Search NASA⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search NASA

Results for “sample delivery”

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 109 records · Page 6
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2016

Total Hydrocarbon Content (THC) Testing in Liquid Oxygen (LOX)

The measured Total Hydrocarbon Content (THC) levels in liquid oxygen (LOX) systems at Stennis Space Center (SSC) have shown wide variations. Examples of these variations include the following: 1) differences between vendor-supplied THC values and those obtained using standard SSC analysis procedures; and 2) increasing THC values over time at an active SSC test stand in both storage and run vessels. A detailed analysis of LOX sampling techniques, analytical instrumentation, and sampling procedures will be presented. Additional data obtained on LOX system operations and LOX delivery trailer THC values during the past 12-24 months will also be discussed. Field test results showing THC levels and the distribution of the THC's in the test stand run tank, modified for THC analysis via dip tubes, will be presented.

Meneghelli, B. J.↗
NASA NTRS2012

Cryogenic Curation of Lunar Samples Returned to Earth

Future lunar missions may collect samples that have been preserved at sub-freezing or even cryogenic temperatures. For such samples, the study of volatiles and temperature-sensitive minerals will have high priority. Valuable geochemical and mineralogical information will be lost if such samples are allowed to reach ambient temperatures on Earth. The ability to store, document, subdivide, and transport extraterrestrial geologic samples while maintaining sub-freezing or cryogenic temperatures, possibly as low as 40 K, is required for the complete scientific study of samples from cold environments. A lunar cryogenic sample return mission might require a combination of passive cooling during collection and cruise and active cooling during and after re-entry for maintaining desired temperatures. Once on Earth, cryocontainment must be maintained through delivery to a cryogenic chamber in the curatorial facility. This cryogenic curation chamber would include cameras and robotic manipulators for preliminary examination, subdivision of samples, and specialized sample allocation containers for shipment to laboratories world-wide. This presentation describes the planning and feasibility of cryogenic curation with current technologies developed for the superconductor industry. In addition, significant advanced research and development would be required to tailor some of these technologies to the task of sample return and long term curation of lunar samples at low temperatures in order to preserve their scientific integrity.

Calaway, Michael J.↗
NASA NTRS2004

Chemical and Solar Electric Propulsion Systems Analyses for Mars Sample Return Missions

Conceptual in-space transfer stages, including those utilizing solar electric propulsion, chemical propulsion, and chemical propulsion with aerobraking or aerocapture assist at Mars, were evaluated. Roundtrip Mars sample return mission vehicles were analyzed to determine how specific system technology selections influence payload delivery capability. Results show how specific engine, thruster, propellant, capture mode, trip time and launch vehicle technology choices would contribute to increasing payload or decreasing the size of the required launch vehicles. Heliocentric low-thrust trajectory analyses for Solar Electric Transfer were generated with the SEPTOP code.

Donahue, Benjamin B.↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

PlanetVac: Regolith Mining Systems for CLPS Blue Ghost Lander

PlanetVac is a revolutionary technology for acquiring and transferring regolith from almost any planetary body to instruments (for in situ analysis) or sample returned container (for sample return missions). PlanetVac uses a robust and dust tolerant pneumatic approach, similar to traditional pneumatic based pow-der delivery technologies used on Earth. The main difference is the sources of gas: PlanetVac uses a standalone gas canister to provide the working fluid.

Regolith↗
NASA NTRS1985

Continuous Fiberization of Silicon-Carbide-Nitride Precursor Resin

The objective of this project is to design and build a laboratory scale extruder and with it to fiberize 5000 continuous feet of silicon-carbide-nitride precursor resin. Subsequently the objective is extended to include the cross-linking and pyrolysis of approximately 100 feet of the resin fiber. The extruder is designed to accommodate approximately 1 cubic centimeter samples at accurately controllable rates corresponding to take-up from a single orifice of a 25 micron fiber at speeds in the 1000 feet/minute region. Positive feed delivery is achieved with a cylinder and piston driven by a geared down electric motor. Gear reduction is achieved primarily with off-the-shelf parts. Over 5000 feet of fiber, 20 to 30 micron diameter, are spun from precursor resin samples. The formation of continuous silicon carbide/silicon nitride fiber appears to be feasible.

