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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 253 records · Page 14
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1990

A case study of the Thunderstorm Research International Project storm of July 11, 1978. I - Analysis of the data base

The data obtained at the time of the Thunderstorm Research International Project storm at the Kennedy Space Center on July 11, 1978 are analyzed in a model-independent manner. The data base included data from three Doppler radars, a lightning detection and ranging system and a network of 25 electric field mills, and rain gages. Electric field measurements were used to analyze the charge moments transferred by lightning flashes, and the data were fitted to Weibull distributions; these were used to estimate statistical parameters of the lightning for both intracloud and cloud-to-ground flashes and to estimate the fraction of the flashes which were below the observation threshold. The displacement and the conduction current densities were calculated from electric field measurements between flashes. These values were used to derive the magnitudes and the locations of dipole and monopole generators by least squares fitting the measured Maxwell current densities to the displacement-dominated equations.

Nisbet, John S.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Magnetic hysteresis of p(+) and He-3(2+) irradiated melt-textured YBa2Cu3O(7-delta)

We have measured the magnetic hysteresis loops and temperature dependent trapped fields in melt-textured YBa2Cu3O(7-delta) samples before and after p(+) and He-3(2+) irradiation using a Hall effect magnetometer (HEM) as well as a commercial vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM). For proper He-3(2+) fluence, the critical current density may be enhanced by a factor of 10. Calculations based on various critical state models show that before the irradiation, the hysteresis loops can be well accounted for by a critical current density of a modified power law field dependence. After the irradiation, the best fit has been achieved by using an exponential form. Jc and its field dependence deduced from HEM hysteresis loops are in good agreement with those deduced from the VSM loops, suggesting that the Hall effect magnetometer can be conveniently used to characterize bulk high Tc oxide superconductors.

Song, S. N.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Superlattice barrier varactors

SBV (Single Barrier Varactor) diodes have been proposed as alternatives to Schottky barrier diodes for harmonic multiplier applications. However, these show a higher current than expected. The excess current is due to X valley transport in the barrier. We present experimental results showing that the use of a superlattice barrier and doping spikes in the GaAs depletion regions on either side of the barrier can reduce the excess current and improve the control of the capacitance vs. voltage characteristic. The experimental results consist of data taken from two types of device structures. The first test structure was used to study the performance of AlAs/GaAs superlattice barriers. The wafer was fabricated into 90 micron diameter mesa diodes and the resulting current vs. voltage characteristics were measured. A 10 period superlattice structure with a total thickness of approximately 400 A worked well as an electron barrier. The structure had a current density of about one A/sq cm at one volt at room temperature. The capacitance variation of these structures was small because of the design of the GaAs cladding layers. The second test structure was used to study cladding layer designs. These wafers were InGaAs and InAlAs layers lattice matched to an InP substrate. The layers have n(+) doping spikes near the barrier to increase the zero bias capacitance and control the shape of the capacitance vs. voltage characteristic. These structures have a capacitance ratio of 5:1 and an abrupt change from maximum to minimum capacitance. The measurements were made at 80 K. Based on the information obtained from these two structures, we have designed a structure that combines the low current density barrier with the improved cladding layers. The capacitance and current-voltage characteristics from this structure are presented.

Raman, C.↗
NASA NTRS1976

Cusped magnetic field mercury ion thruster

The importance of a uniform current density profile in the exhaust beam of an electrostatic ion thruster is discussed in terms of thrust level and accelerator system lifetime. A residence time approach is used to explain the nonuniform beam current density profile of the divergent magnetic field thruster. Mathematical expressions are derived which relate the thruster discharge power loss, propellant utilization, and double to single ion density ratio to the geometry and plasma properties of the discharge chamber. These relationships are applied to a cylindrical discharge chamber model of the thruster. Experimental results are presented for a wide range of the discharge chamber length. The thruster designed for this investigation was operated with a cusped magnetic field as well as a divergent field geometry, and the cusped field geometry is shown to be superior from the standpoint of beam profile uniformity, performance, and double ion population.

