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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 NTRS1974

Plasma-sprayed metal-glass and metal-glass fluoride coatings for lubrication to 900 C

Plasma-sprayed composites, which have good oxidation resistance and self-lubricating characteristics to 900 C, were developed. The composites are a nichrome matrix containing dispersed glass for oxidation protection and calcium fluoride for lubrication; they are applied to bearing surfaces by plasma spraying layers about 0.050 cm thick which are then machined to 0.025 cm. Oscillating bearing tests were performed in air to 900 C at unit radial loads up to 5000 psi and a thrust load of 440 lb. Bearings with a composite liner in the bore were in good condition after over 50,000 oscillating cycles accumulated during repeated bearing temperature cycles between 25 and 900 C.

Sliney, H. E.↗
NASA NTRS1976

Ceramic thermal-barrier coatings for cooled turbines

Coating systems consisting of a plasma sprayed layer of zirconia stabilized with either yttria, magnesia or calcia over a thin alloy bond coat have been developed, their potential was analyzed and their durability and benefits evaluated in a turbojet engine. The coatings on air cooled rotating blades were in good condition after completing as many as 500 two-minute cycles of engine operation between full power at a gas temperature of 1644 K and flameout, or as much as 150 hours of steady state operation on cooled vanes and blades at gas temperatures as high as 1644 K with 35 start and stop cycles. On the basis of durability and processing cost, the yttria stabilized zirconia was considered the best of the three coatings investigated.

Liebert, C. H.↗
NASA NTRS1976

Two-layer thermal barrier coating for turbine airfoils - furnace and burner rig test results

A simple, two-layer plasma-sprayed thermal barrier coating system was developed which has the potential for protecting high temperature air-cooled gas turbine components. Of those coatings initially examined, the most promising system consisted of a Ni-16Cr-6Al-0.6Y (in wt%) thermal barrier coating (about 0.005 to 0.010 cm thick) and a ZrO2-12Y2O3 (in wt%) thermal barrier coating (about 0.025 to 0.064 cm thick). This thermal barrier substantially lowered the metal temperature of an air-cooled airfoil. The coating withstood 3,200 cycles (80 sec at 1,280 C surface temperature) and 275 cycles (1 hr at 1,490 C surface temperature) without cracking or spalling. No separation of the thermal barrier from the bond coating or the bond coating from the substrate was observed.

Stecura, S.↗
NASA NTRS1976

Ceramic thermal-barrier coatings for cooled turbines

Ceramic thermal-barrier coatings on hot engine parts have the potential to reduce metal temperatures, coolant requirements, cost, and complexity of the cooling configuration, and to increase life, turbine efficiency and gas temperature. Coating systems consisting of a plasma-sprayed layer of zirconia stabilized with either yttria, magnesia or calcia over a thin alloy bond coat have been developed, their potential analyzed and their durability and benefits evaluated in a turbojet engine. The coatings on air-cooled rotating blades were in good condition after completing as many as 500 two-minute cycles of engine operation between full power at a gas temperature of 1644 K and flameout, or as much as 150 hours of steady-state operation on cooled vanes and blades at gas temperatures as high as 1644 K witn 35 start and stop cycles. On the basis of durability and processing cost, the yttria-stabilized zirconia was considered the best of the three coatings investigated.

Liebert, C. H.↗
NASA NTRS1977

Two-layer thermal barrier coating for high temperature components

A simple two-layer plasma-sprayed thermal barrier coating system was developed which has the potential for protecting high temperature air-cooled gas turbine components. Of the initially examined coatings, the most promising system is an Ni-16Cr-6Al-0.6Y (in wt%) bond coating (about 0.005 to 0.010 cm thick) and a ZrO2-12Y2O3 (in wt%) thermal barrier coating (about 0.025 to 0.064 cm thick). This thermal barrier substantially lowered the metal temperature of the air-cooled airfoil. The coating withstood 3200 cycles (80 s at 1280 C surface temperature) and 275 cycles (1 hr at 1490 C surface temperature) without cracking or spalling. No separation of the thermal barrier from the bond coating or the bond coating from the substrate was observed.

