SBIR Phase 1 Solicitation    Abstract Archives

NASA 2008 STTR Phase 1 Solicitation

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Traclabs, Inc.
8620 N. New Braunfels, Suite 603
San Antonio, TX 78217-3586
(210) 822-2310

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Carnegie Mellon University - Silicon Valley
NASA Research Park, Bldg. 23
Moffett Field, CA 94305-1000
(650) 335-2823

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Debra Schreckenghost
schreck@traclabs.com
8620 N. New Braunfels, Suite 603
San Antonio,  TX 78217-3586
(832) 415-0109

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 2 to 3

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
Intelligent robots for planetary exploration produce a wealth of information – both science data collected by the robots and data about remote robotic operations. The management and analysis of this data provides unique opportunities as well as significant challenges for both science and rover operations, including understanding and summarizing what data have been collected and using this knowledge to improve data access. TRACLabs proposes to develop software for automatically building semantic summaries of data and images collected by remote rovers and using this information to retrieve subsets of this information for manipulation and visualization. We will use these semantic summaries to construct scripts for spatial and event-based data retrieval (e.g., retrieve data collected at a location). This ability to retrieve and manipulate a subset of data relevant to a situation of interest will be used to provide details on demand displays as well as support data exploration starting from a situation or event. Semantic interpretation has focused on document interpretation and database indexing while the proposed approach provides in-line semantic annotation and summarization of data streams. TRACLabs and its partner Carnegie Mellon University bring extensive experience in advanced software development and rover operations enabling integrated software solutions for NASA's planetary exploration.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
NASA's exploration and scientific missions will produce terabytes of information. The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter alone has collected over 1.7 terabytes of data. As NASA enters a new phase of space exploration, managing large amounts of scientific and operational data will become even more challenging. Rovers conducting planetary exploration will produce data for selection and preparation of exploration sites. Uncrewed rovers and space probes will collect scientific measurements and images to improve our understanding of the solar system. Satellites in low Earth orbit will collect data for monitoring changes in Earth's atmosphere and environment. The proposed software for context aware data manipulation is applicable to all these NASA applications. It provides data synopses that aid understanding the contents of archives and supports spatial and event-based retrieval to improve data access. The use of a consistent vocabulary for both summarization and retrieval assists exploring similarities and trends among data from multiple missions.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
The need for effective manipulation of large amounts of data is a recurring need in a diverse set of applications. Military: The military is investigating unmanned vehicles for surveillance and reconnaissance, which will produce large amounts of information. Operations with unmanned vehicles require fusing and managing multiple concurrent sources of information. The proposed software can support operations personnel in manipulating the information collected during such operations. Chemical and Nuclear: The operation of chemical and nuclear plants produces data for tracking resources, monitoring system health, and diagnosing problems. The proposed software can help operators find and utilize information relevant to ongoing operational situations. Health: Home instrumentation can improve independence of function for the aging and cognitively impaired by enabling human performance monitoring. Clinicians and caregivers review performance data to determine the effectiveness of cognitive aids. Tools are needed to manipulate the data collected when performing the activities of daily living.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Human-Robotic Interfaces
Autonomous Reasoning/Artificial Intelligence
Database Development and Interfacing
Human-Computer Interfaces

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation
9950 Wakeman Drive
Manassas, VA 20110-2702
(703) 369-3633

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
77 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02139-4301
(617) 253-3906

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Olivier Toupet
otoupet@aurora.aero

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 3 to 4

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
Aurora Flight Sciences, The MIT Manned Vehicle Laboratory (MVL), and the MIT Humans and Automation Laboratory (HAL) together propose to adapt existing software, algorithms, and human interfaces into a software system that performs command and control of a heterogeneous team of mobile robots, operating in a variety of modalities, to perform multi-agent planetary exploration. The system will provide ground control user interfaces and data management that (1) allows for interactive user control of the team in a time-delayed control environment, (2) maintains operator situation awareness, providing a human interface for setting up a task queue that can be autonomously executed with limited/no human interaction, (3) allows the multi-robot team to optimize task performance as geospatial, navigation and other sensor information is gathered, and (4) is supported by recent algorithm and software developments in the military multi-vehicle control regime (including human interfaces).

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Aurora Flight Sciences has proposed or is working on a number of multi-vehicle coordination applications including severe weather monitoring, agricultural and environmental mapping and monitoring, support for detecting and fighting forest fires, and search and rescue. These applications would all make use of the framework that Aurora has in place for multi-unmanned system coordination, command and control, which would represent re-use of a significant investment by the military in this area. In the space regime, Aurora is active in research and development of technologies for formation flight of satellites, fractionated satellites, and on-orbit assembly. These areas require command and control from a ground station, much like that proposed here, although in a very different environment from the perspective of dynamics and disturbances.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Some of the commercial applications listed above may also be viable Non-NASA commercial applications, specifically support for forest services, search and rescue, and agricultural applications.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Human-Robotic Interfaces
Integrated Robotic Concepts and Systems
Intelligence
Teleoperation
Operations Concepts and Requirements
Simulation Modeling Environment
Telemetry, Tracking and Control
Autonomous Control and Monitoring
Autonomous Reasoning/Artificial Intelligence
Human-Computer Interfaces
Software Tools for Distributed Analysis and Simulation

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Rolling Hills Research Corporation
420 N. Nash Street
El Segundo, CA 90245-2822
(310) 640-8781

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois
1901 South First Street, Suite A
Champaign, IL 61820-7473
(217) 333-2187

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Michael Kerho
mike@RollingHillsResearch.com

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 3 to 4

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
The proposed innovation is an aircraft flight envelope monitoring system that will provide real-time in-cockpit estimations of aircraft flight envelope boundaries, performance, and controllability. The adaptable monitoring system will provide information on current and predicted aircraft performance and controllability, alerting the pilot to any aerodynamic degradation of the control effectiveness. This includes high angle-of-attack, heavy rain, in-flight icing encounters, environmental contamination of surfaces, and structural or battle damage. The real-time monitoring system measures the time-averaged and RMS control surface hinge moment from all aircraft aerodynamic controls. Control surface hinge moment is sensitive to the aerodynamic characteristics of the flying surface, including separation. These data are processed and information on the current and predicted future state of aircraft control (including asymmetric cases) is made available to the pilot or flight management system. As opposed to other single-point monitoring systems, the proposed system has the distinct advantage that it functions by measuring the integrated effect over the entire control surface. The use of real-time control surface hinge moment monitoring is an innovative and robust concept for predicting aircraft flight envelope boundaries and controllability.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
The proposed control surface hinge moment based flight envelope monitoring system technology is synergistic with the national priorities in aerospace R/R&D. The new technology will mitigate environmental hazards for future operational concepts and provide increased safety for the expansion of flight envelopes for aerospace vehicles. The flight envelope monitoring system will provide state-of-the-art on-board envelope assessment including continuous diagnosis and prognosis. The proposed envelope monitoring system has significant potential application in several NASA programs. The robust and integrated sensing technology could be fielded in both manned and unmanned NASA aircraft systems.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
The successful development of a control surface hinge moment based flight envelope monitoring system has a large potential for use on both existing and future air vehicles, including general aviation, military, commercial planes, and especially unmanned aircraft systems and commuter and turbo prop cargo aircraft. Commuter class and smaller cargo aircraft would be a very valuable application of the flight envelope monitoring system. These aircraft typically operate from smaller airports and spend a greater percentage of their flight time at lower altitudes and airspeeds. Operation at lower altitudes and airspeeds put the aircraft at greater risk of experiencing environmental or structurally based aerodynamic performance degradation, including ice accumulation, storm and rain encounters, and even bird strikes. The technology is equally valuable for unmanned platforms where it is difficult for a remote operator to sense envelope boundaries or any difference in performance due to environmental or battle damage. The flight envelope monitoring system can aid this class of aircraft either as a standalone warning system, or it can be licensed to the aircraft manufacturer and be built into a more complex, integrated system.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Testing Facilities
Guidance, Navigation, and Control
Pilot Support Systems
Autonomous Reasoning/Artificial Intelligence

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Nanosonic, Inc.
1485 South Main Street
Blacksburg, VA 24060-5556
(540) 953-1785

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Virginia Tech, Dept. of Aerospace and Ocean Eng.
219-D Randolph Hall
Blacksburg, VA 24061-6150
(540) 231-5283

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Hang Ruan
hruan@nanosonic.com
1485 South Main Street
Blacksburg,  VA 24060-5556
(540) 953-1785

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 4 to 5

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
The objective of this NASA STTR program is to develop conformal thin film sensors and sensor arrays for the direct measurement and mapping of distributed skin friction on the surfaces of flight-test vehicles and wind tunnel models at DFRC and other NASA centers. NanoSonic would use its patented Metal Rubber<SUP>TM</SUP> materials to fabricate the patterned "sensor skin" arrays. Metal Rubber<SUP>TM</SUP> is a free-standing self-assembled nanocomposite that acts as a transducer to convert shear stress into changes into electrical impedance. During this program, NanoSonic would work cooperatively with Virginia Tech to develop an improved mechanical and electrical model of skin friction sensor performance that will allow quantitative optimization of material properties and suggest optimal methods for sensor attachment and use for NASA applications. We will perform synthesis of sensor skin materials with optimized transduction, hysteresis and environmental properties, specifically for high Reynold's number flow and also varying temperature use. We will fabricate patterned two-dimensional sensor arrays and internal electronics using optimized materials. NanoSonic and Virginia Tech will perform complete analysis of sensor cross-sensitivities and noise sources to allow optimization of signal-to-noise ratio and practical sensor sensitivity. Support electronics will be developed to acquire, multiplex, store and process raw sensor array data. NanoSonic and Virginia Tech will also experimentally validate sensor array performance through extended water and wind tunnel evaluation, and possible flight testing, and produce a first-generation skin friction sensor array and data acquisition electronics system for sale.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
The anticipated initial market of the Metal Rubber<SUP>TM</SUP> sensor skin arrays is for flight testing and wind tunnel testing of flow models for NASA flight research centers. An appreciation of the instrumentation issues obtained by working with such centers would allow improvements in sensor materials, electronics and packaging, and potentially allow the transition of related products to operational vehicles. The commercialization potential of the Metal Rubber<SUP>TM</SUP> technology developed through this NASA STTR program lies in four areas, namely 1) Metal Rubber<SUP>TM</SUP> sensor skin arrays for the measurement of skin friction, 2) Broader sensor skin arrays for the measurement of pressure, 3) Single-element air or water flow sensors, and 4) Metal Rubber<SUP>TM</SUP> material itself.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Primary customers would be university, government laboratory and aerospace industry researchers. Small, unmanned air vehicles large enough to carry the extra load associated with electronics and power, and operationally sophisticated enough to require air data sensors would be a likely first military platform use. Distributed pressure mapping on air vehicles as well as in biomedical devices and other systems may have merit. Further, the thin film shear sensor elements may be used as air flow or water flow devices in systems where either the low weight, low surface profile, lack of need for space below the flow surface, or high sensitivity at a low cost are needed. Such broader commercial sensor opportunities would be considered during Phase II.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Testing Facilities
Sensor Webs/Distributed Sensors
Multifunctional/Smart Materials

