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At least 91 records · Page 5

Using Microwaves for Extracting Water from the Moon

Twenty years ago, the Lunar Prospector remote sensing satellite provided evidence of relatively large hydrogen concentrations at the lunar poles and in particular concentrated in permanently shadowed craters. The scientific hypothesis is that the hydrogen is in the form of cryo-trapped water just under the surface of the soil. If true this would mean that an average of about 2% water ice is mixed with the lunar soil existing in the form of ice at cryogenic temperatures. For 5 years we have been investigating the use of microwaves for the processing of lunar soil. One of the early uses could be to use microwave energy to extract volatiles and in particular water from the lunar permafrost. Prototype experiments have shown that microwave energy at 2.45 GHz, as in consumer microwave ovens, will couple with and heat cryogenically cooled lunar soil permafrost simulant, resulting in the rapid sublimation of water vapor into the vacuum chamber. The water vapor has been collected on a cryogenic cold trap with high efficiency. The primary advantage of microwave processing is that the volatiles can be extracted in situ. Excavation would not be required. Microwave frequency dielectric property measurements are being made of different lunar soil simulants and plans are to measure Apollo lunar soil at different frequencies and over a range of temperatures. The materials properties are being used to evaluate the heating of lunar soil and develop COMSOL models that can be used to evaluate different microwave extraction scenarios. With COMSOL the heating from cryogenic temperatures can be calculated and COMSOL will permit temperature dependent materials properties to be used during the heating process. Calculations at different microwave frequencies will allow the evaluation of the type of hardware that would be needed to most efficiently extract the water and other volatiles.

Ethridge, Edwin C.↗

Using Microwaves for Extracting Water from the Moon

This disk contains a video that accompanies the talk. Twenty years ago, the Lunar Prospector remote sensing satellite provided evidence of relatively large hydrogen concentrations at the lunar poles and in particular concentrated in permanently shadowed craters. The scientific hypothesis is that the hydrogen is in the form of cryo-trapped water just under the surface of the soil. If true this would mean that an average of about 2% water ice is mixed with the lunar soil existing in the form of ice at cryogenic temperatures. For 5 years we have been investigating the use of microwaves for the processing of lunar soil. One of the early uses could be to use microwave energy to extract volatiles and in particular water from the lunar permafrost. Prototype experiments have shown that microwave energy at 2.45 GHz, as in consumer microwave ovens, will couple with and heat cryogenically cooled lunar soil permafrost simulant, resulting in the rapid sublimation of water vapor into the vacuum chamber. The water vapor has been collected on a cryogenic cold trap with high efficiency. The primary advantage of microwave processing is that the volatiles can be extracted in situ. Excavation would not be required. Microwave frequency dielectric property measurements are being made of different lunar soil simulants and plans are to measure Apollo lunar soil at different frequencies and over a range of temperatures. The materials properties are being used to evaluate the heating of lunar soil and develop COMSOL models that can be used to evaluate different microwave extraction scenarios. With COMSOL the heating from cryogenic temperatures can be calculated and COMSOL will permit temperature dependent materials properties to be used during the heating process. Calculations at different microwave frequencies will allow the evaluation of the type of hardware that would be needed to most efficiently extract the water and other volatiles. The video shows the partial results of the COMSOL modeling.

Ethridge, Edwin C.↗

Using Microwaves for Extracting Water from the Moon

This disk contains 2 videos that accompanies the talk. Twenty years ago, the Lunar Prospector remote sensing satellite provided evidence of relatively large hydrogen concentrations at the lunar poles and in particular concentrated in permanently shadowed craters. The scientific hypothesis is that the hydrogen is in the form of cryo-trapped water just under the surface of the soil. If true this would mean that an average of about 2% water ice is mixed with the lunar soil existing in the form of ice at cryogenic temperatures. For 5 years we have been investigating the use of microwaves for the processing of lunar soil. One of the early uses could be to use microwave energy to extract volatiles and in particular water from the lunar permafrost. Prototype experiments have shown that microwave energy at 2.45 GHz, as in consumer microwave ovens, will couple with and heat cryogenically cooled lunar soil permafrost simulant, resulting in the rapid sublimation of water vapor into the vacuum chamber. The water vapor has been collected on a cryogenic cold trap with high efficiency. The primary advantage of microwave processing is that the volatiles can be extracted in situ. Excavation would not be required. Microwave frequency dielectric property measurements are being made of different lunar soil simulants and plans are to measure Apollo lunar soil at different frequencies and over a range of temperatures. The materials properties are being used to evaluate the heating of lunar soil and develop COMSOL models that can be used to evaluate different microwave extraction scenarios. With COMSOL the heating from cryogenic temperatures can be calculated and COMSOL will permit temperature dependent materials properties to be used during the heating process. Calculations at different microwave frequencies will allow the evaluation of the type of hardware that would be needed to most efficiently extract the water and other volatiles. The 1st video shows the results of the COMSOL models. The second video shows brief views of the lunar surface.

