SAFE AND RELIABLE CHEMICAL STORAGE AND IN SITU GENERATION TECHNOLOGIES FOR USE IN ADVANCED MISSILE BASING MODES

U.S. AIR FORCE IS SPONSORING RESEARCH IN SEVERAL DIFFERENT CONCEPTS OF ADVANCED MISSILE BASING MODES FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF ICBM'S. THESE INCLUDE THE RAIL GARRISON, SMALL MISSILE AND OTHER CONCEPTS. THE COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT LONG DURATION OPERATION OF THESE BASES (DURING WAR TIME) REQUIRES THAT THEY BE EQUIPPED WITH LIFE SUPPORT AND POWER GENERATION (LSPG) SYSTEMS. BECAUSE OF THE EXTREME CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH THE BASES MAY HAVE TO OPERATE, A NEED EXISTS FOR DEVELOPING NEW, INNOVATIVE AND RELIABLE TECHNOLOGIES FOR LIFE SUPPORT AND POWER GENERATION. A PART OF ANY NEW TECHNOLOGY RELATED TO LS & PG IS THE STORING AND USE OF HAZARDOUS CHEMICALS. THE BASE OPERATION AND MISSION SUCCESS MUST BE ASSURED BY MAKING THE CHEMICAL STORAGE COMPLETELY SAFE. THIS PROPOSAL ADDRESSES THE REVIEW OF AVAILABLE CHEMICAL STORAGE AND IN SITU PRODUCTION TECHNOLOGIES FOR ADVANCED BASING MODES. IN PHASE I, VARIOUS SYSTEMS WILL BE EVALUATED AND THE MOST PROMISING TECHNOLOGY WILL BE IDENTIFIED FOR LARGE SCALE STORAGE OR GENERATION (FOR EXAMPLE, IN UNDERGROUND STORAGE FACILITIES). A PROGRAM PLAN WILL BE DEVELOPED FOR PRE-PROTOTYPE TESTS IN PHASE II. GENERATION OF HYDROGEN FOR USE IN A FUEL CELL IS USED AS AN EXAMPLE TO DESCRIBE OUR APPROACH.