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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 757 records · Page 42
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2012

Handling Qualities of a Large Civil Tiltrotor in Hover using Translational Rate Command

A Translational Rate Command (TRC) control law has been developed to enable low speed maneuvering of a large civil tiltrotor with minimal pitch changes by means of automatic nacelle angle deflections for longitudinal velocity control. The nacelle actuator bandwidth required to achieve Level 1 handling qualities in hover and the feasibility of additional longitudinal cyclic control to augment low bandwidth nacelle actuation were investigated. A frequency-domain handling qualities criterion characterizing TRC response in terms of bandwidth and phase delay was proposed and validated against a piloted simulation conducted on the NASA-Ames Vertical Motion Simulator. Seven experimental test pilots completed evaluations in the ADS-33E-PRF Hover Mission Task Element (MTE) for a matrix of nacelle actuator bandwidths, equivalent rise times and control response sensitivities, and longitudinal cyclic control allocations. Evaluated against this task, longitudinal phase delay shows the Level 1 boundary is around 0.4 0.5 s. Accordingly, Level 1 handling qualities were achieved either with a nacelle actuator bandwidth greater than 4 rad/s, or by employing longitudinal cyclic control to augment low bandwidth nacelle actuation.

Malpica, Carlos A.↗
NASA NTRS2006

Mach 4 Test Results of a Dual-Flowpath, Turbine Based Combined Cycle Inlet

An experimental study was conducted to evaluate the performance of a turbine based combined cycle (TBCC) inlet concept, consisting of a low speed turbojet inlet and high speed dual-mode scramjet inlet. The main objectives of the study were (1) to identify any interactions between the low and the high speed inlets during the mode transition phase in which both inlets are operating simultaneously and (2) to determine the effect of the low speed inlet operation on the performance of the high speed inlet. Tests were conducted at a nominal freestream Mach number of 4 using an 8 percent scale model representing a single module of a TBCC inlet. A flat plate was installed upstream of the model to produce a turbulent boundary layer which simulated the full-scale vehicle forebody boundary layer. A flowmeter/back pressure device, with remote actuation, was attached aft of the high speed inlet isolator to simulate the back pressure resulting from dual-mode scramjet combustion. Results indicate that the inlets did not interact with each other sufficiently to affect inlet operability. Flow spillage resulting from a high speed inlet unstart did not propagate far enough upstream to affect the low speed inlet. Also, a low speed inlet unstart did not cause the high speed inlet to unstart. The low speed inlet improved the performance of the high speed inlet at certain conditions by diverting a portion of the boundary layer generated on the forebody plate.

Albertson, Cindy w.↗
DOE OSTI2021

Uranium nitride (UN) pellets with controllable microstructure and phase – fabrication by spark plasma sintering and their thermal-mechanical and oxidation properties

Dense uranium mononitride (UN) pellets with controlled microstructures and tailored grain size from large-grained to a few microns are synthesized by spark plasma sintering (SPS) combined with high energy ball milling. The impacts of the sintering conditions on fuel microstructure, grain size, physical density, and phase behavior are systematically investigated, and the thermal-mechanical properties and oxidation behavior of the SPS densified UN pellets are characterized. Higher sintering temperatures and longer ball milling durations and thus finer starting UN powders promote sintering and densification, and dense UN pellets above 95% theoretical density can be achieved by SPS at 1873 K for 10 min. UN phase purity is maintained in the SPS-densified pellets sintered at a lower temperature and short duration. A phase heterogeneity with secondary UO 2 or uranium sesquinitride (U 2 N 3 ) occurs for the UN pellets sintered at higher temperatures using finer UN powders. The hardness and fracture toughness of the SPS-densified UN pellets increase with smaller grain sizes and higher densities to 7.9 GPa and 3.5 MPa m 1/2 , respectively. Furthermore, both small (1–2 μm) and large grain-sized (30–50 µm) UN pellets exhibit good thermal conductivity. Dynamic oxidation testing by a thermogravimetric analyzer in air shows that the onset temperature for oxidation varies with microstructure and phase heterogeneity of the SPS densified UN pellets. Particularly, the smaller-grained (micron-sized) UN pellets containing uranium oxides and U 2 N 3 display lower weight gain and significantly-reduced oxidation kinetics, and full oxidation completes at a temperature above 1173 K when tested with a ramp rate of 10 K/min.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Design and Testing of a Prototype Electrodynamic Regolith Conveyor for Lunar ISRU

