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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 109 records · Page 6
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1992

Systematic Propulsion Optimization Tools (SPOT)

This paper describes a computer program written by senior-level Mechanical Engineering students at the University of Alabama in Huntsville which is capable of optimizing user-defined delivery systems for carrying payloads into orbit. The custom propulsion system is designed by the user through the input of configuration, payload, and orbital parameters. The primary advantages of the software, called Systematic Propulsion Optimization Tools (SPOT), are a user-friendly interface and a modular FORTRAN 77 code designed for ease of modification. The optimization of variables in an orbital delivery system is of critical concern in the propulsion environment. The mass of the overall system must be minimized within the maximum stress, force, and pressure constraints. SPOT utilizes the Design Optimization Tools (DOT) program for the optimization techniques. The SPOT program is divided into a main program and five modules: aerodynamic losses, orbital parameters, liquid engines, solid engines, and nozzles. The program is designed to be upgraded easily and expanded to meet specific user needs. A user's manual and a programmer's manual are currently being developed to facilitate implementation and modification.

Bower, Mark↗
NASA NTRS2022

Night Sky Testing of the Lunar Flashlight Star Tracker

Lunar Flashlight (LF) is a 6U, 14 kg spacecraft being built by the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). The mission will use IR laser technology to search for volatiles and surface water ice deposits in the permanently shadowed regions (PSR) of the moon in preparation for future human lunar exploration. The fine pointing provided by the Guidance, Navigation and Control (GNC) system is crucial for the spacecraft to successfully reach the moon, enter a lunar orbit, and acquire scientific data. At the center of the GNC system’s ability to determine the spacecraft’s attitude is a star tracker. The LF star tracker is a commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) unit built into the integrated GNC system provided by Blue Canyon Technologies. Blue Canyon tested the star tracker in a lab environment for basic functionality and attitude estimation capabilities; upon delivery of the hardware to JPL, further testing with a real night sky was desired to determine expected in-flight operational characteristics. JPL maintains the Table Mountain Facility with its suite of ground telescopes, including a 0.6m telescope with an equatorial mount. This stable platform provided a highly accurate method of providing slews and attitude holds akin to what the spacecraft will perform in flight. Therefore, by analyzing the data from these representative night-sky ground tests performed in March, 2021, it is possible to acquire expected flight performance of the star tracker, particularly in regard to the ability of the star tracker to maintain lock on the starfield during planned maneuver types. This paper presents the various tests that have been performed to ensure that the LF star tracker will function as part of the overall GNC system and integrated spacecraft once launched. Test data is included for several key tests, and a path forward towards future integration and testing at the spacecraft level is described.

Baker, John↗
NASA NTRS2022

Psyche Project Implementation During the COVID Pandemic

In January 2017, “Psyche: Journey to a Metal World” was selected for implementation as part of NASA’s Discovery program. The Psyche mission will utilize electric propulsion with SPT-140 Hall thrusters to rendezvous and orbit the metal-rich asteroid (16) Psyche, in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. The Psyche spacecraft requires no chemical propulsion and, when launched in 2022, will be the first mission to use Hall thrusters beyond lunar orbit. The Psyche spacecraft is a hybrid development with Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)-provided deep-space avionics and communications equipment mounted on a high-heritage MAXAR (formerly Space Systems Loral) Solar-Electric Propulsion (SEP) Chassis, based on their 1300 series of GEO communications satellites. The spacecraft is equipped to support a suite of science instruments, as well as a demonstration of the Deep Space Optical Communications (DSOC) technology. The spacecraft has sufficient onboard resources, autonomy, redundancy, and operability to complete a 3.5-year cruise to 16 Psyche, followed by a 20-month campaign of science investigations while orbiting the asteroid.The mission’s early concept design and progress through Preliminary Design Review (PDR) has been described in previous work. The paper will cover the recent mission progress from the Critical Design Review (CDR) through the start of Spacecraft Environmental Testing, which took place during the COVID pandemic.The authors will highlight the successful remote collaboration between the major partners: ASU, JPL, MAXAR, and the Payload teams that led to the initiation of the Assembly, Test, Launch, Operations Phase (ATLO) in early March 2021. Emphasis will be placed on the effects that the COVID-19 pandemic had on the work environment over the last 16+ months, including challenges to delivery of flight hardware and test equipment. In addition to the COVID-19 challenges, other significant anomalies discovered during design and test will be described along with any impacts to the overall science capability of the mission.

