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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 55 records · Page 3
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2012

Stringer Bending Test Helps Diagnose and Prevent Cracks in the Space Shuttle's External Tank

Space Shuttle Discovery's last mission, STS-133, was scheduled to launch on November 5, 2010. Just hours before liftoff, a hydrogen leak at an umbilical connection scrubbed the launch attempt. After the scrub, further inspection revealed a large crack in the foam insulation covering the External Tank, ET-137. Video replay of the launch attempt confirmed the crack first appeared as cryogenic propellants were being loaded into the ET. When the cracked foam was removed, technicians found the underlying stringer had two 9-inch-long cracks. Further inspection revealed a total of 5 of the 108 ET stringers had cracked. NASA and Lockheed Martin immediately launched an aggressive campaign to understand the cracks and repair the stringers in ET-137, targeting February 2011 as the new launch date for STS-133. Responsibilities for the various aspects of the investigation were widely distributed among NASA centers and organizations. This paper will focus on lab testing at Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) in Huntsville, Alabama that was intended to replicate the stringer failure and gauge the effect of proposed countermeasures.

Saxon, Joseph B.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Nonlinear analysis and redesign of the mixed-mode bending delamination test

The Mixed Mode Bending (MMB) test uses a lever to simultaneously apply mode I and mode II loading to a split beam specimen. An iterative analysis that accounts for the geometric nonlinearity of the MMB test was developed. The analysis accurately predicted the measured load displacement response and the strain energy release rate, G, of an MMB test specimen made of APC2 (AS4/PEEK). The errors in G when calculated using linear theory were found to be as large as thirty percent in some cases. Because it would be inconvenient to use a nonlinear analysis to analyze MMB data, the MMB apparatus was redesigned to minimize the nonlinearity. The nonlinear analysis was used as a guide in redesigning the MMB apparatus. With the redesigned apparatus, loads were applied through a roller attached to the level and loaded just above the midplane of the test specimen. The redesigned apparatuus has geometric nonlinearity errors of less than three percent, even for materials substantially tougher than APC2. This apparatus was demonstrated by measuring the mixed mode delamination fracture toughness of APC2.

Reeder, J. R.↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

A Novel Ultrasonic Fully Reversible Bending Fatigue Test Specimen for Simulated Gear Tooth Bending Fatigue

Gears in vertical lift applications will typically experience greater than 107bending fatigue cycles over their design lifetime. Currently, fatigue life prediction of gears exceeding 107cycles are based on empirical correlations, since collection of fatigue data beyond 107 cycles is impractical with traditional fatigue testing methods. Ultrasonic fatigue testing enables fatigue testing in excess of 109cycles in as few as 14 hours. In this paper, a novel specimen design for ultrasonic fatigue testing to accurately represent the geometry, stress profile, and residual stress of gear teeth in reversible bending fatigue is presented. The specimen design is discussed in detail, testing is performed to validate operating principles, and an initial fatigue data set of 8 specimens is presented.

Single Tooth Bending Fatigue↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

A Novel Ultrasonic Fully Reversible Bending Fatigue Test Specimen for Simulated Gear Tooth Bending Fatigue

Gears in vertical lift applications will typically experience greater than 107bending fatigue cycles over their design lifetime. Currently, fatigue life prediction of gears exceeding 107cycles are based on empirical correlations, since collection of fatigue data beyond 107 cycles is impractical with traditional fatigue testing methods. Ultrasonic fatigue testing enables fatigue testing in excess of 109cycles in as few as 14 hours. In this paper, a novel specimen design for ultrasonic fatigue testing to accurately represent the geometry, stress profile, and residual stress of gear teeth in reversible bending fatigue is presented. The specimen design is discussed in detail, testing is performed to validate operating principles, and an initial fatigue data set of 8 specimens is presented.

Single Tooth Bending Fatigue↗
NASA NTRS2017

The MISSE 7 Flexural Stress Effects Experiment After 1.5 Years of Wake Space Exposure

