SEARCH · Search NASA
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.
To test the crease resistance of sheet materials, the mid-section is folded over crease-control blades. One end is clamped to a motor-driven eccentric, the other to a spring, and durability is measured by the cycles required to produce failure.
Crease and fold resistance of polymeric films and test equipment for determining mechanical properties is discussed. Components of equipment and method of operation are described. Illustration of test device is provided.
Five Kevlar based laminates and three Kevlar based coated materials were designed, hand made, and tested against comparative conventional Dacron based materials for strength, peel, tear, puncture, creases, and handle. Emphasis was placed on evaluating geometric orientation of constituents, use of elastomeric film in place of high modulus films, and the use of flying thread loom bias reinforcement of Kevlar yarns. Whereas, the performance of the Kevlar laminates was severely degraded by crease effects, significant gains in overall performance factors were shown for the coated Kevlar materials.
UltraSail is a next-generation, highrisk, high-payoff sail system for the launch, deployment, stabilization, and control of very large (km2 class) solar sails enabling high payload mass fractions for interplanetary and deep space spacecraft. UltraSail is a non-traditional approach to propulsion technology achieved by combining propulsion and control systems developed for formation- flying microsatellites with an innovative solar sail architecture to achieve controllable sail areas approaching 1 km2, sail subsystem area densities approaching 1 g/m2, and thrust levels many times those of ion thrusters used for comparable deep space missions. UltraSail can achieve outer planetary rendezvous, a deep-space capability now reserved for high-mass nuclear and chemical systems. There is a twofold rationale behind the UltraSail concept for advanced solar sail systems. The first is that sail-andboom systems are inherently size-limited. The boom mass must be kept small, and column buckling limits the boom length to a few hundred meters. By eliminating the boom, UltraSail not only offers larger sail area, but also lower areal density, allowing larger payloads and shorter mission transit times. The second rationale for UltraSail is that sail films present deployment handling difficulties as the film thickness approaches one micrometer. The square sail requires that the film be folded in two directions for launch, and similarly unfolded for deployment. The film is stressed at the intersection of two folds, and this stress varies inversely with the film thickness. This stress can cause the film to yield, forming a permanent crease, or worse, to perforate. By rolling the film as UltraSail does, creases are prevented. Because the film is so thin, the roll thickness is small. Dynamic structural analysis of UltraSail coupled with dynamic control analysis shows that the system can be designed to eliminate longitudinal torsional waves created while controlling the pitch of the blades, while using solar photon pressure to slew the spin axis. Vacuum tests have also verified that electrostatic and molecular adhesion forces can substantially be eliminated by making the film electrically conductive, reducing the peel force of the film off the storage roll to levels of 100s of micro-N. The innovation demonstrated the capability of deploying a six-micron aluminum- coated film from a reel through a slit in vacuum. The innovation also demonstrated a spin-stabilized method for deploying a long reel of solar sail film using solar pressure to spin-up and orbit raise the satellite, and also a gravity gradient method for deploying a long reel of solar sail film using solar pressure to orbit raise the satellite. The solar sail mass fraction of 25% is consistent with high specific impulse ion systems, but without the added weight and cost of a power source and processing unit. The large sail area, coupled with low film density, is giving UltraSail a high payload fraction. The UltraSail deployment scheme unrolls a micrometerscale reflection-coated polyimide film from a storage mandrel to a maximum length of several kilometers with the aid of a blade tip satellite.
A knowledge-based aerodynamic design method, Constrained Direct Iterative Surface Cur-vature (CDISC), has been leveraged for the computational design exploration of a Common Research Model with Reduced-Sweep and Slotted Wings (CRMRS-SW). Cruise-slotted-wing airfoils include a slot near the trailing edge of a main airfoil component to introduce stream air to the low-momentum, upper-surface boundary layer on a flap airfoil component with the goal of allowing for a more aft loading, relative to supercritical airfoils, without shock-induced separation. Ultimately, the cruise slotted wing is a passive technology that allows for an in-crease in the drag divergence Mach number and/or an increase in aerodynamic efficiency at agiven cruise condition. These aerodynamic benefits may be realized at the vehicle level through a trade space that includes the following design options: increasing cruise Mach number, in-creasing wing thickness, decreasing wing sweep, increasing lift coefficient and/or decreasing drag coefficient. The present study aimed to evaluate the slotted-wing concept’s potential as adrag-saving technology in application to a single-aisle transonic transport aircraft at a given cruise condition. The CDISC design method was used to develop a better understanding of the slotted-wing design variables that have a significant impact on the variability in aircraft drag and leverage this newly-developed knowledge to quantify the aerodynamic performance benefits enabled by the cruise slotted wing.
