NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS) 20020024455: Multi-User Hardware Solutions to Combustion Science ISS Research

6 Pages·0.29 MB·English

by  NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

AIAA 2001-5042
MULTI-USER HARDWARE SOLUTIONS TO COMBUSTION SCIENCE ISS
RESEARCH
Angel M. Otero
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Glenn Research Center
Cleveland, Ohio 44135
Abs_ct Additionally, an investigation is provided the
Inresponse to the budget environment and to expand on opportunity to enhance the existing capability to bridge
the International Space Station Fluids and Combustion the gap between the capability and their specific science
Facility (FCF) Combustion Integrated Rack (CIR), requirements.
common hardware approach, the NASA Combustion
Science Program shifted focus in 1999 from single This multi-user development approach will enable the
investigator Pl-specific hardware to multi-user "Mini- Combustion Science Program to drive cost per
facilities". These mini-facilities would take the CIR investigation down while drastically reducing the time
common hardware philosophy to the next level. The required to go from selection to space flight.
approach that was developed re-arranged all the
investigations in the program into sub-fields of Introduction
research. Then common requirements within these sub- In response to the budget environment in 1999 and to
fields were used to develop a common system that align the Program to better utilize the long term ISS
would then be complemented by a few PI-specific research facility (Combustion Integrated Rack, see
components. The sub-fields of research selected were figure 1), the Combustion Science Program shifted
droplet combustion, solids and fire safety, and gaseous focus away from individual projects developing
fuels. From these research areas three mini-facilities customized pieces of hardware for asingle Principal
have sprung: the Multi-user Droplet Combustion Investigator (PI). The new focus drew from our
Apparatus (MDCA) for droplet research, Flow experience gained with the Combustion Module (CM-
Enclosure for Novel Investigations in Combustion of lproject), see figure 2, in which facility-class hardware
Solids (FEANICS) for solids and fire safety, and the was developed to meet the requirements of two totally
Multi-user Gaseous Fuels Apparatus (MGFA) for independent Investigators. This experience was further
gaseous fuels. augmented with the Combustion Module 2 (CM-2)
project, see figure 3. In CM-2, the requirements of
These mini-facilities will develop common Chamber three Investigators are satisfied, including acommercial
insert Assemblies (CIA) and diagnostics for the Investigator from the Center for Commercial
respective investigators complementing the capability Application of Combustion in Space (CCACS). These
provided by C[R. Presently there are four investigators two projects allowed the Combustion Program to
for MDCA, six for FEANICS, and four for MGFA. develop the expertise to handle "multi-user" hardware
The goal of these multi-user facilities is to drive the developments.
cost per PI down after the initial development ,
investment is made. Each of these mini-facilities will The Mini-facility concept complements the Rack level
become a fixture of future Combustion Science NASA facilities like the CIR. It takes the next step in
Research Announcements (NRAs), enabling searching for common requirements among
investigators to propose against an existing capability. investigators, developing as much common hardware as
Copyright © 2001 by the American Institute of This is a preprintorreprintof apaper intended for presentation ata
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possiblteh,en concentrating on the necessary PI- the ground work for much larger savings in the future
specific hardware developments required to on hardware development, plus allowing to increase the
accommodate the largest amount of science feasible. capability for higher science returns with every NASA
Research Announcement (NRA) cycle.
Due to the ever-tightening budget constraints being
faced during the ISS assembly phase, itbecomes
imperative to limit the cost to accomplish science. The
mini-facility concept satisfies this criteria, plus itsets
Figure 1
CIR conceptual view and engineering model
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Figure 2
CM-! single and double rack Spacelab hardware
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Figure 3
CM-2 SpaceHab hardware
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ISSEra
challenges. At the present time, both the ISS and the
Theadvenotf
the International Space Station (ISS) and CIR are been developed simultaneously. The program
the development of the Combustion Integrated Rack isfaced with the challenge of developing the sub-rack
(CIR) provided a unique research opportunity to the level hardware for the PIs at the same time the carrier
Combustion Program. The ISS provides long duration and vehicle are in development. Presently, our program
access to Microgravity to extend our research beyond has over fifteen Flight investigators planning to use the
the timeframes allowed by the early programs, i.e., CIR, see Figure 4. This situation made it imperative
Spacelab. The CIR development provided the program that ways were found to reduce development
incredible savings by developing a combustion chamber complexities and costs. The solution that made the
for multiple users, thus saving the programs millions of most sense was to extend the concept of multi-user
dollars indevelopment cost for individual chambers for hardware, like the CIR approach, to the sub-rack level
individual investigators. Also, the CIR provides payload. Itwas noted that most of the present