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Intelligent Fiber Optic Systems Corporation
2363 Calle Del Mundo
Santa Clara, CA 94085-1008
(408) 565-9000

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Washington State University
Spokane Street, Sloan 120
Pullman, WA 99164-3140
(509) 335-5183

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Vahid Sotoudeh
vs@ifos.com
2363 Calle Del Mundo
Santa Clara,  CA 94085-1008
(408) 565-9004

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 4 to 5

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
Intelligent Fiber Optic Systems Corporation (IFOS) in collaboration with Washington State University (WSU) proposes an approach of utilizing structurally integrated, distributed optical FBG sensor/piezo actuator arrays to monitor the health of a structure with accurate interpretation of sensor signals and real-time data processing. Our method involves a dynamic response-based damage detection technique that offers a simple identification method with easy implementation. We use electrically passive, electromagnetic interference (EMI) immune, multiplexable, fiber optic sensing technology with many sensors on a single light-weight small diameter optical fiber. This is currently the most cost-effective and aerospace friendly way to overcome the sensor impoverished state of present day structures. This method has the capability of inspecting large area structures to provide global as well as local structural health information in real time. As well as providing weight reduction, the miniaturization enabled by our optical fiber technology is key to diverse spin-off applications such as for sensor matrices in NASA's extra-vehicular and planetary exploration robots as well as sensor arrays for medical applications and homeland security robotic disarming of bombs.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
The integrated, distributed optical FBG-sensor/Piezo-actuator systems developed by the IFOS/WSU team will greatly contribute to improved aviation security technologies. The IFOS high-speed, high resolution, and high multiplexing optical FBG sensor interrogation system coupled with advanced structural health monitoring (SHM) algorithms together make up a unique and viable system to monitor the health and real time condition of air transportation systems (ATS) through accurate interpretation of sensor signals and real-time data processing. The sensor/actuator technology proposed in this program can easily be developed into on-board real-time monitoring systems, allowing continuous damage detection, security risk assessment and incident precursor identification. Thus, timely preparedness, preventive maintenance or repair activities will be more focused and efficient, which will increase the safety, security and service life of the ATS. Furthermore, integration of cost-effective smart optical FBG and piezoelectric actuators with wireless technology provides great potential for commercial development.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
The proposed work will significantly benefit the commercial aviation industry

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Airframe
Structural Modeling and Tools
Guidance, Navigation, and Control
Photonics
Optical & Photonic Materials
Aircraft Engines

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
NEI Corporation
201 Circle Drive N., Suite 102/103
Piscataway, NJ 08854-3723
(732) 868-3141

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
University of Florida
339 Weil Hall, P.O. Box 116550
Gainesville, FL 32611-6500
(352) 392-9447

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Jinxiang Dai
jdai@neicorporation.com
201 Circle Drive N., Suite 102/103
Piscataway,  NJ 08854-3723
(732) 868-3141

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 1 to 2

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
NEI Corporation and University of Florida propose to develop a mixed metal oxide cathode that is a composite of two and three dimensional structures. At the atomic level, the crystal structure is expected to be both open (for fast Li-ion intercalation/diffusion) and stable (for good reversibility). The cathode materials developed in this program are expected to have high capacity and high rate capability, as well as long cycle life. Additionally, the crystal structure of the proposed material is expected to be stable over a wide temperature range upon Li-ion deintercalation, without oxygen evolution. This will allow the Li-ion cells to operate at high energy and power levels without compromising on safety. The target specific capacity of the proposed cathode is >200 mAh/g with a nominal working voltage of 4.8V, which gives out >960 Wh/kg specific energy. A unique feature of the proposed program is that it integrates theoretical and experimental work to enable a new generation of high capacity and high voltage cathode materials: the composition range and structure will be determined utilizing first principles calculation techniques developed by our STTR partner at University of Florida, and NEI Corp. will produce the cathode materials using its scalable and low cost process. The structure, composition, particle morphology and electrochemical performance will then be determined. The objective of the Phase I STTR program is to demonstrate the feasibility of a new high capacity and high voltage cathode material for rechargeable Li-ion batteries. In Phase II, the composition and morphology of the powders will be optimized, and integrated into large format prototype Li-ion batteries by working in partnership with a battery manufacturer(s). The objective will be to design and fabricate battery packs that meet the functional performance requirements set by NASA.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Currently, Li-ion batteries are utilized only for low-cycle life space applications, but reliable and safe Li-ion batteries with improved cycle and calendar life, high energy density and good low temperature performance are needed for astronaut equipment and solar powered landers, rovers, propulsion, and human outposts. With NEI's cathode materials, a high performance Li-ion battery will be produced to meet NASA requirements.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Currently available commercial Li-ion batteries do not adequately meet the requirements of electronic appliances, such as cell phones, laptop computers, power tools, sensors, and remote controllers. The cathode materials developed in this program will increase the overall performance of Li-ion batteries used in these applications. Others applications for the materials developed here include Electric vehicles (EV), hybrid electric vehicles, power backups, and alternative power generation, such as solar panels, wind turbines, which need batteries to store the generated energy.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Ceramics
Energy Storage

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Creare, Inc.
P.O. Box 71
Hanover, NH 03755-0071
(603) 643-3800

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
77 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02139-4301
(617) 258-5015

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Richard Kaszeta
rwk@creare.com
P.O. Box 71
Hanover,  NH 03755-0071
(603) 640-2441

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 3 to 4

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
Radioisotope Power Systems (RPS) are critical for future flagship exploration missions in space and on planetary surfaces. Small improvements in the RPS performance, weight, size, and/or reliability can have a dramatic effect on the scientific capability of the vehicle and the overall mission costs. Radioisotope Thermophotovoltaic (RTPV) energy converters are a particular type of RPS that directly convert the heat produced by a General Purpose Heat Source (GPHS) to electrical power using a specialized Photovoltaic (PV) cell. A key element in an RTPV system is the radiative emitter that converts GPHS thermal energy to radiative energy that illuminates the PV cell. In this project, Creare and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) propose to develop an advanced, 2-D, photonic crystal radiative emitter that is optimized for RTPV systems. The emitter will provide high emittance in the bandgap of the PV cell with low emittance elsewhere that, when coupled with advanced PV cell filter technology, will provide high system efficiency. In Phase I, we will design the emitter and fabricate test samples, which will be fully characterized for high-temperature emittance and durability. We will also assess the impact of this new emitter on the overall RTPV system design and performance.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Exploration missions that extend much beyond the earth's orbit around the sun are severely limited by the amount of power that can be generated by conventional solar panels. Radioisotope power systems are, therefore, required to enable flagship missions to the outer solar system and in some cases to the inner solar system (e.g., the lunar poles). RTPV systems offer the potential for high specific power and high efficiency, both of which can lead to vehicles with more science capability at lower cost and lower launch mass. RTPV offers the potential reliability and low vibration of a static conversion process like thermoelectrics with efficiency approaching that of dynamic systems like Stirling and Brayton energy converters. RTPV could, therefore, be a viable alternative for any NASA exploration mission requiring an RPS.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Radioisotope power systems are used for a number of military applications. RTPV-based systems would be a viable alternative to the current thermoelectric-based systems. There is also current interest in small nuclear powered batteries based on RTPV. The emitter technology developed on this project could be readily applied in both these military applications. TPV with combustion-based heat sources has long been considered for a number of industrial and consumer applications. The technology developed on this project would have potential application in many of these systems if a commercial TPV system were ever marketed. Most likely, this would be a low power energy scavenging application(s) (e.g., self-powered sensor).

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Nuclear Conversion
Photovoltaic Conversion
Thermodynamic Conversion
Thermoelectric Conversion

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Orbital Technologies Corporation
Space Center, 1212 Fourier Drive
Madison, WI 53717-1961
(608) 827-5000

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
University of Alabama Huntsville
301 Sparkman Drive
Huntsville, AL 35899-0001
(800) 824-2255

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Chris St. Clair
stclairc@orbitec.com

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 4

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
Orbital Technologies Corporation (ORBITEC) and the University of Alabama at Huntsville (UAH) propose to develop the Advanced Microwave Electrothermal Thruster (AMET), a high-efficiency thruster which will use water propellant to enable various Lunar and Mars missions. The proposed AMET will incorporate a number of innovations to dramatically improve upon existing designs, including the use of a lower microwave frequency (915 MHz) to permit the achievement of very high microwave generation efficiency with commercially-available magnetrons. The AMET is a particularly attractive option for this class of missions because it provides specific impulse (~800 seconds) well beyond the reach of chemical propulsion, it provides high thrust per unit power to keep transit times acceptably short, and it permits the use of an easily-storable propellant (water) which is known to be available on both the Moon and Mars. ORBITEC staff has experience operating microwave electrothermal thrusters with water vapor as propellant. In Phase I, the AMET will be demonstrated with water vapor propellant to demonstrate feasibility, reaching TRL 4. In Phase II, a flight-like AMET will be developed and demonstrated and a design will be prepared for an entire AMET flight propulsion system, reaching TRL 6.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
The AMET has the potential to enable a broad spectrum of space missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond by providing low-cost, high-performance electric propulsion using environmentally-benign water propellant which is known to be available in both the Lunar and Martian environments. The AMET will lend itself to mission architectures involving refueling at the Moon and Mars, minimizing launch costs by utilizing in-situ resources. The AMET is highly synergistic for manned missions because water is always a part of such missions for life-support purposes.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
The AMET, and related MET propulsion systems, will also be very attractive for applications in Earth orbit for both DoD and commercial space operations. In one configuration, the AMET may be combined with a chemical rocket engine using hydrogen-oxygen, formed by on-board electrolysis, to form a highly flexible dual-mode propulsion system which can respond to emerging mission requirements with either electric propulsion or chemical propulsion, enabling mission planners to achieve high Isp or high thrust, as needed. Such a system would be attractive for space systems ranging from commercial communications satellites to DoD surveillance spacecraft in need of periodic orbital maneuvering.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Electrostatic Thrusters

