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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2010

Testing and Results of Vacuum Swing Adsorption Units for Spacesuit Carbon Dioxide and Humidity Control

A principal concern for extravehicular activity (EVA) space suits is the capability to control carbon dioxide (CO2) and humidity (H2O) for the crewmember. The release of CO2 in a confined or unventilated area is dangerous for human health and leads to asphyxiation; therefore, CO2 and H2O become leading factors in the design and development of the spacesuit. An amine-based CO2 and H2O vapor sorbent for use in pressure-swing re-generable beds has been developed by Hamilton Sundstrand. The application of solid-amine materials with vacuum swing adsorption technology has shown the capacity to concurrently manage CO2 and H2O levels through a fully regenerative cycle eliminating mission constraints imposed with non-regenerative technologies. Two prototype solid amine-based systems, known as rapid cycle amine (RCA), were designed to continuously remove CO2 and H2O vapor from a flowing ventilation stream through the use of a two-bed amine based, vacuum-swing adsorption system. The Engineering and Science Contract Group (ESCG) RCA is the first RCA unit implementing radial flow paths, whereas the Hamilton Sundstrand RCA was designed with linear flow paths. Testing was performed in a sea-level pressure environment and a reduced-pressure environment with simulated human metabolic loads in a closed-loop configuration. This paper presents the experimental results of laboratory testing for a full-size and a sub-scale test article. The testing described here characterized and evaluated the performance of each RCA unit at the required Portable Life Support Subsystem (PLSS) operating conditions. The test points simulated a range of crewmember metabolic rates. The experimental results demonstrate the ability of each RCA unit to sufficiently remove CO2 and H2O from a closed loop ambient or subambient atmosphere.

McMillin, Summer↗
NASA NTRS1980

Factors affecting cleanup of exhaust gases from a pressurized, fluidized-bed coal combustor

The cleanup of effluent gases from the fluidized-bed combustion of coal is examined. Testing conditions include the type and feed rate of the coal and the sulfur sorbent, the coal-sorbent ratio, the coal-combustion air ratio, the depth of the reactor fluidizing bed, and the technique used to physically remove fly ash from the reactor effluent gases. Tests reveal that the particulate loading matter in the effluent gases is a function not only of the reactor-bed surface gas velocity, but also of the type of coal being burnt and the time the bed is operating. At least 95 percent of the fly ash particules in the effluent gas are removed by using a gas-solids separator under controlled operating conditions. Gaseous pollutants in the effluent (nitrogen and sulfur oxides) are held within the proposed Federal limits by controlling the reactor operating conditions and the type and quantity of sorbent material.

Rollbuhler, R. J.↗
NASA NTRS2009

Development Status of the Carbon Dioxide and Moisture Removal Amine Swing-Bed System (CAMRAS)

Under a cooperative agreement with NASA, Hamilton Sundstrand has successfully designed, fabricated, tested and delivered three, state-of-the-art, solid amine prototype systems capable of continuous CO2 and humidity removal from a closed, habitable atmosphere. Two prototype systems (CAMRAS #1 and #2) incorporated a linear spool valve design for process flow control through the sorbent beds, with the third system (CAMRAS #3) employing a rotary valve assembly that improves system fluid interfaces and regeneration capabilities. The operational performance of CAMRAS #1 and #2 has been validated in a relevant environment, through both simulated human metabolic loads in a closed chamber and through human subject testing in a closed environment. Performance testing at Hamilton Sundstrand on CAMRAS #3, which incorporates a new valve and modified canister design, showed similar CO2 and humidity removal performance as CAMRAS #1 and #2, demonstrating that the system form can be modified within certain bounds with little to no effect in system function or performance. Demonstration of solid amine based CO2 and humidity control is an important milestone in developing this technology for human spaceflight. The systems have low power requirements; with power for air flow and periodic valve actuation and indication the sole requirements. Each system occupies the same space as roughly four shuttle non-regenerative LiOH canisters, but have essentially indefinite CO2 removal endurance provided a regeneration pathway is available. Using the solid amine based systems to control cabin humidity also eliminates the latent heat burden on cabin thermal control systems and the need for gas/liquid phase separation in a low gravity environment, resulting in additional simplification of vehicle environmental control and life support system process requirements.