diagnostics and gas supply systems that are common to investigators could be logically grouped into similar
several users, enhancing the cost savings further. sub-research categories. Thus the "mini-facility"
(referencIe) concept was born.
The ISS-CIR combination provides outstanding
benefits to the program but also some serious
Mlcrogrcvity Combustion Science Discipline ISS Flight Rate - Closed Solution, ISS ends In 2018.
_Rav G 14/'181nt draft varalon_ I
&ssumotlons for eXl_flment le¢omodatlone: CIR: 3 MRP PIs/yll_r; MSG/EXPRESS/SAR/Othe¢: 1 (l_ntm_lm) -- RESOURCE CONSTRAINED
uMrrED BUYBACK Funding
UF-3 (1105)
1E (2/OS)
..... _F._s__gjos)
Figure 4
Combustion Program ISS Flight manifest: "Buy-back" Program
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The Concept The Future
The "mini-facility" concept aligns the hardware The real payoffofthe "mini-facility" concept lies in the
development efforts with the sub-fields of research the future. The initial investment on the common hardware
combustion research community pursues. The will accrue benefit with every NRA cycle. The
Combustion Program research primarily iscomprised investigators selected inthe future will benefit from the
of four major sub-fields: pre-mixed gases, solids and development efforts for earlier investigations ensuring
fire safety, liquids and sprays, and combustion much lower cost per investigation and allowing the
synthesis. Based on the present PI cadre in the Flight future dollars to be used mainly for diagnostics
program, three of these sub-fields were identified for development for these new investigators. In turn, these
"mini-facility" hardware developments. They are the new diagnostics will become part of the "mini-
Multi-user Droplet Combustion Apparatus (MDCA) for facilities" inventory thus continuing to advance the
liquids and sprays (reference 2), the Flow Enclosure for program's research capabilities.
Novel Investigations in Combustion of Solids
(FEANICS) for solids and fire safety (reference 3), and Also, the "mini-facilities" will not be limited to the
the Multi-user Gaseous Fuels Apparatus (MGFA) for ones in work at the present time. As investigators are
pre-mixed gases (reference 4). identified with a sub-field, such as cool flames research,
new "mini-facilities may be added to the program. The
The concept calls for the development of as much fact that future dollars will not be encumbered by
commonality as possible. The hardware teams and substantial hardware development costs for every
investigators identified the planned CIR capability that investigation will allow handling an occasional
will meet the sub-field requirements. Then a set of individual investigator that does not fit within a specific
common requirements and hardware are identified that available "mini-facility" capability.
will meet the grouped investigators' needs, thus
becoming the heart of the "mini-facility". Then small SBmmarv
Pl-specific development efforts will be put in place to As we moved into the ISS era with tight budgets and
address any requirements not met with common schedules, the development of the "mini-facility"
hardware.
concept allows the Combustion Program the highest
flexibility and it provides the opportunity to accomplish
This concept calls for a much closer relationship the largest amount of research possible during the
between the hardware and science teams. Due to the
assembly phase of the ISS. Also, as we look into the
extremely tight budget and schedule environment on future this concept will reduce the hardware
ISS, science and engineering requirements need to be development cost thus maximizing the amount of
clearly identified to avoid cost growth. Since all three research performed per dollar spent. As this concept
components, ISS, CIR, and "mini-facility" are under matures and is institutionalized itprovides the
development simultaneously, and some of the science is Combustion Program the opportunity to best utilize the
not 100% mature, the hardware and science teams must
resources provided by the ISS-CIR combination
continue to address the changing environment to ensure accomplishing its research goals.
the capability required iscovered within one of the
three components. The concept of compatibility checks Ultimately this concept will reduce the life cycle time
has been instituted to ensure that, as the science of science concept realization to data return while
requirements mature, the capability is still present constantly enhancing the research capabilities of the
within one of the three components, or that the combustion program within the ISS.
implementation of that specific science isdelayed until
the capability can be put in place. R_ferences
l. O'Mailey, Terrence; Weiland, K.; The Fluids and
The real advantage that the "mini-facility concept Combustion Facility Combustion Integrated Rack:
provides the program isthat each one of the "mini-
Microgravity Combustion Science on Board the
facilities" capability will grow with every single PI
International Space Station, AIAA 2001-4927
added to it. After the initial development investment,
2. Myhre, Craig; The Multi-user Droplet Combustion
every new diagnostics developed for aPI becomes part
Apparatus, AIAA 2001-5043
of the inventory of this "mini-facility" for the next 3. Frate, David; et el.; FEANICS- A Multi-user
NASA Research Announcement (NRA). Therefore
Facility for Conducting Solid fuel Combustion
every cycle enhances the capability, thus adding to the
Experiments on ISS, AIAA 2001-5079
savings accrued by the program with this approach.
4. Jones, Jeffrey; Over, A.; Microgravity Gaseous
Combustion Flight Hardware, AIAA 2001-5046
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