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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 1,045 records · Page 58
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1974

Effects of forward velocity and acoustic treatment on inlet fan noise

Flyover and static noise data from several engines are presented that show inlet fan noise measured in flight can be lower than that projected from static tests for some engines. The differences between flight and static measurements appear greatest when the fan fundamental tone due to rotor-stator interaction or to the rotor alone field is below cutoff. Data from engine and fan tests involving inlet treatment on the walls only are presented that show the attenuation from this treatment is substantially larger than expected from previous theories or flow duct experience. Data showing noise shielding effects due to the location of the engine on the airplane are also presented. These observations suggest that multiringed inlets may not be necessary to achieve the desired noise reduction in many applications.

Feiler, C. E.↗
DOE OSTI2016

Dense Non Aqueous Phase Liquid Source Area Delineation Using Membrane Interface Probe and Hydraulic Profile Tool Technology at Space Launch Complex 16, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida - 16352

The historical use and disposal of chlorinated solvents throughout Department of Defense and Department of Energy sites has resulted in subsurface contamination by dense non-aqueous phase liquids (DNAPL). The nature and environmental persistence of DNAPLs makes delineation and remediation of these compounds challenging and costly. This paper examines the utilization of data from a membrane interface probe (MIP) and hydraulic profile tool (HPT) to reduce a typical 18 to 24 month field investigation to 3 months; thereby, significantly reducing costs and resulting in a three-dimensional (3D) imagery of a deep DNAPL plume in order to support an aggressive remedial design for Space Launch Complex 16 (SLC16) at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida. During the early stages of the U.S. space program, chlorinated solvents were routinely used at space complexes. Spent solvents were discharged to surface impoundments where they migrated into the subsurface. Over time, these chlorinated solvents reached concentrations high enough to form a DNAPL plume. Recent investigations near SLC16 identified a previously unknown DNAPL plume co-mingled with dissolved-phase chlorinated compounds. The DNAPL source area (concentrations of trichloroethene [TCE] as high as 1,000,000 micrograms per liter [μg/L]) was discovered approximately 1,200 feet (ft) west of the existing monitoring network area. The U.S. Air Force, along with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, developed data quality objectives (DQO) to delineate the extent of the DNAPL and the dissolved-phase contaminant plume. A multi-phase investigation approach was developed by HydroGeoLogic, Inc. (HGL) emphasizing the use of MIP and HPT sampling technologies, conventional direct push technology (DPT), and monitoring well sampling methods. This approach allowed the collection of real-time data that supported the project DQOs and significantly reduced overall project costs and the field implementation schedule. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
NASA NTRS1974

Effects of forward velocity and acoustic treatment on inlet fan noise

Flyover and static noise data from several engines are presented that show inlet fan noise measured in flight can be lower than that projected from static tests for some engines. The differences between flight and static measurements appear greatest when the fan fundamental tone due to rotor-stator interaction or to the rotor-alone field is below cutoff. Data from engine and fan tests involving inlet treatment on the walls only are presented that show the attenuation from this treatment is substantially larger than expected from previous theories or flow duct experience. Data showing noise shielding effects due to the location of the engine on the airplane are also presented. These observations suggest that multiringed inlets may not be necessary to achieve the desired noise reduction in many applications.

Feiler, C. E.↗
DOE OSTI2023

In-pixel AI for lossy data compression at source for X-ray detectors

Integrating neural networks for data compression directly in the Read-Out Integrated Circuits (ROICs), i.e. the pixelated front-end, would result in a significant reduction in off-chip data transfer, overcoming the I/O bottleneck. Our ROIC test chip (AI-In-Pixel-65) is designed in a 65 nm Low Power CMOS process for the readout of pixelated X-ray detectors. Each pixel consists of an analog front-end for signal processing and a 10b analog-to-digital converter operating at 100KSPS. Here, we compare two non-reconfigurable techniques, Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and an AutoEncoder (AE) as lossy data compression engines implemented within the pixelated area. The PCA algorithm achieves 50$×$ compression, adds one clock cycle latency, and results in a 21% increase in the pixel area. The AE achieves 70$×$ compression, adds 30 clock cycle latency, and results in a similar area increase.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
NASA NTRS1995

A transient model of the RL10A-3-3A rocket engine

RL10A-3-3A rocket engines have served as the main propulsion system for Centaur upper stage vehicles since the early 1980's. This hydrogen/oxygen expander cycle engine continues to play a major role in the American launch industry. The Space Propulsion Technology Division at the NASA Lewis Research Center has created a computer model of the RL10 engine, based on detailed component analyses and available test data. This RL10 engine model can predict the performance of the engine over a wide range of operating conditions. The model may also be used to predict the effects of any proposed design changes and anticipated failure scenarios. In this paper, the results of the component analyses are discussed. Simulation results from the new system model are compared with engine test and flight data, including the start and shut-down transient characteristics.