Beattie, J. R.↗
NASA NTRS1982

NASA Redox cell stack shunt current, pumping power, and cell performance tradeoffs

The NASA Redox energy storage system is under active technology development. The hardware undergoing laboratory testing is either 310 sq. cm. or 929 sq. cm. (0.33 sq. ft. or 1.0 sq. ft. per cell active area with up to 40 individual cells connected to make up a modular cell stack. This size of hardware allows rather accurate projections to be made of the shunt power/pump power tradeoffs. The modeling studies that were completed on the system concept are reviewed along with the approach of mapping the performance of Redox cells over a wide range of flow rates and depths of discharge of the Redox solutions. Methods are outlined for estimating the pumping and shunt current losses for any type of cell and stack combination. These methods are applicable to a variety of pumping options that are present with Redox systems. The results show that a fully developed Redox system has acceptable parasitic losses when using a fixed flow rate adequate to meet the worst conditions of current density and depth of discharge. These losses are reduced by about 65 percent if variable flow schedules are used. The exact value of the overall parasitics will depend on the specific system requirements of current density, voltage limits, charge, discharge time, etc.

Hagedorn, N.↗
NASA NTRS1987

Material growth and characterization for solid state devices

During this period InGaAs and InGaAsP were grown on (100)InP by liquid phase electroepitaxy (LPEE). Results of the epitaxial growth of InGaAs on sputtered quartz masked substrates are presented. The resulting surface morphology can be related to the current density distribution near the edges of a masked pattern. The quaternary InGaAs was grown with compositions corresponding to 1.3 micron and 1.5 micron emission wavelengths. Growth rates were found to be linearly dependent upon current density, and a strong dependence upon composition was noted. These compositions lie in the miscibility gap region of the alloy phase diagram at the 645 C growth temperature. Growths were performed at 685 C to avoid the miscibility gap. Epilayers were characterized by photoluminescence, X-ray diffraction, secondary ion mass spectrometry, and Hall effect measurements. Aluminum oxide was deposited on silicon and InGaAs substrates for the characterization of this material as an insulator in a field effect transistor structure. It was determined that the results did not warrant further work with the deposition from an aluminum isopropoxide source. A metallographic vapor phase epitaxy system installation is nearing completion for use in hybrid III-V semiconductor epilayer growths.

Collis, Ward J.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Transverse electric scattering widths for strips-Fourier transform technique

A technique which is based on Fourier transformations is introduced for predicting scattering widths. For a strip it is shown that explicit determination of the linear current density is not necessary for bistatic or monostatic scattering width calculations. Comparisons of the predictions of the technique are made with the integral equation technique predictions, which do not require explicit evaluations of linear current densities.

Cockrell, C. R.↗
NASA NTRS1978

Onset phenomena in self-field MPD arcjets

Voltage fluctuations in a multi-megawatt quasi-steady MPD accelerator, indicative of increased ablation and a consequent degradation in performance, are found to exist only over a narrow range of currents, above which the ablation continues. Within this range, the discharge is characterized by a thin cylindrical shell, 4.0 cm in diameter, concentric with the cathode surface, containing steep radial gradients in plasma luminosity, number density, current density, electric field and Hall parameter, and within which a significant fraction of the propellant is first ionized. Experiments have shown that this cylindrical shell can be totally eliminated by immersing a small object at critical locations within it, thereby increasing the local mass density by preferential ablation and suggesting further means of improving the accelerator design.

Rudolph, L. K.↗
NASA NTRS2006

Advanced Catalysts for Fuel Cells

This viewgraph presentation reviews the development of catalyst for Fuel Cells. The objectives of the project are to reduce the cost of stack components and reduce the amount of precious metal used in fuel cell construction. A rapid combinatorial screening technique based on multi-electrode thin film array has been developed and validated for identifying catalysts for oxygen reduction; focus shifted from methanol oxidation in FY05 to oxygen reduction in FY06. Multi-electrode arrays of thin film catalysts of Pt-Ni and Pt-Ni-Zr have been deposited. Pt-Ni and have been characterized electrochemically and structurally. Pt-Ni-Zr and Pt-Ni films show higher current density and onset potential compared to Pt. Electrocatalytic activity and onset potential are found to be strong function of the lattice constant. Thin film Pt(59)Ni(39)Zr(2) can provide 10 times the current density of thin film Pt. Thin film Pt(59)Ni(39)Zr(2) also shows 65mV higher onset potential than Pt.

fuel cells↗
NASA NTRS2021

Effect of Reactant Pressure on Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell Performance

