SOLICITATION NOTICE
66 -- ADVANCED PULSER/RECEIVER AIR-COUPLED ULTRASONIC INSPECTION SYSTEM
- Notice Date
- 4/15/2004
- Notice Type
- Solicitation Notice
- NAICS
- 334516
— Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing
- Contracting Office
- NASA/Langley Research Center, Mail Stop 144, Industry Assistance Office, Hampton, VA 23681-0001
- ZIP Code
- 23681-0001
- Solicitation Number
- 1-LAL-4200051414
- Response Due
- 4/26/2004
- Archive Date
- 4/15/2005
- Point of Contact
- Terri D Williams, Contract Specialist, Phone (757) 864-2254, Fax (757) 864-7709, Email Terri.D.Williams@nasa.gov - Lionel E Nadeau, Contract Specialist, Phone (757) 864-2434, Fax (757) 864-8863, Email Lionel.E.Nadeau@nasa.gov
- E-Mail Address
-
Email your questions to Terri D Williams
(Terri.D.Williams@nasa.gov)
- Description
- NASA/LaRC has a requirement for a RITEC SNAP computer controlled, advanced pulser/receiver air-coupled ultrasonic inspection system and components. NASA/LaRC intends to purchase the items from RITEC, Inc of Warwick, RI. Applications using air-coupled transducers have more stringent instrumentation requirements than standard applications using immersion or contact transducers. Most often, the received signals using air coupled transducers are 1/100 the size of signals from contact transducers. This decreased signal size requires a lower noise receiver for most useful detection. Typical receiving systems require an external preamplifier with 40-60 dB of gain followed by a receiver with approximately 20-100 dB of gain. With a broadband receiver, it is easy for the signal to get lost in the amplifier noise, especially when the receiver has a wide bandwidth of 20 MHz. With the superheterodyne receiver in the SNAP system, it is possible to reduce the bandwidth from 20 MHz, (or 40 or 80 MHz) to 50 kHz in some applications leading to an improvement in the signal to noise ratio of at least 20. Use of the gated integrators will lead to a further improvement of 10 in the signal to noise. Averaging of the gated integrators can lead to further improvements in the order of 5. The SNAP system is unique in the marketplace with such a pulsed superheterodyne receiver system. Such a low noise, superheterodyne receiver system has been recommended by some of the major air-coupled transducer manufacturers, including Microacoustics, whose transducers will be used for the project. In addition, it is important to drive the air-coupled transducers with as clean a sinusoidal signal as possible. The transmitter (pulser) on the SNAP system has been designed for applications utilizing nonlinear acoustics, where it is important to detect harmonics generated in the sample, not in the transmitter electronics. The SNAP system gated amplifiers can produce high power tonebursts with output powers up to 5 kW, voltages up to 1440V peak to peak with lower harmonic distortion. The SNAP system is also unique that it has two independently controlled transmitter channels, two gated amplifiers and phase control so that the outputs of each of the gated amplifiers may be phased in time and frequency. A third feature of the SNAP system, which is unique in the marketplace, is a third synthesizer, which allows the receiver to be tuned in frequency over a wide bandwith. This permits the user to examine the fundamental frequency, any harmonic frequencies or the generation of sum or difference frequencies which can be generated in damaged or fatigued samples. The RITEC SNAP system features describe above are necessary for the complete air-coupled ultrasonic evaluation of Spray On Foam Insulation(SOFI)on the Space Shuttle External Tank. The sole source athority for this acquisition is FAR 13.106(b)(1). The Government intends to acquire a commercial item using FAR Part 12. Interested organizations may submit their capabilities and qualifications to perform the effort in writing to the identified points of contact(see below) not later than 4:30 p.m. local time on April 26, 2004. Such capabilities/qualifications will be evaluated solely for the purpose of determining whether or not to conduct this procurement on a competitive basis. A determination by the Government not to compete this proposed effort on a full and open competition basis, based upon responses to this notice, is solely within the discretion of the government. To ensure a prompt response, interested offerors submitting inquiries or capabilities/qualifications shall send an e-mail to BOTH the Primary AND Secondary points of contacts identified in this notice. Please identify the Reference number in your correspondence. 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. See NASA Specific Note "B". Any referenced notes may be viewed at the following URLs linked below.
- Web Link
-
Click here for the latest information about this notice
(http://prod.nais.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/eps/bizops.cgi?gr=D&pin=23#109905)
- Record
- SN00566942-W 20040417/040415212712 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
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