Student Spaceflight Experiments Program (SSEP) Flight Experiment Proposal Guide

for SSEP Mission 14 to the International Space Station (ISS)

Revised: September 7, 2019

Section I. Proposal Cover Page

Proposal Title: What is the effect of microgravity on the amalgamation of gallium metal and
aluminum fibers?

Grade Level of Student Team: Fourth Grade

Submitting School: Open Window School

Submitting Teacher Facilitator

Name: Randy Hollinger
Position: 4th Grade science teacher
Address: 6128 168th Place SE
Daytime phone: 425 747 2911
Cell phone: 850 830 7950
E-mail: rhollinger@ows.org
Proposal Summary:

This investigation will examine the effect of microgravity on the amalgamation of

aluminum fibers and gallium metal . This will contribute to the further use of these metallic
elements as a resource for learning about structural failures of metal alloys and the production of
hydrogen for possible hydrogen fuel cells. The amalgamation of aluminum fibers and gallium is
when liquid gallium metal corrodes the aluminum matrix thus making a brittle metal. Our
objective is to see how microgravity effects the amalgamation of the gallium into the aluminum
matrix. This is a very important experiment for two major reasons:

1. It will show how microgravity effects aluminum that is weakened by the amalgamation
by a liquid metal. The weakening of aluminum by the process of amalgamation could
inform astronauts and engineers about safety issues of metal alloy strength and failures.
2. This particular alloy produces small amounts of hydrogen gas which can be harnessed for
hydrogen fuel cells. This means certain metal alloys can actually be used for a fuel source
in space.

The investigation will show that gallium and aluminum alloys may show a strong
response to microgravity because it is a physical reaction instead of a chemical reaction. The
results will compare the sample in microgravity to the sample on Earth to see the difference. This
will be done by putting the ground and space samples though a strength test and then putting
both of the samples into water to measure the amount of hydrogen production.

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Section II. Student Team Members and Professional Advisors

Co-Principal Investigators (listed in alphabetical order)

Name: Alice Botvinik

Grade level: 4th grade

Name: Avni Murarka

Grade level: 4th grade

Name: Tia Rantawi

Grade Level: 4th grade

Professional Advisors

Name: Mrs. Jocelyn Scheintaub

Organization: Satellite Development Manager and Chemist- LeoStella Satellite Design Company
Contribution to Team: Helped with information on an exothermic reaction and how to think
about the scientific process.

Name: Dr. Stephen Burgin

Organization: Chemistry dept - University of Arkansas
Contribution to Team: Email correspondence to describe the gallium aluminum reaction of
amalgamation.

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Section III. Experiment Materials and Handling Requirements

1. Fluids Mixing Enclosure (FME) Mini-laboratory Proposed to be Used:

✓ Type 3 FME Mini-lab (3 experiment volumes: two clamps used)

2. List of Proposed Experiment Samples (Fluids and Solids to be Used)

Volume 1
Aluminum Fibers - 0.5 grams

Volume 2
Gallium metal pellet- 0.5 grams
Water- 2mL

Volume 3
Borax- 4mL

IMPORTANT: Are any of the proposed samples human in origin? (check one):
 Yes
✓ No

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3. Special Handling Requirements During Transportation
Table 1: Requesting Thermal Control for Your Experiment
Ambient
Refrigeration Conditions
PRE- Shipping from your Community to NanoRacks in Houston X
FLIGHT At NanoRacks until Handover to NASA X
Handover to NASA Until Arrival at ISS X
FLIGHT
Onboard ISS X (required)
POST- From ISS until Arrival at NanoRacks X (required)
FLIGHT At NanoRacks through Return Shipping to Community X

4. Proposed Timeline of ISS Crew Interactions

Allowed Crew Interaction Days: For the days listed below, A=0 is the Day of Arrival, when the
SSEP experiments payload is brought from the ferry vehicle through the hatch on ISS, and U=0
is the Day of Undock, when the ferry vehicle with the SSEP experiments payload undocks from
ISS for return to Earth.

