Theses and Dissertations Collection

This research was completed in support of the proposed NASA mission, Triton Hopper, whose intended mission is to land on Triton, a moon of Neptune. Flight over Tritons surface is to be provided by repurposing in situ resources; where solidified nitrogen is gathered, heated, and used as a gaseous propellant. Mechanical property data of solid nitrogen at Triton surface conditions is almost nonexistent. A system was designed to gather hardness data via flat punch indentation of cryocooler formed solidified nitrogen samples. The system was used to collect data at temperatures between 30 and 40K at 1-degree increments. Hardness averages ranged from 0.35 Mpa to 2.26 Mpa as temperature decreased, the data were approximately 3 to 4 times harder than prior data. The system was modified and used to conduct rotary shear testing. Based on the results, suggestions for further work are provided.