Ethridge, Edwin C.↗

Analysis of Organic Molecules Extracted from Mars Analogues and Influence of Their Mineralogy Using N-Methyl-N-(tert-butyldimethylsilyl)Trifluoroacetamide Derivatization Coupled with Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometry in Preparation for the Sample Analysis at Mars Derivatization Experiment on the Mars Science Laboratory Mission

The search for complex organic molecules on Mars, including important biomolecules such as amino acids and carboxylic acids will require a chemical extraction and derivatization step to transform these organic compounds into species that are sufficiently volatile to be detected by gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GCMS). We have developed, a one-pot extraction and chemical derivatization protocol using N-methyl-N-(tert-butyldimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide (MTBSTFA) and dimethylformamide (DMF) for the Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) experiment on the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL). The temperature and duration the derivatization reaction, pre-concentration of chemical derivatives, and gas chromatographic separation parameters have been optimized under SAM instrument design constraints. MTBSTFA/DMF extraction and derivatization at 300 C for several minutes of a variety of terrestrial Mars analogue materials facilitated the detection of amino acids and carboxylic acids in a surface soil sample collected from the Atacama Desert and a carbonate-rich stromatolite sample from Svalbard. However, the rapid reaction of MTBSTFA with water in several analogue materials that contained high abundances of hydrated minerals and the possible deactivation of derivatized compounds by iron oxides, as detected by XRD/XRF using the CheMin field unit Terra, proved to be highly problematic for the direct extraction of organics using MTBSTFA, The combination of pyrolysis and two different chemical derivatization methods employed by SAM should enable a wide range of organic compounds to be detected by GCMS if present on Mars,

Stalport, F.↗

Wells for In Situ Extraction of Volatiles from Regolith (WIEVR)

A document discusses WIEVRs, a means to extract water ice more efficiently than previous approaches. This water may exist in subsurface deposits on the Moon, in many NEOs (Near- Earth Objects), and on Mars. The WIEVR approach utilizes heat from the Sun to vaporize subsurface ice; the water (or other volatile) vapor is transported to a surface collection vessel where it is condensed (and collected). The method does not involve mining and extracting regolith before removing the frozen volatiles, so it uses less energy and is less costly than approaches that require mining of regolith. The only drilling required for establishing the WIEVR collection/recovery system is a well-bore drill hole. In its simplest form, the WIEVRs will function without pumps, compressors, or other gas-moving equipment, relying instead on diffusive transport and thermally induced convection of the vaporized volatiles for transport to the collection location(s). These volatile extraction wells could represent a significant advance in extraction efficiency for recovery of frozen volatiles in subsurface deposits on the Moon, Mars, or other extraterrestrial bodies.

Walton, Otis R.↗

Feature Extraction and Selection Strategies for Automated Target Recognition

Several feature extraction and selection methods for an existing automatic target recognition (ATR) system using JPLs Grayscale Optical Correlator (GOC) and Optimal Trade-Off Maximum Average Correlation Height (OT-MACH) filter were tested using MATLAB. The ATR system is composed of three stages: a cursory region of-interest (ROI) search using the GOC and OT-MACH filter, a feature extraction and selection stage, and a final classification stage. Feature extraction and selection concerns transforming potential target data into more useful forms as well as selecting important subsets of that data which may aide in detection and classification. The strategies tested were built around two popular extraction methods: Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Independent Component Analysis (ICA). Performance was measured based on the classification accuracy and free-response receiver operating characteristic (FROC) output of a support vector machine(SVM) and a neural net (NN) classifier.

