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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 37 records · Page 2
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2024

Enabling thermal energy storage in structural cementitious composites with a novel phase change material microcapsule featuring an inorganic shell and a bio-inspired silica coating

Phase change material (PCM) microcapsules offer a promising approach for integrating PCM into building materials for efficient thermal energy storage. Here, this study presents the development of a novel PCM microcapsule specifically designed for incorporation into cementitious materials. The microcapsule consists of a low-cost PCM core derived from vegetable oil by-products and a durable inorganic shell made from cenosphere, a hollow fly ash generated from coal burning power plants. A novel process is developed to apply a silica coating to these cenosphere-based PCM microcapsules (CPCM), resulting in bioinspired-silica-coated CPCM microcapsules (BCPCM). This coating process draws inspiration from marine microorganism-based silica production and utilizes low-cost sodium silicate as a precursor, enabling eco-friendly and cost-effective manufacturing at ambient temperature and mild pH conditions. The morphology, chemical stability, and thermal properties of the BCPCM along with its thermo-mechanical performance in cementitious composites were comprehensively analyzed. Experimental results demonstrate successful silica deposition on BCPCM, leading to enhanced latent heat properties of the produced BCPCM. With the silica coating, BCPCM exhibits a 50 °C delay in thermal decomposition compared to CPCM, enhancing fire resistance and preventing premature PCM leakage of the microcapsule. The bioinspired silica coating effectively restores over 10% of the strength loss for each percent increase in CPCM incorporated into the mortar. The thermal performance experiments reveal that increasing the BCPCM content reduces temperature peaks and rates of temperature increase, indicating an improved capacity for thermal energy storage. This new PCM microcapsule provides a cost-effective solution to integrate thermal energy storage to cementitious material, as evidenced that over 30% of aggregates (in volume) can be replaced by the microcapsule without a drastic loss of strength.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
DOE OSTI2025

Reversible self-assembly of small molecules for recyclable solid-state battery electrolytes

Performance often overshadows recyclability in contemporary battery designs, leading to sustainability challenges. Preemptive strategies integrating recyclable chemistry from the outset are thus increasingly critical for addressing the complexities in conventional recycling. Here we harness bio-inspired molecular self-assembly to create inherently recyclable battery materials. We use aramid amphiphiles that self-assemble in water through strong, collective hydrogen bonding and π–π stacking, forming air-stable, high-aspect-ratio nanoribbons with gigapascal-level stiffness. When processed into bulk solid-state electrolytes, these nanoribbons retain their ordered molecular arrangement and exhibit total conductivities of 1.6 × 10 −4 S cm −1 at 50 °C, Young’s moduli of 70 MPa and toughness values of 1 MJ m −3 , despite being stabilized solely by reversible non-covalent bonds. We further demonstrate clean separation of battery components by exposing used cells to an organic solvent, which disrupts the non-covalent cohesion and reverts all battery components to their original forms. Furthermore, this study underscores the potential of molecular self-assembly for specialized recyclable designs in energy storage applications.

Batteries↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Emulating Nature: The Future of Sustainable Design with BIDARA

BIDARA (Bio-inspired Design and Research Assistant) is a GPT-4o chatbot that was instructed to help scientists and engineers understand, learn from, and emulate the strategies used by living things to create sustainable designs and technologies. BIDARA can guide users through the Biomimicry Institute’s Design Process, a step-by-step method to propose biomimetic solutions to challenges. This process includes defining the problem, biologizing the challenge, discovering natural models, abstracting design strategies, and emulating nature's lessons.

