SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “raw materials”

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.

SourceResearch connectionFrom yearThrough year

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 127 records · Page 7

All sources NASA NTRS DOE OSTI

NASA NTRS1991

Asteroid exploration and utilization: The Hawking explorer

The Earth is nearing depletion of its natural resources at a time when human beings are rapidly expanding the frontiers of space. The resources which may exist on asteroids could have enormous potential for aiding and enhancing human space exploration as well as life on Earth. With the possibly limitless opportunities that exist, it is clear that asteroids are the next step for human existence in space. This report comprises the efforts of NEW WORLDS, Inc. to develop a comprehensive design for an asteroid exploration/sample return mission. This mission is a precursor to proof-of-concept missions that will investigate the validity of mining and materials processing on an asteroid. Project STONER (Systematic Transfer of Near Earth Resources) is based on two utilization scenarios: (1) moving an asteroid to an advantageous location for use by Earth; and (2) mining an asteroids and transporting raw materials back to Earth. The asteroid explorer/sample return mission is designed in the context of both scenarios and is the first phase of a long range plane for humans to utilize asteroid resources. The report concentrates specifically on the selection of the most promising asteroids for exploration and the development of an exploration scenario. Future utilization as well as subsystem requirements of an asteroid sample return probe are also addressed.

Carlson, Alan↗

NASA NTRS2012

Demonstration of Minimally Machined Honeycomb Silicon Carbide Mirrors

Honeycomb silicon carbide composite mirrors are made from a carbon fiber preform that is molded into a honeycomb shape using a rigid mold. The carbon fiber honeycomb is densified by using polymer infiltration pyrolysis, or through a reaction with liquid silicon. A chemical vapor deposit, or chemical vapor composite (CVC), process is used to deposit a polishable silicon or silicon carbide cladding on the honeycomb structure. Alternatively, the cladding may be replaced by a freestanding, replicated CVC SiC facesheet that is bonded to the honeycomb. The resulting carbon fiber-reinforced silicon carbide honeycomb structure is a ceramic matrix composite material with high stiffness and mechanical strength, high thermal conductivity, and low CTE (coefficient of thermal expansion). This innovation enables rapid, inexpensive manufacturing. The web thickness of the new material is less than 1 millimeter, and core geometries tailored. These parameters are based on precursor carbon-carbon honeycomb material made and patented by Ultracor. It is estimated at the time of this reporting that the HoneySiC(Trademark) will have a net production cost on the order of $38,000 per square meter. This includes an Ultracor raw material cost of about $97,000 per square meter, and a Trex silicon carbide deposition cost of $27,000 per square meter. Even at double this price, HoneySiC would beat NASA's goal of $100,000 per square meter. Cost savings are estimated to be 40 to 100 times that of current mirror technologies. The organic, rich prepreg material has a density of 56 kilograms per cubic meter. A charred carbon-carbon panel (volatile organics burnt off) has a density of 270 kilograms per cubic meter. Therefore, it is estimated that a HoneySiC panel would have a density of no more than 900 kilograms per cubic meter, which is about half that of beryllium and about onethird the density of bulk silicon carbide. It is also estimated that larger mirrors could be produced in a matter of weeks. Each cell is completely uniform, maintaining the shape of the inserted mandrel. Furthermore, the layup creates pressure that insures node bond strength. Each node is a composite laminate using only the inherent resin system to form the bond. This contrasts starkly with the other known method of producing composite honeycomb, in which individual corrugations are formed, cured, and then bonded together in a secondary process. By varying the size of the mandrels within the layup, varying degrees of density can be achieved. Typical sizes are 3/8 and 3/16 in. (approximately 10 and 5 millimeters). Cell sizes up to 1 in. (approximately 25 millimeters) have been manufactured. Similarly, the shape of the core can be altered for a flexible honeycomb structure.

