Search NASA⌕ Search

Engineering topics

Collins, G.

Publications and source records attributed to Collins, G..

High efficiency, low cost, RF sources for accelerators and colliders

Accelerators for High Energy Physics (HEP) are large users of energy, much of it in the form of radiofrequency (RF) power to accelerate particles to very high energies. Proposed HEP projects will require even larger amounts of RF energy. Increasing concerns of the cost and availability of energy will require the HEP community to use energy as efficiently as possible. Successful transfer of HEP technology to the public and private sectors will be most effective if it is highly efficient. Historically, the HEP community has utilized available RF power sources, mainly in the form of vacuum tube technology, much of which was developed during the cold war or is otherwised used in the private sector. The private sector is moving to solid-state RF sources which do not exhibit the electrical efficiency that is needed for future HEP projects. Here we summarize the state of the development of a number of RF sources that promise efficiencies of 80% and above. We also outline future efforts that are needed to fully realize the potential of these sources.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗

Kinetic physics in ICF: present understanding and future directions

Kinetic physics has the potential to impact the performance of indirect-drive inertial confinement fusion (ICF) experiments. Systematic anomalies in the National Ignition Facility implosion dataset have been identified in which kinetic physics may play a role, including inferred missing energy in the hohlraum, drive asymmetry in near-vacuum hohlraums, low areal density and high burn-averaged ion temperatures (T i ) compared with mainline simulations, and low ratios of the DD-neutron and DT-neutron yields and inferred T i . Several components of ICF implosions are likely to be influenced or dominated by kinetic physics: laser-plasma interactions in the LEH and hohlraum interior; the hohlraum wall blowoff, blowoff/gas and blowoff/ablator interfaces; the ablator and ablator/ice interface; and the DT fuel all present conditions in which kinetic physics can significantly affect the dynamics. This review presents the assembled experimental data and simulation results to date, which indicate that the effects of long mean-free-path plasma phenomena and self-generated electromagnetic fields may have a significant impact in ICF targets. Finally, simulation and experimental efforts are proposed to definitively quantify the importance of these effects at ignition-relevant conditions, including priorities for ongoing study.

42 ENGINEERING↗

DARe: Dark Asteroid Rendezvous

Small bodies record the chemical, physical, and dynamical processes that gave birth to and shaped the solar system. The great variety of small bodies reflects the diversity of both their genesis and their histories. The DARe mission conducts a critical test of how small body populations reflect a history of planetary migration and planetesimal scattering. This understanding is crucial for planning future NASA missions and placing current and past missions into context.

Noll, K. S.↗

Revisiting the West Clearwater Lake Impact Structure, Canada

The West and East Clearwater Lake impact structures are two of the most distinctive and recognizable impact structures on Earth. Known regionally as the "Clearwater Lake Complex", these structures are located in northern Quebec, Canada (56 deg 10 N, 74 deg 20 W) approximately 125 km east of Hudson Bay. The currently accepted diameters are 36 km and 26 km for the West and East structures, respectively. Long thought to represent a rare example of a double impact, recent age dating has called this into question with ages of approximately 286 Ma and approximately 460-470 Ma being proposed for the West and East structures, respectively. Relatively little is known about the East Clearwater Lake structure. There is no surface exposure and what information there is comes from geophysics and two drill cores obtained in the 1960s. In contrast, the West Clearwater Lake structure is relatively well preserved with large ring of islands in the approximately 30 km diameter lake. Much of the work done on West Clearwater stems from field investigations carried out in 1977 driven by the Apollo program, with a focus on the impact melt rocks and other impactites, which are well exposed on the ring of islands. To our knowledge, the Clearwater Lake impact structures have not been the focus of detailed impact geology field investigations since the 1977 expedition and the only geological map that exists is from the 1960s and is at the reconnaissance level. Our knowledge of impact cratering processes have increased substantially since this time, as have the analytical techniques available for samples. This provided the motivation for a joint Canadian-US-UK expedition to the West Clearwater Lake impact structure in August and September 2015, under the auspices of the FINESSE (Field Investigations to Enable Solar System Science and Exploration) project, part of NASA's Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute (SSERVI). We focus here on the impactites of the West Clearwater Lake impact structure. Other ongoing studies, also presented at this conference, focus on central uplift formation, the impact-generated hydrothermal system, xxxx and using WCIS as an analog test site for crew studies of sampling protocols].

West Clearwater Lake↗

Cassini Imaging Results at Titan

The Cassini Imaging Science Subsystem (ISS) images show striking albedo markings on the surface of Titan. In equatorial regions the albedo patterns have high contrast and exhibit prominent lineaments and linear/angular boundaries suggestive of tectonic influences or fracturing of brittle surficial materials. There are intriguing dark curving lines near the south pole. Here we present several working hypotheses to explain these patterns. We also briefly summarize atmospheric science results.

McEwen, A.↗

AF Ni-Cd cell qualification program

The present status of the USAF NiCd cell qualification program, which is underway at the Naval Surface Warfare Center-Crane Division, is summarized. The following topics are discussed: overview; background; purpose; stress tests; results for super Ni-Cd; results for SAFT cells; GPS stress test; GPS simulated orbit; and results for gates cells. The discussion is presented in viewgraph format.

Hall, Steve↗

Air Force Ni-Cd cell qualification program update

The generic qualification of aerospace nickel-cadmium cells is discussed. The test program includes the following: all available manufacturers, all available designs, cells from the previous program, and high and low orbit life cycling. It is the purpose of this program to characterize the beginning of life performance.

Hall, Steve↗