Papale, William↗
NASA NTRS2009

System Modeling of Metabolic Heat Regenerated Temperature Swing Adsorption (MTSA) Subassembly for Prototype Design

This paper describes modeling methods for the three core components of a Metabolic heat regenerated Temperature Swing Adsorption (MTSA) subassembly: the sorbent bed, a sublimation (cooling) heat exchanger (SHX), and a condensing icing (warming) heat exchanger (CIHX). The primary function of the MTSA, removing carbon dioxide from a ventilation loop, is performed via the sorbent bed. The CIHX is used to heat the sorbent bed for desorption and to remove moisture from the ventilation loop while the SHX is alternately employed to cool the sorbent bed via sublimation of a spray of water at low pressure to prepare the reconditioned bed for the next cycle. This paper describes a system level model of the MTSA as developed in Thermal Desktop and SINDA/FLUINT including assumptions on geometry and physical phenomena, modeling methodology and relevant pa ra mete rizatio ns. Several areas of particular modeling interest are discussed. In the sorbent bed, capture of the translating CO2 saturation front and associated local energy and mass balance in both adsorbing and desorbing modes is covered. The CIHX poses particular challenges for modeling in SINDA/FLUINT as accounting for solids states in fluid submodels are not a native capability. Methods for capturing phase change and latent heat of ice as well as the transport properties across a layer of low density accreted frost are developed. This extended modeling capacity is applicable to temperatures greater than 258 K. To extend applicability to the minimum device temperature of 235 K, a method for a mapped transformation of temperatures from below the limit temperatures to some value above is given along with descriptions for associated material property transformations and the resulting impacts to total heat and mass transfer. Similar considerations are shown for the SHX along with assumptions for flow mechanics and resulting model methods for sublimation in a flow.

Bower, Chad↗
NASA NTRS2010

Modeling Of Metabolic Heat Regenerated Temperature Swing Adsorption (MTSA) Subassembly For Prototype Design

This paper describes modeling methods for the three core components of a Metabolic heat regenerated Temperature Swing Adsorption (MTSA) subassembly: a sorbent bed, a sublimation (cooling) heat exchanger (SHX), and a condensing icing (warming) heat exchanger (CIHX). The primary function of the MTSA, removing carbon dioxide from a space suit Portable Life Support System (PLSS) ventilation loop, is performed via the sorbent bed. The CIHX is used to heat the sorbent bed for desorption and to remove moisture from the ventilation loop while the SHX is alternately employed to cool the sorbent bed via sublimation of a spray of water at low pressure to prepare the reconditioned bed for the next cycle. This paper describes subsystem heat a mass transfer modeling methodologies relevant to the description of the MTSA subassembly in Thermal Desktop and SINDA/FLUINT. Several areas of particular modeling interest are discussed. In the sorbent bed, capture of the translating carbon dioxide (CO2) front and associated local energy and mass balance in both adsorbing and desorbing modes is covered. The CIHX poses particular challenges for modeling in SINDA/FLUINT as accounting for solids states in fluid submodels are not a native capability. Methods for capturing phase change and latent heat of ice as well as the transport properties across a layer of low density accreted frost are developed. This extended modeling capacity is applicable to temperatures greater than 258 K. To extend applicability to the minimum device temperature of 235 K, a method for a mapped transformation of temperatures from below the limit temperatures to some value above is given along with descriptions for associated material property transformations and the resulting impacts to total heat and mass transfer. Similar considerations are given for the SHX along with functional relationships for areal sublimation rates as limited by flow mechanics in t1he outlet duct.

