AAAR 37th Annual Conference October 14 - October 18, 2019 Oregon Convention Center Portland, Oregon, USA
Abstract View
Computational Fluid Dynamics Modeling of Particles on the International Space Station
KAITLYN KOEHLER, Andrea Ferro, Goodarz Ahmadi, Clarkson University
Abstract Number: 271 Working Group: Indoor Aerosols
Abstract Particles behave differently on the International Space Station (ISS) than they do on Earth. On Earth, particles deposit due to gravitational settling, but this is not the case on the ISS due to the microgravity conditions. A computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model has been developed in ANSYS-Fluent to study the flow of particles in the US Laboratory of the ISS. This model can be applied to predict astronauts’ exposure to particulate matter (PM). Sources of PM are modeled using data from the analysis of dust taken from the air filters on the ISS. The analysis of the dust was conducted at Clarkson University and other Universities participating in the Diverted Unwanted Space Trash (DUST) program. In addition to assessing exposure to particles, the CFD model of the US Laboratory is used to study smoke/pyrolysis particles dispersion in the presence of a heat source for application to fire detection on the ISS. The quick detection of fires on the ISS is critical to the safety of the station and its crew. The current fire detection system on the ISS was designed based on the knowledge of terrestrial fires. On Earth, smoke rises due to buoyancy forces, but this is not the case on the ISS due to the lack of gravity. Therefore, the dispersion of smoke particles on the ISS is controlled by other mechanisms such as turbulent diffusion and the airflow due to ventilation conditions. Using the CFD model as a source-to-receptor model for smoke/pyrolysis particles can provide information for the optimization of the fire detection system on the ISS.