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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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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2022

Performance Targets for Perovskite Photovoltaic Research, Development, and Demonstration Programs

On October 15, 2021, the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) released the Performance Targets for Perovskite Photovoltaic Research, Development, and Demonstration Programs Request for Information (RFI) for public response and comment. The RFI sought feedback from industry, academia, research laboratories, government agencies, and other stakeholders on efficiency, stability and replicability performance targets for perovskite (PVSK) photovoltaic devices that could be utilized to align community efforts, ensure relevance of potential future funding programs, and accelerate technical and commercial development and de-risking of perovskite technologies. The RFI included the following proposed target matrix for power conversion efficiency (PCE), area, stability, and sample sizes, and included questions on relevance, completeness, and challenges.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
NASA NTRS2005

Lighting the Way for Quicker, Safer Healing

Who's to say that a little light can t go a long way? Tiny light-emitting diode (LED) chips used to grow plants in space are lighting the way for cancer treatment, wound healing, and chronic pain alleviation on Earth. In 1993, Quantum Devices, Inc. (QDI), of Barneveld, Wisconsin, began developing the HEALS (High Emissivity Aluminiferous Light-emitting Substrate) technology to provide high-intensity, solid-state LED lighting systems for NASA Space Shuttle plant growth experiments. The company evolved out of cooperative efforts with the Wisconsin Center for Space Automation and Robotics (WCSAR) at the University of Wisconsin-Madison a NASA center for the Commercial Development of Space. Ronald W. Ignatius, QDI s president and chairman, represented one of WCSAR s industrial partners at the time. WCSAR was conducting research on light sources for promoting food growth within closed environments where humans would be present for a long duration, such as the Space Shuttle and the International Space Station. With the support of WCSAR, Ignatius experimented with LEDs, which provide high-energy efficiency and virtually no heat, despite releasing waves of light 10 times brighter than the Sun. Ignatius admits that some scientists involved in the project were skeptical at first, thinking that the idea of using LEDs to promote plant growth was far-fetched. The experiments, however, demonstrated that red LED wavelengths could boost the energy metabolism of cells to advance plant growth and photosynthesis. This finding prompted Ignatius to develop a line of LED products that emit the exact wavelength of light that plants use in photosynthesis. Our company gives credit to Dr. Ray Bula, the director of WCSAR, for having the foresight to go against the prevailing dogma of the time and design the first plant experiment using monochromatic light to grow lettuce plants, Ignatius proclaims. In 1989, Ignatius formed QDI to bring the salt grain-sized LEDs to market, and in October 1995, the light sources made their Space Shuttle flight debut on the second U.S. Microgravity Laboratory Spacelab mission (STS-73, Columbia)

Source record↗
NASA NTRS2011

Next Generation X-Ray Optics: High-Resolution, Light-Weight, and Low-Cost

X-ray telescopes are essential to the future of x-ray astronomy. This paper describes a comprehensive program to advance the technology for x-ray telescopes well beyond the state of the art represented by the three currently operating missions: Chandra, XMM-Newton , and Suzaku . This program will address the three key issues in making an x-ray telescope: (I) angular resolution, (2) effective area per unit mass, and (3) cost per unit effective area. The objectives of this technology program are (1) in the near term, to enable Explorer-class x-ray missions and an IXO type mission, and (2) in the long term, to enable a flagship x-ray mission with sub-arcsecond angular resolution and multi-square-meter effective area, at an affordable cost. We pursue two approaches concurrently, emphasizing the first approach in the near term (2-5 years) and the second in the long term (4-10 years). The first approach is precision slumping of borosilicate glass sheets. By design and choice at the outset, this technique makes lightweight and low-cost mirrors. The development program will continue to improve angular resolution, to enable the production of 5-arcsecond x-ray telescopes, to support Explorer-class missions and one or more missions to supersede the original IXO mission. The second approach is precision polishing and light-weighting of single-crystal silicon mirrors. This approach benefits from two recent commercial developments: (1) the inexpensive and abundant availability of large blocks of mono crystalline silicon, and (2) revolutionary advances in deterministic, precision polishing of mirrors. By design and choice at the outset, this technique is capable of producing lightweight mirrors with sub-arcsecond angular resolution. The development program will increase the efficiency and reduce the cost of the polishing and the lightweighting processes, to enable the production of lightweight sub-arcsecond x-ray telescopes. Concurrent with the fabrication of lightweight mirror segments is the continued development and perfection of alignment and integration techniques, for incorporating individual mirror segments into a precision mirror assembly. Recently, we have been developing a technique called edge-bonding, which has achieved an accuracy to enable 10- arcsecond x-ray telescopes. Currently, we are investigating and improving the long-term alignment stability of so-bonded mirrors. Next, we shall refine this process to enable 5-arsecond x-ray telescopes. This technology development program includes all elements to demonstrate progress toward TRL-6: metrology; x-ray performance tests; coupled structural, thermal, and optical performance analysis, and environmental testing.