Goodman, William↗

NASA NTRS1996

Near-Net Forging Technology Demonstration Program

Significant advantages in specific mechanical properties, when compared to conventional aluminum (Al) alloys, make aluminum-lithium (Al-Li) alloys attractive candidate materials for use in cryogenic propellant tanks and dry bay structures. However, the cost of Al-Li alloys is typically five times that of 2219 aluminum. If conventional fabrication processes are employed to fabricate launch vehicle structure, the material costs will restrict their utilization. In order to fully exploit the potential cost and performance benefits of Al-Li alloys, it is necessary that near-net manufacturing methods be developed to off-set or reduce raw material costs. Near-net forging is an advanced manufacturing method that uses elevated temperature metal movement (forging) to fabricate a single piece, near-net shape, structure. This process is termed 'near-net' because only a minimal amount of post-forge machining is required. The near-net forging process was developed to reduce the material scrap rate (buy-to-fly ratio) and fabrication costs associated with conventional manufacturing methods. The goal for the near-net forging process, when mature, is to achieve an overall cost reduction of approximately 50 percent compared with conventional manufacturing options for producing structures fabricated from Al-Li alloys. This NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) sponsored program has been a part of a unique government / industry partnership, coordinated to develop and demonstrate near-net forging technology. The objective of this program was to demonstrate scale-up of the near-net forging process. This objective was successfully achieved by fabricating four integrally stiffened, 170- inch diameter by 20-inch tall, Al-Li alloy 2195, Y-ring adapters. Initially, two 2195 Al-Li ingots were converted and back extruded to produce four cylindrical blockers. Conventional ring rolling of the blockers was performed to produce ring preforms, which were then contour ring rolled to produce 'contour preforms'. All of the contour preforms on this first-of-a-kind effort were imperfect, and the ingot used to fabricate two of the preforms was of an earlier vintage. As lessons were learned throughout the program, the tooling and procedures evolved, and hence the preform quality. Two of the best contour preforms were near- net forged to produce a process pathfinder Y-ring adapter and a 'mechanical properties pathfinder' Y-ring adapter. At this point, Lockheed Martin Astronautics elected to procure additional 2195 aluminum-lithium ingot of the latest vintage, produce two additional preforms, and substitute them for older vintage material non-perfectly filled preforms already produced on this contract. The existing preforms could have been used to fulfill the requirements of the contract.

Hall, I. Keith↗

NASA NTRS2015

Solid-State Ultracapacitor for Improved Energy Storage

NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center has developed a solid-state ultracapacitor using a novel nanocomposite, dielectric material. The material's design is based on the internal barrier layer capacitance (IBLC) concept, and it uses novel dielectric and metallic conductive ink formulations. Novel processing methods developed by NASA provide for unique dielectric properties at the grain level. Nanoscale raw material powders are tailored using a variety of techniques and then formulated into a special ink. This dielectric ink is used with novel metallic conductive ink to print a capacitor layer structure into any design necessary to meet a range of technical requirements. The innovation is intended to replace current range safety batteries that NASA uses to power the systems that destroy off-course space vehicles. A solid-state design provides the needed robustness and safety for this demanding application.

Nabors, Sammy↗

NASA NTRS1978

Substitution of ceramics for high temperature alloys

Ceramics such as silicon nitride and silicon carbide are currently receiving a great deal of attention as potential materials for advanced gas turbine engines. The primary advantage offered by ceramics is their high temperature capability which can result in turbine engines of improved efficiency. Other advantages when compared to the nickel and cobalt alloys in current use are raw material availability, lower weight, erosion/corrosion resistance, and potentially lower cost. The use of ceramics in three different sizes of gas turbine engines is considered; these are the large utility turbines, advanced aircraft turbines, and small automotive turbines. The effects of material substitutions are reviewed in terms of engine performance, operating economy, and secondary effects.

