on the adaptation of existing theories of optimal structural design (e.g., optimal shape design) to treat the design of structures using advanced composite materials (e.g., fiber reinforced, resin matrix materials). In this talk we shall discuss models and algorithms for the design of simple structures from composite materials, focussing on a problem in thermal management. We shall also discuss methods for the integration of active structural controls into the design process.

Blankenship, G. L.↗

NASA NTRS1995

A digital boxcar integrator for IMS spectra

When trying to detect or quantify a signal at or near the limit of detectability, it is invariably embeded in the noise. This statement is true for nearly all detectors of any physical phenomena and the limit of detectability, hopefully, occurs at very low signal-to-noise levels. This is particularly true of IMS (Ion Mobility Spectrometers) spectra due to the low vapor pressure of several chemical compounds of great interest and the small currents associated with the ionic detection process. Gated Integrators and Boxcar Integrators or Averagers are designed to recover fast, repetitive analog signals. In a typical application, a time 'Gate' or 'Window' is generated, characterized by a set delay from a trigger or gate pulse and a certain width. A Gated Integrator amplifies and integrates the signal that is present during the time the gate is open, ignoring noise and interference that may be present at other times. Boxcar Integration refers to the practice of averaging the output of the Gated Integrator over many sweeps of the detector. Since any signal present during the gate will add linearly, while noise will add in a 'random walk' fashion as the square root of the number of sweeps, averaging N sweeps will improve the 'Signal-to-Noise Ratio' by a factor of the square root of N.

Cohen, Martin J.↗

NASA NTRS2001

Composite,Cryogenic, Conformal, Common Bulkhead, Aerogel-Insulated Tank (CBAT)

The objective of the Composite, Cryogenic, Conformal, Common Bulkhead, Aerogel-insulated Tank (CBAT) Program is to evaluate the potential for using various new technologies in next generation Reusable Launch Vehicles (RLVs) through design, fabrication, and testing of a subscale system. The new technologies include polymer matrix composites (PMCs), conformal propellant storage, common bulkhead packaging, and aerogel insulation. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and Thiokol Propulsion from Cordant Technologies are working together to develop a design and the processing methodologies which will allow integration of these technologies into a single structural component assembly. Such integration will significantly decrease subsystem weight and reduce shape, volume, and placement restrictions, thereby enhancing overall launch system performance. This paper/presentation focuses on the challenges related to materials and processes that were encountered and overcome during this program to date.

Roberts, J. K.↗

NASA NTRS2002

Rapid Modeling and Analysis Tools: Evolution, Status, Needs and Directions

Advanced aerospace systems are becoming increasingly more complex, and customers are demanding lower cost, higher performance, and high reliability. Increased demands are placed on the design engineers to collaborate and integrate design needs and objectives early in the design process to minimize risks that may occur later in the design development stage. High performance systems require better understanding of system sensitivities much earlier in the design process to meet these goals. The knowledge, skills, intuition, and experience of an individual design engineer will need to be extended significantly for the next generation of aerospace system designs. Then a collaborative effort involving the designer, rapid and reliable analysis tools and virtual experts will result in advanced aerospace systems that are safe, reliable, and efficient. This paper discusses the evolution, status, needs and directions for rapid modeling and analysis tools for structural analysis. First, the evolution of computerized design and analysis tools is briefly described. Next, the status of representative design and analysis tools is described along with a brief statement on their functionality. Then technology advancements to achieve rapid modeling and analysis are identified. Finally, potential future directions including possible prototype configurations are proposed.

Knight, Norman F., Jr.↗

NASA NTRS2002

Design, Fabrication, and Testing of Composite Energy-Absorbing Keel Beams for General Aviation Type Aircraft

A lightweight energy-absorbing keel-beam concept was developed and retrofitted in a general aviation type aircraft to improve crashworthiness performance. The energy-absorbing beam consisted of a foam-filled cellular structure with glass fiber and hybrid glass/kevlar cell walls. Design, analysis, fabrication and testing of the keel beams prior to installation and subsequent full-scale crash testing of the aircraft are described. Factors such as material and fabrication constraints, damage tolerance, crush stress/strain response, seat-rail loading, and post crush integrity, which influenced the course of the design process are also presented. A theory similar to the one often used for ductile metal box structures was employed with appropriate modifications to estimate the sustained crush loads for the beams. This, analytical tool, coupled with dynamic finite element simulation using MSC.Dytran were the prime design and analysis tools. The validity of the theory as a reliable design tool was examined against test data from static crush tests of beam sections while the overall performance of the energy-absorbing subfloor was assessed through dynamic testing of 24 in long subfloor assemblies.

