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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 307 records · Page 17
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Characterization of OCO-2 and ACOS-GOSAT biases and errors for flux estimates

We characterize the magnitude of seasonally and spatially varying biases in the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2) Version 8 (v8) and the Atmospheric CO2 Observations from Space (ACOS) Greenhouse Gas Observing SATellite (GOSAT) version 7.3 (v7.3) satellite CO2 retrievals by comparisons to measurements collected by the Total Carbon Column Observing Network (TCCON), Atmospheric Tomography (ATom) experiment, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Earth System Research Laboratory (ESRL) and U. S. Department of Energy (DOE) aircraft, and surface stations. Although the ACOS-GOSAT estimates of the column averaged carbon dioxide (CO2) dry air mole fraction (XCO2) have larger random errors than the OCO-2 XCO2 estimates, and the space-based estimates over land have larger random errors than those over ocean, the systematic errors are similar across both satellites and surface types, 0.6 ± 0.1 ppm. We find similar estimates of systematic error whether dynamic versus geometric coincidences or ESRL/DOE aircraft versus TCCON are used for validation (over land), once validation and co-location errors are accounted for. We also find that areas with sparse throughput of good quality data (due to quality flags and preprocessor selection) over land have ~double the error of regions of high-throughput of good quality data. We characterize both raw and bias-corrected results, finding that bias correction improves systematic errors by a factor of 2 for land observations and improves errors by ~0.2 ppm for ocean. We validate the lowermost tropospheric (LMT) product for OCO-2 and ACOS-GOSAT by comparison to aircraft and surface sites, finding systematic errors of ~1.1 ppm, while having 2-3 times the variability of XCO2. We characterize the time and distance scales of correlations for OCO-2 XCO2 errors, and find error correlations on scales of 0.3 degrees, 5-10 degrees, and 60 days. We find comparable scale lengths for the bias correction term. Assimilation of the OCO-2 bias correction term is used to estimate flux errors resulting from OCO-2 seasonal biases, finding annual flux errors on the order of 0.3 and 0.4 PgC/yr for Transcom-3 ocean and land regions, respectively.

Susan S Kulawik↗
DOE OSTI2025

Hero Carbonsafe Phase 2 Project in the Columbia River Basalt Group: Technical Program Overview

The Hermiston, Oregon Basalt CarbonSAFE Phase II project (HERO CarbonSAFE) seeks to accelerate the deployment of commercial carbon dioxide (CO2) storage projects in basaltic rocks. Hermiston is located near the center of the Columbia River Basalt Group (CRBG), which is one of the largest basalt flows in the US. Basalt CO2 storage has potential advantages to conventional saline storage reservoirs including 1. The potential for rapid mineralization of CO2, 2. associated decreases in pressure and CO2 migration risks, 3. reduced long-term monitoring requirements with respect to plume tracking, 4. widespread geographic distribution and, 5. large storage potential due to thickness, porosity, and CO2 interactions with basalt. For locations such as the Pacific Northwest (PNW), Hawaii, Iceland, India and Japan, whose localities are isolated from large sedimentary basins offering conventional saline storage options, basalt may offer the only feasible option for local CO2 storage. However, mineralization/basalt storage still has many uncertainties, as there are limited field-scale assessments of CO2 storage in basalt. There are significant uncertainties hindering the effective implementation of carbon capture utilization and storage (CCUS) in basalt. These include the lack of proven storage capacities, challenges in methodologies for modeling the area of review in igneous formations, limited understanding of mineralization kinetics and timing, and uncertainties in injectivity. Additionally, the domestic availability of specialized services and drilling expertise is constrained, and existing CCUS permitting and regulatory frameworks, originally developed for conventional saline reservoirs, may not adequately address the unique requirements of basalt systems. HERO CarbonSAFE is designed to address major research gaps and uncertainties associated with basalt storage. Specifically, the project will assess the feasibility of CO2 injection in the deep layered basalts of the CRBG, long-term storage (mineralization), practical approaches for large-scale implementation (50+ million metric tons of CO2 over 30 years), lithology-specific risks, and the technoeconomic potential for CO2 storage in basalts.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS2015

Real-Time On-Board Airborne Demonstration of High-Speed On-Board Data Processing for Science Instruments (HOPS)

