Request for Information for Advanced Monopropellant Prototype Thruster Development

Government Request for Information THIS REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) IS ISSUED AS MARKET RESEARCH. ALL REQUIREMENTS IDENTIFIED IN THIS RFI ARE TENTATIVE AND WILL BE FINALIZED PRIOR TO THE RELEASE OF THE SOLICITATION FOR PROPOSALS. THE GOVERNMENT DOES NOT INTEND TO AWARD A CONTRACT ON THE BASIS OF THIS RFI OR TO OTHERWISE PAY FOR THE INFORMATION SOLICITED. The information provided is entirely voluntary and will not impact the ability to bid on future requirements. This RFI is for planning purposes only and shall not be considered a Broad Agency Announcement (BAA), a request for proposal (RFP), or as an obligation on the part of the Government to acquire any products or services. The information you provide may be utilized by the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) in developing its acquisition strategy. The information resulting from this RFI may be included in one or more solicitations. Respondents are encouraged to provide information which is not constrained by limited/restricted data rights. However, if proprietary data is included in your reply, it is to be marked appropriately. Program Description The Spacecraft Branch of the Space and Missile Propulsion Division of Air Force Research Laboratory at Edwards AFB is developing a liquid monopropellant thruster for a wide range of mission operations utlizing advanced monopropellant formulations developed at AFRL that deliver increased density specific impulse greater than state of the art thrusters. Thruster development to date specific to AFRL developed advanced monopropellant formulations has emphasized catalytic ignition techniques in a high temperature, highly oxidative combustion environment relative to the state of the art. Development work will focus on the AFRL developed monopropellant formulations applied to small thruster design and support system (tanks, valves, regulators, control components, etc.) primarily for satellite missions, therefore life and repeatability of performance are leading areas of emphasis. Investigations will need to involve all aspects of the thruster such as modelling of combustion, material science of components, catalyst development and refinement, supporting diagnostics for materials and plume, propellant storage, feed, and thermal conditioning system development, and control algorithm refinement of the thruster and propulsion system optimized for advanced AFRL developed propellant formulations. The contract type to be awarded for the program and the contract ceiling has not yet been determined. The effort scope, funding profile, and period of performance will determined upon review of responses to the questions below. Schedule and funding will be driven by the objective to mature the technology to a TRL level 6. Industry feedback should emphasize what your organizations capabilities are and how they would be applied for a developmental program as put forth in the description and considering the questions below. It is anticipated that the procurement will be open to industry, academia, and small businesses as they may all have unique qualifications and insights to respond to this RFI. In addition, Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs) and other government agencies may have value-added information that could assist in the planning of this effort. Questions Respondents to this RFI are requested to provide whatever recommendations they may have for such a program. Respondents are not required to provide answers to all questions, but rather where their respective areas of expertise or alliances may allow performance of tasks to answer a specific question. The emphasis of this RFI is not to gather system or component development and performance characterizations or mission studies, but rather determine your capability to perform them. 1. What capacity does your organization have for development of small liquid monopropellant thrusters related to this specific project? 2. What approaches and methods does your organization have for rapid and efficient performance characterization testing of small liquid propellant thrusters? 3. What specialized experience does your organization have with regards to material science in high temperature, highly oxidative environments relative to this project? 4. What kind of internal and external diagnostics are available for examination of liquid monopropellant thrusters, especially considering the impact of the high temperature and highly oxidative environment? 5. Considering a new monopropellant, what experience does your organization have with researching and characterizing the specific chemical nature of a new propellant reaction, especially in regards to reaction efficiencies and temporal control, and how would this knowledge be best applied to the development of a propulsion system? 6. What capacity does your organization have for development and technical evaluation of catalyst, including specific quality control measure in research and production? 7. What methods and tools does your company have to determine the most efficient and most applicable performance profiles to a propulsion system to be designed for this project? 8. Physical environments within a catalytic reactor range from the liquid to vapor phase transition, reaction product material interactions, material response to rapid thermal cycles, etc. What aspects of the physical environments anticipated are capable of being modeled by commercially available software and/or locally developed software? 9. How are the modeling tools discussed in the question above best utilized in a development program to ensure proper and efficient fusion of all data products to support a design? 10. Quality assurance metrics for the state of the art chemical thrusters and components are well established; how would these metrics be used as starting point to identify, analyze, and control updated metrics and associated methods for validation in relation to this development project? 11. What organizations exist that have demonstrated a comprehensive, disciplined development approach from commercial off the shelf software to first iteration hardware designs? 12. Portions of the information to be developed under this effort will be limited to distribution only to the US Government and its contractors, and subject to export controls under ITAR regulations. Do the organizations identified in #5 have the capability to implement the required controls? 13. Do the organizations identified in #12 have the capability to store and licensing to work with energetic materials ? 14. Have there been recent technological innovations related to the processes, components, and/or science of the project discussed. 15. Are there any additional technical and programmatic suggestions that would make this program more efficient and meet the USAF needs and program goals? RFI Response Instructions AFRL is seeking capable US sources with related experience to accomplish this effort. All interested parties are requested to contact Paul Zuttarelli by e-mail or phone (e-mail preferred) with any questions regarding this RFI. All replies to this RFI are to be provided to Paul Zuttarelli (one copy) and Kathrin Day (one copy) on CD-R media only in MS Office or Adobe format via approved delivery services for limited distribution, ITAR controlled information. Paper copies will not be accepted. All responses to this RFI must be received No Later Than (NLT) 29 Jan 10, 1600 hrs PST. A supplemental package is available from the AFFTC/PK office for companies qualified to receive government ITAR-restricted information. Companies should contact Kathrin Day for an application for this supplemental package. Information released in this package must be controlled appropriately. Points of Contact Questions and additional technical or program information may be obtained by contacting: Paul Zuttarelli, Phone (661) 275-6786, Anthony.zuttarelli@edwards.af.mil, Air Force Research Laboratory, Space and Missile Propulsion Division, Spacecraft Branch, 1 Ara Road, Edwards AFB, CA, 93524. The contracting point of contact for this RFI is Katy Day, Phone (661) 277-8216, Kathrin.day@edwards.af.mil, AFFTC/PKT, 5 South Wolfe Street, Edwards, CA 93524.