CATALOG
UNGROUPED/NO FUEL FUEL/SAME
Smoke Aerosol Measurement Experiment (SAME)
Detection
Spacecraft cabinSpace stationLunar baseAI summary
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Generated from the curated record only. The model is instructed not to invent numbers; verify all values against the source before engineering use.
Experimental setup
FUEL
- Phase
- No fuel
- Material
- Teflon, Kapton, silicone rubber, cellulose, and dibutyl-phthalate on a porous wick
- Shape
- Pyrolysis samples on a heated porous wick
- Size
- 30 samples, six per material
CONDITIONS
- O2 concentration
- Varied / not specified
- Pressure
- Varied / not specified
- Airflow
- Varied / not specified
Single values are documented test conditions, not flammability limits. Ranges appear under variables tested.
OBJECTIVES
Measure the size distribution of smoke produced by overheated spacecraft materials in microgravity and evaluate the ionization and photoelectric detector technologies used on the Shuttle and ISS.
Sensors & measurements
- P-Trak condensation particle counter
- Ionization smoke detector (Space Shuttle type)
- Photoelectric light-scattering smoke detector (ISS type)
- Thermal precipitator for transmission electron microscopy
Variables tested
- Sample material and pyrolysis temperature
- Airflow rate
- Smoke aging or residence time
- Detector response across particle sizes
Key findings
- 01A substantial portion of aerosol mass was in particles larger than 1 micron, while Teflon smoke was primarily sub-micron.
- 02All samples produced significant sub-micron particulate, but light-scattering detectors performed well for most cases.
- 03Smoke aging reduced particle number counts substantially while mass concentration stayed relatively steady, consistent with coagulation.
- 04Broader particle size distributions can come from pre-fire overheat events, favoring detectors that measure a wider size spectrum.