Low Earth orbit space environment conditions, including ultraviolet radiation, thermal cycling, and atomic oxygen exposure, can cause degradation of exterior spacecraft materials over time. Radiation and thermal exposure often results in bond- breaking and embrittlement of polymers, reducing mechanical strength and structural integrity. An experiment called the Flexural Stress Effects Experiment (FSEE) was flown with the objective of determining the role of space environmental exposure on the degradation of polymers under flexural stress. The FSEE samples were flown in the wake orientation on the exterior of International Space Station for 1.5 years. Twenty-four samples were flown: 12 bent over a 0.375 in. mandrel and 12 were over a 0.25 in. mandrel. This was designed to simulate flight configurations of insulation blankets on spacecraft. The samples consisted of assorted polyimide and fluorinated polymers with various coatings. Half the samples were designated for bend testing and the other half will be tensile tested. A non-standard bend-test procedure was designed to determine the surface strain at which embrittled polymers crack. All ten samples designated for bend testing have been tested. None of the control samples' polymers cracked, even under surface strains up to 19.7%, although one coating cracked. Of the ten flight samples tested, seven show increased embrittlement through bend-test induced cracking at surface strains from 0.70%to 11.73%. These results show that most of the tested polymers are embrittled due to space exposure, when compared to their control samples. Determination of the extent of space induced embrittlement of polymers is important for designing durable spacecraft.

Snow, Kate E.↗
NASA NTRS1935

Strength Tests of Thin-walled Duralumin Cylinders of Elliptic Section

This report is the fifth of a series presenting the results of strength tests of thin-walled cylinders and truncated cones of circular and elliptic section; it includes the results obtained from torsion tests on 30 cylinders, pure bending tests on 30 cylinders, and combined transverse shear and bending tests on 60 cylinders. All the cylinders tested were elliptic section with the ends clamped to rigid bulkheads. In the pure bending and combined transverse shear and bending tests the loads were applied in the plane of the major axis. The results of the tests on elliptic cylinders are correlated with the results of corresponding tests on circular cylinders and are presented in charts suitable for use in design.

STRESSED SKIN - CYLINDERS, ELLIPTIC - STRENGTH↗
NASA NTRS1979

The structural behavior of a graphite-polymide honeycomb sandwich panel with quasi-isotropic face sheets and an orthotropic core

The results of a series of tests of graphite-polyimide honeycomb sandwich panels are presented. The panels were 1.22 m long, 0.508 m wide, and approximately 13.3 m thick. The face sheets were a T-300/PMR-15 fabric in a quasi-isotropic layup and were 0.279 mm thick. The core was Hexcel HRH 327-3/16 - 4.0 glass reinforced polyimide honeycomb, 12.7 mm thick. Three panels were used in the test: one was cut into smaller pieces for testing as beam, compression, and shear specimens; a second panel was used for plate bending tests; the third panel was used for in-plane stability tests. Presented are the experimental results of four point bending tests, short block compression tests, core transverse shear modulus, three point bending tests, vibration tests, plate bending tests, and panel stability tests. The results of the first three tests are used to predict the results of some of the other tests. The predictions and experimental results are compared, and the agreement is quite good.

Hyer, M. W.↗
NASA NTRS1986

A photoelastic investigation of asymmetric four point bend shear test for composite materials

The shear stress fringe value of orthotropic birefringent model materials is presently used in an asymmetric four-point bend test that employs a notched specimen and is a modification of the Iosipescu test (1967). While in the case of a unidirectionally reinforced glass-polyester model material, shear stress fringe values obtained from 90- and 120-deg (sharp and radiused) notches are reasonably close to the values obtained for an off-axis tensile specimen, no conclusions can be drawn on the influence of the notch parameters, due to the peculiarities of the photoelastic response of the inhomogeneous orthotropic model material. The failure modes nevertheless indicate that a notch radius, and the 120-deg notch angle, reduce the stress concentration. Comparisons are made with finite element results.

Prabhakaran, R.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Redesign of the mixed-mode bending delamination test to reduce nonlinear effects

The mixed-mode bending (MMB) test uses a lever to apply simultaneously mode I and mode II loading to a split-beam specimen. An iterative analysis that accounts for the geometric nonlinearity of the MMB test was developed. The analysis accurately predicted the measured load-displacement response and the strain energy release rate, G, of an MMB test specimen made of AS4/PEEK. The errors in G when calculated using linear theory were found to be as large as 30 percent in some cases. Because it would be inconvenient to use a nonlinear analysis to analyze MMB data, the MMB apparatus was redesigned to minimize the nonlinearity. With the improved apparatus, loads are applied just above the midplane of the test specimen through a roller attached to the lever. This apparatus was demonstrated by measuring the mixed-mode delamination fracture toughhess of the test specimen. The nonlinearity errors associated with testing this tough composite material were less than +/- 3 percent. The data from the improved MMB apparatus analyzed with a linear analysis were similar to those found with the original apparatus and the nonlinear analysis.

