1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:04,760 Kathy, hello. Thanks for letting me come by here today. 2 00:00:04,760 --> 00:00:09,560 Hi Shelly, no trouble. This is my colleague Roberto Cano from the Composite Fabrication Laboratory. 3 00:00:09,560 --> 00:00:10,960 Shelly, nice to meet you. What's up? 4 00:00:10,960 --> 00:00:17,600 Well, what's up is my friend Van Hughes. He's trying to cook something up and he's having a little problem with his cookie recipe. 5 00:00:17,600 --> 00:00:22,760 Seems that his cookies are way too hard. They're not chewy and they crumble very easily. 6 00:00:22,760 --> 00:00:27,060 Well, Kathy, we saw you today on the WVECU Cooking with the Stars program 7 00:00:27,060 --> 00:00:32,660 and thought maybe here at NASA Langley, where you are involved with the Composite Materials Laboratory, 8 00:00:32,660 --> 00:00:37,060 that there might be a recipe that you have that could help us or some things that you do 9 00:00:37,060 --> 00:00:40,560 that could give us some advice to help Van in his problem. 10 00:00:40,560 --> 00:00:45,460 Bert and I would be glad to help. In fact, the process that Bert and I follow in the Composite Fabrication Laboratory 11 00:00:45,460 --> 00:00:47,060 might offer a solution to Van's problem. 12 00:00:47,060 --> 00:00:49,160 Oh, that's great. But now I've got a question. 13 00:00:49,160 --> 00:00:54,460 What is a composite material and just how is a composite material made? 14 00:00:54,460 --> 00:00:57,460 A composite material is made of two or more different materials. 15 00:00:57,460 --> 00:00:59,460 Composite materials have been used throughout history. 16 00:00:59,460 --> 00:01:04,460 For instance, ancient Egyptians used a very basic composite material in the construction of their houses, 17 00:01:04,460 --> 00:01:10,460 drawn mud. They combined these two materials to make a third stronger one, brick. 18 00:01:10,460 --> 00:01:17,460 One of our goals at NASA Langley is to develop stronger, more durable, lighter weight materials for use on airplanes and space vehicles. 19 00:01:17,460 --> 00:01:22,460 NASA Langley Research Center is the agency's center of excellence for structures and materials research. 20 00:01:22,460 --> 00:01:25,460 We can identify five steps in composite development. 21 00:01:25,460 --> 00:01:31,460 Van may use similar steps in planning and preparing a cooking recipe, identify the application, 22 00:01:31,460 --> 00:01:37,460 develop materials to meet requirements, process the material, test the material, and make structural components. 23 00:01:37,460 --> 00:01:43,460 Okay, how about it? Could you give me some examples of how these steps work for composite development? 24 00:01:43,460 --> 00:01:46,460 Glad to. Let me explain the first step. 25 00:01:46,460 --> 00:01:53,460 NASA has challenged their researchers to find ways to make planes and space vehicles tougher, stronger, lighter, cheaper. 26 00:01:53,460 --> 00:01:58,460 Our job as researchers is to develop new materials or to improve on existing materials. 27 00:01:58,460 --> 00:02:02,460 My work at NASA Langley involves development and characterization of polymers. 28 00:02:02,460 --> 00:02:07,460 A polymer is a huge chain-like molecule built up by the repetition of small, simple chemical units. 29 00:02:07,460 --> 00:02:12,460 Polymers can be flexible or stiff, tough or brittle, strong but lightweight. 30 00:02:12,460 --> 00:02:14,460 Okay, so what's the next step? 31 00:02:14,460 --> 00:02:17,460 For a structural application, the polymer needs to be reinforced. 32 00:02:17,460 --> 00:02:19,460 Typically, this is done with a carbon fiber. 