The project called High-Speed On-Board Data Processing for Science Instruments (HOPS) has been funded by NASA Earth Science Technology Office (ESTO) Advanced Information Systems Technology (AIST) program since April, 2012. The HOPS team recently completed two flight campaigns during the summer of 2014 on two different aircrafts with two different science instruments. The first flight campaign was in July, 2014 based at NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) in Hampton, VA on the NASA's HU-25 aircraft. The science instrument that flew with HOPS was Active Sensing of CO2 Emissions over Nights, Days, and Seasons (ASCENDS) CarbonHawk Experiment Simulator (ACES) funded by NASA's Instrument Incubator Program (IIP). The second campaign was in August, 2014 based at NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center (AFRC) in Palmdale, CA on the NASA's DC-8 aircraft. HOPS flew with the Multifunctional Fiber Laser Lidar (MFLL) instrument developed by Excelis Inc. The goal of the campaigns was to perform an end-to-end demonstration of the capabilities of the HOPS prototype system (HOPS COTS) while running the most computationally intensive part of the ASCENDS algorithm real-time on-board. The comparison of the two flight campaigns and the results of the functionality tests of the HOPS COTS are presented in this paper.

Beyon, Jeffrey Y.↗
DOE OSTI2025

Deep reinforcement learning control for co-optimizing energy consumption, thermal comfort, and indoor air quality in an office building

With the recent demand for decarbonization and energy efficiency, advanced HVAC control using Deep Reinforcement Learning (DRL) becomes a promising solution. Due to its flexible structures, DRL has been successful in energy reduction for many HVAC systems. However, only a few researches applied DRL agents to manage the entire central HVAC system and control multiple components in both the water loop and the air loop, owing to its complex system structures. Moreover, those researches have not extended their applications by incorporating the indoor air quality, especially both CO2 and PM2.5concentrations, on top of energy saving and thermal comfort, as achieving those objectives simultaneously can cause multiple control conflicts. What's more, DRL agents are usually trained on the simulation environment before deployment, so another challenge is to develop an accurate but relatively simple simulator. Therefore, we propose a DRL algorithm for a central HVAC system to co-optimize energy consumption, thermal comfort, indoor CO2 level, and indoor PM2.5 level in an office building. To train the controller, we also developed a hybrid simulator that decoupled the complex system into multiple simulation models, which are calibrated separately using laboratory test data. The hybrid simulator combined the dynamics of the HVAC system, the building envelope, as well as moisture, CO2, and particulate matter transfer. Three control algorithms (rule-based, MPC, and DRL) are developed, and their performances are evaluated on the hybrid simulator environment with a realistic scenario (i.e., with stochastic noises). The test results showed that, the DRL controller can save 21.4 % of energy compared to a rule-based controller, and has improved thermal comfort, reduced indoor CO2 concentration. The MPC controller showed an 18.6 % energy saving compared to the DRL controller, mainly due to savings from comfort and indoor air quality boundary violations caused by unmeasured disturbances, and it also highlights computational challenges in real-time control due to non-linear optimization. Finally, we provide the practical considerations for designing and implementing the DRL and MPC controllers based on their respective pros and cons.

Guo, Fangzhou↗
DOE OSTI2022

A Rapid Method for Detecting Normal or Modified Plant and Algal Carbonic Anhydrase Activity Using Saccharomyces cerevisiae

In recent years, researchers have attempted to improve photosynthesis by introducing components from cyanobacterial and algal CO2-concentrating mechanisms (CCMs) into terrestrial C3 plants. For these attempts to succeed, we need to understand the CCM components in more detail, especially carbonic anhydrase (CA) and bicarbonate (HCO3−) transporters. Heterologous complementation systems capable of detecting carbonic anhydrase activity (i.e., catalysis of the pH-dependent interconversion between CO2 and HCO3−) or active HCO3− transport can be of great value in the process of introducing CCM components into terrestrial C3 plants. In this study, we generated a Saccharomyces cerevisiae CA knock-out (ΔNCE103 or ΔCA) that has a high-CO2-dependent phenotype (5% (v/v) CO2 in air). CAs produce HCO3− for anaplerotic pathways in S. cerevisiae; therefore, the unavailability of HCO3− for neutral lipid biosynthesis is a limitation for the growth of ΔCA in ambient levels of CO2 (0.04% (v/v) CO2 in air). ΔCA can be complemented for growth at ambient levels of CO2 by expressing a CA from human red blood cells. ΔCA was also successfully complemented for growth at ambient levels of CO2 through the expression of CAs from Chlamydomonas reinhardtii and Arabidopsis thaliana. The ΔCA strain is also useful for investigating the activity of modified CAs, allowing for quick screening of modified CAs before putting them into the plants. CA activity in the complemented ΔCA strains can be probed using the Wilbur–Anderson assay and by isotope exchange membrane-inlet mass spectrometry (MIMS). Other potential uses for this new ΔCA-based screening system are also discussed.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS1987

