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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 19 records
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2016

Approach-Phase Precision Landing with Hazard Relative Navigation: Terrestrial Test Campaign Results of the Morpheus/ALHAT Project

The Morpheus Project began in late 2009 as an ambitious e ort code-named Project M to integrate three ongoing multi-center NASA technology developments: humanoid robotics, liquid oxygen/liquid methane (LOX/LCH4) propulsion and Autonomous Precision Landing and Hazard Avoidance Technology (ALHAT) into a single engineering demonstration mission to be own to the Moon by 2013. The humanoid robot e ort was redirected to a deploy- ment of Robonaut 2 on the International Space Station in February of 2011 while Morpheus continued as a terrestrial eld test project integrating the existing ALHAT Project's tech- nologies into a sub-orbital ight system using the world's rst LOX/LCH4 main propulsion and reaction control system fed from the same blowdown tanks. A series of 33 tethered tests with the Morpheus 1.0 vehicle and Morpheus 1.5 vehicle were conducted from April 2011 - December 2013 before successful, sustained free ights with the primary Vertical Testbed (VTB) navigation con guration began with Free Flight 3 on December 10, 2013. Over the course of the following 12 free ights and 3 tethered ights, components of the ALHAT navigation system were integrated into the Morpheus vehicle, operations, and ight control loop. The ALHAT navigation system was integrated and run concurrently with the VTB navigation system as a reference and fail-safe option in ight (see touchdown position esti- mate comparisons in Fig. 1). Flight testing completed with Free Flight 15 on December 15, 2014 with a completely autonomous Hazard Detection and Avoidance (HDA), integration of surface relative and Hazard Relative Navigation (HRN) measurements into the onboard dual-state inertial estimator Kalman lter software, and landing within 2 meters of the VTB GPS-based navigation solution at the safe landing site target. This paper describes the Mor- pheus joint VTB/ALHAT navigation architecture, the sensors utilized during the terrestrial ight campaign, issues resolved during testing, and the navigation results from the ight tests.

Crain, Timothy P.↗
NASA NTRS2005

Automation of Vapor-Diffusion Growth of Protein Crystals

Some improvements have been made in a system of laboratory equipment developed previously for studying the crystallization of proteins from solution by use of dynamically controlled flows of dry gas. The improvements involve mainly (1) automation of dispensing of liquids for starting experiments, (2) automatic control of drying of protein solutions during the experiments, and (3) provision for automated acquisition of video images for monitoring experiments in progress and for post-experiment analysis. The automation of dispensing of liquids was effected by adding an automated liquid-handling robot that can aspirate source solutions and dispense them in either a hanging-drop or a sitting-drop configuration, whichever is specified, in each of 48 experiment chambers. A video camera of approximately the size and shape of a lipstick dispenser was added to a mobile stage that is part of the robot, in order to enable automated acquisition of images in each experiment chamber. The experiment chambers were redesigned to enable the use of sitting drops, enable backlighting of each specimen, and facilitate automation.

Hamrick, David T.↗
NASA NTRS2001

Composite Structures and Materials Research at NASA Langley Research Center

A summary of recent composite structures and materials research at NASA Langley Research Center is presented. Fabrication research to develop low-cost automated robotic fabrication procedures for thermosetting and thermoplastic composite materials, and low-cost liquid molding processes for preformed textile materials is described. Robotic fabrication procedures discussed include ply-by-ply, cure-on-the-fly heated placement head and out-of-autoclave electron-beam cure methods for tow and tape thermosetting and thermoplastic materials. Liquid molding fabrication processes described include Resin Film Infusion (RFI) Resin Transfer Molding (RTM) and Vacuum-Assisted Resin Transfer Molding (VARTM). Results for a full-scale composite wing box are summarized to identify the performance of materials and structures fabricated with these low-cost fabrication methods.