Binder, Michael P.↗
NASA NTRS1995

General Fluid System Simulation Program to Model Secondary Flows in Turbomachinery

The complexity and variety of turbomachinery flow circuits created a need for a general fluid system simulation program for test data anomaly resolution as well as design review. The objective of the paper is to present a computer program that has been developed to support Marshall Space Flight Center's turbomachinery internal flow analysis efforts. The computer program solves for the mass. energy and species conservation equation at each node and flow rate equation at each branch of the network by a novel numerical procedure which is a combination of both Newton-Ralphson and successive substitution method and uses a thermodynamic property program for computing real gas properties. A generalized, robust, modular, and 'user-friendly' computer program has been developed to model internal flow rates, pressures, temperatures, concentrations of gas mixtures and axial thrusts. The program can be used for any network for compressible and incompressible flows, choked flow, change of phase and gaseous mixturecs. The code has been validated by comparing the predictions with Space Shuttle Main Engine test data.

Majumdar, Alok K.↗
DOE OSTI2013

Activities ONDRAF/NIRAS related to the decommissioning of nuclear facilities

Since 1980, the Agency is responsible by law for the safe management of all radioactive waste produced in Belgium, including decommissioning wastes. By the law of 11 January 1991 and the implementing Royal Decree of 16/10/1991, ONDRAF/NIRAS has been entrusted with a mission concerning the decommissioning of nuclear facilities. This mission involves the collection and assessment of data concerning decommissioning forecasts for nuclear facilities, the approval of facilities' decommissioning programmes, the establishment - in consultation with operators - of financing conditions for decommissioning, as well as the implementation of these programmes on request by the operator, or in the case of its failure to do so. This is the case for the company Best Medical Belgium SA located at Fleurus (MDS Nordion SA, till April 2011), which produced radioisotopes for medical applications and went bankrupt in 2012. These installations have been entrusted to ONDRAF/NIRAS. A plan of action was developed for taking over the operations in the framework of remediation and decommissioning. Steps have been taken to integrate his new role as a nuclear operator. The installations of Best Medical Belgium SA are now referred to as the 'O/N - Site Fleurus.' Nuclear facility operators, or any person requesting to operate a nuclear facility, are obliged to provide ONDRAF/NIRAS, under their responsibility and in due time, with all the necessary information concerning these facilities' decommissioning forecasts, the nature, quantities and dates of transfer of the resulting waste, and the financing conditions for these facilities' decommissioning. In order to make the necessary funds available for decommissioning a nuclear facility when it will be shut down, operators are obliged to establish provisions during the facility's active life. These provisions are calculated in such a way that the total amount established at the time of the final shutdown covers all costs resulting from the facility's final phase, namely the preparation of decommissioning, decontamination, more or less long-term maintenance, dismantling, treatment, conditioning and disposal of waste produced during this phase. In order to face to multiple and repeated evaluation processes, the Agency, already in the early 90's, started with the implementation of its own integrated data processing system, recording the physical and radiological inventories of nuclear facilities, and allowing the evaluation of the quantities of decommissioning materials and wastes as well as of the decommissioning costs of these facilities. The cost evaluations cover all decommissioning activities from final shutdown of the facility until final release from nuclear control, as well as conventional demolition and site restoration if required. Beside the information related to the inventories, the database involves so called auxiliary tables integrating unit prices of the various decontamination and dismantling techniques, unit rates for radioactive waste processing, interim storage and final disposal. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2022

Dynamic Modeling, Parameter Estimation, and Data Reconciliation of a Supercritical Pulverized Coal-Fired Boiler