Zhang, William W.↗
NASA NTRS2012

Next Generation X-Ray Optics: High-Resolution, Light-Weight, and Low-Cost

X-ray telescopes are essential to the future of x-ray astronomy. In this talk I will describe a comprehensive program to advance the technology for x-ray telescopes well beyond the state of the art represented by the three currently operating missions: Chandra, XMM-Newton, and Suzaku. This program will address the three key issues in making an x-ray telescope: (1) angular resolution, (2) effective area per unit mass, and (3) cost per unit effective area. The objectives of this technology program are (1) in the near term, to enable Explorer-class x-ray missions and an IXO-type mission, and (2) in the long term, to enable a flagship x-ray mission with sub-arcsecond angular resolution and multi-square-meter effective area, at an affordable cost. We pursue two approaches concurrently, emphasizing the first approach in the near term (2-5 years) and the second in the long term (4-10 years). The first approach is precision slumping of borosilicate glass sheets. By design and choice at the outset, this technique makes lightweight and low-cost mirrors. The development program will continue to improve angular resolution, to enable the production of 5-arcsecond x-ray telescopes, to support Explorer-class missions and one or more missions to supersede the original IXO mission. The second approach is precision polishing and light-weighting of single-crystal silicon mirrors. This approach benefits from two recent commercial developments: (1) the inexpensive and abundant availability of large blocks of monocrystalline silicon, and (2) revolutionary advances in deterministic, precision polishing of mirrors. By design and choice at the outset, this technique is capable of producing lightweight mirrors with sub-arcsecond angular resolution. The development program will increase the efficiency and reduce the cost of the polishing and the light-weighting processes, to enable the production of lightweight sub-arcsecond x-ray telescopes. Concurrent with the fabrication of lightweight mirror segments is the continued development and perfection of alignment and integration techniques, for incorporating individual mirror segments into a precision mirror assembly. Recently, we have been developing a technique called edge-bonding, which has achieved an accuracy to enable 10-arcsecond x-ray telescopes. Currently, we are investigating and improving the long-term alignment stability of so-bonded mirrors. Next, we shall refine this process to enable 5-arsecond x-ray telescopes. This technology development program includes all elements to demonstrate progress toward TRL-6: metrology; x-ray performance tests; coupled structural, thermal, and optical performance analysis, and environmental testing.

Zhang, William W.↗
NASA NTRS1995

The Fundamentals of Using the Digital Micromirror Device (DMD(TM)) for Projection Display

Developed by Texas Instruments (TI) the digital micromirror device (DMD(tm)) is a quickly emerging and highly useful micro-electro-mechanical structures (MEMS) device. Using standard semiconductor fabrication technology, the DMD's simplicity in concept and design will provide advantageous solutions for many different applications. At the rudimentary level, the DMD is a precision, semiconductor light switch. In the initial commercial development of DMD technology, TI has concentrated on projection display and hardcopy. This paper will focus on how the DMD is used for projection display. Other application areas are being explored and evaluated to find appropriate and beneficial uses for the DMD.

Yoder, Lars A.↗
NASA NTRS2005

Identifying Objects via Encased X-Ray-Fluorescent Materials - the Bar Code Inside