NASA’s Swamp Works Electrostatics and Surface Physics Laboratory (ESPL) is developing a 4-phaseelectrodynamic regolith conveyor (ERC) that could convey regolith without the risk of rotating or vibratory actuation, which could jam or require regular maintenance due to the abrasive nature of lunar regolith. Another goal of electrodynamic conveying is the reduction of conveying power, which is important considering the limited capacity of early-stage lunar power systems. The current state of the art(SOA) for lunar regolith conveying is based on recent NASA system studies for oxygen production plants. These plant designs require conveying rates around 100 kg/hr, to produce 10 mT/yr of oxygen from the regolith. To accomplish this, conventional augers and vibratory spiral conveyors have been identified as the SOA or the leading candidates due to their extensive use in the terrestrial material handling industry. At NASA KSC, the use of dynamic electric fields, generated by alternating high voltage on electrodes, has been developed as a dust mitigation solution known as the Electrodynamic Dust Shield (EDS). The EDS is being developed for lenses, solar panels, radiators, fabric and seals and is scheduled for a technology demonstration mission on the Moon in 2023. ESPL researchers have shown the ability to move thin layers (~ a few mm) of dust with mW of power. In Academia, researchers have shown the ability to electrodynamically convey regolith up to ~1 kg/hr with a 4-phase EDS and electromagnetically convey particles that would suggest a lunar regolith conveying rate of ~25 kg/hr. This paper will describe the design and testing of a prototype ERC that could scale to support transporting regolith at ISRU relevant flow rates.

Aaron D S Olson↗
DOE OSTI2024

Thermo-mechanical behavior of hypoeutectic Ni-Y-Zr alloys

Microstructure refinement and optimized alloying can improve metallic alloy performance: stable nanocrystalline (NC) alloys with immiscible second phases, e.g., Cu-Ta, are stronger than unstable NC alloys and their coarse-grained (CG) counterparts, but higher melting point matrices are needed. Hypoeutectic, CG Ni-Y-Zr alloys were produced via arc-melting to explore their potential as high-performance materials. Microstructures were studied to determine phases present, local composition and length scales, while heat treatments allowed investigating microstructural stability. Alloys had a stable, hierarchical microstructure with ~250 nm ultrafine eutectic, ~10 µm dendritic arm spacing and ~1 mm grain size. Hardness and uniaxial compression tests revealed that mechanical properties of Ni-0.5Y-1.8Zr (in wt%) were comparable to Inconel 617 despite the small alloying additions, due to its hierarchical microstructure. Here, uniaxial compression at 600 °C showed that ternary alloys outperformed Ni-Zr and Ni-Y binary alloys in flow stress and hardening rates, which indicates that the Ni 17 Y 2 phase was an effective reinforcement for the eutectic, which supplemented the matrix hardening due to increased solubility of Zr. Results suggest that ternary Ni-Y-Zr alloys hold significant promise for high temperature applications.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
NASA NTRS1973

Development and fabrication of sealed silver-zinc cells, phase 1

A facility was designed, constructed and equipped for the production of prismatic alkaline rechargeable battery cells using inorganic (ceramic) separators. This unique facility is environmentally controlled and contains separate areas for electrode fabrication, separator processing, cell assembly, cell finishing and testing. An initial production run of 125 sealed silver zinc cells, using inorganic separators, was made in the facility in order to provide samples for baseline performance tests. Ten of these cells were given performance characterization and life cycle tests.

Blake, I. C.↗
NASA NTRS1980

Study of foldable elastic tubes for large space structure applications, phase 1

Structural members that might be suitable for strain energy deployable structures, are discussed with emphasis on a thin-walled cylindrical tube with a cross-section that is called 'bi-convex'. The design of bi-convex tube test specimens and their fabrication are described as well as the design and construction of a special purpose testing machine to determine the deployment characteristics. The results of the first series of tests were quite mixed, but clearly revealed that since most of the specimens failed to deploy completely, due to a buckling problem, this type of tube requires some modification in order to be viable.