It is an objective of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to return to the moon and to create sustained lunar operations. Since many applicable lander and upper stage vehicles utilize cryogenic hydrogen and oxygen propellants, it is appealing to incorporate fuel cells into potential mission concepts. A fuel cell could generate electricity, heat, and water from the residual hydrogen and oxygen propellants. Such a concept depends on the capability of the fuel cell to utilize dry, propellant-grade reactants at reduced pressures compared to typical fuel cell operating conditions. This report describes a NASA evaluation of two passive water removal, non-flow-through proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells: a twelve-cell 50 sq. cm active area stack and a seven-cell 150 sq. cm active area stack. Both stacks operated on research grade hydrogen and oxygen reactants supplied at pressures ranging from 20 psia up to the 45-48 psia design operating point, reliably supporting current densities of at least 450 mA/sq. cm at reduced pressures. Polarization curves, fitted with a semi-empirical equation for overpotential, show an increase in effective ohmic resistance and decrease in reversible cell potential, hydrogen crossover current, and Tafel slope when operating at lower pressures, resulting in a reduction in cell voltage at all current densities. Fitted parameters are compared to published values and rationalized with first principles explanations.

fuel cells↗
NASA NTRS2000

Performance of Titanium Optics on a NASA 30 Cm Ion Thruster

The results of performance tests with two titanium optics sets are presented and compared to those of molybdenum optics. All tests were conducted on a 30 cm ion thruster that was nearly identical to the NASA Solar Electric Propulsion Technology Application Readiness (NSTAR) thruster design. Optics performance tests were conducted over a thruster input power range of 0.5 to 4.6 kW. Optics performance including impingement-limited total voltages, electron backstreaming limits, screen grid ion transparencies, near-field beam current density profiles, beam divergence angles, and beam divergence thrust correction factors were determined throughout this power range. The impingement-limited total voltages for titanium optics were within 10 to 55 V of those for molybdenum optics. Electron backstreaming limit magnitude as a function of peak beam current density for both molybdenum and titanium optics were within a few volts of each other, indicating similar hot grid gaps for these two grid materials during steady-state operation. Beam divergence half-angles at 90 percent of the total beam current and thrust correction factors for both titanium optics sets were within one degree and one percent, respectively, of those for molybdenum optics. When thruster power was increased to 2.3 kW immediately following discharge ignition, the titanium screen grid came into contact with the accelerator grid within five minutes of ignition. Relative to molybdenum, titanium's larger thermal expansion and smaller thermal conductivity likely caused the screen grid to thermally expand more relative to the accelerator grid during startup.

Soulas, George C.↗
NASA NTRS2007

High Specific Power Motors in LN2 and LH2

A switched reluctance motor has been operated in liquid nitrogen (LN2) with a power density as high as that reported for any motor or generator. The high performance stems from the low resistivity of Cu at LN2 temperature and from the geometry of the windings, the combination of which permits steady-state rms current density up to 7000 A/cm2, about 10 times that possible in coils cooled by natural convection at room temperature. The Joule heating in the coils is conducted to the end turns for rejection to the LN2 bath. Minimal heat rejection occurs in the motor slots, preserving that region for conductor. In the end turns, the conductor layers are spaced to form a heat-exchanger-like structure that permits nucleate boiling over a large surface area. Although tests were performed in LN2 for convenience, this motor was designed as a prototype for use with liquid hydrogen (LH2) as the coolant. End-cooled coils would perform even better in LH2 because of further increases in copper electrical and thermal conductivities. Thermal analyses comparing LN2 and LH2 cooling are presented verifying that end-cooled coils in LH2 could be either much longer or could operate at higher current density without thermal runaway than in LN2.

Brown, Gerald V.↗
NASA NTRS2007

High Specific Power Motors in LN2 and LH2

A switched reluctance motor has been operated in liquid nitrogen (LN2) with a power density as high as that reported for any motor or generator. The high performance stems from the low resistivity of Cu at LN2 temperature and from the geometry of the windings, the combination of which permits steady-state rms current density up to 7000 A/sq cm, about 10 times that possible in coils cooled by natural convection at room temperature. The Joule heating in the coils is conducted to the end turns for rejection to the LN2 bath. Minimal heat rejection occurs in the motor slots, preserving that region for conductor. In the end turns, the conductor layers are spaced to form a heat-exchanger-like structure that permits nucleate boiling over a large surface area. Although tests were performed in LN2 for convenience, this motor was designed as a prototype for use with liquid hydrogen (LH2) as the coolant. End-cooled coils would perform even better in LH2 because of further increases in copper electrical and thermal conductivities. Thermal analyses comparing LN2 and LH2 cooling are presented verifying that end-cooled coils in LH2 could be either much longer or could operate at higher current density without thermal runaway than in LN2.

