NASA/MSFC has a requirement for Support of combustion devices design for Code T Lunar and Mars missions will require will require high fidelity, robust and accurate analyses. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) will be used to augment costly testing to evaluate Thrust Chamber Assembly (TCA) performance as well as thermal environments. The CFD codes must be capable of efficiently and analyzing three dimensional, multi-element injectors with all the accompanying geometric and physical complexities. The effort described in this Statement of Work (SOW) addresses this need by extending and enhancing the existing Loci framework for advanced unstructured CFD solvers. Although the tasks described in this SOW are general, the STREAM code is the current application of interest.
NASA/MSFC intends to purchase the items from Mississippi State University Competition is impractical for the following reasons:
1. The particular Computation Fluid Dynamics (CFD) code being development builds on an existing framework called LOCI. The goal of NASA/MSFC with this grant and the proposed companion grant, is to fully develop the LOCI framework with a pressure base code (LOCI-STREAM) to cover the broad fluid dynamic range that NASA needs. Over the last couple of years, NASA/MSFC has been working to develop the pressure based code in the LOCI framework with the initial development of the code LOCI-STREAM. This grant’s purpose is to continue that complex development of LOCI-STREAM by further development of the LOCI framework.
2. The sole source is necessary because going to any other university will force the project to begin from scratch, wasting the previous work and delaying the project. Everything would have to be duplicated and this project would not have the fund available to duplicate past work and get the objectives of this grant accomplished.
3. Again, the development of a new CFD code and code framework is complex, time-consuming, and takes many different entities coming together to properly develop. The work proposed under this grant is leveraging off of developments being currently proposed for LOCI-CHEM by other NASA Centers. For this leveraging to work, all the NASA entities must use the same supplier, the university we are proposing to sole source to is the agreed upon supplier.
4. NASA’s requirement is to ultimately develop a pressure based CFD code based in the LOCI framework that can properly analysis the complex flow in liquid rocket engines. NASA is developing this code to be made available at no cost to all the US Rocket companies. This sole source supplier is a university, which is willing to agree to this term.
5. NASA has the requirement of inter-operable modules with another LOCI code (the pressure based code being developed in parallel) STREAM. The sole source university already has a proven working relationship with the university developing LOCI-STREAM.
The Government does not intend to acquire a commercial item using FAR Part 12.
See note 22.
Oral communications are not acceptable in response to this notice.
All responsible sources may submit an offer which shall be considered by the agency.
An Ombudsman has been appointed.
Any referenced notes may be viewed at the following URLs linked below.