Starnes, James H., Jr.↗
NASA NTRS2016

NASA's Hydrogen Outpost: The Rocket Systems Area at Plum Brook Station

"There was pretty much a general knowledge about hydrogen and its capabilities," recalled former researcher Robert Graham. "The question was, could you use it in a rocket engine? Do we have the technology to handle it? How will it cool? Will it produce so much heat release that we can't cool the engine? These were the questions that we had to address." The National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Glenn Research Center, referred to historically as the Lewis Research Center, made a concerted effort to answer these and related questions in the 1950s and 1960s. The center played a critical role transforming hydrogen's theoretical potential into a flight-ready propellant. Since then NASA has utilized liquid hydrogen to send humans and robots to the Moon, propel dozens of spacecraft across the universe, orbit scores of satellite systems, and power 135 space shuttle flights. Rocket pioneers had recognized hydrogen's potential early on, but its extremely low boiling temperature and low density made it impracticable as a fuel. The Lewis laboratory first demonstrated that liquid hydrogen could be safely utilized in rocket and aircraft propulsion systems, then perfected techniques to store, pump, and cleanly burn the fuel, as well as use it to cool the engine. The Rocket Systems Area at Lewis's remote testing area, Plum Brook Station, played a little known, but important role in the center's hydrogen research efforts. This publication focuses on the activities at the Rocket Systems Area, but it also discusses hydrogen's role in NASA's space program and Lewis's overall hydrogen work. The Rocket Systems Area included nine physically modest test sites and three test stands dedicated to liquid-hydrogen-related research. In 1962 Cleveland Plain Dealer reporter Karl Abram claimed, "The rocket facility looks more like a petroleum refinery. Its test rigs sprout pipes, valves and tanks. During the night test runs, excess hydrogen is burned from special stacks in the best Oklahoma oil field tradition." Besides the Rocket Systems Area, Plum Brook Station also included a nuclear test reactor, a large vacuum tank, a hypersonic wind tunnel, and a full-scale upper-stage rocket stand. The Rocket Systems Area operated from 1961 until NASA shut down all of Plum Brook in 1974. The center reopened Plum Brook in the late 1980s and continues to use several test facilities. The Rocket Systems Area, however, was not restored. Today Plum Brook resembles a nature preserve more than an oil refinery. Lush fields and forests separate the large test facilities. Until recently, the abandoned Rocket Systems Area structures and equipment were visible amongst the greenery. These space-age ruins, particularly the three towers, stood as silent sentinels over the sparsely populated reservation. Few knew the story of these mysterious facilities when NASA removed them in the late 2000s.

Rocket Systems↗
NASA NTRS2016

Current Design Criteria for MMOD Impact of Metallic Pressurized Tanks

Most spacecraft have at least one pressurized vessel on board. For robotic spacecraft, it is usually a liquid propellant tank or battery. For human spacecraft, there are also pressurized living quarters and life-support systems. One of the design considerations of such spacecraft is the possible damage that might occur in the event of an on-orbit impact by a micrometeoroid or orbital debris (MMOD) particle. While considerable energy and effort has been expended in the study of the response of nonpressurized spacecraft components to these kinds of impacts, relatively few studies have been conducted on the pressurized elements of such spacecraft. In addition, the design criteria currently used by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for pressurized tanks operating in the MMOD environment have not been tested or scrutinized since they were first proposed nearly 45 years ago. This paper reviews current NASA design criteria for pressurized vessels and offers suggestions for next steps in their further development.

orbital debris↗
NASA NTRS2012

Cloud Droplet Size and Liquid Water Path Retrievals From Zenith Radiance Measurements: Examples From the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Program and the Aerosol Robotic Network

The ground-based Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Program (ARM) and NASA Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) routinely monitor clouds using zenith radiances at visible and near-infrared wavelengths. Using the transmittance calculated from such measurements, we have developed a new retrieval method for cloud effective droplet size and conducted extensive tests for non-precipitating liquid water clouds. The underlying principle is to combine a water-absorbing wavelength (i.e. 1640 nm) with a nonwater-absorbing wavelength for acquiring information on cloud droplet size and optical depth. For simulated stratocumulus clouds with liquid water path less than 300 g/sq m and horizontal resolution of 201m, the retrieval method underestimates the mean effective radius by 0.8 m, with a root-mean-squared error of 1.7 m and a relative deviation of 13 %. For actual observations with a liquid water path less than 450 gm.2 at the ARM Oklahoma site during 2007-2008, our 1.5 min-averaged retrievals are generally larger by around 1 m than those from combined ground-based cloud radar and microwave radiometer at a 5min temporal resolution. We also compared our retrievals to those from combined shortwave flux and microwave observations for relatively homogeneous clouds, showing that the bias between these two retrieval sets is negligible, but the error of 2.6 m and the relative deviation of 22% are larger than those found in our simulation case. Finally, the transmittance-based cloud effective droplet radii agree to better than 11% with satellite observations and have a negative bias of 1 m. Overall, the retrieval method provides reasonable cloud effective radius estimates, which can enhance the cloud products of both ARM and AERONET.

