Overview of the Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS) testing at MSFC

Area of Science:

• Space exploration
• Environmental engineering
• Life support systems

Background:

• Current space missions rely on water from Earth or fuel cells, suitable only for short durations.
• Transporting water and air for long-term space habitation is logistically prohibitive and costly.
• Recycling water and air is essential for a permanent human presence in space.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the performance of the International Space Station's (ISS) Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS).
• To test integrated physical/chemical systems for air revitalization and water reclamation.
• To characterize closed-loop systems for long-term space habitation.

Main Methods:

• The Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS) test program at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC).
• Includes the Water Recovery Test (WRT), Integrated Air Revitalization Test (IART), and Life Testing.
• Specific tests: Stage 10 Water Recovery Test, Contaminant Injection Test, Four-Bed Molecular Sieve Performance Enhancement Test, and Life Testing.

Main Results:

• Integrated systems successfully provided air and potable water meeting ISS quality specifications.
• Testing validated the performance of subsystems designed to revitalize air and reclaim waste water.
• Data from various tests informed ECLSS design evaluation for on-orbit application.

Conclusions:

• Advanced closed-loop Environmental Control and Life Support Systems are critical for sustainable space exploration.
• NASA's MSFC testing demonstrates the feasibility of recycling air and water for long-duration space missions.
• Successful ECLSS testing supports the goal of a permanent human presence in space.