Investigative techniques used to locate the liquid hydrogen leakage on the Space Shuttle Main Propulsion SystemStandard leak detection methods at ambient temperature have been developed in order to prevent excessive leakage from the Space Shuttle liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen Main Propulsion System. Unacceptable hydrogen leakage was encountered on the Columbia and Atlantis flight vehicles in the summer of 1990 after the standard leak check requirements had been satisfied. The leakage was only detectable when the fuel system was exposed to subcooled liquid hydrogen during External Tank loading operations. Special instrumentation and analytical tools were utilized during a series of propellant tanking tests in order to identify the sources of the hydrogen leakage. After the leaks were located and corrected, the physical characteristics of the leak sources were analyzed in an effort to understand how the discrepancies were introduced and why the leakage had evaded the standard leak detection methods. As a result of the post-leak analysis, corrective actions and leak detection improvements have been implemented in order to preclude a similar incident.
Document ID
19910059445
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Hammock, William R., Jr. (NASA Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center Houston, TX, United States)
Cota, Phillip E., Jr. (NASA Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center Houston, TX, United States)
Rosenbaum, Bernard J. (NASA Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center Houston, TX, United States)
Barrett, Michael J. (NASA Johnson Space Center Houston, TX, United States)