NASA has awarded a
sole-source contract to Hamilton Sundstrand Space Systems International
Inc., Windsor Locks, Conn., for water production services aboard the
International Space Station. The firm fixed-price contract has a potential
value of $65 million and extends through Sept. 30, 2014.
Hamilton Sundstrand will provide equipment that uses the station's
excess carbon dioxide and hydrogen to produce water and methane. The
methane will be vented into space, and the water will be fed into the
station's waste water system, where it will undergo treatment before it is
used.
Under the contract, NASA will not buy hardware, but instead will
purchase the water service. If the system does not work, NASA will not pay
for it.
"This is a fundamental shift in the way we do business," said Bill
Gerstenmaier, NASA associate administrator for Space Operations. "In the
business arrangement we have negotiated for water production services, the
contractor is responsible for all system development and performance. The
only requirements we have imposed are those associated with safety and
interfaces. This provides a procurement and technology test bed for future
exploration systems, which need to operate in an environment far from
Earth, where routine resupply is not feasible."
The equipment employs a chemical process known as a Sabatier reaction.
The process is named for French Nobel laureate and chemist Paul Sabatier,
who discovered that hydrogen and carbon dioxide produce methane and water
at elevated temperatures and pressures.
The Hamilton Sundstrand-provided hardware will be flown during shuttle
mission STS-130, which is targeted for launch in late 2009. A checkout of
the system is planned for May 2010. Hamilton Sundstrand will retain title
to the hardware and ensure it meets NASA's space station safety and
interface requirements.
Water is used on the space station for a variety of purposes, including
drinking, food preparation, oxygen generation, electronic equipment cooling
and hygiene. About half of the station's water needs are obtained through
recycling. The rest of its water currently is transported by the space
shuttle or supply ships, including the Russian Progress and European
Automated Transfer Vehicle.
"We are very excited to provide this service to NASA," said Ed Francis,
Hamilton Sundstrand Space, Land & Sea vice president and general manager.
"Our experience providing environmental control and life support systems
and other hardware for the space station gives us the insight needed to
recognize areas we can help NASA. This is a great example of how NASA and
industry can work together to benefit both."
Hamilton Sundstrand provides a number of systems for the space station,
including those that control electrical power and process water, waste and
air. The company has been the prime contractor to NASA for astronaut
spacesuits since 1981.
SOURCE NASA
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