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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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Lightweight low-density substance can be used as fire resistant insulation in aircraft. Material density can be controlled over range from 0.6-1.2 pounds per cubic foot and has good thermal and acoustic properties.
Mixing insert built into nozzle blends fluids so that nozzle sprays homogeneous mixture. Simple construction of dispenser makes cleanup easy.
Hybrid-microcircuit masking technique improved to prevent unwanted parylene coating of lead packages.
Metallography from experiment 24-10 obtained on the second space processing applications rocket (SPAR) flight is discussed. Results are considered along with results from the related experiments on the first SPAR flight. Conclusions are presented.
Process, using fast-setting putty-type thixotropic epoxy material, eliminates need for leakproof enclosures. Method reduces cure time from 15 to 4 hours. Epoxy masters are stronger and do not require special coating for storage. Manufacturers of form-fitted insulation or packaging forms will find this process to be of interest.
Sectional casting method uses blocking piece for first pour, which limits pour height to 12 inches.
Dye solution indicates extent of cracking by penetrating crack and showing original crack depth clearly. Solution comprised of methylene blue in denatured ethyl alcohol penetrates cracks completely and evaporates quickly and is suitable technique for usage in environmental or structural tests.
Masking parts with Tetrafluoroethylene (TFE) tape allows easy removal of insulation; therefore, insulation can be used temporarily while testing of parts and then removed for their reworking.
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Smoldering combustion, particularly in upholstery and bedding materials, has been proven a serious life hazard. The simplest representation of this hazard situation is one-dimensional downward propagation of a smolder wave against a buoyant upflow (cocurrent smolder); the configuration treated here is identical in all respects to this except for the presence of a forced flow replacing the buoyant one. The complex degradation chemistry of the polyurethanes is here reduced to the two major overall reactions of char formation and char oxidation. The model solutions, which are in reasonable agreement with experimental results, show the smolder process to be oxygen-limited, which leads to some very simple trends. More subtle behavior aspects determine actual propagation velocity, fraction of fuel consumed, and apparent equivalence ratio (all of which are variable). The self-insulating character of the smolder wave makes it viable in a wide-ranging set of conditions if the igniting stimulus is sufficiently long. These results have significant implications regarding the problem of smolder prevention or hindrance.
Capacitive probes succeed where X-ray and ultrasonic equipment do not. Crossbar switching of pairs of conductors enables detection of dielectric inhomogeneities in selected small volume elements of slab of material. Large void in sample detected as low capacitance reading for volume element containing void. Applicable in nondestructive testing of other dielectric objects for internal defects that exhibit dielectric inhomogeneities.
Flightweight insulation withstands wide temperture cycling. Reusable insulation system for cryogenic containment vessels withstands repeated exposures to thermal environments that span ranges from cryogenic-fluid temperature {-425oF (-254oC)} to maximum use temperature of containment-tank material {+400oF (+204oC)}. System designed for use with high-speed flight vehicles.
Process developed to apply necessary insulation to valves, fittings, lines, etc. on such space vehicles as Centaur rocket stage. In new process, electrostatic equipment used to apply powdered polyimide resin directly to part to be insulated.
A knowledge based system to assist process engineers in evaluating the processability and moldability of poly-isocyanurate (PIR) formulations for the thermal protection system of the Space Shuttle external tank (ET) is discussed. The Reaction Injection Molding- Process Development Advisor (RIM-PDA) is a coupled system which takes advantage of both symbolic and numeric processing techniques. This system will aid the process engineer in identifying a startup set of mold schedules and in refining the mold schedules to remedy specific process problems diagnosed by the system.
The advent of lightweight fairings for new spacecraft and the increased thrust of new launch vehicles have intensified the need for better techniques for predicting and for reducing the low frequency noise environment of spacecraft at liftoff. This paper presents a VAPEPS (VibroAcoustic Payload Environment Prediction System) parametrical analysis of the noise reduction of spacecraft fairings and explores a novel technique for increasing the low frequency noise reduction of lightweight fairing by approximately 10 dB.
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Experiments with liquid nitrogen and liquid hydrogen is styrofoam-insulated tanks have indicated good agreement between measured and calculated heat-leak rates when the insulation was formed from a single block of material. In a large tank installation where the insulation was applied in sections without sealing the joints, the measured heat leak was about 2 and 1/2 times the calculated value.
An analysis is presented on a method for varying rocket thrust by varying the bulk density of the propellants. This density variation was accomplished by uniformly dispersing an inert, insoluble gas in the liquid propellants. Only qualitative agreement with theory was obtained from preliminary experiments with a 1000-pound-thrust ammonia - nitric acid rocket engine; the required experimental gas-flow rates were two to six times greater than those predicted by theory. It was demonstrated, however, that this method of rocket-thrust variation is feasible.