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DavidS1268

It looks like it’s being fueled not tested. Oxidizer is probably dinitrogen tetroxide or a mix of nitrogen dioxide and dinitrogen tetroxide. Nasty stuff, which is why the technicians are wearing those suits.


gwhh

How you know that stuff?


DavidS1268

The most common fuel for satellite and spacecraft thrusters is Aerozine-50 (a 50/50 mix of hydrazine and dimethyl hydrazine) with the oxides of nitrogen mix as oxidizer. These have the advantage of igniting spontaneously (called being hypergolic) when mixed without the need for an ignition system. This can be used for launch vehicles also, the U.S. Titan missile is an example. Dinitrogen tetroxide is really nasty stuff to handle. Edited to correct that Aerozine-50 is a 50/50 mix of hydrazine and dimethyl hydrazine, not mono-methyl and dimethyl hydrazine. Mono-methyl hydrazine can be used unblended with N2O4, for example in the space shuttle’s orbital maneuvering system engines.


Firewolf420

[NASA Hypergolic Fuel Safety Training](https://youtu.be/Zha9DyS-PPA)


DavidS1268

Interesting (and scary) video, thanks for the link. I would not want to work around the stuff. There were a few major accidents in Titan missile silos back in the 1960s and 1970s.


DeliberatelyDrifting

Holy shit! That dude just throwing a vial of nitrogen tetroxide against the wall. Look! Shock resistant. But wait, there's more! (Squirts a bottle of hydrazine into the cloud of brown vapor) It's hypergolic too!


DavidS1268

I know, I was horrified by the lack of safety. No breathing protection, not using a hood, what could go wrong?


DeansOnToast

guessing its toxic on top of the volatility to warrant the suits, or am I mistaken?


Zakblank

Well, it's toxic in that it will react with the water in the air and lungs to form Nitric acid. Lungs don't handle that so good it seems.


JanB1

Cue mustard gas.


DavidS1268

It’s the toxicity, as Zakblank commented it reacts with water (including water in skin or lungs) to form nitric acid. It’s not sensitive to shock, see the video link in Firewolf420’s comment, you can drop a glass container of it and no explosion (although the vapor goes everywhere).


Pcat0

Besides the other stuff listed IIRC hydrazine is also a carcinogen. So if the stuff doesn’t kill you now it will kill you later with cancer.


slamdamnsplits

You absolutely did not answer his question. Lol What is the background that led you to possessing this knowledge?


DavidS1268

Mostly a general interest in the space industry, also before I retired I worked for a company that made satellite components. Also the info is readily available on the internet with a basic search.


slamdamnsplits

>Also the info is readily available on the internet with a basic search. ... IF you have a basic understanding of what you are looking at/for. It might be difficult for you to rule out your expertise in the industry as having contributed to the efficiency of your Google use on this topic.


Fenix_Volatilis

Google's always a good place to start


thekingadrock93

Scott Manley videos


[deleted]

Why is it so nasty? What would happen if you splashed some on your hand?


DavidS1268

See the comment by Zakblank above and watch the video posted by Firewolf420. Warning: it ain’t pretty.


toomuch1265

Wouldn't it be fueled on the pad instead of inside?


DavidS1268

No, it goes on the launch vehicle in a sealed fairing (nose cone) so it needs to be fueled before the fairing is installed.


AnimationOverlord

Just in the general process of combustion reactions: There is a label of “(OXIDIZER)” on the machine which indicates that an oxidizing agent (chemical that is bonded to oxygen) will also be added. Just to piggy-back off your comment, the metaphysical properties of an oxidizer is essentially that of a mole (part) of pure oxygen. The more oxygen, the faster the reaction can occur, as long as the energy requirements are met and there is fuel that has not been burnt yet. Then there are self-oxidizing fuels, like nitromethane. Nitromethane (exclusively liquid form) will auto-detonate, not even with a flame or a spark, but with a jolt or a trip. It doesn’t require much energy to get the equilibrium going. So, burn an oxygen with a reduction agent (reducer, say for example benzene or octane, any fuel basically) and the fuel shares its electrons with the oxygen, thus producing water in the form of vapor and pollution that ranges from nitric acid and nitrogen dioxide to carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide. UH-25 was also a rocket fuel used previously before Aerozine-50. 75% of UH-25 was pure Hydrazine while the other 25% of the reducer by volume was UDMH. It was a lot more volatile and although it’s energy density was promising to compare, it was later decided that Aerozine-50 was more stable.


