NASA SBIR 2014 Solicitation

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/Zip, Phone)
Creare, Inc.
16 Great Hollow Road
Hanover, NH 03755 - 3116
(603) 643-3800

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/Zip, Phone)
Michael G. Izenson
mgi@creare.com
P.O. Box 71
Hanover, NH 03755 - 3116
(603) 643-3800 Extension :2405

CORPORATE/BUSINESS OFFICIAL (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/Zip, Phone)
Robert Kline-Schoder
contractsmgr@creare.com
16 Great Hollow Road
Hanover, NH 03755 - 3116
(603) 643-3800 Extension :2487

Estimated Technology Readiness Level (TRL) at beginning and end of contract:
Begin: 5
End: 6

Technology Available (TAV) Subtopics
International Space Station (ISS) Demonstration and Development of Improved Exploration Technologies is a Technology Available (TAV) subtopic that includes NASA Intellectual Property (IP). Do you plan to use the NASA IP under the award?
No

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (Limit 2000 characters, approximately 200 words)
Future human space exploration missions will require advanced life support technology that can operate across a wide range of applications and environments. Thermal control systems for space suits and spacecraft will need to meet critical requirements for water conservation and adaptability to highly variable thermal environments. To achieve these goals, we propose an International Space Station (ISS) demonstration program for an innovative Space Evaporator Absorber Radiator (SEAR) technology. A SEAR system comprises a lithium chloride absorber radiator (LCAR) for heat rejection coupled with a space water membrane evaporator (SWME) for heat acquisition. SEAR systems provide heat pumping to minimize radiator size, thermal storage to accommodate variable environmental conditions, and water absorption to minimize use of expendables. In Phase I we proved the feasibility of our approach by building and testing an LCAR with flight-like internal structures and designing an ISS demonstration experiment. In Phase II we will design and build SEAR components, a flight-like test module, and a regeneration system according to ISS flight requirements. We will demonstrate their operation in ground tests that simulate flight test conditions.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS (Limit 1500 characters, approximately 150 words)
There are two primary NASA applications for the SEAR technology. (1) Nonventing thermal control systems for space suits. A SEAR-based thermal control system rejects heat by radiation instead of venting water vapor. The advanced LCAR design we demonstrate in this program can provide a multifunctional structure and double as the shell that houses the portable life support system; and (2) Nonventing thermal control and thermal storage system for manned spacecraft. A SEAR-based thermal control system can be attractive for lunar orbiters and other spacecraft that will operate in highly variable thermal environments. A SEAR can provide high-efficiency thermal energy storage and heat rejection that vents no water. Both SEAR applications are based on the same LCAR module technology that we will demonstrate in Phase II.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS (Limit 1500 characters, approximately 150 words)
Technology developed under this program can be used for commercial dehumidification systems, particularly heat-driven systems in which desiccant/enthalpy wheels are used to transfer water vapor between air streams. The lithium-chloride containment and management technology developed for the SEAR can be applied to make these systems more compact and efficient. SEAR technology can also benefit microclimate cooling systems for industrial, medical, military, and recreational purposes. Absorption cooling can enable lightweight, low-power, man-portable refrigeration systems that can remove both heat and humidity from fully enclosed protective garments.