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This paper describes some of the design solutions adopted in solving two major problems besetting man-powered aircraft in use: that of breakage and storage. It describes work leading up to the building and testing of “Phoenix”, a man-powered aircraft with a polyester-film inflatable wing. The paper deals mainly with aspects relating to the wing design and construction.

The ability to carry cargo efficiently in passenger aircraft has influenced airline economics to the point that optimisation of the freight capacity is mandatory. This document discusses the alternative loading possibilities in defined Lover Deck Compartments and their doors to cater for current and future trends in ULD dimensions. As a result items for study centred on: 1) Optimisation of the available volumes Freight capacity resulting in the selection of “Pallets”-doors for both the Forward and AFT Compartments. Flexibility to meet Freight and Baggage requirements. Possible load arrangements to optimize aircraft C of G 2) Bulk Cargo Compartment Additional LD3 Container position in AFT/Bulk compartment to cater for an uneven number of Baggage container, allowing the carriage of an additional pallet. What is regarded as an optimum is presented.

In a 2-year program sponsored by SJAC, an aqueous electroplating process using alkaline Zn-Ni with trivalent chromium post treatment is under evaluation for high strength steel for aircraft application as an alternative to cadmium. Commercial Zn-15%Ni rack/barrel plating solutions are basis for plating aircraft parts or fasteners. Brightener was reduced from the original formula to form porous plating that enables bake-out of hydrogen to avoid hydrogen embrittlement condition. Properties of the deposit, such as appearance, adhesion, un-scribed corrosion resistance, and galvanic corrosion resistance in contact with Al alloy, were evaluated. Coefficient of friction was compared with Cd plating by torque-tension measurements. Evaluation of the plating for scribed corrosion resistance, primer adhesion, etc. will continue in FY2007.

This paper describes the testing of a waste management system designed and fabricated for use in a space vehicle. The system provides for the collection and inactivation of urine, feces, emergency diarrheal disorders, vomitus, and debris; the volumetric determination of each micturition; and onboard storage of the inactivated wastes within the waste management system compartment. The zero-gravity test program conducted in a KC-135 aircraft provided the primary verification of the performance of the waste collection and urine volume determination functions prior to actual space flight. The test hardware simulated the actual system to a high degree of fidelity with respect to operational characteristics of the airflow required in collection, mechanical functions and system pressure differentials, in order to minimize simulation errors.

Growth Temperatures And Lighting Intensity Are Key Factors That Directly Impact The Design, Engineering, And Horticultural Practices Of Sustainable Life-Support Systems For Future Long-Term Space Missions. The Effects Of Exposure Of Lettuce (Cv. Flandria), Radish (Cv. Cherry Bomb Ii). And Green Onion (Cv. Kinka) Plants To Controlled Environment Temperatures (Constant Day/Night Temperature Of 22, 25, Or 28 °C) And Lighting Intensities (8.6, 17.2, Or 25.8 Mol M−2 D−1 Photosynthetic Photon Flux [Ppf]) At Elevated Co2 (1200 µMol Mol−1) Was Investigated To Ascertain Overall Yield Responses. Following 35 Days Growth, The Yields Of Lettuce Indicated That Increasing The Growing Temperature From 22 To 28°C Slightly Increased The Edible Fresh Mass Of Individual Plants. However, Even Though Lettuce Plants Grown Under High Ppf Had The Highest Fresh Mass, The Resultant Increase In The Incidence And Severity Of Tipburn Reduced The Overall Quality Of The Lettuce Head.

Use of air freight depends not on the commodity or industry, as such, but on the combinations of characteristics that enable company to benefit from air shipment in any particular situation. Air freight handling and control systems should augment, not decrease, these benefits. Future air freight traffic must be forecast in terms of the different benefits sought in shipping by air. Research is required to determine the relative importance of different benefits in future traffic generation. Research areas are defined and cooperative research efforts urged.

A paradigm is created for the development of air freight cargo containerization, through a discussion of the progress of marine cargo containerization and through an examination of the forces fostering the growth of intermodal container transport, including the evolution and acceptance of ISO standards for container design, operation and maintenance, and the critical role of the container leasing company in providing unique fleet management and maintenance services.

Long term multimanned space missions present numerous complex problems in devising a suitable life support system. Among these problems is the management of the waste Products generated during the mission. A promising approach appears to be the wet oxidation process wherein the organic waste materials are decomposed at high pressures (50 atm or higher) and intermediate temperatures (100 - 300 C). This technique is promising because: effluent may be used as a nutrient media, and thermodynamically it is exothermic. Problems associated with the adoption of this approach to waste management are amenable to experimental investigation and resolution.

A new concept in commercial airborne weather radars was developed for the turbo and pure jet-powered general-aviation aircraft. This radar presents a steady, nonfading weather or ground picture, without using the conventional direct-view storage tube, by utilizing digital processing techniques. Careful treatment of the radar design parameters allows 200 n. mile range operation while only requiring a few amperes of 28 V d-c from the aircraft power bus. These techniques are being applied to a family of radar systems.

Co+Cr2O3 is a composite coating of a cobalt matrix with 30 percent by volume embedded Cr2O3. The coating can be applied by plating using a suspension of Cr2O3 in a cobalt electrolyte. The mechanical properties of this coating are discussed. The main attribute is the excellent wear resistance of the coating especially in the temperature range of 300 to 700°C. Adhesive wear of unplated counterparts is reduced by the same amount. In contrast to nickel the fatigue strength of Co+Cr2O3 coated Waspaloy was shown to be not influenced, when heat treated at 400°C for 16 hours. Plated engine parts demonstrate the usefulness of the Co+Cr2O3 composite coatings for wear protection.

