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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 199 records · Page 11

Structural Analysis of a Serpentine Superconducting Magnet for the Interaction Region of the Electron Ion Collider

The electron ion collider (EIC) is under design to collide the high energy and highly polarized hadron with electron beams with luminosities up to 10 34 cm −2 s −1 . The superconducting magnet designs at the interaction region (IR) are quite challenging due to the close proximity of the hadron and electron beams. Several serpentine types of superconducting magnets have been designed due to the space restrictions at the IR. Here, to validate the designs in terms of the mechanical strength, structural integrity, as well as the allowed deformations, a detailed structural mechanical analysis for a 12-layer superconducting quadrupole serpentine magnet (Q1BpR) in the rear side hadron beams has been carried out using the finite element method (FEM) considering the pretension stress, shrinking due to cool down, and the electromagnetic force on the conductors. Anisotropy material properties and individual roving tension have been considered. The electro-magnetic (EM) simulations were performed using COMSOL, confirmed with RAT, the structural mechanical analysis were performed using COMSOL by considering the contact elements.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Thermal Overloading Risk Mitigation With a Semi-Analytical Probabilistic Model on Branch Current

A semi-analytical formulation is presented in this paper for the probability computation of branch current in multiphase systems. The developed formula is derived based on the linear power flow model in rectangular coordinates. The system uncertainty injections can be renewable energy resources or loads and are modeled using a Gaussian mixture model (GMM). The developed formula can be used to compute the line current violation probability as well as integrate into optimal power flow problem as chance-constraint relaxation. Here, the proposed formula is first compared with the Matlab embedded numerical integration function to show its performance. Besides, the semi-analytical formula is validated and compared with the Monte Carlo simulation method using the IEEE 123-bus system, EPRI Ckt5, and Ckt7 systems.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

Yeast Transformation on Hamilton Vantage (YT Vantage) v1

Our software program is designed for the Hamilton Vantage liquid handling robot, automating the Build step in the Design-Build-Test-Learn (DBTL) cycle for Saccharomyces cerevisiae. This program minimizes human intervention, enabling rapid identification of pathway bottlenecks and genes that enhance verazine production. The program takes competent yeast and plasmid DNA as input and generates an output library of engineered strains compatible with automated colony picking, high-throughput culturing, and chemical extraction for downstream LC-MS analysis. A user-friendly interface, developed using the Hamilton Method Editor software, allows for on-demand parameter customization. By automating this process, our program streamlines the construction of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, reducing manual labor and increasing efficiency. While the manual process is well-documented, integration with robotic automation is less common, making our program a valuable tool for researchers. With this software, we achieved 2-5 fold increases in verazine production, demonstrating its potential to accelerate research in this field.

Louie, Randy [Lawrence Berkeley National Laborator↗

Observing and modeling the effects of production infrastructure in electromagnetic surveys

Electromagnetic (EM) methods are among the original techniques for subsurface characterization in exploration geophysics because of their particular sensitivity to the earth electrical conductivity, a physical property of rocks distinct yet complementary to density, magnetization, and strength. However, this unique ability also makes them sensitive to metallic artifacts — infrastructure such as pipes, cables, and other forms of cultural clutter — the EM footprint of which often far exceeds their diminutive stature when compared to that of bulk rock itself. In the hunt for buried treasure or unexploded ordnance, this is an advantage; in the long-term monitoring of mature oil fields after decades of production, it is quite troublesome indeed. In this study we consider the latter through the lens of an evolving energy industry landscape in which the traditional methods of EM characterization for the exploration geophysicist are applied toward emergent problems in well-casing integrity, carbon capture and storage, and overall situational awareness in the oil field. We introduce case studies from these exemplars, showing how signals from metallic artifacts can dominate those from the target itself and impose significant burdens on the requisite simulation complexity. Furthermore, we show how recent advances in numerical methods mitigate the computational explosivity of infrastructure modeling, providing feasible and real-time analysis tools for the desktop geophysicist. Lastly, we demonstrate through comparison of field data and simulation results that incorporation of infrastructure into the analysis of such geophysical data is, in a growing number of cases, a requisite but now manageable step.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗

Root Influences on Mobilization and Export of Mineral-bound Soil Organic Matter

Biogeochemical cycles within mountainous watersheds are key regulators of ecosystem carbon storage and downstream nutrient loadings, and they have shown to be particularly vulnerable to climate change impacts. Increasing temperature and persistent droughts have already dramatically changed vegetation cover across the mountainous western US, with unknown consequences for soil carbon and nutrient cycles belowground. What remains elusive is to what extent associated changes in root-soil interactions may mobilize the vast pool of organic matter (OM) that has been stabilized by associations with minerals for centuries or millennia. Although plant root-driven OM mobilization from minerals may be a central control on carbon loss and nutrient export, such mechanisms are currently missing from conceptual and numerical models. The overall objective of this Exploratory Project is to identify the biogeochemical mechanisms by which roots destabilize mineral-associated organic matter (MAOM) and the cumulative impact on carbon and nutrient fate. To accomplish this goal, we integrated well-controlled laboratory experiments with in-field measurements and a scalable modeling approach. First, we conducted model system experiments to assess the vulnerability of MAOM to exudate-mediated mechanisms. Our results show that common root exudates effectively destabilize MAOM not only through direct, ligand-driven mobilization mechanisms, but also indirect, microbially-mediated mechanisms relying on secondary metabolites and enzymes. We further found that OM bound to poorly crystalline Fe and Al (hydr)oxides is more vulnerable to exudate-induced destabilization than OM bound to more crystalline phases, particularly in response to direct, ligand-promoted mechanisms. These findings demonstrate that the stability of MAOM is not just a function of their inherent properties, but also will depend in large parts on the ability of plant roots and microbes to produce exudates capable of triggering suitable mobilization mechanisms. We further employed a well-controlled rhizobox approach, combining advanced microsensor and mass spectrometry techniques, to resolve spatiotemporal variations in the composition and availability of exudates along single growing roots of grasses. Our results show that the composition of functionally relevant exudate compounds varies at extremely short time scales, seemingly shifting from ligands such as aromatic acids around root tips to less reactive metabolites such as amino acids around mature root segments. These results suggest a prevalence of direct MAOM mobilization mechanisms around the root tip, while indirect MAOM mobilization strategies may dominate around more mature root segments. Additionally, we utilized microsensor measurements in rhizoboxes to parameterize a rhizosphere (hydro)biogeochemistry reactive transport model (eSTOMP-ROOTS). The resulting model was used to assess how root exudations affects the stability of MAOM. Model simulations show that diel pulses of root exudation are strong enough to cause oscillations in biogeochemical conditions—particularly in pH, oxygen concentrations, and microbial activity— that repeatedly disrupt MAOM. Finally, we assessed field-scale impacts of root-driven MAOM destabilization over short and long time scales. A combination of in-field incubations and field-based characterizations showed that MAOM may not only be vulnerable to seasonal variations in root activity, but also to root-driven weathering over pedogenic time scales. In sum, results from our Exploratory Award highlight the strong control plant roots exert on MAOM mobilization and, thus, on the potential for carbon and nutrient export from watersheds.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Pathway to Zero Energy Windows: Advancing Technologies and Market Adoption

As of 2021, buildings account for 39.1% of total U.S. primary energy use and 75% of total U.S. electricity use. Much of this energy is used to maintain a comfortable indoor environment. The building envelope consists of transparent and opaque elements that serve as a controllable barrier to help maintain the indoor environment regardless of external conditions. The envelope also allows the exchange of light and air, as well as other transfers with the external environment when it is beneficial for the building occupants. By leveraging desirable external environmental conditions (e.g., fresh air and natural light) and mitigating the influence of undesirable conditions (e.g., moisture, hot or cold temperatures, wind), the building envelope can reduce the need for space conditioning and electric light, and thus reduce energy use associated with lighting and heating, cooling, and ventilation equipment. In turn, high-performance building envelopes can reduce the substantial CO 2 emissions associated with energy use to satisfy heating, cooling, and lighting needs in buildings. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Building Technologies Office's (BTO's) Emerging Technologies program supports R&D for technologies, systems, and software tools that can contribute to reductions in building energy use. Emerging Technologies funding is distributed competitively through solicitations (e.g., Funding Opportunity Announcements and National Lab Calls, which in general are open to applications from industry, academia, national laboratories, and other entities) and other mechanisms. This document focuses on R&D for windows and window system technologies and will provide guidance for BTO's investments in developing the next generation of high-performance, affordable, cost competitive windows, as well as integrated daylighting and shading technologies in partnership with industry and researchers. This document also addresses areas where DOE invests in software and design tools that translate sophisticated and complex physics into easy-to-use energy performance and optimization methods used by industry and other stakeholders for implementation.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

