Questions tagged [materials]
Questions pertaining to materials used for construction of space-worthy objects.
28
questions with no upvoted or accepted answers
7
votes
0
answers
207
views
Does the kinetic impact of gas particles cause erosion to the surface of objects in orbit?
When satellites or space stations orbit the Earth, they are constantly experiencing a low level of aerodynamic drag from Earth's atmosphere. The ISS needs to be reboosted every few months to account ...
- 4,231
7
votes
0
answers
253
views
Low energy cements for Mars and Callisto. Waterless cement for the Moon. Any good candidates?
In the non-polar regions of the Moon and Mercury there is a shortage of volatiles, including hydrogen and nitrogen, so they might be regaded as too valuable to be "wasted" to prepare concrete. ...
- 477
5
votes
0
answers
123
views
What materials are used for human spacecraft pressure vessels and why?
I'm looking for what specific aluminum alloys are used for human-rated spacecraft pressure vessels (habitable module) and why.
I've been able to find the material for Orion is Al-2219 but nothing for ...
- 151
5
votes
0
answers
205
views
What coatings are used for printed circuit board protection in space?
Which coatings are better for printed circuit board (PCB) protection in space environment?
5
votes
0
answers
768
views
How was the flammability of Velcro addressed after the Apollo 1 fire?
In a spacecraft review meeting held with Shea on August 19, 1966 (a week before delivery [of Apollo 1]), the crew expressed concern about the amount of flammable material (mainly nylon netting and ...
- 48.1k
5
votes
0
answers
226
views
Pycrete or Pycrete 2.0 Q Has there been any research for structures against radiation protection in space with Pycrete type material?
Background on Pykrete:
Pykrete is a frozen ice alloy, originally made of approximately 14 percent sawdust or some other form of wood pulp (such as paper) and 86 percent ice by weight (6 to 1 by ...
- 51
4
votes
0
answers
127
views
How well does wood thermally perform in space applications?
Wondering if there are any studies about using wood as a material for insulation in spacecraft? My specific question is does anyone have any experience with it working as an insulator? I remember a ...
- 73
4
votes
0
answers
300
views
Coatings on spacecraft structures
Traditionally, aluminium spacecraft structures have been alodine-coated to protect the surface from corrosion and resistance to scratches.
However, the last few years I've noticed that more and more ...
- 308
4
votes
0
answers
227
views
Do vacuum-grade oils and greases trivially solve the "lubricants don't work in space, cold welding happens" problem (for short to moderate duration)?
(Related: How is the unwanted cold welding prevented in space?)
I've often seen talk about fairly simple mechanical devices (hand tools, simple handheld power tools, firearms, etc) being unlikely to ...
- 8,924
4
votes
0
answers
70
views
Hydrocarbons of Titan: Potential Applications
Imagine in the future that some space agency or corporation has deployed a manned mission to Saturn's moon Titan with the intent of collecting samples of its hydrocarbons. This is to be accomplished ...
- 161
4
votes
0
answers
145
views
Out of which alloys are the Common Core Booster and Common Booster Core propellent tanks manufactured?
All sources that I can find indicate that they are isogrid (or possibly orthogrid?) structural tanks manufactured of milled aluminum. However, I cannot find further detail about of which alloy ...
- 11.2k
4
votes
0
answers
358
views
How is lunar regolith drawn into "glass fibers" to reinforce lunar concrete in this process?
The Verge Science video Building a lunar base out of Moon dust discusses using harvested lunar regolith (powder-like) mixed with a polymeric resin produced from "space trash" (I'm imagining discarded ...
- 149k
4
votes
0
answers
67
views
What particles does the space station have to worry about?
I've heard things like "even a paint chip can damage the space station" and I wanted to know to what extent that was true. I imagine the best characterization is what is the minimum momentum or ...
- 735
4
votes
0
answers
155
views
What is the specific compression strength of an orbital tower structure?
