We did some cold flow tests at CDI today to verify we had fixed the regulator and the relief valve on KISS. Mission Accomplished. The regulator is easier to set, and regulates pressure again; and the relief valve relieves pressure when it's supposed to. Vent pressure was 915 psi, reseat was at 900. Since we accidentally aerotested at 1050 psi in December, 915 is low enough to meet AIAA standard of a 1.1 safety factor (though we will insist on 1.2 for POGO).
Cold flowed 5 liters of water, manually timing with a laptop clock, the first run took 4.5 seconds and the second run took 4 seconds. Both +/- 0.5 seconds, so good enough for volunteer work. An interesting effect I had not previously seen, but which is not surprising, is that when the ice formed by adiabatic decompression was blown out, it was white, and quite opaque, and bubbled when it melted. Frozen foam - pretty cool. And, yes, Randall is paranoid. But I really am more comfortable when no one is smoking during a water cold flow test, and when no one walks through the deflection path of a stream of nitrogen several feet away. Color me conservative; I like obeying the forms. The way I look at it, the way we were doing it, we won't get hurt - but the way I asked for (and got; thank you, guys), we *can't* get hurt. After we wrapped up, Dave M treated we olde unemployed to dinner - thank you Dave! - at Benigan's (how can an Irish pub be out of Guinness?) and we told war stories far into the night. An incoming lawn dart sounds just like an incoming mortar round, and may you, Gentle Reader, never hear either one. :-) -R -- Every complex, difficult problem has a simple, easy solution - which is wrong. [EMAIL PROTECTED] _______________________________________________ ERPS-list mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://lists.erps.org/mailman/listinfo/erps-list