Expanding Solar Research and Generation for a Bright Energy Future (Final Technical Report)

This project supported the construction of an outdoor solar research facility for the primary purpose of characterizing panel and system lifetimes in the northern New England climate which features cold winters and warm, humid summers. The facility is designed to be integrated into future efforts to explore the impacts of the New England climate on energy storage and grid integration, as well as methods to mitigate factors like snow and dust coverage in the industrial and agricultural environment of the Intervale farming community and the McNeil wood-fired power generating station. It will provide year-round renewable energy research opportunities for faculty and students. As renewable energy generation and storage have become research priorities for UVM, for the state of Vermont, and for the United States as a whole, this facility will benefit the public on a broad range of scales.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

Consequence Management Cobalt Magnet 2022 Laboratory Analysis: After Action Report

On May 16-20, 2022, federal mission partners (e.g., DOE Consequence Management, CDC, FDA, FBI, DHS) as well as integrated state, local, tribal, and territorial governments took part in Cobalt Magnet 22 (CM22), a large-scale, week-long radiological incident exercise in Austin, Texas, that linked several important national assets (National Search Program, Radiological Assistance Program, and Consequence Management [CM] personnel) into a single response effort. The exercise had nine (9) overarching Objectives and an additional 162 associated Critical Tasks for all the participating organizations. In total, 13 National Core Capabilities spanning 5 Mission Areas were represented in the final exercise. This exercise enabled a full range of capabilities to be fielded together and examine the operational connection between major assets, discover any resource shortages associated with conducting multiple mission areas simultaneously or in close succession, and identify any challenges related to leadership. This report summarizes nearly 100 successes and observations provided from players and controllers supporting the LA Division, Fly Away Laboratory (FAL) and Gamma Spectroscopist operations. The observations were categorized to align with the FRMAC programmatic functional areas to consider for future improvements: Logistics, CBRN Responder, Laboratory Analysis, Sampling and Monitoring, Health and Safety, Gamma Spectroscopist Operations, Fly Away Laboratory, and the FRMAC Interdivision Interoperability Group (FIIG).

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Exact Timestep for a Pairwise Coulomb Collision

Standard numerical integrators work well for many-body Coulomb repulsion problems when the timestep is much shorter than the timescale of relative position changes. However, for ‘hard’ collisions in which two particles have a near miss and exchange a lot of momentum within one timestep, they understandably struggle. This note proposes using the exact solution of Keplerian two-body orbits (usually hyperbolic) to calculate the momentum exchange with other particles: either a selection of the ‘closest’ ones or all of them.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗

Self-Healing Cements with Improved Toughness at Casing and Formation Interfaces for Subsurface Applications (CRADA 530)

Over the three-year CRADA, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) advanced a new class of Molecular Velcro™ self-healing wellbore cements designed to improve the long-term integrity of wells used for geothermal energy production and carbon storage. Conventional wellbore cement can crack due to repeated mechanical loading, temperature swings, and exposure to aggressive subsurface fluids. Once cracks form, they can create leakage pathways, drive expensive remediation (“workovers”), and in extreme cases shorten well life. This project addressed that problem by developing polymer-modified cement systems that can autonomously re-seal cracks and better tolerate the extreme conditions experienced in subsurface wells, while remaining compatible with practical cementing operations.

15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY↗

Porewater Geochemical Assessment of Seismic Indications for Gas Hydrate Presence and Absence: Mahia Slope, East of New Zealand’s North Island

We compare sediment vertical methane flux off the Mahia Peninsula, on the Hikurangi Margin, east of New Zealand’s North Island, with a combination of geochemical, multichannel seismic and sub-bottom profiler data. Stable carbon isotope data provided an overview of methane contributions to shallow sediment carbon pools. Methane varied considerably in concentration and vertical flux across stations in close proximities. At two Mahia transects, methane profiles correlated well with integrated seismic and TOPAS data for predicting vertical methane migration rates from deep to shallow sediment. However, at our “control site”, where no seismic blanking or indications of vertical gas migration were observed, geochemical data were similar to the two Mahia transect lines. This apparent mismatch between seismic and geochemistry data suggests a potential to underestimate gas hydrate volumes based on standard seismic data interpretations. To accurately assess global gas hydrate deposits, multiple approaches for initial assessment, e.g., seismic data interpretation, heatflow profiling and controlled-source electromagnetics, should be compared to geochemical sediment and porewater profiles. A more thorough data matrix will provide better accuracy in gas hydrate volume for modeling climate change and potential available energy content.