computer vision↗

Conversion and Extraction of Insoluble Organic Materials in Meteorites

We endeavor to develop and implement methods in our laboratory to convert and extract insoluble organic materials (IOM) from low car-bon bearing meteorites (such as ordinary chondrites) and Precambrian terrestrial rocks for the purpose of determining IOM structure and prebiotic chemistries preserved in these types of samples. The general scheme of converting and extracting IOM in samples is summarized in Figure 1. First, powdered samples are solvent extracted in a micro-Soxhlet apparatus multiple times using solvents ranging from non-polar to polar (hexane - non-polar, dichloromethane - non-polar to polar, methanol - polar protic, and acetonitrile - polar aprotic). Second, solid residue from solvent extractions is processed using strong acids, hydrochloric and hydrofluoric, to dissolve minerals and isolate IOM. Third, the isolated IOM is subjected to both thermal (pyrolysis) and chemical (oxidation) degradation to release compounds from the macromolecular material. Finally, products from oxidation and pyrolysis are analyzed by gas chromatography - mass spectrometry (GCMS). We are working toward an integrated method and analysis scheme that will allow us to determine prebiotic chemistries in ordinary chondrites and Precambrian terrestrial rocks. Powerful techniques that we are including are stepwise, flash, and gradual pyrolysis and ruthenium tetroxide oxidation. More details of the integrated scheme will be presented.

Locke, Darren R.↗

UV-Resistant Microbes and UV-Blocking Microbial Extract

The present disclosure relates to a composition including an extract from an Acidithiobacillus bacteria or a yeast extracted after exposure of the bacteria to UV radiation. The disclosure further relates to a method of preparing a UV-blocking composition by exposing a culture of Acidithiobacillus or yeast to UV radiation and extracting UV-blocking cellular material produced in response to the UV radiation from the Acidithiobacillus or yeast. The disclosure further relates to a method of protecting an item from UV radiation damage by extracting UV-blocking cellular material from Acidithiobacillus or yeast exposed to UV radiation and covering the item with the UV-blocking cellular material. The disclosure further relates to a UV-resistant yeast cell and a UV-resistant bacterial cell.

Cuero, Raul G.↗

JSC-Rocknest: a Large-Scale Mojave Mars Simulant (MMS) Based Soil Simulant for In-Situ Resource Utilization Water-Extraction Studies

The Johnson Space Center Rocknest (JSC-RN) simulant was developed in response to a need by NASA's Advanced Exploration Systems (AES) In Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) project for a simulant to be used in component and system testing for water extraction from Mars regolith. JSC-RN was de-signed to be chemically and mineralogically similar to material from the aeolian sand shadow named Rocknest in Gale Crater, particularly the 1-3 weight percentage water release as measured by the Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument. Rocknest material is a proxy for average martian soils, which are unconsolidated and could be easily scooped by rovers or landers in order to extract water. One way in which water can be extracted from aeolian material is through heating, where adsorbed and structural water is thermally removed from minerals. The water can then be condensed and used as drinking water or split and used as propellant for spacecraft or as a source of breathable O2. As such, it was essential that JSC-RN contained evolved gas profiles, especially low temperature water (less than 400 degrees Centigrade), that mimicked what is observed in martian soils. Because many of these ISRU tests require hundreds of kilograms of Mars soil simulant, it was essential that JSC-RN be cost-effective and based on com-ponents that could be purchased commercially (i.e., not synthesized in the lab). Here, we describe the JSC-RN martian soil simulant, which is ideal for large-scale production and use in ISRU water extraction studies.