Systems for identifying objects by means of x-ray fluorescence (XRF) of encased labeling elements have been developed. The XRF spectra of objects so labeled would be analogous to the external bar code labels now used to track objects in everyday commerce. In conjunction with computer-based tracking systems, databases, and labeling conventions, the XRF labels could be used in essentially the same manner as that of bar codes to track inventories and to record and process commercial transactions. In addition, as summarized briefly below, embedded XRF labels could be used to verify the authenticity of products, thereby helping to deter counterfeiting and fraud. A system, as described above, is called an encased core product identification and authentication system (ECPIAS). The ECPIAS concept is a modified version of that of a related recently initiated commercial development of handheld XRF spectral scanners that would identify alloys or detect labeling elements deposited on the surfaces of objects. In contrast, an ECPIAS would utilize labeling elements encased within the objects of interest. The basic ECPIAS concept is best illustrated by means of an example of one of several potential applications: labeling of cultured pearls by labeling the seed particles implanted in oysters to grow the pearls. Each pearl farmer would be assigned a unique mixture of labeling elements that could be distinguished from the corresponding mixtures of other farmers. The mixture would be either incorporated into or applied to the surfaces of the seed prior to implantation in the oyster. If necessary, the labeled seed would be further coated to make it nontoxic to the oyster. After implantation, the growth of layers of mother of pearl on the seed would encase the XRF labels, making these labels integral, permanent parts of the pearls that could not be removed without destroying the pearls themselves. The XRF labels would be read by use of XRF scanners, the spectral data outputs of which would be converted to alphanumeric data in a digital equivalent data system (DEDS), which is the subject of the previous article. These alphanumeric data would be used to track the pearls through all stages of commerce, from the farmer to the retail customer.

Schramm, Harry F.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Proceedings of the Second Annual Symposium on Industrial Involvement and Successes in Commercial Space

The proceedings of the conference are presented. It is proposed that commercial development in space is an important element in the future competitive posture of the industrial nations of the world. The resources and characteristics of space will play a major role in opening a new economic frontier for all the spacefaring nations of the world. Some topics of discussion are as follow: NASA's mission and the role of CCD's; A balanced commercial access to space; Systems for COMET; SPACEHAB; Space Station Freedom; The center for macromolecular crystallography; Center for space power and advanced electronics; and The center for mapping.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS2001

NASA's Spaceliner Investment Area Technology Activities

NASA's has established long term goals for access-to-space. The third generation launch systems are to be fully reusable and operational around 2025. The goals for the third generation launch system are to significantly reduce cost and improve safety over current conditions. The Advanced Space Transportation Program Office (ASTP) at the NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, AL has the agency lead to develop space transportation technologies. Within ASTP, under the Spaceliner Investment Area, third generation technologies are being pursued in the areas of propulsion, airframes, integrated vehicle health management (IVHM), avionics, power, operations, and range. The ASTP program will mature these technologies through both ground and flight system testing. The Spaceliner Investment Area plans to mature vehicle technologies to reduce the implementation risks for future commercially developed reusable launch vehicles (RLV). The plan is to substantially increase the design and operating margins of the third generation RLV (the Space Shuttle is the first generation) by incorporating advanced technologies in propulsion, materials, structures, thermal protection systems, avionics, and power. Advancements in design tools and better characterization of the operational environment will allow improvements in design margins. Improvements in operational efficiencies will be provided through use of advanced integrated health management, operations, and range technologies. The increase in margins will allow components to operate well below their design points resulting in improved component operating life, reliability, and safety which in turn reduces both maintenance and refurbishment costs. These technologies have the potential of enabling horizontal takeoff by reducing the takeoff weight and achieving the goal of airline-like operation. These factors in conjunction with increased flight rates from an expanding market will result in significant improvements in safety and reductions in operational costs of future vehicles. The paper describes current status, future plans and technologies that are being matured by the Spaceliner Investment Area under the Advanced Space Transportation Program Office.

Hueter, Uwe↗
NASA NTRS2003

NASA's Management and Utilization of the Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) Program

The United Space Congress established the SBIR program in 1982 for the following purposes: ( 1) Stimulate technological innovation (2) Increase private-sector commercialization derived from federal R&D (3) Use small business to meet federal R&D needs (4) Foster and encourage participation by disadvantaged persons and women in technological innovation The STTR program was established in 1992 with the additional requirement of having a small business partner with a research institution (usually a university) for the purpose of transferring intellectual property from the research institution to the small business concern for enabling a government technical need and furthering the technological development for the purpose of developing commercial products. The government of Japan has established a program that models portions of the U.S. SBIR and STTR programs. They are very interested in how NASA has been so successful in fulfilling the Congressional objectives of these programs. In particular, they want to understand the management practices and incentives that are provided to enable partnerships between business enterprises, academia and government. The speech will also focus on some of the many successful technologies (on a conceptual level) that have been developed through NASA s SBIR and STTR programs and mechanisms used to promote cooperation between small businesses, large businesses, academia and government agencies within the United States. The speech is on a conceptual level, focusing on U.S. and NASA policies and management implementation practices. No enabling technical discussion will be held.