Lord, Peter↗
NASA NTRS1990

The multidriver: A reliable multicast service using the Xpress Transfer Protocol

A reliable multicast facility extends traditional point-to-point virtual circuit reliability to one-to-many communication. Such services can provide more efficient use of network resources, a powerful distributed name binding capability, and reduced latency in multidestination message delivery. These benefits will be especially valuable in real-time environments where reliable multicast can enable new applications and increase the availability and the reliability of data and services. We present a unique multicast service that exploits features in the next-generation, real-time transfer layer protocol, the Xpress Transfer Protocol (XTP). In its reliable mode, the service offers error, flow, and rate-controlled multidestination delivery of arbitrary-sized messages, with provision for the coordination of reliable reverse channels. Performance measurements on a single-segment Proteon ProNET-4 4 Mbps 802.5 token ring with heterogeneous nodes are discussed.

Dempsey, Bert J.↗
NASA NTRS2019

Omni-gravity Hydroponics for Space Exploration

As part of the NASA Plant Water Management technology demonstration experiments, a capillary fluidics hydroponic system that can function in a variety of gravity environments has been developed and tested for crop production in space. A passive liquid delivery method is employed that drastically reduces the number of contaminable moving parts providing a high reliability solution requiring minimal resources for operation. The terrestrial, lunar, and Martian environments are managed in a ‘gravity-dominated mode,’ while the low-gravity transit and orbit environments are managed in a ‘capillary fluidics mode,’ where the role of gravity is replaced by the equally passive effects of surface tension, conduit shape, and wettability. The unique considerations for priming, germination, aeration, nutrient supply, root accommodation, layout, crew interaction, etc. are highlighted. Design guides for system function are provided along with high Technology Readiness Level demonstrations of the system during terrestrial and drop tower tests. Long duration tests are planned on short schedule aboard the International Space Station in 2019.

gravity↗
DOE OSTI2021

Membrane fusion and drug delivery with carbon nanotube porins

Significance The plasma membrane protects cell content from the outer environment. Overcoming this obstacle and delivering drugs efficiently into cells still remain a major hurdle for modern pharmacology and medicine. We developed and demonstrated a simple nanomaterial platform—a dimer of small-diameter carbon nanotube porins (CNTPs)—which functions as a potent membrane fusogen. Molecular simulations revealed a distinct fusion mechanism. CNTP-studded vesicles loaded with a chemotherapeutic agent, doxorubicin, delivered the drug to cancer cells, killing a majority of them. Our work provides new opportunities for understanding membrane fusion mechanisms, designing synthetic fusogens, and developing simple and efficient drug carriers for delivery of therapeutics and vaccines.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS2018

Delay Tolerant Network Routing as a Machine Learning Classification Problem

This paper discusses a machine learning-based approach to routing for delay tolerant networks (DTNs) [1]. DTNs are networks which experience frequent disconnections between nodes, uncertainty of an end-to-end path, long one-way trip times, and may have high error rates and asymmetric links. Such networks exist in deep space satellite networks, very rural environments, disaster areas and underwater environments. In this work, we use machine learning classifiers to predict a set of neighboring nodes which are the most likely to deliver a message to a desired location based on message history delivery information.We use the Common Open Research Emulator (CORE) [2] to emulate the DTN environment based on real-world location traces and collect network traffic statistics from the Bundle Protocol implementation IBR-DTN [3]. The software architecture for classification-based routing, analysis and preparation of the network history data and prediction results are discussed.

Delay Tolerant Networks↗
NASA NTRS2010

Microbial Anomalies Encountered on the International Space Station

Microorganisms in our living environments are unavoidable. A community of microbes arrived in space with the delivery of the first element of the International Space Station (ISS), attached to hardware and on the bodies of the humans tasked with the initial assembly missions. The risk that microorganisms could cause adverse effects in the health of both the human occupants of the ISS as well as the physical integrity of the station environment and life support systems has been both a driver and a function of engineering and operational controls. Scientists and engineers at NASA have gone to extensive measures to control microbial growth at levels safe for the crewmembers and the spacecraft environment. Many of these measures were initiated with the design of the spacecraft and its systems. Materials used in the ISS were tested for resistance to fungi, such as mold and a paint with a fungus-killing chemical was also used. Controlling the humidity of the air in the Station is also an effective way of discouraging microbe growth. The breathing air is reconditioned by the Environmental Control Life Support System (ECLSS) prior to distribution, utilizing High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filtration. Requirements restricting the accumulation of water condensate in the air handlers and habitable volume of the ISS were other safeguards added. Water for drinking and food rehydration is disinfected or filtered. A robust in-flight housekeeping regimen for the ISS significantly reduces inappropriate growth of microorganisms and includes a regular cleaning of accessible surfaces with disinfectant wipes. Most of these requirements were suggested by microbiologists to mitigate and possibly prevent many microbiological risks. In addition to these controls, before flight monitoring and analyses of the cabin air, exposed surfaces, water and food, consumables, and crew members are conducted to mitigate microbial risk to the crew and spacecraft. Many microbial risks are much easier to identify and resolve before launch than during space flight. Although the focus has been on prevention of microbiologically related, not all problems can be anticipated. A number of microbial anomalies have occurred on ISS. This paper will discuss the occurrences, root-cause investigations, and mitigation steps taken to remediate the contamination.