This paper summarizes some of the more pertinent results of NASA investigations related to the aerodynamics of jet VTOL engine installations. It shows that there is a base loss in hovering due to suction forces creased on the underside of the fuselage by the entrainment of ambient air in the slipstream, and that the magnitude of this effect is related to the turbulence in the jet stream and its consequent rate of mixing with ambient air. It also shows that there are large lift losses and pitching moments due to jet-free-stream interference and that these characteristics can be significantly altered by proximity to the ground. And, finally, it shows that simple bellmouth inlets give good pressure recovery and low distortion for vertically mounted lift engines if the inlet lip radius is sufficiently large, but that such inlets are not suitable for windmill starting of the engines.
Vise grip pliers have detachable metal gripping plates which are changed to accommodate cables from 1 to 3 in. wide and to form any desired fold angle. A second tool squeezes cable along crease to complete the fold.
A method is proposed for reducing or eliminating outgassing of materials by heat treating them in vacuum prior to use. This may be performed on the raw material prior to manufacturing and installation or after fabrication of parts. Processing of a fabricated part can be performed only on relatively small parts and on assemblies containing no components which are affected by the required temperatures and pressures. Processing conditions of temperature and time are dependent on the particular application and the materials involved. Silicone-coated fiber glass cloth was vacuum-heat treated for 100 hrs at 400 + or - 25 F at pressures of 0.001 torr or less. The materials were tested in terms of tensile strength and tear properties in both the smooth and several creased configurations. Data obtained on one side silicone coated fiber glass showed large reductions in these properties as a result of the vacuum-heat treatment. The problem was alleviated by coating both sides of the fiber glass.
Design, manufacture and testing of laminated and coated composite materials incorporating a structural matrix of Kevlar are reported in detail. The practicality of using Kevlar in aerostat materials is demonstrated and data are provided on practical weaves, lamination and coating particulars, rigidity, strength, weight, elastic coefficients, abrasion resistance, crease effects, peel strength, blocking tendencies, helium permeability, and fabrication techniques. Properties of the Kevlar based materials are compared with conventional, Dacron reinforced counterparts. A comprehensive test and qualification program is discussed and quantitative biaxial tensile and shear test data are provided. The investigation shows that single ply laminates of Kevlar and plastic films offer significant strength to weight improvements, are less permeable than two ply coated materials, but have a lower flex life.
Design, manufacture and testing of laminated and coated composite materials incorporating a structural matrix of Kevlar are reported. The practicality of using Kevlar in aerostat materials is demonstrated, and data are provided on practical weaves, lamination and coating particulars, rigidity, strength, weight, elastic coefficients, abrasion resistance, crease effects, peel strength, blocking tendencies, helium permeability, and fabrication techniques. Properties of the Kevlar-based materials are compared with conventional Dacron-reinforced counterparts. A comprehensive test and qualification program is discussed, and considerable quantitative biaxial tensile and shear test data are provided.
Several analytical studies of topics relevant to the design of large space structures are presented. Topics covered are: the types and quantitative evaluation of the disturbances to which large Earth-oriented microwave reflectors would be subjected and the resulting attitude errors of such spacecraft; the influence of errors in the structural geometry of the performance of radiofrequency antennas; the effect of creasing on the flatness of tensioned reflector membrane surface; and an analysis of the statistics of damage to truss-type structures due to meteoroids.
Two coupled, nonlinear differential equations are proposed for the modeling of the elastic and rate (time) dependent inelastic behavior of structural metals in the absence of recovery and aging. The structure of the model is close to the unified theories but contains essential differences. It is shown that the model reproduces almost elastic regions upon initial loading and in the unloading regions of the hysteresis loop. Under loading, unloading and reloading in strain control the model simulated the experimentally observed sharp transition from nearly elastic to inelastic behavior. When a formulation akin to existing unified theories is adopted the almost elastic regions reduce the points and the transition upon reloading is very gradual. For different formulations the behavior under sudden in(de)creases of the strain rate by two orders of magnitude is simulated by numerical experiments and differences are noted. The model represents cyclically neutral behavior and contains three constants and two positive, decreasing functions. The determination of constants and functions from monotonic loading with strain rate changes and relaxation periods is described.