Investigation of Martian H2O and CO2 via gamma-ray spectroscopy

The evolution and present state of water and carbon dioxide on Mars are discussed. Researchers wished to determine how effectively questions regarding the distribution of water and carbon dioxide on Mars may be addressed with orbital gamma ray spectrometer data. Several simple, multi-layer models of the Martian surface were formulated to address problems such as the ice/dust ratio of layered deposits; the distribution, depth and concentration of ground ice; the thickness of north polar perennial ice; the thickness of the carbon dioxide layer over the south polar cap; the thickness of the seasonal carbon dioxide frost cap; and the water content of the seasonal frost cap. The results indicate that the Mars Observer gamma ray spectrometer will be a powerful tool for investigating the distribution and stratigraphy of volatiles on Mars.

Squyres, Steven W.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Plants for water recycling, oxygen regeneration and food production

During long-duration space missions that require recycling and regeneration of life support materials the major human wastes to be converted to usable forms are CO2, hygiene water, urine and feces. A Controlled Ecological Life Support System (CELSS) relies on the air revitalization, water purification and food production capabilities of higher plants to rejuvenate human wastes and replenish the life support materials. The key processes in such a system are photosynthesis, whereby green plants utilize light energy to produce food and oxygen while removing CO2 from the atmosphere, and transpiration, the evaporation of water from the plant. CELSS research has emphasized the food production capacity and efforts to minimize the area/volume of higher plants required to satisfy all human life support needs. Plants are a dynamic system capable of being manipulated to favour the supply of individual products as desired. The size and energy required for a CELSS that provides virtually all human needs are determined by the food production capacity. Growing conditions maximizing food production do not maximize transpiration of water; conditions favoring transpiration and scaling to recycle only water significantly reduces the area, volume, and energy inputs per person. Likewise, system size can be adjusted to satisfy the air regeneration needs. Requirements of a waste management system supplying inputs to maintain maximum plant productivity are clear. The ability of plants to play an active role in waste processing and the consequence in terms of degraded plant performance are not well characterized. Plant-based life support systems represent the only potential for self sufficiency and food production in an extra-terrestrial habitat.

NASA Discipline Life Support Systems↗
NASA NTRS2013

Semi-Empirical Validation of the Cross-Band Relative Absorption Technique for the Measurement of Molecular Mixing Ratios

Studies were performed to carry out semi-empirical validation of a new measurement approach we propose for molecular mixing ratios determination. The approach is based on relative measurements in bands of O2 and other molecules and as such may be best described as cross band relative absorption (CoBRA). . The current validation studies rely upon well verified and established theoretical and experimental databases, satellite data assimilations and modeling codes such as HITRAN, line-by-line radiative transfer model (LBLRTM), and the modern-era retrospective analysis for research and applications (MERRA). The approach holds promise for atmospheric mixing ratio measurements of CO2 and a variety of other molecules currently under investigation for several future satellite lidar missions. One of the advantages of the method is a significant reduction of the temperature sensitivity uncertainties which is illustrated with application to the ASCENDS mission for the measurement of CO2 mixing ratios (XCO2). Additional advantages of the method include the possibility to closely match cross-band weighting function combinations which is harder to achieve using conventional differential absorption techniques and the potential for additional corrections for water vapor and other interferences without using the data from numerical weather prediction (NWP) models.

