Nasa's Spacecraft Battery Evaluation Program
Acceptance testing, performance characteristics, life cycling, and failed cell analysis in NASA SPACECRAFT battery evaluation program
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Acceptance testing, performance characteristics, life cycling, and failed cell analysis in NASA SPACECRAFT battery evaluation program
Sealed heat sterilizable high impact resistant battery for space missions, grafting acrylic acid and polyethylene by irradiation for separator
Green Hydrazine Propellant Blend (GHPB) is a new green propellant developed by Aerojet Rocketdyne and selected for continued testing at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC). It primarily differs from previous "green” propellants by maintaining traditional hydrazine as the base constituent, along with additives that are intended to increase handling safety by lowering the concentration of hydrazine in the vapor. GSFC has performed material compatibility testing. The scope of this campaign included materials that are common in spacecraft or ground support equipment (GSE), and also included typical safety materials (e.g. permeation rates through gloves). The conclusion in a broad sense is that GHPB is less reactive than hydrazine, including the absorption of metals into the propellant, as examined by Inductively-Coupled Plasma (ICP) analysis of metals uptake.
Ataxia test battery to assess postural equilibrium under rotating conditions and for use in testing vestibular apparatus
Local experimental heat-transfer coefficients were measured in the chamber and throat of a 2400-pound-thrust ammonia-oxygen rocket engine with a nominal chamber pressure of 600 pounds per square inch absolute. Three injector configurations were used. The rocket engine was run over a range of oxidant-fuel ratio and chamber pressure. The injector that achieved the best performance also produced the highest rates of heat flux at design conditions. The heat-transfer data from the best-performing injector agreed well with the simplified equation developed by Bartz at the throat region. A large spread of data was observed for the chamber. This spread was attributed generally to the variations of combustion processes. The spread was least evident, however, with the best-performing injector.
Despite significant technological advancements in space exploration, human space travel and colonization remain limited by the health risks associated with space radiation. Boron nitride nanotubes (BNNTs) have been proposed as an advanced material for space applications due to their high specific strength and efficient radiation shielding capabilities. However, the practical implementation of BNNTs has been slow, primarily due to technological challenges in fabricating structural materials incorporating BNNTs. In this study, a method is presented for fabricating high-density BNNT films that are mechanically robust, exhibit high thermal conductivity, and effectively attenuate space radiation. The key advancement enabling high-density BNNT films is the successful preparation of BNNT liquid crystals (LCs), achieved through the strategic use of a commercial dodecylbenzenesulfonic acid surfactant. This surfactant ensures exceptional BNNT stability in aqueous dispersion, even at concentrations exceeding the LC phase transition threshold. Simulations, estimating the equivalent radiation dose to the human body in space, indicate that a high-density BNNT film with a surface density of 50 g cm−2 reduces the total dose equivalent rate by 56% compared to zero shielding. This enhancement would allow astronauts to extend their mission duration on the lunar surface by a factor of two.
This report focuses on second-order digital phase-locked loops (DPLLs) with uniformly sampled input, an amplitude-insenstive phase extractor and a conventional loop filter.
Three-day battery capable of operation at temperature of 425 degrees C for use on lunar and planetary probes
Several aspects of lithium primary cell technology are discussed with respect to aerospace application. Particular attention is given to the statistical analysis of battery data and accelerated testing.
Features of the first operational nickel hydrogen battery are described as well as experiences encountered during its testing and installation. Battery performance since launching of the NTS-2 satellite is discussed.
Develop battery that will meet DS-2 power requirements under specified operational, environmental, and life requirements.
Low temperature batteries for deep space probes and extending battery usefulness by heating
Filler and matrix composite materials for use in silver-zinc battery separators
The laser altimeter, consisting of a Q switched ruby laser, transmitting optics, counting timer, receiving optics, and a photomultiplier is described. Harmonic analysis of the mission data is also presented.
Protein crystal growth experiments have been performed by this laboratory on 18 Space Shuttle missions since April, 1985. In addition, a number of microgravity experiments also have been performed and reported by other investigators. These Space Shuttle missions have been used to grow crystals of a variety of proteins using vapor diffusion, liquid diffusion, and temperature-induced crystallization techniques. The United States Microgravity Laboratory - 1 mission (USML-1, June 25 - July 9, 1992) was a Spacelab mission dedicated to experiments involved in materials processing. New protein crystal growth hardware was developed to allow in orbit examination of initial crystal growth results, the knowledge from which was used on subsequent days to prepare new crystal growth experiments. In addition, new seeding hardware and techniques were tested as well as techniques that would prepare crystals for analysis by x-ray diffraction, a capability projected for the planned Space Station. Hardware that was specifically developed for the USML-1 mission will be discussed along with the experimental results from this mission.
Inorganic fillers and pressure effects on films for separators for heat sterilizable silver zinc battery
Viewgraphs of a discussion on bipolar rechargeable lithium battery for high power applications are presented. Topics covered include cell chemistry, electrolytes, reaction mechanisms, cycling behavior, cycle life, and cell assembly.
Primary zinc-silver oxide battery - separator material, construction, and prototype cell evaluation