Hogancamp, J. V.↗

Marve: Measurement Context Extraction from Text

We propose Marve, a system for extracting measurement values, units, and related words from natural language text. Marve uses conditional random fields (CRF) to identify measurement values and units, followed by a rule-based system to find related entities, descriptors and modifiers within a sentence. Sentence tokens are represented by an undirected graphical model, and rules are based on part-of-speech and word dependency patterns connecting values and units to contextual words. Marve is unique in its focus on measurement context and early experimentation demonstrates Marve’s ability to generate high-precision extractions with strong recall. We also discuss Marve’s role in justifying NASA JPL’s proposed HyspIRI mission, a hyper spectral infrared imaging satellite that will study the world’s ecosystems. In general, our work with HyspIRI demonstrates the value of semantic measurement extractions in characterizing quantitative discussion contained in large corpuses of natural language text. These extractions accelerate broad-cross cu ing literature surveys and expose researchers and scientists new algorithmic approaches and experimental nuances. They also facilitate identification of scientific opportunities enabled by HyspIRI leading to more informed scientific investment and research.

Mattmann, Chris A.↗

Prototype Demonstration of Solar-Carbothermal System to Extract Oxygen From Regolith

The Carbothermal Reduction Demonstration (CaRD) project was an effort to develop a prototype system to demonstrate the extraction of oxygen from simulated lunar regolith using concentrated solar energy and a carbothermal reaction. The prototype consisted of a deployable solar concentrator capable of tracking the sun, carbothermal reactor, fluid system, gas analysis, and a solar concentrator control system consisting of avionics and software. These subsystems were developed by multiple NASA centers and a private industry partner, Sierra Space. The various teams worked together to define requirements and interfaces to successfully assemble the complex system and demonstrate an integrated solar carbothermal process. The solar concentrator developed at Glenn Research Center (GRC) was designed to be stowed for a launch environment then deployed on the lunar surface. It utilized a crossed dragone configuration of composite mirrors to direct horizontal sunlight onto a target 90° from the incoming sunlight. The key performance parameters for the solar concentrator were efficiency and power density. The carbothermal reactor was developed by Sierra Space through a separate project called the Carbothermal Oxygen Production Reactor (COPR) where it successfully demonstrated a fully automated process in a thermal vacuum environment [1]. The fluid system needed for the carbothermal reaction was also developed by Sierra Space and successfully demonstrated in the same thermal vacuum test. The gas analysis system was developed at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) and was required to determine the amount of oxygen extracted during each test. The gas analysis system was based on the Mass Spectrometer Observing Lunar Operations (MSOLO) instrument. Avionics and software for the CaRD prototype were also developed at KSC and based on experience with MSOLO avionics and software. The control system was designed to stow, deploy, track the sun, and perform beam alignment of the concentrated light. The prototype subsystems were integrated and tested at Johnson Space Center’s (JSC) Energy Systems Test Area. A heliostat was used to direct sunlight toward the prototype in a way that is representative of the sunlight conditions at the south pole of the Moon. When concentrated sunlight was focused on simulated lunar regolith within the reactor, the gas analysis team confirmed the presence of carbon monoxide gas, which confirmed that a solar carbothermal reaction took place. The key performance parameter for the integrated prototype was grams of oxygen extracted per kilowatt hour of energy arriving at the concentrator primary mirror. The prototype design successfully demonstrated end-to-end capability and further steps to achieve a flight capable system have been defined. With lunar data, engineers would be able to design a scaled-up system capable of extracting oxygen from regolith at useful quantities for crew life support and rocket propellant. On the long term, this method of In-Situ Resource Utilization could be used to drastically reduce the cost and risk of a sustained human presence on the Moon by reducing the amount of oxygen that would have to be delivered.

Koorosh R Araghi↗

Prototype Demonstration of Solar Carbothermal System to Extract Oxygen from Regolith