Mexcur, Winfield Paul↗
NASA NTRS1987

Second AIAA/NASA USAF Symposium on Automation, Robotics and Advanced Computing for the National Space Program

An introduction is given to NASA goals in the development of automation (expert systems) and robotics technologies in the Space Station program. Artificial intelligence (AI) has been identified as a means to lowering ground support costs. Telerobotics will enhance space assembly, servicing and repair capabilities, and will be used for an estimated half of the necessary EVA tasks. The general principles guiding NASA in the design, development, ground-testing, interactions with industry and construction of the Space Station component systems are summarized. The telerobotics program has progressed to a point where a telerobot servicer is a firm component of the first Space Station element launch, to support assembly, maintenance and servicing of the Station. The University of Wisconsin has been selected for the establishment of a Center for the Commercial Development of Space, specializing in space automation and robotics.

Myers, Dale↗
NASA NTRS2000

ISRU: An Overview of NASA'S Current Development Activities and Long-Term Goals

The concept of "living off the land" by utilizing the indigenous resources of the Moon, Mars, or other potential sites of robotic and human exploration has been termed In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU). It is fundamental to any program of extended human presence and operation on other extraterrestrial bodies that we learn how to utilize the indigenous resources. The chief benefits of ISRU are that it can reduce the mass, cost, and risk of robotic and human exploration while providing capabilities that enable the commercial development of space. In January 1997, the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) Space Processing Technical Committee released a position paper entitled, "Need for A NASA Indigenous Space Resource Utilization (ISRU) Program". Besides outlining some of the potential advantages of incorporating ISRU into Lunar and Mars human mission plans and providing an overview of technologies and processes of interest, the position paper concluded with a list of seven recommendations to NASA. This paper will examine the seven recommendations proposed and provide an overview of NASA's current ISRU development activities and possible long term goals with respect to these recommendations.

Sanders, Gerald B.↗
NASA NTRS2004

Computational Ion Optics Design Evaluations

Ion optics computational models are invaluable tools in the design of ion optics systems. In this study a new computational model developed by an outside vendor for use at the NASA Glenn Research Center (GRC) is presented. This computational model is a gun code that has been modified to model the plasma sheaths both upstream and downstream of the ion optics. The model handles multiple species (e.g. singly and doubly-charged ions) and includes a charge-exchange model to support erosion estimations. The model uses commercially developed solid design and meshing software to allow high flexibility in ion optics geometric configurations. The results from this computational model are applied to the NEXT project to investigate the effects of crossover impingement erosion seen during the 2000-hour wear test.

Malone, Shane P.↗
DOE OSTI2026

Testing and Validation of Wireless Communication Architecture for Heliostat Fields: SIPS Final Report

This work focuses on the development and testing of a low-cost wireless communication system for heliostat fields, enabling significant capital costs reductions for concentrating solar thermal systems. Outputs of this work include a working demonstration of a multi-node communication system, clear reporting of system performance, and technical documentation of system development and architecture for reproducibility. Through this process, an open-source repository was created for manufacturing hardware at ~$30/heliostat. The system includes software for cybersecurity, achieving sub-second communication latencies and derisking of hardware for eventual scale-up to tens of thousands of heliostats. While the system is not currently off-the-shelf ready, there is now a clearly defined pathway for scaling up and completing the commercial development process.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
NASA NTRS2001

Technology Development for Human Exploration Beyond LEO in the New Millennium IAA-13-3 Strategies and Plans for Human Mars Missions

As we look forward into the new millennium, the extension of human presence beyond Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) looms large in the plans of NASA. The Agency's Strategic Plan specifically calls out the need to identify and develop technologies for 100 and 1000-day class missions beyond LEO. To meet the challenge of these extended duration missions, it is important that we learn how to utilize the indigenous resources available to us on extraterrestrial bodies. This concept, known as In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) can greatly reduce the launch mass & cost of human missions while reducing the risk. These technologies may also pave the way for the commercial development of space. While no specific target beyond LEO is identified in NASA's Strategic Plan, mission architecture studies have been on-going for the Moon, Mars, Near-Earth Asteroids and Earth/Moon & Earth/Sun Libration Points. As a result of these studies, the NASA Office of Space Flight (Code M) through the Johnson and Kennedy Space Centers, is leading the effort to develop ISRU technologies and systems to meet the current and future needs of human missions beyond LEO and on to Mars. This effort also receives support from the NASA Office of Biological and Physical Research (Code U), the Office of Space Science (Code S), and the Office of Aerospace Technology (Code R). This paper will present unique developments in the area of fuel and oxidizer production, breathing air production, water production, C02 collection, separation of atmospheric gases, and gas liquefaction and storage. A technology overview will be provided for each topic along with the results achieved to date, future development plans, and the mission architectures that these technologies support.