Table 5: Your Proposed Timeline of Crew Interactions

Allowed Crew
Requested Interaction
Interaction Day
1. Unclamp the stopper between volume 1 and 2. Shake
vigorously for 30 seconds.
A=0 2. Massage for 30 seconds.
3. Unclamp the final clamp and shake gently for 30 seconds to
allow gallium to mix with aluminum fibers.
A+2 Do Nothing

U-14 Do nothing

U-5 Do nothing

U-2 Do nothing

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Section IV. The Question to be Addressed by the Experiment

We will look at the effects of microgravity on gallium aluminum alloy. At first, we were
going to experiment on gallium crystals, but we saw that this has been done before and we also
noticed that gallium made aluminum very weak when it interacted with it. This led us the
questions about how this process happened and how it might be different in microgravity. It turns
out the weakening is caused by a physical reaction called amalgamation. This means that gravity
could have a big effect on it. It got even more interesting when we learned that gallium-
aluminum alloys are being studied to make hydrogen for hydrogen fuel cells which maybe could
power space craft one day. We believe that it is very important as an experiment because it could
help with astronaut safety and with making machines work with fuel from recycled aluminum
parts.
The atomic number of Gallium is 31 and was discovered by Paul-Émile Lecoq de
Boisbaudran in 1875. The melting point is 85.56 F and gallium will melt in your hand even in
Alaska. Gallium can mix with another element to create LED or semi-conductors. Gallium can
be found in bauxite and other crystals.
What we already know about gallium and aluminum is that on Earth, the gallium invades
the metal matrix of aluminum making it much weaker. The gallium weakens the aluminum
bonds and makes the aluminum brittle. Our research shows that this has not been tested in a
microgravity environment. It is a physical reaction not a chemical reaction so we might expect
the reaction to be much different in microgravity. We have done many ground tests using an
exact model of an FME tube and our experiments show that this it will work with the tubes that
we must use for the ISS and the procedure is reliable.
One surprise to us was that we learned that gallium aluminum alloy would start to fizz
when we put it in water. We did not expect this, so we had to do more research. What we found
out was that gallium aluminum alloy makes hydrogen bubbles in water and this can be used to
make hydrogen gas that can be used in fuel cells to run machines. Researches at Purdue
University are using this exact material to try ideas on how people can use alloys as a source of
fuel in hydrogen fuel cells. We believe that his make our experiment even more interesting as
fuel can be expensive and difficult to use efficiently in space.
When we did our own experiments in the lab, we gathered some important data. We
figured out that the amalgamated pellet releases hydrogen that causes water to bubble. Another
important thing is that we saw that borax mixed with water should give you temperature of 100F.
This mixture creates a safe non-toxic exothermic reaction that has a temperature high enough to
melt gallium. We also used a force meter to do a strength test on the regular aluminum fibers and
the fibers that mixed with gallium. Here are our results of this mini test.

Material Breaking point

5 aluminum fibers 1400 grams
5 aluminum fibers with liquid gallium contact 100 grams

We think that this experiment can be very helpful to scientists in space travel. Liquid
metal like gallium (and the more poisonous mercury) seem to weaken other metals by invading
the metal matrix. Liquid metals would be used often in space for welding, thermometers, mirrors

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and other uses. We think scientists would want to know how the corrosive effects might be
different in a micro-gravity environment. For example, mercury is used in thermometers and it is
known to do the same corrosion as gallium does on aluminum. Aluminum is a common metal on
spacecraft as it doesn’t rust and can be light and strong. If a thermometer were to break in space
and the liquid metal were to come in contact with aluminum, our experiment could help
scientists understand what might happen and how that reaction might be different in micro-
gravity.
We also think that scientists would be interested in knowing how the new alloys might
produce hydrogen gas when added to water. Maybe these alloys could be used to create fuel
cells. The gallium and the aluminum are easily recycled in the process can be used many times
over and even recycled machine parts could be used for fuel. Imagine if you could run an engine
by using recycled aluminum parts and mixing it with gallium metal. The gallium is actually not
used up in this process so as long as you have aluminum available, you could make hydrogen for
small machines on a space craft using recycled aluminum materials.
We think we can add new discoveries on how liquid metals mix with other metals we do
not know of any experiments that have been done on this topic before so we are excited that our
results might be important to scientists. Maybe other scientists can use our results to do the
experiment again and add to what we learned.

