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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
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2006

A Historical Search for the Occurrence of Habitable Ground Ice at the Phoenix Landing Site

A numerical model of the thermal history of Martian ground ice at the approximate location of the planned Phoenix landing site has been developed and used to identify instances of relatively warm ground ice over the last 10 Ma. Many terrestrial organisms are adapted to life at or below the freezing temperature of water, and we will use the approximate doubling time of terrestrial microbial populations as a function of temperature, is used as a metric against which to assess the "habitability" of Martian ground ice.

Zent, Aaron P.↗
DOE OSTI2024

US critical materials strategy: The importance of innovation in obtaining supply chain security

Critical raw materials (CRMs) and/or critical minerals and materials (CMMs) are metals, metal groups, and non-metallic minerals essential for the many modern technologies, including wind turbine, electric vehicles and energy storage systems. Different countries have slightly different metrics for determining criticality. However, broadly speaking, the European Union (EU) and United States (US)both define them as materials that reach or exceed thresholds for both economic importance and supply risk. Furthermore, both organizations have implemented instruments, such as the EU's 2024 Critical Raw Materials Act and the US Department of Energy's (DOE) Critical Minerals and Materials Strategy, to facilitate research and development of CRM/CMM ranging from mineral deposit development to geometallurgy to separations to advanced manufacturing. This talk is aimed at an EU audience to explain the DOE CMM strategy and how it compares to the steps taken by the EU to facilitate progress. Furthermore, this talk takes a geology-centric approach on the challenges geoscientists face and how their roles may change in the future.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS2018

NASA ESDIS Employs the Latest Generation Web Analytics Tool

Under the auspices of NASA's Earth Observing System Data and Information System (EOSDIS), The Earth Science Data and Information System (ESDIS) Project distributes science data to a wide community of users through its Distributed Active Archive Centers (DAACs). Much of this data is made available via interactive websites - which involve links, downloads, on page interaction, and referrals to additional online pages. To meet the earth science data and information needs of many data users representing numerous different science domains, over 80 specialized websites are supported by multiple distributed organizations under the ESDIS umbrella.

Web Metrics↗
NASA NTRS1973

Application of selected methods of remote sensing for detecting carbonaceous water pollution

A reach of the Houston Ship Channel was investigated during three separate overflights correlated with ground truth sampling on the Channel. Samples were analyzed for such conventional parameters as biochemical oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand, total organic carbon, total inorganic carbon, turbidity, chlorophyll, pH, temperature, dissolved oxygen, and light penetration. Infrared analyses conducted on each sample included reflectance ATR analysis, carbon tetrachloride extraction of organics and subsequent scanning, and KBr evaporate analysis of CCl4 extract concentrate. Imagery which was correlated with field and laboratory data developed from ground truth sampling included that obtained from aerial KA62 hardware, RC-8 metric camera systems, and the RS-14 infrared scanner. The images were subjected to analysis by three film density gradient interpretation units. Data were then analyzed for correlations between imagery interpretation as derived from the three instruments and laboratory infrared signatures and other pertinent field and laboratory analyses.

Davis, E. M.↗
DOE OSTI2023

Biodegradable waterborne polyurethane-urea dispersion adhesives with high biocontent

Non-biodegradable petroleum-based plastic wastes have become a leading environmental concern, and new efforts are underway to prepare biobased and biodegradable replacements. For this work, we have explored the preparation of adhesives suitable for use in consumer products, and here we report the development of waterborne, biodegradable adhesives from biobased monomers resulting in adhesives exceeding 70% biocontent. Using water as the polymer medium, viscosity challenges and the use of volatile organic solvents are avoided. Material properties of the polyurethane dispersions, resulting films, and laminates produced showed M w ranging between 56,000 and 124,000. Lastly, the biodegradability of films and laminates was evaluated. The resulting metrics indicate that the adhesives produced meet the desired mechanical and biodegradability targets, indicating that high renewability content solvent-free polyurethane dispersions are a viable solution for lamination adhesives.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2021

