NASA SBIR 2004 Solicitation

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/Zip, Phone)
Combustion Research and Flow Technology,
6210 Kellers Church Road
Pipersville ,PA 18947 - 1020
(215) 766 - 1520

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/Zip, Phone)
Vineet    Ahuja
vineet@craft-tech.com
6210 Keller's Church Road
Pipersville, PA  18947 -1020
(215) 766 - 1520

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (Limit 2000 characters, approximately 200 words)
Reliable diagnostic tools to support system health monitoring are critical both for liquid rocket experimental ground test facilities and flight systems. Here, flow induced instabilities can generate flow anomalies such as large scale pressure fluctuations that may couple with other system components and generate deleterious structural vibrations or lead to system malfunction as was evidenced in the RS-68 engine on the Delta IV system. Identifying the source of these flow instabilities is extremely difficult since they may arise from a variety of coupled phenomena such as hydrodynamics, valve timing and scheduling, and cavitation related events in cryogenic propellant and oxidizer feedlines.

The proposed Phase II program addresses this deficiency; the product of this effort will be a reliable predictive tool that can characterize flow instabilities, identify dominant frequency modes, and elucidate structural response in valve and feed systems. Phase I activities demonstrated the simulation capability for instabilities in varied flow devices (e.g. venturis, orifices) used in the E-1 test facilities at NASA SSC. The Phase II work will extend this to include fluid-structure interaction for analysis of system vibration, structural damage and gauge valve response. Extensive validation will result in a predictive diagnostic tool for liquid rocket propulsion systems.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS (Limit 1500 characters, approximately 150 words)
Our product addresses a core need of NASA in testing and designing of feed systems and valve systems for a new class of liquid rocket engines for upcoming programs such as Project Constellation for a new Crew Exploration Vehicle, as well as the Mission to the Moon. This tool will significantly enhance NASA's analytical capabilities in predicting instabilities in high-pressure, cryogenic test stands as well as quantify risks in the operation of propellant delivery systems. It can also play a vital role in unsteady analyses of the external fuel tank pressurization for the space shuttle and can aid in the testing and design of engine health monitoring systems.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS (Limit 1500 characters, approximately 150 words)
The commercial applications for our product are directly related to reliable designs for valves functioning in cryogenic environments. Launch companies are also interested in our product to identify failure modes in control valves. The simulation tool can also play a vital role in identifying hazardous operating conditions and designing control systems for dynamic disturbance mitigation since flow instability and structural resonance can touch off relief valves and damage pipe hangers and supports.