Probst, H. B.↗

NASA NTRS2026

PROTECT: Production and Reuse of Thermally Efficient Ceramic Thermal Protection Systems

PROTECT (Production and Reuse Of Thermally Efficient Ceramic TPS) is a NASA Early Career Initiative focused on developing the next generation of reusable ceramic thermal protection systems (TPS). This project addresses key challenges in TPS design, including temperature capability, thermal stability, and refurbishment time, by integrating novel material development with predictive modeling. Leveraging enhanced capabilities in NASA’s Porous Microstructure Analysis (PuMA) software, PROTECT introduces new modeling tools to predict the thermal and mechanical behavior of fibrous ceramic materials. These tools enable accurate prediction of performance metrics such as thermal conductivity and structural integrity, reducing reliance on costly physical testing. Preliminary advances in these areas will be presented. To support model validation, PROTECT is building a comprehensive database of raw material properties using advanced characterization techniques, including micro computed tomography (CT) scanning in collaboration with the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC). The presentation will detail the sampling workflows and analysis methods used to generate this detailed microstructural data and how it is used to develop improved models in PuMA. This multi-center collaboration, spanning NASA (JSC, ARC, KSC, GRC), Oak Ridge National Laboratory, UIUC, and SpaceX, is developing tailored TPS solutions for LEO, lunar, and Martian missions. By bridging heritage systems with the demands of modern spaceflight, PROTECT contributes to the advancement of reusable TPS technologies for future exploration missions.

Propulsion, Refractory, and Coating Materials↗

NASA NTRS2026

PROTECT: Production and Reuse of Thermally Efficient Ceramic Thermal Protection Systems

Propulsion, Refractory, and Coating Materials↗

NASA NTRS1973

Computer program to perform cost and weight analysis of transport aircraft. Volume 1: Summary

A digital computer program for evaluating the weight and costs of advanced transport designs was developed. The resultant program, intended for use at the preliminary design level, incorporates both batch mode and interactive graphics run capability. The basis of the weight and cost estimation method developed is a unique way of predicting the physical design of each detail part of a vehicle structure at a time when only configuration concept drawings are available. In addition, the technique relies on methods to predict the precise manufacturing processes and the associated material required to produce each detail part. Weight data are generated in four areas of the program. Overall vehicle system weights are derived on a statistical basis as part of the vehicle sizing process. Theoretical weights, actual weights, and the weight of the raw material to be purchased are derived as part of the structural synthesis and part definition processes based on the computed part geometry.

Source record↗

NASA NTRS1996

Millimeter-wave passive ultra-compact imaging technology for synthetic vision & mobile platforms

Substantial technical progress was made on all of the three high-risk subsystems of this program. The subsystems include dielectric antenna, G-band receiver, and electro-optic image processor. Progress is approximately on-schedule for both the receiver and the electro-optic processor development, while greater than anticipated challenges have been discovered in the dielectric antenna development. Much of the information in this report was covered in greater detail in the One-Year Review Meeting held at TTC on 22 February 1996. The performance goals of the dielectric antenna project are: Scan Angle -- 20 deg. desired; Loss -- 6 dB end to end (3 dB average); Frequency -- 206-218 GHz (6% bandwidth); Beam width -- 0.25 deg.; and Length -- 12 inches. The scan angle requirement was chosen to satisfy the needs of aircraft pilots. This requirement, coupled with the presently limited bandwidth processors (1 GHz state-of-the-art and 12 GHz in development in this program) forces the antenna to be dielectric (high scan angle air-filled waveguide-based antennas would be too lossy and their performance would vary too much as a function of frequency). A high dielectric constant (e.g., 10) was initially chosen for the dielectric material. This choice lead to the following fabrication challenges: total thickness variation (TTV) tolerance is 1 micrometer; coupler spacing tolerance is 1 micrometer; width tolerance is larger, but unknown, and the surfaces must have mirror finish. Also of importance is the difficulty in obtaining raw materials that satisfy the overall length requirement of 12 inches while simultaneously satisfying the above specifications.