03 NATURAL GAS↗

Recent developments and applications of the SEC vidicon for astronomy

The engineering development of the SEC vidicon as an astronomical sensor has continued in parallel with its operational use. One scientific application was the six hour exposure of the quasar PHL-957 at the Coude spectrograph of the 200-inch Hale telescope. The developmental effort includes both the enhancement of the basic attributes that make the SEC an appropriate sensor, namely, high quantum efficiency, low threshold, and long integration; as well as work to broaden its scientific usefulness, such as the development of a MgF2 photocathode window for vacuum ultraviolet sensitivity, and a permanent magnet focus design for thermal compatibility with proposed large space telescopes. Additional details on the characteristics of the SEC tube are discussed, as well as plans to make a larger and higher resolution version.

Zucchino, P.↗

IBM system/360 assembly language interval arithmetic software

Computer software designed to perform interval arithmetic is described. An interval is defined as the set of all real numbers between two given numbers including or excluding one or both endpoints. Interval arithmetic consists of the various elementary arithmetic operations defined on the set of all intervals, such as interval addition, subtraction, union, etc. One of the main applications of interval arithmetic is in the area of error analysis of computer calculations. For example, it has been used sucessfully to compute bounds on sounding errors in the solution of linear algebraic systems, error bounds in numerical solutions of ordinary differential equations, as well as integral equations and boundary value problems. The described software enables users to implement algorithms of the type described in references efficiently on the IBM 360 system.

Phillips, E. J.↗

Description and calibration of the Langley 6- by 19-inch transonic tunnel

A description and calibration is presented of the Langley 6- by 19-inch transonic tunnel which is a two-dimensional facility with top and bottom slotted walls used for testing two-dimensional airfoil sections. Basic tunnel-empty Mach number distributions and schlieren flow photographs as well as integrated normal-force coefficients, pitching-moment coefficients, surface-pressure distributions, and schlieren flow photographs of an NACA 0012 airfoil calibration model are presented. The Mach number capability of the facility is from 0.5 to about 1.1 with a corresponding Reynolds number range of 1.5 million to 3 million based on a 4.0-in. model chord. Comparisons of experimental results from the tests with previous data are also presented.

Ladson, C. L.↗

Aeroflight communications and RF navaids

The principal operational requirements of the Space Shuttle Program concept of a low cost reliable and reusable orbital vehicle are outlined, and the aerial navigation and landing systems selected for the vehicle are discussed, along with their interfaces with the control and navigation systems. It is shown how the atmospheric flight systems were developed by adapting well-proven designs to a new application. Design improvements were held to a minimum, with no new concepts or extensive modifications required that might compromise previous system experience or qualification status. Newest concepts, such as digital designs, serial digital control, etc., as well as integration of software and hardware were accomplished to control and manage time critical processes, such as BIT and redundancy management. Appropriate planning and careful appraisals preceeded the selection of a system.-

Lilly, D. S.↗

Active spacecraft potential control system selection for the Jupiter orbiter with probe mission

It is shown that the high flux of energetic plasma electrons and the reduced photoemission rate in the Jovian environment can result in the spacecraft developing a large negative potential. The effects of the electric fields produced by this charging phenomenon are discussed in terms of spacecraft integrity as well as charged particle and fields measurements. The primary area of concern is shown to be the interaction of the electric fields with the measuring devices on the spacecraft. The need for controlling the potential of the spacecraft is identified, and a system capable of active control of the spacecraft potential in the Jupiter environment is proposed. The desirability of using this system to vary the spacecraft potential relative to the ambient plasma potential is also discussed. Various charged particle release devices are identified as potential candidates for use with the spacecraft potential control system. These devices are evaluated and compared on the basis of system mass, power consumption, and system complexity and reliability.

Beattie, J. R.↗