Stecura, S.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Structure of Jupiter's magnetopause - Pioneer 10 and 11 observations

The magnetic structure of Jupiter's magnetopause, as observed by the space probes Pioneer 10 and 11, is compared with terrestrial magnetopause structures from the OGO 5 mission. The Jovian magnetopause thickness, deduced from a rapid triple crossing, is found to lie in the range 3500-5200 km, while the adjoining plasma boundary layer was 5600-8400 km thick. Comparison with the terrestrial situation suggests that the dayside magnetopause thickness in both cases is a few times the ion gyroradius and that the dayside boundary layer is also of about the same width. The magnetopause normal vector and normal magnetic field component are determined for each crossing by use of minimum variance analysis. The results indicate a blunt and floppy magnetopause surface, for the most part with an insignificant normal magnetic field component. Only for three of the 14 crossings did this component exceed 1.5 times its error estimate. In two of these cases, the magnetic field tangential to the magnetopause displayed the characteristic features of a rotational discontinuity.

Sonnerup, B. U. O.↗
NASA NTRS1986

Destiny of earthward streaming plasma in the plasmasheet boundary layer

The dynamics of the earth's magnetotail have been investigated, and it has become clear that the plasmasheet boundary layer field lines map into the Region I Field-Aligned Currents (FAC) of the auroral zone. It is pointed out that the role of earthward streaming ions in the plasmasheet boundary layer may be of fundamental importance in the understanding of magnetotail dynamics, auroral zone physics, and especially for ionospheric-magnetospheric interactions. The present paper has the objective to evaluate propagation characteristics for the earthward streaming ions observed in the plasmasheet boundary layer. An investigation is conducted of the propagation characteristics of protons in the plasmasheet boundary layer using independent single particle dynamics, and conclusions are discussed. The density of earthward streaming ions found in the plasmasheet boundary layer should include the ring current as well as the auroral zone precipitaiton and inner plasmasheet regions of the magnetosphere.

Green, J. L.↗
NASA NTRS1987

Core plasma in the magnetosphere

The paper presents a review of new findings related to core plasma (which includes ions and electrons with energies less than 50 eV) identified in studies of magnetosphere during 1983-1986. These findings include the cleft ion fountain; the plasmaspheric heavy ion torus; core molecular ions; high core-plasma densities in the plasma-sheet boundary layer; intense transverse heating of core plasmas in the equatorial regions; the supersonic polar wind (H/+/ and He/+/); toroidal or ring heavy-ion distribution functions in the auroral region; conic-to-field-aligned ion signatures of inverted-V auroral events; and the large-scale electron density structure of the magnetosphere. The progress made on modeling core plasma includes simulation of thermal helium heating at the equator; kinetic models of the plasma transport from localized ionospheric regions; time-dependent hydrodynamic models of the polar wind and plasmasphere-ionosphere coupling; and kinetic models of plasmasphere refilling.

Horwitz, J. L.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Origins of Energetic Ions in the Earth's Magnetosheath

The analysis and interpretation of the combined scientific data from the Hot Plasma Composition Experiment (HPCE) and the Charge Energy Mass (CHEM) spectrometer on the Active Mesospheric Particle Tracer Experiment (AMPTE) Charge Composition Explorer (CCE) spacecraft are discussed. These combined data sets have and will be used to survey the energetic ion environment in the Earth's magnetosheath to determine the origins and relative strengths of the energetic ion populations found there. A computer code was developed to analyze and interpret the data sets. The focus of the first year was on the determination of the contribution of leaked magnetospheric protons to the total energetic proton population. Emphasis was placed on intervals when the AMPTE spacecraft was in the plasma depletion layer because it was argued that in this region, only the leaked population contributes to the energetic ion population. Manipulation of the CHEM data and comparison of the CHEM and HPCE data over their common energy range near the magnetopause also contributed directly to a second study of that region.