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
VIPMobile, Inc.
120 Montgomery Street, Suite 2000
San Francisco, CA 94104-4352
(415) 632-1235

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Regents of the University of California
c/o Sponsored Projects Office, 2150 Shattuck Avenue, Ste 313
Berkeley, CA 94704-5940
(510) 642-0120

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Dr. Dragoljub Pokrajac
dpokrajac@vipmobile.com

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 3

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
NASA has very specific requirements when it comes to power generation technology. Solar panels are an obvious solution but making them suitable for the grueling space environment. Panels must withstand intense radiation bombardment and extreme temperature swings while maintaining acceptable levels of efficiency. Additionally because of the exorbitant costs of current technology NASA would like to reduce the costs associated with power generation. We propose to introduce a new class of solar cells that utilize the environmental strengths and absorption properties on InGaN technology. This material has an amazingly high defect tolerance but even more impressively can be tuned to capture any wave length of light in the solar spectrum. Our proposal offers the possibility of solar cell efficiencies exceeding 70% while providing excellent radiation resistance and a price point similar to that of silicon, 100 times cheaper than current space age technology.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Our solar panels will be of interest to NASA on each and every operation that is under taken. Power generation in space is essential to drive all the electronics necessary to keep machinery working and astronauts alive. Our panels will be light, powerful and resilient allowing them to take less space and be stored more efficiently. These are very important characteristics, millions of dollars ride on the performance of the power generation system. When Hubble was first deployed it was almost a complete disaster, if the solar panels had not successfully deployed the circuitry of the enormous satellite would have frozen in space. Increased efficiency will increase operational restrictions allowing probes to last longer, travel farther, and recover more information. Such projects as a lunar base will become cheaper, and more feasible when combined with our power generation technology.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Beyond NASA the strength of our technology lays in its outstanding efficiency and low production costs. As our country depletes its energy resources the alternative energy market becomes more volatile, waiting only for a suitable solution. Our panels will bring solar power within a range that will make its wide spread use economical. Our economy relies heavily on energy, and this demand is growing rapidly in our quest for technology. From residential and commercial operations to solar cars and chargers for handheld devices the market opportunities are immense.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Photonics
Radiation-Hard/Resistant Electronics
Optical & Photonic Materials
Semi-Conductors/Solid State Device Materials
Photovoltaic Conversion
Renewable Energy

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Applied NanoFemto Technologies, LLC
181 Stedmen Street, Unit #2
Lowell, MA 01851-5201
(978) 761-4293

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
University of Massachusetts Lowell
600 Suffolk Street, 2nd Floor
Lowell , MA 01854-3692
(978) 934-4723

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Jarrod Vaillancourt
gmc_afnt@yahoo.com

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 4

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
Middle-wave infrared (LWIR, 3.2-3.6 ƒέm) photodetectors with a high specific photodetectivity (D*) are of great importance in NASA‘¦slidar and remote sensing applications. However, existing MWIR photodetectors are required to be operated at low temperature of below 77K to achieve high photodetectivity (D*). The requirement for cryogenic cooling systems adds cost, weight and reliability issues, thereby making it unsuitable for space and planetary exploration applications. The proposed STTR research aims to develop a new type of MWIR photodetector with a significantly enhanced quantum efficiency of ~ 60% and photodetectivity of > 10^10 cm Hz^1/2/W. Successfully developing the proposed innovation is expected to provide an enabling technology for compact high performance MWIR detection and imaging systems suitable for NASA‘¦s space exploration and earth remote sensing applications. In phase I, a preliminary MWIR photodetector with the high specific photodetectivity (D*) will be developed and delivered to NASA for proof-of-concept demonstration. In Phase II, an ultra-compact highly-sensitive focal plane array (FPA) prototype will be developed and hybridized with readout circuits. A preliminary high sensitivity LWIR camera will be also demonstrated and delivered to NASA in Phase II.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
(1) Lidar remote sensing: carbon-based trace gases (CO2, CH4, and CO,) topographical profiling and monitoring of atmospheric variables such as temperature, winds, and trace constituents and mineral identification and vegetation mapping. The high quantum efficiency and high photodetectivity capability offered by the proposed innovation will enable detection of trace elements and high-definition differentiate earth resources such minerals and vegetations. (2) Space telescope for cold star imaging. (3) Real-time high-throughput, high definition acquisition of thermal radiation characteristics of Earth and its environments. The high photodetectivity capability offered by the proposed innovation will allow distinguishing of tiny differences in these radiation characteristics and thus make the analysis of the prediction more accurate.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
The ultra-sensitive, and spectral tuning capabilities offered by the proposed innovation are particularly useful in many defense and civilian applications requiring ultra-sensitivity operations: (1) Sharp and ultra-sensitive night vision. (2) Missile early launch detection and high-speed trajectory tracking with non-false alarming. (3) Homeland security for trace chemical and biological warfare and hazard detection. (4) High definition IR spectroscopy. (5) Medical diagnoses, leak detection, chemical process control, and atmospheric pollution and drug monitoring.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Optical
Photonics
Optical & Photonic Materials

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Maxion Technologies, Inc.
5000 College Avenue, Suite 3121
College Park, MD 20740-3817
(301) 405-8426

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
University of Maryland
3112 Lee Bldg.
College Park, MD 20742-5141
(301) 405-3684

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
John Bruno
bruno@maxion.com
5000 College Avenue Suite 3121
College Park,  MD 20740-3817
(301) 405-6447

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 4 to 5

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
Maxion Technologies, Inc. (Maxion) and Professor Mario Dagenais and his group at the University of Maryland (UMD) jointly propose to develop a compact, efficient, single mode, narrow linewidth tunable laser source in the 3.2–to–3.6 micron wavelength region. This effort, if successful, will assist NASA in its trace gas detection objectives by supplying NASA with the most critical (and difficult to obtain) laser source required. During the Phase 1 portion of this effort, Maxion and UMD propose to: a) develop/demonstrate a low-loss IC laser design, b) develop ultra-low modal reflectivity anti-reflection (AR) output facets on interband cascade laser (ICL) gain chips, and c) validate the AR coating quality by demonstrating continuous tuning of an ECL using the high temperature, state-of-the-art AR-coated gain chip developed during this program. The low-loss ICL design is important to improve the maximum cw operating temperature of IC lasers, currently limited to near-room-temperature values. The ultra-low reflectivity coating will permit the maximum possible wavelength tuning range to be achieved. This is important as it will realize tunability throughout the widest possible range (the goal being 3.2-to-3.6 microns) using a single semiconductor laser chip. The new low-loss IC design and the ultra-low reflectivity output facet represent, together, the two central roadblocks Maxion sees to achieving a compact, tunable laser source in the mid-infrared wavelength region. Consequently, the Phase I effort will represent a feasibility study to see if our approaches to overcoming these two roadblocks can be successful.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
NASA requires LIDAR instruments and components for use in remote sensing measurements in future earth science missions. NASA particularly needs advanced components for direct-detection LIDAR instruments on new UAV platforms, on ground-based test beds, and eventually in space. For in-situ gas measurements using tunable laser spectrometers, available platforms such as aircraft, balloons, surface and entry probes and landed rovers impose severe limitations on instrument size, weight and power (SWAP). Tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy is a simple measurement technique known for its high sensitivity (subparts per billion) and specificity, and potentially superior SWAP compared to competing technologies. For instance, tunable laser spectroscopy can measure the gas phase methane abundance down to 10 parts per trillion with pre-concentration and to 1 ppbv without pre-concentration. Measurement of the isotopic ratio of carbon-13 to carbon-12 in methane can help assess the biogenic origin of methane on Mars-like planets. Also important are sources for remote measurements of carbon-based trace gases (CO2, CH4, and CO) for total column measurements from aircraft and spacecraft operating to nadir using the earth's surface as a target, as well as for profiling measurements from the ground using atmospheric backscatter. These systems need tunable, narrow-line-width lasers and sensitive detectors that operate in the 1.5 micron, 1.6 micron and 3.2-3.6 micron wavelength bands.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
A tunable external cavity semiconductor laser using an interband cascade laser would present many commercial, non-NASA-specific applications. Presently, interband cascade lasers are the only semiconductor lasers that have achieved cw, room-temperature operation in the 3.2-to-3.6 micron wavelength band. The correspondence of this wavelength band with the spectroscopic "molecular fingerprints" of the hydrocarbon molecules, based on the carbon-hydrogen stretch resonance, present numerous applications for a widely tunable laser-based instrument. For example, sensitive methane and ethane concentration measurements are important in oil and natural gas exploration. Measurement of alcohol in exhaled breath or at surface-capillary points can obviously be important to law enforcement. Over 200 organic compounds have been detected in exhaled human breath and some of these compounds have been correlated to various diseases, including cancer. Suspected cancer biomarkers include ethane, formaldehyde and acetaldehyde. Also, in-clinic measurement of certain gases in exhaled breath can be an important new medical diagnostic. For example, acetone in exhaled breath is linked to diabetes; ethane in exhaled breath has been correlated to oxidative stress and post-operative organ rejection. Thus, a widely tunable laser source is vital for realizing a small, portable, and inexpensive instrument that can sensitively detect hundreds of compounds throughout the 3.2-to-3.6 micron wavelength band.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Optical

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
ADVR, Inc.
2310 University Way, Bldg. 1
Bozeman, MT 59715-6504
(406) 522-0388

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Montana State University
P.O. Box 172470, 309 Montana Hall
Bozeman, MT 59717-2470
(406) 994-2381

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Will Suckow
suckow@advr-inc.com
2310 University Way, Building 1
Bozeman,  MT 59715-6504
(406) 522-0388