Bower, Chad E.↗
NASA NTRS2011

Testing and Results of Vacuum Swing Adsorption Units for Spacesuit Carbon Dioxide and Humidity Control

A principal concern for extravehicular activity (EVA) spacesuits is the capability to control carbon dioxide (CO2) and humidity (H2O) for the crewmember. The release of CO2 in a confined or unventilated area is dangerous for human health and leads to asphyxiation; therefore, CO2 and H2O control become leading factors in the design and development of the spacesuit. An amine-based CO2 and H2O vapor sorbent for use in pressure-swing regenerable beds has been developed by Hamilton Sundstrand. The application of solidamine materials with vacuum swing adsorption technology has shown the capacity to concurrently manage CO2 and H2O levels through a fully regenerative cycle eliminating mission constraints imposed with nonregenerative technologies. Two prototype solid amine-based systems, known as rapid cycle amine (RCA), were designed to continuously remove CO2 and H2O vapor from a flowing ventilation stream through the use of a two-bed amine based, vacuum-swing adsorption system. The Engineering and Science Contract Group (ESCG) RCA implements radial flow paths, whereas the Hamilton Sundstrand RCA was designed with linear flow paths. Testing was performed in a sea-level pressure environment and a reduced-pressure environment with simulated human metabolic loads in a closed-loop configuration. This paper presents the experimental results of laboratory testing for a full-size and a sub-scale test article. The testing described here characterized and evaluated the performance of each RCA unit at the required Portable Life Support Subsystem (PLSS) operating conditions. The test points simulated a range of crewmember metabolic rates. The experimental results demonstrated the ability of each RCA unit to sufficiently remove CO2 and H2O from a closed loop ambient or sub-ambient atmosphere.

McMillin, Summer D.↗
NASA NTRS1977

Development of a prototype regeneration carbon dioxide absorber

A prototype regenerable carbon dioxide absorber was developed to maintain the environmental quality of the portable life support system. The absorber works on the alkali metal carbonate-bicarbonate solid-gas reaction to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. The prototype sorber module was designed, fabricated, and tested at simulated extravehicular activity conditions to arrive at optimum design. The unit maintains sorber outlet concentration below 5 mm Hg. An optimization study was made with respect to heat transfer, temperature control, sorbent utilization, sorber life and regenerability, and final size of the module. Important parameters influencing the capacity of the final absorber unit were identified and recommendations for improvement were made.

Patel, P. S.↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Evaluation of Long-Term Storage Stability and Operational Efficiency of Rapid Cycle Amine Adsorbents

With the recent incorporation of Mars Extravehicular Activity (EVA) into the 2025 NASA roadmap, Rapid Cycle Amine (RCA) technology advancement within the Exploration Extravehicular Mobility Unit (xEMU) applies to both the upcoming Lunar Artemis missions and future human exploration of Mars. The incorporation of commercial spacesuit vendors to service NASA’s crewed-space programs since 2021 has increased the demand for regenerable, RCA-based carbon dioxide (CO2) and humidity control adsorbents. The regenerable RCA subunit is the most advanced, long-term solution for CO2 removal and humidity control, enabling both lunar and Martian EVAs. The adsorbent selected for use within the RCA unit must exhibit sufficient storage stability and operational efficiency for prolonged missions. As XploSafe worked to simultaneously develop both a recirculating sub-atmospheric test rig and adsorbents for the RCA system within the xEMU, several novel adsorbents were evaluated for long-term storage stability in support of future extended-duration missions. The chosen materials were periodically evaluated by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, thermal desorption-coupled with gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (TD-GC/MS), and CO2 adsorption to assess long-term storage efficacy across various environmental storage conditions. NMR spectroscopy was utilized by extracting the active CO2 adsorbing chemical from the solid support with deuterated solvent and comparing the spectra over time for degradation and change. The solid adsorbents were also analyzed via TD-GC/MS to reveal any potential off-gassing chemicals over time. Additionally, XploSafe’s breakthrough test rig was utilized to dose the solid adsorbents with a 585 BTU/h metabolic rate flow-equivalent CO2 stream and monitored for 0–99% CO2 breakthrough. The performance metrics from the breakthrough analysis were compared over the storage study duration for CO2 removal and humidity control. Xplo-SA9T was evaluated for 24 months, whereas two additional adsorbent variants, MMPA-Sorbent and LPEI-Sorbent, were each evaluated for 12 months.