Fuselter, S. A.↗
NASA NTRS1994

Survey of plasma parameters in Earth's distant magnetotail with the Geotail spacecraft

The three-dimensional velocity distributions for both electrons and positive ions as determined with plasma instrumentation on board the Geotail spacecraft are used to compute number densities, ion bulk velocities, and electron and ion temperatures. We present a statistical survey of these plasma parameters for the magnetotail at distances from Earth in the range of 10 to 210 R(sub E) for the period 19 October 1992 through 10 July 1993. The ion temperature is used to discriminate 'hot' plasmas from 'cold' plasmas. The hot ion plasmas are frequently found to stream either towards or away from Earth and we identify these with the plasma sheet, plasma sheet boundary layer, and regions of acceleration. The cold ion plasmas are typically streaming away from Earth. These cold plasmas appear to be associated with the plasma mantle, the magnetosheath, and boundary layers interior to the magnetosheath, although the contribution from the ionosphere has not yet been evaluated.

Paterson, W. R.↗
NASA NTRS1994

The population of the magnetosphere by solar winds ions when the interplanetary magnetic field is northward

We have examined some possible entry mechanisms of solar wind ions into the magnetosphere by calculating the trajectories of thousands of non-interacting ions in the magnetic and electric fields from a three dimensional global magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulation of the magnetosphere and the magnetosheath, under northward interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) conditions. Particles, launched in the solar wind, entered the magnetosphere and formed the low latitude boundary layer (LLBL), plasma sheet and a region of trapped particles near the Earth. The densities and temperatures we obtained in these regions were realistic, with the exception of trapped particle densities. The dominant entry mechanism was convection into the magnetosphere on reconnecting field lines.

Richard, Robert L.↗
NASA NTRS1995

The mosaic structure of plasma bulk flows in the Earth's magnetotail

Moments of plasma distributions observed in the magnetotail vary with different time scales. In this paper we attempt to explain the observed variability on intermediate timescales of approximately 10-20 min that result from the simultaneous energization and spatial structuring of solar wind plasma in the distant magnetotail. These processes stimulate the formation of a system of spatially disjointed. highly accelerated filaments (beamlets) in the tail. We use the results from large-scale kinetic modeling of magnetotail formation from a plasma mantle source to calculate moments of ion distribution functions throughout the tail. Statistical restrictions related to the limited number of particles in our system naturally reduce the spatial resolution of our results, but we show that our model is valid on intermediate spatial scales Delta(x) x Delta(z) equal to approximately 1 R(sub E) x 1000 km. For these spatial scales the resulting pattern, which resembles a mosaic, appears to be quite variable. The complexity of the pattern is related to the spatial interference between beamlets accelerated at various locations within the distant tail which mirror in the strong near-Earth magnetic field. Global motion of the magnetotail results in the displacement of spacecraft with respect to this mosaic pattern and can produce variations in all of the moments (especially the x-component of the bulk velocity) on intermediate timescales. The results obtained enable us to view the magnetotail plasma as consisting of two different populations: a tailward-Earthward system of highly accelerated beamlets interfering with each other, and an energized quasithermal population which gradually builds as the Earth is approached. In the near-Earth tail, these populations merge into a hot quasi-isotropic ion population typical of the near-Earth plasma sheet. The transformation of plasma sheet boundary layer (PSBL) beam energy into central plasma sheet (CPS) quasi-thermal energy occurs in the absence of collisions or noise. This paper also clarifies the relationship between the global scale where an MHD description might be appropriate and the lower intermediate scales where MHD fails and large-scale kinetic theory should be used.

Ashour-Abdalla, M.↗
NASA NTRS2006

Near Discharge Cathode Assembly Plasma Potential Measurements in a 30-cm NSTAR Type Ion Engine During Beam Extraction