Jones, I. W.↗
NASA NTRS2016

Experimenting Galileo on Board the International Space Station

The SCaN Testbed is an advanced integrated communications system and laboratory facility installed on the International Space Station (ISS) in 2012. The testbed incorporates a set of new generation of Software Defined Radio (SDR) technologies intended to allow researchers to develop, test, and demonstrate new communications, networking, and navigation capabilities in the actual environment of space. Qascom, in cooperation with ESA and NASA, is designing a Software Defined Radio GalileoGPS Receiver capable to provide accurate positioning and timing to be installed on the ISS SCaN Testbed. The GalileoGPS waveform will be operated in the JPL SDR that is constituted by several hardware components that can be used for experimentations in L-Band and S-Band. The JPL SDR includes an L-Band Dorne Margolin antenna mounted onto a choke ring. The antenna is connected to a radio front end capable to provide one bit samples for the three GNSS frequencies (L1, L2 and L5) at 38 MHz, exploiting the subharmonic sampling. The baseband processing is then performed by an ATMEL AT697 processor (100 MIPS) and two Virtex 2 FPGAs. The JPL SDR supports the STRS (Space Telecommunications Radio System) that provides common waveform software interfaces, methods of instantiation, operation, and testing among different compliant hardware and software products. The standard foresees the development of applications that are modular, portable, reconfigurable, and reusable. The developed waveform uses the STRS infrastructure-provided application program interfaces (APIs) and services to load, verify, execute, change parameters, terminate, or unload an application. The project is divided in three main phases. 1)Design and Development of the GalileoGPS waveform for the SCaN Testbed starting from Qascom existing GNSS SDR receiver. The baseline design is limited to the implementation of the single frequency Galileo and GPS L1E1 receiver even if as part of the activity it will be to assess the feasibility of a dual frequency implementation (L1E1+L5E5a) in the same SDR platform.2)Qualification and test the GalileoGPS waveform using ground systems available at the NASA Glenn Research Center. Experimenters can have access to two SCaN Testbed ground based systems for development and verification: the Experimenter Development System (EDS) that is intended to provide initial opportunity for software testing and basic functional validation and the Ground Integration Unit (GIU) that is a high fidelity version of the SCaN Testbed flight system and is therefore used for more controlled final development testing and verification testing.3)Perform in-orbit validation and experimentation: The experimentation phase will consists on the collection of raw measurements (pseudorange, Carrier phase, CN0) in space, assessment on the quality of the measurements and the receiver performances in terms of signal acquisition, tracking, etc. Finally computation of positioning in space (Position, Velocity and time) and assessment of its performance.(Complete abstract in attached document).

GPS↗
NASA NTRS2016

Experimenting Galileo on Board the International Space Station

The SCaN Testbed is an advanced integrated communications system and laboratory facility installed on the International Space Station (ISS) in 2012. The testbed incorporates a set of new generation of Software Defined Radio (SDR) technologies intended to allow researchers to develop, test, and demonstrate new communications, networking, and navigation capabilities in the actual environment of space. Qascom, in cooperation with ESA and NASA, is designing a Software Defined Radio GalileoGPS Receiver capable to provide accurate positioning and timing to be installed on the ISS SCaN Testbed. The GalileoGPS waveform will be operated in the JPL SDR that is constituted by several hardware components that can be used for experimentations in L-Band and S-Band. The JPL SDR includes an L-Band Dorne Margolin antenna mounted onto a choke ring. The antenna is connected to a radio front end capable to provide one bit samples for the three GNSS frequencies (L1, L2 and L5) at 38 MHz, exploiting the subharmonic sampling. The baseband processing is then performed by an ATMEL AT697 processor (100 MIPS) and two Virtex 2 FPGAs. The JPL SDR supports the STRS (Space Telecommunications Radio System) that provides common waveform software interfaces, methods of instantiation, operation, and testing among different compliant hardware and software products. The standard foresees the development of applications that are modular, portable, reconfigurable, and reusable. The developed waveform uses the STRS infrastructure-provided application program interfaces (APIs) and services to load, verify, execute, change parameters, terminate, or unload an application. The project is divided in three main phases. 1)Design and Development of the GalileoGPS waveform for the SCaN Testbed starting from Qascom existing GNSS SDR receiver. The baseline design is limited to the implementation of the single frequency Galileo and GPS L1E1 receiver even if as part of the activity it will be to assess the feasibility of a dual frequency implementation (L1E1+L5E5a) in the same SDR platform.2)Qualification and test the GalileoGPS waveform using ground systems available at the NASA Glenn Research Center. Experimenters can have access to two SCaN Testbed ground based systems for development and verification: the Experimenter Development System (EDS) that is intended to provide initial opportunity for software testing and basic functional validation and the Ground Integration Unit (GIU) that is a high fidelity version of the SCaN Testbed flight system and is therefore used for more controlled final development testing and verification testing.3)Perform in-orbit validation and experimentation: The experimentation phase will consists on the collection of raw measurements (pseudorange, Carrier phase, CN0) in space, assessment on the quality of the measurements and the receiver performances in terms of signal acquisition, tracking, etc. Finally computation of positioning in space (Position, Velocity and time) and assessment of its performance.(Complete abstract in attached document).

