Search NASA⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search NASA

Results for “Recovery Testing”

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

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

At least 793 records · Page 44

Free-Spinning-Tunnel Tests of a 1/24-Scale Model of the Grumman XF9F-2 Airplane with Wing-Tip Tanks Installed

An investigation of the spin and recovery characteristics of a 1/24-scale model of the Grumman XF9F-2 airplane with wing-tip tanks installed has been conducted-in the Langley 20-foot free-spinning tunnel. The effects of control settings and movements on the erect spin and recovery characteristics of the model for a range of possible loadings of the tip tanks were determined. Spin and recovery characteristics without tanks were determined in a previous investigation. The model results indicated that the airplane spins will generally be oscillatory and that recoveries will be satisfactory for all loadings by normal recovery technique (full rudder reversal followed approximately one-half turn later by moving the elevator down). The rudder force necessary for recovery should be within the physical capability of the pilot but the elevator force may be excessive so that some type of balance or booster might be necessary, or it might be necessary to jettison the wing-tip tanks.

Berman, Theodore↗

800 C Silicon Carbide (SiC) Pressure Sensors for Engine Ground Testing

MEMS-based 4H-SiC piezoresistive pressure sensors have been demonstrated at 800 C, leading to the discovery of strain sensitivity recovery with increasing temperatures above 400 C, eventually achieving up to, or near, 100 recovery of the room temperature values at 800 C. This result will allow the insertion of highly sensitive pressure sensors closer to jet, rocket, and hypersonic engine combustion chambers to improve the quantification accuracy of combustor dynamics, performance, and increase safety margin. Also, by operating at higher temperature and locating closer to the combustion chamber, reduction of the length (weight) of pressure tubes that are currently used will be achieved. This will result in reduced costlb to access space.

Pressure sensors↗

Development and flight test of a deployable precision landing system

A joint NASA Dryden Flight Research Facility and Johnson Space Center program was conducted to determine the feasibility of the autonomous recovery of a spacecraft using a ram-air parafoil system for the final stages of entry from space that included a precision landing. The feasibility of this system was studied using a flight model of a spacecraft in the generic shape of a flattened biconic that weighed approximately 150 lb and was flown under a commercially available, ram-air parachute. Key elements of the vehicle included the Global Positioning System guidance for navigation, flight control computer, ultrasonic sensing for terminal altitude, electronic compass, and onboard data recording. A flight test program was used to develop and refine the vehicle. This vehicle completed an autonomous flight from an altitude of 10,000 ft and a lateral offset of 1.7 miles that resulted in a precision flare and landing into the wind at a predetermined location. At times, the autonomous flight was conducted in the presence of winds approximately equal to vehicle airspeed. Several novel techniques for computing the winds postflight were evaluated. Future program objectives are also presented.

TRT-EXPERIMENTAL↗

Water Recovery with the Heat Melt Compactor in a Microgravity Environment

The Heat Melt Compactor is a proposed utility that will compact astronaut trash, extract the water for eventual re-use, and form dry square tiles that can be used as additional ionizing radiation shields for future human deep space missions. The Heat Melt Compactor has been under development by a consortium of NASA centers. The downstream portion of the device is planned to recover a small amount of water while in a microgravity environment. Drop tower low gravity testing was performed to assess the effect of small particles on a capillary-based water/air separation device proposed for the water recovery portion of the Heat Melt Compactor.

life support↗

Small Particles Intact Capture Experiment (SPICE)