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 3

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
In this NASA Phase I STTR effort, the feasibility of fabricating isolated ridge waveguides in 5% magnesium-doped lithium niobate (5% MgO:LN) will be established. Ridge waveguides in MgO:LN will significantly improve the power handling and conversion efficiency, increase photonic component integration, and be well suited to space based applications. The key innovation in this effort is to combine recently available large, high photorefractive damage threshold, z-cut 5% MgO:LN with novel ridge fabrication techniques to achieve high optical power, low cost, high volume manufacturing of frequency conversion structures. The proposed ridge waveguide structure should maintain the characteristics of the periodically poled bulk substrate, allowing for the efficient frequency conversion typical of waveguides and the high optical damage threshold and long lifetimes typical of the 5% doped bulk substrate. The low cost and large area of 5% MgO:LN wafers and the improved performance of the proposed ridge waveguide structure will enhance existing measurement capabilities as well as reduce the resources required to achieve high performance specifications. For these reasons, the development of ridge waveguides in 5% MgO:LN directly addresses NASA's Innovative Sensors, Detectors and Instruments for Science Applications, STTR subtopic T4.01: Lidar, Radar and Coherent Fiber Bundle Arrays.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Ridge waveguides will directly benefit a wide range of NASA laser-based missions including: efficient frequency doubling and tripling elements used for the Tropospheric Wind Lidar Technology Experiment (GSFC), next generation planar lightwave circuit components for the High Spectral Resolution cloud and aerosol Lidar system (LaRC), high optical power phase modulators used for the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (GSFC) and integrated waveguide components for compact single photon source for use in satellite-based quantum communication (Quantum Information Laboratory-AMES). Ridge waveguides offer space qualifiable frequency converted lasers with the unique potential to achieve the desired performance specifications from a compact package. AdvR staff has discussed with three different research groups across two NASA centers (Goddard and Langley) whose specific application will benefit directly from the proposed technology. AdvR will maintain communications with these NASA groups to stay current with the present needs and remain flexible towards meeting specific application needs as technology progresses.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
AdvR has identified NLO ridge waveguide structures as having suitable value to be the leading frequency conversion structure. Its value is based on having the low cost fabrication necessary to satisfy the challenging pricing requirements as well as achieve the power handling and other specifications in a suitably compact package. Green lasers have major revenue potential in displays, projection, spectroscopy, and instrument markets. The display and projection market will be the primary product focus of AdvR. AdvR will also maintain a secondary focus on the lower volume spectroscopy and instrument markets, due to its allowable higher pricing. These two markets share the common need for green and other visible wavelength lasers particularly in the 50-100 mW range.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Laser
Optical
Optical & Photonic Materials

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Intelligent Automation, Inc.
15400 Calhoun Drive, Suite 400
Rockville, MD 20855-2737
(301) 294-5221

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
University of Oklahoma
731 Elm Avenue, Robertson Hall 134
Norman, OK 73019-2115
(405) 325-6054

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Arvind Bhat
abhat@i-a-i.com

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 6

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
Intelligent Automation, Inc (IAI) and its university partner, University of Oklahoma (OU), Norman, propose a forward-looking airborne environment sensor based on active weather radar technologies. The sensor consists of a software-defined radar transceiver, compact dual-polarized array antenna operating in the X-band as well as an integrated RF analog front-end. By leveraging dual-polarization processing, the system will be able to extract atmospheric parameters; thus it will be able to identify and classify the atmospheric conditions as well as local obscurants. The software defined radar transceiver has a Direct Digital Synthesis (DDS) component which can easily generate high bandwidth chirp waveforms (bandwidth >=200 MHz) and pulse shaping can be defined digitally to reduce the side-lobes considerably. IAI is currently developing a software defined radar (SDR) platform that can adaptively switch between different modes of operation for radar, by modifying both transmit waveforms and receive signal-processing tasks on the fly. The proposed multi-channel radar technique and the system design will leverage IAI's vast experience in SDR, RF hardware design and antenna design and OU's capabilities in microwave design and field-proven atmospheric hazard modeling and detection algorithm development.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
The proposed technology is built upon the radar design and communications expertise of IAI and our sub-contractors at OU. The most promising commercial applications of interest to NASA are: • Weather surveillance • Earth science measurements • Reconfigurable radar IAI has a long history of successfully designing custom radars for NASA, and most NASA applications could be supported by our reconfigurable radar design.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
The most promising Non- NASA commercial applications are: • Arbitrary wideband waveform synthesizer • Reconfigurable radar transceiver with multi-mode capabilities • Commercial aircraft collision avoidance and safety • High speed digital waveform reader • UAV based applications (due to the small form factor and low power). This would include UAV based weather surveillance, target tracking and other commonly sought after UAV radar applications IAI has tremendous experience of designing customized radar assembly and packaging them as field-ready units. Again, if technically the project is successful, we will approach large, established companies in this market segment with the goal of licensing our technology and possible collaboration for Phase II efforts.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
RF
Portable Data Acquisition or Analysis Tools
Microwave/Submillimeter
Highly-Reconfigurable

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Intelligent Automation, Inc.
15400 Calhoun Drive, Suite 400
Rockville, MD 20855-2737
(301) 294-5221

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
University of Central Florida
3100 Technology Parkway
Orlando, FL 32826-0544
(407) 882-1114

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Sendil Rangaswamy
sendilr@i-a-i.com

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 5

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
Intelligent Automation Inc., (IAI) and University of Central Florida (UCF) propose to develop a comprehensive numerical test suite for benchmarking current and future high performance computing activities. The key innovation in this effort is development of a comprehensive numerical test suite for benchmarking current and future high performance computing activities. Our technical approach builds on our experience in cluster computing, distributed agents system, parallel model developments for High Performance Computing (HPC) and our teams expertise in these areas for problem selection. The developed benchmarking numerical suite (HPC benchmark suite NMx) will include (1) dense and unsymmetrical matrix problems faced in space aviation and problems in thermally driven structural response and radiation exchange, (2) implicit solution algorithms with production models and benchmarks for indefinite matrices and pathological cases (3) configurations scaling for large systems (64, 256, 512, 1024 distributed high performance system) in shared, distributed and mixed memory conditions (4) documentation for strengths, weaknesses, and limitations of the toolkits used together with recommendations and (5) precision and round-off studies on serial and parallel machines, comparison of solutions on serial and parallel hardware with study of wall clock performance with respect to the number of processors.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Our technical approach builds on our experience in cluster computing, distributed agents system, parallel model developments for High Performance Computing (HPC) and our teams expertise in these areas for problem selection. The benchmarking application will be directly useful for high performance computing applications for NASA. For NASA there is a vast potential need for benchmarking the solutions that could be applied to heat transfer problems in structures in avionics, diagnostic of structures in space exploration and exploration of structure formation and problems in geology. Other applications include testing requirements for computation architectures where simulation modeling environments have solvers that run into hundreds of degrees of freedom. IAI has a long history of successfully developing distributed computing simulation applications for NASA. Our previously developed distributed agent simulation system has been embraced by NASA as the development platform for its simulator for the next generation air traffic control system.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
The bench marking suite developed for HPC under this topic is applicable to computations in aerospace, avionics, military and civilian use. These high performance applications include thermal and structural problems in industry, manufacturing sectors and military. Other applications include diagnostics and health monitoring applications. IAI has tremendous experience of developing distributed applications and simulation platforms and commercializing them by packaging to field-ready units. We had successfully sold our developed distributed computing applications to established companies. Here again the developed technology from this contract will be packaged for different market segments with the goal of licensing our technology and possible collaboration efforts.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Simulation Modeling Environment
Testing Requirements and Architectures
Computer System Architectures
Software Tools for Distributed Analysis and Simulation

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
CFD Research Corporation
215 Wynn Drive, 5th Floor
Huntsville, AL 35805-1944
(256) 726-4800

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
The University of Texas at Austin
10100 Burnet Road
Austin, TX 78758-4445
(512) 471-5809

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Ravi Kannan
rxk@cfdrc.com
215 Wynn Drive, 5th Floor
Huntsville,  AL 35805-1944
(256) 726-4858

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 5

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
Computational codes in physics and engineering often use implicit solution algorithms that require linear algebra tools such as Ax=b solvers, eigenvalue, optimization, or graph algorithms. Developers face major challenges in selecting linear algebra tools that can support their algorithms, numerical schemes, meshes, and computing hardware and to minimize the time, space and complexity. The existing libraries such as PETSc or LAPACK are "stretched" to the limits by new generation application codes which create big, unsymmetric, often dense, and poorly conditioned matrices. One of the obstacles in effective utilization of linear algebra libraries is lack of benchmark quality representative test cases and benchmarking toolkits for these types of problems. This project will develop, demonstrate and deliver a comprehensive numerical test suite for benchmark evaluation of linear algebra solvers for computational application software on High Performance Computers. Unlike existing benchmarks on static, Ax=b matrix, problems CFDRC-TACC team proposes new generation of dynamic, discipline specific and multidisciplinary functional benchmarks accounting for sparse/dense and unsymmetric matrices using web accessible benchmark matrix/problem generators. Our team has excellent expertise and tools (multiphysics solvers, sparse/dense solver libraries, benchmark cases, related projects, and understanding of NASA engineering/scientific challenges) as well as HPC resources to achieve this goal.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
NASA scientists and engineers are involved in the development of advanced computational codes that utilize linear algebra libraries for applications in physics, engineering, biotechnology, information processing and other disciplines using parallel computing. This project will develop and deliver tools for automated testing and benchmarking of codes in fluid dynamics (CFD), structures mechanics (FEM), heat transfer and thermal exchange, electrostatics, electromagnetics image processing, and other codes. These tools will cut cost and time of maintenance of existing NASA software, help porting legacy tools to new parallel computers, and aid the development of next generation scientific and engineering computational tools.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Linear algebra libraries have a pivotal role in scientific software, as they often dictate the programming style and structure, take a major portion of the memory and CPU time (often > 90%) and require frequent and rigorous testing/benchmarking each time a new algorithm is implemented or new parallel computing hardware is used. One of the most cumbersome and time consuming tasks is the benchmarking of coupled software-library on related test problems on serial and parallel computers. The benchmarking toolkits and technical services established in this project will help developers and users of computational software in the development, evaluation and effective utilization of the software on parallel computing hardware.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Computer System Architectures
Database Development and Interfacing
Software Development Environments
Software Tools for Distributed Analysis and Simulation

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Austin Satellite Design
4104 Aqua Verde Drive
Austin, TX 78746-1017
(512) 659-4049

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
The University of Texas at Austin
Office of Sponsored Projects, P.O. Box 7726
Austin, TX 78713-7726
(512) 471-1422

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
E. Glenn Lightsey
lightsey@austin.rr.com
4104 Aqua Verde Dr.
Austin,  TX 78746-1017
(512) 663-3069