Galileo↗
NASA NTRS1991

Telemetering and telecommunications research

The research center activities during the reporting period have been focused in three areas: (1) developing the necessary equipment and test procedures to support the testing of 8PSK-TCM through TDRSS from the WSGT; (2) extending the theoretical decoder work to higher speeds with a design goal of 600MBPS at 2 bits/Hz; and (3) completing the initial phase of the CPFSK Multi-H research and determining what subsets (if any) of these coding schemes are useful in the TDRSS environment. The equipment for the WSGT TCM testing has been completed and is functioning in the lab at NMSU. Measured results to date indicate that the uncoded system with the modified HRD and NMSU symbol sync operates at 1 to 1.5 dB from theory when processing encoded 8PSK. The NMSU pragmatic decoder when combined with these units produces approximately 2.9 dB of coding gain at 10(exp -5) BER. Our study of CPFSK with Multi-H coding has reached a critical stage. The principal conclusions reached in this activity are: (1) no scheme using Multi-H alone investigated by us or found in the literature produces power/bandwidth trades that are as good as TCM with filtered 8PSK; (2) when Multi-H is combined with convolutional coding, one can obtain better coding gain than with Multi-H alone but still no better power/bandwidth performance than TCM and these gains are available only with complex receivers; (3) the only advantage we can find for the CPFSK schemes over filtered MPSK with TCM is that they are constant envelope (however, constant envelope is of no benefit in a multiple access channel and of questionable benefit in a single access channel since driving the TWT to saturation in this situation is generally acceptable); and (4) based upon these results the center's research program will focus on concluding the existing CPFSK studies.

Osborne, William P.↗
NASA NTRS1997

Development of Statistical Process Control Methodology for an Environmentally Compliant Surface Cleaning Process in a Bonding Laboratory

Bonding labs at both MSFC and the northern Utah production plant prepare bond test specimens which simulate or witness the production of NASA's Reusable Solid Rocket Motor (RSRM). The current process for preparing the bonding surfaces employs 1,1,1-trichloroethane vapor degreasing, which simulates the current RSRM process. Government regulations (e.g., the 1990 Amendments to the Clean Air Act) have mandated a production phase-out of a number of ozone depleting compounds (ODC) including 1,1,1-trichloroethane. In order to comply with these regulations, the RSRM Program is qualifying a spray-in-air (SIA) precision cleaning process using Brulin 1990, an aqueous blend of surfactants. Accordingly, surface preparation prior to bonding process simulation test specimens must reflect the new production cleaning process. The Bonding Lab Statistical Process Control (SPC) program monitors the progress of the lab and its capabilities, as well as certifies the bonding technicians, by periodically preparing D6AC steel tensile adhesion panels with EA-91 3NA epoxy adhesive using a standardized process. SPC methods are then used to ensure the process is statistically in control, thus producing reliable data for bonding studies, and identify any problems which might develop. Since the specimen cleaning process is being changed, new SPC limits must be established. This report summarizes side-by-side testing of D6AC steel tensile adhesion witness panels and tapered double cantilevered beams (TDCBs) using both the current baseline vapor degreasing process and a lab-scale spray-in-air process. A Proceco 26 inches Typhoon dishwasher cleaned both tensile adhesion witness panels and TDCBs in a process which simulates the new production process. The tests were performed six times during 1995, subsequent statistical analysis of the data established new upper control limits (UCL) and lower control limits (LCL). The data also demonstrated that the new process was equivalent to the vapor degreasing process.