Kellas, Sotiris↗

NASA NTRS2019

Using Virtual Reality and Motion Capture as Tools for Human Factors Engineering at Nasa Marshall Space Flight Center

MSFC’s Human Factors Engineering (HFE) team is responsible for all worksite analyses performed for the SLS pre-launch integration activities at Kennedy Space Center (KSC). There is a wide variety of tasks associated with pre-launch integration activities and it is important to verify that vehicle integration will be successful early in the design process. The VR work performed by the HFE team at MSFC has allowed fast changing layouts to be analyzed by various departments with minimal impact to cost or schedule. Implementing these methods for SLS allows for VR use in early design cycles, saving time and budget. Utilizing the resulting HFE analyses improves usability and safety. Ultimately, the goal is to provide a safe environment for the technicians assembling the vehicle and the astronaut crew at launch.

Andrews, Tanya↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Integrated Handling Qualities Safety Analysis For Conceptual Design of Urban Air Mobility Vehicles

The recent emergence of distributed electric propulsion Vertical Takeoff and Landing (VTOL) aircraft has created a rapid introduction of new design concepts with unique stability and control characteristics. A challenge to realizing the full potential of these vehicles for urban transportation is to gain public acceptance which is largely driven by flight safety. This paper describes ongoing research to address the feasibility of integrating flying qualities safety metrics into conceptual design of VTOL Urban Air Mobility (UAM) vehicles. The discussion is composed of the approach and progress toward a toolbox that integrates with existing NASA rotorcraft design software and processes. Several key challenges are highlighted including modeling requirements for failures, identification of critical failures, and capturing critical failures, with robustness to model uncertainty. A discussion of requirements for safety metrics, specific to UAM vehicles, as well as the effects of the control system design is also included. Results to date have demonstrated the degradation in flying qualities metrics due to propulsion failures.

George Altamirano↗

DOE OSTI2021

Economic and Environmental Assessment of Biological Conversions of Agile BioFoundry (ABF) Bio-Derived Chemicals

Bio-derived chemicals are an essential part of the growing bioeconomy. They possess the potential to boost a new domestic bioproduct industry, improve the sustainability of integrated biomanufacturing, and reduce U.S. dependence on fossil energy. The Agile BioFoundry (ABF) consortium, a Department of Energy (DOE)-sponsored collaboration, is investigating biobased pathways to produce advantaged products including advanced biofuels, fuel intermediates, and bioproducts. ABF is integrating advanced computational tools for biological engineering, process design and data analysis, and economic/sustainability modeling tools into a comprehensive and dynamic platform for biomanufacturing of microbes and using them to produce key metabolic intermediates or beachhead molecules which may be derivatized into several distinct bioproducts of industrial interest. In this presentation, we first discuss a methodology to select a single exemplar product molecule to represent each beachhead pathway based on similarities with other end-molecule options (yields/titers/rates, fermentation operation mode, oxygen requirements, general separations challenges, etc.), in order to maintain a reasonable number of cases for rigorous process simulation. We then use techno-economic analysis (TEA) and life-cycle analysis (LCA) to highlight sensitivities and trends around economic performance and environmental footprint, reflecting examples for two selected ABF technology pathways to bio-derived chemicals: 1) adipic acid production via muconic acid fermentation from mixed sugars with Pseudomonas putida and 2) cineole via geranyl diphosphate with Rhodosporidium toruloides. We present multi-variable scan plots highlighting key drivers on costs and greenhouse gas emissions in order to identify the parameter space in which each pathway could ultimately achieve economic and environmental sustainability meeting or exceeding commodity product benchmarks, thus prioritizing future R&D focus areas.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗

DOE OSTI2025

2025 Intern Poster

The Hot Fuel Examination Facility (HFEF) at the Materials and Fuels Complex (MFC) houses the largest U.S. inert atmosphere hot cell for nuclear material research. Key features include the precision gamma scanning (PGS), Fuel Accident Condition Simulator (FACS), Neutron Radiography Reactor (NRAD), and the focus of this project, the Metallograph Loading Cell (MET Cell). The MET Cell performs tests on spent nuclear fuel, such as microhardness testing, microscopy, and neutron radiography. However, the MET Cell’s existing pressure and lighting control systems are outdated and inefficient, with inadequate documentation for system changes over time. This project aims to design a new automated control system for the MET Cell, ensuring longevity (minimum ten years), ease of troubleshooting/repair, and integration into the building monitoring system. The design process addressed challenges such as space restrictions, varied voltages within enclosures, sourcing new components, and security limitations. Compliance with NFPA 70, UL508A, MFC Physical Security, and INL Engineering standards was essential. The project involves repurposing an existing PLC to manage lighting and pressure control using digital and analog signals, simplifying wiring, and ensuring thorough documentation for future reference.

