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At least 37 records · Page 2

Measuring Impact: Evaluating Thermal Zoning Simplification on Energy Efficiency Measures Analysis

Building Energy Modeling (BEM) is a versatile tool for designing, retrofitting, ensuring code compliance, obtaining certifications, qualifying for incentives, and enabling real-time building control. However, capturing all the details of building geometry for thermal zoning can be time-consuming, costly, and sometimes computationally challenging. As a result, modelers have been applying zoning simplification based on factors such as space functions and internal loads, as well as relying on their experience and judgment while adhering to zoning rules outlined in industry standards. Despite the prevalence of this common practice, a notable gap exists in the literature regarding studies quantifying the influence of simplified thermal zoning on the evaluation of Energy Efficiency Measures (EEMs). Recognizing this gap, this paper seeks to contribute to the field by enhancing the understanding of how the simplification of thermal zoning influences the evaluation of EEMs against a baseline design. The study utilized a medium office prototype model with a detailed floor plan featuring over 20 zones per floor covering diverse functional spaces with varying internal loads and occupancy schedules. A standard thermal zoning strategy outlined in ASHRAE Standard 90.1 Appendix G was employed as the simplified zoning method. This strategy condenses the zoning into a core zone and four perimeter zones per floor. It was compared with the detailed zoning approach, which involves one zone per space. Common Energy EEMs, such as enhanced envelope, high-efficiency appliances and equipment, and HVAC controls, were individually implemented and evaluated. The results indicate that the performance comparison between the two zoning methods varies depending on the type of measures considered. Basic measures, such as adding wall insulation, demonstrate similar energy impacts, while advanced HVAC control measures, such as static pressure reset, exhibit a more substantial difference that cannot be overlooked.

Xie, Jiarong

Armstrong Laboratory Space Visual Function Tester Program

Viewgraphs on space visual function tester program are presented. Many astronauts and cosmonauts have commented on apparent changes in their vision while on-orbit. Comments have included descriptions of earth features and objects that would suggest enhanced distance visual acuity. In contrast, some cosmonaut observations suggest a slight loss in their object discrimination during initial space flight. Astronauts have also mentioned a decreased near vision capability that did not recover to normal until return to earth. Duntley space vision experiment, USSR space vision experiments, and visual function testers are described.

Oneal, Melvin R.

Comparison of some optimal control methods for the design of turbine blades

This paper attempts a comparative study of some numerical methods for the optimal control design of turbine blades whose vibration characteristics are approximated by Timoshenko beam idealizations with shear and incorporating simple boundary conditions. The blade was synthesized using the following methods: (1) conjugate gradient minimization of the system Hamiltonian in function space incorporating penalty function transformations, (2) projection operator methods in a function space which includes the frequencies of vibration and the control function, (3) epsilon-technique penalty function transformation resulting in a highly nonlinear programming problem, (4) finite difference discretization of the state equations again resulting in a nonlinear program, (5) second variation methods with complex state differential equations to include damping effects resulting in systems of inhomogeneous matrix Riccatti equations some of which are stiff, (6) quasi-linear methods based on iterative linearization of the state and adjoint equation. The paper includes a discussion of some substantial computational difficulties encountered in the implementation of these techniques together with a resume of work presently in progress using a differential dynamic programming approach.

Desilva, B. M. E.

Engineering, construction, and operations in space - III: Space '92; Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference, Denver, CO, May 31-June 4, 1992. Vols. 1 & 2

The present volume on engineering, construction, and operations in space discusses surface structures on the moon and Mars, surface equipment, construction, and transportation on the moon and Mars, in situ materials use and processing, and space energy. Attention is given to such orbital structures as LEO and the space station, space mining and excavation, space materials, space automation and robotics, and space life support systems. Topics addressed include lunar-based astronomy, space systems integration, terrestrial support for space functions, and space education. Also discussed are space plans, policy, and history, space science and engineering, geoengineering and space exploration, and the construction and development of a human habitat on Mars.

Space life support systems

Random Phase Approximation Correlation Energy Using Real-Space Density Functional Perturbation Theory

We present a real-space method for computing the random phase approximation (RPA) correlation energy within Kohn–Sham density functional theory, leveraging the low-rank nature of the frequency-dependent density response operator. In particular, we employ a cubic-scaling formalism based on density functional perturbation theory that circumvents the calculation of the response function matrix, instead relying on the ability to compute its product with a vector through the solution of the associated Sternheimer linear systems. We develop a large-scale parallel implementation of this formalism using the subspace iteration method in conjunction with the spectral quadrature method while employing the Kronecker product-based method for the application of the Coulomb operator and the conjugate orthogonal conjugate gradient method for the solution of the linear systems. We demonstrate convergence with respect to key parameters and verify the method’s accuracy by comparing with plane-wave results. We show that the framework achieves good strong scaling to many thousands of processors, reducing the time to solution for a lithium hydride system with 128 electrons to around 150 s on 4608 processors.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH

Space station functional relationships analysis

A systems engineering process is developed to assist Space Station designers to understand the underlying operational system of the facility so that it can be physically arranged and configured to support crew productivity. The study analyzes the operational system proposed for the Space Station in terms of mission functions, crew activities, and functional relationships in order to develop a quantitative model for evaluation of interior layouts, configuration, and traffic analysis for any Station configuration. Development of the model involved identification of crew functions, required support equipment, criteria of assessing functional relationships, and tools for analyzing functional relationship matrices, as well as analyses of crew transition frequency, sequential dependencies, support equipment requirements, potential for noise interference, need for privacy, and overall compatability of functions. The model can be used for analyzing crew functions for the Initial Operating Capability of the Station and for detecting relationships among these functions. Note: This process (FRA) was used during Phase B design studies to test optional layouts of the Space Station habitat module. The process is now being automated as a computer model for use in layout testing of the Space Station laboratory modules during Phase C.

Tullis, Thomas S.

BP and Vascular Function Following Space Flight

Blood pressure and mesenteric resistance artery function were assessed in 9-week-old spontaneously hypertensive rats following an 18 day shuttle flight on STS-80. Blood pressure was measured twice, first in conscious animals using a tail-cuff method and then while the animals were anesthetized with 2% halothane in O2. Isolated mesenteric resistance artery responses to cumulative additions of norepinephrine, acetylcholine, sodium nitroprusside, and calcium were measured within 17 hours of landing using wire myography. Blood pressure was slightly reduced in conscious animals following flight (p=0.056) but was significantly elevated (p less than.001) above vivarium control group values in anesthetized animals. Maximal contraction of mesenteric arteries to norepinephrine was attenuated in the flight animals (p less than.001)aswasrelaxationtoacetylcholine(p less than .001)andcalcium(p less than .05). There was no difference between flight and control animals in the vessel response to sodium nitroprusside (p greater than .05). The results suggest that there may have been an increase in synthesis and release of nitric oxide in the flight animals.

Hatton, Daniel C.

Ultimate boundedness stability and controllability of hereditary systems

By generalizing the Liapunov-Yoshizawa techniques, necessary and sufficient conditions are given for uniform boundedness and uniform ultimate boundedness of a rather general class of nonlinear differential equations of neutral type. Among the applications treated by the methods are the Lienard equation of neutral type and hereditary systems of Lurie type. The absolute stability of this later equation is also investigated. A certain existence result of a solution of a neutral functional differential inclusion with two point boundary values is applied to study the exact function space controllability of a nonlinear neutral functional differential control system. A geometric growth condition is used to characterize both the function space and Euclidean controllability of another nonlinear delay system which has a compact and convex control set. This yields conditions under which perturbed nonlinear delay controllable systems are controllable.

Chukwu, E. N.

Exploring Heart and Lung Function in Space: ARMS Experiments

The Advanced Respiratory Monitoring System (ARMS) is a suite of monitoring instruments and supplies used to study the heart, lungs, and metabolism. Many experiments sponsored by the European Space Agency (ESA) will be conducted using ARMS during STS-107. The near-weightless environment of space causes the body to undergo many physiological adaptations, and the regulation of blood pressure is no exception. Astronauts also experience a decrease in blood volume as an adaptation to microgravity. Reduced blood volume may not provide enough blood pressure to the head during entry or landing. As a result, astronauts often experience light-headedness, and sometimes even fainting, when they stand shortly after returning to Earth. To help regulate blood pressure and heart rate, baroreceptors, sensors located in artery walls in the neck and near the heart, control blood pressure by sending information to the brain and ensuring blood flow to organs. These mechanisms work properly in Earth's gravity but must adapt in the microgravity environment of space. However, upon return to Earth during entry and landing, the cardiovascular system must readjust itself to gravity, which can cause fluctuation in the control of blood pressure and heart rate. Although the system recovers in hours or days, these occurrences are not easily predicted or understood - a puzzle investigators will study with the ARMS equipment. In space, researchers can focus on aspects of the cardiovascular system normally masked by gravity. The STS-107 experiments using ARMS will provide data on how the heart and lungs function in space, as well as how the nervous system controls them. Exercise will also be combined with breath holding and straining (the Valsalva maneuver) to test how heart rate and blood pressure react to different stresses. This understanding will improve astronauts' cardiopulmonary function after return to Earth, and may well help Earthbound patients who experience similar effects after long-term bed rest.

Andre Kuipers

Space applications of Automation, Robotics and Machine Intelligence Systems (ARAMIS). Volume 4: Application of ARAMIS capabilities to space project functional elements

Applications of automation, robotics, and machine intelligence systems (ARAMIS) to space activities and their related ground support functions are studied, so that informed decisions can be made on which aspects of ARAMIS to develop. The specific tasks which will be required by future space project tasks are identified and the relative merits of these options are evaluated. The ARAMIS options defined and researched span the range from fully human to fully machine, including a number of intermediate options (e.g., humans assisted by computers, and various levels of teleoperation). By including this spectrum, the study searches for the optimum mix of humans and machines for space project tasks.

Miller, R. H.