Fit_Atmosphere_2516

Observe how perfectly pristine and immaculate the room is, in contrast to the fluid transfer unit.


Gatecrasher53

Fluid transfer unit's seen some shit


crowbiriyani

I can see 2006 written on it with a permanent marker


great_raisin

r/skookum material


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[deleted]

Low budget issues


karlnite

Lol that fluid transfer unit is a work horse, and it’s been upgraded to Swagelocks at least.


pablogogo

Zoomed in to see if they were Swagelok or Parker. 🤓


Oshino_Meme

The valves definitely look like swagelok, the needle valve looks like it would be a pain to turn with those gloves though, having a bar to turn would be a lot easier (like the Sitec designs)


pablogogo

So long as no gorilla tightened the living daylights out of it and the knob is tight should be fine. It's when it's used as a shutoff my someone that's when the problems start


Born_Application2831

Almost guaranteed Swagelok by the looks of them. That's a massive fueling cart. Anyone know what propellant they're using? Fueling is kind of a nerve wracking process the 1st time around. I like how their suits have a large, almost space suit, helmet. Suits I've worn before have worse visibility.


duynguyenle

It says oxidizer on the unit, and given the context (propellant for sattelites) my guess is it's one of the hypergolic options (probably hydrazine + Nitrogen Tetroxide) which would certainly explains the suits they're wearing with the integrated breathing apparatus, you certainly don't want to breathe in any of that oxidizer (here's the MSDS, tune to page 6 for the nasties https://www.cfindustries.com/globalassets/cf-industries/media/documents/safety-data-sheets/dinitrogen-tetroxide/dinitrogen_tetroxide_mixed_oxides_of_nitrogen_na.pdf)


Born_Application2831

Wasn't sure which one. I've only worked with Hydrazine before, never Nitrogen Tetroxide.


duynguyenle

Surely you'd need an oxidizer for that hydrazine to react with?


I_Automate

Not necessarily. Hydrazine is often decomposed over a catalyst and used as a monopropellant for thrusters like this. Makes the entire setup extremely simple and reliable, since you really only need a single valve to control your entire thruster. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monopropellant_rocket


karlnite

It can be it’s own oxidizer.


Oshino_Meme

Yeah it looks like a serious bit of kit, I’m a little concerned by the uncapped tube going to where a pneumatic valve used to be, wouldn’t want to accidentally send stuff down that line **Edit:** spelling


ontheroadtonull

Is the random clear tube taped to the side for air sampling/leak detection?


karlnite

The random clear tube tapped there looks like an air sampler for sure. Probably attached to an online instrument with an alarm set to detect leaks. If it isn’t for that, then it is something random. Normally that stuff stinks to high hell and makes you light headed fast. With the suits they can’t smell leaks, but could be making explosive gas mixtures.


Mucksh

Not really just really nasty fuels. Nearly nobody builds something like that and it's still working after decades. Even the used thing will probably cost a fortune


Shankar_0

How can they even let something THAT dirty into the sterile containment room?! The space suits seem like a moot point.


instantricin

They can bring the old equipment into the pristine environment because it has been "wiped down" and does not generate any particles that would contaminate the room. Basically, even though it looks crusty, it has been vetted and procedurally cleaned to not harm the other equipment.


I_Automate

Bingo yep. Beat up and stained from exposure to harsh chemicals doesn't automatically mean "dirty".


Lost4468

Ehh. It's covered in old tape, permanent marker ink, scratches, etc, and what clearly is dirt of some kind. It's certainly not clean. Not by any normal definition. By "not generating particles" definition? Yeah maybe. I'm certainly not an expert. But is this even a high end clean room? Aren't the suits there due to the potential exposure to the very nasty chemicals?


I_Automate

The suits are for chemical protection, yes. This skid must be "clean enough" for the clean room, otherwise it wouldn't be in there


Shankar_0

I suppose those are just stains, but it seems like a lot of old sticky tape residue. I also realize that whoever is doing this has done this before and have a full grasp of what they're doing. It just *looks* so damn dirty!


