Aromatic amines are known to undergo covalent binding with humic substances in the environment. Although previous studies have examined reaction conditions and proposed mechanisms, there has been no direct spectroscopic evidence for the covalent binding of the amines to the functional groups in humic substances. In order to further elucidate the reaction mechanisms, the Suwannee River and IHSS soil fulvic and humic acids were reacted with 15 N-labeled aniline at pH 6 and analyzed using 15 N NMR spectrometry. Aniline underwent nucleophilic addition reactions with the quinone and other carbonyl groups in the samples and became incorporated in the form of anilinohydroquinone, anilinoquinone, anilide, imine, and heterocyclic nitrogen, the latter comprising 50% or more of the bound amine. The anilide and anilinohydroquinone nitrogens were determined to be susceptible to chemical exchange by ammonia. In the case of Suwannee River fulvic acid, reaction under anoxic conditions and pretreatment with sodium borohydride or hydroxylamine prior to reaction under oxic conditions resulted in a decrease in the proportion of anilinohydroquinone nitrogen incorporated. The relative decrease in the incorporation of anilinohydroquinone nitrogen with respect to anilinoquinone nitrogen under anoxic conditions suggested that inter-or intramolecular redox reactions accompanied the nucleophilic addition reactions.

With the increasing duration of space flights, the development of a permanent facility in space, and the increasing use of ground-based hyperthermal atomic oxygen sources there is a need for a simple instrument to provide long-term monitoring of the beam flux. Such an instrument can also be used as a diagnostic tool to investigate the material degradation process. Reliance on models of the upper atmosphere to determine the fluence of atomic oxygen is not only necessarily complex but also imprecise due to the strong dependence of oxygen concentration on day/night, latitude, and solar activity. Mass spectroscopy, the traditional method for determining the gas phase species densities at low pressure, is not only expensive but is limited in the area that it can monitor as well as subject to effects of material degradation. Our group has developed a simple and inexpensive dosimeter to measure the atomic oxygen fluence via the change in resistance as the sensor element is gradually oxidized. The sensors consist of thin-film circuit elements of selected material deposited on a suitable substrate. Four-point resistance measurements are used to monitor the change in sensor resistance with respect to time. Results obtained from silver and carbon dosimeters flown on STS-46 (CONCAP-II-01) indicate that such sensors are sensitive enough to monitor the diurnal variations in atomic oxygen distribution and sufficiently durable to last the lifetime of a mission.

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The First Materials Science Research Rack (MSRR-1) aboard the International Space Station (ISS) will offer many unique capabilities and design features to facilitate a wide range of materials science investigations. The initial configuration of MSRR-1 will accommodate two independent Experiment Modules (EMS) and provide the capability for simultaneous on-orbit processing. The facility will provide the common subsystems and interfaces required for the operation of experiment hardware and accommodate telescience capabilities. MSRR-1 will utilize an International Standard Payload Rack (ISPR) equipped with an Active Rack Isolation System (ARIS) for vibration isolation of the facility.