A paper published in Gravitational and Space Research reveals insights from research sponsored by the International Space Station (ISS) National Laboratory on transport phenomena. Transport phenomena are fundamental physical processes involving momentum, energy, and mass transfer. They describe how heat and matter move through their surroundings, such as how heat radiates from a stove or how a scent spreads in a room. Studying these dynamics outside Earth’s gravitational forces could significantly advance pharmaceuticals and other commercial applications.
The Ring Sheared Drop system contains a concentrated human serum albumin solution, enabling researchers to study biofluid flow in space. Image credit: Joe Adam.
The ISS National Lab provides researchers access to the space station’s microgravity environment, enabling them to investigate transport phenomena in ways impossible in ground-based laboratories. Since 2016, the ISS National Lab and the U.S. National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Chemical, Bioengineering, Environmental, and Transport Systems (CBET) Division have partnered on 43 projects (37 at the time the paper was published) across various scientific areas such as heat transfer, combustion, and fluid dynamics. These NSF-funded projects have led to significant scientific discoveries, highlighting the benefits of collaborations between the ISS National Lab and government agencies to advance fundamental science.
“This latest publication highlights ways researchers have leveraged microgravity to isolate and study fundamental physical phenomena typically obscured by gravity-induced forces,” said Phillip Irace, lead author and science program director of research and innovation for the ISS National Lab.
“Our collaboration with NSF provides increased access to space to enable groundbreaking fundamental scientific research on the ISS in ways unattainable on Earth,” Irace continued. “For instance, the absence of sedimentation in microgravity allows us to study how small particles move under the influence of temperature or surface tension gradients. These findings can advance applications such as drug delivery, biosensing, and thermal management technologies.”
The publication also details key experiments, including research on spherical cool diffusion flames and projects examining fluid dynamics without buoyancy. “This research paves the way for potential advances in combustion engine efficiency, energy production, and materials manufacturing,” said Shawn Stephens, senior payload operations project manager for the ISS National Lab and co-author of the paper.
“Our work on the ISS allows us to push the boundaries of science,” Stephens said. “Completing these investigations has led to advancements that have the potential to significantly enhance various industries and improve life on Earth.”
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