Chiu, J. C.↗
NASA NTRS2003

Hybrid Aerial/Rover Vehicle

A proposed instrumented robotic vehicle called an "aerover" would fly, roll along the ground, and/or float on bodies of liquid, as needed. The aerover would combine features of an aerobot (a robotic lighter-than-air balloon) and a wheeled robot of the "rover" class. An aerover would also look very much like a variant of the "beach-ball" rovers. Although the aerover was conceived for use in scientific exploration of Titan (the largest moon of the planet Saturn), the aerover concept could readily be adapted to similar uses on Earth.

Bachelder, Aaron↗
NASA NTRS2010

Project M: An Assessment of Mission Assumptions

Project M is a mission Johnson Space Center is working on to send an autonomous humanoid robot to the moon (also known as Robonaut 2) in l000 days. The robot will be in a lander, fueled by liquid oxygen and liquid methane, and land on the moon, avoiding any hazardous obstacles. It will perform tasks like maintenance, construction, and simple student experiments. This mission is also being used as inspiration for new advancements in technology. I am considering three of the design assumptions that contribute to determining the mission feasibility: maturity of robotic technology, launch vehicle determination, and the LOX/Methane fueled spacecraft

Edwards, Alycia↗
NASA NTRS2002

Evolutionary Design and Simulation of a Tube Crawling Inspection Robot

The Space Robotics Assembly Team Simulation (SpaceRATS) is an expansive concept that will hopefully lead to a space flight demonstration of a robotic team cooperatively assembling a system from its constitutive parts. A primary objective of the SpaceRATS project is to develop a generalized evolutionary design approach for multiple classes of robots. The portion of the overall SpaceRats program associated with the evolutionary design and simulation of an inspection robot's morphology is the subject of this paper. The vast majority of this effort has concentrated on the use and modification of Darwin2K, a robotic design and simulation software package, to analyze the design of a tube crawling robot. This robot is designed for carrying out inspection duties in relatively inaccessible locations within a liquid rocket engine similar to the SSME. A preliminary design of the tube crawler robot was completed, and the mechanical dynamics of the system were simulated. An evolutionary approach to optimizing a few parameters of the system was utilized, resulting in a more optimum design.

Craft, Michael↗
NASA NTRS2018

Ammonia Vent of the External Active Thermal Control System (EATCS) Radiator #3 Flow Path #2 on the International Space Station (ISS)

The External Active Thermal Control System (EATCS) provides cooling for all pressurized modules and the main Power Distribution Electronics (PDE) on the International Space Station (ISS). There are 2 EATCS loops (Loop A and Loop B) which includes 3 deployable radiators. Each deployable radiator contains 2 flow paths to provide heat rejection.Telemetry monitoring identified a coolant (liquid ammonia) leak in EATCS Loop B. Robotic External Leak Locator (RELL) scans found higher concentrations of vaporous ammonia near the EATCS Loop B Radiator #3 Flow Path #2. On May 3, 2017, the EATCS Loop B Radiator #3 Flow Path #2 was isolated and vented. As of the data to date, the ammonia leak has ceased. The purpose of this presentation is to discuss the analysis for venting the EATCS Loop B Radiator #3 Flow Path #2. Venting analysis is performed to determine the worst case time to empty the flow path and maximum thrusts imposed on the ISS. Flight controllers and engineers in the Mission Control Center (MCC) uses this data to develop operational procedures and perform the vent safely. It was predicted that the worst case time to empty the EATCS Loop B Radiator #3 Flow Path #2 was ~ 60 minutes. The predicted maximum thrusts were ~ 11 lbf (49 N) at the start of the vent and ~10 lbf (45 N) after the system reaches saturation.The vent was successfully performed and took ~ 20 minutes to empty the EATCS Loop B Radiator #3 Flow Path #2. Using telemetry from the day of the vent, analysis determined the time to empty the EATCS Loop B Radiator #3 Flow Path #2 would be ~13 minutes. The predictive analysis used worst case inputs and assumptions which bounded the actual results. Telemetry is not available to correlate actual thrust with the predicted maximum thrusts. However, by using Russian Thrusters for ISS attitude control, attitude control telemetry indicated the flight attitude was maintained.