Bruce, Rebekah J.↗
NASA NTRS2018

A Summary of the NASA Design Environment for Novel Vertical Lift Vehicles (DELIVER) Project

The number of new markets and use cases being developed for vertical take-off and landing vehicles continues to explode, including the highly publicized urban air taxi and package deliver applications. There is an equally exploding variety of novel vehicle configurations and sizes that are being proposed to fill these new market applications. The challenge for vehicle designers is that there is currently no easy and consistent way to go from a compelling mission or use case to a vehicle that is best configured and sized for the particular mission. This is because the availability of accurate and validated conceptual design tools for these novel types and sizes of vehicles have not kept pace with the new markets and vehicles themselves. The Design Environment for Novel Vertical Lift Vehicles (DELIVER) project was formulated to address this vehicle design challenge by demonstrating the use of current conceptual design tools, that have been used for decades to design and size conventional rotorcraft, applied to these novel vehicle types, configurations and sizes. In addition to demonstrating the applicability of current design and sizing tools to novel vehicle configurations and sizes, DELIVER also demonstrated the addition of key transformational technologies of noise, autonomy, and hybrid-electric and all-electric propulsion into the vehicle conceptual design process. Noise is key for community acceptance, autonomy and the need to operate autonomously are key for efficient, reliable and safe operations, and electrification of the propulsion system is a key enabler for these new vehicle types and sizes. This paper provides a summary of the DELIVER project and shows the applicability of current conceptual design and sizing tools novel vehicle configurations and sizes that are being proposed for urban air taxi and package delivery type applications.

Design Environment↗
DOE OSTI2021

Radiation Hardening – Test Capabilities (LANSCE) [Slides]

The Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE) has exceptional facilities for research and testing of radiation effects in electronics. We have the best terrestrial neutron source for sea-level and airplane-altitude environments. We have a thermal neutron test capability at the Lujan Center and a proton beam test capability at the “Blue Room”. LANL has the programmatic mission to develop this radiation-effects program, namely space and satellite environments, high-performance computing (silent data corruption), and weapons delivery systems. We have a strong connection to industry which continues to grow.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2022

Supervisory Algorithm for Autonomous Hemodynamic Management Systems

Future military conflicts will require new solutions to manage combat casualties. The use of automated medical systems can potentially address this need by streamlining and augmenting the delivery of medical care in both emergency and combat trauma environments. However, in many situations, these systems may need to operate in conjunction with other autonomous and semi-autonomous devices. Management of complex patients may require multiple automated systems operating simultaneously and potentially competing with each other. Supervisory controllers capable of harmonizing multiple closed-loop systems are thus essential before multiple automated medical systems can be deployed in managing complex medical situations. The objective for this study was to develop a Supervisory Algorithm for Casualty Management (SACM) that manages decisions and interplay between two automated systems designed for management of hemorrhage control and resuscitation: an automatic extremity tourniquet system and an adaptive resuscitation controller. SACM monitors the required physiological inputs for both systems and synchronizes each respective system as needed. We present a series of trauma experiments carried out in a physiologically relevant benchtop circulatory system in which SACM must recognize extremity or internal hemorrhage, activate the corresponding algorithm to apply a tourniquet, and then resuscitate back to the target pressure setpoint. SACM continues monitoring after the initial stabilization so that additional medical changes can be quickly identified and addressed, essential to extending automation algorithms past initial trauma resuscitation into extended monitoring. Overall, SACM is an important step in transitioning automated medical systems into emergency and combat trauma situations. Future work will address further interplay between these systems and integrate additional medical systems.

42 ENGINEERING↗
NASA NTRS1991

Studies of volatiles and organic materials in early terrestrial and present-day outer solar system environments

A review and partial summary of projects within several areas of research generally involving the origin, distribution, chemistry, and spectral/dielectric properties of volatiles and organic materials in the outer solar system and early terrestrial environments are presented. The major topics covered include: (1) impact delivery of volatiles and organic compounds to the early terrestrial planets; (2) optical constants measurements; (3) spectral classification, chemical processes, and distribution of materials; and (4) radar properties of ice, hydrocarbons, and organic heteropolymers.

Sagan, Carl↗
NASA NTRS1994

Blowout Monitor

C Language Integrated Production System (CLIPS), a NASA-developed software shell for developing expert systems, has been embedded in a PC-based expert system for training oil rig personnel in monitoring oil drilling. Oil drilling rigs if not properly maintained for possible blowouts pose hazards to human life, property and the environment may be destroyed. CLIPS is designed to permit the delivery of artificial intelligence on computer. A collection of rules is set up and, as facts become known, these rules are applied. In the Well Site Advisor, CLIPS provides the capability to accurately process, predict and interpret well data in a real time mode. CLIPS was provided to INTEQ by COSMIC.

