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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 19 records
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1986

Long term exposure of metals to hydrazine nitrate blend

A long term testing program is being conducted to determine the effects of materials in contact with a hydrazine nitrate blend for the purpose of designing chemical propulsion systems which can be used for current as well as future planetary spacecraft. Analysis of this data indicates that some aluminum alloys are acceptable for use with the particular blend of fuel used. Titanium alloy was identified as being acceptable for 10-year applications. Corrosion resistant steels, however, were found to have excessive corrosion rates and are therefore considered unacceptable for long-term use. There is also some evidence that the propellant decomposed at a rate far in excess of the acceptable rate of 0.1 percent per year when in contact with stainless steel.

Moran, Clifford M.↗
NASA NTRS1972

Material Compatibility with Space Storable Propellants. Design Guidebook

An important consideration in the design of spacecraft for interplanetary missions is the compatibility of storage materials with the propellants. Serious problems can arise because many propellants are either extremely reactive or subject to catalytic decomposition, making the selection of proper materials of construction for propellant containment and control a critical requirement for the long-life applications. To aid in selecting materials and designing and evaluating various propulsion subsystems, available information on the compatibility of spacecraft materials with propellants of interest was compiled from literature searches and personal contacts. The compatibility of both metals and nonmetals with hydrazine, monomethyl hydrazine, nitrated hydrazine, and diborance fuels and nitrogen tetroxide, fluorine, oxygen difluoride, and Flox oxidizers was surveyed. These fuels and oxidizers encompass the wide variety of problems encountered in propellant storage. As such, they present worst case situations of the propellant affecting the material and the material affecting the propellant. This includes material attack, propellant decomposition, and the formation of clogging materials.

Uney, P. E.↗
NASA NTRS1962

STABILITY TESTS OF MONOPROPELLANTS EXPOSED TO FLAMES AND RIFLE FIRE

Tests of the stability of several monopropellants under the effects of impact and heat were conducted in order to assess the potential hazard in a propellant storage area from major fires and enemy attack. Hydrazine, hydrazine nitrate solution, n-propyl nitrate, and ethylene oxide were all tested in one-gallon aluminum containers (half of them filled to 25% and half to 95% capacity) by being subjected to oil bonfires and wood bonfires, and 20-mm incendiary, 20mm high explosive incendiary, and .30-caliber rifle fire. Aviation gasoline was tested in the same manner, for comparison. In the bonfire tests, all four monopropellants generally gave explosion intensities equivalent to one another regardless of the type of bonfire (oil or wood) or the amount of liquid in the test container. Occasionally, however, with hydrazine, hydrazine nitrate solution, and n-propyl nitrate, anomalous results occurred: there was either (a) no explosion or (b) an explosion of above average intensity. Ethylene oxide more nearly approximated the behavior of aviation gasoline than did the other monopropellants. In the rifle-fire tests, n-propyl nitrate appeared to be most shock- sensitive since it was exploded by all three types of ammunition. Hydrazine and hydrazine nitrate solution were exploded by the high-explosive ammunition, but not by the incendiary or .30-dber ammunition. Ethylene oxide was not exploded by any of the gunfire, but the liquid was ignited by both incendiary and high-explosive incendiary ammunition.

FIRING↗
NASA NTRS1976

Propellant material compatibility program and results

The effects of long-term (up to 10 years) contact of inert materials with earth-storable propellants were studied for the purpose of designing chemical propulsion system components that can be used for current as well as future planetary spacecraft. The primary experimental work, and results to date are reported. Investigations include the following propellants: hydrazine, hydrazine-hydrazine nitrate blends, monomethyl-hydrazine, and nitrogen tetroxide. Materials include: aluminum alloys, corrosion-resistant steels, and titanium alloys. More than 700 test specimen capsules were placed in long-term storage testing at 43 C in the special material compatibility facility. Material ratings relative to the 10-year requirement have been assigned.

Toth, L. R.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Spacecraft contamination prediction and testing techniques

Techniques used in the prediction of spacecraft contamination for the Galileo Jupiter Orbiter and in the determination of the effects of such contamination are presented. Following a quick-look assessment of the contributions of ground-based initial contaminant loading, launch vehicle interface effects, vacuum-exposed outgassing deposition and attitude control thruster impingement and venting to the spacecraft contamination burden, the evaluations centered on the effects of the attitude control thruster on the scan platform optics, including calculations of thruster flowfields and a high-fidelity computer simulation of contaminant distribution. The evaluations revealed a considerable problem with thruster contamination, which could be solved by the use of a thrust shield and the avoidance of thruster operation at certain scan platform orientations. The effects of the various possible contaminants on spacecraft thermal and optical system performances were also investigated in studies of the optical transmittance of deposited monomethyl hydrazine nitrate, vacuum optical degradation due to contaminant outgassing and re-emission outgassing, and an operational satellite contaminant monitor on the NOAA-C satellite. It is concluded that with a good evaluation and testing program, contamination control may become a necessary portion of system design procedures, and recommendations for the implementation of various practices and tests to minimize contamination effects are presented.