(above) An investigator watches for (above) Aluminum fibers are taken out and
hydrogen bubbles. woven into strands of five.

(above) A slow motion video from an iPad shows the

(above) An investigator massages an FME
aluminum fibers breaking at 1400 grams of force.
tube to test the exothermic reaction.

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Section V. Experiment Design

The experimental rationale:

We believe that our experiment is important because of two main reasons. First, it will
show how microgravity effects aluminum that weakened by the amalgamation by a liquid metal.
Our second reason is that it could help scientists understand how metal allows could be made in
space that produce gases for hydrogen fuel cells.
The weakening of aluminum by the process of amalgamation could inform astronauts and
engineers about safety issues of alloy strength and failures. Our research shows us that liquid
metals react strongly with solid metals. The process called amalgamation is when the liquid
metal invades the solid metal matrix and breaks up the normal bonds. This makes the solid metal
weak and brittle. It is a physical process so it may be much different in a microgravity
environment. If astronauts have any liquid metal like mercury on the ship, it could contaminate
the aluminum and other metals in a break or spill. Our experiment would help astronauts
understand what to expect if this situation happens.
When we learned that the gallium aluminum alloy produced hydrogen bubbles in water,
we started thinking that this is something we could measure along with the strength test. It turned
out to be even better. We learned some scientists are working on using alloys as a fuel source for
hydrogen fuel cells. It turns out our experiment could be even more important than we thought.
Maybe someday astronauts could keep gallium on board and used recycled aluminum for fuel in
hydrogen fuel cells.

the experimental materials:

1. 0.5 grams Gallium metal pellet - This will be used for to melt and create an alloy with the
aluminum fibers to create a weaker metal.
2. 0.5 grams of Aluminum fibers- This will be used as the test metal to be amalgamated.
3. Force meter This is used for how much force it takes to break aluminum fibers.
4. Microscope To look at how the metal amalgamated. We will look for any physical
changes that are different between the ground and space samples.
5. Electronic gram scale –This will be used to weigh how much gallium and aluminum
fibers we are using. The scale is also used to measure the two experiments on the day we
do the experimental analysis to see if there is any weight difference.
6. iPad camera use to do a slow-motion video to see how much force it takes to break the
aluminum fibers. This will be used for both samples
7. 500ml Glass Beaker for melting the gallium into pellets and for later use to take data for
the hydrogen bubbles.
8. Distilled water - This is used for first hot water to melt the gallium. And analyze the
alloy for hydrogen bubbles.
9. 4ml Borax -This is used to mix with water to create an exothermic reaction.
10. iPad Stopwatch - This is for timing how long the hydrogen bubbles produce. We will
also use this to make sure we are doing the ground experiment exactly the same as
the astronauts.

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1. The Experimental Procedure:
The micro gravity and the ground experiment will both be done with the same
procedures. The first thing the astronauts will do is unclamp the clamp between volume
one and two. They will do this to let the borax, gallium and water mix to create an
exothermic reaction. This will start to cause the gallium to melt. Then the astronauts will
shake the tube vigorously for thirty seconds. They will do this so the borax, gallium and
water mix will mix more to make sure that the two create an exothermic reaction. Next,
they will message the tube for thirty seconds. The astronauts will do this to make sure
the gallium melts. Lastly, they will unclamp the final clamp and shake the tube gently for
thirty seconds. They will do this so the aluminum fibers mix with the melted gallium.
After these procedures the astronauts will not have to perform additional steps.

Ground Elements.
We will run a ground experiment that is identical in timing and procedure to the experiment on
the ISS. We will follow this exact plan on the exact same days as the experiment. We will also
wait until the experiment arrives from the ISS to look at the samples so that everything is exact
and even. Our plan is:
Allowed Crew
Requested Interaction
Interaction Day
1. Unclamp the stopper between volume 1 and 2. Shake vigorously for
30 seconds.
A=0 2. Massage for 30 seconds.
3. Unclamp the final clamp and massage for 30 seconds to allow
gallium to mix with aluminum fibers.
Do nothing
A+2

U-14 Do nothing

U-5 Do nothing

U-2 Do nothing

We will do this experiment on the exact same day as the experiment in microgravity. An
iPad timer will be used to make sure we are unclamping, shaking and massaging the mixture for
the same amount of time as we told the astronauts to do. After following the steps of the
experiment, we will put the FME is a safe location so it is not disturbed. This sample will have to
sit untouched exactly like the FME on the ISS. We will make sure that both FME tubes are equal
in the amount of time they are touched and when they are opened for analysis.