Brandon Ruffridge↗
DOE OSTI2022

Peptoid-Directed Formation of Five-Fold Twinned Au Nanostars through Particle Attachment and Facet Stabilization

While bio-inspired synthesis offers great potential for controlling nucleation and growth of inorganic particles, precisely tuning biomolecule-particle interactions is a long-standing challenge. Herein, we used variations in peptoid sequence to manipulate peptoid-Au interaction, leading to synthesis of concave five-fold twinned, five-pointed Au nanostars via a process of repeated particle attachment and facet stabilization. Ex situ and liquid-phase TEM observations show that a balance between particle attachment biased to occur near the star points, preferential growth along the [100] direction, and stabilization of (111) facets is critical to forming star-shaped particles. Molecular simulations predict that interaction strengths between peptoids and distinct Au facets differ significantly and thus can alter attachment kinetics and surface energies to form the stars. This work provides new insights into how sequence-defined ligands affect particle growth to regulate crystal morphology.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2024

Neutrons in Structural Biology: Challenges and Opportunities (Workshop Report)

Gaining a thorough understanding of biological systems requires building our knowledge about biological processes from the level of atoms and electrons, and up to whole organisms. Such comprehensive knowledge will allow for a predictive understanding of complex biological systems behavior. It will guide us in the design and development of novel therapeutics and vaccines to tackle existing health threats and to prepare for future pandemics, and it will provide information necessary to create new biomaterials and bio-inspired technologies through manipulation of biological macromolecules, their assemblies, single cells and even microorganisms. Reaching these goals will require a synergistic combination of multiple experimental techniques with molecular calculations and predictive simulations, and the design and development of new techniques and capabilities that bridge current knowledge and technology gaps. Neutron scattering provides unique information about the biomacromolecular structure and function and can play a major role in achieving these goals. A workshop was held to engage the scientific community in identifying pressing challenges in biochemistry, structural biology, enzymology and structure-guided drug design not solved with the current neutron scattering technologies or utilizing other structural biology techniques such as X-ray crystallography, NMR, and cryo-EM. The workshop brought together structural biology, biochemistry and computational experts, as well as early career researchers and students, creating a forum for discussing scientific advancement and collaboration. The workshop included a one-day satellite training workshop where graduate students and postdoctoral researchers were educated in the application of neutron crystallography and small-angle scattering in structural biology. Furthermore, the Instrument Scientific Advisory Board (ISAB) for the development of a macromolecular neutron diffractometer at ORNL’s Second Target Station was introduced at the workshop. The major outcome was that neutrons can provide atomic-level understanding of biomacromolecular structure, function and dynamics which is of paramount importance for addressing the identified challenges. Neutron crystallography, in particular, can resolve long-standing biochemical issues regarding enzyme function by delineating the underlying chemistry and can have a major impact on the design of small-molecule therapeutics, especially in combination with molecular computation (quantum chemistry and molecular dynamics simulations) and the emerging artificial intelligence (AI)-assisted drug design technologies. The unique properties of neutrons, including their high sensitivity to hydrogen and their non-destructive nature, make them ideal probes of biological matter. There is a palpable need in the scientific community to expand and enhance the impact of neutron sciences on biology. Neutron crystallography is the only structural biology method capable of determining positions of all hydrogen atoms in proteins, nucleic acids and their complexes at near-physiological temperatures and of unstable species at cryogenic temperatures. Moreover, neutron analysis is non-ionizing, non-destructive and does not perturb the structure or redox chemistry of active site metal centers and clusters in proteins, which can be invaluable for studying radiation-sensitive metalloprotein complexes. Further, neutron energies used in scattering applications are similar to atomic motions, permitting neutron spectroscopies to characterize the dynamics of biomacromolecules on the picosecond to microsecond timescales. The different sensitivities of neutrons to protium (H) and deuterium (D) isotopes of hydrogen allow enhanced visibility of specific parts of biological complexes through isotopic labeling. The impact of neutrons will be most powerful when neutron scattering is combined with complementary experimental techniques that use photons and electrons, and with high-performance computing. The interconnection and mutuality of the experimental and theoretical capabilities will drive discoveries in biological and health sciences to generate more complete picture of complex biological systems. The major limitation in the field of biological neutron crystallography has been signal-to-noise, demanding large samples that are difficult to produce for the majority of biomacromolecules and limiting the applicability of this technique in biological sciences. A neutron crystallography instrument at the Second Target Station will revolutionize biological science with neutrons by engaging a large scientific community of structural biologists, enabling successful neutron diffraction experiments from radically smaller biomacromolecular crystals, resolving unanswered biochemical questions, and meaningfully contributing to rational drug design. The meeting highlighted 10 grand challenges that will be addressed with this advanced capability over the next decade and beyond, and the recommendations required to help address them are given below.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS2013

