Contact: John Blair, john.blair@nist.gov
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: NIST 97-10
April 2, 1997
Contact: John Blair NIST ASTRONAUT'S SHUTTLE
john.blair@nist.gov RESEARCH SEEKS BETTER
(301) 975-4261 UNDERSTANDING OF COMBUSTION
Gregory T. Linteris, a 39-year-old engineer at the Commerce
Department's National Institute of Standards and Technology, will be
conducting experiments in outer space rather than in the familiar
surroundings of the agency's laboratory over the next two weeks.
Linteris is one of two payload specialists scheduled to lift off Friday,
April 4, aboard the space shuttle Columbia's STS-83 low-gravity science
mission.
Linteris will be conducting research in three areas during the
16-day, seven-member STS-83 flight. The work--among more than 25
projects in fluid physics, combustion science and materials science
scheduled--will be done aboard the Microgravity Science Laboratory, a
facility within the shuttle's payload bay that permits scientists to
examine the effects of microgravity on specific processes and to use the
near absence of gravity in orbit to perform research that cannot be done
on Earth.
The principal investigations to be performed by Linteris
aboard STS-83 are:
* Better Understanding of Soot Formation and Behavior: Heat
emissions from soot are critical to the growth and spread of
fires. Soot and associated carbon monoxide emissions are
pollutants, with the latter being the primary source of
fire-related fatalities. Soot as a product is important to the
carbon black industry for items such as tires, black plastic
and dry-cell batteries.
* Examining How "Flame Balls" Form: These recently discovered
spherical-shaped flames present a fire hazard in microgravity
where mixtures of hydrogen and oxygen react differently than
on Earth. This research could help develop methods for
preventing and/or extinguishing these phenomena. What is
learned in space also could be applied to preventing "flame
balls" in hydrogen-burning internal combustion engines, mine
shafts and chemical plants.
* Investigating the Way Fuel Droplets Combust: The combustion of
fuel droplets is central to the operation of furnaces (for
both materials processing and home heating), to the operation
of internal combustion engines, and to the hazardous nature of
fires resulting from fluid sprays (such as hydraulic fluid
leaks). The process by which this happens can be studied best
in the microgravity of space where nearly perfect spheres can
be formed.
Linteris also will be backup investigator on other STS-83
experiments.
Linteris joined NIST's Building and Fire Research Laboratory as a
combustion and fire scientist in 1992. At NIST, he leads the Fire
Science Division's project on advanced chemical suppressants,
investigating replacements for banned ozone-depleting chemicals used to
extinguish fires. He also is co-principal investigator on a
NIST/NASA/MIT microgravity combustion experiment looking into the
orbital use of such suppressants.
NASA chose Linteris as a shuttle payload specialist in January
1996.
"Greg will return to NIST after his space flight with unique
experience and insight into fire and combustion," said William L.
Grosshandler, leader of the Fire Science Division's fire sensing and
extinguishment group. "His microgravity expertise will be invaluable in
our research programs to help the fire protection community develop the
next generation of fire suppression agents and technologies to protect
people and facilities on Earth."
A native of Demarest, N.J., Linteris earned a Bachelor of Science
degree in chemical engineering from Princeton University in 1979, a
Masters of Science degree from the design division of the mechanical
engineering department at Stanford University in 1984, and a doctorate
in mechanical and aerospace engineering from Princeton University in
1990. Linteris was on the research staff at the University of
California, San Diego, from 1990 to 1992, where he performed analytical
and numerical studies of the chemistry important to solid rocket
propellants.
Linteris' flight aboard Columbia is not the first NIST presence in
space. In February 1996, the same shuttle carried aloft a NIST
experiment to learn how to keep a spark from growing into a life- and
property-threatening fire aboard a spacecraft. BFRL engineer Takashi
Kashiwagi was the principal ground researcher for that project.
A non-regulatory agency of the Commerce Department's Technology
Administration, NIST promotes U.S. economic growth by working with
industry to develop and apply technology, measurements and standards.
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Please check the following World Wide Web address:
http://www.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-83/countdown.html to be
sure flight is on schedule.
News and information on the National Institute of Standards and
Technology are available on the World Wide Web at http://www.nist.gov.