Laundry In Space Team Dept of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering, TAMUK

1. Test Data (M) Laundry In Space Team Dept of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering, TAMUK Students: Victoria Bailey, Gary Garcia, Michael Orona Faculty Mentor: Dr. Larry D Peel, P.E. Abstract/Background • Final Design Final Configuration and Fabrication • Gravity Independent Laundry System • (GILS) The figures above depict the prototype layout of the GILS with the inflatable bladder attached to the upper half, and the tubing network embedded in the lower half. The prototype’s approximate dimensions are 3 feet long, 2 feet wide and 3 inches thick. The system has a garment capacity of 3 gallons, able to fit 5 medium size 100% cotton T-Shirts. The perimeter between the two halves will be sealed airtight via gasket. Garments will be placed uniformly in the garment cavity before closing the system. The system will then proceed to wash, rinse, and dry the garments. The overall process consists of phases of pretreatment, washing, rinsing, and drying as shown on bottom. The pretreatment phase consists of the saturation of the garments with the cleaning solvent, with the solvent delivered through the tubing network. During the washing phase, an air compressor will inflate and deflate the bladder, providing agitation to the system. After sufficient washing, the cleaning solution will be vacuumed out of the garment cavity and clean water will be drawn into the system to rinse the garments. All liquid will be evacuated from the garment cavity using vacuum and pressure from the inflated bladder. Heated air will then be cycled periodically until the garments are dried thoroughly. The Laundry in Space Team (LIST) was formed through the funding of theTexas Space Grant Consortium as a continuation of TAMUK’s SpaceEngineering Institute Gravity Independent Laundry System (GILS). The overall objective of this team is to continue and complete the design and optimization started by the GILS team. The project objective is to design a process to safely and efficiently wash, disinfect, and dry lightly soiled clothing a micro-gravitational environment. The need for this project comes from a financial pitfall left because of the cost of launching new clothinginto orbit instead of simply washing lightly soiled garments. The costof each pound launched is upwards of $10,000 and over months, or evenyears, the savings on space and money would greatly benefit the spaceprogram. Open View Current Test Data Previous Work • Alpha Configuration: • Composite Grade Vacuum Bagging • Input/ Output Flow Lessons learned through previous generations: the team was able to improve the overall design through reworking some of the components based on testing done over the life of the project Mass Data & Estimated Energy Usage This chart represents a medium cotton T-shirt saturated in 400g of water and projects the combination of various components based on testing done with generations 1-6. The components marked by an “*” are G.I.L.S. components. Those components without an “*” are supplemental components required to conduct G.I.L.S. testing. The dry weight of the G.I.L.S. is 112.39 lbs. • Conclusions/Future Work • Conclusion • Component Interfacing Issues Addressed • Composite Structure can safely hold 20 psi • Future Work • Combined Drying Methods Testing • Diminishing Return Identification • Process Optimization • Energy Consumption Calculation • Design Flaw Identification/Re-Design • Objectives • The design objective is to create a process to safely and efficiently wash, disinfect, and dry lightly soiled clothing in a micro-gravitational environment through cycled heat, pressure, and vacuum application. The quantified project requirements include: • 100% water reclamation from clothing • Less than 0.34 kWhr energy consumption per load • Less than 150 lbs. in weight • Safe and easy to operate • Cost effective • Capable of drying of natural fiber clothing materials. • Semester objectives include interfacing all components, conducting baseline safety tests, full system testing, and process optimization • The diagram above depicts the tubing network layout and component integration. All liquid and air is transferred via vacuum. The heat source allows for heated air circulation. The desiccator allows for the extraction of liquids via vacuum without damaging the vacuum. In the future the desiccator may be replaced by a water reclamation system which can clean and recycle the used “gray” water from the prototype. The figures above depict a finite element analysis of the composite male and female parts to evaluate the loadings of the bladder on the composite members at 30 psi. The FEA allowed the team to simulate the loadings of the bladder and clamps on the composite parts. This simulation aided team in determining a minimum composite part wall thickness and part sealing measures. Acknowledgements • Evelyne Orndoff (N.A.S.A. Mentor) • Texas Space Grant Consortium • Enrique Molina (FEA Support) • Carlos Hinojosa (Machinist) • Space Engineering Institute