Pliutau, Denis↗
DOE OSTI2026

Data for Rod et al., "Alternating salt and freshwater floods of coastal soils impact soil structure, hydraulic properties, and oxygen dynamics"

This dataset includes laboratory experiment data on soil structure, hydraulic properties, and oxygen dynamics associated with Rod et al. 2026 https://doi.org/10.1002/vzj2.70073. There are six data files from a lab-based flood simulation of either freshwater (FW) or alternating brackish saltwater (SW) and FW using soil cores from a coastal forest at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center. For soil information please see the Location section of the metadata. Files include: CO2, surface chemistry, water retention, dissolved oxygen, and soil specific surface area. Each file is in CSV format and can be opened/read with any plain text tabular file reader (Microsoft Excel, R, etc.). Purpose of Experiment: To investigate how hydrologic intensification affects soil structure and oxygen dynamics, we conducted a series of laboratory-based flood simulations. After three SW-FW floods (6 floods total) there were significant changes in pore size distribution, significant redistribution of colloids, and the A-horizon became sodic. We concluded that a small number of SW flooding events can induce a measurable change in soil physical properties that directly impacts the biogeochemical dynamics.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2024

Meta-omics reveals role of photosynthesis in microbially induced carbonate precipitation at a CO2-rich geyser

Abstract Microbially induced carbonate precipitation (MICP) is a natural process with potential biotechnological applications to address both carbon sequestration and sustainable construction needs. However, our understanding of the microbial processes involved in MICP is limited to a few well-researched pathways such as ureolytic hydrolysis. To expand our knowledge of MICP, we conducted an omics-based study on sedimentary communities from travertine around the CO2-driven Crystal Geyser near Green River, Utah. Using metagenomics and metaproteomics, we identified the community members and potential metabolic pathways involved in MICP. We found variations in microbial community composition between the two sites we sampled, but Rhodobacterales were consistently the most abundant order, including both chemoheterotrophs and anoxygenic phototrophs. We also identified several highly abundant genera of Cyanobacteriales. The dominance of these community members across both sites and the abundant presence of photosynthesis-related proteins suggest that photosynthesis could play a role in MICP at Crystal Geyser. We also found abundant bacterial proteins involved in phosphorous starvation response at both sites suggesting that P-limitation shapes both composition and function of the microbial community driving MICP.

Violette, Marlene J.↗
NASA NTRS1994

Carbon dioxide and water vapor production at rest and during exercise. A report on data collection for the Crew and Thermal Systems Division

The current environmental control device in the shuttle uses lithium hydroxide (LiOH) filter canisters to remove carbon dioxide (CO2) from the cabin air, requiring several bulky filter canisters that can only be used once and must be changed frequently. To alleviate a stowage problem and decrease launch weight, the Crew and Thermal Systems Division (CTSD) at the NASA Johnson Space Center has been researching a system to be used on future shuttle missions. This system uses two beds of solid amine material to absorb CO2 and water, later desorbing them to space vacuum. In this way the air scrubbing medium is regenerable and reusable. To identify the efficacy of this regenerable CO2 removal system (RCRS), CTSD began investigations in the shuttle mockup. The purpose of this investigation was to support the CTSD program by determining mean levels of carbon dioxide and water vapor production in normal, healthy males and females age-matched with the astronaut corps. Subjects' responses were measured at rest and during exercise at intensity levels equivalent to normal shuttle operation activities. The results were used to assess the adjustments made to RCRS and are reported as a reference for future investigations in shuttle environmental control.

Lee, Stuart M. C.↗
DOE OSTI2021

Current Developments of Carbon Capture Storage and/or Utilization–Looking for Net-Zero Emissions Defined in the Paris Agreement

An essential line of worldwide research towards a sustainable energy future is the materials and processes for carbon dioxide capture and storage. Energy from fossil fuels combustion always generates carbon dioxide, leading to a considerable environmental concern with the values of CO2 produced in the world. The increase in emissions leads to a significant challenge in reducing the quantity of this gas in the atmosphere. Many research areas are involved solving this problem, such as process engineering, materials science, chemistry, waste management, and politics and public engagement. To decrease this problem, green and efficient solutions have been extensively studied, such as Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage (CCUS) processes. In 2015, the Paris Agreement was established, wherein the global temperature increase limit of 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels was defined as maximum. To achieve this goal, a global balance between anthropogenic emissions and capture of greenhouse gases in the second half of the 21st century is imperative, i.e., net-zero emissions. Several projects and strategies have been implemented in the existing systems and facilities for greenhouse gas reduction, and new processes have been studied. This review starts with the current data of CO2 emissions to understand the need for drastic reduction. After that, the study reviews the recent progress of CCUS facilities and the implementation of climate-positive solutions, such as Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage and Direct Air Capture. Future changes in industrial processes are also discussed.