Floating emissive probe plasma potential data are presented over a two-dimensional array of locations in the near Discharge Cathode Assembly (DCA) region of a 30-cm diameter ring-cusp ion thruster. Discharge plasma data are presented with beam extraction at throttling conditions comparable to the NASA TH Levels 8, 12, and 15. The operating conditions of the Extended Life Test (ELT) of the Deep Space One (DS1) flight spare ion engine, where anomalous discharge keeper erosion occurred, were TH 8 and TH 12 consequently they are of specific interest in investigating discharge keeper erosion phenomena. The data do not validate the presence of a potential hill plasma structure downstream of the DCA, which has been proposed as a possible erosion mechanism. The data are comparable in magnitude to data taken by other researchers in ring-cusp electron-bombardment ion thrusters. The plasma potential structures are insensitive to thruster throttling level with a minimum as low as 14 V measured at the DCA exit plane and increasing gradually in the axial direction. A sharp increase in plasma potential to the bulk discharge value of 26 to 28 volts, roughly 10 mm radially from DCA centerline, was observed. Plasma potential measurements indicate a low-potential plume structure that is roughly 20 mm in diameter emanating from the discharge cathode that may be attributed to a free-standing plasma double layer.

Herman, Daniel A.↗
NASA NTRS1996

Pasma Wave Characteristics of the Jovian Magnetopause Boundary Layer: Can Wave-Particle Interactions Cause the Jovian Aurora?

The full Jovian magnetopause boundary layer (BL) plasma wave spectra from 10(sup -3) to 10(sup 3) Hz, have been measured for the first time...The B'/E' ration does not have a f(sup -1) dependency, so it was suggested that the waves are a mixture of whistler mode electromagnetic emissions and electrostatic waves.

jovian magnetosphere Jupiter Jovian magnetopause E↗
NASA NTRS2013

THEMIS Observations of the Magnetopause Electron Diffusion Region: Large Amplitude Waves and Heated Electrons

We present the first observations of large amplitude waves in a well-defined electron diffusion region based on the criteria described by Scudder et al at the subsolar magnetopause using data from one Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions during Substorms (THEMIS) satellite. These waves identified as whistler mode waves, electrostatic solitary waves, lower hybrid waves, and electrostatic electron cyclotron waves, are observed in the same 12 s waveform capture and in association with signatures of active magnetic reconnection. The large amplitude waves in the electron diffusion region are coincident with abrupt increases in electron parallel temperature suggesting strong wave heating. The whistler mode waves, which are at the electron scale and which enable us to probe electron dynamics in the diffusion region were analyzed in detail. The energetic electrons (approx. 30 keV) within the electron diffusion region have anisotropic distributions with T(sub e(right angle))/T(sub e(parallel)) > 1 that may provide the free energy for the whistler mode waves. The energetic anisotropic electrons may be produced during the reconnection process. The whistler mode waves propagate away from the center of the "X-line" along magnetic field lines, suggesting that the electron diffusion region is a possible source region of the whistler mode waves.

magnetopause and boundary layers↗
NASA NTRS1977

The magnetospheric boundary layers - A geometrically explicit model

A geometrically explicit three-dimensional model of the magnetosphere is proposed and compared with existing models. The proposed model is a bimodal combination of the classical open and closed magnetosphere. The plasma sheet is topologically contained in a closed field line volume which is exposed to the magnetosheath along the flanks. Boundary layer plasma at the flanks of the closed field line volume freely flows along field lines to the ionosphere and forms a complete border to the plasma sheet. The plasma sheet derives from the closed boundary layer plasma, which is in the same topological volume. The closed boundary layer between the clefts on the dayside is covered by plasma hood (the open field line equatorward extension of the mantle) when dayside merging occurs.

Crooker, N. U.↗
NASA NTRS1985

Resonance cone structure in a warm inhomogeneous bounded plasma with lower-hybrid resonance layers

The paper presents a theoretical study of the problem of the wave fields excited by a gap source at the edge of an inhomogeneous magnetized plasma with a pair of lower-hybrid resonance layers present and bounded by conducting walls. The approach used is that of a solution as a sum of multiply reflected extraordinary mode and ion-thermal resonance cones as an alternative to the guided-wave mode approach. A diagrammatic scheme for writing the solution is given which can be used to determine in great detail the structure and properties of the resonance cones and the way they transform across the back-to-back hybrid layers. Evanescent resonance cones are shown to exist in the high-density region between the hybrid resonance layers and to tunnel through to the other side, maintaining this general structure if the layer is relatively thin.

Grabbe, C. L.↗