ISSN:
1089-7623
Source:
AIP Digital Archive
Topics:
Physics
,
Electrical Engineering, Measurement and Control Technology
Notes:
A description of the structural and instrumentation hardware and the improved experimental capabilities of the 105-m Marshall Space Flight Center Drop Tube Facility is described. The structure comprising the Drop Tube Facility is designed to provide a high-vacuum facility in a vertical orientation. The low-gravity environment obtained during free-fall and the containerless materials processing capabilities are discussed. Two furnaces, an electron-beam and an electromagnetic levitator, are used to melt metallic samples in a process environment ranging from 10−6 Torr to 1 atm. Specifics of the vacuum control and gas delivery systems are provided. The experimental instrumentation and data acquisition systems used to perform predrop and in-flight measurements of the melting and solidification process are discussed. Typical experimental results are presented as an indicator of the performance of the Drop Tube Facility.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.1141511
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