NASA ANNOUNCES RESEARCH GRANTS IN MICROGRAVITY COMBUSTION SCIENCE

NASA has selected 28 researchers to receive grants totaling approximately $10 million over four years to conduct microgravity combustion research on Earth and in space. This research will seek knowledge leading to innovative applications in space-based life support systems, crew safety and Earth-based energy conversion.

Sponsored by NASA's Office of Life and Microgravity Science and Applications, the research offers investigators the advantage of a low-gravity environment to enhance understanding of fundamental physical and chemical processes associated with combustion.

Researchers will use NASA's microgravity research facilities such as drop-tubes, drop-towers, aircraft flying parabolic trajectories, and sounding rockets. Flight-definition investigators will work toward experiments on a space-flight test bed, such as the International Space Station and Space Shuttle.

Twenty-six of the grants are to conduct ground-based research, while the remaining two are flight-definition efforts. Four of these grants are to continue work currently being funded by NASA, but the majority (24) are new research efforts.

NASA received 119 proposals in response to its research announcement in this area. The proposals were all peer- reviewed by scientific and technical experts from academia, government and industry. In addition, those proposals selected for flight definition were reviewed for engineering feasibility by a team from NASA's Glenn Research Center, Cleveland, OH.

A list of awardees (by state), their institutions, and research titles can be found on the Internet at:
ftp://ftp.hq.nasa.gov/pub/pao/pressrel/2000/00-144a.txt

Flight Definition Tasks
 

California

Professor Carlos Fernandez-Pello
University of California/Berkeley
Berkeley, CA
³Two-Dimensional Smoldering and its Transition to Flaming in
Microgravity²

Dr. David L. Urban
Glenn Research Center
Cleveland, OH
³Characterization of Smoke from Microgravity Fires for
Improved Spacecraft Fire Detection²
 

Ground-based Tasks

Alabama

Professor John Baker
University of Alabama/Birmingham
Birmingham, AL
³Magnetically-Assisted Combustion Experiment (MACE)²

Professor Daniel W. Mackowski
Auburn University
Auburn, AL
³Coupled Radiation/Thermophoresis Effects in Sooting
Microgravity Flames²
 

California

Professor Ralph C. Aldredge, III
University of California/Davis
Davis, CA
³Flame Propagation in Low-Intensity Turbulence Under
Microgravity Conditions²

Dr. Josette Bellan
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Pasadena, CA
³High Pressure Transport Properties of Fluids: Theory and
Data from Levitated Drops at Combustion-Relevant
Temperatures²

Professor Subrata Bhattacharjee
San Diego State University
San Diego, CA
³Dynamics of Flame Spread in Microgravity Environment²

Professor Fokion N. Egolfopoulos
University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA
³Detailed Studies on the Structure and Dynamics of Reacting
Dusty Flows at Normal- and Micro-Gravity²

Professor Michael Frenklach
University of California/Berkeley
Berkeley, CA
³Microgravity Production of Nanoparticles of Novel Materials
Using Plasma Synthesis²

Dr. Howard Pearlman
University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA
³Determination of Cool Flame Quenching Distances at
Microgravity²

Professor Zuhair Munir
University of California/Davis
Davis, CA
³Electric Field Effects in Self-Propagating High-Temperature
Combustion Synthesis Under Microgravity Conditions²
 

Delaware

Professor Hai Wang
University of Delaware
Newark, DE
³Soot Formation in Purely-Curved Premixed Flames and Laminar
Flame Speed of Soot-Forming Flames²
 

District of Columbia

Dr. Gopal Patnaik
Naval Research Laboratory
Washington, DC
³Unsteady Multidimensional Numerical Simulations of Flame
Vortex Interactions in Microgravity²
 

Illinois

Professor John D. Buckmaster
University of Illinois
Urbana, IL
³Smolder-Edge-Waves and Edge-Flames²

Professor Moshe Matalon
Northwestern University
Evanston, IL
³Modeling Microgravity Non-Premixed Combustion Systems²
 

Indiana

Dr. Yudaya Sivathanu
En¹Urga Inc.
West Lafayette, IN
³Fan Beam Emission Tomography for Non-Symmetric Laminar
Fires²
 

Iowa

Professor Gerald M. Colver
Iowa State University
Ames, IA
³Quenching of Particle-Gas Combustion Mixtures Using Electric
Particulate Suspension (EPS) and Dispersion Methods²
 

Maryland

Professor Jose Torero
University of Maryland
College Park, MD
³Material Properties Governing Cocurrent Flame Spread in
Microgravity²
 

New Jersey

Dr. David G. Keil
Titan Corporation
Princeton, NJ
³Particle Generation and Evolution in Silane/Acetylene Flames
in Microgravity²
 

Ohio

Dr. Fletcher J. Miller
Glenn Research Center
Cleveland, OH
³Gravitational Influences on Flame Propagation Through Non-
Uniform Premixed Gas Systems²

Dr. Vedha Nayagam
National Center for Microgravity Research
Cleveland, OH
³Stretched Diffusion Flames in von Karman Swirling Flows²

Dr. Sandra Olson
Glenn Research Center
Cleveland, OH
³Development of an Earth-Based Apparatus to Assess Material
Flammability in Low-Convection Environments for Microgravity
and Extraterrestrial Fire-Safety Applications²

Dr. Howard Ross
Glenn Research Center
Cleveland, OH
³Secondary Fires: Initiation and Extinguishment²

Dr. Fumiaki Takahashi
National Center for Microgravity Research
Cleveland, OH
³Physical and Chemical Aspects of Fire Suppression in
Extraterrestrial Environments²

Dr. Randy Vander Wal
National Center for Microgravity Research
Cleveland, OH
³Carbon Nanostructure: Its Evolution During and its Impact on
Soot Growth and Oxidation²

Dr. Zeng-guang Yuan
National Center for Microgravity Research
Cleveland, OH
³Effects of Electric Fields on Soot Processes in Non-Buoyant
Hydrocarbon-Fueled Flames²
 

Pennsylvania

Professor Gary A. Ruff
Drexel University
Philadelphia, PA
³Combustion of Unsupported Droplet Clusters in Microgravity²
 

Washington

Professor James J. Riley
University of Washington
Seattle, WA
³Investigation of the Liftoff and Blowout of Transitional and
Turbulent Jet Flames²

Last Updated 09/21/00