Cowan, Darnell T.↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Addressing CFM Modeling Gaps for Application into NASA’S Future Cutting Edge Missions

NASA, the US industry, and international partners are crafting frameworks to enable sustaining lunar missions. The ongoing programs, led by the agency, and prominent industry players, encompass plans for the sustained use of cryogenic propellants in lunar landers and in-space propellant refueling depots. NASA’s proactive funding initiatives have fueled the advancement of predictive computational models tailored to enhance the storage and transfer of cryogenic propellant. This paper aims to spotlight the latest advancements in this arena and delve into the collaborative efforts surrounding predictive model development within internal NASA programs as well as current and previous collaborations with industry and international partners. The paper presents an overview of recent advancements in cryogenic fluid management model development, along with their correlation with recent microgravity and large-scale cryogenic ground tests. The tests include key experiments such as the ISS Zero-Boil-Off Tank (ZBOT) series of experiments and the (Robotic Refueling Mission 3) RRM3 test during which liquid methane was stored on-orbit for an extended period of five months. The paper also highlights the anchoring of propellant tank pressurized drain tests involving sloshing that were conducted with liquid methane propellant during the Apollo/Saturn Era. Additionally, the paper discusses model anchoring against more recent sloshing tests carried out with liquid hydrogen propellant. Notable large-scale tests, such as a liquid oxygen propellant transfer test conducted by SpaceX were also used to help correlate a two-phase propellant transfer model using the valuable data measured during the test. The paper further showcases model correlations against a substantial oxygen liquefaction test undertaken by NASA to validate In-Situ-Resource-Utilization (ISRU) technologies that will prove pivotal for a sustained lunar presence.

Low-gravity fluid modeling↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Lattice Confinement Fusion Fast Fission – A Hybrid Power System for Accessing Icy World Oceans

Lattice Confinement Fusion (LCF) is an emerging power technology that can be combined with nuclear fission to produce a hybrid innovative power system. The proposed innovation is a compact, scalable nuclear energy source that does not use highly enriched uranium (HEU), high-assay enriched uranium (HALEU), low enriched uranium (LEU) nor plutonium-238. The nuclear energy source consists of a hybrid fusion-fast-fission method whereby neutrons generated from LCF are used to fission materials such as depleted uranium or thorium. LCF has been demonstrated by both NASA (published in Physical Review C) and by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (published in the Journal of Applied Physics). Although these methods are reminiscent of Low Energy Nuclear Reactions (LENR), both methods operate at much higher energies than any attempt at cold fusion. This new hybrid energy source is sufficient to provide power and heat for melting or boring through icy caps with untethered, autonomous probes. These probes can be used for planetary (i.e., Pluto), lunar (i.e., Enceladus), or asteroid (i.e., Ceres) exploration where icy caps are encountered. Each world may have a liquid water ocean beneath their ice crust. A robotic probe exploring the oceans beneath must either melt or bore through the ice crust first. Such a mission requires a small, but robust and long lived, electrical energy and heat source such as the LCF Fast Fission hybrid power system.

Theresa L. Benyo↗
NASA NTRS1995

Robotic Planetary Science Missions Enabled with Small NTR Engine/Stage Technologies

The high specific impulse (Isp) and engine thrust-to-weight ratio of liquid hydrogen (LH2)-cooled nuclear thermal rocket (NTR) engines makes them ideal for upper stage applications to difficult robotic planetary science missions. A small 15 thousand pound force (klbf) NTR engine using a uranium-zirconium-niobium 'ternary carbide' fuel (Isp approximately 960 seconds at approximately 3025K) developed in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) is examined and its use on an expendable injection stage is shown to provide major increases in payload delivered to the outer planets (Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto). Using a single 'Titan IV-class' launch vehicle, with a lift capability to low Earth orbit (LEO) of approximately 20 metric tons (t), an expendable NTR upper stage can inject two Pluto 'Fast Flyby' spacecraft (PFF/SC) plus support equipment-combined mass of approximately 508 kg--on high energy, '6.5-9.2 year' direct trajectory missions to Pluto. A conventional chemical propulsion mission would use a liquid oxygen (LOX)/LH2 'Centaur' upper stage and two solid rocket 'kick motors' to inject a single PFF/SC on the same Titan IV launch vehicle. For follow on Pluto missions, the NTR injection stage would utilize a Jupiter 'gravity assist' (JGA) maneuver to launch a LOX/liquid methane (CH4) capture stage (Isp approximately 375 seconds) and a Pluto 'orbiter' spacecraft weighing between approximately 167-312 kg. With chemical propulsion, a Pluto orbiter mission is not a viable option because c inadequate delivered mass. Using a 'standardized' NTR injection stage and the same single Titan IV launch scenario, 'direct flight' (no gravity assist) orbiter missions to Saturn, Uranus and Neptune are also enabled with transit times of 2.3, 6.6, and 12.6 years, respectively. Injected mass includes a storable, nitrogen tetroxide/monomethyl hydrazine (N2O4/MMH) capture stage (Isp approximately 330 seconds) and orbiter payloads 340 to 820% larger than that achievable using a LOX/LH2-fueled injection stage. The paper discusses NTR technology and mission characteristics, shows NTR stage and payload accommodations within the 26.2 m long Titan IV payload fairing, and discusses NTR stage performance as a function of assumed cryogenic tank technology.

