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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 217 records · Page 12

Thermal-Hydraulic Performance of a Zeotropic Refrigerant in a Brazed Plate Evaporator

In this work we report the results of a preliminary investigation focused on evaluating the thermal-hydraulic performance of R455A (CO2, R32, R1234yf – 3/21.5/75.5) in a commercial brazed plate heat exchanger. Three key parameters were measured which were refrigerant flow maldistribution, overall refrigerant side heat transfer coefficient, and total refrigerant side pressure drop. These same parameters were also measured for R134a which served as a base-line refrigerant for comparison. The experimental test matrix was set up to investigate the influence of refrigerant mass flux (3 ≤ Gref ≤ 5 kg m-2 s-1), refrigerant inlet vapor quality (0.1 ≤ xin ≤ 0.4), and refrigerant exit superheat (5 ≤ Tsh ≤ 10 K) on the above mentioned thermal-hydraulic parameters. For these experimental conditions, on average, the overall refrigerant side heat transfer coefficients for R455A were 45.2% lower than those of R134a. Refrigerant flow maldistribution for R455A, on average, was observed to be 62.6 % higher than that measured for R134a, and the total pressure drop across the heat exchanger (minor and frictional losses) for R455A was on average 26.5% higher than that measured for R134a. These initial results set the stage for a comprehensive investigation focused on further investigating the thermal-hydraulic performance of zeotropic refrigerants in brazed plate heat exchangers.

Jajja, Saad [ORNL]↗

Experimental Investigation of Microstructure and Phase Transitions in Ag-Cu-Zn Brazing Alloys

Microstructure and phase transitions of selected brazing alloys from the Ag-Cu-Zn ternary system were investigated. Four ternary alloys with silver content in the compositional range from 25 to 60 wt.% were studied using x-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy coupled with the energy-dispersive spectroscopy (SEM–EDS). Phase transitions of the investigated alloys were measured using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Experimentally obtained results were compared with the results of a thermodynamic calculation of the phase equilibria according to the CALPHAD method. The experiments confirmed the optimized thermodynamic parameters for the calculations from the thermodynamic assessment in literature. Phase compositions, liquidus and solidus temperatures were confirmed by the EDS and DTA methods. Additionally, the calculated solidification paths and predicted phase transformations were in agreement with the SEM images.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Laser Brazing Characteristics of Al to Brass with Zn-Based Filler

Laser brazing of Al to brass in lap configuration with Zn-based filler was performed in this work. The process parameters including laser power, defocused distance were found to have a significant influence on appearance, microstructure and mechanical properties. The process parameters were optimized to be laser power of 2700 W and defocusing distance of + 40 mm from brass surface. In addition, preheating exerted great influence on wetting and spreading ability of Zn filler on brass surface. The microstructure observation showed the thickness of reaction layer (CuZn phase) at the interface of the brass side would grow with the increase in laser power and the decrease in the laser defocusing distance. Moreover, preheating could increase the spreading area of the filler metal and induced the growth of the reaction layer. The highest tensile–shear load of the joint could reach 2100 N, which was 80% of that of Al alloy base metal. All the joints fractured along the CuZn reaction layer and brass interface. The fracture morphology displayed the characteristics of the cleavage fracture when without preheating before welding, while it displayed the characteristics of the quasi-cleavage fracture with preheating before welding.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Pulsed TIG Welding–Brazing of Aluminum–Stainless Steel with an Al-Cu Twin Hot Wire

A TIG welding–brazing process with a twin aluminum hot wire technique was utilized to control the heat input, improve the joint formation, suppress the interfacial intermetallic compounds (IMCs) and increase the joint strength, thereby creating reliable joints between an aluminum alloy and stainless steel with an ER2319 filler. Twin wires with reasonable diameters and filling modes led to a satisfactory weld of parent metals with varying thicknesses. By the hot wire technique, the reasonable range of the welding current was extended and the thickness of the interfacial IMC at the seam bottom was reduced. In addition, both the tensile strength and stability of the joints increased compared with a cold wire. The IMC consisted of θ-(Fe,Cu){sub 4}Al{sub 13} and minor Cr{sub 0.7}Fe{sub 0.3}Al{sub 6}, and the precipitated phases in the weld were Al{sub 2}Cu and Al{sub 2}CuMg. With an increasing welding current, the IMC thickness significantly increased, while the joint strength decreased. The fracture positions of the joints varied with the corresponding welding currents.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Improvement of Al/Steel Tungsten Inert Gas Welding–Brazing Joint by High-Energy Shot Peening

