History of NASA's Odor Assessment (Test 6)

Date

7/10/2022

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

51st International Conference on Environmental Systems

Abstract

NASA's Odor Assessment (Test 6) for nonmetallic materials and assembled articles for spacecraft has evolved since the Apollo program in 1966 to meet various habitable spacecraft nonmetallic programmatic requirements. The purpose of Test 6 is to determine if the odor from a material or assembled article is objectionable or revolting on an odor-characteristic scale of 0 to 4. Samples of the toxicity-screened test atmosphere from a conditioned specimen container are administered to an Odor Panel of qualified human research subject volunteers using a syringe and mask, and are assigned a scored odor characteristic of undetectable (0), barely detectable (1), easily detectable (2), objectionable (3), or revolting (4). The odor from a material or assembled article is objectionable or revolting if an average rating of 2.5 or higher is assigned by an Odor Panel. This manuscript presents the history of Test 6, beginning with the Apollo spacecraft nonmetallic materials selection guidelines and test requirements from 1966, in which tests were performed in oxygen atmospheres, and follows the odor test through Skylab, Space Shuttle, International Space Station, and Orion nonmetals testing, and acceptance requirements.

Description

Benjamin Greene, Sierra Lobo, Inc., US
Vanessa Buchanan, Sierra Lobo, Inc., US
Susana Tapia Harper, NASA, US
ICES504: Management of Air Quality in Sealed Environments
The 51st International Conference on Environmental Systems was held in Saint Paul, Minnesota, US, on 10 July 2022 through 14 July 2022.

Keywords

Odor, Panel, Odor Panel, Test 6, NASA-STD-6001

Citation