Award Data

Accurate and timely surveillance of objects in the near-Earth space environment is becoming increasingly critical to US national security. One of the main difficulties in this domain is efficiently and accurately modeling trajectories of the vast number of objects in orbit around the Earth. The orbital trajectory of a single object is typically modeled as a second-order system of equations which ...

We propose to develop a commercial weakly ionized plasma modeling capability based off of Tech-X’s high energy density plasma fluid code TxFluids. The new additions will be able to be used to model hypersonic vehicle physics including shock waves, plasma chemistry and innovative techniques for blackout mitigation and hypersonic vehicle control through the application of electric and/or magnetic ...

The proposed research program focuses on design, fabrication, and characterization of quantum-dot infrared photodetectors (QDIPs) which features bias-tunable parameters, including the spectral response, optical gain, and operating time. Wide variations of detector parameters can be realized through the bias-tunable potential barriers surrounding quantum dots. Changes in bias will transform the ba ...

Impact Technologies and Montana State University propose to develop a Dynamic Prognostic and Health Management (PHM) modeling capability and related test, validation, and support toolsets that will enable standardized approaches to model representation, information exchange, and PHM system support, providing for improved integration, interoperability and reuse of developed and emerging capabilitie ...

he Storable Clean Ethane-ethylene Nitrous Engine (SCENE) is a proposed technology designed to provide upper stages and spacecraft with non-toxic, liquid, non-cryogenic, high-performance propulsion with an Isp on the order of 300 seconds. The propellant components are stored as liquids under their saturated vapor pressures. With the SCENE, nitrous oxide is used as an autogenously pressurized oxidiz ...

The goal of this proposal is to demonstrate the feasibility of novel surface preparation methods that are easier to apply on metal substrates in various field environments while still enhancing the corrosion protective performance of topcoats. This is made possible by the characteristics of a patented pretreatment technology developed at Ecosil that can be spray or immersion applied. This novel ...

Development of novel propulsion systems in the past two decades has focused almost exclusively on cryogenic boost-phase systems (LOX/LH2, LOX/LCH4, and LOX/RP-1) for launchers and uppers stage engines, and Attitude / Reaction Control Systems (A/RCS) for in-space applications using green monopropellants such AF-M315E or LMP-103S. Basic research and development of scalable, non-toxic, non-cryogenic, ...

This Phase I STTR proposal will demonstrate nanostructured “metal-black” coatings to enhance absorption by thin film solar cells. The problem is that silicon has low absorption due to its indirect gap. The opportunity is that nano-scale metallic scattering centers increase the effective optical path length and enhance the solar electric-field strength in thin-film solar cells, leading to more ...

An emerging consensus in engineering holds that aleatory uncertainty should be propagated by traditional methods of probability theory but that epistemic uncertainty may require methods that do not confuse incertitude with variability by requiring every possibility be associated with a probability that it occurs. Therefore, although Monte Carlo shells that re-run calculations many times while var ...

Granville has designed a new satellite/spacecraft propulsion engine, GREP, delivering over 100.mN/1.0 kW of force from strong electromagnetic energy… more force magnitude and efficiency than existing propellant limited ion thrusters. And, because it uses renewable power from on-board solar/electric panels, GREP offers extended propulsion maneuver life, up to 15 years or more, substantially lon ...