The Small Particles Intact Capture Experiment (SPICE) will develop technologies and engineering techniques necessary to capture nearly intact, uncontaminated cosmic and interplanetary dust particles (IDP's). Successful capture of such particles will benefit the exobiology and planetary science communities by providing particulate samples that may have survived unaltered since the formation of the solar system. Characterization of these particles may contribute fundamental data to our knowledge of how these particles could have formed into our planet Earth and, perhaps, contributed to the beginnings of life. The term 'uncontaminated' means that captured cosmic and IDP particles are free of organic contamination from the capture process and the term 'nearly intact capture' means that their chemical and elemental components are not materially altered during capture. The key to capturing cosmic and IDP particles that are organic-contamination free and nearly intact is the capture medium. Initial screening of capture media included organic foams, multiple thin foil layers, and aerogel (a silica gel); but, with the exception of aerogel, the requirements of no contamination or nearly intact capture were not met. To ensure no contamination of particles in the capture process, high-purity aerogel was chosen. High-purity aerogel results in high clarity (visual clearness), a useful quality in detection and recovery of embedded captured particles from the aerogel. P. Tsou at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) originally described the use of aerogel for this purpose and reported laboratory test results. He has flown aerogel as a 'GAS-can Lid' payload on STS-47 and is evaluating the results. The Timeband Capture Cell Experiment (TICCE), a Eureca 1 experiment, is also flying aerogel and is scheduled for recovery in late April.

Nishioka, Ken-Ji↗

Fighting Testing ACAT/FRRP: Automatic Collision Avoidance Technology/Fighter Risk Reduction Project

This slide presentation reviews the work of the Flight testing Automatic Collision Avoidance Technology/Fighter Risk Reduction Project (ACAT/FRRP). The goal of this project is to develop common modular architecture for all aircraft, and to enable the transition of technology from research to production as soon as possible to begin to reduce the rate of mishaps. The automated Ground Collision Avoidance System (GCAS) system is designed to prevent collision with the ground, by avionics that project the future trajectory over digital terrain, and request an evasion maneuver at the last instance. The flight controls are capable of automatically performing a recovery. The collision avoidance is described in the presentation. Also included in the presentation is a description of the flight test.

Skoog, Mark A.↗

An investigation of the thermal shock resistance of lunar regolith and the recovery of hydrogen from lunar soil heated using microwave radiation

The objective is to develop a better understanding of the thermal shock properties of lunar regolith sintered using 2.45 GHz electromagnetic radiation and to do a preliminary study into the recovery of bound hydrogen in lunar soil heated using 2.45 GHz radiation. During the first phase of this work, lunar simulant material was used to test whether or not microhardness data could be used to infer thermal shock resistance and later actual lunar regolith was used. Results are included on the lunar regolith since this is of primary concern and not the simulant results. They were similar, however. The second phase investigated the recovery of hydrogen from lunar regolith and results indicate that microwave heating of lunar regolith may be a good method for recovery of bound gases in the regolith.

Meek, T. T.↗

Development of CFC-Free Cleaning Processes at the NASA White Sands Test Facility

The NASA White Sands Test Facility (WSTF) is developing cleaning and verification processes to replace currently used chlorofluorocarbon-113- (CFC-113-) based processes. The processes being evaluated include both aqueous- and solvent-based techniques. The presentation will include the findings of investigations of aqueous cleaning and verification processes that are based on a draft of a proposed NASA Kennedy Space Center (KSC) cleaning procedure. Verification testing with known contaminants, such as hydraulic fluid and commonly used oils, established correlations between nonvolatile residue and CFC-113. Recoveries ranged from 35 to 60 percent of theoretical. WSTF is also investigating enhancements to aqueous sampling for organics and particulates. Although aqueous alternatives have been identified for several processes, a need still exists for nonaqueous solvent cleaning, such as the cleaning and cleanliness verification of gauges used for oxygen service. The cleaning effectiveness of tetrachloroethylene (PCE), trichloroethylene (TCE), ethanol, hydrochlorofluorocarbon-225 (HCFC-225), tert-butylmethylether, and n-Hexane was evaluated using aerospace gauges and precision instruments and then compared to the cleaning effectiveness of CFC-113. Solvents considered for use in oxygen systems were also tested for oxygen compatibility using high-pressure oxygen autoignition and liquid oxygen mechanical impact testing.