Regufe, Maria João (ORCID:0000000327748302)↗
NASA NTRS1993

Engineering stategies and implications of using higher plants for throttling gas and water exchange in a controlled ecological life support system

Engineering stategies for advanced life support systems to be used on Lunar and Mars bases involve a wide spectrum of approaches. These range from purely physical-chemical life support strategies to purely biological approaches. Within the context of biological based systems, a bioengineered system can be devised that would utilize the metabolic mechanisms of plants to control the rates of CO2 uptake and O2 evolution (photosynthesis) and water production (transpiration). Such a mechanism of external engineering control has become known as throttling. Research conducted at the John F. Kennedy Space Center's Controlled Ecological Life Support System Breadboard Project has demonstrated the potential of throttling these fluxes by changing environmental parameters affecting the plant processes. Among the more effective environmental throttles are: light and CO2 concentration for controllingthe rate of photsynthesis and humidity and CO2 concentration for controlling transpiration. Such a bioengineered strategy implies control mechanisms that in the past have not been widely attributed to life support systems involving biological components and suggests a broad range of applications in advanced life support system design.

Chamberland, Dennis↗
DOE OSTI2024

Experimental Soil Warming Impacts Soil Moisture and Plant Water Stress and Thereby Ecosystem Carbon Dynamics (Blodgett, CA)

This dataset contains data on daily soil temperature, moisture and flux, and soil carbon stock and root biomass across a soil profile down to 100 cm depth at Blodgett Forest Research Station, CA, USA. These data were generated to determine if modeling of an experimental soil warming of 4C showed increased soil CO2 emissions and changes in bulk soil carbon stocks with depth consistent with field observations, as part of the study: Riley et al. (2025) Experimental Soil Warming Impacts Soil Moisture and Plant Water Stress and Thereby Ecosystem Carbon Dynamics in Journal of Advances in Modeling Earth Systems. This research was performed within the framework of the TES Belowground Biogeochemistry SFA project, in particular association with a 1 m-deep experimental soil heating experiment at the University of California Blodgett Forest Research Station, California (120 ° 39′40′′W; 38 ° 54′43′′N). Continuous data were collected at the plot level, and bulk soil carbon and root biomass were sampled once a year from each plot from 0-100 cm, in 10 cm intervals. Measurements relevant to the current study include soil temperature and soil volumetric water content measured continuously at multiple depths in the top meter; fine root biomass and SOC stocks measured from annual soil cores. Soil flux was continuously monitored using a LI-8100 Automated CO2 Flux System in conjunction with the LI-8150 Multiplexer (Licor, Nebraska, USA). Soil flux was determined using SoilFluxPro software, with flux values showing an R² fit of less than 0.9 being excluded from the analysis. Data were collected from each paired plot (1-3): one control (C) and one heated (H).

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS1994

Atmospheric, Climatic, and Environmental Research

The climate and atmospheric modeling project involves analysis of basic climate processes, with special emphasis on studies of the atmospheric CO2 and H2O source/sink budgets and studies of the climatic role Of CO2, trace gases and aerosols. These studies are carried out, based in part on use of simplified climate models and climate process models developed at GISS. The principal models currently employed are a variable resolution 3-D general circulation model (GCM), and an associated "tracer" model which simulates the advection of trace constituents using the winds generated by the GCM.

Broecker, Wallace S.↗
NASA NTRS1987

Catalysts for long-life closed-cycle CO2 lasers

Long-life, closed-cycle operation of pulsed CO2 lasers requires catalytic CO-O2 recombination both to remove O2, which is formed by discharge-induced CO2 decomposition, and to regenerate CO2. Platinum metal on a tin (IV) oxide substrate (Pt/SnO2) has been found to be an effective catalyst for such recombination in the desired temperature range of 25 to 100 C. This paper presents a description of ongoing research at NASA-LaRC on Pt/SnO2 catalyzed CO-O2 recombination. Included are studies with rare-isotope gases since rare-isotope CO2 is desirable as a laser gas for enhanced atmospheric transmission. Results presented include: (1) achievement of 98% to 100% conversion of a stoichiometric mixture of CO and O2 to CO2 for 318 hours (greater than 1 x 10 to the 6th power seconds), continuous, at a catalyst temperature of 60 C, and (2) development of a technique verified in a 30-hour test, to prevent isotopic scrambling when CO-18 and O-18(2) are reacted in the presence of a common-isotope Pt/Sn O-16(2) catalyst.

Schryer, David R.↗