A high-fidelity, spatially distributed dynamic model of a supercritical pulverized coal-fired boiler was developed for calculating transient thermal profiles of the boiler tubes, which are often not measured or unmeasurable in industrial settings due to the harsh operating conditions. In this work, rigorous models of the subcritical and supercritical steam properties, which can be highly nonlinear, were used to capture the transition between two-phase and one-phase flow, respectively, as supercritical boilers frequently transition through the critical point during load-following operation. The transient boiler model was also used for data reconciliation and parameter estimation for the purpose of model validation against industrial data. An approach was developed to reduce the size of large-scale reconciliation problem by focusing on the implementation of bias terms for the reconciled variables, which can be estimated in place of the reconciled variables themselves. In addition, a functional approximation of the reconciliation problem was defined so that it can be more simply optimized. Combining this functional approximation optimization with reformulation of the reconciliation problem considering measurement biases can significantly improve the tractability of many such large-scale problems. The validated boiler model was then used to study transient responses under load-following operation with specific attention on the calculation of unmeasurable variables.

42 ENGINEERING↗
NASA NTRS2017

Modeling of a Turbofan Engine with Ice Crystal Ingestion in the NASA Propulsion System Laboratory

The main focus of this study is to apply a computational tool for the flow analysis of the turbine engine that has been tested with ice crystal ingestion in the Propulsion Systems Laboratory (PSL) at NASA Glenn Research Center. The PSL has been used to test a highly instrumented Honeywell ALF502R-5A (LF11) turbofan engine at simulated altitude operating conditions. Test data analysis with an engine cycle code and a compressor flow code was conducted to determine the values of key icing parameters, that can indicate the risk of ice accretion, which can lead to engine rollback (un-commanded loss of engine thrust). The full engine aerothermodynamic performance was modeled with the Honeywell Customer Deck specifically created for the ALF502R-5A engine. The mean-line compressor flow analysis code, which includes a code that models the state of the ice crystal, was used to model the air flow through the fan-core and low pressure compressor. The results of the compressor flow analyses included calculations of the ice-water flow rate to air flow rate ratio (IWAR), the local static wet bulb temperature, and the particle melt ratio throughout the flow field. It was found that the assumed particle size had a large effect on the particle melt ratio, and on the local wet bulb temperature. In this study the particle size was varied parametrically to produce a non-zero calculated melt ratio in the exit guide vane (EGV) region of the low pressure compressor (LPC) for the data points that experienced a growth of blockage there, and a subsequent engine called rollback (CRB). At data points where the engine experienced a CRB having the lowest wet bulb temperature of 492 degrees Rankine at the EGV trailing edge, the smallest particle size that produced a non-zero melt ratio (between 3 percent - 4 percent) was on the order of 1 micron. This value of melt ratio was utilized as the target for all other subsequent data points analyzed, while the particle size was varied from 1 micron - 9.5 microns to achieve the target melt ratio. For data points that did not experience a CRB which had static wet bulb temperatures in the EGV region below 492 degrees Rankine, a non-zero melt ratio could not be achieved even with a 1 micron ice particle size. The highest value of static wet bulb temperature for data points that experienced engine CRB was 498 degrees Rankine with a particle size of 9.5 microns. Based on this study of the LF11 engine test data, the range of static wet bulb temperature at the EGV exit for engine CRB was in the narrow range of 492 degrees Rankine - 498 degrees Rankine , while the minimum value of IWAR was 0.002. The rate of blockage growth due to ice accretion and boundary layer growth was estimated by scaling from a known blockage growth rate that was determined in a previous study. These results obtained from the LF11 engine analysis formed the basis of a unique “icing wedge.”

Turbo engine↗
DOE OSTI2023

Performance analysis of single-phase immersion cooling system of data center using FC-40 dielectric fluid

Immersion cooling technologies have become an emerging cooling method for data center cooling. The studies available in open literature dealt with immersion cooling performance of data servers using mineral oil, EC-100, and Opticool 872552, but the studies focusing on the performance of FC-40 dielectric fluid is not available. Therefore, this study aimed to develop a single-phase liquid immersion cooling system using FC-40 dielectric fluid for a 1U (44.45 mm height) data server. The present study experimentally investigated the influence of different design and operating parameters, including the inlet/outlet port configuration (T and Z configurations), the bypass effect, the flowrate (1–3 LPM), the heating load (200–600 W), the inlet fluid temperature (15–35 °C), the presence of suction fan with various arrangements, and different heat sink bases (solid base, vapor chamber and heat pipe base). The results showed that the T-configuration could provide a 12.6% and 0.5–2.8 °C reduction in thermal resistance and case temperature compared to the Z-configuration, respectively. Additionally, the heat sink with heat pipe and vapor chamber base offered a minimum case temperature of 56.7 °C and 55.2 °C against the 60 °C experienced in the heat sink with flat plate base, respectively.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2016

