Scientists at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center have patented a specialized rocket engine that incorporates a closed-cycle heat exchanging unit to safely, efficiently, and reliably drive the engine's turbomachinery. The unique feature of this design is the inclusion of an intermediate Brayton cycle that extracts heat from the engine's fuel circuit to drive the engine's oxidizer turbomachinery. This method offers a significant safety advantage because it helps to eliminate the potential for catastrophic failure associated with fuel-driven oxidization processes. Comparative solutions either require the use of a mechanical gearbox or heated hydrogen gas to drive the oxygen pump. Both of these solutions are complex and, for reliability reasons, are not preferable for a newly designed engine. Although this innovation introduces a new application for Brayton cycles, its highly reliable use within nuclear electric propulsion development is well documented.

 

Engineers at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center have patented a design for a high-performance, liquid fuel rocket engine. The engine design is based on standard expander-cycle engines (where associated turbo-machinery is driven by gases used to cool the thrust chamber), which are well-established for use in upper stage rockets. The technology augments the standard expander cycle engine with the addition of a gas generator and a close-coupled heat exchanger to provide an alternate heat source for the fuel (typically liquid hydrogen). The innovation’s design prevents turbopump exposure to combusted gas that could freeze in the turbo-machinery and cause catastrophic failure upon attempted engine restart. Combining the benefits of expander-cycle and gas-generator engines produces greater thrust and improved restart capabilities, particularly for upper stage rockets and in-space operations.

 

Innovators at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center have patented a liquid propellant injector for use with rocket thrusters and other advanced engine systems. The injector's unique design introduces the fuel and oxidizer into the combustion chamber at different ports, keeping low temperature fluids on the chamber wall and hot gas at the center core. The injector can be tailored for desired liquid propellants, flow rates, and tangential momentum by varying the diameters and angles of the injector openings. Conventional injectors introduce propellants axially, requiring a long combustion chamber to ensure that propellants mix and combust completely before exiting the nozzle. In contrast, Marshall's design reduces combustion chamber length, complexity, manufacturing costs, and the overall weight of the engine system.

 

Innovators at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center have applied for patent protection for a self-adjusting fuel injector that optimizes the flow rate of liquid propellant over a wide range of power settings, effectively creating a throttleable rocket engine. The invention involves the innovative concept of utilizing the differential pressure between the injection element inlet and the combustion chamber within engines to automatically adjust the injection inlet area for optimum performance. The resulting mechanical device automatically adjusts the injection inlet area based on the injection pressure drop. Most conventional injection schemes are not able to maintain high performance and operational ability throughout the throttling range. Designed for use in advanced rocket engines and thrusters, this innovation has commercial potential for emergency or backup power generation applications.

 

Innovators at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center have patented a non-ablative thrust chamber assembly for liquid fueled rocket systems. The assembly is manufactured using a two-piece mandrel helically wrapped with silica tape impregnated with phenolic resin. This silica phenolic liner is cured and machined. The entire assembly is then over-wrapped with carbon fibers wetted with an epoxy resin and cured; the carbon-epoxy shell is then machined to final dimensions. The silica phenolic liner is a single-piece integral thrust chamber that is nozzle wrapped with multiple tape angles. It provides a composite liner for the thrust chamber and nozzle that chars during rocket engine operation, but does not erode, and insulates the carbon-epoxy structural shell.

 

Scientists at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center have patented an integral lightweight combustion chamber and nozzle assembly for a rocket engine. The innovation is notable for its ablative silica phenolic insert that lines a portion of the inner surface of the refractory metal shell and works to insulate and protect the shell from overheating. Conventional combustion chamber nozzle assemblies are cooled with complex and heavy systems that require construction and assemblage of multiple parts, via machining, plating, welding, and brazing. In contrast, this NASA-developed assembly requires no such complicated cooling systems and fluids, thus simplifying and accelerating the fabrication process.

 

Scientists at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center have patented a simplified injector design that does not require multiple parts and weld joints. All liquid fueled rocket engines use some type of injector for introducing the liquid fuel and liquid oxygen into the engine’s combustion chamber. Usually these injectors are complex and require many parts, thus requiring multiple weld joints—some of which cannot be inspected. Further, the complexity of these injectors and the time required to manufacture the many parts significantly increases expenses. In contrast, this NASA innovation uses significantly fewer parts and weld joints, thus simplifying and shortening the fabrication process—resulting in lower manufacturing costs. In addition, this innovative main injector includes an integrated acoustic cavity in the forward end of the main combustion chamber that is designed to damp out possible instabilities in the main combustion chamber.