Structural descriptor for enhanced spin-splitting in 2D hybrid perovskites

Abstract Two-dimensional (2D) hybrid metal halide perovskites have emerged as outstanding optoelectronic materials and are potential hosts of Rashba/Dresselhaus spin-splitting for spin-selective transport and spin-orbitronics. However, a quantitative microscopic understanding of what controls the spin-splitting magnitude is generally lacking. Through crystallographic and first-principles studies on a broad array of chiral and achiral 2D perovskites, we demonstrate that a specific bond angle disparity connected with asymmetric tilting distortions of the metal halide octahedra breaks local inversion symmetry and strongly correlates with computed spin-splitting. This distortion metric can serve as a crystallographic descriptor for rapid discovery of potential candidate materials with strong spin-splitting. Our work establishes that, rather than the global space group, local inorganic layer distortions induced via appropriate organic cations provide a key design objective to achieve strong spin-splitting in perovskites. New chiral perovskites reported here couple a sizeable spin-splitting with chiral degrees of freedom and offer a unique paradigm of potential interest for spintronics.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2023

Torrefaction of almond shell as a renewable reinforcing agent for plastics: techno-economic analyses and comparison to bioethanol process

Abstract In 2016, the US state of California alone produced nearly 3.5 billion kilograms of almonds, accounting for approximately 84% of the world’s almond production. This generated about 2.58 million metric tons (MTs) of almond residues. Almond shells are currently either burned to generate power or disposed of in landfill. Valorizing almond shells and hulls provides an opportunity to replace petroleum-derived products and divert organic material from landfill. Here we demonstrate a detailed techno-economic analysis (TEA) of an almond shell torrefaction process capable of utilizing the 520 000 MTs of almond shells produced annually in California. Our process also includes preprocessing the torrefied biomass to exploit it as a reinforcing agent for plastics. We further compared the revenue generated from the torrefied biomass and bioethanol derived from the same quantity of almond shells. We considered three different torrefaction facility scales to evaluate trade-offs between economies of scale at the facility and trucking costs to deliver almond shells. A facility that takes in 200 000 MT yr –1 of almond shells results in lower per-unit-output basis capital and operating cost relative to other smaller-scale torrefaction facilities, including 10 000 MT yr –1 and 50 000 MT yr –1 , considered for analysis in this study. The large-sale facility results in a minimum selling price (MSP) of the torrefied biomass of $311.4 MT –1 . An analogous TEA on converting almond residues into bioethanol is also investigated. The MSP of almond shell derived ethanol ($1.71 kg −1 ) is higher than that of corn ($0.48 kg −1 ) or cellulosic biomass ($0.88 kg −1 ) derived ethanol. Compared with the bioethanol route, the torrefied almond shells result in three times more revenue if utilized as a reinforcing agent for plastics.

Liu, Dupeng (ORCID:0000000269514064)↗
DOE OSTI2025

Life Cycle Assessment of Methanol from Fossil, Biomass, and Waste Sources, and Its Use as a Marine Fuel in Dual-Fuel Engines

Methanol is gaining interest in the marine sector from energy security and reducing emissions perspective. This study provides a comparative life cycle assessment of methanol as a marine fuel, across GHG and criteria air pollutant emission metrics, when it is used in a dual-fuel engine. Twelve methanol pathways from four different feedstock categories were considered, including (1) cellulosic biomass forest residues and clean pine mix, corn stover, switchgrass, and miscanthus; (2) organic wastes renewable natural gas from wastewater sludge, swine manure, food waste, and landfill gas; (3) fossil resources coal and natural gas (NG); and (4) e-methanol using captured carbon dioxide. When used in a dual-fuel engine with pilot fuel, life cycle GHG emissions for woody biomass-based methanol were approximately 19 gCO 2 e MJ −1 , while emissions from waste-based sources ranged between −154 and 31 gCO 2 e MJ −1 . Methanol from renewable sources showed a GHG reduction potential between 58 and 226% compared to conventional NG-based methanol (122 gCO 2 e MJ −1 ), primarily due to the avoided emissions from conventional waste management. When carbon from process emissions were captured, the reduction could be up to 327%. All pathways exhibited lower NO X , and particulate matter emissions compared to the baseline marine fuel (MGO 0.1% sulfur), while woody biomass and coal pathways had higher SO X emissions.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗
NASA NTRS2008

Influence Map Methodology for Evaluating Systemic Safety Issues

"Raising the bar" in safety performance is a critical challenge for many organizations, including Kennedy Space Center. Contributing-factor taxonomies organize information about the reasons accidents occur and therefore are essential elements of accident investigations and safety reporting systems. Organizations must balance efforts to identify causes of specific accidents with efforts to evaluate systemic safety issues in order to become more proactive about improving safety. This project successfully addressed the following two problems: (1) methods and metrics to support the design of effective taxonomies are limited and (2) influence relationships among contributing factors are not explicitly modeled within a taxonomy.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS2007