Source record↗
DOE OSTI2021

Materials Challenges and Opportunities for Energy Generation, Conversion, Delivery, and Storage (Applied Energy Tri-Laboratory Consortium Workshop Report)

This report documents the outcomes of the Tri-Laboratory Materials Workshop that was held July 31 and August 1, 2019 to begin addressing the needs, opportunities, and challenges associated with the development, fabrication, and testing of the needed materials and components for integrated hybrid energy systems (i.e., incorporating nuclear, fossil, and renewables for electric and thermal applications). This was accomplished by assembling the research program leads and principal investigators at Idaho National Laboratory (INL), National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), and National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), who support the research and development of new technology and system integration. The team then identified and prioritized key materials development needs. This effort was intended to enhance communications and synergy among the Tri-Lab partners. Advanced functional and structural materials are central to transformative energy technologies for energy generation, conversion, delivery, and storage. With that in mind, the workshop focused on identifying and assessing the foundational materials research needs at both the basic and applied levels. Materials challenges include the ability to withstand harsh environments, such as high temperatures and pressures, corrosion, oxidation, or irradiation while maintaining flexible mission profiles and long service lifespans. Advanced energy system material challenges and needs range from materials for the capture, upgrading/concentration, storage, and delivery of low-grade heat to materials for high temperature environments that involve liquid metals, molten salt, and very high temperature gas heat delivery and storage systems. Material improvements are needed for hybrid energy systems due to accelerated corrosion and stress-fatigue failure of materials and equipment, which results from increased frequency and amplitude of thermal, mechanical, and electrical cycling of systems components. Multifunctional materials are needed for high temperature solid-oxide fuel cells, advanced electrochemical reactors, and in-process separation. Relative to materials manufacturing, application of advanced additive and subtractive methods need to be understood to develop both thin-layer homogenous materials and materials of graded composition. Materials modeling and machine learning will be critical to accelerate the design and production of power electronics, and nuclear reactor materials and fuel, as well as to gain an understanding of beneficial materials phenomena or deleterious microstructure evolution. There is also a need for standardized models, computational structures, data reporting protocols and modeling tools across the three laboratories. This would allow consistent results, analysis, and data sharing. Combining computational capabilities between the three laboratories (e.g., hardware, software) would greatly increase computational capabilities and throughput. The workshop identified the need for laboratories to anticipate and address problems that will occur during scale-up. Laboratory work must connect with industry to ensure that research focuses on processes that are scalable and marketable. Industry input and perspective are essential to guide laboratory research to meet these requirements and deploy new technology in industrial demonstrations. Another aspect of scale-up is the integration of multiple systems since new challenges often arise at the subsystem interfaces. Establishing a scale-up manufacturing demonstration/pilot plant, potentially as an industrial user facility, would be beneficial to the laboratories and industry. That modular scale-up manufacturing demonstration/pilot plant would allow researchers to find and resolve interface problems that cannot be identified by focusing only on individual parts. Communication exchanges among the organizers, attendees, and workshop survey responses indicate that the workshop was successful in achieving its goal to identify key technology gaps and research needs. Strong positive feedback was received on the sharing of ideas, capabilities, talent, and passion to move forward on the materials-related action items.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
NASA NTRS1976

A preliminary area survey of neutron radiation levels associated with the NASA variable energy cyclotron horizontal neutron delivery system

The 25 MeV deuteron beam from the NASA variable energy cyclotron incident on a thick beryllium target will deliver a tissue neutron dose rate of 2.14 rad micron A-min at a source to skin distance of 125 cm. A neutron survey of the existing hallways with various shielding configurations made during operating of the horizontal neutron delivery system indicates that minimal amounts of additional neutron shielding material are required to provide a low level radiation environment within a self-contained neutron therapy control station. Measurements also indicate that the primary neutron distribution delivered by a planned vertical delivery system will be minimally perturbed by neutrons backscattered from the floor.

Roberts, W. K.↗
NASA NTRS1993

PILOT: An intelligent distributed operations support system

The Real-Time Data System (RTDS) project is exploring the application of advanced technologies to the real-time flight operations environment of the Mission Control Centers at NASA's Johnson Space Center. The system, based on a network of engineering workstations, provides services such as delivery of real time telemetry data to flight control applications. To automate the operation of this complex distributed environment, a facility called PILOT (Process Integrity Level and Operation Tracker) is being developed. PILOT comprises a set of distributed agents cooperating with a rule-based expert system; together they monitor process operation and data flows throughout the RTDS network. The goal of PILOT is to provide unattended management and automated operation under user control.

Rasmussen, Arthur N.↗