 

Innovators at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center have developed a predictive software program that performs thermal and ablative analysis of rocket nozzle liner materials. Thermo-structural analysis of the nozzle liner is a complicated problem because ablator materials are exposed to an ever-changing and extreme combination of pressures, velocities, chemistries, and temperatures (approaching 4,500°F) from the rocket motor exhaust flow stream. The Charring Material Ablator Code performs calculations for a broad variety of thermo-chemical processes, such as predicting liner material thermal response, char and ablation depths, gas production levels, and surface erosion rates. The software is written in ANSI standard FORTRAN-77 and uses standard mathematical functions found in common linkable object libraries on most high end work stations and/or PC platforms with appropriate language software.

 

Innovators at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center have a novel concept for a high-precision spacecraft thruster system that uses a pulsed laser to ignite or alternatively ablate fuel to create thrust. Unlike conventional solid rocket boosters, in which a large mass of propellant is ignited for a single burn, this technology packages the propellant in small discrete quantities that are carried into a reaction chamber, one at a time, for multiple burns. This enables selectable performance levels including a start/stop/restart capability. Thrust and specific impulse can be precisely controlled by varying ignition speed. The technology is scalable and can be implemented for a wide range of thruster sizes, from extremely small (chip-sized) to very large (hundreds of kilograms). Thrusters can be used individually, in small groups, or in arrays. The technology could be used to controllably propel small satellites and space vehicles, and to provide directional control for aircraft. Further, the technology makes in-space replenishment much more convenient.

 

Scientists at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center have patented a containment system for highly charged particle clouds in antimatter propulsion systems. The containment system, or trap, uses radio frequency energy to generate electric and magnetic fields inside a vacuum chamber. The invention introduces the notion of applying phased, rotating AC signals superimposed on DC bias voltages to segmented rings in order to contain charged particles within an evacuated chamber. Containment systems are needed to advance antimatter production, as harnessing the concentrated energy in a matter-antimatter engine would reduce the amount of fuel a spacecraft would need to carry. In order to benefit from the high energy density of the ion cloud, it is necessary to contain and manipulate ions for delivery at certain times and quantities to a matter-antimatter engine for controlled energy release to be converted to thrust.

 

Innovators at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center have patented an electrodeless plasma thruster that expels plasmas with embedded magnetic fields (plasmoids) at high velocities to create a reaction force and propel a spacecraft. Capable of using in-situ resources storable on the spacecraft such as water and ammonia, the new NASA thruster offers efficiencies as high as 70 percent. This is an improvement over alternative approaches to power plasma rocket engines that require electrodes, which are subject to wear, alignment loss, and present a potential contamination source in the spacecraft environment. This NASA-developed plasmoid thruster can function as an upper stage rocket, drastically reducing fuel requirements for in-space transportation and operating at a fraction of the cost of chemical technologies.

 

Innovators at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center have patented a design for an electrically driven motor and ball-screw mechanism to control the flow of storable rocket propellant to an engine. This unique valve offers a high degree of integration of the actuation mechanism with the flow-control components, resulting in a single, compact unit. In addition to being a major part of the actuation mechanism, the ball screw also is a flow-control component because it is hollow and contains part of the main flow passage. One end of the ball screw contains the main seating valve element. The most notable advantages of using electromechanically actuated valves over conventional pneumatically or hydraulically actuated valves are the elimination of associated reservoirs, tanks, lines, fittings, and solenoid valves, and the ability to drive multiple engine valves through a single electric engine controller.

 

Scientists at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center have developed a method of using forward facing, or counter-flowing, cold gas jets to reduce associated shock waves and thermal impacts for vehicles during atmospheric flight or re-entry. The method employs supersonic or subsonic cold gas jets placed on the face of the vehicle, ejecting into the oncoming freestream. Depending on freestream conditions and the ejected mass flow rate of the counter-flowing jets, the vehicle bow shock is moved upstream and made progressively weaker, with increasing standoff distance. This new technology has the potential to reduce net drag and undesired aerothermal effects for supersonic and hypersonic aircraft and spacecraft.

 

Innovators at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center have developed a long stroke planar translation mechanism that together with an active control system provides for spacecraft attitude control, pointing, and maneuvering. The mechanism is a planar (X, Y) translation stage designed to control two-axis movement between a spacecraft and a solar sail. By allowing this controlled movement, the center of pressure (thrust vector) of the solar sail can be adjusted relative to the spacecraft's center of gravity. This movement produces torque on the spacecraft, which in turn allows for spacecraft attitude control. Whereas conventional attitude control, pointing, and maneuvering techniques (for instance using cold gas thrusters or control moment gyro devices) are impractical for long duration missions, a solar sail attitude control system would require few additional resources. Power is required to translate the stage, but the system would not require the relatively large mass and volume associated with consumable propellants and/or reaction wheels. Moreover, due to novel packaging and design, the mechanism is particularly robust and precludes binding in the presence of thermal distortions and/or off-nominal effects.