The Carbothermal Reduction Demonstration (CaRD) project was an effort to develop a prototype system to demonstrate the extraction of oxygen from simulated lunar regolith using concentrated solar energy and a carbothermal reaction. The prototype consisted of a deployable solar concentrator capable of tracking the sun, carbothermal reactor, fluid system, gas analysis, and a solar concentrator control system consisting of avionics and software. These subsystems were developed by multiple NASA centers and a private industry partner, Sierra Space. The various teams worked together to define requirements and interfaces to successfully assemble the complex system and demonstrate an integrated solar carbothermal process. The solar concentrator developed at Glenn Research Center (GRC) was designed to be stowed for a launch environment then deployed on the lunar surface. It utilized a crossed dragone configuration of composite mirrors to direct horizontal sunlight onto a target 90° from the incoming sunlight. The key performance parameters for the solar concentrator were efficiency and power density. The carbothermal reactor was developed by Sierra Space through a separate project called the Carbothermal Oxygen Production Reactor (COPR) where it successfully demonstrated a fully automated process in a thermal vacuum environment. The fluid system needed for the carbothermal reaction was also developed by Sierra Space and successfully demonstrated in the same thermal vacuum test. The gas analysis system was developed at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) and was required to determine the amount of oxygen extracted during each test. The gas analysis system was based on the Mass Spectrometer Observing Lunar Operations (MSOLO) instrument. Avionics and software for the CaRD prototype were also developed at KSC and based on experience with MSOLO avionics and software. The control system was designed to stow, deploy, track the sun, and perform beam alignment of the concentrated light. The prototype subsystems were integrated and tested at Johnson Space Center’s (JSC) Energy Systems Test Area. A heliostat was used to direct sunlight toward the prototype in a way that is representative of the sunlight conditions at the south pole of the Moon. When concentrated sunlight was focused on simulated lunar regolith within the reactor, the gas analysis team confirmed the presence of carbon monoxide gas, which confirmed that a solar carbothermal reaction took place. The key performance parameter for the integrated prototype was grams of oxygen extracted per kilowatt hour of energy arriving at the concentrator primary mirror. The prototype design successfully demonstrated end-to-end capability and further steps to achieve a flight capable system have been defined. With lunar data, engineers would be able to design a scaled-up system capable of extracting oxygen from regolith at useful quantities for crew life support and rocket propellant. On the long term, this method of In-Situ Resource Utilization could be used to drastically reduce the cost and risk of a sustained human presence on the Moon by reducing the amount of oxygen that would have to be delivered.

Aaron Paz↗

Prototype Demonstration of an Integrated Solar Concentrator System and Carbothermal Reactor Using Solar Energy to Extract Oxygen from Regolith

The Carbothermal Reduction Demonstration (CaRD) project was an effort to develop a prototype system to demonstrate the extraction of oxygen from simulated lunar regolith using concentrated solar energy and a carbothermal reaction. The prototype consisted of a deployable solar concentrator capable of tracking the sun, carbothermal reactor, fluid system, gas analysis, and a solar concentrator control system consisting of avionics and software. These subsystems were developed by multiple NASA centers and a private industry partner, Sierra Space. The various teams worked together to define requirements and interfaces to successfully assemble the complex system and demonstrate an integrated solar carbothermal process. The solar concentrator developed at Glenn Research Center (GRC) was designed to be stowed for a launch environment then deployed on the lunar surface. It utilized a crossed dragone configuration of composite mirrors to direct horizontal sunlight onto a target 90° from the incoming sunlight. The key performance parameters for the solar concentrator were efficiency and power density. The carbothermal reactor was developed by Sierra Space through a separate project called the Carbothermal Oxygen Production Reactor (COPR) where it successfully demonstrated a fully automated process in a thermal vacuum environment. The fluid system needed for the carbothermal reaction was also developed by Sierra Space and successfully demonstrated in the same thermal vacuum test. The gas analysis system was developed at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) and was required to determine the amount of oxygen extracted during each test. The gas analysis system was based on the Mass Spectrometer Observing Lunar Operations (MSOLO) instrument. Avionics and software for the CaRD prototype were also developed at KSC and based on experience with MSOLO avionics and software. The control system was designed to stow, deploy, track the sun, and perform beam alignment of the concentrated light. The prototype subsystems were integrated and tested at Johnson Space Center’s (JSC) Energy Systems Test Area. A heliostat was used to direct sunlight toward the prototype in a way that is representative of the sunlight conditions at the south pole of the Moon. When concentrated sunlight was focused on simulated lunar regolith within the reactor, the gas analysis team confirmed the presence of carbon monoxide gas, which confirmed that a solar carbothermal reaction took place. The key performance parameter for the integrated prototype was grams of oxygen extracted per kilowatt hour of energy arriving at the concentrator primary mirror. The prototype design successfully demonstrated end-to-end capability and further steps to achieve a flight capable system have been defined. With lunar data, engineers would be able to design a scaled-up system capable of extracting oxygen from regolith at useful quantities for crew life support and rocket propellant. On the long term, this method of In-Situ Resource Utilization could be used to drastically reduce the cost and risk of a sustained human presence on the Moon by reducing the amount of oxygen that would have to be delivered.