Reeder, James R.↗
NASA NTRS2019

Overview of Heatshield for Extreme Entry Environment Technology (HEEET)

The objective of the Heatshield for Extreme Entry Environment Technology (HEEET) projects is to mature a 3-D Woven Thermal Protection System (TPS) to Technical Readiness Level (TRL) 6 to support future NASA missions to destinations such as Venus and Saturn. Destinations that have extreme entry environments with heat fluxes > 3500 W/cm2 and pressures up to 5 atmospheres, entry environments that NASA has not flown since Pioneer-Venus and Galileo. The scope of the project is broad and can be split into roughly four areas, Manufacturing/Integration, Structural Testing and Analysis, Thermal Testing and Analysis and Documentation. Manufacturing/Integration covers from raw materials, piece part fabrication to final integration on a 1-meter base diameter 45-degree sphere cone Engineering Test Unit (ETU). A key aspect of the project was to transfer as much of the manufacturing technology to industry in preparation to support future mission infusion. The forming, infusion and machining approaches were transferred to Fiber Materials Inc. and FMI then fabricated the piece parts from which the ETU was manufactured. The base 3D-woven material consists of a dual layer weave with a high-density outer layer to manage recession in the system and a lower density, lower thermal conductivity inner layer to manage the heat load. At the start of the project it was understood that due to weaving limitations the heat shield was going to be manufactured from a series of tiles. And it was recognized that the development of a seam solution that met the structural and thermal requirements of the system was going to be the most challenging aspect of the project. It was also recognized that the seam design would drive the final integration approach and therefore the integration of the ETU was kept in-house within NASA. A final seam concept has been successfully developed and implemented on the ETU. The structural testing and analysis covers from characterization of the different layers of the infused material as functions of weave direction and temperature to sub-component level testing such as 4pt bend testing at sub-ambient and elevated temperature and culminates in testing of the ETU results from which will validate the structural models developed using the element and sub-component level tests. Given the seam has to perform both structurally and aerothermally during entry a novel 4pt bend test fixture was developed allowing articles to be tested while the front surface is heated with a laser. These tests are being utilized to establish the systems structural capability during entry.A broad range of aerothermal tests (arcjet tests) were performed to develop material response models for predicting the required TPS thickness to meet a missions needs and to evaluate failure modes and establish the capability of the system. The final aspect of the project is to develop a comprehensive Design and Data Book such that a future mission will have the information necessary to adopt the technology. This presentation will provide an overview for each of these areas and argue that HEEET has successfully achieved TRL 6.

HEEET↗
NASA NTRS2024

Structural Analysis and Testing of Multi-nut Joint for TriTruss Structure

Axial and bending tests for a multi-nut joint in the TriTruss structure were conducted at NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC). This report describes the test procedures used for the axial and bending tests of the multi-nut joint, along with the test results. The joint's equivalent axial stiffness (EA) and equivalent bending stiffness (EI) were characterized based on these test results and are presented in this report. Additionally, finite element models (FEMs) of the axial and bending test specimens were developed, and the predicted axial and bending responses of the multi-nut joint were compared and validated with the test results.

Joint Test↗
NASA NTRS1972

Investigation of the fracture mechanics of boride composites

Processing studies designed to produce boride composites with metal additives to lower fabrication temperatures and increase the impact strength are reported. Hot pressing experiments were performed with ZrB2 and Fe, Ti, and Zr employed singly as additives. Data for the characterization, impact tests, slow bend tests, and fracture strength are presented.

Kaufman, L. A.↗
NASA NTRS1989

Liquid Rocket Booster (LRB) for the Space Transportation System (STS) systems study. Appendix A: Stress analysis report for the pump-fed and pressure-fed liquid rocket booster

Pressure effects on the pump-fed Liquid Rocket Booster (LRB) of the Space Transportation System are examined. Results from the buckling tests; bending moments tests; barrel, propellant tanks, frame XB1513, nose cone, and intertank tests; and finite element examination of forward and aft skirts are presented.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS1998

Mechanical Properties Degradation of Teflon(Trademark) FEP Returned from the Hubble Space Telescope

After 6.8 years on orbit, degradation has been observed in the mechanical properties of second-surface metalized Teflon(Reg) FEP (fluorinated ethylene propylene) used on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) on the outer surface of the multi-layer insulation (MLI) blankets and on radiator surfaces. Cracking of FEP surfaces on HST was first observed upon close examination of samples with high solar exposure retrieved during the first servicing mission (SM1) conducted 3.6 years after HST was put into orbit. Astronaut observations and photographs from the second servicing mission (SM2), conducted after 6.8 years on orbit, revealed severe cracks in the FEP surfaces of the MLI on many locations around the telescope. This paper describes results of mechanical properties testing of FEP surfaces exposed for 3.6 years and 6.8 years to the space environment on HST. These tests include tensile testing, surface micro-hardness testing, and bend testing.