 

Innovators at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center are seeking patent protection for a fastener system that is designed to simplify the placement, installation, and removal of avionics and electronics equipment within a variety of structures. This box rail mount system is lightweight, allows for self-alignment, minimizes the number of fasteners needed, does not require tools to operate, and can be handled by a single technician. The system consists of a "C" profile trail or track, a cartridge with a spring-loaded lockpin that slides in the track at spaced cut-outs, and a unique self-aligning cleat that allows the mounting of a flat or box-shaped component on a flat, curved, or irregular surface. This unique design is an improvement over prior designs that require two technicians to mount boxes on pallets and secure them with captive screws, using a tool specific to each fastening system. Developed for use in the aerospace industry, the system has broad applicability for fastener systems in the automotive, railway, and construction industries.

Innovators at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center have patented a thermal bonding technique that enables joining thermoplastic parts, typically pipes, quickly and efficiently. Conventional means of joining involves welding and bolting together abutting flanges or using adhesives, tape, or interlocking hooks. This NASA-developed method accomplishes joining—and also enables separating thermoplastic parts—without the use of connectors or chemicals. A thermal element uses an electrical current to produce sufficient heat for the thermoplastic parts to attach to each side of the element after melting and subsequent cooling. Composed of a fusible alloy (mixtures of bismuth, lead, tin, cadmium, and indium) the thermal element remains between the thermoplastic parts throughout operation. For disassembly, current is re-introduced to the element to locally re-melt the connection, allowing separation of the thermoplastic parts.

Scientists from NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center have patented a method for constructing and deploying inflatable habitats or load bearing structures stiffened by foam injection. Rigidized foam is injected into the walls of a polyimide film structure and distributed uniformly throughout to prevent deformations and/or weaknesses. The method can be tailored to obtain the desired stiffness and weight by varying wall thickness and foam density. Simple and inexpensive to produce, the structures can be scaled to relatively large sizes or combined with other structures. The construction process also enables remote deployment, offering considerable potential for use in space with solar concentrators, solar sails, telescopes and antennas, sunshades and shields, and space power systems. Potential terrestrial uses include storage buildings and temporary housing.

Innovators at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center have designed and patented a method and apparatus for continuous production of foamed glass or metal structural elements in space. The technology can be used to produce construction materials for habitats, telescopes, and other structures. Key features of the invention are the use of a Fresnel lens to concentrate solar radiation to heat a furnace, induction motors to load elements into the furnace, and induction heaters to re-melt the foam surface. Rotating the assembly simulates gravity-like conditions that enable gas injection techniques. The innovation reduces launch costs, as small amounts of metal and glass can be launched and then used in space to produce structural elements. The technology can be used in low and geosynchronous Earth orbits, lunar orbits, and in deep space exploration.

 

Scientists at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center have enhanced a high-temperature emissive coating applied to rocket engine nozzles. The approach allows for minimal weight impact from the coating application, even on large surfaces. The application process for the coating has been developed to allow a lower temperature cure cycle, limiting any adverse affects on the base metal. Part of a suite of NASA-developed technologies designed to enhance, protect, and increase reliability of rocket nozzles and main combustion chambers, key features of the innovation are its emissivity at high temperatures and durability under severe flow and pressure environments. This unique coating improves operational flexibility as the lower wall temperature of coated components allows an increase in engine efficiency or a decrease in engine weight by reducing wall thickness. NASA invites companies to consider opportunities for partnership and usage of this technology.

 

Innovators at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center have developed a data logging device capable of collecting, recording, and downloading data serially from multiple sensors using a common interface. The invention includes a smart interface with programmable controller capabilities that is encased in a small protective housing. Conventional data loggers typically receive signals only from sensors and store data in memory for future downloads. In contrast, this NASA-derived device has the ability to act as an intelligent controller, leveraging data gathered through the common interface and via analog or digital inputs. The device can store data collected in permanent memory and download it to a personal computer or other device for analysis through a standard interface. With its capabilities as a data collector, data logger, and programmable controller, the innovation lends itself to a wide and versatile range of applications. NASA invites companies to consider opportunities for partnership and usage of this technology.