The Water Supply Assembly (WSA) is part of the Liquid Management Section (LMS) of the Hermes Environmental Control and Life Support Subsystem (ECLSS) (see ref. [1] and [2]). The WSA has to provide pure water for drinking and food preparation (rehydratation of dry food and beverage powder) and to provide pure water for hygiene purposes (oral hygiene and towel wetting). To obtain different desired temperatures (as well as different quantities of water to be dispensed), a heating device, using electrical foils, and a cooling device, using a water/water heat exchanger have been designed with regard to the critical mass and power requirements. Two dispensers are used to fill food/beverage or hygiene (towels) containers. As part of the Hermes C1 phase, breadboard models of the heating device (heater) and of the cooling device (chiller) have been manufactured and functionally tested.

The Waste and Hygiene Compartment will serve as the primary facility for metabolic waste management and personal hygiene on the United States segment of the International Space Station. The Compartment encloses the volume of two standard ISS racks and will be installed into Node 3 after launch inside a Multipurpose Logistics Module on the Space Shuttle. Long duration space flight requires a departure from the established hygiene and waste disposal practices employed on the Space Shuttle. This paper describes requirements and a conceptual design for the Waste and Hygiene Compartment that are both logistically practical and acceptable to the crew.

The accumulation of waste products aboard spacecraft during manned missions of long duration still is an unsolved problem. Even if life support systems with regeneration of water (from urine and condensates) and oxygen are installed, waste accumulates at such a fast rate that within a short time storage space problems are encountered. Also, additional weight is required to provide a means of processing the waste material. To date, spacecraft designers have considered life support systems and rocket propulsion systems as independent subsystems of a manned spacecraft. The Integrated Waste Management/Rocket Propulsion System concept developed by Rocket Research Corp. under NASA Contract NAS 1–6750, has demonstrated that human waste products can form a useful propellant ingredient and provide propulsion, as well as be an effective means of removing and sterilizing spacecraft waste.

A simple and reliable concept for the collection, processing, disposal or storage of human waste products has been developed for application under conditions of weightlessness. Psychological acceptance is achieved by utilization of a hardware design permitting conventional earth-like procedures. Bag type containers are not used for collection and storage, thus manual handling of waste products and storage containers is not required. The system is capable of handling urine and fecal waste as well as Yomitus and food debris. The solids are vacuum dried to permit bacteriostatic storage and urine can be jettisoned to space.

Since the mid 1980s, NASA has developed advanced waste management technologies that collect and process waste. These technologies include incineration, hydrothermal oxidation, pyrolysis, electrochemical oxidation, activated carbon production, brine dewatering, slurry bioreactor oxidation, composting, NOx control, compaction, and waste collection. Some of these technologies recover resources such as water, oxygen, nitrogen, carbon dioxide, carbon, fuels, and nutrients. Other technologies such as the Waste Collection System (WCS - the commode) collect waste for storage or processing. The need for waste processing varies greatly depending upon the mission scenario. This paper reviews the waste management technology development activities conducted by NASA since the mid 1980s and explores the drivers that determine the application of these technologies to future missions.

Waste management is a critical component of life support systems for manned space exploration. Human occupied spacecraft and extraterrestrial habitats must be able to effectively manage the waste generated throughout the entire mission duration. The requirements for waste systems may vary according to specific mission scenarios but all waste management operations must allow for the effective collection, containment, processing, and storage of unwanted materials. NASA's Crew Exploration Vehicle usually referred to as the CEV, will have limited volume for equipment and crew. Technologies that reduce waste storage volume free up valuable space for other equipment. Waste storage volume is a major driver for the Orion waste compactor design. Current efforts at NASA Ames Research Center involve the development of two different prototype compactors designed to minimize trash storage space.

The electrical effects developed by Lenard splashing near waterfalls, under laboratory conditions, and within the closed environments of a bathroom and a cargo tank of an oil supertanker during seawater washing operations, show a consistent phenomenology. Both theory and experimental evidence suggest that electrical conditions in the closed container atmospheres are defined by In this equation, N is the number density of large charged carriers (large ions and haze droplets), t is time, and e the electronic charge. The rate of charge production, Q, is approximately -10-12 coulomb per gram for the bathroom water and +10−11 coulomb per gram for the seawater. These values correspond to number densities of some 105 per cm3 and space-charge densities of ∓ 10-8 coulomb per m3. The field within a closed container is approximately proportional to the product of the linear container dimension and the space-charge density.

The buzz words of the 70s - Energy Shortage - have been replaced by the buzz words of the 80s - Rate Shock. As new electric generating plants come on line, the aircraft plating industry, along with the rest of the public, is seeing huge increases in their electrical energy costs. While many of these costs, such as electrical energy for rectifiers, are fixed by the process, other large costs, such as power ventilation requirements to comply with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Regulations, are not unalterable. Designing an economical ventilation system does not mean compromising the worker’s safety nor violating OSHA requirements. Rather, OSHA guidelines specifically outline methods of reducing the ventilation requirements. This paper investigates several of these alternatives, including adequate hood design, push-pull ventilation systems, covering the process solution and operational methods that can greatly reduce the ventilation requirements.

The process of designing a Vapor Cycle System (VCS) for a fighter aircraft is a difficult and continuous challenge. Besides the constant efforts to optimize size, weight and package is the need to provide a highly reliable, producible and easily maintained system. In particular is the need to make the vapor compression system highly hermetic and intensely rugged. This paper updates the 1982 SAE paper entitled “Environmental Control of an Aircraft Pod Mounted Electronics System” (820869). Specifically it details the design, production and field results of the LANTIRN Environmental Control Unit (ECU). Since 1986 over 1000 of these systems have been fielded. The ECU has proven to be reliable in spite of the difficult environment, which has included combat duty. This paper will give insight into the LANTIRN pod thermal management system, the design of the ECU subsystem, and packaging.