Combustion/Emission Species Monitoring Ground and Flight Aeronautical Research Using a Gas Microsensor Array

Makel Engineering, Inc. (MEI) and the Ohio State University (OSU) propose to develop high sensitivity, miniaturized and in-situ operated gas sensors for the real time monitoring of chemical composition of turbine engine combustors and/or exhaust streams for real-time, in-flight propulsion system measurements to improve NASA's aeronautical flight test capabilities. Gas microsensor arrays developed by MEI, OSU and our technical development partners including NASA have been demonstrated for ground test usage to quantify composition of critical constituents in turbine engine exhaust products, e.g., CO, CO2, NOx, O2, HC (unburned hydrocarbons) and H2. These sensor systems provide the basis for the proposed NASA SBIR effort, which will also leverage development of packaging for extractive emissions testing developed for the DoD with support from NASA researchers.