42 - ENGINEERING↗

NASA NTRS1999

Ninth Thermal and Fluids Analysis Workshop Proceedings

The Ninth Thermal and Fluids Analysis Workshop (TFAWS 98) was held at the Ohio Aerospace Institute in Cleveland, Ohio from August 31 to September 4, 1998. The theme for the hands-on training workshop and conference was "Integrating Computational Fluid Dynamics and Heat Transfer into the Design Process." Highlights of the workshop (in addition to the papers published herein) included an address by the NASA Chief Engineer, Dr. Daniel Mulville; a CFD short course by Dr. John D. Anderson of the University of Maryland; and a short course by Dr. Robert Cochran of Sandia National Laboratories. In addition, lectures and hands-on training were offered in the use of several cutting-edge engineering design and analysis-oriented CFD and Heat Transfer tools. The workshop resulted in international participation of over 125 persons representing aerospace and automotive industries, academia, software providers, government agencies, and private corporations. The papers published herein address issues and solutions related to the integration of computational fluid dynamics and heat transfer into the engineering design process. Although the primary focus is aerospace, the topics and ideas presented are applicable to many other areas where these and other disciplines are interdependent.

Sakowski, Barbara↗

NASA NTRS2018

Fabrication of a Composite Tow-Steered Structure for Air-Launch Vehicle Applications

Generation Orbit (GO) is developing the GO Launcher-1 (GO-1), a single stage liquid rocket that is launched from a Gulfstream III carrier aircraft platform. The vehicle is designed as the next generation platform for hypersonic flight testing and suborbital microgravity research. To reduce mass and increase payload, GO partnered with NASA Langley Research Center to design, analyze, optimize, and fabricate a tow-steered manufacturing development unit of a cylindrical section of a liquid oxygen tank. The fabrication process of using the ISAAC (Integrated Structural Assembly of Advanced Composites) system is described. The structural design challenges and the concept design solutions are also presented to provide the context for the fabrication process. The in-situ nondestructive evaluation supporting the effort is also described.

Grenoble, Ray↗

NASA NTRS2010

Commercial Orbital Transportation Cargo Services Environmental Control and Life Support Integration

The International Space Station s (ISS) largest crew and cargo resupply vehicle, the Space Shuttle, will retire in 2011. To help augment ISS resupply and return capability, NASA announced a project to promote the development of Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) for the ISS in January of 2006. By December of 2008, NASA entered into space act agreements with SpaceX and Orbital Sciences Corporation for COTS development and ISS Commercial Resupply Services (CRS). The intent of CRS is to fly multiple resupply missions each year to ISS with SpaceX s Dragon vehicle providing resupply and return capabilities and Orbital Science Corporation s Cygnus vehicle providing resupply capability to ISS. The ISS program launched an integration effort to ensure that these new commercial vehicles met the requirements of the ISS vehicle and ISS program needs. The Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS) requirements cover basic cargo vehicle needs including maintaining atmosphere, providing atmosphere circulation, and fire detection and suppression. The ISS-COTS integration effort brought unique challenges combining NASA s established processes and design knowledge with the commercial companies new initiatives and limited experience with human space flight. This paper will discuss the ISS ECLS COTS integration effort including challenges, successes, and lessons learned.

Duchesne, Stephanie↗

NASA NTRS2012

Cargo Commercial Orbital Transportation Services Environmental Control and Life Support Integration

The International Space Station s (ISS) largest crew and cargo resupply vehicle, the Space Shuttle, retired in 2011. To help augment ISS resupply and return capability, NASA announced a project to promote the development of Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) for the ISS in January of 2006. By December of 2008, NASA entered into space act agreements with SpaceX and Orbital Sciences Corporation for COTS development and ISS Commercial Resupply Services (CRS). The intent of CRS is to fly multiple resupply missions each year to ISS with SpaceX s Dragon vehicle providing resupply and return capabilities and Orbital Science Corporation s Cygnus vehicle providing resupply capability to ISS. The ISS program launched an integration effort to ensure that these new commercial vehicles met the requirements of the ISS vehicle and ISS program needs. The Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS) requirements cover basic cargo vehicle needs including maintaining atmosphere, providing atmosphere circulation, and fire detection and suppression. The ISS-COTS integration effort brought unique challenges combining NASA s established processes and design knowledge with the commercial companies new initiatives and limited experience with human space flight. This paper will discuss the ISS ECLS COTS integration effort including challenges, successes, and lessons learned.