Identification and Quantification of Carbon Phases in Conversion Fuel for the Transient Reactor Test Facility

As part of an overall effort to convert US research reactors to low-enriched uranium (LEU) fuel, a LEU conversion fuel is being designed for the Transient Reactor Test Facility (TREAT) at the Idaho National Laboratory. TREAT fuel compacts are comprised of UO{sub 2} fuel particles in a graphitic matrix material. In order to refine heat transfer modeling, as well as determine other physical and nuclear characteristics of the fuel, the amount and type of graphite and non-graphite phases within the fuel matrix must be known. In this study, we performed a series of complementary analyses, designed to allow detailed characterization of the graphite and phenolic resin based fuel matrix. Methods included Scanning Electron Microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and X-ray Diffraction. Our results indicate that no single characterization technique will yield all of the desired information; however, through the use of statistical and empirical data analysis, such as curve fitting, partial least squares regression, volume extrapolation and spectra peak ratios, a degree of certainty for the quantity of each phase can potentially be obtained. Although no one type of analysis has provided a complete determination of the quantities and identities of all carbon phases present in the fuel matrix, additional information has been gathered and is being used to refine future analysis methods. From the three types of quantification performed, results have been within 1% (92.8%, 93.02% and 93.6% for BSE image analysis, XRD and Raman spectroscopy, respectively). More work remains to identify any trace crystalline carbonaceous phases that may be present, quantify any traces that are identified, and develop and use further complementary bulk phase quantification techniques. (authors)

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Loads Response That is Due to Wake Steering on a Pair of Utility-Scale Wind Turbines

The goal of this report is to present the resulting turbine loads of a full-scale wind turbine wake steering field campaign. In this experiment, wake steering controls were applied to an upwind turbine (T2) and the downwind turbine (T3) was instrumented to measure mechanical loads. The test subjects (T2 & T3) were GE 1.5SLE CWE turbines located on a wind farm with a prevailing wind direction coming from the northwest. The data collection strategy involved toggling the wake steering controls of T2 between on and off. This resulted in two databases (baseline and wake steered) with similar turbulence intensities. Valid data was extracted and processed. The analysis involved scaling data to engineering units, applying coordinate transformations where applicable, calculating 10-minutes statistics, and calculating damage equivalent loads (DELs) to assess fatigue. Figures are shown as statistics and DELs binned by wind speed with supplemental scatter plots provided in the appendices. Results between the baseline and wake steered databases were compared. Overall, the binned statistics showed minimal differences in loading between the two cases. However, the DELs of the wake steered case were observed to be consistently smaller than the baseline for most of the turbine components. A potential for future work was recognized based on the findings of this report. Some areas of further study include an analysis for more granular loads sensitivity to different yaw offset angles and rotor wake overlap, an in-depth comparison of loads between the upwind and downwind turbines, and further fatigue analysis to quantify differences observed in this experiment.