Dunn, S. A.↗
NASA NTRS1999

MOD: An Organic Detector for the Future Exploration of Mars

The Mars Organic Detector (MOD) is designed to assess whether organic compounds, possibly associated with life, are present in Martian rock and soil samples. MOD has a detection limit that is at least two orders of magnitude more sensitive than the Viking GCMS. MOD is focused on detecting amino acids, amines and PAH (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons). Amino acids play an essential role in biochemistry on Earth and PAH are widespread throughout the universe and can provide an indication of the delivery of meteoritic organic material to Mars. The advantage of MOD is the absence of wet chemistry and its simple and robust design. The sample will be extracted from the mineral matrix (0.1 - 1 g of rock-powder) using sublimation and analyzed with a fluorescence detector. The isolation method is based on the fact that amino acids and PAH are volatile at temperatures greater than 150C. The fluorescence detection scheme is based on UV excitation with LED's, optical filters, PrN diode photon detector and a sample calibration reservoir. Fluorescamine is used as a fluorescing reagent for amino acids and amines, while PAH are naturally fluorescent. There is no sample preparation required and the turnaround time for a single analysis is on the order of minutes.

Kminek, G.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Passive Optical Sample Assembly (POSA) for STS-1 quick look post-mission report

A passively deployed array of contamination-sensitive samples was mounted and flown in the cargo bay of the space shuttle Columbia during the first orbital flight test. A similar unit was mounted in a different location in the cargo bay at Dryden Flight Research Center during the postflight operations there prior to the ferry flight return of Columbia to Kennedy Space Center. The samples in both POSA arrays were subjected to a series of optical and analytical measurements prior to delivery for installation in the cargo bay and after retrieval of the flight hardware. A quick-look summary of the results of a comparison of the series of measurements is presented.

Linton, R. C.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Passive Optical Sample Assembly (POSA)

A Passive Optical Sample Assembly (POSA) unit was mounted and flown in the cargo bay of the space shuttle Columbia during the first Orbital Flight Test (OFT-1). A similar unit was mounted in a different location in the cargo bay during the postflight operations. The samples in both POSA arrays were subjected to a series of optical and analytical measurements prior to delivery for installation in the cargo bay and after retrieval of the flight hardware. The final results of a comparison of the two series of measurements are presented. These STS-1 results are based on data obtained from only a portion of one of the ten Induced Environment Contamination Monitor instruments to be flown on several shuttle flights beginning with STS-2. These limited results do not indicate shuttle contamination levels in excess of those anticipated.

Linton, R. C.↗
NASA NTRS2012

Conformal Ablative Thermal Protection System for Planetary and Human Exploration Missions

The Office of Chief Technologist (OCT), NASA has identified the need for research and technology development in part from NASAs Strategic Goal 3.3 of the NASA Strategic Plan to develop and demonstrate the critical technologies that will make NASAs exploration, science, and discovery missions more affordable and more capable. Furthermore, the Game Changing Development Program (GCDP) is a primary avenue to achieve the Agencys 2011 strategic goal to Create the innovative new space technologies for our exploration, science, and economic future. In addition, recently released NASA Space Technology Roadmaps and Priorities, by the National Research Council (NRC) of the National Academy of Sciences stresses the need for NASA to invest in the very near term in specific EDL technologies. The report points out the following challenges (Page 2-38 of the pre-publication copy released on February 1, 2012): Mass to Surface: Develop the ability to deliver more payload to the destination. NASA's future missions will require ever-greater mass delivery capability in order to place scientifically significant instrument packages on distant bodies of interest, to facilitate sample returns from bodies of interest, and to enable human exploration of planets such as Mars. As the maximum mass that can be delivered to an entry interface is fixed for a given launch system and trajectory design, the mass delivered to the surface will require reductions in spacecraft structural mass more efficient, lighter thermal protection systems more efficient lighter propulsion systems and lighter, more efficient deceleration systems. Surface Access: Increase the ability to land at a variety of planetary locales and at a variety of times. Access to specific sites can be achieved via landing at a specific location(s) or transit from a single designated landing location, but it is currently infeasible to transit long distances and through extremely rugged terrain, requiring landing close to the site of interest. The entry environment is not always guaranteed with a direct entry, and improving the entry systems robustness to a variety of environmental conditions could aid in reaching more varied landing sites. The National Research Council (NRC) Space Technology Roadmaps and Priorities report highlights six challenges and they are: 1) Mass to Surface, 2) Surface Access, 3) Precision Landing, 4) Surface Hazard Detection and Avoidance, 5) Safety and Mission Assurance, and 6) Affordability. In order for NASA to meet these challenges, the report recommends immediate focus on Rigid and Flexible Thermal Protection Systems. Rigid TPS systems such as Avcoat or SLA are honeycomb based and PICA is in the form of tiles. The honeycomb systems is manufactured using techniques that require filling of each (3/8 cell) by hand and within a limited amount of time once the ablative compound is mixed, all of the cells have to be filled and the entire heat-shield has to be cured. The tile systems such as PICA pose a different challenge as the mechanical strength characteristic and the manufacturing limitations require large number of small tiles with gap-fillers between the tiles. Recent investments in flexible ablative systems have given rise to the potential for conformal ablative TPS> A conformal TPS over a rigid aeroshell has the potential to solve a number of challenges faced by traditional rigid TPS materials.