John R Tidwell↗
NASA NTRS1976

Development of a prototype regenerable carbon dioxide absorber

Design information was obtained for a new, regenerable carbon dioxide control system for extravehicular activity life support systems. Solid potassium carbonate was supported in a thin porous sheet form and fabricated into carbon dioxide absorber units. Carbon dioxide and water in the life support system atmosphere react with the potassium carbonate and form potassium bicarbonate. The bicarbonate easily reverts to the carbonate by heating to 150 deg C. The methods of effectively packing the sorbent material into EVA-sized units and the effects of inlet concentrations, flowrate, and temperature upon performance were investigated. The cycle life of the sorbent upon the repeated thermal regenerations was demonstrated through 90 cycles.

Onischak, M.↗
NASA NTRS2009

Investigating Liquid CO2 as a Coolant for a MTSA Heat Exchanger Design

Metabolic heat regenerated Temperature Swing Adsorption (MTSA) technology is being developed for thermal and carbon dioxide (CO 2) control for a future Portable Life Support System (PLSS), as well as water recycling. CO 2 removal and rejection is accomplished by driving a sorbent through a temperature swing of approximately 210 K to 280 K . The sorbent is cooled to these sub-freezing temperatures by a Sublimating Heat Exchanger (SHX) with liquid coolant expanded to sublimation temperatures. Water is the baseline coolant available on the moon, and if used, provides a competitive solution to the current baseline PLSS schematic. Liquid CO2 (LCO2) is another non-cryogenic coolant readily available from Martian resources which can be produced and stored using relatively low power and minimal infrastructure. LCO 2 expands from high pressure liquid (~5800 kPa) to Mars ambient (0.8 kPa) to produce a gas / solid mixture at temperatures as low as 156 K. Analysis and experimental work are presented to investigate factors that drive the design of a heat exchanger to effectively use this sink. Emphasis is given to enabling efficient use of the CO 2 cooling potential and mitigation of heat exchanger clogging due to solid formation. Minimizing mass and size as well as coolant delivery are also considered. The analysis and experimental work is specifically performed in an MTSA-like application to enable higher fidelity modeling for future optimization of a SHX design. In doing so, the work also demonstrates principles and concepts so that the design can be further optimized later in integrated applications (including Lunar application where water might be a choice of coolant).

Paul, Heather L.↗
NASA NTRS1994

Adsorption and Desorption of Carbon Dioxide and Water Mixtures on Synthetic Hydrophobic Carbonaceous Adsorbents

Several synthetic carbonaceous adsorbents produced through pyrolysis of polymeric materials are available commercially. Some appear to have advantages over activated carbon for certain adsorption applications. In particular, they can have tailored hydrophobicities that are significantly greater than that of activated carbon, while moderately high surfaces areas are retained. These sorbents are being investigated for possible use in removing trace contaminants and excess carbon dioxide from air in closed habitats, plant growth chambers, and other applications involving purification of humid gas streams. We have analyzed the characteristics of a few of these adsorbents through adsorption and desorption experiments and standard characterization techniques. This paper presents pure and multicomponent adsorption data collected for carbon dioxide and water on two synthetic carbonaceous adsorbents having different hydrophobicities and capillary condensation characteristics. The observations are interpreted through consideration of the pore structure and surface chemistry of the solids and interactions between adsorbed carbon dioxide, water, and the solvent gas.