A peristaltic pump is disclosed which includes a roller assembly on which is mounted a series of pump rollers. As the roller assembly is rotated by a drive gear the pump rollers are driven in reverse rotation by means of a stationary ring gear and pump roller gears. An upper pressure shoe plate and a lower pressure shoe plate are positioned above sets of flexible tubing. The tubing is sandwiched between the pressure shoe plates and the pump rollers. A highly compact pump is provided having twice as many fluid channel lines as is conventional. The peristaltic pump device may be remotely operated by means of a rotary actuator which rotates a driving hub to move the shoe plates by means of eccentrically mounted links. The pressure shoe plates may be moved by the rotary actuator to a loaded position in which the fluid lines are pinched by the pump rollers and fluid is pumped to an unloaded position in which the fluid lines are maintained in an undeformed, uncrimped configuration so that no creases or crimps are set into the fluid lines during periods of prolonged nonuse.
Two coupled, nonlinear differential equations are proposed for the modeling of the elastic and rate (time) dependent inelastic behavior of structural metals in the absence of recovery and aging. The structure of the model is close to the unified theories but contains essential differences. It is shown that the model reproduces almost elastic regions upon initial loading and in the unloading regions of the hysteresis loop. Under loading, unloading and reloading in strain control the model simulated the experimentally observed sharp transition from nearly elastic to inelastic behavior. When a formulation akin to existing unified theories is adopted the almost elastic regions reduce the points and the transition upon reloading is very gradual. For different formulations the behavior under sudden in(de)creases of the strain rate by two orders of magnitude is simulated by numerical experiments and differences are noted. The model represents cyclically neutral behavior and contains three constants and two positive, decreasing functions. The determination of constants and functions from monotonic loading with strain rate changes and relaxation periods is described.
Because Space Station Freedom (SSF) is an independent satellite, not depending upon another spacecraft for power, attitude control, or thermal regulation, it has a variety of tubular, fluid-carrying assemblies on-board. The systems of interest in this analysis provide breathing air (oxygen and nitrogen), a working fluid (two-phase anhydrous ammonia) for thermal control, and a monopropellant (hydrazine) for station reboost. The tube assemblies run both internally and externally with respect to the habitats. They are found in up to 50 ft. continuous lengths constructed of mostly AISI 316L stainless steel tubing, but also including some Inconel 625 nickel-iron and Monel 400 nickel-copper alloy tubing. The outer diameters (OD) of the tubes range from 0.25-1.25 inches, and the wall thickness between 0.028-.095 inches. The system operational pressures range from 377 psi (for the thermal control system) to 3400 psi (for the high pressure oxygen and nitrogen supply lines in the ECLSS). SSF is designed for a fifteen to thirty year mission. It is likely that the tubular assemblies (TA's) will sustain damage or fail during this lifetime such that they require repair or replacement. The nature of the damage will be combinations of punctures, chips, scratches, and creases and may be cosmetic or actually leaking. The causes of these hypothetical problems are postulated to be: (1) faulty or fatigued fluid joints--both QD's and butt-welds; (2) micro-meteoroid impacts; (3) collison with another man-made object; and (4) over-pressure strain or burst (system origin). While the current NASA baseline may be to temporarily patch the lines by clamping metal c-sections over the defect, and then perform high pressure injection of a sealing compound, it is clear that permanent repair of the line(s) is necessary. This permanent repair could be to replace the entire TA in the segment, or perhaps the segment itself, both alternatives being extremely expensive and risky. The former would likely require extensive EVA to release TA clamps and pose great risk to other engineering subsystems, and the latter would require major de-servicing of the Station.
This paper reports new biomarker and carbon isotopic data for cultured cyanobacteria, cyano-bacterially- dominated ecosystems and ancient sedi-ments and petroleum. We found that cyanobacteria are the predominant source of a distinctive membrane lipid biomarker, namely 2- methylbacteriohopanepolyol (2-Me-BHP). We then sought evidence for a geochemical record of the fossil hydrocarbon analogues of these compounds (2- methylhopanes) and found a trend toward their in-creased relative abundance in marine sediments going back through geological time to 2500 Ma. We conclude that cyanobacteria were the dominant form of phytoplankton and source of molecular oxygen in the Proterozoic ocean. Extending the geological record of cyanobacteria further to Archean times is now a matter of finding a suitably preserved rock record. Additional information is contained in the original extended abstract.