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 3 to 4

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
A compact, low-power GN&C system is essential to the success of pico-satellite Automated Rendezvous and Docking (AR&D). Austin Satellite Design (ASD) proposes to deliver a working design of an integrated six-degree-of-freedom (DOF) Guidance, Navigation, and Control (GN&C) system for pico-satellites at the conclusion of Phase 1 of this STTR. A six DOF translation and rotation determination and control system will be designed for a pico-satellite form-factor to generate the onboard guidance and control necessary to demonstrate autonomous control stability and perform simple proximity maneuvers. An existing NASA/JSC GPS receiver will be utilized for navigation. Added sensors, such as a magnetometer, will be combined with GPS signals for attitude determination. A thruster actuator concept will be identified and a design produced that satisfies anticipated operational requirements and that fits within the mass and power constraints of the pico-satellite mission. Flight hardware will not be procured until Phase 2; however, component characteristics will be documented and modeled during Phase 1 and GN&C algorithms will be written to include them. Software that can be deployed to embedded systems will be written and validated in simulation. At the conclusion of Phase 1, simulated GN&C will be demonstrated within a pico-satellite form factor using embedded software such that a Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of 3 or 4 is achieved.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
The Phase 1 and Phase 2 efforts proposed here will result in enabling technologies for automated rendezvous and docking of pico-satellites including a robust GN&C system and (after Phase 2) a miniaturized, space-qualified communications system useful for inter-satellite crosslink, uplink, and downlink. These may include future Low Earth Orbit formation flying projects such as space weather and environmental monitoring missions.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
When combined with related technologies, the GN&C and communications systems that are proposed for Phase 1 and Phase 2 will offer an attractive core system for multiple customers. These will include the US Department of Defense, and the increasing number of cubesat projects that require attitude control and those that will require AR&D in the years ahead. Formation flying experiments and commercial ventures that propose dense satellite clusters as measurement platforms will need stationkeeping and maneuvering capabilities in very small form factors to manage launch vehicle costs.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Micro Thrusters
Telemetry, Tracking and Control
Attitude Determination and Control
Guidance, Navigation, and Control

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Emergent Space Technologies, Inc.
6301 Ivy Lane, Suite 720
Greenbelt, MD 20770-6330
(301) 345-1535

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
The University of Texas at Austin
P.O. Box 7726
Austin, TX 78713-7726
(512) 471-6424

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Elfego Pinon
elfego.pinon@emergentspace.com

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 6 to 7

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
Over the next decade, a host of new technologies and capabilities will be needed by NASA to support Project Constellation. For risk reduction considerations, it is desirable that they be flown on other missions prior to use on vehicles such as Orion or Altair. An innovative and cost-effective approach to doing so is to use picosats, which are miniaturized spacecraft with masses on the order of a few kilograms. Because of their size, weight and power requirements, they are ideal for low-cost, quick-turn-around technology demonstration missions. Picosats are now being developed at universities by teams of students for "hands on" experience with real space hardware. The University of Texas at Austin (UT) and Texas A&M University (TAMU), for example, are working with NASA Johnson Space Center to implement a series of four picosat missions that would culminate in an on-orbit demonstration of autonomous rendezvous and docking (AR&D). This is a mission-critical, system-level technology needed by Project Constellation, especially Orion. Accordingly, Emergent Space Technologies, Inc. (Emergent) proposes to team with UT to move the Platform for Autonomous Rendezvous and Docking with Innovative GN&C Methods (PARADIGM) picosats out of the university research realm and into the commercial marketplace. These spacecraft are being built by UT students to fly in concert with the picosats being built by their TAMU counterparts. The Flight 1 spacecraft are being readied for launch in early 2009 and are primed for transition to industry. Emergent will work with UT and TAMU in Phase 1 to design the 3 missions that will follow Flight 1. In Phase 2, we will use our considerable engineering expertise and AR&D spaceflight experience to help achieve a successful Flight 2. In Phase 3, we will successfully implement Flights 3 and 4 and in the process develop a picosat product line that can be applied to a variety of commercial space applications.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
There are many potential applications for picosats in the aerospace industry. For NASA, the primary application is the development and demonstration of new technologies and concepts. In particular, it is the achievement of TRL 9 for technologies required by Project Constellation. To explore the Moon, and eventually Mars, new technologies must be developed and tested before implementation on the vehicles that comprise Project Constellation. These include GN&C; autonomous flight software; systems health monitoring and fault detection, isolation and recovery, among others. With the Shuttle retiring and the launch date for Orion steadily moving to the right, picosats offer the opportunity for low-cost, quick-turn around technology demonstration flights. Another application is the use of picosats for space vehicle inspection and situational awareness. Any of the visiting vehicles to the International Space Station, going to and returning from the Moon, etc. would benefit from a safety standpoint if there were miniaturized inspection satellites to support the docking/undocking and re-entry phases of flight.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Picosats are ideal for the test and validation of Micro-Electrical/Micro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS). Making spacecraft subsystems and components lighter has always been a need for the space industry, and MEMS technology is being considered for use in smallsats, nanosats, and now picosats, which of these three are best matched for the purpose. Providing affordable platforms that are right-sized for the test and validation of MEMS technologies is a perfect application of picosats. Picosats are well suited for universities to continue to use as training grounds for future spacecraft engineers, instrument builders, software developers, etc. For those with more of a science focus, picosats can be used to inexpensively fly university-built payloads. Picosats represent a means to meet the need for more rapid response from space assets for the DoD. With the establishment of the Operationally Responsive Space (ORS) Office at Kirtland AFB in 2007, the DoD took action to focus efforts to meet this need. The ORS Office is interested in finding ways to reduce the development time and cost of spacecraft that can help provide the warfighter in the field with timely and critical information. Picosats offer a means to meet the rapid and low development cost requirements and due to their size, offer flexibility when it comes to selecting a launch provider.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Testing Facilities
Testing Requirements and Architectures
Spaceport Infrastructure and Safety
Attitude Determination and Control
Guidance, Navigation, and Control
Pilot Support Systems
Sensor Webs/Distributed Sensors

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Physics, Materials, and Applied Mathematics Research, LLC
1665 E. 18th Street, Suite 112
Tucson, AZ 85719-6808
(520) 903-2345

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Texas Engineering Experiment Station
Office of Sponsored Research, 3000 TAMU
College Station, TX 77843-3000
(979) 458-7617

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Helen Reed
reed@aeromail.tamu.edu

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 7

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
Current autonomous rendezvous and docking (AR&D) capability in low Earth orbit (LEO) is constrained by sensor and effector mass, power, and accuracy limits. To this end, NASA Johnson Space Center has developed a GPS receiver, called DRAGON (Dual RF Astrodynamic GPS Orbital Navigator), specifically to address the sensor constraints. The proposed innovation includes creating a small, low-cost, and versatile technology demonstrator to validate and increase the technology readiness level of DRAGON and other state-of-the-art miniaturized sensors and effectors in an on-orbit AR&D operational scenario. For Phase 1, a demonstration platform will be developed that utilizes two picosatellites in LEO, and relative GPS as the primary sensor. These satellites will be launched as a single unit from the SSPL (Space Shuttle Payload Launcher) on STS 127, then separate and transmit DRAGON GPS data. The picosatellite technology demonstrator will be at a TRL of 7 at the end of Phase 1. For Phase 2, the demonstration platform will be further developed to further validate DRAGON, and validate IMU sensors, a 1st generation reaction control system, a 1st generation guidance navigation and control system, communication links, and an undocking mechanism.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Autonomous rendezvous and docking will be utilized in the Constellation Program for unmanned cargo vehicles and in space assembly. The proposed technology demonstrator platform is being designed to specifically validate enabling devices and other critically needed technologies for Constellation, such as NASA Johnson Space Center's DRAGON GPS system, docking mechanisms, miniaturized sensors and control effectors, control algorithms, and navigation solutions. Moreover, it is anticipated that the technology demonstrator platform itself will be plug and play, and available and adaptable to further mission validations.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
The validated miniaturized sensors and effectors will be applicable to a variety of missions for DoD, companies, and universities, and the demonstrator platform itself will be plug and play, and available and adaptable to other mission validations. As an example, PM+AM Research has been working in laser-based micro-space propulsion with the AFRL Space Propulsion Directorate for many years, which has led to a number of applications of distributed systems based on picosats. Our concept will help realize such distributed systems. The communities with immediate interest include: responsive space, midcourse ballistic missile defense, and space situational awareness. PM+AM Research is working with DoD in each of these, and a suitable platform for specific test scenarios will allow us to perform test and evaluation measurements/scenarios attractive to these customers. These anticipated development efforts are expected to lead to follow-on efforts and eventual products, which may require the involvement of the large integrators.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Chemical
Micro Thrusters
Intelligence
Mobility
Manipulation
Perception/Sensing
Control Instrumentation
Controls-Structures Interaction (CSI)
Kinematic-Deployable
Launch and Flight Vehicle
Operations Concepts and Requirements
Simulation Modeling Environment
Training Concepts and Architectures
Testing Facilities
Testing Requirements and Architectures
Telemetry, Tracking and Control
Cooling
Thermal Insulating Materials
Structural Modeling and Tools
Tankage
Attitude Determination and Control
Guidance, Navigation, and Control
On-Board Computing and Data Management
Architectures and Networks
Autonomous Control and Monitoring
Autonomous Reasoning/Artificial Intelligence
Computer System Architectures
Data Acquisition and End-to-End-Management
Data Input/Output Devices
Portable Data Acquisition or Analysis Tools
Software Development Environments
Software Tools for Distributed Analysis and Simulation
Optical
Sensor Webs/Distributed Sensors
General Public Outreach
K-12 Outreach
Mission Training
Metallics
Energy Storage
Photovoltaic Conversion
Power Management and Distribution

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
CFD Research Corporation
215 Wynn Drive, 5th Floor
Huntsville, AL 35805-1944
(256) 726-4800

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
University of Florida
339 Weil Hall, P.O. Box 116550
Gainesville, FL 32611-6550
(352) 392-9448

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Peter Liever
pal@cfdrc.com
215 Wynn Drive, 5th Floor
Huntsville,  AL 35805-1944
(256) 726-4858

