NASA Logo

NTRS

NTRS - NASA Technical Reports Server

Collections About News Help Login
Back to Results
Space Shuttle Thermal Protection System Repair Flight Experiment Induced Contamination ImpactsNASA s activities to prepare for Flight LF1 (STS-114) included development of a method to repair the Thermal Protection System (TPS) of the Orbiter s leading edge should it be damaged during ascent by impacts from foam, ice, etc . Reinforced Carbon-Carbon (RCC) is used for the leading edge TPS. The repair material that was developed is named Non- Oxide Adhesive eXperimental (NOAX). NOAX is an uncured adhesive material that acts as an ablative repair material. NOAX completes curing during the Orbiter s descent. The Thermal Protection System (TPS) Detailed Test Objective 848 (DTO 848) performed on Flight LF1 (STS-114) characterized the working life, porosity void size in a micro-gravity environment, and the on-orbit performance of the repairs to pre-damaged samples. DTO 848 is also scheduled for Flight ULF1.1 (STS-121) for further characterization of NOAX on-orbit performance. Due to the high material outgassing rates of the NOAX material and concerns with contamination impacts to optically sensitive surfaces, ASTM E 1559 outgassing tests were performed to determine NOAX condensable outgassing rates as a function of time and temperature. Sensitive surfaces of concern include the Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) visor, cameras, and other sensors in proximity to the experiment during the initial time after application. This paper discusses NOAX outgassing characteristics, how the amount of deposition on optically sensitive surfaces while the NOAX is being manipulated on the pre-damaged RCC samples was determined by analysis, and how flight rules were developed to protect those optically sensitive surfaces from excessive contamination where necessary.
Document ID
20080026302
Acquisition Source
Johnson Space Center
Document Type
Other
Authors
Smith, Kendall A. (Boeing Co. Houston, TX, United States)
Soares, Carlos E. (Boeing Co. Houston, TX, United States)
Mikatarian, Ron (Boeing Co. Houston, TX, United States)
Schmidl, Danny (Boeing Co. Houston, TX, United States)
Campbell, Colin (NASA Johnson Space Center Houston, TX, United States)
Koontz, Steven (NASA Johnson Space Center Houston, TX, United States)
Engle, Michael (NASA Johnson Space Center Houston, TX, United States)
McCroskey, Doug (Outgassing Services International Mountain View, CA, United States)
Garrett, Jeff (Outgassing Services International Mountain View, CA, United States)
Date Acquired
August 24, 2013
Publication Date
January 9, 2006
Subject Category
Spacecraft Design, Testing And Performance
Meeting Information
Meeting: 44th Aerospace Sciences Meeting
Location: Reno, NV
Country: United States
Start Date: January 9, 2006
End Date: January 12, 2006
Sponsors: American Inst. of Aeronautics and Astronautics
Funding Number(s)
CONTRACT_GRANT: NAS15-10000
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Public Use Permitted.

Related Records

There are no records associated with this record.
No Preview Available