Hutchens, Dale E.↗
NASA NTRS2014

Braided Composite Technologies for Rotorcraft Structures

A&P Technology has developed a braided material approach for fabricating lightweight, high-strength hybrid gears for aerospace drive systems. The conventional metallic web was replaced with a composite element made from A&P's quasi-isotropic braid. The 0deg, plus or minus 60 deg braid architecture was chosen so that inplane stiffness properties and strength would be nearly equal in all directions. The test results from the Phase I Small Spur Gear program demonstrated satisfactory endurance and strength while providing a 20 percent weight savings. (Greater weight savings is anticipated with structural optimization.) The hybrid gears were subjected to a proof-of-concept test of 1 billion cycles in a gearbox at 10,000 revolutions per minute and 490 in-lb torque with no detectable damage to the gears. After this test the maximum torque capability was also tested, and the static strength capability of the gears was 7x the maximum operating condition. Additional proof-of-concept tests are in progress using a higher oil temperature, and a loss-of-oil test is planned. The success of Phase I led to a Phase II program to develop, fabricate, and optimize full-scale gears, specifically Bull Gears. The design of these Bull Gears will be refined using topology optimization, and the full-scale Bull Gears will be tested in a full-scale gear rig. The testing will quantify benefits of weight savings, as well as noise and vibration reduction. The expectation is that vibration and noise will be reduced through the introduction of composite material in the vibration transmission path between the contacting gear teeth and the shaft-and-bearing system.

Jessie, Nathan↗
NASA NTRS2015

Braided Composite Technologies for Rotorcraft Structures

A&P Technology has developed a braided material approach for fabricating lightweight, high-strength hybrid gears for aerospace drive systems. The conventional metallic web was replaced with a composite element made from A&P's quasi-isotropic braid. The 0deg, +/-60deg braid architecture was chosen so that inplane stiffness properties and strength would be nearly equal in all directions. The test results from the Phase I Small Spur Gear program demonstrated satisfactory endurance and strength while providing a 20 percent weight savings. (Greater weight savings is anticipated with structural optimization.) The hybrid gears were subjected to a proof-of-concept test of 1 billion cycles in a gearbox at 10,000 revolutions per minute and 490 in-lb torque with no detectable damage to the gears. After this test the maximum torque capability was also tested, and the static strength capability of the gears was 7x the maximum operating condition. Additional proof-of-concept tests are in progress using a higher oil temperature, and a loss-of-oil test is planned. The success of Phase I led to a Phase II program to develop, fabricate, and optimize full-scale gears, specifically Bull Gears. The design of these Bull Gears will be refined using topology optimization, and the full-scale Bull Gears will be tested in a full-scale gear rig. The testing will quantify benefits of weight savings, as well as noise and vibration reduction. The expectation is that vibration and noise will be reduced through the introduction of composite material in the vibration transmission path between the contacting gear teeth and the shaft-and-bearing system.