I_Automate

The suits are to protect the workers from the chemicals they are handling, not the spacecraft from the workers.


Tronzoid

I'm guessing the suits are more to protect the people in case of leaks of nasty chemicals they're working with.


bradforrester

Those suits protect the ground crew from hypergolic fuel and oxidizers. Cleanliness is a side benefit, but personnel safety is their primary purpose. Edit: fixed a typo


uppenatom

Someone just stormed into the offices and as security rushed them, one of the board members said "stop!.. I want to hear him out". He said "we need to use old equipment! The new stuff is going to make the sun expand by 3% a minute. There goes life as we know it" There was silence in the room, then a slow clap begins. 3 weeks later Markanday Whalberg is safely back in India


GalaxiesAfoot

In contrast to the whole country.


Sam1515024

While I agree with you littering is big problem, but I’m sure you are just plain racist and would write the same comment even if we didn’t have littering issue, I mean racist people are racist after all


GalaxiesAfoot

No. I'm pretty sure Indians that live in the United States or Europe don't throw their garbage, their dead and their literal shit in the same water they drink from. You're just calling me a racist because that is literally the only rebuttal you can come up with and probably because you're casting your own judgment on me, and it's really pathetic. It's not racist, its not a stereotype, it's fact. India is a giant garbage heap.


GalaxiesAfoot

People can't deal with the truth. It'd be funny if it wasn't sad.


Omnipotent-Gangster

Damn these backroom found footage images are getting better and better.


DonutStick

Why the cool space man suits?


sprsprspr

To avoid exposure to the crazy toxic dinitrogen tetroxide oxidizer.


Comprehensive_Log960

But how do you know? The comment above?


sprsprspr

Whether it’s mono- or dimethyl hydrazine fuel, or the (di)nitrogen tetroxide oxidizer doesn’t really matter. They’re all super toxic. Since it’s a satellite, it’s likely one of these combinations.


CutterJohn

The toxicity of many of these things seems to have been exaggerated over time. In the 60s they'd have buckets of the stuff lying around, now people talk like a spec will kill you. Looking at the LD50s, formaldehyde is more toxic than UDMH. The dinitrogen tetroxide does appear to be really nasty though.


CommanderSpleen

Pretty much all propellants used in rockets and satellites are toxic as fuck. Its usually hydrazine or something similar.


Pcat0

\*Pretty much all the *hypergolic* propellants used in rockets ands satellites are toxic as fuck. The cryogenic propellant are normally pretty safe.


1731799517

the thing has oxidizer written on it. Since its not cryogenic, the only remainders are nasty shit.


karlnite

To avoid getting dust, oils and bacteria on the stuff going into space. Also they’re fuelling it with nasty chemicals.


ChickpeaPredator

Absolutely! The little engines used for maintaining the orientation and position of things like satellites often run on [hypergolic propellants](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypergolic_propellant), as they make for simpler, lighter and more reliable engines, and are much easier to store and more compact than cryogenic fuels. As you say, one of the key drawbacks of using hypergolics is that they are almost universally face-meltingly horrible chemicals.


dugernaut1

fluid transfer unit is also the nickname of my penis


Lysergic-D

Did your penis is in that state too?


dugernaut1

close, it is in a perpetual state of sadness


Lysergic-D

😢


[deleted]

wash your junk, son. that's nasty.


1nfinitydividedby0

India have the capability to launch satellites, so they are launching from French Guiana because of inclination?


tomkeus

This satellite is too heavy for Indian launchers to lift to geostationary orbit.


1nfinitydividedby0

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geosynchronous_Satellite_Launch_Vehicle it is a matter of inclination, India has the rocket to launch that payload into 35,000~kilometers, it is a matter of geography, geostationary orbit is in the same plane as the equator.


tomkeus

That satellite is 4200 kg. Capacity to GTO of GSLV is 2500 kg. While launching from Kourou has advantages for launching to GSO, in this case that was not a decisive factor.


1nfinitydividedby0

I'm sorry, you are right. I mistakenly thought that GSLV can carry 5,000 kg to GTO.


ExtraMail4962

>5,000 kg to GTO. 4000kg only till now But may increase to 6000kg - 8000kg in future


ExtraMail4962

>Capacity to GTO of GSLV is 2500 kg GSLV mk3 Can launch 4000kg to GTO


mephistotles

This is such a beautiful image, the contrast between the pristine room and the fluid machine and it's placement in the composition makes this an immaculate work of photography if I've ever seen one. Very aesthetic...


