Fourth-Generation Fan Assessment Numeration System (FANS) Design and Performance Specifications

The Fan Assessment Numeration System (FANS) is a measurement device for generating ventilation fan performance curves. Three different-sized FANS currently exist for assessing ventilation fans commonly used in poultry and livestock housing systems. All FANS consist of an array of anemometers inside an aluminum shroud that traverse the inlet or outlet of a ventilation fan. The FANS design has been updated several times since its inception and is currently in its fourth-generation (G4). The current design iteration (FANS-G4) is reported in this article with an emphasis on the hardware and software control, data acquisition systems, and operational reliability. Six FANS-G4 units were fabricated at the University of Kentucky (UK) Agricultural Machinery Research Laboratory and calibrated at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) Bioenvironmental and Structural Systems (BESS) Laboratory. Results demonstrated that the FANS-G4 was capable of measuring volumetric airflow to within 0.6% of full-scale (FS), which ranged from 15,000 to 56,000 m3 h-1

An innovative portable monitoring unit for air quality in animal housing

The Portable Monitor Unit (PMU) is a system developed to measure ammonia (NH3) and carbon-dioxide (CO2) concentrations in CAFOs. However, the NH3 electrochemical (EC) sensor used in the existing PMU design has become obsolete; moreover, the original PMU design required a substantial amount of manual work for system setup and data post-processing. Therefore, the objective of this project was to upgrade the PMU with a new NH3 EC sensor and data acquisition and control system. In this project, four different models of NH3 EC sensors were evaluated for suitability in this application. One, the HONEYWELL EC FX sensor, was selected as the replacement. It demonstrated sufficiently fast response time to a step change in NH3 (60 s to reach 95% equilibrium) and reasonable listed accuracy (±5 ppm at 100 ppm full scale). Other evaluation criteria were nonlinearity (maximum 3.8 ppm with 54 ppm NH3 reference gas), uncertainty (about ±3 ppm) and drift error (maximum 4.8 ppm within 48 h). The sensor was deemed to be acceptable based on these evaluations, and a multi-point calibration and 48 h laboratory evaluation with 24.3, 54 and 99.3 ppm NH¬3 reference gas. The new sensor was utilized in the upgraded PMU system with 5.5 min sampling (3 min line purge + 2.5 min measurement) and 54.5 min sensor purge. An Arduino microprocessor (Mega 2560) with extended function modules (Wireless SD shield, Real Time Clock shield, Relay and LCD screen) provided functions including sampling control, system auto-reset, data centralization, real-time data processing and wireless data transfer. The upgraded PMU (PMU III) was evaluated in two field tests at a commercial laying hen facility, and the system successfully implement the upgraded functions. The system was modified between the first and second field test mainly to improve the virtual timer and real-time data processing algorithm in its program. With the modified PMU III system, the data acquisition system uses a real time clock, so that during the measurement, real-time processing can provide reasonable results compared to the post-processing with consistency of 94%. A 12 h laboratory evaluation was performed to the NH3 sensor after the field tests for comparing the consistency with the prior 48 h laboratory evaluation, and thus demonstrated the reliability (maximum difference 2.6 ppm with 24.3 ppm NH3 reference gas) of the sensor during the field test

Space benefits: The secondary application of aerospace technology in other sectors of the economy

Benefit cases of aerospace technology utilization are presented for manufacturing, transportation, utilities, and health. General, organization, geographic, and field center indexes are included

Applications of aerospace technology in the public sector

Current activities of the program to accelerate specific applications of space related technology in major public sector problem areas are summarized for the period 1 June 1971 through 30 November 1971. An overview of NASA technology, technology applications, and supporting activities are presented. Specific technology applications in biomedicine are reported including cancer detection, treatment and research; cardiovascular diseases, diagnosis, and treatment; medical instrumentation; kidney function disorders, treatment, and research; and rehabilitation medicine