Duchesne, Stephanie↗

NASA NTRS2009

Designing a Better Spacecraft: Assessing Flight Operability of Human Rated Spacecraft

The design of a human rated spacecraft is a complex and costly process requiring the integrated assessment of many individual criteria. Historically, it has been difficult to include in that integrated assessment the design s full impact on the flight operations community and its costs. The unique "operability requirements" have not been well understood, nor has there been a well-defined set of criteria for assessing operability. As a result, flight operations organizations and program managers are often faced with difficult and costly operations phase implementations. In response, the Mission Operations Directorate at NASA s Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center has established a formal technique to evaluate and communicate the operational characteristics of spacecraft system designs for the Constellation Program. This process is not intended to replace or replicate other critical assessments such as risk, reliability and safety assessments. Instead, this new technique adds to the assessment toolset a means to address the concerns and potential cost drivers that are unique to the operational phase of a program and the flight operations community. This paper describes the implementation and application of this "Spacecraft Flight Operability Assessment Scale" in supporting vehicle design efforts. The six key factors of flight operability are defined, with guiding principles and goals stated for each factor. A standardized rating technique provides feedback that is useful to both the operations and program management communities. Sample assessments of legacy spacecraft, including the Space Shuttle and International Space Station systems, are provided to provide real world examples of this technique s application.

Crocker, Alan R.↗

NASA NTRS1988

Applications of artificial intelligence to space station: General purpose intelligent sensor interface

This final report describes the accomplishments of the General Purpose Intelligent Sensor Interface task of the Applications of Artificial Intelligence to Space Station grant for the period from October 1, 1987 through September 30, 1988. Portions of the First Biannual Report not revised will not be included but only referenced. The goal is to develop an intelligent sensor system that will simplify the design and development of expert systems using sensors of the physical phenomena as a source of data. This research will concentrate on the integration of image processing sensors and voice processing sensors with a computer designed for expert system development. The result of this research will be the design and documentation of a system in which the user will not need to be an expert in such areas as image processing algorithms, local area networks, image processor hardware selection or interfacing, television camera selection, voice recognition hardware selection, or analog signal processing. The user will be able to access data from video or voice sensors through standard LISP statements without any need to know about the sensor hardware or software.

Mckee, James W.↗

NASA NTRS2009

The Role of Guidance, Navigation, and Control in Hypersonic Vehicle Multidisciplinary Design and Optimization

Airbreathing hypersonic systems offer distinct performance advantages over rocket-based systems for space access vehicles. However, these performance advantages are dependent upon advances in current state-of-the-art technologies in many areas such as ram/scramjet propulsion integration, high temperature materials, aero-elastic structures, thermal protection systems, transition to hypersonics and hypersonic control elements within the framework of complex physics and new design methods. The complex interactions between elements of an airbreathing hypersonic vehicle represent a new paradigm in vehicle design to achieve the optimal performance necessary to meet space access mission objectives. In the past, guidance, navigation, and control (GNC) analysis often follows completion of the vehicle conceptual design process. Individual component groups design subsystems which are then integrated into a vehicle configuration. GNC is presented the task of developing control approaches to meet vehicle performance objectives given that configuration. This approach may be sufficient for vehicles where significant performance margins exist. However, for higher performance vehicles engaging the GNC discipline too late in the design cycle has been costly. For example, the X-29 experimental flight vehicle was built as a technology demonstrator. One of the many technologies to be demonstrated was the use of light-weight material composites for structural components. The use of light-weight materials increased the flexibility of the X- 29 beyond that of conventional metal alloy constructed aircraft. This effect was not considered when the vehicle control system was designed and built. The impact of this is that the control system did not have enough control authority to compensate for the effects of the first fundamental structural mode of the vehicle. As a result, the resulting pitch rate response of the vehicle was below specification and no post-design changes could recover the desired capability.

Ouzts, Peter J.↗