The present investigation reports a study of bubble generation under reduced gravity conditions, using both a co-flow and a cross-flow configuration. This study may be used in the conceptual design of a space-based thermal management system. Ensuing two-phase flow void fraction can be accurately monitored using a single nozzle gas injection system within a continuous liquid flow conduit, as utilized in the present investigation. Accurate monitoring of void fraction leads to precise control of heat and mass transfer coefficients related to a thermal management system; hence providing an efficient and highly effective means of removing heat aboard spacecraft or space stations. Our experiments are performed in parabolic flight aboard the modified DC-9 Reduced Gravity Research Aircraft at NASA Lewis Research Center, using an air-water system. For the purpose of bubble dispersion in a flowing liquid, we use both a co-flow and a cross-flow configuration. In the co-flow geometry, air is introduced through a nozzle in the same direction with the liquid flow. On the other hand, in the cross-flow configuration, air is injected perpendicular to the direction of water flow, via a nozzle protruding inside the two-phase flow conduit. Three different flow conduit (pipe) diameters are used, namely, 1.27 cm, 1.9 cm and 2.54 cm. Two different ratios of nozzle to pipe diameter (D(sub N))sup * are considered, namely (D(sub N))sup * = 0.1 and 0.2, while superficial liquid velocities are varied from 8 to 70 cm/s depending on flow conduit diameter. It is experimentally observed that by holding all other flow conditions and geometry constant, generated bubbles decrease in size with increase in superficial liquid velocity. Detached bubble diameter is shown to increase with air injection nozzle diameter. Likewise, generated bubbles grow in size with increasing pipe diameter. Along the same lines, it is shown that bubble frequency of formation increases and hence the time to detachment of a forming bubble decreases, as the superficial liquid velocity is in-creased. Furthermore, it is shown that the void fraction of the resulting two-phase flow increases with volumetric gas flow rate Q(sub d), pipe diameter and gas injection nozzle diameter, while they decrease with surrounding liquid flow. The important role played by flowing liquid in detaching bubbles in a reduced gravity environment is thus emphasized. We observe that the void fraction can be accurately controlled by using single nozzle gas injection, rather than by employing multiple port injection, since the later system gives rise to unpredictable coalescence of adjacent bubbles. It is of interest to note that empirical bubble size and corresponding void fraction are somewhat smaller for the co-flow geometry than the cross-flow configuration at similar flow conditions with similar pipe and nozzle diameters. In order to supplement the empirical data, a theoretical model is employed to study single bubble generation in the dynamic (Q(sub d) = 1 - 1000 cu cm/s) and bubbly flow regime within the framework of the co-flow configuration. This theoretical model is based on an overall force balance acting on the bubble during the two stages of generation, namely the expansion and the detachment stage. Two sets of forces, one aiding and the other inhibiting bubble detachment are identified. Under conditions of reduced gravity, gas momentum flux enhances, while the surface tension force at the air injection nozzle tip inhibits bubble detachment. In parallel, liquid drag and inertia can act as both attaching and detaching forces, depending on the relative velocity of the bubble with respect to the surrounding liquid. Predictions of the theoretical model compare well with our experimental results. However, at higher superficial liquid velocities, as the bubble loses its spherical form, empirical bubble size no longer matches the theoretical predictions. In summary, we have developed a combined experimental and theoretical work, which describes the complex process of bubble generation and resulting two-phase flow in a microgravity environment. Results of the present study can be used in a wide range of space-based applications, such as thermal energy and power generation, propulsion, cryogenic storage and long duration life support systems, necessary for programs such as NASA's Human Exploration for the Development of Space (HEDS).
We summarize astronomical, meteoritic, and theoretical evidence relating to the FU Orionis phenomenon. This evidence suggests that at early times (the first few 10(exp 5) yr), the solar nebula experienced a hot phase characterized by high accretion rates (the "FU Ori epoch"), punctuated by episodic outbursts of enhanced mass flow through the inner part of the disk (less than or equal to 0.3 AU). Throughout this epoch, disk midplane temperatures exceeded 1000 K at 1 AU. Diminishing infall from the cloud core led to decreasing mass flux throughout the disk. When mass flow de creased below the value critical for outburst (5 x 10(exp -7) solar mass/yr, as suggested by thermal ionization instability models), outbursts ceased and the T Tauri epoch began. Outburst timescales are too long to explain calcium- and aluminum-rich inclusion (CAI) and chondrule formation. Volatility-dependent fractionation patterns seen in meteoritic materials suggest that solids formed beginning during a hot epoch when temperatures exceeded 1400 K, and the presence of volatiles in chondrites argues that this process continued until the nebula had cooled to below 400 K. The thermal ionization instability model for FU Ori outbursts is in quantitative agreement with astronomical observations. Its results imply that the terrestrial region of the nebula reached the hot end of this range only during a time when mass flow through the disk was high enough to trigger outbursts (i.e., the FU Ori epoch) and reached the cool end of this range only during the later T Tauri epoch. According to the models, heating of material in the terrestrial planet region during individual FU Ori outbursts would be limited to surface layers of the nebula, leaving midplane materials (which are at greater than or equal to 1000 K) largely unaffected. Alternative FU Ori models should be developed, particularly if compositional differences among chondrite clans are attributable to episodic heating.