Microgravity Fluids for Biology, Workshop

Microgravity Fluids for Biology represents an intersection of biology and fluid physics that present exciting research challenges to the Space Life and Physical Sciences Division. Solving and managing the transport processes and fluid mechanics in physiological and biological systems and processes are essential for future space exploration and colonization of space by humans. Adequate understanding of the underlying fluid physics and transport mechanisms will provide new, necessary insights and technologies for analyzing and designing biological systems critical to NASAs mission. To enable this mission, the fluid physics discipline needs to work to enhance the understanding of the influence of gravity on the scales and types of fluids (i.e., non-Newtonian) important to biology and life sciences. In turn, biomimetic, bio-inspired and synthetic biology applications based on physiology and biology can enrich the fluid mechanics and transport phenomena capabilities of the microgravity fluid physics community.

biology↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Voltage-Controlled Differential Faraday Rotation from FMNWs and Magnetoelastic Silicone-Nickel Composites

Differential Faraday rotation has been observed from strain-Differential Faraday rotation has been observed from strain-modulated magnetoelastic membranes using millimeter-wave polarimetry at 61.25 GHz. The membranes, consisting of aligned chains of nickel micro-particles embedded in silicone rubber, were manufactured using a roll-to-roll electromagnetic processing line, mounted onto piezoelectric ceramic annuli, and immersed in externally-generated static magnetic fields. Experiments were conducted in which the membranes were periodically stretched by operating the piezoelectric crystals close to their radial resonant frequencies—thereby modulating nickel particle density as well as magnetic material properties. A customized quasi-optical apparatus was used to determine the Faraday-rotation difference between the strained and unstrained states of the magnetoelastic membranes. Possible applications that could emerge from this polymer-based technology include nonreciprocal millimeter-wave components with voltage-controlled frequency response and bio-inspired geomagnetic sensors for GPS-denied navigation. Investigations were conducted to estimate the maximum attainable differential Faraday rotation and the minimum detectable static magnetic field.

nickel↗
DOE OSTI2021

Investigation of grid-based vorticity-velocity large eddy simulation off-body solvers for application to overset CFD

Accurately predicting unsteady wakes and vortex-dominated flows is essential to a wide range of engineering applications, including aircraft, rotorcraft, shipboard operations, bio-inspired unsteady flight and propulsion, wind turbines, and urban flows. While current CFD software can model the complete flow field and wake system, the computational costs incurred in high Reynolds number unsteady turbulent flow simulations often remain prohibitive for routine engineering use, particularly for applications involving moving components. Prior work has demonstrated that by adopting a vorticity-velocity formulation in a grid-based off-body flow solver (VorTran-M and VorTran-M2) one can lower these costs by several orders of magnitude when compared to conventional approaches. This paper describes the extensions made to VorTran-M2 to support turbulent flows, and associated benchmarking activity to assess its performance for problems involving strong stretching and diffusion processes, whose competing contributions to the vorticity field are core drivers of turbulent flow evolution. Predictions are presented for: (i) the Kida-Pelz problem whose inviscid form is of mathematical interest due to its apparent formation of singular flow in finite time; and (ii) the Taylor Green vortex arrangement, which has been extensively studied as a fundamental simulation challenge in the turbulent modeling community. Here, the results are used to evaluate the overall predictive ability and performance of two sub-grid scale models incorporated into VorTran-M2. Results indicate that the computational cost savings seen previously for inviscid and convection dominated problems extend to turbulent flow simulations supporting the viability of VorTran-M2 as a low cost means for accurately modeling the far-field and background flow, particularly when long duration vorticity evolution is of interest.

