Award Data

Reduced mass composite materials are crucial to the success of aerospace systems, but are inhibited by expensive autoclave consolidation, especially for large parts. To remedy this, NASA-LaRC has been developing cost-effective high-performance thermoplastic composite materials for years. NASA materials could dramatically reduce the cost of large aerospace structures, because those materials avo ...

73137-Future active imaging systems for national security applications (for remote reconnaissance, monitoring and characterization of hard targets, and compact surveillance devices) require compact, rugged, and efficient short-pulse laser sources that can operate over a wide-repetition-rate range. To deploy these devices on ground, air, and space platforms, the new laser sources are required to i ...

The purpose of this program is to develop a compact and efficient ultraviolet laser system for ozone sensing from space. The basis for this system will be a diode-pumped neodymium-yttria (Nd:Y2O3) laser which is frequency-tripled to generate uv light at either 305nm or 315nm. The ability to generate both uv wavelengths from a single frequency-tripled Nd:Y2O3 laser makes this approach potentially 4 ...

NIST is using a sensitive optical technique called cavity ring-down detection to permit detection of impurities in semiconductor process gases, which cause substantial losses in manufacturing yield. In order to increase the sensitivity and range of application of this technique, improved single frequency laser sources are required. In particular, lasers providing more power, narrower line-width, b ...

The purpose of this program is to develop a compact and efficient ultraviolet laser for use in space-based uv-Raman instruments. The basis for this system will be a diode-pumped neodymium-yttria (Nd:Y2O3) ceramic laser which is frequency-quadrupled to generate uv light at 237nm. The unique combination of a low-cost and robust ceramic laser with efficient 4th harmonic generation will provide an ide ...

Gamma titanium aluminide (TiAl) alloys with their low density (~3.9g/cm3), good elevated temperature strength, stiffness, creep resistance and acceptable burn and oxidation resistance have excellent potential for use in high temperature aerospace applications at temperatures between 500oC to 1000oC instead of the currently used high density (~8.9g/cm3) Ni-based superalloys. However, its poor inter ...

Proposed is the development the extended depth of field (EDF) or confocal like imaging capabilities of a breakthrough multispectral high resolution imaging flow cytometer. This platform shall have unparalleled cellular analysis capabilities intended to further biological space research (fundamental, micro-gravity and radiation biology) and the potential capability of monitoring astronaut health. ...

NIST desires to develop a standard of pressure in the range 0.3 MPa to 10 MPa based on measurements of the dielectric constants of gaseous helium and argon. This requires capacitance measurements having a better linearity than can be made with any currently available product. It is proposed that the design of the currently most precise commercial capacitance bridge be modified to improve its linea ...

Low cost, reliable atmospheric entry technology is needed to support NASA cargo recovery from the ISS, earth return of small payloads, planetary aerocapture, and planetary probe missions. Fixed aeroshields and winged structures are well proven, but are not appropriate for many missions due to envelope, weight, and cost constraints. Inflatable ballute technology offers a low weight, cost effectiv ...

76048-Storage tanks of contaminated mixtures exist at many DOE sites. However, very few inexpensive technologies are available for determining the contents of the tank waste or for monitoring the chemistry of tank constituents in near-real time. This project addresses this problem by developing and assessing ceramic-metallic-based microsensors that can determine the constituents of a liquid orga ...