A Revitalized 1960s Building Transforms Into An Award-Winning Asteroid Curation Lab
NASA's recent missions, OSIRIS-REx and Hayabusa, have achieved remarkable milestones by returning asteroid samples to Earth for the first time. The study of these materials presents an unprecedented scientific opportunity, requiring a highly specialized research environment. To meet this challenge, the RS&H, Inc. design team created a state-of-the-art laboratory within an existing 1960s building at the Johnson Space Center. This ambitious project had to fit within 12,000 square feet of space and was delivered under a $10 million budget, including significant infrastructure upgrades to minimize sample contamination.
This culminated in the NASA Asteroid Sample Curation Lab being recognized as a 2024 Design Excellence Award winner in Small Project Design.
A Tailored Design Approach
The project team began by meticulously analyzing the specific needs of each research function and identifying the clean room requirements for various processes. Applying six sigma-light concepts, optimized the layout to ensure that every square foot was utilized efficiently. The most critical and costly spaces were isolated, appropriately sized, and received the necessary investment to meet the stringent requirements for sample analysis.
The labs were designed before the asteroid samples returned to Earth, which meant NASA scientists might have additional needs once the samples were in hand. The flexibility in the design was crucial to accommodate future needs, including potential new equipment that had not yet been invented at the time of the design.
Integrating Advanced Technologies in a Historical Context
Transforming a 1960s building into a cutting-edge research facility presented unique challenges, particularly given the need to preserve the building's historic character. The advanced science solutions had to be integrated with historic preservation guidelines, meaning no exterior modifications were allowed that could alter the building's character. The only exception was the addition of required rooftop mechanical support equipment.
Given the building's existing low floor-to-ceiling heights, the mechanical design team faced significant challenges in fitting modern HVAC systems into the minimal available space. The solution involved converting these tight spaces into large plenums for air transfer, ensuring the necessary airflow and environmental control for the clean rooms.
Achieving Precision with Clean Room Design
The design team worked closely with NASA to create a series of interconnected clean room laboratories, each meeting specific ISO classification standards. The facility includes ISO-5 clean labs for OSIRIS-REx and Hayabusa 2 samples and Final Clean purposes, ISO-6 clean labs for Advanced Cleaning and Pre-Clean, and an ISO-7 clean lab for Advanced Curation. Each space was carefully sized and equipped to meet the precise needs of the research while allowing for future upgrades and additional clean rooms for the study of samples from future missions.
Engineering Excellence for Contamination Control
The clean rooms required cascading air quality levels, from ISO Class 7 to ISO Class 5, with the cleanest areas achieving up to 480 air changes per hour of HEPA-filtered air. This level of precision was necessary to ensure that particles larger than five microns were reduced to fewer than 29 particles per square meter, minimizing the risk of sample contamination.
In addition to the clean rooms, the facility's complex mechanical design included new HVAC systems, a gaseous nitrogen distribution system, and an ultra-pure water system with multiple outlet options for flexibility. These systems were designed to support the laboratory spaces with liquid nitrogen tanks and various fuel-inert gases, ensuring the facility could meet the rigorous demands of advanced scientific research.
Collaborative Design and Strategic Expansion
Throughout the project, the design team utilized Building Information Modeling (BIM) software to create a 3D model of the laboratory. This allowed NASA scientists and engineers to visualize the laboratory plan and complex mechanical design solutions in real time, providing valuable feedback and ensuring the final design met all operational needs.
Pioneering Research for the Future
This laboratory enables NASA to conduct groundbreaking research into the formation of our solar system, studying materials from beyond Earth's orbit. The facility's design, a collaborative effort between the design team and NASA, represents a significant achievement in creating a research environment that supports one-of-a-kind scientific inquiry while respecting the constraints of an existing building.
As NASA continues to analyze the asteroid samples returned in September 2023, the insights gained from this research will contribute to our understanding of the universe.
