Basic Flow Description
The chamber is an open, continuous flow system, in which CO2 flows from a high pressure bottle down to a vacuum pump. Specifically, CO2 from a bottle (station A) is passed through a humidity generator (stations B, C, D, & E) to a critical orifice (station F), which expands the flow to Mars ambient pressure. This expansion both reduces humidity and pressure. This conditioned flow enters a test chamber (station H) which is located inside a freezer (station G) that maintains the desired Mars ambient temperature. After exiting the test chamber the gas passes through a chilled mirror hygrometer (station I), which measures the frost point. Finally, the flow passes through a cold trap (station J) and into one or two vacuum pumps (station K).
Basic Flow Schematic
Station identification
- CO2 bottle
- Mass Flow Controller (MFC) #1
- MFC #2
- CO2 Dryer
- CO2 Saturator
- Critical Orifice
- Low Temperature Freezer
- Test Chamber
- Chilled Mirror Hygrometer
- Cold Trap
- Vacuum pump (2 pumps in parallel)