33 00:02:19,460 --> 00:02:23,460 And one way we combine the carbon fiber with the polymer is to make a prepreg tape. 34 00:02:23,460 --> 00:02:25,460 Prepreg tape? 35 00:02:25,460 --> 00:02:26,460 Well, let me show you what I mean. 36 00:02:26,460 --> 00:02:30,460 The principle of prepregging goes back to the early days of aviation. 37 00:02:30,460 --> 00:02:34,460 The planes were made of a wood structure covered with a skin of fabric coated with glue. 38 00:02:34,460 --> 00:02:38,460 This combination of the glue and the fabric was a form of composite material. 39 00:02:38,460 --> 00:02:44,460 We developed a prepreg material that combines a NASA Langley-developed resin system, PETTI-5, with the carbon fiber, IM-7. 40 00:02:44,460 --> 00:02:48,460 This material was developed for applications for commercial supersonic aircraft. 41 00:02:48,460 --> 00:02:55,460 To fabricate IM-7 PETTI-5 prepreg, many ends of IM-7 carbon fiber are introduced into a dip pan. 42 00:02:55,460 --> 00:02:58,460 In the dip pan, the fibers go over and under a series of bars. 43 00:02:58,460 --> 00:03:04,460 When the resin solution is poured into the pan, the bars help force the resin into the fiber bundles. 44 00:03:04,460 --> 00:03:09,460 The now coated fibers exit the pan and go through a series of ovens and nip rollers. 45 00:03:09,460 --> 00:03:14,460 The oven and nip rollers process the material into a uniform tape that is taken up at the end. 46 00:03:14,460 --> 00:03:18,460 This tape is referred to as prepreg and can now be used to make composite parts. 47 00:03:18,460 --> 00:03:25,460 As layers of the new material are processed together, it creates a tough structure that is lighter than metal but is strong and is stiff. 48 00:03:25,460 --> 00:03:27,460 Well, this has been fascinating. 49 00:03:27,460 --> 00:03:32,460 But what pointers might you be able to give to me so I can pass on to Van with his cooking problem? 50 00:03:32,460 --> 00:03:37,460 Given that Van's requirements are soft and chewy cookies, I recommend using half butter and half Crisco, 51 00:03:37,460 --> 00:03:43,460 baking the cookies at 350 degrees Fahrenheit in a preheated oven for about 8 to 12 minutes. 52 00:03:43,460 --> 00:03:47,460 Also, to make the cookies more chewy, he could add oatmeal, raisins, or chocolate chips. 53 00:03:47,460 --> 00:03:50,460 But also, when you make a composite material, you need to test it to see how well it performs. 54 00:03:50,460 --> 00:03:53,460 So I would recommend that Van test his cookies before he serves them to anyone. 55 00:03:53,460 --> 00:03:57,460 Shelley, I'd recommend you talk to David McGowan and Dr. Ted Johnson. 56 00:03:57,460 --> 00:03:59,460 They have a lot of experience in area testing. 57 00:03:59,460 --> 00:04:00,460 Fantastic. 58 00:04:00,460 --> 00:04:03,460 I'm going to give Van a call with the information that you've shared with me. 59 00:04:03,460 --> 00:04:04,460 Then I'm going to be on my way. 60 00:04:04,460 --> 00:04:06,460 So thanks so much for all your help today. 61 00:04:06,460 --> 00:04:07,460 Appreciate it. 62 00:04:07,460 --> 00:04:08,460 You're welcome. 63 00:04:08,460 --> 00:04:11,460 Okay, Van, did you get all that? 64 00:04:11,460 --> 00:04:17,460 I've figured out some of the ingredients, and now all I have to figure out is the quantity of the ingredients. 65 00:04:17,460 --> 00:04:23,460 And then I'll follow some of Kathy and Roberto's ideas on the oven temperature, baking time, and the properties. 66 00:04:23,460 --> 00:04:24,460 Okay, great, Van. 67 00:04:24,460 --> 00:04:29,460 Meanwhile, I'm going to head on over to the materials testing and see what I can find out, and I'll give you a call back. 68 00:04:29,460 --> 00:04:30,460 Oh, okay. 69 00:04:30,460 --> 00:04:34,460 But it smells like I have some butter burning on the stove, so I'll talk to you later. 70 00:04:34,460 --> 00:04:35,460 Whew.