Process Improvement in a Radically Changing Organization

This presentation describes how the NASA Glenn Research Center planned and implemented a process improvement effort in response to a radically changing environment. As a result of a presidential decision to redefine the Agency's mission, many ongoing projects were canceled and future workload would be awarded based on relevance to the Exploration Initiative. NASA imposed a new Procedural Requirements standard on all future software development, and the Center needed to redesign its processes from CMM Level 2 objectives to meet the new standard and position itself for CMMI. The intended audience for this presentation is systems/software developers and managers in a large, research-oriented organization that may need to respond to imposed standards while also pursuing CMMI Maturity Level goals. A set of internally developed tools will be presented, including an overall Process Improvement Action Item database, a formal inspection/peer review tool, metrics collection spreadsheet, and other related technologies. The Center also found a need to charter Technical Working Groups (TWGs) to address particular Process Areas. In addition, a Marketing TWG was needed to communicate the process changes to the development community, including an innovative web site portal.

Varga, Denise M.↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Computationally Guided Development of Components for High Energy Density Solid-State Lithium-Sulfur Batteries

All electric vertical take-off and landing vehicles (eVTOL) for urban air mobility (UAM) concepts face numerous challenging technical barriers before their introduction into the consumer marketplace. The most challenging of these technical barriers to overcome is developing an energy storage system capable of meeting the rigorous aerospace safety and performance criteria1. The performance metrics for eVTOL craft, such as specific energy, specific power, and safety, exceed those of electric automobiles by a factor of two to four. Current state-of-the-art (SOA) lithium-ion batteries are incapable of meeting the key performance criteria of energy and safety for eVTOL. Therefore, next generation advanced chemistries and designs must be developed to meet required performance metrics for electric aviation2. Beyond lithium-ion chemistries, such as lithium-sulfur, show promise in their high energy, while limitations exist in their power and cyclability due to low electrical conductivity and high intermediate solubility in organic liquid electrolytes. Several strategies to overcome the low electrical conductivity involve the use of selenium as a dopant in the active sulfur material, along with the incorporation of 2-dimensional electron-conducting holey-graphene to improve the composite cathodes electronic conductivity. Furthermore, combining this chemistry with a solid-electrolyte avoids the components’ dissolution issues3. However, the development of composite solid-state cathodes is non-trivial as several components must be intimately mixed so that the active component has sufficient access to both electrons and lithium ions to undergo full electrochemical conversion. Mathematical modeling of battery components can assist experimental design through a robust and rigorous combination of computational modeling techniques covering multiple length scales. The objective is to leverage modern computational materials methods combined with battery multiphysics tools to develop radically advanced compatible cathode and electrolyte materials, build and test solid state lithium-sulfur cells and packs. A NASA-based cross-organizational team of high-powered experts combined integrated computational predictive modeling, fundamental chemistry analysis, advanced material science, and battery cell development to tackle this very challenging, multidisciplinary problem. This presentation will show a multiscale computational modeling approach that has produced a novel particle dynamics method called Solid Electrolyte Sphere Approximation Model (SESAM). SESAM modeling targets the 1-10 µm scale structures and provides electromechanical and grain interactions for predictive design guidelines for the manufacturing of solid-state components. Parameters such as particle size and volume fraction of the constituent materials were modeled and experimentally fabricated to optimize electrochemical performance through improved microstructure design. Experimental feedback was provided through ionic and electronic conductivity assessment and structural analysis of developed materials and cell components.

battery↗
DOE OSTI2025

Dark Energy Survey Year 6 Results: Redshift Calibration of the MagLim++ Lens Sample

In this work, we derive and calibrate the redshift distribution of the MagLim++ lens galaxy sample used in the Dark Energy Survey Year 6 (DES Y6) 3x2pt cosmology analysis. The 3x2pt analysis combines galaxy clustering from the lens galaxy sample and weak gravitational lensing. The redshift distributions are inferred using the SOMPZ method - a Self-Organizing Map framework that combines deep-field multi-band photometry, wide-field data, and a synthetic source injection (Balrog) catalog. Key improvements over the DES Year 3 (Y3) calibration include a noise-weighted SOM metric, an expanded Balrog catalogue, and an improved scheme for propagating systematic uncertainties, which allows us to generate O($10^8$) redshift realizations that collectively span the dominant sources of uncertainty. These realizations are then combined with independent clustering-redshift measurements via importance sampling. The resulting calibration achieves typical uncertainties on the mean redshift of 1-2%, corresponding to a 20-30% average reduction relative to DES Y3. We compress the $n(z)$ uncertainties into a small number of orthogonal modes for use in cosmological inference. Marginalizing over these modes leads to only a minor degradation in cosmological constraints. This analysis establishes the MagLim++ sample as a robust lens sample for precision cosmology with DES Y6 and provides a scalable framework for future surveys.