17 WIND ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2013

Deep Sludge Gas Release Event Analytical Evaluation

Long Abstract. Full Text. The purpose of the Deep Sludge Gas Release Event Analytical Evaluation (DSGRE-AE) is to evaluate the postulated hypothesis that a hydrogen GRE may occur in Hanford tanks containing waste sludges at levels greater than previously experienced. There is a need to understand gas retention and release hazards in sludge beds which are 200 -300 inches deep. These sludge beds are deeper than historical Hanford sludge waste beds, and are created when waste is retrieved from older single-shell tanks (SST) and transferred to newer double-shell tanks (DST).Retrieval of waste from SSTs reduces the risk to the environment from leakage or potential leakage of waste into the ground from these tanks. However, the possibility of an energetic event (flammable gas accident) in the retrieval receiver DST is worse than slow leakage. Lines of inquiry, therefore, are (1) can sludge waste be stored safely in deep beds; (2) can gas release events (GRE) be prevented by periodically degassing the sludge (e.g., mixer pump); or (3) does the retrieval strategy need to be altered to limit sludge bed height by retrieving into additional DSTs? The scope of this effort is to provide expert advice on whether or not to move forward with the generation of deep beds of sludge through retrieval of C-Farm tanks. Evaluation of possible mitigation methods (e.g., using mixer pumps to release gas, retrieving into an additional DST) are being evaluated by a second team and are not discussed in this report. While available data and engineering judgment indicate that increased gas retention (retained gas fraction) in DST sludge at depths resulting from the completion of SST 241-C Tank Farm retrievals is not expected and, even if gas releases were to occur, they would be small and local, a positive USQ was declared (Occurrence Report EM-RP--WRPS-TANKFARM-2012-0014, "Potential Exists for a Large Spontaneous Gas Release Event in Deep Settled Waste Sludge"). The purpose of this technical report is to (1) present and discuss current understandings of gas retention and release mechanisms for deep sludge in U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) complex waste storage tanks; and (2) to identify viable methods/criteria for demonstrating safety relative to deep sludge gas release events (DSGRE) in the near term to support the Hanford C-Farm retrieval mission. A secondary purpose is to identify viable methods/criteria for demonstrating safety relative to DSGREs in the longer term to support the mission to retrieve waste from the Hanford Tank Farms and deliver it to the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP). The potential DSGRE issue resulted in the declaration of a positive Unreviewed Safety Question (USQ). C-Farm retrievals are currently proceeding under a Justification for Continued Operation (JCO) that only allows tanks 241-AN-101 and 241-AN-106 sludge levels of 192 inches and 195 inches, respectively. C-Farm retrievals need deeper sludge levels (approximately 310 inches in 241-AN-101 and approximately 250 inches in 241-AN-106). This effort is to provide analytical data and justification to continue retrievals in a safe and efficient manner.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
NASA NTRS2022

The Mars 2020 Ground Data System Architecture

The Mars 2020 Mission’s primary objective is to collect 20 geographically unique samples during its prime mission of one and a quarter Martian years, or just over 2 Earth years. Mission planners determined the project needed to develop a system that would enable the operations team to analyze engineering and science data, make science decisions, select viable rover targets at a millimeter resolution and validate an uplink bundle for a car sized rover with more complex science instruments than any previous Mars surface mission. All this had to be done within a five hour time frame. Doing this with a small team would be a challenge, but this had to be accomplished by a large team of engineers and scientists located across North America and Europe. Achieving this level of operational efficiency was unheard of in the prime mission. In addition, the mission had another set of requirements that had nothing to do with surface operations; the Mars 2020 Ground Data System (GDS) was also expected to comply with a new set of security requirements to keep up with the ever changing cybersecurity landscape. The Mars 2020 Ground Data System (GDS) is a re-architected version of the Mars Science Laboratory GDS. The primary goal was to integrate the lessons learned from previous Mars surface missions, accommodate a set of new requirements and capabilities required to ensure mission success, and comply with a new set of cybersecurity controls. The new architecture includes several unique qualities including a data lake, language-agnostic system-wide event-based operations, containerization, automated deployment, network segmentation, infrastructure-as-code, API-driven interfaces, and the first Mars surface GDS to operate primarily in the cloud. The new architecture enabled greater access to the system’s data, tighter integration with the operations team, and a higher level of traceability. The availability of the data also enabled a new set of capabilities previously not possible on surface missions. These new capabilities include an autonomous data to information, pipeline for downlink analysis, horizontal scaling of science data processing capabilities, autonomous round trip data tracking of science and engineering data, integration of flight system state into the tactical planning cycle, high fidelity targeting utilizing kinematic data, and hierarchical image and 3d meshes data representations. This paper will introduce the requirements for the Mars 2020 Mission, the heritage architecture, and the rationale for the changes to achieve the new architecture. The paper will continue to describe the fundamental changes made to the GDS architecture, how these changes enabled a more tightly integrated GDS, and the new capabilities that were enabled by the new architecture. The paper will conclude with the lessons learned from the process of rearchitecting a heritage GDS system and from the first 200 days of operations supporting over 800 users from around the world.