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 4

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
Soil debris liberated by spacecraft landing on the lunar surface may damage and contaminate surrounding spacecraft and habitat structures. Current numerical simulations of these events lack credibility because lunar environment complexities have never been captured in suitable models: the mixed rarefied-continuum nature of the plume's surface layer flow, and the highly irregular soil particle shapes with peculiar granular stresses, particle aerodynamics, and particle collision characteristics. CFDRC and the University of Florida (UF) propose to apply their uniquely capable simulations simulation tools to derive credible lunar gas and granular flow physics sub-models from first principles. CFDRC's unified continuum-rarefied flow solver will be applied to characterize the surface layer flow structure and assess interference effects from surface craters and rocks. The code's unique ability to resolve highly irregular shapes with an automated adaptive Cartesian approach will be applied to compute realistic particle aerodynamics. A Lagrangian particle collision model developed for efficiently simulating dense particle streams will characterize particle collision and dispersion effects. A novel fundamental soil model developed by UF to describe all constituent stresses in a single fundamental model for arbitrary particle shapes mixtures will be applied. Phase I will demonstrate the unique capabilities of the proposed simulation tools. During Phase II, these tools will be applied to create high fidelity physics sub-models for integration in current erosion simulation models.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
The debris simulation tool will be of first order importance to the Space Exploration program for lunar robotic and human mission architecture definition. The tool will be equally applicable to follow-on Mars robotic and human missions. The developed technology will also be applicable for analysis of solid propulsion systems with embedded solid particle

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Many potential non-NASA commercial applications exist in civil and military industries. Dust, sand and snow stir-up during helicopter landing and take-off in a desert or artic environment result in severe visibility impairment (brown-out), windshield abrasion and danger of debris ingestion. Civil engineering and environmental engineering applications include wind-borne landscape erosion and dust transport to populated areas.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Fundamental Propulsion Physics
Testing Requirements and Architectures
Software Tools for Distributed Analysis and Simulation

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
ZONA Technology, Inc.
9489 E. Ironwood Square Drive
Scottsdale, AZ 85258-4578
(480) 945-9988

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Regents of New Mexico State University
MSC PSL, P.O. Box 30002
Las Cruces, NM 88003-8002
(575) 646-4502

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Chunpei Cai
ccai@nmsu.edu

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 4 to 5

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
A Multiscale GasKinetic/Particle (MGP) computational method is proposed to simulate the plume-crater-interaction/dust-impingement(PCIDI) problem. The MGP method consists of a multiscale gaskinetic (MG) method for gasdynamics of rocket plume-in-vacuum flowfield, an Overlay method for gas-particle interaction. MG combines BGK Gaskinetics (BGK) and direct simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) methods with a domain decomposition technique to account for various scales of rarefied gasdynamics, covering continuum to free-molecular regimes. The dust particles are modeled by an additional distribution function in BGK, thus carried by the MG-generated flowfield through an overlay method. Dust properties are to be modeled using Discrete Element Method (DEM) simulation, which will lead to comprehensive continuum equations for crater formation. Phase II will extend the present MGP method to 3D, with more advanced dust particle properties and complex crater formulation.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
MGP method is to simulate various PCIDI problems in vehicle landing/launching for NASA space explorations, especially for lunar robotic and human mission architecture definition. These include events taken place on Moon, Mars, Titan or asteroids. The developed technology will also be applicable for analysis of solid propulsion systems with embedded solid particle. MGP can be used efficiently to simulate various conceivable PCIDI interactions. Thus NASA could decide the worse case scenario for vehicle design or for landing site selection to avoid engine/hardware damage. Other potential NASA applications for space access and space exploration include atmospheric entry/maneuver on Earth/Mars in term of (a) Aerothermodynamics analysis and vehicle/TPS design, (b) Aeroassist design/analysis to increase drag of capsules/ballutes during atmospheric entry, (c) Flight mechanics/Aerodynamics and turbomachinery in Martian atmosphere for vehicle maneuver need MGP method to handle a relatively rarefied, 2-phase, dusty flow environment.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Non NASA applications are supported by non-aerospace domains and private industry, i.e.,, Army/Navy airbreathing engine vehicle operation in desert/dusty environment; Aerosol effects on weather; R&D in multiphase flows and reacting flows; Dust, sand and snow stir-up during helicopter landing/takeoff in a desert or arctic environment; Wind-borne landscape erosion and dust transport to populated areas. ZONA will package MGP method into a commercial software for above applications. Potential customers include DoD, chemical engineering firms, etc.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Fundamental Propulsion Physics
Simulation Modeling Environment
Testing Requirements and Architectures
Software Tools for Distributed Analysis and Simulation

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Orbital Technologies Corporation
Space Center, 1212 Fourier Drive
Madison, WI 53717-1961
(608) 827-5000

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Duke University
2200 W. Main Street, Suite 710
Durham, NC 27705-1107
(919) 684-3030

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
John Brandenburg
brandenburgj@orbitec.com

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 4

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
ORBITEC and Duke University have teamed on this STTR to develop the ALERT (Advanced Lunar Exhaust-Regolith Transport) code which will include new developments in modeling of regolith erosion and entrainment as well as plume transport with full mass and momentum conservation. The Plume is handled in a Vlasov formalism with drag force on dust grains, dust equations of motion are solved over a size spectrum. Because of its significant gravity and lack of atmosphere landing on the Moon's surface must involve impingement of the rocket plume directly on the Lunar regolith. The experience in the Apollo landings, both from the perspective of the astronauts viewing surface conditions during decent, and the effects on the exposed surfaces of the Surveyor 3 from the nearby landing of Apollo 12 have alerted us to the importance of good modeling of rocket exhaust plume regolith interactions.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
The primary focus of this activity is to develop a highly-reliable, accurate software tool to support NASA's Exploration Vision. A user friendly, accurate, ALERT code will be developed during the multiphase program for testing in near-term Lunar operations. The technology could be used in other NASA space applications including: Lunar surface operations, both manned and unmanned and logistics, Moonbase planning and design, Mars surface and Mars-Moon operations, manned and unmanned, etc. Beyond the needs of NASA, it is expected that this technology will be integrated into ORBITEC applications for other customers such as the Bigelow Aerospace's Space Station, propulsion approaches for supporting the Jamestown Group that will have many commercial Lunar missions, the USAF multimode spacecraft mission needs, etc.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Beyond the needs of NASA, it is expected that this technology will be integrated into ORBITEC applications for other customers such as the Bigelow Aerospace's Space Station, propulsion approaches for supporting the Jamestown Group that will have many commercial Lunar missions, the USAF multimode spacecraft mission needs, etc. Lunar mining for ISRU, polar water, or Helium 3 extraction form the regolith will require large Moonbases and many landings and liftoffs. Plume entrainment of lunar dust is a major hazard and planning consideration in the design of any commercial Moonbase will benfit from the ALERT code as a planning tool.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Simulation Modeling Environment
Spaceport Infrastructure and Safety

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Nanohmics, Inc.
6201 East Oltorf Street, Suite 400
Austin, TX 78741-1222
(512) 389-9990

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
University of New Orleans
Office of Sponsor Research
New Orleans, LA 70148-0001
(504) 280-3185

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Steve Savoy
ssavoy@nanohmics.com
6201 East Oltorf Street, Suite 400
Austin,  TX 78741-1222
(512) 389-9990

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 3 to 4

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
NASA space exploration missions stand to benefit from reliable means to conserve energy that is otherwise given off as waste heat. Thermoelectric generators have demonstrated the potential for scavenging waste heat energy, yet are still limited by technical and geometrical boundaries that must be overcome for long term reliability in applications such as interplanetary missions. To address these limitations, Nanohmics Inc. and Professor Kevin Stokes at the University of New Orleans propose to fabricate conformable thermoelectric generators for long-term radiation resistance in space applications. The proposed device will incorporate thermoelectric p- and n-doped high ZT thermoelectric legs that aredeposited onto a substrate.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Lightweight thermoelectric generators that have the ability to conform to custom geometries offer many advantages in waste heat recovery over traditional rigid plate TEG devices. The proposed device will possess inherent radiation hardness as well as have low stowed weight making it ideal for thermoelectric-driven waste heat energy scavenging on interplantary and other space missions.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Thermoelectric devices have the ability to enable/accelerate a wide variety of applications. Major applications of thermoelectric devices include: • Cooling of electronics (integrated circuits, detectors/focal plane arrays, microprocessors, disk drives, solid state lasers) • Power generation from waste heat or engine exhaust (thermoelectric generator mode) • Power generation in remote areas using temporal fluctuations with daily cycles • Satellite power recovery • Cooling of heavy equipment and machining processes • Distributed cooling systems for confined spaces (automobiles, military vehicles, submarines) • Man portable or embedded cooling systems for soldier battle dress uniforms (BDUs) or other wearable devices that can extract energy from body heat • Precision temperature control

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Thermoelectric Conversion

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Structured Materials Industries, Inc.
201 Circle Drive North, Suite 102/103
Piscataway, NJ 08854-3723
(732) 302-9274

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
University of California Santa Cruz, NECTAR Center
Baskin Engineering Bldg., MS SOE2
Santa Cruz, CA 95064-1077
(831) 459-3571

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Gary Tompa
GSTompa@structuredmaterials.com
201 Circle Drive North, Suite 102/103
Piscataway,  NJ 08854-3723
(732) 302-9274

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 3

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
SMI has teamed with a leading thermoelectric (TE) research group in order to optimize and convert high-performance TE materials developed in laboratory-scale into economically producible products for NASA missions and commercial applications. Recent results with nanocomposite films have shown that Figures of Merit (ZT) much greater than 1.0 are possible at laboratory-scale; however a technology road map with the view towards large-volume and low-cost manufacturing processes of such TE devices has not previously been envisioned. We propose to develop a scalable manufacturing process of large-volume and cost-effective nanocomposite TE device films with ZT values exceeding 2.0. In Phase I, SMI and our partner will demonstrate a scalable manufacturing technology for nanocomposite films required for high-performance TE devices. In Phase II, we will continue materials development, device optimization, and process scaling to large-scale production. Further, we will market the technology with end product producers. The Phase III result will be the availability of high-performance TE devices that utilize nanocomposite films for NASA applications, commercial uses in general, and the new energy frontier of waste heat recovery.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Conversion of heat directly to electrical energy is needed for many NASA programs and, following solar energy, will be an important comprementary technology of energy development. We have herein proposed to develop large-volume and low-cost manufacturing technologies of high-performance thermoelectric devices (i.e., both generation of electrical energy and Peltier cooling) that can be used for multiple applications critical in various NASA missions; heat to electricity power conversion in radioisotope heat generators, concentrated solar heat generators, thermoelectric cooling of energy intensive electronics, low temperature sensors and detectors, efficient refrigerators, personnel cooling devices, and so on. The realization of ragged, high-efficiency, and low-cost thermoelectric devices will have substantial positive inpacts on reducing instrument size, weight and cost dramatically benefiting various NASA missions where size, weight and cost are a paramount concern.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Efficient low cost thermoelectric coolers have broad application in high power (heat generating electronics) and sensors requiring compact efficient low temperature operation. Further, looking beyond solar, the next energy frontier is that of waste heat recovery. Devices which recover waste heat will soon come into great demand. SMI intends to meet this emerging need by providing one of the primary enabling tools to produce the materials and thus enable devices themselves (directly and through our customers).