Jeffery, J. A.↗
NASA NTRS1972

Design, testing, fabrication and launch support of a liquid chemical barium release payload (utilizing the liquid fluorine-barium salt/hydrazine system)

A payload was designed which included a cryogenic oxidizer tank, a fuel tank, and burner section. Release of 30 lb of chemicals was planned to occur in 2 seconds at the optimum oxidizer to fuel ratio. The chemicals consisted of 17 lb of liquid fluorine oxidizer and 13 lb of hydrazine-barium salt fuel mixture. The fuel mixture was 17% barium chloride, 16% barium nitrate, and 67% hydrazine, and contained 2.6 lb of available barium. Two significant problem areas were resolved during the program: explosive valve development and burner operation. The release payload was flight tested, from Wallops Island, Virginia. The release took place at an altitude of approximately 260 km. The release produced a luminous cloud which expanded very rapidly, disappearing to the human eye in about 20 seconds. Barium ion concentration slowly increased over a wide area of sky until measurements were discontinued at sunrise (about 30 minutes).

Stokes, C. S.↗
NASA NTRS1972

Investigation of critical burning of fuel droplets

Measurements were made on the burning of liquid hydrazine, MMH, and UDMH in a combustion gas environment. The experimental range of these tests involved gas temperatures of 1660-2530 K, oxygen concentrations of 0-42% by mass and droplet diameters (employing both droplets and porous spheres) of 0.11-1.91 cm. at atmospheric pressure. A simplified hybrid combustion theory was developed which was found to correlate the present results as well as the experimental measurements of other investigators. Measurements were also made of the monopropellant strand burning rates and liquid surface temperatures of a number of nitrate ester fuels and hydrazine at elevated pressures. The temperature measurements for the nitrate esters were found to be in good agreement with a theoretical model which allowed for gas solubility in the liquid phase at high pressures. Experimental results were also obtained on the burning rates and liquid surface temperatures of a number of paraffin and alcohol fuels burning in air pressures up to 72 atm. For these tests, the fuels were burned from porous spheres in a natural convection environment. Initial findings on a pressurized flat flame burner are also described as well as the design of an oscillatory combustion apparatus to test the response of burning liquid fuels.

Allison, C. B.↗
NASA NTRS1993

Status of the CNRS-LCSR program on high pressure droplet vaporization and burning

Depending on the surrounding flow and thermodynamic conditions, a single droplet may experience several gasification regimes, ranging from the envelope flame regime to pure vaporization. In practical situations, such as rocket propulsion or diesel combustion, the size distribution of droplets is, at best, bimodal, so that the possibility exists for the simultaneous presence of various regimes. For example, very small droplets are transported by the gas phase with zero relative velocity. This picture validates then the spherical symmetry hypothesis applied to the droplet and to the diffusion flame enveloping it. On the other hand, for larger droplets, a relative velocity exists due to drag forces. The most important influence of forced convection on droplet burning is the possibility to extinguish globally the envelope flame, or to establish a flame stabilized in the wake region. The burning rates of these regimes differ strongly. The characteristic time of droplet gasification is also influenced by the surrounding pressure and temperature. A parametric investigation of single droplet burning regimes is then helpful in providing the necessary physical ideas for sub-grid models used in spray combustion numerical prediction codes. The CNRS-LCSR experimental program on droplet vaporization and burning deals with these various regimes: stagnant and convective monocomponent droplet burning convective mono and bicomponent droplet vaporization; high temperature convective mono and biocomponent droplet vaporization; burning regimes of hydrazine and hydroxyl-ammonium-nitrate based monopropellant droplets and the vaporization regimes of liquid oxygen droplets. Studies on interacting droplets and on liquid aluminum droplets will start in the near future. The influence of high pressure is a common feature of all these studies. This paper summarizes the status of the CNRS-LCSR program on the effects of high pressure on monocomponent single droplet burning and vaporization, and some recent results obtained under normal and reduced gravity conditions with suspended droplets are presented. In the work described here, parabolic flights of an aircraft is used to create a reduced gravity environment of the order of 10(exp -2) g.