Olsen, Randall↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Fire-Resistant Textile Development for Exploration Vehicles With Enriched-Oxygen Cabin Environments

Material selection is a key part of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) spacecraft fire safety management plan. Non-flammable textiles are necessary to ensure large-scale flame propagation events do not occur inside a spacecraft. An increased use of textiles and other softgood material is crucial to the pursuit of exploration spaceflight to reduce mass and volume. Exploration spaceflight missions benefit from enriched oxygen cabin environments (>21% O2) by allowing a reduced prebreathe protocol before Extravehicular Activity (EVA). However, materials become exponentially more flammable the higher the O2 levels become. Recent testing within the agency has revealed the lack of commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) materials that can meet safety requirements in oxygen-enriched environments. Most of the fibers and textiles developed during Apollo (100% O2 cabin environment) and Skylab (>70% O2 cabin environment) are no longer commercially available due to those Programs ending and the discontinuation of raw materials or closure of the original manufacturers. As NASA returns to higher oxygen concentrations inside spacecraft, non-flammable textile development efforts have begun to meet the agency’s needs. This paper discusses those efforts including overall fire safety approach, priorities, interactions with industry, flammability testing and expected challenges.

Karim Aly↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Fire-Resistant Textile Development for Exploration Vehicles With Enriched-Oxygen Cabin Environments

Material selection is a key part of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) spacecraft fire safety management plan. Non-flammable textiles are necessary to ensure large-scale flame propagation events do not occur inside a spacecraft. An increased use of textiles and other softgood material is crucial to the pursuit of exploration spaceflight to reduce mass and volume. Exploration spaceflight missions benefit from enriched oxygen cabin environments (>21% O2) by allowing a reduced prebreathe protocol before Extravehicular Activity (EVA). However, materials become exponentially more flammable the higher the O2 levels become. Recent testing within the agency has revealed the lack of commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) materials that can meet safety requirements in oxygen-enriched environments. Most of the fibers and textiles developed during Apollo (100% O2 cabin environment) and Skylab (>70% O2 cabin environment) are no longer commercially available due to those Programs ending and the discontinuation of raw materials or closure of the original manufacturers. As NASA returns to higher oxygen concentrations inside spacecraft, non-flammable textile development efforts have begun to meet the agency’s needs. This paper discusses those efforts including overall fire safety approach, state-of-the-art textile review and testing, an agency-wide assessment of textile needs performed by the NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC), the textile development strategy and expected challenges.

Mary Walker↗

NASA NTRS2000

Solid Freeform Fabrication of Continuous Fiber Reinforced Composites for Propulsion Applications

For propulsion related applications, materials must be able to demonstrate excellent ablation and oxidation resistance at temperature approaching 3500'C, adequate load bearing capabilities, non-catastrophic failure modes, and ability to withstand transient thermal shock. A potential list of propulsion-material property requirements includes, low density, high elastic modulus, low thermal-expansion coefficient, high thermal conductivity, excellent erosion and oxidation/corrosion resistance, and flaw-insensitivity. In many cases, they will also need to be able to be joined, survive thermal cycling and multi-axial stress states, and for reusable applications, the materials must maintain the above attributes after prolonged exposure to extremely harsh chemical environments. The final and possibly most important attribute for these materials are the need to be lower cost and readily available in large quantities. Recently, Advanced Ceramics Research, Inc. (ACR) has developed low cost, flexible- manufacturing processes for Zr & Hf-based carbon fiber reinforced composites, materials with good oxidation and ablation resistance up to 3500 C. This process, called Continuous Composite Co-extrusion (C(sup 3)), incorporates carbon fibers to fabricate 'in-situ' carbide and boride-matrix/carbon fiber composites. This is a variation of ACR's manufacturing process for low-cost structural ceramic materials called Fibrous Monoliths With carbon fiber reinforcements. Fibrous Monolithic materials have a distinct fibrous texture, consist of intertwined cells of a primary phase, separated by cell boundaries of a tailored secondary phase and show very high fracture energies, damage tolerance, and graceful failure. Since they are monolithic powder based composites-, they can be manufactured by conventional powder processing techniques using inexpensive raw materials. This combination of high performance and low cost is a breakthrough that could enable wider application of ceramics in high temperature applications. Typical volume fractions of the two phases are 80 to 95% for the cell phase and 5 to 20% for the interpenetrating cell boundary phase. ACR is currently developing an innovative solid freeform form fabrication (SFF) approach to produce Hf and Zr based ceramic composite components reinforced with continuous carbon fiber tows for critical structural components such as tubes and blisks. The process is simple, robust and will be widely applicable to a number of material systems. This technique was originally developed at the University of Delaware Center for Composite Materials (UD-CCM) for rapid fabrication of polymer matrix composites by a technique called automated tow placement or ATP. The current process is being developed in collaboration with UD-CCM. The paper will detail the freeform fabrication process to create low-cost ceramic fiber reinforced composites for high-temperature applications. The results of mechanical properties and microstructural characterization will be presented, together with examples of complex shapes and parts. It is believed that the process will be able to create complex shaped parts for propulsion applications at an order of magnitude lower cost than current CVI and PIP process.

