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RECENT RESEARCH ACTIVITIES The SMSRC has had the good fortune to participate in a large array of sponsored research projects over the past five ears. With an annual budget exceeding $1.5M, the Center is typically involved in twenty basic and applied projects at any one time. Among the many interesting projects in which SMSRC is presently involved, two space flight experiments that include hydrogen leak detection in launch vehicles are particularly exciting. As part if the Integrate Vehicle Health Management (IVHM) Shuttle Upgrades Project HTD-2, the SMSRC is responsible for the development of a new class of distributed fiber optic hydrogen sensors based on Bragg grating technology. Teamed with NASA Langely Research Center Engineers for packaging and space qualification, and with NASA Kennedy Space Flight and Boeing North America Engineers for systems integration, SMSRC researchers are developing an array 40 hydrogen sensors that will be distributed though out one quadrant of the Shuttle's main propulsion system. Hydrogen leak monitoring will commence during tanking and terminate at Main Engine Cut-off during a Shuttle mission is manifested for the middle of 1999. A similar, though less extensive, technology is being developed to monitor for hydrogen leaks in the X-33 composite fuel tanks. Other interesting projects conducted by SMSRC researchers are listed below.
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Last modified: March 21, 2002 |
