As heating increases, a honeycomb-like pattern of hexagons appears in the oil. A NASA microgravity grant supported the research undertaken by graduate student Michael Schatz, now on the Georgia Tech faculty. Finally, it is a simple matter to have gravity off or low, McLay said. Spencer Swift, currently at Silicon Graphics, Inc., is extending the code to include movement of chemicals through fluids and chemical reactions as part of his doctoral work. Understanding these dynamics may have important implications for space station safety, notably in fire prevention.
Combustion drives most fires, and flames move at a speed related to how fast they consume material.
Not so with fluid fires in microgravity. Safety engineers should then consider using surface barriers, rather than chemicals, to stop flames from spreading. Related research focuses on the fundamental structure of chemical concentration patterns arising in reacting systems. Experiments by the Center's Anna Lin and simulation studies by the Laboratory's Alexandre Ardelea and Anand Pardhanani have identified highly structured spiral patterns, as well as chaotic labyrinthine patterns. Thin-layer convection also can lead to formation of a dry spot where fluid has drained away.