42 ENGINEERING↗
NASA NTRS2004

Development of Biomorphic Flyers

Biomorphic flyers have recently been demonstrated that utilize the approach described earlier in "Bio-Inspired Engineering of Exploration Systems" (NPO-21142), NASA Tech Briefs, Vol. 27, No. 5 (May 2003), page 54, to distill the principles found in successful, nature-tested mechanisms of flight control. Two types of flyers are being built, corresponding to the imaging and shepherding flyers for a biomorphic mission described earlier in "Cooperative Lander- Surface/Aerial Microflyer Missions for Mars Exploration" (NPO-30286), NASA Tech Briefs, Vol. 28, No. 5 (May 2004), page 36. The common features of these two types of flyers are that both are delta-wing airplanes incorporating bio-inspired capabilities of control, navigation, and visual search for exploration. The delta-wing design is robust to approx.40 G axial load and offers ease of stowing and packaging. The prototype that we have built recently is shown in the figure. Such levels of miniaturization and autonomous navigation are essential to enable biomorphic microflyers (<1 kg) that can be deployed in large numbers for distributed measurements and exploration of difficult terrain while avoiding hazards. Individual bio-inspired sensors that will be incorporated in a biomorphic flyer have been demonstrated recently. These sensors include a robust, lightweight (~6 g), and low-power (~40 mW) horizon sensor for flight stabilization. It integrates successfully the principles of the dragonfly ocelli. The ocelli are small eyes on the dorsal and forward regions of the heads of many insects. The ocelli are distinct from the compound eyes that are most commonly associated with insect vision. In many insects, the ocelli are little more than single-point detectors of short-wavelength light and behavioral responses to ocelli stimuli are hard to observe. The notable exception is found in dragonflies, where flight control is notably degraded by any interference with the ocellar system. Our team has discovered recently that the ocelli are a dedicated horizon sensor, with substantial optical processing and multiple spectral sensitivity. To our knowledge, this is the world s first demonstrated use of a "biomorphic ocellus" as a flight-stabilization system. The advantage of the ocelli over a similarly sized system of rate gyroscopes is that both attitude control and rate damping can be realized in one device. A full inertial unit and significant processing would otherwise be required to achieve the same effect. As a prelude to full autonomy, substantial stability augmentation is provided to the pilot at very low cost in terms of space, power, and mass. The sensor is about 40 times lighter than a comparable inertial attitude reference system. Other significant features of the biomorphic flyer shown in the figure include its ability to fly at high angles of attack ~30 and a deep wing chord which allows scaling to small size and low Reynold s number situations. Furthermore, the placement of the propulsion system near the center of gravity allows continued control authority at low speeds. These attributes make such biomorphic flyers uniquely suited to planetary and terrestrial exploration where small size and autonomous airborne operation are required.

Thakoor, Sarita↗
DOE OSTI2025

Nature-inspired lotus-shaped fins combined with hybrid nanoparticles and metal foam for high-performance latent heat thermal energy storage

Latent heat thermal energy storage (LHTES) systems play a critical role in renewable energy integration by providing high energy density and nearly isothermal operation during phase transitions. However, their performance is often limited by slow melting/charging rates, which motivates the search for enhanced heat transfer designs. This study investigates the melting behavior of RT-82 phase change material (PCM) using novel lotus-shaped fins combined with copper metal foam and conductive graphene nanoparticles and carbon nanotubes. A two-dimensional enthalpy-porosity model in ANSYS Fluent was developed to simulate the charging/melting process, capturing non-thermal equilibrium between the foam and PCM/nano-PCM. In this study, effects of fin geometry, nanoparticle concentration, and foam porosity on melting dynamics and cost-performance trade-offs were investigated. Results showed that natural convection accelerated melting by ~12% compared to conduction-only scenarios. Optimized lotus-shaped fins with higher fin density (T3F4 and T3F10) achieved up to 63% faster melting relative to sparse configurations. Graphene nanoparticles improved thermal conductivity, with a 6% volume fraction, by reducing melting time by ~6.9%, while their combination with 75% porosity foam achieved a maximum reduction in the melting time of ~51% compared to pure PCM. Cost-performance analysis identified T3F4 as the most balanced design, offering rapid thermal response without excessive material costs, while moderate-density designs like T3S6 provided economical alternatives with acceptable performance. These results highlight the performance enhancement that can be achieved by integrating bio-inspired fins, nanoparticles, and foams, into compact and efficient LHTES for solar heating, building thermal management, and industrial waste-heat recovery applications.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
DOE OSTI2022