Giannini, G. [Chicago U., Astron. Astrophys. Ctr.;↗
DOE OSTI2020

Chemical Imaging of Fine Mode Atmospheric Particles Collected from a Research Aircraft over Agricultural Fields

Vegetation and crops in agricultural areas are a significant source of both biogenic secondary organic aerosols and of directly emitted primary biological atmospheric particles (PBAPs) composed of plant fragments/debris, fungal spores, pollen, and bacteria among others. Seasonal crop harvesting significantly intensifies regional PBAP emissions and aerosolizes soil organic matter and dust particulates. In this paper, the atmospheric contributions and impact of PBAPs have been insufficiently investigated due to limited real-time observations and ambiguity in their detection by existing measurement techniques. We collected ambient particles on-board an instrumented Beechcraft BE76 Duchess research aircraft flying above actively harvested agriculture fields of corn and soybean crops. In this work, particle samples were analyzed using complementary chemical imaging techniques, including computer-controlled scanning electron microscopy coupled with elemental microanalysis to describe particle-type population and scanning transmission X-ray microscopy to provide quantitative metrics on particle internal heterogeneity. We show the particle-class contribution is consistent between corn and soybean harvesting across altitudes of 100–300 m AGL. The contribution of PBAPs in the size range of 0.15–1.25 μm is estimated to be 10–12% of ~39,000 analyzed particles. Determining viscosity with X-ray microanalysis has shown that the fine-mode organic particles collected are viscous/semisolid (10 2 –10 12 Pa s) while the majority of PBAP fragments are solid (>10 12 Pa s). The observation of submicrometer, solid carbonaceous fragments of biogenic origin has implications for the regional cloud condensation nuclei and ice nuclei budget. Therefore, seasonal harvesting of crops may play an important, yet unrecognized, role in regional cloud formation and climate.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
NASA NTRS2012

Messengers from the Early Solar System - The Similarity and Diversity of Comets

Viewed from a cosmic perspective, Earth is a dry planet yet its oceans are enriched in deuterium by a large factor relative to nebular hydrogen. Can comets have delivered Earth's water? The question of exogenous delivery of water and organics to Earth and other young planets is of critical importance for understanding the origin of Earth's water, and for assessing the possible existence of exo-planets similar to Earth. Strong gradients in temperature and chemistry in the proto-planetary disk, coupled with dynamical models, imply that comets from the Oort Cloud and Kuiper Disk reservoirs should have diverse composition. The primary volatiles in comets (ices native to the nucleus) provide the preferred metric, and taxonomies based on them are now beginning to emerge [1,2,3]. The measurement of cosmic parameters such as the nuclear spin temperatures for H2O, NH3, and CH4, and of enrichment factors for isotopologues (D/H in water and hydrogen cyanide, N-14/N-15 in CN and hydrogen cyanide provide additional important tests for the origin of cometary material. I will provide an overview of these aspects, and their implications for the origin of Earth's water and prebiotic organics.

Mumma, Michael J.↗
DOE OSTI2026

Dark Energy Survey Year 6 results: Redshift calibration of the MagLim++ lens sample

In this work, we derive and calibrate the redshift distribution of the MagLim++ lens galaxy sample used in the Dark Energy Survey Year 6 (DES Y6) 3 x 2pt cosmology analysis. The 3 x 2pt analysis combines galaxy clustering from the lens galaxy sample and weak gravitational lensing. The redshift distributions are inferred using the SOMPZ method - a Self-Organizing Map framework that combines deep-field multi-band photometry, wide-field data, and a synthetic source injection ( B alrog) catalog. Key improvements over the DES Year 3 (Y3) calibration include a noise-weighted SOM metric, an expanded Balrog catalogue, and an improved scheme for propagating systematic uncertainties, which allows us to generate O(10 8 ) redshift realizations that collectively span the dominant sources of uncertainty. These realizations are then combined with independent clustering-redshift measurements via importance sampling. The resulting calibration achieves typical uncertainties on the mean redshift of 1-2%, corresponding to a 20-30% average reduction relative to DES Y3. We compress the n(z) uncertainties into a small number of orthogonal modes for use in cosmological inference. Marginalizing over these modes leads to only a minor degradation in cosmological constraints. Here, this analysis establishes the MagLim++ sample as a robust lens sample for precision cosmology with DES Y6 and provides a scalable framework for future surveys.