Brown, Gerald V.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Photospheric electric current and transition region brightness within an active region

Distributions of vertical electrical current density J(z) calculated from vector measurements of the photospheric magnetic field are compared with ultraviolet spectroheliograms to investigate whether resistive heating is an important source of enhanced emission in the transition region. The photospheric magnetic fields in Active Region 2372 were measured on April 6 and 7, 1980 with the Marshall Space Flight Center vector magnetograph; ultraviolet wavelength spectroheliograms (L-alpha and N V 1239 A) were obtained with the UV Spectrometer and Polarimeter experiment aboard the Solar Maximum Mission satellite. Spatial registration of the J(z) (5 arcsec resolution) and UV (3 arcsec resolution) maps indicates that the maximum current density is cospatial with a minor but persistent UV enhancement, but there is little detected current associated with other nearby bright areas. It is concluded that, although resistive heating may be important in the transition region, the currents responsible for the heating are largely unresolved in the present measurements and have no simple correlation with the residual current measured on 5-arcsec scales.

Deloach, A. C.↗
NASA NTRS1990

Electrical characterization of chemically modified YBa2Cu3O(7-x) surfaces

Results on electrical characterization of YBa2Cu3O(7-x) thin-film surfaces treated with a Br/ethanol chemical etch are presented. Electrical measurements of YBa2Cu3O(7-x)/Au/Nb device structures fabricated using polycrystalline, post-annelaed YBa2Cu3O(7-x) films with Br-etched surfaces, show improvements of approximately one or two orders of magnitude in current densities and resistivities (resistance-area products) relative to unetched devices. The existence of supercurrents in these structures has been confirmed by observation of the ac Josephson effect, and by magnetic field and temperature studies of the critical currents. The Br-etch process has produced 10 x 10 sq micron devices with critical current densities greater than 400 A/sq cm and resistivities as low as 4 x 10 to the -7th ohm/sq cm.

Hunt, B. D.↗
NASA NTRS1975

15 cm cusped magnetic field mercury ion thruster research

The importance of achieving a uniform current density in the exhaust beam of an electrostatic ion thruster is discussed in terms of thrust level and accelerator grid lifetime. A neutral residence time approach is used to propose a magnetic field geometry which should produce a highly uniform beam current density. The discharge chamber length to diameter ratio is shown to be an important optimization parameter and experimental evaluation of the cusped field thruster over a wide range of this parameter is presented. Beam profile measurements 5 cm downstream of the accelerator grid indicate a beam profile flatness parameter which is 25% greater than the SERT II value. Flatness parameters extrapolated to the plane of the accelerator grid are demonstrated to be as high as 0.9.

Beattie, J. R.↗
NASA NTRS1985

Optical characteristics of lightning and thunderstorm currents

Researchers determined that lightning can be used to determine the diurnal variations of thunderstorms, i.e., storms that produce audible thunder, and that these variations are also in good agreement with diurnal variations in rainfall and convective activity. Measurements of the Maxwell current density, J sub m, under active thunderstorms show that this physical quantity is quasi-steady between lightning discharges and that lightning does not produce large changes in J sub m. Maps of J sub m show contours of iso-current density that are consistent with the locations of radar echos and the locations of where lightning has altered the cloud charge distribution.

Krider, E. P.↗
NASA NTRS1978

Thirty-centimeter-diameter ion milling source

A 30-cm beam diameter ion source has been designed and fabricated for micromachining and sputtering applications. An argon ion current density of 1 mA/cu cm at 500 eV ion energy was selected as a design operating condition. The completed ion source met the design criteria at this operating condition with a uniform and well-collimated beam having an average variation in current density of + or - 5% over the center of 20 cm of the beam. This ion source has a multipole magnetic field that employs permanent magnets between permeable pole pieces. Langmuir probe surveys of the source plasma support the design concepts of a multipole field and a circumferential cathode to enhance plasma uniformity.

Robinson, R. S.↗