Oxygen from Regolith↗

A Study of Large Scale Power Extraction and Insertion on Turbofan Performance and Stability

This paper describes the effects of turbofan power extraction and insertion (augmentation) on engine performance and stability. The purpose of this paper is to present how power augmentation affects a dual spool gas turbine engine cycle where the engine will also be required to provide thrust. The goals for the paper are to describe effective limits of power augmentation and offer strategies, utilizing spool choice and variable geometries, to maximize augmentation effect. While Analysis is general two potential uses are explored: Power extraction for electrified aircraft propulsion purposes. And, Power insertion for thrust assist. Results of the paper show it is possible to extract over 20% (at 85% max thrust) and gain roughly 12% of maximum thrust through power insertion.

Gas Turbine Engines↗

A Study of Large Scale Power Extraction and Insertion on Turbofan Performance and Stability

This describes the effects of turbofan power extraction and insertion (augmentation) on engine performance and stability. The purpose of this paper is to present how power augmentation affects a dual spool gas turbine engine cycle where the engine will also be required to provide thrust. The goals for the paper are to describe effective limits of power augmentation and offer strategies, utilizing spool choice and variable geometries, to maximize augmentation effect. While Analysis is general, two potential uses are explored: Power extraction for electrified aircraft propulsion and power insertion for thrust assist. Results of the paper show it is possible to extract over 20% (at 85% max thrust) and gain roughly 12% of maximum thrust through power insertion.

Gas Turbine engines↗

A Study of Large-Scale Power Extraction and Insertion on Turbofan Performance and Stability

This paper describes the effects of turbofan power extraction and insertion (augmentation) on engine performance and stability. The purpose of this paper is to present how power augmentation affects a dual spool gas turbine engine cycle where the engine will also be required to provide thrust. The goals for the paper are to describe effective limits of power augmentation and offer strategies, utilizing spool choice and variable geometries, to maximize augmentation effect. While Analysis is general, two potential uses are explored: Power extraction for electrified aircraft propulsion and power insertion for thrust assist. Results of the paper show it is possible to extract over 20% (at 85% max thrust) and gain roughly 12% of maximum thrust through power insertion.

Gas Turbine engines↗

Longitudinal stability and control derivatives of a jet fighter airplane extracted from flight test data by utilizing maximum likelihood estimation

A method of parameter extraction for stability and control derivatives of aircraft from flight test data, implementing maximum likelihood estimation, was developed and successfully applied to actual longitudinal flight test data from a modern sophisticated jet fighter. The results of this application establish the merits of the estimation technique and its computer implementation(allowing full analyst interaction with the program) as well as provide data for the validation of a portion of the differential maneuvering simulator (DMS). The results are presented for all flight test runs in tabular form and as time history comparisons between the estimated states and the actual flight test data. Comparisons between extracted and manufacturer's values for five major derivatives are presented and reveal good agreement for these principal derivatives with one exception. This particular derivative is extensively investigated by utilizing the interactive capabilities of the computer program. The results of this investigation verify the numbers extracted by maximum likelihood estimation.

Steinmetz, G. G.↗

Fast modal extraction in NASTRAN via the FEER computer program

A new eigensolution routine, FEER (Fast Eigensolution Extraction Routine), used in conjunction with NASTRAN at Israel Aircraft Industries is described. The FEER program is based on an automatic matrix reduction scheme whereby the lower modes of structures with many degrees of freedom can be accurately extracted from a tridiagonal eigenvalue problem whose size is of the same order of magnitude as the number of required modes. The process is effected without arbitrary lumping of masses at selected node points or selection of nodes to be retained in the analysis set. The results of computational efficiency studies are presented, showing major arithmetic operation counts and actual computer run times of FEER as compared to other methods of eigenvalue extraction, including those available in the NASTRAN READ module. It is concluded that the tridiagonal reduction method used in FEER would serve as a valuable addition to NASTRAN for highly increased efficiency in obtaining structural vibration modes.

Newman, M. B.↗