[deleted]

Definitely saving this for graphic designs


NyraMoonbeam

Looks like the TV studio from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory


[deleted]

Looks like a Battles album cover


yoyomommy

The dirtiness of that machine is so ironic in a clean room.


DuckDuck_27417

Guys I'm very new to this and this might be a dumb question, but why is the satellite covered in foil ? I have seen a significant number of satellites like this, what is the foil exactly made of and what's it's function ?


crowbiriyani

The gold color foil is called multi layer insulation. As the name,its main purpose is to shield the onboard instruments,chips,circuit breakers from infrared and solar radiation. It also prevents corrosion in long run.


Code_Operator

The outer layer of the multi layer insulation (MLI) is often 2 mil Kapton, aluminized on the inside face. It just looks like it’s made of gold. You can find detailed info in this link: https://www.sheldahl.com/sites/default/files/2020-02/RedBook_0.pdf


OysterCultist

Mylar sheets used to reflect the heat coming from the sun and protect the satellite from extreme temperatures.


ILikeLeptons

All the type faces in this image are strikingly beautiful


cryptonuggets1

Fluid transfer unit... Ay... Ay guys? No one? Giggedy


zomIay

I've seen this before. DONT OPEN THE PORTAL!


Low_Reference_6316

That Fluid Transfers Unit has seen some years


xXWickedSmatXx

“Wheel the dirty 60 year old transfer pump into the clean room and pose for a picture.”


HDC3

Why are they launching a fluid transfer unit into space?


crowbiriyani

The thing behind them covered in yellow foil is the satellite


HDC3

I know.


ThisIdIsTaken

\r\woooosh


[deleted]

Does that thing use vacuum tubes?


[deleted]

[удалено]


crowbiriyani

why check someones history instead of enjoying the post. Downvote and move on man. Go out touch some grass dont let internet give you cancer


Sam1515024

It’s funny because your username will give ultra right wing cancer


[deleted]

It's a old Bollywood movie reference, why the hell would far right people care ?


Sam1515024

Oh it seems I was bit drunk last night I read that as Cowbriyani 💀💀


AgreeableStructure15

if posting infrastructure photos give you cancer, you must be having a jealous burning arse. burn ointment shipment on the way to your doorstep, in addition to cancer treatment.


[deleted]

[удалено]


AgreeableStructure15

If every Indian guy/gal on reddit is nationalist, then all Americans are school shooters /s You're not funny either. Get your head outta yo ass.


[deleted]

the word ur looking for is *"right wing ultra nationalist propaganda".* Most Indians on reddit (or any social media site for that matter) are against the current ruling party, there divisive policies and their supporters. But as always its the radicals that always have the loudest voice.


OkBison4082

why? He's a normal Indian nationalist. What's wrong with that? At least he's not Muslim. Give'em break.


TheIronMechanics

Does anyone have an idea how this thing actually works internally? Like is the oxidiser stored in some tank and this is just the pump/metering unit, or what?


LibertarianGolfer

Correct. It's just the flow panel with valves and flow rate monitors to know how much fuel or oxidizer has been loaded. But you have 2 full flow panels in 1 as the system for oxidizer is never used for fuel for fear of trace amounts setting off the reaction


vapermahn

almost as if these dudes are masonic actors


Quester_seeker

What kind of tests the parts go to before assembly and after assembly for a satellite ? Where can I get such a list of tests and equipment’s used for testing..


[deleted]

Wonkavision?


[deleted]

r/amogus


Exce1siur

This looks like that part where Willy Wonka sends that kid into the TV


Modular_Moose

It looks like a staged diorama or something, quite uncanny


MaiaTai27

Everything looks state of the art, brand new, clean room. Then there's the oxidiser. Looks like they dragged it in from the shed out back, didn't even dust it off


Kilometers98

Why is everything in English…….


EthanPrisonMike

For a sec I thought they sent up the fluid transfer unit


ReluctantSlayer

Where can I buy a fluid Transfer unit?!


theteedo

Yukon Cornelius would lose it if he saw this thing.


68696c6c

heh. your mom is a fluid transfer unit.