Lopez-Roig, Reynaldo↗
DOE OSTI2016

Measurement of Void Fraction Distribution in Steam-Water Two-Phase Flow in a 44 Bundle at 2 MPa

To contribute to the clarification of the Fukushima Daiichi Accident, JAEA is working on getting instantaneous void fraction distribution data in steam-water two-phase flow in rod bundle geometry under high pressure, high temperature condition, with using Wire Mesh Sensor (WMS) developed at JAEA for high pressure, high temperature condition (Up to 2.8 MPa, 230 deg. C), focusing on the low flow rate condition after the reactor scram. The data is expected to be used in the validation of the detailed two-phase flow codes TPFIT and ACE3D developed at JAEA. The time and space averaged void fraction data is also expected being used in the validation of the drift-flux models implemented in the two fluids codes, such as TRACE code. We are still in the middle of the data analyses and here we only report a part of the results. For the present bundle rod geometry, the void fraction shows easily gathered at the center area surrounded by 4 rods and the void fraction in the sub - channels between two adjacent rods are low. Under the same steam vapor flow rate condition, void faction increase with the decrease of the water flow rate. Under the same water flow rate, the void fraction increases with the increase of the steam vapor flow rate. In recent future, we will perform more experiments under further low water flow rate condition, including stagnation condition, to confirm this changing tendency. In the present experimental range, no effect of pressure on void fraction was observed. A 3-layer WMS, with a vertical distance between the adjacent layers of 1.3 mm, was used to measure the local instantaneous void fraction in this research. By using the correlation coefficient method, we can determine the time delay between the bubble detections from the upper and the lower layer sensors. Then the speed of the bubble, and its length, can be calculated. We are working on the establishment of the databank for the slug-churn bubbles information. (authors)

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2023

Impact of Flow Configurations on Response Time and Data Quality in Real-Time, In-Line Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) Monitoring of Viscous Flows

The real-time, in-line monitoring of continuous flow concentrations is widely conducted via infrared (IR) spectrometry by using a flow cell connected to a reactive flow stream. For protective purposes, the IR sensor tip is typically offset from the flow. This offset can cause the formation of a stagnant boundary layer above the sensor, especially when dealing with high-viscosity fluids. As a result, the IR signal response time is often controlled by the slow diffusional exchange of fluid in the boundary layer, as confirmed via 2D computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. We evaluated several flow configuration modifications in a typical IR flow cell in order to identify the changes to the flow dynamics that enable improved response times with minimal changes to the cell configuration: the use of (i) vertical flow, where the standard horizontal flow over the sensor is redirected to contact vertically with the sensor, (ii) a static mixer to create radial flow momentum above the IR sensor, and (iii) horizontal or vertical nozzles to direct the flow toward the IR sensor. The vertical flow configuration did not show any significant improvement over the standard horizontal flow configuration. However, the static mixer, horizontal nozzle, and vertical nozzle configurations all resulted in markedly improved response times and signal quality, albeit at the expense of a higher pressure drop across the flow cell. These results point toward straightforward, user-accessible modifications of in-line IR flow cells that result in significant improvements in signal stability and acquisition times.

42 ENGINEERING↗
NASA NTRS2023

Reliable Ignition of LOX Methane Propellants in Thermal Vacuum Environment

The goal of this project is to demonstrate reliable ignition of liquid oxygen-liquid methane at thermal vacuum conditions using a coil-on-plug (COP) sparking exciter. Testing will be performed using EP’s Frost-Mint cryogenic propellant test stand, using an engine updated based on data collected from previous engine testing at Plum Brook Station, to determine conditions under which the cryogenic propellants will consistently and reliably ignite. In FY22 the project successfully completed the following milestones. The cryogenic test stand Frost-Mint was upgraded to include an integrated vacuum tube and liquid nitrogen cooling system enabling cold vacuum ignition testing. The Integrated GN2/LN2 Ultra-Low-temperature Enclosure (IGLUE), a custom-built close-coupled heater exchanger shroud was designed, fabricated, tested and integrated into the test stand. The vacuum tube and IGLUE enabled the thruster body and propellants to be conditioned to temperatures and pressures desired. This work recreated the no-light conditions experienced during vehicle-level thermal vacuum testing and obtained thruster performance data and ignition imagery.

liquid oxygen↗