Allosteric control of electron transfer in nitrogenase and nitrogenase-like enzymes (Final Report)

More than a third of all known proteins to date are either oxidoreductases or metalloproteins. The diversity of metal cofactors and redox centers in these proteins make them attractive candidates for engineering protein-based biocatalysts, biosensors, and biofuel cells, among other necessary tools for the bioeconomy. Many of these enzymes function as large multi-subunit complexes arranged as symmetric or asymmetric assemblies, and the purpose of this architecture is unclear. The goal of the project was to address this fundamental question by investigating the mechanism of action of two oxidoreductases: Nitrogenase and DPOR (Dark-Operative Protochlorophyllide Oxidoreductase, a nitrogenase-like oxidoreductase). Nitrogenase and DPOR play key roles in nitrogen fixation and photosynthesis, processes essential to sustaining life. Both proteins are arranged as two symmetrical halves with each half capable of substrate reduction. For more than half a century, substrate reduction by nitrogenase has been presumed to occur independently within the two identical halves. Funded by this DOE grant we have now shown that both nitrogenase and DPOR function asymmetrically. Electron transfer in one half suppresses activity in the other. Thus, we have demonstrated that the two halves do not function in an independent manner; rather, catalytic events in one-half allosterically suppress activity and electron transfer (ET) in the other. This alternating-site mechanism has significant implications on our current understanding of substrate reduction by these enzymes and offers a new mechanistic paradigm for the reactions they catalyze. Our work now provides a mechanistic map of the how the two symmetric catalytic halves work together to establish and maintain the sequential-site mechanism through multiple ET cycles to achieve substrate reduction. There is substantive need for bio-inspired tools that enable reduction of nitrogen and other substrates, as well as photosynthesis, for energy and food production. Understanding the workings of enzymes like nitrogenase and DPOR that mediate multi-electron redox chemistry is vital for designing such synthetic tools. The timing of our research coincides with the biotechnological breakthrough of light-driven artificial N2 reduction by nitrogenase, achieved using the native enzyme with both halves arranged in a mirror-like architecture as catalyst. Together with such discoveries, our research now reveal unknown facets of the reaction mechanism and hold promise for designing more effective catalysts.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2023

A decision support tool for e-waste recycling operations using the hen-and-chicks bio-inspired optimization metaheuristic

E-waste from end-of-life electrical and electronic devices is one of the fastest growing waste streams from households and businesses. E-waste recycling yields environmental sustainability and economic benefits. Due to continuous changes in e-waste types and compositions, recycling businesses face challenges to optimize their operational configuration to achieve better economic and environmental performance. To help e-waste recyclers mitigate this problem, we have developed a modular decision support tool called the Comprehensive Manufacturing Assessment Tool (CMAT) that can simulate both e-waste recycling operations and economics. This tool can give valuable insights regarding the profitability of the entire operation and different e-waste types. In addition, a new bio-inspired metaheuristic optimization algorithm, hen-and-chicks optimization (HACO), was developed to assign manpower to different workstations to maximize operational efficiencies. According to the results of our case study, laptops, desktops, and computer peripherals are the three electronic waste products that produce the most profit. Our examination of the sensitivity of material prices shows that the price of steel has the most significant influence on total profit, because it is the most widely used material in the majority of electronic devices. We have released the decision support tool as open-source software under a general public license. It could be customized for other recycling industries beyond e-waste to achieve business sustainability by making their operations more efficient.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
NASA NTRS2021