Vaidyanathan, R.↗

NASA NTRS2001

Solid Free-Form Fabrication of Continuous Fiber Reinforced Composites for Propulsion Application

For propulsion related applications, materials must be able to demonstrate excellent ablation and oxidation resistance at temperature approaching 3500 C, adequate load bearing capabilities, non-catastrophic failure modes, and ability to withstand transient thermal shock. A potential list of propulsion-material property requirements includes, low density, high elastic modulus, low thermal-expansion coefficient, high thermal conductivity, excellent erosion and oxidation/corrosion resistance, and flaw-insensitivity. In many cases, they will also need to be able to be joined, survive thermal cycling and multi-axial stress states, and for reusable applications, the materials must maintain the above attributes after prolonged exposure to extremely harsh chemical environments. The final and possibly most important attribute for these materials are the need to be lower cost and readily available in large quantities. Recently, Advanced Ceramics Research, Inc. (ACR) has developed low cost, flexible-manufacturing processes for Zr & Hf-based carbon fiber reinforced composites, materials with good oxidation and ablation resistance up to 3500 C. This process, called Continuous Composite Co-extrusion (C(sup 3)), incorporates carbon fibers to fabricate 'in-situ' carbide and boride-matrix/carbon fiber composites. M is a variation of ACR's manufacturing process for low-cost structural ceramic materials called Fibrous Monoliths with carbon fiber reinforcements. Fibrous Monolithic materials have a distinct fibrous texture, consist of intertwined cells of a primary phase, separated by cell boundaries of a tailored secondary phase and show very high fracture energies, damage tolerance, and graceful failure. Since they are monolithic powder based composites; they can be manufactured by conventional powder processing techniques using inexpensive raw materials. This combination of high performance and low cost is a breakthrough that could enable wider application of ceramics in high temperature applications. Typical volume fractions of the two phases are 80 to 95% for the cell phase and 5 to 20% for the interpenetrating cell boundary phase. ACR is currently developing an innovative solid freeform form fabrication (SFF) approach to produce Hf and Zr based ceramic composite components reinforced with continuous carbon fiber tows for critical structural components such as tubes and blisks. The process is simple, robust and will be widely applicable to a number of material systems. This technique was originally developed at the University of Delaware Center for Composite Materials (UD-CCM) for rapid fabrication of polymer matrix composites by a technique called automated tow placement or ATP. The current process is being developed in collaboration with UD-CCM. The paper will detail the freeform fabrication process to create low-cost ceramic fiber reinforced composites for high-temperature applications. The results of mechanical properties and microstructural characterization will be presented, together with examples of complex shapes and parts. It is believed that the process will be able to create complex shaped parts for propulsion applications at an order of magnitude lower cost than current CVI and PIP processes.