Beeson, Harold↗

Boundary-Layer-Ingesting Inlet Flow Control

This paper gives an overview of a research study conducted in support of the small-scale demonstration of an active flow control system for a boundary-layer-ingesting (BLI) inlet. The effectiveness of active flow control in reducing engine inlet circumferential distortion was assessed using a 2.5% scale model of a 35% boundary-layer-ingesting flush-mounted, offset, diffusing inlet. This experiment was conducted in the NASA Langley 0.3-meter Transonic Cryogenic Tunnel at flight Mach numbers with a model inlet specifically designed for this type of testing. High mass flow actuators controlled the flow through distributed control jets providing the active flow control. A vortex generator point design configuration was also tested for comparison purposes and to provide a means to examine a hybrid vortex generator and control jets configuration. Measurements were made of the onset boundary layer, the duct surface static pressures, and the mass flow through the duct and the actuators. The distortion and pressure recovery were determined by 40 total pressure measurements on 8 rake arms each separated by 45 degrees and were located at the aerodynamic interface plane. The test matrix was limited to a maximum free-stream Mach number of 0.85 with scaled mass flows through the inlet for that condition. The data show that the flow control jets alone can reduce circumferential distortion (DPCPavg) from 0.055 to about 0.015 using about 2.5% of inlet mass flow. The vortex generators also reduced the circumferential distortion from 0.055 to 0.010 near the inlet mass flow design point. Lower inlet mass flow settings with the vortex generator configuration produced higher distortion levels that were reduced to acceptable levels using a hybrid vortex generator/control jets configuration that required less than 1% of the inlet mass flow.

Owens, Lewis R.↗

Boundary-Layer-Ingesting Inlet Flow Control

This paper gives an overview of a research study conducted in support of the small-scale demonstration of an active flow control system for a boundary-layer-ingesting (BLI) inlet. The effectiveness of active flow control in reducing engine inlet circumferential distortion was assessed using a 2.5% scale model of a 35% boundary-layer-ingesting flush-mounted, offset, diffusing inlet. This experiment was conducted in the NASA Langley 0.3-meter Transonic Cryogenic Tunnel at flight Mach numbers with a model inlet specifically designed for this type of testing. High mass flow actuators controlled the flow through distributed control jets providing the active flow control. A vortex generator point design configuration was also tested for comparison purposes and to provide a means to examine a hybrid vortex generator and control jets configuration. Measurements were made of the onset boundary layer, the duct surface static pressures, and the mass flow through the duct and the actuators. The distortion and pressure recovery were determined by 40 total pressure measurements on 8 rake arms each separated by 45 degrees and were located at the aerodynamic interface plane. The test matrix was limited to a maximum free-stream Mach number of 0.85 with scaled mass flows through the inlet for that condition. The data show that the flow control jets alone can reduce circumferential distortion (DPCP(sub avg)) from 0.055 to about 0.015 using about 2.5% of inlet mass flow. The vortex generators also reduced the circumferential distortion from 0.055 to 0.010 near the inlet mass flow design point. Lower inlet mass flow settings with the vortex generator configuration produced higher distortion levels that were reduced to acceptable levels using a hybrid vortex generator/control jets configuration that required less than 1% of the inlet mass flow.

Owens, Lewis R.↗

Nonlinear Unsteady Aerodynamic Modeling Using Wind Tunnel and Computational Data

Extensions to conventional aircraft aerodynamic models are required to adequately predict responses when nonlinear unsteady flight regimes are encountered, especially at high incidence angles and under maneuvering conditions. For a number of reasons, such as loss of control, both military and civilian aircraft may extend beyond normal and benign aerodynamic flight conditions. In addition, military applications may require controlled flight beyond the normal envelope, and civilian flight may require adequate recovery or prevention methods from these adverse conditions. These requirements have led to the development of more general aerodynamic modeling methods and provided impetus for researchers to improve both techniques and the degree of collaboration between analytical and experimental research efforts. In addition to more general mathematical model structures, dynamic test methods have been designed to provide sufficient information to allow model identification. This paper summarizes research to develop a modeling methodology appropriate for modeling aircraft aerodynamics that include nonlinear unsteady behaviors using both experimental and computational test methods. This work was done at Langley Research Center, primarily under the NASA Aviation Safety Program, to address aircraft loss of control, prevention, and recovery aerodynamics.