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Semi-Conductors/Solid State Device Materials
Thermoelectric Conversion

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
MicroXact, Inc.
80 Massie Drive
Christiansburg, VA 24073-1071
(540) 392-6917

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
University of California Los Angeles
56-125B Engineering IV Bldg.
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1594
(310) 825-1609

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Paul Hines
phines@microxact.com
80 Massie Drive
Christiansburg,  VA 24073-1071
(540) 392-6917

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 2 to 3

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
Thermoelectric (TE) devices already found a wide range of commercial, military and aerospace applications. However, at present commercially available TE devices typically offer limited heat to electricity conversion efficiencies, well below the fundamental thermodynamic limit, calling for the development of higher efficiency materials. The team of MicroXact Inc and UCLA DRL is proposing to develop a revolutionary ultrahigh efficiency thermoelectric material fabricated on completely new fabrication principles. The material comprises the three-dimensional "wells" of Ge/Si Quantum Quantum Dot Superlattices fabricated by a conformal coating of macroporous silicon (MPSi) pore walls. Such a material will provide very high ZT values at macroscopic thicknesses of the material, permitting 30% or more conversion efficiencies. In Phase I of the project the team will develop a thorough model of the proposed TE material, will theoretically predict the achievable efficiency of the material and will demonstrate the growth of the single layer of QDs on the pore walls. In Phase II the team will fabricate the proposed material and will demonstrate the efficiencies exceeding 30%. After the Phase II the team will attract VC funding to commercialize the technology.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
The largest immediate NASA application of the proposed ultraefficient thermoelectric materials and devices is thermoelectric generators, already actively using in a large number of NASA missions. The advantages of the proposed technology (unmatched efficiency combined with the small size and low weight) would provide the competitive advantage to MicroXact sufficient for successful market penetration. Other potential NASA applications, including potential powering small devices from human thermal energy, etc. can be allowed by the proposed technology as well. Due to the unique benefits the proposed ultrahigh efficiency TE materials and devices are expected to penetrate these and other NASA applications. The proposed concept, when developed and commercialized, is expected to cause a significant impact on the cost, safety and reliability of future NASA missions.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
In addition to NASA applications, the proposed ultraefficient thermoelectric materials and devices are expected to find applications in such fields as electronic device cooling (microprocessors, focal plane arrays, etc.), food storage/processing (wine cellers, Freon-free refrigerators), automotive and aviation industry (to enhance the fuel consumption). Due to the unique performance expected from proposed materials and devices all these markets can be potrentially addressable with the proposed technology. The most promising market for initial penetration is believed to be the electronic component cooling market, where the behefits of the proposed technology (high efficiency combined with potentially reduced size) would provide the largest competitive advantage.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Thermoelectric Conversion

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
TXL Group, Inc.
2000 Wyoming Avenue
El Paso, TX 79903-3501
(915) 533-7800

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
University of Texas at El Paso
500 W. University Avenue
El Paso, TX 79968-0587
(915) 747-5680

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
David Nemir
david.nemir@gmail.com
2000 Wyoming Ave.
El Paso,  TX 79903-3501
(915) 533-7800

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 4 to 5

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
Thermoelectric (TE) generators/refrigerators have the advantages of lack of moving parts, quiet operation, and flexibility in deployment, but their use has been limited because of their relatively low conversion efficiency. Two major loss components are conductive (phonon) heat transfer through the TE lattice and parasitic losses at fabrication interfaces. Shock wave consolidation of thermoelectric nanopowders to produce TE devices will reduce both loss sources, leading to enhanced efficiency devices. The conversion efficiency of a TE device will always be thermodynamically limited by the Carnot ratio of (Th-Tc)/Th, where Th and Tc are the temperatures of the hot and cold junctions. Present technology thermoelectric devices can provide conversion efficiencies up to a third of the Carnot limit. With the restrictions on phonon transport acruing from nanopowder consolidation, conversion efficiencies of over 50% of the Carnot limit should be possible.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Thermoelectric efficiency enhancement will allow the fabrication of smaller, lighter TE devices such as radioisotope generators in satellites and deep space probes. Efficiency enhancements will also enable applications that have not previously been addressed such as harvesting sensor energy from astronaut body heat and piggybacking thermoelectric generating cells on the back of photovoltaic cells to allow the maximum extraction of energy from solar radiation. Improvements in thermoelectric efficiency benefit Peltier cooling of astronauts, CCD cells and electronics since less energy will be required for these heat pumping applications.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
High efficiency thermoelectric generation allows significant energy capture from waste heat streams in industrial and power plants. Combined with escalating electricity prices, the payback times are reduced and this allows wider deployments and both scale and scope economies. Even relatively small thermal differentials become candidates for energy capture including electric generation from roadways for powering local lights and signage. Another application is for automatic flush valves, where small differences between ambient air and ambient water temperatures can be exploited to trickle charge battery powered actuators.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Cooling
Semi-Conductors/Solid State Device Materials
Renewable Energy
Thermoelectric Conversion

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Tetra Research Corporation
420 Park Avenue West
Princeton, IL 61356-1934
(815) 872-0702

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Mississippi State University
Engineering Research Center
Mississippi State, MS 39762-9627
(662) 325-4586

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Rex Chamberlain
rex@tetraresearch.com
420 Park Avenue West
Princeton,  IL 61356-1934
(815) 872-0702

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 3 to 4

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
The challenges of designing, developing, and fielding advanced propulsion systems continue to increase as NASA's Vision for Space Exploration Program moves forward with new solid propulsion elements ({i.e., Ares I and V). Our existing computational tool for solid motor analysis (BurnSurf) generates modest surface recession, but the mesh deformation techniques employed often fail as the surface regression increases, particularly near corners. For complex grain designs with highly complicated surface topologies (e.g., star shapes), simple mesh deformation is no longer desirable. Our proposed innovation will utilize surface mesh modification and volume mesh generation to locally rebuild the burning surface mesh and the adjacent volume mesh. The innovation will address integrated surface and volume mesh regeneration and reconnection techniques for modifying mesh topologies along with two phase burning surface models to create a unique 3D software tool for next generation solid motor internal environment characterization. Our research products will provide NASA with the important capability to simultaneously analyze solid propellant combustion, heat transfer, and grain burnback within a single framework. We will demonstrate feasibility of the approach using a two phase grain burning model coupled with surface recession for a simple shape in the TRL range of 3-4.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
This technology will provide NASA with an advanced analysis capability for the prediction of two phase flows in solid motors with dynamic surface recession, including burning surface particulate injection and volume and mass flow constraints for the receding surface.. Potential enhancements to the these tools include improved droplet/gas interface modeling for better statistical representations of particle laden flows, improved near-wall turbulence modeling, and extended model validation. The proposed methodology for two phase solid motor flows is also well suited for extensions to additional multi-physics capabilities of commercial interest to NASA, including conjugate heat transfer within the solid propellant. ATK, a leading manufacturer of solid rocket engines, has formally indicated interest in this technology, and our development plan appropriately reflects this NASA commercial potential.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
The growing trend toward complex multi-phase analyses is opening significant new markets as more difficult problems can be addressed using advanced computational techniques. The ability to easily set up and analyze solid motor problems in a timely manner will allow industry to speed development of new products and streamline testing. Further enhancements to our modeling system will find application in the aerospace, automotive, environmental, and nuclear industries. The basic architecture of the software will remain the same while new plug-in physical models will be developed to address niche markets.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Chemical
Micro Thrusters
Ablatives

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Keystone Synergistic Enterprises, Inc.
698 SW Port Saint Lucie Blvd., Suite 105
Port Saint Lucie, FL 34953-1565
(772) 343-7544

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Mississippi State University
210 Carpenter Engineering Bldg.
Mississippi State University, MS 39762-6156
(662) 325-9154

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Bryant Walker
bryant@keystonehq.com
698 SW Port Saint Lucie Blvd, STE 105
Port Saint Lucie,  FL 34953-1565
(772) 343-7544

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 3 to 4

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
The Keystone and MSU team propose to demonstrate the feasibility of solid-state joining high strength and temperature alloys utilizing the Thermal Stir Welding process. The alloy selected for this proposed effort is Haynes 230; the alloy of choice typically utilized in rocket engine nozzel skirts. This class of alloys is difficult to fusion weld and has not been shown weldable by friction stir methods. Thus, the Keystone team is proposing to utilize the Thermal Stir Welding process; a solid-state welding process that decouples the stirring and heating features of the process to enable optimization of each key parameter. By independently controlling and optimizing these two process parameters, the best metal working parameters can be identified and utilized to plasticize and stir the Haynes 230 alloy to achieve solid-state welding. Achievement of this objective will enable superior mechanical properties in the weld joint and thus maximize the capability of the weld for the intended application.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Solid-state welding of high strength and temperautre alloys is required to support the NASA ARES I and V system. Specifically, Haynes 230 is a high strength and high temperature alloy utilized in the engine nozzel skirt. The proposed Phase I STTR program will demonstrate the feasibility of solid-state welding the alloy by a process known as Thermal Stir Welding.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Potential non-NASA applications include thermal stir welding of high strentgh and temperature alloys for aerospace applications; specifically, military and commercial gas turbine engines. Non-aerospace applications include component welding for chemical processing and heat exchanger industries.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Launch and Flight Vehicle
Earth-Supplied Resource Utilization
Metallics
Aircraft Engines

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Plasma Processes, Inc.
4914 Moores Mill Road
Huntsville, AL 35811-1558
(256) 851-7653

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Southern Research Institute
P.O. Box 53305
Birmingham, AL 35255-5305
(205) 581-2000

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
John O'Dell
scottodell@plasmapros.com