Dever, Joyce A.↗
NASA NTRS2020

Evaluation of Fatigue Damage Accumulation Functions for Delamination Initiation and Propagation

The present report follows on the cohesive fatigue damage model methodology proposed in NASA-TP-2018-219838. In that report, an empirical function describing the incremental damage due to cyclic loading was used to calculate fatigue damage within a cohesive formulation. The form of the function was developed such that, when integrated at a constant stress amplitude from no damage to failure, it produces a life versus load response that is consistent with an S-N diagram. Therefore, the parameters of the damage model could be obtained by fitting the model predictions to an S-N diagram. The finite element analyses performed demonstrate that the cohesive fatigue accumulation function provides a link between the S-N diagram that describes crack initiation, and the Paris law that characterizes the rate of crack propagation. However, when the model was proposed, it was not known whether the form of the damage accumulation function associated with a desired S-N diagram is unique and, if not, if the link between S-N and the Paris law is unique and independent of the fatigue function selected. In the effort described herein, several alternative forms of the damage function that reproduce the desired features of S-N diagrams were found and evaluated. The effects of each of these functions on the predicted parameters of the Paris law and the propagation threshold are discussed. The results indicate that the predicted exponent m of the Paris law is indeed independent of the damage accumulation function. However, different functions predict different values for the pre-factor C of the Paris law. Therefore, the proper damage accumulation function must be selected by comparison with experiments. One of the new damage accumulation functions proposed herein was found to be particularly useful for analysis because of the ease with which the model parameters can be determined with a minimal amount of experimental information. The effectiveness of the proposed methodology and damage function was demonstrated by conducting analyses of a double cantilever beam test, a mixed-mode bending test, and a three-point bending test of a skin/doubler specimen. The results indicate that the same set of model parameters can provide accurate predictions of the rate of fatigue crack propagation for a variety of material interfaces, mode mixities, load levels, and stress ratios.

Cohesive elements↗
NASA NTRS2018

Overview of Heatshield for Extreme Entry Environment Technology (HEEET) Project

The objective of the Heatshield for Extreme Entry Environment Technology (HEEET) projects is to mature a 3-D Woven Thermal Protection System (TPS) to Technical Readiness Level (TRL) 6 to support future NASA missions to destinations such as Venus and Saturn. Destinations that have extreme entry environments with heat fluxes up to 5000 watts per square centimeter and pressures up to 5 atmospheres, entry environments that NASA has not flown since Pioneer-Venus and Galileo. The scope of the project is broad and can be split into roughly four areas, Manufacturing/Integration, Structural Testing and Analysis, Thermal Testing and Analysis and Documentation. Manufactruing/Integration covers from raw materials, piece part fabrication to final integration on a 1-meter base diameter 45-degree sphere cone Engineering Test Unit (ETU). A key aspect of the project was to transfer as much of the manufacturing technology to industry in preparation to support future mission infusion. The forming, infusion and machining approaches were transferred to Fiber Materials Inc. and FMI then fabricated the piece parts from which the ETU was manufactured. The base 3D-woven material consists of a dual layer weave with a high density outer layer to manage recession in the system and a lower density, lower thermal conductivity inner layer to manage the heat load. At the start of the project it was understood that due to weaving limitations the heat shield was going to be manufactured from a series of tiles. And it was recognized that the development of a seam solution that met the structural and thermal requirements of the system was going to be the most challenging aspect of the project. It was also recognized that the seam design would drive the final integration approach and therefore the integration of the ETU was kept in-house within NASA. A final seam concept has been successfully developed and implemented on the ETU and will be discussed. The structural testing and analysis covers from characterization of the different layers of the infused material as functions of weave direction and temperature, to sub-component level testing such as 4-pt bend testing at sub-ambient and elevated temperature. ETU test results are used to validate the structural models developed using the element and sub-component level tests. Given the seam has to perform both structurally and aerothermally during entry a novel 4-pt bend test fixture was developed allowing articles to be tested while the front surface is heated with a laser. These tests are intended to establish the system's structural capability during entry. A broad range of aerothermal tests (arcjet tests) are being performed to develop material response models for predicting the required TPS thickness to meet a mission's needs and to evaluate failure modes. These tests establish the capability of the system and assure robustness of the system during entry. The final aspect of the project is to develop a comprehensive Design and Data Book such that a future mission will have the information necessary to adopt the technology. This presentation will provide an overview and status of the project and describe the status of the tehnology maturation level for the inner and outer planet as well as earth entry sample return missions.

Ellerby, Don↗