Experimental Analysis:

Our experiment analysis plan:

1. Put both samples side by side and take many photographs. We have iPads and computers
to help us on this step. This will show different details and can help record our results. It
can also see if we missed anything before taking it out.

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2. Use a digital gram scale to weight the aluminized gallium in both experimental samples.
We will compare the ground truth weight with the ISS experiment. We will also sum up
the weight of both the aluminum and gallium and see if weight was lost or gained.
3. We will use a force meter to measure the breaking point of the aluminum of the ISS
sample and the ground sample and record the amount using an iPad slow motion
camera. According to our research, when gallium amalgamates with aluminum the
gallium invades the matrix of aluminum and weakens it. We will see if the same is
true for experiments that come from the microgravity environment in space.
4. We will use a stereo microscope to closely see the structure of the metal. If the
aluminum properly amalgamated into the gallium, we may see traces of the
amalgamation that are different from the ISS sample.
5. We will put both alloys samples in a beaker filled with room-temperate distilled
water and use a stopwatch to time how long it will bubble. When the alloy is
dropped into water, aluminum and hydrogen oxide combines creating alumina and
hydrogen gas. We will look for differences in the timing and types of hydrogen
bubble formation.

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Section VI. List of Reference Publications

1. Gallium v aluminium. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.rigb.org/ri-videos/gallium-v-

aluminium.
2. “Gallium.” The World of Physics,
sites.psu.edu/passionmalencia/2013/04/16/gallium/.
3. Gray, T. W., & Mann, N. (2012). The elements: a visual exploration of every known
atom in the universe. New York: Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers.
4. Anon, (2019). [online] Available at: https://phys.org/news/2007-05-hydrogen-aluminum-
alloy-fuel-cells.html. [Accessed 1 Nov. 2019].
5. “New Process Generates Hydrogen from Aluminum Alloy to Run Engines, Fuel Cells.”
Phys.org, phys.org/news/2007-05-hydrogen-aluminum-alloy-fuel-cells.html.
6. Sandru, Ovidiu, and Ovidiu Sandru. “How to Produce Hydrogen From an Aluminum
Soda Can and Water.” The Green Optimistic, 7 Mar. 2015,
https://www.greenoptimistic.com/aluminum-hydrogen-hho-soda-can/.

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Section VII. REQUIRED Letter of Certification by the Teacher Facilitator (template
below)

October 31st 2019

I certify that the student team designed the experiment described herein and authored this
proposal, and not a teacher, parent, or other adult. I recognize that the purpose of this letter is to
ensure that there was no adult serving to lead experiment definition and design, or write the
proposal, and thereby provide content and/or professional expertise beyond that expected of a
student-designed and student-proposed experiment.

I also understand that NCESSE recognizes that facilitation of thinking across the student team
through advice and counsel by the team’s Teacher Facilitator, other teachers, and local area and
national researchers, is not only to be encouraged but is absolutely vital if students are to receive
the necessary guidance on the process of scientific inquiry, experimental design, how to do
background research in relevant science disciplines, and on writing the proposal. I also
understand that it is appropriate for the Teacher Facilitator and other teachers to provide editorial
comment to the student team on their proposal drafts before proposal submission.

I also certify that the samples list and the special handling requests listed in this proposal are
accurate and conform to the requirements for SSEP Mission 13 to ISS. I confirm that the team,
after reviewing their procedure and budget for obtaining the samples for the experiment, is
certain that they will be able to obtain the necessary samples for their experiment in time to meet
the deadline for shipping the flight-ready FME to NanoRacks. If using human samples, the team
is aware that these samples must be tested for prohibited viruses before the experiment can be
selected for flight.

Finally, I certify that the student team will have access to the proper facilities and equipment to
prepare the FME mini-laboratory for flight and to analyze the samples after the flight.

Randy Hollinger
Teacher Facilitator

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