Beck, R.↗
NASA NTRS2012

Conformal Ablative Thermal Protection System for Planetary and Human Exploration Missions: Overview of the Technology Maturation Efforts Funded by NASA's Game Changing Development Program

The Office of Chief Technologist (OCT), NASA has identified the need for research and technology development in part from NASA's Strategic Goal 3.3 of the NASA Strategic Plan to develop and demonstrate the critical technologies that will make NASA's exploration, science, and discovery missions more affordable and more capable. Furthermore, the Game Changing Development Program (GCDP) is a primary avenue to achieve the Agency's 2011 strategic goal to "Create the innovative new space technologies for our exploration, science, and economic future." In addition, recently released "NASA space Technology Roadmaps and Priorities," by the National Research Council (NRC) of the National Academy of Sciences stresses the need for NASA to invest in the very near term in specific EDL technologies. The report points out the following challenges (Page 2-38 of the pre-publication copy released on February 1, 2012): Mass to Surface: Develop the ability to deliver more payload to the destination. NASA's future missions will require ever-greater mass delivery capability in order to place scientifically significant instrument packages on distant bodies of interest, to facilitate sample returns from bodies of interest, and to enable human exploration of planets such as Mars. As the maximum mass that can be delivered to an entry interface is fixed for a given launch system and trajectory design, the mass delivered to the surface will require reduction in spacecraft structural mass; more efficient, lighter thermal protection systems; more efficient lighter propulsion systems; and lighter, more efficient deceleration systems. Surface Access: Increase the ability to land at a variety of planetary locales and at a variety of times. Access to specific sites can be achieved via landing at a specific location (s) or transit from a single designated landing location, but it is currently infeasible to transit long distances and through extremely rugged terrain, requiring landing close to the site of interest. The entry environment is not always guaranteed with a direct entry, and improving the entry system's robustness to a variety of environmental conditions could aid in reaching more varied landing sites."

Beck, Robin A.↗
NASA NTRS2009

Characterization of Monomethyihydrazine (MMH) Non-Volatile Residue

The Space Shuttle program has a unique propellant purity requirement for determination of nonvolatile residue (NVR) in monomethylhydrazine (MMH). TIis requirement differs from the Military Specification procurement specification by requiring a NVR analysis with a limit of less than or equal to 10 milligrams per liter. In June 2008, a routine MMH replenishment delivery was transferred into a NASA KSC owned tanker for future delivery to the Space Shuffle pad MMH storage tank. Per Shuffle standard operating procedure, the receiving tanker was sampled and analyzed for purity and surprisingly it failed the Shuttle use NVR specification limit. Detailed examination of the NVR revealed that it was fundamentally different than the typical MMH NVR. This paper will examine various aspects of NVR determination in MMH and the analytical characterization processes used to identify the NVR.

Davis, Chuck↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Testing and validation of the microbial environment of the NASA rodent spaceflight habitat water delivery system.