High-energy shot peening treatment was applied to improve the Al/steel tungsten inert gas welding–brazing lap joint. The mechanical properties and microstructure evolution of the joint were investigated. Results showed that the mechanical properties of weld were evidently reinforced due to microstructure transformation of joint surface layer. The grain structure in the joint surface layer was distorted and refined. Large compressive residual stress was introduced into the joint surface, and its hardness obviously increased due to strain hardening. When the peening pressure was 0.15 MPa, the tensile shear strength of the joint reached the maximum value (199.6 MPa), which was 16.5% higher than that of the as-welded joint.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Butt Laser Welding–Brazing of AZ31 Mg to Nickel-Coated Ti-6Al-4V

Mg and Ti alloy are hard to be bonded due to their huge discrepancy in physical and metallurgical characteristics. As an intermediate element, Ni is feasible for joining of Mg and Ti. The interfacial microstructure and mechanical properties of laser-welded–brazed AZ31 Mg/Ti-6Al-4V joints in butt configuration were investigated with different thicknesses of electrodeposited Ni interlayer. The interfacial reaction products evolved from an ultra-thin Ti{sub 3}Al layer to Ti{sub 2}Ni layer mingled with Ti{sub 3}Al, and more Mg{sub 3}AlNi{sub 2} compounds were produced in the fusion zone (FZ) as Ni coating thickness increased. Slag inclusions and cracks were observed in interfacial layer when coating thickness exceeded 2.5 μm. The quantity of Mg{sub 3}AlNi{sub 2} and the thickness of interfacial layer decreased from the top to bottom of groove of the same joint owing to high thermal gradient during laser welding. The chemical potential of Al and Ni indicated that Al-Ti reaction product was produced more easily than Ni-Ti in 0.001Mg-(Ni-Al-Ti) system. The thermodynamic calculation results of Gibbs free energy suggested the preferential formation Ti-Al phase and Ti-Ni phase along the interface while the Mg-Al-Ni ternary phase in the FZ. Fracture loads of joints increased first followed by a decline with the increase in coating thickness. The joint fractured at the Mg base metal, reaching a maximum value of 3900 N with the Ni coating thickness of 1.5 μm. In the case of using thinner or thicker Ni coating, crack propagated along the interface due to the insufficient metallurgical bonding or defects existed in the interfacial layer. The characteristic of fracture surface changed from the tear ridges and terraces to river pattern when interfacial failure occurred.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Corrosion and Tribocorrosion Behavior of Ti-B{sub 4}C Composites Joined with TiCuNi Brazing Alloy

Corrosion behavior of joined Ti-B{sub 4}C composites was evaluated in 9 g/L NaCl solution using cyclic polarization and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Tribocorrosion behavior was investigated by sliding against an alumina ball under open-circuit potential and potentiodynamic polarization. The results showed that joining did not negatively affect the corrosion behavior of the composites. Regarding tribocorrosion, while joining did not significantly influence the coefficient of friction and total wear volume loss, it resulted in slightly increased electrochemical activity under sliding. These results showed that brazing may be considered as a simple and low-cost technique for joining Ti-B{sub 4}C composites to be operated in tribocorrosive environments.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

High-Power Comparison Among Brazed, Clamped and Electroformed X-Band Cavities

We report the building procedure of X-band copper structures using the electroforming and electroplating techniques. These techniques allow the deposition of copper layers on a suitable die and they can be used to build RF structures avoiding the high temperature brazing step in the standard technique. We show the constructed prototypes and low power RF measurements and discuss the results of the high power tests at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗

Note: Magnification of a polarization angle with a Littrow layout brazed grating

A new method to magnify a small polarization angle with brazed gratings has been developed. In the method, difference in diffraction efficiency for S and P polarization components is used. The magnification dependence on the incident angle can be small by arranging the grating in Littrow layout. A magnification with a factor ∼2.7 has been demonstrated for a 10.6 μm CO{sub 2} laser beam as expected from a calculation. The method is applicable in many polarimetry fields.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

Innovative compact braze-free accelerating cavity

We report that high energy physics experiments using particle accelerators as well as industrial and medical applications are continuously seeking more compact, robust and cheaper accelerating structures. As of today, stable operating gradients, exceeding 100 MV/m, have been demonstrated by the SLAC group in the X-Band (11.424 GHz). These experiments show that hard structures, fabricated without high-temperature processes, achieve a better high gradient performance in terms of accelerating gradients. Therefore, we present an innovative and compact type of accelerating cavity that avoids any high-temperature processes like brazing or diffusion bonding. All cells are joined together by means of specifically designed and proprietary screws which ensure good vacuum and RF contacts. Two three-cell standing-wave accelerating structures, designed to operate in the pi-mode at 11.424 GHz, have been successfully built and cold tested. In order to guarantee a vacuum envelope and mechanically robust assembly, we used the Electron Beam Welding (EBW) and the Tungsten Inert Gas (TIG) processes. Lastly, this work has been carried out in the framework of a funded project by the Vth Committee of the INFN for the Laboratori Nazionali di Frascati (LNF), within a large international collaboration between LNF, SLAC and KEK for the development of X-Band accelerating cavities using "hard structure" technology.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