Pulmonary function in space

The lung is exquisitely sensitive to gravity, and so it is of interest to know how its function is altered in the weightlessness of space. Studies on National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Spacelabs during the last 4 years have provided the first comprehensive data on the extensive changes in pulmonary function that occur in sustained microgravity. Measurements of pulmonary function were made on astronauts during space shuttle flights lasting 9 and 14 days and were compared with extensive ground-based measurements before and after the flights. Compared with preflight measurements, cardiac output increased by 18% during space flight, and stroke volume increased by 46%. Paradoxically, the increase in stroke volume occurred in the face of reductions in central venous pressure and circulating blood volume. Diffusing capacity increased by 28%, and the increase in the diffusing capacity of the alveolar membrane was unexpectedly large based on findings in normal gravity. The change in the alveolar membrane may reflect the effects of uniform filling of the pulmonary capillary bed. Distributions of blood flow and ventilation throughout the lung were more uniform in space, but some unevenness remained, indicating the importance of nongravitational factors. A surprising finding was that airway closing volume was approximately the same in microgravity and in normal gravity, emphasizing the importance of mechanical properties of the airways in determining whether they close. Residual volume was unexpectedly reduced by 18% in microgravity, possibly because of uniform alveolar expansion. The findings indicate that pulmonary function is greatly altered in microgravity, but none of the changes observed so far will apparently limit long-term space flight. In addition, the data help to clarify how gravity affects pulmonary function in the normal gravity environment on Earth.

short duration

Ultrastable Carboxyl–Functionalized Pore–Space–Partitioned Metal–Organic Frameworks for Gas Separation

Isoreticular chemistry, which enables property optimization by changing compositions without changing topology, is a powerful synthetic strategy. One of the biggest challenges facing isoreticular chemistry is to extend it to ligands with strongly coordinating substituent groups such as unbound –COOH, because competitive interactions between such groups and metal ions can derail isoreticular chemistry. It is even more challenging to have an isoreticular series of carboxyl-functionalized MOFs capable of encompassing chemically disparate metal ions. Furthermore, with the simultaneous introduction of carboxyl functionalization and pore space partition, a family of carboxyl-functionalized materials is developed in diverse compositions from homometallic Cr 3+ and Ni 2+ to heterometallic Co 2+ /V 3+ , Ni 2+ /V 3+ , Co 2+ /In 3+ , Co 2+ /Ni 2+ . Cr-MOFs remain highly crystalline in boiling water. Unprecedentedly, one Cr-MOF can withstand the treatment cycle with 10m NaOH and 12m HCl, allowing reversible inter-conversion between unbound –COOH acid form and –COO – base form. These materials exhibit excellent sorption properties such as high uptake capacity for CO 2 (100.2 cm 3 g –1 ) and hydrocarbon gases (e.g., 142.1 cm 3 g –1 for C 2 H 2 , 110.5 cm 3 g –1 for C 2 H 4 ) at 1 bar and 298K, high benzene/cyclohexane selectivity (up to ≈40), and promising separation performance for gas mixtures such as C 2 H 2 /CO 2 and C 2 H 2 /C 2 H 4 .

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH

Techniques for shuttle trajectory optimization

The application of recently developed function-space Davidon-type techniques to the shuttle ascent trajectory optimization problem is discussed along with an investigation of the recently developed PRAXIS algorithm for parameter optimization. At the outset of this analysis, the major deficiency of the function-space algorithms was their potential storage problems. Since most previous analyses of the methods were with relatively low-dimension problems, no storage problems were encountered. However, in shuttle trajectory optimization, storage is a problem, and this problem was handled efficiently. Topics discussed include: the shuttle ascent model and the development of the particular optimization equations; the function-space algorithms; the operation of the algorithm and typical simulations; variable final-time problem considerations; and a modification of Powell's algorithm.

Edge, E. R.

Domain decomposition: A bridge between nature and parallel computers

Domain decomposition is an intuitive organizing principle for a partial differential equation (PDE) computation, both physically and architecturally. However, its significance extends beyond the readily apparent issues of geometry and discretization, on one hand, and of modular software and distributed hardware, on the other. Engineering and computer science aspects are bridged by an old but recently enriched mathematical theory that offers the subject not only unity, but also tools for analysis and generalization. Domain decomposition induces function-space and operator decompositions with valuable properties. Function-space bases and operator splittings that are not derived from domain decompositions generally lack one or more of these properties. The evolution of domain decomposition methods for elliptically dominated problems has linked two major algorithmic developments of the last 15 years: multilevel and Krylov methods. Domain decomposition methods may be considered descendants of both classes with an inheritance from each: they are nearly optimal and at the same time efficiently parallelizable. Many computationally driven application areas are ripe for these developments. A progression is made from a mathematically informal motivation for domain decomposition methods to a specific focus on fluid dynamics applications. To be introductory rather than comprehensive, simple examples are provided while convergence proofs and algorithmic details are left to the original references; however, an attempt is made to convey their most salient features, especially where this leads to algorithmic insight.

Keyes, David E.