Vaidyanathan, R.↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Analysis of Bioburden Associated with Nonmetallic Spacecraft Materials

Planetary Protection (PP) requirements help to ensure the integrity of life-detection science conducted on solar system bodies, particularly those with liquid water. Such requirements are often met by a combination of cleaning and verification steps to reduce microbial contamination (i.e. bioburden) to an acceptable limit. There are only two cleaning methods approved by the National and Space Administration (NASA), vapor hydrogen peroxide (VHP) and heat microbial reduction (HMR), the latter of which is the most commonly employed. However, HMR can be harsh and produce its own concerns about material integrity, like aging or increasing hardness. When bioburden reduction methods cannot be employed, the project must rely on assumed NASA specification values of bioburden which can cause compliance issues with strict PP bioburden limitations. This work aimed to more accurately define the risk of contamination of a target body by providing empirical data associated with raw materials commonly used in solid rocket motors for lander missions. In this study, we pulverized nonmetallic materials using a cryogenic grinder, then analyzed the resulting substrate for microbial colony forming units (CFU). We found that many nonmetallic materials do not harbor large bioburden when compared with the NASA specification values, though a range existed depending on the material, treatment, and handling. The results from this work provide quantitative data to help reduce concerns of contamination, while also providing a foundation for follow up studies into additional sterilization methods and molecular identification of contaminating microbes.

Planetary Protection↗

NASA NTRS1987

Improved silicon nitride for advanced heat engines

The technology base required to fabricate silicon nitride components with the strength, reliability, and reproducibility necessary for actual heat engine applications is presented. Task 2 was set up to develop test bars with high Weibull slope and greater high temperature strength, and to conduct an initial net shape component fabrication evaluation. Screening experiments were performed in Task 7 on advanced materials and processing for input to Task 2. The technical efforts performed in the second year of a 5-yr program are covered. The first iteration of Task 2 was completed as planned. Two half-replicated, fractional factorial (2 sup 5), statistically designed matrix experiments were conducted. These experiments have identified Denka 9FW Si3N4 as an alternate raw material to GTE SN502 Si3N4 for subsequent process evaluation. A detailed statistical analysis was conducted to correlate processing conditions with as-processed test bar properties. One processing condition produced a material with a 97 ksi average room temperature MOR (100 percent of goal) with 13.2 Weibull slope (83 percent of goal); another condition produced 86 ksi (6 percent over baseline) room temperature strength with a Weibull slope of 20 (125 percent of goal).

Yeh, Hun C.↗

NASA NTRS2003

CO2 Acquisition Membrane (CAM)

The objective of CAM is to develop, test, and analyze thin film membrane materials for separation and purification of carbon dioxide (CO2) from mixtures of gases, such as those found in the Martian atmosphere. The membranes are targeted toward In Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) applications that will operate in extraterrestrial environments and support future unmanned and human space missions. A primary application is the Sabatier Electrolysis process that uses Mars atmosphere CO2 as raw material for producing water, oxygen, and methane for rocket fuel and habitat support. Other applications include use as an inlet filter to collect and concentrate Mars atmospheric argon and nitrogen gases for habitat pressurization, and to remove CO2 from breathing gases in Closed Environment Life Support Systems (CELSS). CAM membrane materials include crystalline faujasite (FAU) zeolite and rubbery polymers such as silicone rubber (PDMS) that have been shown in the literature and via molecular simulation to favor adsorption and permeation of CO2 over nitrogen and argon. Pure gas permeation tests using commercial PDMS membranes have shown that both CO2 permeance and the separation factor relative to other gases increase as the temperature decreases, and low (Delta)P(Sub CO2) favors higher separation factors. The ideal CO2/N2 separation factor increases from 7.5 to 17.5 as temperature decreases from 22 C to -30 C. For gas mixtures containing CO2, N2, and Ar, plasticization decreased the separation factors from 4.5 to 6 over the same temperature range. We currently synthesize and test our own Na(+) FAU zeolite membranes using standard formulations and secondary growth methods on porous alumina. Preliminary tests with a Na(+) FAU membrane at 22 C show a He/SF6 ideal separation factor of 62, exceeding the Knudsen diffusion selectivity by an order of magnitude. This shows that the membrane is relatively free from large defects and associated non-selective (viscous flow) transport mechanisms. The Membrane Test Facility (MTF) has been developed to measure membrane permeance over a wide range of temperature and pressure. The facility uses two volume compartments separated by the membrane that are instrumented to measure temperature, delta pressure across the membrane, and gas composition. A thermal shroud supports and encloses the membrane, and provides temperature control. Methods were developed to determine membrane permeance using the first order decay of the pressure difference between the sealed compartments, using the total pressure for pure gases, and partial pressure of each species in gas mixtures. The technique provides an end-to-end measurement of gas permeance that includes concentration polarization effects. Experiments have shown that in addition to membrane permeance properties, the geometry and design of associated structures play an important role in how membrane systems will function on Mars.