dark energy↗
DOE OSTI2025

Giant Dipole Moments: Remarkable Effects Mono‐, Di‐, and Tri‐ Hydrated 5,6‐Diaminobenzene‐1,2,3,4‐Tetracarbonnitrile

The molecule 5,6-diaminobenzene-1,2,3,4-tetracarbonnitrile (MOI) was first synthesized by Müllen and coworkers in 2016 and boasts an ultrastrong dipole moment of $14.1\pm 0.7$ Debye in THF. Gas phase DFT computations do not fully reflect this ultrastrong dipole moment, demonstrating the role of solvent in increasing this dipole moment. Here, we investigate the effect of solvent molecule position on the dipole moment of this species, computationally examining systems with giant dipole moments. These systems are optimized in the gas phase with the B3LYP functional, employing the aug-cc-pVTZ and def2-TZVP basis sets, as well as the B3LYP-D3BJ/aug-cc-pVTZ functional in Orca. Single point DLPNO-CCSD/aug-cc-pVDZ results were obtained from Orca and Psi4, as well as DLPNO-CCSD(T)/CBS information from Psi4. Additionally, these are compared to the dipole moments of di- and tri-hydrated systems, and the SMD models for THF and water at the B3LYP/aug-cc-pVTZ level of theory. The dissociation energies, HOMO-LUMO energy gaps, and dipole moments are presented. These metrics show the nh1nh1′ THF system boasts the largest dissociation energy and dipole moment of the singly solvated systems, due to its strong hydrogen bonding. The importance of solvent placement is highlighted and may guide the synthesis of macromolecules or organic frameworks incorporating the MOI or MOI-like subunits. Remarkably, a single solvent molecule provides a good model for the difference between the gas phase and solvated species. The predicted gas phase dipole moments computed with B3LYP/aug-cc-pVTZ for the MOI, its monohydrated complex, dihydrated complex, and its trihydrated complex are 9.6, 14.2, 16.0, and 16.8 Debye, respectively.

dipole↗
DOE OSTI2020

Actinide 2-metallabiphenylenes that satisfy Hückel’s rule

Aromaticity and antiaromaticity, as defined by Hückel’s rule, are key ideas in organic chemistry, and are both exemplified in biphenylene—a molecule that consists of two benzene rings joined by a four-membered ring at its core. Biphenylene analogues in which one of the benzene rings has been replaced by a different (4n + 2) π-electron system have so far been associated only with organic compounds. In addition, efforts to prepare a zirconabiphenylene compound resulted in the isolation of a bis(alkyne) zirconocene complex instead. Here we report the synthesis and characterization of, to our knowledge, the first 2-metallabiphenylene compounds. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction studies reveal that these complexes have nearly planar, 11-membered metallatricycles with metrical parameters that compare well with those reported for biphenylene. Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, in addition to nucleus-independent chemical shift calculations, provides evidence that these complexes contain an antiaromatic cyclobutadiene ring and an aromatic benzene ring. Finally, spectroscopic evidence, Kohn–Sham molecular orbital compositions and natural bond orbital calculations suggest covalency and delocalization of the uranium f 2 electrons with the carbon-containing ligand.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
NASA NTRS2015

A Summary of the Lateral Cutoff Analysis and Results from Nasa's Farfield Investigation of No-Boom Thresholds

In support of the ongoing effort by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to bring supersonic commercial travel to the public, NASA, in partnership with other industry organizations, conducted a flight research experiment to analyze acoustic propagation at the lateral edge of the sonic boom carpet. The name of the effort was the Farfield Investigation of No-boom Thresholds (FaINT). The research from FaINT determined an appropriate metric for sonic boom waveforms in the transition and shadow zones called Perceived Sound Exposure Level, established a value of 65 dB as a limit for the acoustic lateral extent of a sonic boom's noise region, analyzed change in sonic boom levels near lateral cutoff, and compared between real sonic boom measurements and numerical predictions.

acoustics↗