Murphy, Patrick C.↗

Space Shuttle Solid Rocket Booster Decelerator Subsystem Drop Test 3 - Anatomy of a failure

A test failure dramatically points out a design weakness or the limits of the material in the test article. In a low budget test program, with a very limited number of tests, a test failure sparks supreme efforts to investigate, analyze, and/or explain the anomaly and to improve the design such that the failure will not recur. The third air drop of the Space Shuttle Solid Rocket Booster Recovery System experienced such a dramatic failure. On air drop 3, the 54-ft drogue parachute was totally destroyed 0.7 sec after deployment. The parachute failure investigation, based on analysis of drop test data and supporting ground element test results is presented. Drogue design modifications are also discussed.

Runkle, R. E.↗

NASA Participation in the ISAS MUSES C Asteroid Sample Return Mission

NASA and Japan's Institute of Space and Astronautical Science (ISAS) have agreed to cooperate on the first mission to collect samples from the surface of an asteroid and return them to Earth for in-depth study. The MUSES-C mission will be launched on a Japanese MV launch vehicle in January 2002 from Kagoshima Space Center, Japan, toward a touchdown on the asteroid Nereus in September 2003. A NASA-provided miniature rover will conduct in-situ measurements on the surface. The asteroid samples will be returned to Earth by MUSES-C via a parachute-borne recovery capsule in January 2006. NASA and ISAS will cooperate on several aspects of the mission, including mission support and scientific analysis. In addition to providing the rover, NASA will arrange for the testing of the MUSES-C re-entry heat shield at NASA/Ames Research Center, provide supplemental Deep Space Network tracking of the spacecraft, assist in navigating the spacecraft and provide arrangements for the recovery of the sample capsule at a landing site in the U. S. Scientific coinvestigators from the U.S. and Japan will share data from the instruments on the rover and the spacecraft. They will also collaborate on the investigations of the returned samples. With a mass of about I kg, the rover experiment will be a direct descendant of the technology used to build the Sojourner rover. The rover will carry three science instruments: a visible imaging camera, a near-infrared point spectrometer and an alpha X ray spectrometer. The solarpowered rover will move around the surface of Nereus collecting imagery data which are complimentary to the spacecraft investigation. The imaging system will be capable of making surface texture, composition, and morphology measurements at resolutions better than 1 cm. The rover will transmit this data to the spacecraft for relay back to Earth. Due to the microgravity environment on Nereus, the rover has been designed to right itself in case it flips over. Solar panels on all sides of the rover will ensure that enough power will always be available to the rover to activate the motors needed to turn over. Posable struts will allow the rover to position its chassis such that the camera can be pointed straight down at the surface or straight up at the sky. The presentation will describe the mission, scientific objectives and current state of the rover in detail.

Jones, Ross↗

Post-Flight Assessment of Avcoat Thermal Protection System for the Exploration Flight Test-1

On December 5, 2014 NASA conducted the first flight test of its next generation human-class Orion spacecraft. The flight was called the Exploration Flight Test -1 (EFT-1) which lasted for 4 hours and culminated into a re-entry trajectory at 9 km/s. This flight test of the 5-meter Orion Crew Module demonstrated various sub-systems including the Avcoat ablative thermal protection system (TPS) on the heat shield. The Avcoat TPS had been developed from the Apollo-era recipe with a few key modifications. The engineering for thermal sizing was supported by modeling, analysis, and ground tests in arc jet facilities. This paper will describe a postlfight analysis plan and present results from post-recovery inspections, data analysis from embedded sensors, TPS sample extraction and characterization in the laboratory. After the recovery of the vehicle, a full photographic survey and surface scans of the TPS were performed. The recovered vehicle showed physical evidence of flow disturbances, varying degrees of surface roughness, and excessive recession downstream of compression pads. The TPS recession was measured at more than 200 locations of interest on the Avcoat surface. The heat shield was then processed for sample extraction prior to TPS removal using the 7-Axis Milling machine at Marshall Space Flight Center. Around 182 rectangular TPS samples were extracted for subsequent analysis and investigation. The final paper will also present results of sample analysis. The planned investigation includes sidewall imaging, followed by image analysis to characterize TPS response by quantifying different layers in the char and pyrolysis zones. A full postmortem of the instrumentation and sensor ports will also be performed to confirm no adverse effects due to the sensors themselves. A subset of the samples will undergo structural testing and perform detailed characterization of any cracks and integrity of gore seams. Finally, the material will be characterized with layer-by-layer density measurements and SEM investigations to evaluate material morphology at microstructural level including identification of elements and compounds.