Finn, John E.↗
NASA NTRS2014

Evaluating the Adsorptive Capabilites of Chemsorb 1000 and Chemsorb 1425

The removal of trace contaminants from spacecraft cabin air is necessary for crew health and comfort during long duration space exploration missions. The air revitalization technologies used in these future exploration missions will evolve from current ISS ISS State-of-Art (SOA) and is being designed and tested by the Advanced Exploration Systems (AES) Program's Atmosphere Resource Recovery and Environmental Monitoring (ARREM) project. The ARREM project is working to mature optimum atmosphere revitalization and environmental monitoring system architectures to enable exploration beyond Lower Earth Orbit (LEO). The Air Revitalization Lab at KSC is one of six NASA field centers participating in the ARREM that specializes in adsorbent and catalyst characterization with simulated spacecraft gas streams using combinations of pressure, O2 partial pressure, CO2 partial pressure, and humidity that are representative of a range of anticipated cabin atmospheric conditions and loads. On board ISS, the Trace Contaminant Control Subassembly (TCCS) provides active control of trace contaminants from the cabin atmosphere utilizing physical adsorption, thermal catalytic oxidation, and chemical adsorption processes. High molecular weight contaminants and ammonia (NH3) are removed a granular activated carbon treated with approx. 10% by weight phosphoric acid (H3PO4) (B-S Type 3032 4×6 mesh), which is expendable and is periodically refurbished. The Type 3032 granular activated carbon bed is no longer commercially available and therefore it is important to characterize the efficiency and capacity of commercially available NH3 sorbents. This paper describes the characterization of two Molecular Products LTD activated carbons: Chemsorb 1000 and Chemsorb 1425. Untreated activated carbons (e.g. Chemsorb 1000) remove contaminants by physisorption, which concentrates the contaminant within the pores of the carbon while letting air to pass through the sorbent4. Low molecular weight or polar gases (e.g. HCl, SO2, formaldehyde, and NH3) are not removed by physisorption and typically require chemisorption for removal. Treated activated carbons (e.g. Chemsorb 1425) are impregnated with a a chemical agent (e.g. phosphoric acid) that reacts with those gases, converting them to solids or salts within the carbon and removes them from the air stream. This process occurs via neutralization or catalysis reactions and adsorption capacity is exhaustedwhen the available impregnated chemicals are consumed. Moisture affects removal performance since adsorption sites within the pores are filled with water. The performance of impregnated carbons may be enhanced by moisture content because the mechanisms of contaminant removal are chemical reactions that occur in reagents contained within the pores. The adsorptive capacity data (mol/kg) of Chemsorb 1000 and 1425 for gas mixtures (ethanol, acetone, toluene, acetaldehyde, dichloromethane, and xylene) was measured with 40% relative humidity at 23 deg C air temperature. The adsorptive capacity data (mol/kg) of Chemsorb 1425 was measured using NH3 gas streams.

adsorptive capacities↗
NASA NTRS2000

Numerical Simulation of a Chemically Reacting Sorbent Bed for LSS Applications

A detailed numerical model of a chemisorption bed has been developed. The model is based on the constant pressure mass transport equation for gaseous flow through a packed bed, and the equation for diffusion and reaction within a spherical particle. Because there is a wealth of data from the NASA and the Navy bodies of literature, the LiOH-H2O-CO2 system is chosen for application of the model and interpretation of results. Prior models of this system from the life support literature are limited. The current model incorporates many of the features of elaborate models developed for investigation of industrial systems or energy applications (e.g., coal, desulphurization): it distinguishes bulk convection and bed dispersion; mass transport to the particle surface, transport within the particle, and reaction. It uses the nonsteady (not pseudo-steady state) form of the equations. The chemistry is modeled as a multi-step, reversible reaction with evolving solid structure. The resulting system of equations is large. The ODEPACK family of solvers is used to integrate the system. Reaction coefficients are determined by experiment. Typical results of the model are illustrated with mission input parameters. Using the model, an explanation is offered for 1) the varied performance results found after pre-breathing (or after simulated pre-breathe conditions), 2) interrupted use and 3) low temperature use. In addition, options for a reusable canister are explored. The computational resource implications of adding energy equations are discussed briefly, as are applicability to other relevant space and undersea systems.

Luna, Bernadette↗