Chauveau, Christian↗
NASA NTRS1998

"Green" Monopropellant Developed for Spacecraft

The NASA Lewis Research Center and Primex Aerospace Company have developed a "green" monopropellant and thruster for replacement of the toxic hydrazine thrusters presently being used on most spacecraft. The thruster developed is a derivative of the Primex 1-lbf hydrazine MR-111C and operates on a hydroxylammonium nitrate (HAN)- based monopropellant. Initial thruster tests have resulted in a specific impulse of 195 sec and a density-specific impulse of 275 g-sec/cm3 (which is 25-percent greater than for stateof- the-art hydrazine thrusters).

Jankovsky, Robert S.↗
NASA NTRS2015

Nontoxic Hydroxylammonium Nitrate (HAN) Monopropellant Propulsion

Nontoxic monopropellants have been developed that provide better performance than toxic hydrazine. Formulations based on HAN have superior performance as compared to hydrazine with enhanced specific impulse (Isp), higher density and volumetric impulse, lower melting point, and much lower toxicity. However, HAN-based monopropellants require higher chamber temperatures (2,083 K vs. 883 K) to combust. Current hydrazine-based combustion chamber technology (Inconel® or niobium C103 and silicide coating) and catalyst (Shell 405) are inadequate. In Phase I, state-of-the-art iridium-lined rhenium chambers and innovative new foam catalysts were demonstrated in pulse and 10-second firings. Phase II developed and tested a flight-weight thruster for an environmentally green monopropellant.

McKechnie, Timothy N.↗
NASA NTRS2004

On-Board Chemical Propulsion Technology

On-board propulsion functions include orbit insertion, orbit maintenance, constellation maintenance, precision positioning, in-space maneuvering, de-orbiting, vehicle reaction control, planetary retro, and planetary descent/ascent. This paper discusses on-board chemical propulsion technology, including bipropellants, monopropellants, and micropropulsion. Bipropellant propulsion has focused on maximizing the performance of Earth storable propellants by using high-temperature, oxidation-resistant chamber materials. The performance of bipropellant systems can be increased further, by operating at elevated chamber pressures and/or using higher energy oxidizers. Both options present system level difficulties for spacecraft, however. Monopropellant research has focused on mixtures composed of an aqueous solution of hydroxl ammonium nitrate (HAN) and a fuel component. HAN-based monopropellants, unlike hydrazine, do not present a vapor hazard and do not require extraordinary procedures for storage, handling, and disposal. HAN-based monopropellants generically have higher densities and lower freezing points than the state-of-art hydrazine and can higher performance, depending on the formulation. High-performance HAN-based monopropellants, however, have aggressive, high-temperature combustion environments and require advances in catalyst materials or suitable non-catalytic ignition options. The objective of the micropropulsion technology area is to develop low-cost, high-utility propulsion systems for the range of miniature spacecraft and precision propulsion applications.

Reed, Brian D.↗
NASA NTRS2013

Hydrocarbon-Seeded Ignition System for Small Spacecraft Thrusters Using Ionic Liquid Propellants

"Green" propellants based on Ionic-liquids (ILs) like Ammonium DiNitramide and Hydroxyl Ammonium Nitrate have recently been developed as reduced-hazard replacements for hydrazine. Compared to hydrazine, ILs offer up to a 50% improvement in available density-specific impulse. These materials present minimal vapor hazard at room temperature, and this property makes IL's potentially advantageous for "ride-share" launch opportunities where hazards introduced by hydrazine servicing are cost-prohibitive. Even though ILs present a reduced hazard compared to hydrazine, in crystalline form they are potentially explosive and are mixed in aqueous solutions to buffer against explosion. Unfortunately, the high water content makes IL-propellants difficult to ignite and currently a reliable "coldstart" capability does not exist. For reliable ignition, IL-propellants catalyst beds must be pre-heated to greater than 350 C before firing. The required preheat power source is substantial and presents a significant disadvantage for SmallSats where power budgets are extremely limited. Design and development of a "micro-hybrid" igniter designed to act as a "drop-in" replacement for existing IL catalyst beds is presented. The design requires significantly lower input energy and offers a smaller overall form factor. Unlike single-use "squib" pyrotechnic igniters, the system allows the gas generation cycle to be terminated and reinitiated on demand.

Whitmore, Stephen A.↗