Sterilized, deionized water within a closed, self-sufficient system has been used in NASA spaceflight rodent studies for several decades. Within the specialized spaceflight rodent habitat, water is delivered through a compression spring-loaded bag system to maintain positive pressure. Refill of the drinking water occurs every 30 days by direct transfer of potable water from aboard the International Space Station (ISS). This enables long term use without a weekly water change out, which meets spaceflight requirements, but contrasts with the general guidelines for the sanitation of water delivery systems. Even though the water is iodinated to minimize microbial growth, rodents are fed a special diet of high moisture nutrient-rich food bars based on the AIN-93 diet that may contribute to microbial growth in this water system. We designed a ground study to assess the quality of drinking water that is given to rodents throughout a mission. We conducted the ground test using 20 female C57BL/6J mice housed in this specialized habitat to mimic the timeline of a 90-day mission as well as the environmental conditions (temperature, humidity, and pCO2) within the ISS. We used a novel sampling method to test water at 2-week intervals for the 90-days, and also after each 30-day refill of the water delivery system. Mice in standard vivarium cages with water bottles were also included for comparison to the habitat. The results showed that overall microbial load remained close to zero for the duration, while total organic compound concentrations increased from 1370g/L to 10650g/L over the course of 90 days but remained below the level of concern. Inorganic ions and pH were also found to be at acceptable levels. Overall, we conclude that this system is effective in delivering clean, potable water to rodents for the 90-day duration of current missions to the ISS.

water↗
NASA NTRS1996

A Search for Extraterrestrial Amino Acids in Polar Ice: A Progress Report

Fifteen polar ice samples-fourteen from Greenland and one from Antarctica-have been analyzed for the extraterrestrial amino acid alpha-aminoisobutyric acid (AIB) in an effort to estimate the flux of interplanetary organic material to the Earth's surface. Only one sample (Greenland GISP II, 4270-4440 years old) contains detectable amounts of AIB, apparently the signature of a transient delivery event. The maximum oceanic concentration of AIB from such an event would be less than 10(exp-9) M.

Bada, Jeffrey L.↗
NASA NTRS2011

Investigating the Sources and Timing of Projectiles Striking the Lunar Surface

The lunar surface is exposed to bombardment by asteroids, comets, and debris from them. Surviving fragments of those projectiles in the lunar regolith provide a direct measure of the sources of exogenous material delivered to the Moon. Con-straining the temporal flux of their delivery will directly address key questions about the bombardment history of the inner Solar System. Regolith breccias, which are consolidated samples of the lunar regolith, were closed to further impact processing at the time they were assembled into rocks [1]. They are, therefore, time capsules of impact bombardment at different times through lunar history. Here we investigate the impact archive preserved in the Apollo 16 regolith breccias and compare this record to evidence of projectile species in other lunar samples.

Joy, K. H.↗
NASA NTRS2007

Sampling and Chemical Analysis of Potable Water for ISS Expeditions 12 and 13

The crews of Expeditions 12 and 13 aboard the International Space Station (ISS) continued to rely on potable water from two different sources, regenerated humidity condensate and Russian ground-supplied water. The Space Shuttle launched twice during the 12- months spanning both expeditions and docked with the ISS for delivery of hardware and supplies. However, no Shuttle potable water was transferred to the station during either of these missions. The chemical quality of the ISS onboard potable water supplies was verified by performing ground analyses of archival water samples at the Johnson Space Center (JSC) Water and Food Analytical Laboratory (WAFAL). Since no Shuttle flights launched during Expedition 12 and there was restricted return volume on the Russian Soyuz vehicle, only one chemical archive potable water sample was collected with U.S. hardware and returned during Expedition 12. This sample was collected in March 2006 and returned on Soyuz 11. The number and sensitivity of the chemical analyses performed on this sample were limited due to low sample volume. Shuttle flights STS-121 (ULF1.1) and STS-115 (12A) docked with the ISS in July and September of 2006, respectively. These flights returned to Earth with eight chemical archive potable water samples that were collected with U.S. hardware during Expedition 13. The average collected volume increased for these samples, allowing full chemical characterization to be performed. This paper presents a discussion of the results from chemical analyses performed on Expeditions 12 and 13 archive potable water samples. In addition to the results from the U.S. samples analyzed, results from pre-flight samples of Russian potable water delivered to the ISS on Progress vehicles and in-flight samples collected with Russian hardware during Expeditions 12 and 13 and analyzed at JSC are also discussed.