Taper ratio is a central concept for space elevators and tethers. It tells how much larger the cross section of the tether has to be at one end of the tether, compared to the other. Being a ...
3
votes
0
answers
127
views
Has one satellite's outgassing ever affected another satellite in the same fairing? Documented examples?
At about 01:31 in Scott Manley's new video RocketLab & Reusable Rockets - Plasma Knifes, Ballutes, Helicopters and... Elephants he says:
This occurs during a ...
- 149k
3
votes
0
answers
464
views
Chinese find material to make space elevator. How much will the cable weigh?
The article China has strongest fibre that can haul 160 elephants – and a space elevator? came out today in the SCMP, and I would like to find out how much the cable would weigh. But I'm not sure if ...
- 383
3
votes
0
answers
213
views
How would we make concrete on the Moon?
Bringing building materials to the moon would be costly. It would be better to just create materials on the Moon.
- 491
3
votes
0
answers
607
views
Combined Mechanical Counterpressure and Gas-Pressurized suits
The "Mechanical Counterpressure" (or SAS) space suit is the holy grail when it comes to mobility, flexibility, and being lightweight however it also has it's share of problems. It's very difficult to ...
- 20.8k
3
votes
0
answers
446
views
How are composite materials most frequently or most prominently used in satellites and rovers?
I'd like to understand how composite materials (CMs) are used on satellites and rovers.
Which parts are made of CMs? If there are numerous examples, then the ones which are particularly large, or ...
- 89
2
votes
0
answers
152
views
Bronze material compatibility for mechanism exposed to LEO
I'm looking at using a worm gear for a latching mechanism on a spacecraft that's destined for a LEO trajectory. The mechanism is on the outside of the spacecraft, but the worm gear itself would be in ...
- 165
2
votes
0
answers
65
views
How are xEMU's rotating joint at waist level shock proof?
Following this question about new spacesuits (xEMU),
I was wondering how resistant to shock might be the biggest rotating seal, (at waist level) considering an astronaut might fall or be hit by some ...
user19132
1
vote
0
answers
71
views
Exploring DNA-Based Hard Structures for Space Applications—Looking to learn more
I recently had a fascinating conversation with a student about to graduate with a master's in microbiology. He shared that he’s lined up a job where he'll work on developing "hard structures"...
- 246
1
vote
0
answers
83
views
With what geometry would a McKendree cylinder be made of carbon nanotubes?
The goal of a McKendree cylinder is to achieve a larger radius than an O'Neill cylinder by using suitable very strong carbon allotropes instead of steel. The most obvious way to do this is to build a ...
- 275
1
vote
0
answers
281
views
Is the use of Nylon in satellites a bad idea?
I came across a video of someone from Northrop Grumman talking about how they don't use Nylon in satellites anymore as it accumulates charge which leads to arcing (
).
I ...
- 219
1
vote
0
answers
118
views
What fraction of the Kapton thickness on the ISS' solar panels was likely eroded throughout their lifetime? Predictions? Measurements?
Background
@Tristan's answer to How are the silicon PV cells constructed in the ISS's solar panels? Are they as flexible as they appear here? informs us that Kapton is part of the "blanket" ...
- 149k
1
vote
0
answers
188
views
Apollo Cold Welding Mitigation
I am currently debating with someone on a different platform and he brought up the phenomenon "cold welding." I must admit that I had never heard of that before, so I have been reading about ...
- 19
1
vote
0
answers
80
views
Have any satellites been decommissioned because of oxidization?
Comments on Are galvanised steel parts safe to use in space? mention that oxidation happens in the upper atmosphere because of the relatively high presence of oxygen ions.
This is apparently to the ...
- 5,435
1
vote
0
answers
117
views
How does temperature affect a solar sail?
Is there an ideal temperature which solar sail material operates at? Does a colder reflective surface create more thrust?
Related: How will JWST manage solar pressure effects to maintain attitude and ...
- 1