Technology applications

A summary of NASA Technology Utilization programs for the period of 1 December 1971 through 31 May 1972 is presented. An abbreviated description of the overall Technology Utilization Applications Program is provided as a background for the specific applications examples. Subjects discussed are in the broad headings of: (1) cancer, (2) cardiovascular disease, (2) medical instrumentation, (4) urinary system disorders, (5) rehabilitation medicine, (6) air and water pollution, (7) housing and urban construction, (8) fire safety, (9) law enforcement and criminalistics, (10) transportation, and (11) mine safety

Air temperature, carbon dioxide, and ammonia assessment inside a commercial cage layer barn with manure-drying tunnels

Understanding the air temperature distribution, ammonia (NH3) and carbon dioxide (CO2) levels in poultry housing systems are crucial to poultry health, welfare, and productivity. In this study, 4 Intelligent Portable Monitoring Units and 7 temperature sensors were installed inside and between the cages and above 2 minimum ventilation fans of a commercial stacked-deck cage laying hen house in the Midwest United States (425,000 laying hens) to continuously monitor the interior environment over a 6-month period. During cold conditions (March 12th–May 22nd), there was a variation noted, with barn center temperatures consistently being highest in the longitudinal and lateral direction (P \u3c 0.001) and the top floor deck warmer than the bottom floor (P \u3c 0.05). During hotter conditions (May 23rd–July 26th), the interior thermal environment was more uniform than during the winter, resulting in a difference only in the longitudinal direction. The daily CO2 and NH3 concentrations were 400 to 4,981 ppm and 0 to 42.3 ppm among the 4 sampling locations, respectively. Both CO2 and NH3 decreased linearly with increasing outside temperatures. The mean NH3 and CO2 concentrations varied with sampling locations and with the outside temperatures (P \u3c 0.001). For CO2, the minimum ventilation sidewall had lower values than those measured in the barn’s center (P \u3c 0.05) during cold weather, while the barn center and the manure room sidewall consistently measured the highest concentrations during warmer weather (P \u3c 0.05). For NH3, the tunnel ventilation inlet end consistently had the lowest daily concentrations, whereas the in-cage and manure drying tunnel sidewall locations measured the highest concentrations (P \u3c 0.001). Higher NH3 and CO2 concentrations were recorded within the cage than in the cage aisle (P \u3c 0.05). The highest NH3 concentration of 42 ppm was recorded above the minimum exhaust fan adjacent to the manure drying tunnel, which indicated that higher pressure (back pressure) in the manure drying tunnel allowed air leakage back into the production area through nonoperating sidewall fan shutters

Technology utilization program report

The application of aerospace technology to the solution of public health and industrial problems is reported. Data cover: (1) development of an externally rechargeable cardiac pacemaker, (2) utilization of ferrofluids-colloidal suspensions of ferrite particles - in the efficient separation of nonferrous metals as Ni, Zn, Cu, and Al from shredded automobile scrap, and (3) development of a breathing system for fire fighters

NASA technology utilization applications

The work is reported from September 1972 through August 1973 by the Technology Applications Group of the Science Communication Division (SCD), formerly the Biological Sciences Communication Project (BSCP) in the Department of Medical and Public Affairs of the George Washington University. The work was supportive of many aspects of the NASA Technology Utilization program but in particular those dealing with Biomedical and Technology Application Teams, Applications Engineering projects, new technology reporting and documentation and transfer activities. Of particular interest are detailed reports on the progress of various hardware projects, and suggestions and criteria for the evaluation of candidate hardware projects. Finally some observations about the future expansion of the TU program are offered

Research and technology

As the NASA Center responsible for assembly, checkout, servicing, launch, recovery and operational support of Space Transportation System elements and payloads, Kennedy Space Center is placing emphasis on its research and technology program. In addition to strengthening those areas of engineering and operations technology that contribute to safer, more efficient, and more economical execution of our current mission, we are developing the technological tools needed to execute the Center's mission relative to future programs. The Engineering Development Directorate encompasses most of the laboratories and other Center resources that are key elements of research and technology program implementation, and is responsible for implementation of the majority of the projects in this Kennedy Space Center 1988 Annual Report