Straub, John E. II↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

In Situ Geochronology for the Next Decade

Geochronology, or determination of absolute ages for geologic events, underpins many inquiries into the formation and evolution of planets and our Solar System. The bombardment chronology inferred from lunar samples has played a significant role in the development of models of early Solar System and extrasolar planet dynamics, as well as the timing of volatile, organic, and siderophile element delivery. Absolute ages of ancient and recent magmatic products provide strong constraints on the dynamics of magma oceans and crustal formation, and the longevity and evolution of interior heat engines and distinct mantle/crustal source regions. Absolute dating also relates habitability markers to the timescale of evolution of life on Earth. The number of geochronologically-significant terrains across the inner Solar System far exceeds our ability to conduct sample return to all of them. Therefore NASA has invested in the development of in situ dating techniques; several such instruments will be TRL 6 by the time of the next Decadal Survey. We formulated a set of medium-class (New Frontiers) mission concepts to three different locations (the Moon, Mars, and Vesta) with a notional payload consisting of the CDEX and KArLE instruments to measure radiometric ages, an imaging spectrometer and optical cameras to provide site geologic context and sample characterization, an ICP-MS to augment sample contextualization, and a sample acquisition and handling system. A Vesta hopper and single-site lunar and Mars landers to advance Solar System chronology fit into the New Frontiers cost cap in our study. Such missions would also enable a broad suite of geologic investigations such as basic geologic characterization, geomorphologic analysis, establishing ground truth for remote sensing analyses, analyses of major, minor, trace, and volatile elements, atmospheric and other long-lived monitoring, organic molecule analyses, and soil and geotechnical properties.

Barbara A Cohen↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Impact of NASA’s Entry Systems Modeling Project on Planetary Mission Design

Planetary missions continue to grow larger and more complex. Furthermore, the current focus on human exploration of the Moon and Mars, as well as Mars Sample Return(MSR), place increas-ingly stringent requirements on the reliability of the entry, descent, and landing (EDL) system that ensures the safe delivery of payload or crew to their destination. Planetary EDL is an area in which mission designers are critically reliant on modeling and simulation to demonstrate the reliability of the system, as there are no ground facilities that are able to fully test these systems in a flight-relevant environment. NASA’s state-of-the-art modeling and simulation capability must continually evolve to meet the needs of the next generation of planetary EDL. To accomplish this aim, NASA’s Entry Systems Modeling (ESM) Project was formed in 2013and is funded bythe Space Technology Mission Directorate(STMD) and Science Mission Directorate (SMD). ESM is the Agency’s only cross-cutting effort for advancing entry systems modeling and simulation capabilities across a range of technical disciplines and Solar System destinations. ESM is a portfolio project covering a variety of mid-TRL research efforts within four core EDL-related areas of investment: (1) Thermal protection material modeling, (2) Shock layer kinetics and radiation, (3) Aerosciences, and (4) Guidance, navigation, and con-trol. The material modeling group creates detailed material response modelsof thermal protection systems (TPS)from the micro to macro scale, and at the fun-damental and engineering levels. Shock layer kinetics and radiation focuses on radiative heating of space-craft, quantum chemistry and benchmark experiments for validation.Aerosciences is a broad research area that impacts many aspects of entry systems, including parachutes, aerodynamics, and turbulent heating augmentation due to TPS roughness.The guidance, navigation,and control effort under ESM is expanding the capabilities of NASA’s main flight mechanics tool, POST2, for use on high-performance computing architectures and to generalize interoperability with external applications for more detailed end-to-end simula-tion.In addition, several focusedresearch topics have been approvedto augment ESM’s core portfolio. These include efforts for deep post-flight analysis of Mars 2020/MEDLI2 flight data; development ofTPS failure models; improvement of hypersonic wakeflow models; and a recently concluded effort to provide material response models for NuSil-coated PICA heat-shield material. This presentation will discuss each of these investment areas and demonstrate via real mission examples how advances to the state-of-the-art enabled by ESM are directly impacting the missions of today and tomorrow, including InSight, Mars 2020, Mars Sample Return, Orion, and Dragonfly.

Entry Systems Modeling↗
NASA NTRS1981

Type 'A' V/STOL - One aircraft for all support missions

An investigation is conducted regarding the feasibility of developing a single support aircraft type for the Navy, taking into account the current naval inventory of utility aircraft types. Support mission characteristics are examined, giving attention to antisubmarine warfare, airborne early warning, marine assault, carrier on board delivery/vertical on board delivery, the aerial tanker mission, long-range rescue, surface attack, and aspects of combat, search, and rescue. With the aid of a sample design for a V/STOL aircraft with a medium disc loading lift system it is demonstrated that it is now possible to design an aircraft which, with minor modifications, can meet the wide variety of support missions.

Adelt, W. H.↗