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 4 to 5

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
The Launch Abort System (LAS) for the Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) will provide a safe escape for the crew in the event of an emergency during launch. A key component of the LAS is its Attitude Control Motor (ACM). Recent testing of the ACM valve assembly has resulted in failure during hot-fire testing. These failures are believed to be the result of the molybdenum alloy component distorting during firing. Based on these results, alternative materials with higher temperature capability are needed for the ACM valve assembly. During Phase I, innovative electrochemical forming (EL-FormTM) techniques will be developed for producing ACM hot gas components near net shape. Both rhenium and rhenium coated graphite composite materials will be evaluated. PPI will partner with Southern Research Institute, a leader in the testing of advanced, high temperature materials, for the materials properties testing. During Phase II, ACM hot gas components will be fabricated and hot fire tested. In addition to rhenium and rhenium coated graphite composites, alternative materials such as molybdenum-rhenium and tungsten-rhenium materials will be evaluated.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
PPI's targeted NASA application is the Attitude Control Motor (ACM) for the Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) Launch Abort System (LAS). Other NASA applications include in-space propulsion components for apogee insertion, attitude control, orbit maintenance, repositioning of satellites/spacecraft, reaction control systems, and descent/ascent engines, nuclear power/propulsion, microgravity containment crucibles and cartridges.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Both government and commercial entities in the following sectors use advanced high-temperature materials for the following applications: coatings, defense, material R&D, nuclear power, aerospace, propulsion, automotive, electronics, crystal growth, and medical. PPI's targeted commercial applications include net-shape fabrication of refractory and platinum group metals for rocket nozzles, crucibles, heat pipes, and propulsion subcomponents; and advanced coating systems for x-ray targets, sputtering targets, turbines, rocket engines, wear and thermal/electrical insulation.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Chemical
Attitude Determination and Control
Guidance, Navigation, and Control
Ceramics
Composites
Metallics

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Streamline Numerics, Inc.
3221 NW 13th Street, Suite A
Gainesville, FL 32609-2189
(352) 271-8841

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Mississippi State University
2 Research Blvd.
Starkville, MS 39759-7649
(662) 325-4586

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Siddharth Thakur
st@snumerics.com
3221 NW 13th Street, Suite A
Gainesville,  FL 32609-2189
(352) 271-8841

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 4 to 5

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
The innovation proposed here is a computational framework for high performance, high fidelity computational fluid dynamics (CFD) to enable accurate, fast and robust simulation of unsteady turbulent, reacting or non-reacting flows involving real or ideal fluids in several applications. This framework will provide a state-of-the-art unsteady turbulent flow simulation capability employing Hybrid RANS-LES (HRLES) methods which are a blend of Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) and Large Eddy Simulation (LES) approaches. Low-dissipation schemes will be employed which will enable high-fidelity modeling of unsteady flows as well as acoustic fields. Additionally, Lagrangian particle tracking and Eulerian multiphase models will be incorporated to enable simulation of multiphase combustion involving solid particles or liquid droplets. The work proposed here will result in a state-of-the-art design and analysis tool to enable the accurate modeling of: (a) multiphase combustion in solid and liquid rocket engines, (b) combustion stability analysis (c) acoustic fields of space propulsion syatems in near-ground operation, (d) small valves and turbopumps, etc. which constitute critical components of versatile space propulsion engines part of NASA's Constellation Program.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
The outcome of Phase I and Phase II research activities will be a powerful CFD-based design and analysis tool for propulsion engines at NASA. This tool is envisioned to be a powerful design and analysis tool for propulsion devices including full rocket engine simulations, injector design, turbopump and valve design, etc. Specific applications at NASA of this capability include: (a) design improvements of J-2X injectors, (b) modeling of multi-element injectors coupled with fuel and oxidizer feed lines and manifolds, (c) prediction of stability and stability margins, (d) design of acoustic cavities for combustion stability, (e) analysis of small valves and turbopumps, (f) prediction of loads during launch of new launch vehicle, (g) prediction of acoustic loads on rocket engine test stands, (h) launch pad modifications, (i) development of new launch facilities, (j) analysis of rocket engine exhaust plumes, (k) modeling of flow of liquids and supercritical fluids through piping system components such as valves and run tanks ,etc.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
The computational tool resulting from this project will have wide-ranging commercial applications. The Hybrid RANS-LES methodology can be used for a wide variety of engineering applications involving unsteady turbulent flows. The reacting flow capability can be used for simulating combusting flows in various industrial applications, such as gas turbine engines, diesel engines, etc. The real-fluids methodology can be used in a large number of industrial flow situations involving both chemically inert and reacting flows. With additions of multi-phase combustion modeling capability, the applicability of this tool can be further broadened.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Chemical
Fundamental Propulsion Physics
Software Tools for Distributed Analysis and Simulation

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
American GNC Corporation
888 Easy Street
Simi Valley, CA 93065-1812
(805) 582-0582

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
The University of Kansas Center for Research, Inc.
2385 Irving Hill Road
Lawrence, KS 66045-7563
(785) 864-3441

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Dr. Ching-Fang Lin
cflin@americangnc.com

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 5

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
The objective of this project is to demonstrate intelligent health and maintenance status determination and predictive fault diagnosis techniques for NASA rocket engines under online and offline conditions from either on-board or maintenance, test and analytic data. AGNC proposes a Health and Maintenance Status Determination and Predictive Fault Diagnosis System (HMSD/PFDS). The fuzzy qualitative model for model-based residual generation and the rule-based evaluation of residuals using neural-fuzzy combination are defined. Intelligent data fusion strategies for health and maintenance determination and predictive fault diagnosis are developed for rocket engine systems/subsystems. The goal is to ensure safety, cost reduction, graceful degradation and re-optimization in the case of failures, malfunctions and damages. Kalman filter based and rule based evaluation of residuals using neural-fuzzy combination are developed. The use of fuzzy qualitative models takes into account the uncertainties associated with behavior descriptions and incorporates available expert failure symptom knowledge to recognize the particular failure features. Actual or simulated rocket engine sensed or derived data are utilized to evaluate the effectiveness of the health and maintenance determination and fault prognosis approaches for NASA platforms. Phase I is devoted to the HMSD/PFDS design and simulation. Phase II will result in development of a functional prototype.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
The HMSD/PFDS system will directly support a host of NASA's health monitoring requirements by detecting anomalous operating conditions and actual or impending faults. The proposed technology is not only available for rocket engines but is extendable to accommodate entire spacecraft health monitoring systems.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
The HMSD/PFDS system also finds a large market in the military and civilian sectors. Typical applications for HMSD/PFDS will be in aircraft engines, power plants, commercial aviation industry, general manufacturing and industrial operations monitoring environments.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Testing Requirements and Architectures
On-Board Computing and Data Management
Portable Data Acquisition or Analysis Tools

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN: (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Aerodyne Research, Inc.
45 Manning Road
Billerica, MA 01821-3976
(978) 663-9500

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
University of Florida
219 Grinter Hall, P.O. Box 115500
Gainesville, FL 32611-5500
(352) 392-1582

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Joda Wormhoudt
jody@aerodyne.com
45 Manning Rd
Billerica,  MA 01821-3976
(978) 663-9500

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 4 to 5

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
We propose to design, construct and test a first implementation of a non-dispersive technique for the measurement of atomic absorption in the plumes of liquid rocket engines in altitude test facilities. Led by NASA Stennis Space Center (SSC), the observation of metal atom emission from liquid rocket engine exhausts at sea level conditions has become a highly successful health monitoring technique, but in altitude tests emission intensities are low. SSC developed an atomic absorption system which has provided useful measurements, but improved sensitivity is required. Non-dispersive atomic absorption presents a far simpler, smaller, lower cost alternative to other techniques with comparable spectral resolution and, of particular importance, should allow a more forgiving receiver geometry, so that noise-modulated source light or plume emission can be eliminated.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
The goal of the proposed program is an atomic absorption system for NASA SSC altitude test facilities with substantially better sensitivity for a set of metal atom species similar to that now detected. Extensions to other elements and other test facilities should be straightforward.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
Potential applications exist in two areas, plume signature phenomenology, and analytical chemistry instrumentation. We have a long history in the first area and are currently involved in a research program in which the spectroscopy of rocket exhaust plumes may play a key role in developing new early warning systems, to which the technology to be developed in the proposed program could make a substantial contribution. In the second area, non-dispersive methods have received many academic studies but few commercial applications. The new source, filter and detector technologies we expect to take advantage of in the proposed program, on the other hand, may allow new analytical instruments that are cheaper and more robust than previous instruments, while retaining the capabilities afforded by the high spectral resolution of non-dispersive methods.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Testing Facilities
Optical

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

RESEARCH INSTITUTION: (RI Name, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
University of Florida
339 Weil Hall
Gainesville, FL 32611-6250
(352) 846-3017

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER: (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/ZIP, Phone)
Vineet Ahuja
vineet@craft-tech.com

Expected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) upon completion of contract: 3 to 4

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
Instabilities associated with fluid handling and operation in liquid rocket propulsion systems and test facilities usually manifest themselves as structural vibrations and may cause structural damage such as the cracks observed in the space shuttle hydrogen feed liners. While the source of the instability is directly related to the performance of a component such as a turbopump, valve or a flow control element, the associated pressure fluctuations as they propagate through the system have the potential to amplify and resonate with natural modes of the structural elements and components of the system. The innovation described in this proposal directly relates to an innovative multi-level approach that involves integration of analysis, at both the component and systems level, into a unified simulation framework. The primary source of the unsteadiness is modeled with a high-fidelity hybrid RANS/LES based CFD methodology that has been previously used to study instabilities in feed systems. System response to the driving instability will be simulated through a lumped element modeling (LEM) technique that will approximate the behavior of all the distributed elements that constitute the system.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
The integrated multi-level (system and component) simulation software resulting from this proposal would predict performance of liquid rocket propulsion systems and test facilities for rocket engines. The salient features of the framework include diagnosis of system anomalies/transients and prediction of system feedback and response to the transients. Our product addresses core needs of NASA in the Constellation program, and the mission to the moon, in reliably predicting instability modes, resonance and structural vibrations in propulsion systems such as the J-2X and RS-68 engines as well as test facilities with complex networks of valves, venturis, control elements etc. The software technology developed here can also be deployed by engine health monitoring systems and/or by control algorithms that require rapid response models of systems that consist of vast array of fluid dynamic components.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA APPLICATION(S) (LIMIT 150 WORDS)
The commercial market for our product is very large and includes plants and industrial facilities such as nuclear power generation, chemical process plants etc. Recently, commercial space ventures ranging from space transportation systems (COTS) for the international space station (ISS), to low-cost satellite launch systems are getting interested in simulation tools capable of providing risk assessment of propulsion systems. The primary market for this product will be in the design and analysis of high-performance, high-reliability systems used for inherently transient operations in the nuclear and chemical process industry. Here characterizing the transient performance of the system is a critical safety issue and the availability of a well-validated, reliable predictive software tool can play an integral role in reducing costs and managing risk.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
Simulation Modeling Environment
Testing Facilities
Testing Requirements and Architectures
Feed System Components