Borowski, Stanley K.↗
NASA NTRS2019

The Shapeshifter: A Morphing, Multi-Agent, Multi-Modal Robotic Platform for the Exploration of Titan

In this report, we present a robotic platform, the Shapeshifter, that allows multi-domain and redundant mobility on Saturn's moon Titan - and potentially other bodies with atmospheres. The Shapeshifter is a collection of simple and a affordable robotic units, called Cobots, comparable to personal palm-size quadcopters. By attaching and detaching with each other, multiple Cobots can shape-shift into novel structures, capable of (a) rolling on a at surface, to increase the traverse range, (b) flying in a flight array formation, and (c) swimming on or under liquid. A ground station, called the Home-base, complements the robotic platform, hosting science instrumentation and providing power to recharge the batteries of the Cobots. Our Phase I study had the objective of providing an initial assessment of the feasibility of the proposed robotic platform architecture, and in particular (a) to characterize the expected science return of a mission to the Sotra-Patera region on Titan; (b) to verify the mechanical and algorithmic feasibility of building a multi-agent platform capable of flying, docking, rolling and un-docking; (c) to evaluate the increased range and efficiency of rolling on Titan w.r.t to flying; (d) to define a case-study of a mission for the exploration of the cryovolcano Sotra-Patera on Titan, whose expected variety of geological features challenges conventional mobility platforms.

Agha-mohammadi, Ali-akbar↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Launching Liquid Slugs Through Tube Networks: Investigating Multiphase Liquid Slug Acceleration Behaviors in Spacecraft Propulsion Systems using 3D Multiphase VOF CFD Simulations and High-Speed Flow-Visualization Validation Experiments

Propellant management in spacecraft propulsion systems is complex. In many current and future crewed and robotic spacecraft propulsion systems, a number of unintended or unavoidable scenarios can occasionally lead to liquid “slugs” of propellant accumulating in unwanted locations and thereafter being rapidly accelerated through complex and arbitrary tubing networks otherwise filled with vapor or gas. To develop better understanding of the multiphase fluid dynamics associated with these “slug launch” scenarios, NASA Marshal Space Flight Center’s (MSFC) ER42 branch – the propulsion fluid dynamics research branch – conducted 3D multiphase transient Volume of Fluid (VOF) CFD simulations using an in-house tool called LOCI-Stream VOF on semi-canonical tube networks with straight sections, bends, and bend complexes. In addition, high-speed flow visualization validation experiments using propellants were conducted on similar tube network geometries at the NASA White Sands Test Facility (WSTF). These simulations and flow-visualization experiments found these scenarios lead to a variety of unique multiphase fluid dynamic effects involving the leading and trailing edges of the slug in both straight sections and curved bends as well as the progressive erosion, acceleration, and eventual “punch-through” of the driving gas through the liquid slug. Understanding these multiphase fluid dynamic effects has led to unique and often counter-intuitive observations which have been of critical relevance to important engineering concerns associated with these “slug launch” scenarios.

Multiphase Fluid Dynamics↗
NASA NTRS1993

New Mars vehicle concepts

The paper briefly reviews the evolution of the Mars vehicle design concepts from 1952 to 1990, and the currently understood requirements, constraints, and options for manned Mars missions in the early decades of the 21st century. The most up-to-date integrated Mars vehicle concepts for crew-carrying transfer and excursion vehicles are presented together with the Mars descent-ascent mission phases. Particular attention is given to a reusable transfer ship, which is a modular vehicle launched to earth orbit on six 185 t-class boosters and assembled there robotically; it uses dual nuclear-thermal rocket engines and liquid hydrogen propellant. The lander concept is capable of supporting many kinds of surface missions anywhere on Mars.

Sherwood, Brent↗