Bioinspired Honeycomb Core Design: An Experimental Study of the Role of Corner Radius, Coping, and Interface

The honeybee’s nest has inspired the design of engineering honeycomb core that primarily abstract the hexagonal cell shape and exploit its mass minimizing properties to construct lightweight panels. This work explored three additional design features that are part of the natural honeybee comb but have not been traditionally considered as design features of interest in honeycomb design: the radius at the corner of each cell, the coping at the top of the cell walls, and the interface between cell arrays. These features were first characterized in natural honeycomb using optical and X-ray techniques, and then incorporated into honeycomb core design, and fabricated using an additive manufacturing process. The honeycomb cores were then tested in out-of-plane compression and bending, and since all three design features added mass to the overall structure, all metrics were examined per unit mass to assess performance gains. The study concluded that the addition of an interface increases specific flexural modulus but has little benefit in out-of-plane compression; coping radius positively impacts specific flexural strength; but that the corner radius has no significant effect in bending, and actually is slightly detrimental for out-of-plane compression testing.

honeycomb↗
NASA NTRS2018

Biocene 2018 - Welcome to the Period of New Life

Biocene is the period of new life. When our descendants look back at this period in time, they will see evidence, in the geologic and electronic record, of anthropic climate change, growing population, and scarcity of resources. But they will also see the rebirth of human ingenuity as we overcame the challenges that faced us through nature-inspired exploration. The Periodic Table of Life (PeTaL) is a proposed tool and open source framework that uses artificial intelligence to aid in the systematic inquiry of biology for its application to human systems. This presentation defines the PeTaL concept and workflow. Biomimicry, biophysics, biomimetics, bionics and numerous other terms refer to the use of biology and biological principles to inform practices in other disciplines. For the most part, the domain of inquiry in these fields have been confined to extant biological models with the proponents of biomimicry often citing the evolutionary success of extant organisms relative to extinct ones. The primary objective of this paper is to expand the domain of inquiry for human processes that seek to model those that are, were or could be found in nature with examples that relate to the field of aerospace and to spur development of tools that can work together to accelerate the use of artificial intelligence in problem solving. Specifically specialized fields such as paleomimesis, anthropomimesis and physioteleology are proposed in conjunction with artificial evolution. Blockchain technology may be vital in allowing open source design tools such as PeTaL to democratize design and yet protect intellectual property. The overarching philosophy outlined here can be thought of as physiomimetics, a holistic and systematic way of learning from natural history. The backbone of PeTaL integrates an unstructured database with an ontological model consisting of function, morphology, environment, state of matter and ecosystem. Tools include text classification, thesaurus, data visualization, and analysis. Applications of PeTaL include guiding human space exploration, understanding human and geological history, and discovering new or extinct life.

Biocene↗
DOE OSTI2025

Closed-Loop Control of Active Nematic Flows

Stabilizing and shaping autonomous flows of active fluids is a fundamental challenge and a prerequisite for applications. We embed a light-responsive microtubule-based nematic in a proportional-integral control loop that adjusts the applied light intensity in response to real-time measurements of the spatially averaged flow speed. The self-regulating hardware-software-wetware system maintains a target flow speed against external or internal perturbations, including protein aging and aggregation, sample-to-sample variability, and temperature variation. Varying the controller’s gains reveals antagonistic roles between feedback and intrinsic processes, leading to nontrivial dynamics observed in fluctuation spectra. In particular, oscillations emerge from the interplay between the controller, motor binding kinetics, and active hydrodynamic relaxation. Accounting for the underlying binding timescale, our coarse-grained model and nematohydrodynamics simulations corroborate these observations. This work provides insight into the coupled dynamics of controlled active matter, laying the foundation for spatiotemporal patterning of active stress to generate and stabilize new dynamical configurations.