Mason, Larry W.↗

NASA NTRS2007

Larger, Lighter Space Telescopes by Implementing In-Space Manufacturing Concepts

There is a continuous demand for larger, lighter, and higher quality telescopes from both the astronomical and global surveillance communities one looking up and the other down. Enabling technologies must be developed and implemented that will allow this goal to be financially and technically feasible. The optical systems needed far high spatial resolution surveillance and astronomical applications require large optical, apertures with mention of future systems up to 150 meter in diameter. With traditional optical manufacturing technologies, large optical aperture means high mass and long fabrication lead times with associated high costs. Completely new approaches to optical fabrication must be developed to enable the fabrication of such optical systems. The cost and lead time associated with the fabrication of lightweight, high quality optical systems limits the feasible size of the optics. A primary factor in the launch cost of space optical systems is volume and mass. To minimize the mass of the high quality optics, optical fabricators implement materials with high specific stiffness and use honeycomb, or other structural minimization patterns, to support the optical surface; however, the structure must still be designed to survive launch loads. This sigmficantly adds to the fabrication difficulty and dramatically increases launch costs. One approach to minimizing launch volume and negating the need for the design to survive launch loads is to send the manufacturing facility and raw materials into space and perform the fabrication in-situ. We, are currently performing feasibility studies of initial concepts for inspace manufacturing of optical systems. By utilizing the micro-gravity and vacuum environment of space while eliminating the constraints defined by high launch forces and limited volume of the launch vehicle, the development of large, high quality glass membrane mirrors may be feasible. Several concepts were investigated to address the manufacturing of both optical surfaces and telescope structure. We will describe one of the primary approaches to utilize the space environment for optical manufacturing and describe initial results.

Mooney, James t.↗

NASA NTRS1995

Evidence for Chemical Processing of Precometary Icy Grains In Circumstellar Environments of Pre-Main-Sequence Stars

We report the detection of a broad absorption feature near 2166 cm-1 in the spectrum of the Taurus cloud source Elias 18. This pre-main-sequence source is the second in Taurus, the third in our survey, and the fifth known in the sky to show the broad 2166 cm-1 absorption feature. Of equal importance, this feature is not seen toward several other embedded sources in our survey, nor is it seen toward the source Elias 16, located behind the Taurus cloud. Laboratory experiments with interstellar ice analogs show that such a feature is associated with a complex C=-N containing compound [called X(C=-N)] that results from high-energy processing (ultraviolet irradiation or ion bombardment) of simple ice components into more complex, organic components, We find a nonlinear anticorrelation between the abundance of X(C=-N) and frozen CO in non- polar lattices. We find no correlation between the abundance of X(C=-N) and frozen CO in polar lattices. Because the abundances of frozen CO and H20 are strongly correlated with each other and with visual extinction toward sources embedded in and located behind the Taurus molecular cloud, these ice components usually are associated with intracloud material. Our results indicate that X(C=-N) molecules result from chemical processing of dust grains dominated by nonpolar icy mantles in the local environments of pre-main- sequence stars. Such processing of icy grains in the early solar system may be an important source of organic compounds observed in minor solar system bodies. The delivery of these organic compounds to the surface of the primitive Earth through comet impacts may have provided the raw materials for prebiotic chemistry.

Teglier, Stephen C.↗