Aerothermodynamics↗

International Space Station Environmental Control and Life Support System Acceptance Testing for the Pressurized Mating Adapters

The International Space Station (ISS) Pressurized Mating Adapters (PMAs) Environmental Control and Life Support (ECLS) System is comprised of three subsystems: Atmosphere Control and Supply (ACS), Temperature and Humidity Control (THC), and Water Recovery and Management (WRM). PMAs 1 and 2 flew to ISS on Flight 2A and Pressurized Mating Adapter (PMA) 3 flew to ISS on Flight 3A. This paper provides a summary of the PMAs ECLS design and a detailed discussion of the ISS ECLS Acceptance Testing methodologies utilized for the PMAs.

Williams, David E.↗

Sonic inlet noise attenuation and performance with a J-85 turbojet engine as a noise source

A static test program was conducted to investigate aerodynamic and acoustic performance of a sonic inlet used as a noise suppressor. A translating centerbody type inlet with radial vanes was tested ahead of a J85-GE-13 turbojet engine. The inlet when fully choked, maintained high recovery with low distortions while dramatically reducing noise emanating from the compressor. Recoveries of 98.1% at simulated takeoff and 95% at approach were attained with associated sound attenuation of 40 db and 38 db respectively. Inlet lip shape was found to have significant effects on noise attenuation at these static conditions.

Groth, H. W.↗

Variations in Stratospheric Inorganic Chlorine Between 1991 and 2006

So how quickly will the ozone hole recover? This depends on how quickly the chlorine content (Cl2) of the atmosphere will decline. The ozone hole forms over the Antarctic each southern spring (September and October). The extremely small ozone amounts in the ozone hole are there because of chemical reactions of ozone with chlorine. This chlorine originates largely from industrially produced chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) compounds. An international agreement, the Montreal Protocol, is drastically reducing the amount of chlorine-containing compounds that we are releasing into the atmosphere. To be able to attribute changes in stratospheric ozone to changes in chlorine we need to know the distribution of atmospheric chlorine. However, due to a lack of continuous observations of all the key chlorine gases, producing a continuous time series of stratospheric chlorine has not been achieved to date. We have for the first time devised a technique to make a 17-year time series for stratospheric chlorine that uses the long time series of HCl observations made from several space borne instruments and a neural network. The neural networks allow us to both inter-calibrate the various HCl instruments and to infer the total amount of atmospheric chlorine from HCl. These new estimates of Cl, provide a much needed critical test for current global models that currently predict significant differences in both Cl(sub y) and ozone recovery. These models exhibit differences in their projection of the recovery time and our chlorine content time series will help separate the good from the bad in these projections.

Lary, D. J.↗

Image RPI Reawakens Plasmaspheric Refilling Research

The plasmasphere is a toroidal region of cold plasma surrounding the Earth that results from ionospheric outflow and accumulation. The physics of refilling and the dynamics of this region have been studied for nearly 50-years. During that time many models have been proposed, but little has been done to test these models due to a lack of observational information. With the launch of the IMAGE Mission in March 2000 the Radio Plasma Imager has provided true field aligned density measurements that uniquely enable the testing of these models and a final determination of the physical processes important for the plasmasphere's recovery from storm-time conditions.

Gallagher, D. L.↗