Jessie, Nathan↗
NASA NTRS2011

Telemetry and Science Data Software System

The Telemetry and Science Data Software System (TSDSS) was designed to validate the operational health of a spacecraft, ease test verification, assist in debugging system anomalies, and provide trending data and advanced science analysis. In doing so, the system parses, processes, and organizes raw data from the Aquarius instrument both on the ground and while in space. In addition, it provides a user-friendly telemetry viewer, and an instant pushbutton test report generator. Existing ground data systems can parse and provide simple data processing, but have limitations in advanced science analysis and instant report generation. The TSDSS functions as an offline data analysis system during I&T (integration and test) and mission operations phases. After raw data are downloaded from an instrument, TSDSS ingests the data files, parses, converts telemetry to engineering units, and applies advanced algorithms to produce science level 0, 1, and 2 data products. Meanwhile, it automatically schedules upload of the raw data to a remote server and archives all intermediate and final values in a MySQL database in time order. All data saved in the system can be straightforwardly retrieved, exported, and migrated. Using TSDSS s interactive data visualization tool, a user can conveniently choose any combination and mathematical computation of interesting telemetry points from a large range of time periods (life cycle of mission ground data and mission operations testing), and display a graphical and statistical view of the data. With this graphical user interface (GUI), the data queried graphs can be exported and saved in multiple formats. This GUI is especially useful in trending data analysis, debugging anomalies, and advanced data analysis. At the request of the user, mission-specific instrument performance assessment reports can be generated with a simple click of a button on the GUI. From instrument level to observatory level, the TSDSS has been operating supporting functional and performance tests and refining system calibration algorithms and coefficients, in sync with the Aquarius/SAC-D spacecraft. At the time of this reporting, it was prepared and set up to perform anomaly investigation for mission operations preceding the Aquarius/SAC-D spacecraft launch on June 10, 2011.

Bates, Lakesha↗
NASA NTRS1979

Technology development for phosphoric acid fuel cell powerplant (phase 2)

The status of technology for the manufacturing and testing of 1200 sq. cm cell materials, components, and stacks for on-site integrated energy systems is assessed. Topics covered include: (1) preparation of thin layers of silicon carbide; (2) definition and control schemes for volume changes in phosphoric acid fuel cells; (3) preparation of low resin content graphite phenolic resin composites; (4) chemical corrosion of graphite-phenolic resin composites in hot phosphoric acid; (5) analysis of electrical resistance of composite materials for fuel cells; and (6) fuel cell performance and testing.

Christner, L.↗
NASA NTRS2017

Fiber Optic Temperature Sensors in TPS: Arc Jet Model Design & Testing

Techniques for using fiber optics with Fiber Bragg Gratings (FBGs) have been developed by IFOS Corp. for use in thermal protection systems (TPS) on spacecraft heat shield materials through NASA Phase 1 and 2 SBIR efforts and have been further improved in a recent collaboration between IFOS and NASA that will be described here. Fiber optic temperature sensors offer several potential advantages over traditional thermocouple sensors including a) multiplexing many sensors in a single fiber to increase sensor density in a given array or to provide spatial resolution, b) improved thermal property match between sensor and TPS to reduce heat flow disruption, c) lack of electrical conductivity.

sensors↗
NASA NTRS2009

Real-Time Assessment of Robot Performance During Remote Exploration Operations

To ensure that robots are used effectively for exploration missions, it is important to assess their performance during operations. We are investigating the definition and computation of performance metrics for assessing remote robotic operations in real-time. Our approach is to monitor data streams from robots, compute performance metrics, and provide Web-based displays of these metrics for assessing robot performance during operations. We evaluated our approach for measuring robot performance with the K10 rovers from NASA Ames Research Center during a field test at Moses Lake Sand Dunes (WA) in June 2008. In this paper we present the results of evaluating our software for robot performance and discuss our conclusions from this evaluation for future robot operations.

SBIR TOPIC X7.02 PHASE 1↗
NASA NTRS1974

The temporal organization of processes of cell reproduction and its connection with rhythms of radiosensitivity of the body

Radiosensitivity of individual phases of the mitotic cycle was studied in synchronous cell cultures and in several biological objects. It was found that radiosensitivity changed essentially according to phases of the mitotic cycle, depending on the kind of cells, evaluation criteria and the radiation dosage. Tests on partially synchronized HeLa cell populations, according to the criterion of survival, showed them most sensitive during mitosis, as well as in later G sub 1- or early DNA-synthesizing stages. With radiation in doses of 300 rad, the proportion of surviving cells showed a sensitivity directly before DNA synthesis of approximately 4 times higher than the later S-phase and during the major portion of G sub 1- and G sub 2-periods. Sensitivity of cells in mitosis was approximately 3 times higher than in late G sub 1- and early S-phases.

Druzhinin, Y. P.↗