Active nematics↗
DOE OSTI2025

Morphogenic Growth 3D Printing

Inspired by nature's morphogenesis, a new 3D printing process –growth printing (GP)– takes advantage of a self‐propagating curing front to produce 3D polymeric parts following a growth‐like development plan. The propagation of the curing front is driven by the exothermic polymerization of dicyclopentadiene (DCPD), which transforms the liquid resin into a stiff polymer as it propagates at 1 mm s −1 . GP is triggered when a heated initiator contacts the uncured liquid resin in an open container. The initiator nucleates the frontal polymerization reaction and the isotropic radial propagation of the growth front. Simultaneously, the initiator is moved up across the free surface of the resin, pulling the cured object out of the uncured resin. The motion trajectory of the initiator with respect to the free resin surface controls the growth morphology of the 3D part. An inverse design algorithm is developed to produce 3D parts by modeling the reaction‐diffusion‐driven solidification process. This process has substantial energy savings and high printing speeds.

3D printing↗
DOE OSTI2021

Maturation of Rhodobacter capsulatus Multicopper Oxidase CutO Depends on the CopA Copper Efflux Pathway and Requires the cutF Product (Final Report)

The goal is to achieve a comprehensive understanding of the nature, mechanism of function and biogenesis of c-type cytochromes and their oligomeric complexes. These cytochrome are ubiquitous heme proteins that are required for cellular bioenergetics, including photosynthesis (Ps) and respiration (Res), which are central to chemical energy (ATP) production by oxidative- and photophosphorylation. We contribute to the molecular characterization of individual and membrane-integral cytochromes as parts of Ps and Res electron transport (ET) pathways, using the facultative phototrophic bacteria of as excellent models for multidisciplinary investigations. Supported by this grant we discovered novel membrane-bound cytochromes and cyts c complexes that are important for Ps- and Res-ET. We worked out their biogenesis including maturation (covalent heme addition) and assembly of mature subunits into complexes. These involve fundamental process found virtually in all organisms and are fundamental processes with major significance to the “Photosynthetic Systems” program of DOE-BES, because the cytochromes are integral components of natural energy production systems. Elucidation of basic principles, and the knowledge gained by their study greatly impact on our ability to design, engineer, and create new natural, bio-hybrid, bio-inspired and artificial systems to better capture light, transduce and store its energy with improved efficacy and are of broad significance.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
NASA NTRS2004

Adaptive Bio-Inspired Wireless Network Routing for Planetary Surface Exploration

Wireless mobile networks suffer connectivity loss when used in a terrain that has hills, and valleys when line of sight is interrupted or range is exceeded. To resolve this problem and achieve acceptable network performance, we have designed an adaptive, configurable, hybrid system to automatically route network packets along the best path between multiple geographically dispersed modules. This is very useful in planetary surface exploration, especially for ad-hoc mobile networks, where computational devices take an active part in creating a network infrastructure, and can actually be used to route data dynamically and even store data for later transmission between networks. Using inspiration from biological systems, this research proposes to use ant trail algorithms with multi-layered information maps (topographic maps, RF coverage maps) to determine the best route through ad-hoc network at real time. The determination of best route is a complex one, and requires research into the appropriate metrics, best method to identify the best path, optimizing traffic capacity, network performance, reliability, processing capabilities and cost. Real ants are capable of finding the shortest path from their nest to a food source without visual sensing through the use of pheromones. They are also able to adapt to changes in the environment using subtle clues. To use ant trail algorithms, we need to define the probability function. The artificial ant is, in this case, a software agent that moves from node to node on a network graph. The function to calculate the fitness (evaluate the better path) includes: length of the network edge, the coverage index, topology graph index, and pheromone trail left behind by other ant agents. Each agent modifies the environment in two different ways: 1) Local trail updating: As the ant moves between nodes it updates the amount of pheromone on the edge; and 2) Global trail updating: When all ants have completed a tour the ant that found the shortest route updates the edges in its path.

Alena, Richard I.↗