Larson, William E.↗
NASA NTRS2011

Enabling Future Robotic Missions with Multicore Processors

Recent commercial developments in multicore processors (e.g. Tilera, Clearspeed, HyperX) have provided an option for high performance embedded computing that rivals the performance attainable with FPGA-based reconfigurable computing architectures. Furthermore, these processors offer more straightforward and streamlined application development by allowing the use of conventional programming languages and software tools in lieu of hardware design languages such as VHDL and Verilog. With these advantages, multicore processors can significantly enhance the capabilities of future robotic space missions. This paper will discuss these benefits, along with onboard processing applications where multicore processing can offer advantages over existing or competing approaches. This paper will also discuss the key artchitecural features of current commercial multicore processors. In comparison to the current art, the features and advancements necessary for spaceflight multicore processors will be identified. These include power reduction, radiation hardening, inherent fault tolerance, and support for common spacecraft bus interfaces. Lastly, this paper will explore how multicore processors might evolve with advances in electronics technology and how avionics architectures might evolve once multicore processors are inserted into NASA robotic spacecraft.

multi-core processor↗
DOE OSTI2024

Advances on CHP District Energy and Microgrids Deployment: Simplified Tool for Rapidly Deploying Feasibility Analytics for the Non-Technical User (Final Technical Report)

Community energy systems have proven to have the potential to improve cost efficiency, resilience, and decarbonize. However, investing in community energy systems such as community microgrids or district energy systems is a complex decision due to the high initial investment and the uncertainties associated with the long development time and lifecycle of the project. Tools that make feasibility assessments accessible to non-technical users like investors, policymakers, and other stakeholders will result in more feasibility analyses completed, more candidate projects identified, and more community energy systems deployed. The pilot tool developed under this award is named Energy Fellow. Energy Fellow allows technical and non-technical users to complete feasibility analyses for district energy systems and community microgrids. This is the first software tool of its kind designed for non-technical users and available at no cost. Its scope was adjusted to a 25x25-mile region within the Houston area in Texas to make its development compatible with the funding available. However, the findings and models developed make this pilot tool easily scalable to the US. The lessons learned during the design, implementation, and testing stages have helped find trade-off solutions to software and hardware challenges related to implementing 3D models in online tools. Green software strategies has been successfully applied to the design and operations of the tool, and the team has researched the aspects of the (non-technical) user experience that will make commercial developments of this tool even more impactful.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
NASA NTRS2015

In-Space Manufacturing: Pioneering a Sustainable Path to Mars

ISM is responsible for developing the on-demand manufacturing capabilities that will be required for affordable, sustainable operations during Exploration Missions (in-transit and on-surface) to destinations such as Mars. This includes advancing the needed technologies, as well as establishing the skills & processes (such as certification and characterization) that will enable the technologies to go from novel to institutionalized. These technologies are evolving rapidly due to terrestrial markets. ISM is leveraging this commercial development to develop these capabilities within a realistic timeframe and budget. ISM utilizes the International Space Station (ISS) as a test-bed to adapt these technologies for microgravity operations and evolve the current operations mindset from earth-reliant to earth-independent.

Werkheiser, Niki↗
DOE OSTI2025

A Microreactor Program Plan for The Department of Energy

The DOE Microreactor Program was established in FY 2019 to support research and development (R&D) of technologies related to the development, demonstration, and deployment of low-power, transportable reactors to provide power and heat for decentralized generation in civilian, industrial, and defense energy sectors. The program conducts both fundamental and applied R&D to de-risk technology performance and manufacturability readiness of microreactors. R&D projects and work packages are selected to support concept-neutral technology maturation. The intent is to ensure those concepts can be licensed and deployed by commercial entities to meet specific use case requirements. At the same time, the program will also support R&D specific to certain reactor technology groups (e.g., heat pipe reactors and gas-cooled reactors) to ensure relevancy and address the technology needs of commercial developers. The program will ensure coordination of work and activities across participating laboratories and universities, establish, and manage stakeholder interactions, and support program meetings. These stakeholders include, but are not limited to, industry developers, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the Department of Energy, policymakers, and end users. This document provides an overview of the overall Microreactor Program, including its vision, key technical objectives, and scope of the current and proposed R&D portfolio. It covers a 5-year rolling currently from Fiscal year 2025 through Fiscal year 2030. This document will be revised at least biennially to reflect changing priorities.

99 - GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