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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 397 records · Page 22
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2012

Visualizing Macromolecular Complexes with In Situ Liquid Scanning Transmission Electron Microscopy

A central focus of biological research is understanding the structure/function relationship of macromolecular protein complexes. Yet conventional transmission electron microscopy techniques are limited to static observations. Here we present the first direct images of purified macromolecular protein complexes using in situ liquid scanning transmission electron microscopy. Our results establish the capability of this technique for visualizing the interface between biology and nanotechnology with high fidelity while also probing the interactions of biomolecules within solution. This method represents an important advancement towards allowing future high-resolution observations of biological processes and conformational dynamics in real-time.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2025

Fundamental Study of Fatigue Crack Initiation at Grain and Twin Boundaries in Austentic Stainless Steel (Final Technical Report)

The overarching goal of this project was to understand the dislocation-based mechanisms driving fatigue crack initiation at grain and twin boundaries. The hypothesis of the work is that dislocation structures equivalent to persistent slip bands (PSBs) form in the boundaries, leading to local stress concentrations and fatigue crack initiation. The sub-goals associated with this work include: • Understanding the evolution of the dynamic stress state and dislocation density surrounding PSB/grain boundary interactions. This will require the development of new techniques that couple high resolution electron backscatter diffraction (HREBSD) with in situ scanning electron microscopy (SEM) deformation. • Uncover the mechanisms by which dislocations are accommodated in grain and twin boundaries during fatigue. The proposed approach here is to conduct in situ transmission electron microscopy (TEM) deformation experiments on fatigued samples. • Establish correlations between microstructure, deformation accommodation, and crack initiation across time and length scales. This work primarily focuses on understanding fatigue crack initiation in austenitic stainless steels, though promising work by an undergraduate researcher extended the work to high purity Al.

42 ENGINEERING↗
NASA NTRS2015

Insights into Regolith Evolution from TEM Studies of Space Weathering of Itokawa Particles

Exposure to solar wind irradiation and micrometeorite impacts alter the properties of regolith materials exposed on airless bodies. However, estimates of space weathering rates for asteroid regoliths span many orders of magnitude. Timescales for space weathering processes on airless bodies can be anchored by analyzing surface samples returned by JAXA's Hayabusa mission to asteroid 25143 Itokawa. Constraints on timescales of solar flare particle track accumulation and formation of solar wind produced ion-damaged rims yield information on regolith dynamics.

Berger, Eve L.↗
DOE OSTI2018

Microstructural Evolution of Al-1Fe (Weight Percent) Alloy During Accumulative Continuous Extrusion Forming

As a new microstructure refining method, accumulative continuous extrusion forming (ACEF) cannot only refine metal matrix but also refine the phases that exist in it. In order to detect the refinements of grain and second phase during the process, Al-1Fe (wt pct) alloy was processed by ACEF, and the microstructural evolution was analyzed by electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Results revealed that the average grain size of Al-1Fe (wt pct) alloy decreased from 13 to 1.2 μm, and blocky Al{sub 3}Fe phase with an average length of 300 nm was granulated to Al{sub 3}Fe particle with an average diameter of 200 nm, after one pass of ACEF. Refinement of grain was attributed to continuous dynamic recrystallization (CDRX), and the granulation of Al{sub 3}Fe phase included the spheroidization resulting from deformation heat and the fragmentation caused by the coupling effects of strain and thermal effect. The spheroidization worked in almost the entire deformation process, while the fragmentation required strain accumulation. However, fragmentation contributed more than spheroidization. Al{sub 3}Fe particle stimulated the formation of substructure and retarded the migration of recrystallized grain boundary, but the effect of Al{sub 3}Fe phase on refinement of grain could only be determined by the contrastive investigation of Al-1Fe (wt pct) alloy and pure Al.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2018

Direct Visualization of Li Dendrite Effect on LiCoO 2 Cathode by In Situ TEM

Li dendrites are known to cause deterious, and in many cases catastrophic, effect on the performance of Li rechargeable batteries. However, the mechanistic failure mechanism of cathodes upon in contact with Li metal is far from clear. In this study, using in situ transmission electron microscopy, we directly visualize at an atomic scale the interaction of Li dendrites with well-defined, epitaxial thin films of LiCoO2, the most widely used cathode material. We show that a spontaneous and prompt chemical reaction is trigged once the Li contact is made, leading to expansion and amorphization of the LiCoO2 structure, with Li2O and Co metal being the final reaction products. A topotactic phase transition is identified close to the reaction front, resulting in the formation of CoO as a metastable intermediate. Dynamic structural and chemical imaging in combination with ab inito simulations reveal that a high density of antiphase grain boundaries are formed at the reaction front, which are critical for enabling the short-range topotactic reactions and long-range Li propagation. The fundamental insights are of general importance in mitigating Li dendrites related issues and guiding the design principle for more robust energy materials.

In situ transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Li↗
DOE OSTI2024

Mechanisms of ion irradiation induced ordering in amorphous TiO 2 nanotubes: Effects of ion mass and energy

Here, amorphous TiO 2 nanotubes were irradiated in-situ in a transmission electron microscope (TEM) with Kr + ions at energies of 46 keV, 150 keV, and 1 MeV and with 46 keV Xe + ions, to investigate the structural and morphological evolution of the nanotubes under irradiation. At all irradiation conditions, amorphous TiO 2 nanotubes exhibited significant morphological instability, and tended to undergo volumetric swelling with increasing ion counts, often until collapse of the original nanotube structure. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations confirmed that irradiation-induced defects can explain the observed swelling. Structurally, nanotubes remain amorphous following all Kr + irradiation conditions, but irradiation with 46 keV Xe + leads to the formation of anatase nanocrystallites. Importantly, through systematically varying ion energy and ion species, we try to elucidate the influence of nuclear and electronic stopping power on ion irradiation induced changes. By contextualizing these results within the existing literature, we propose that the observed changes in TiO 2 nanotube morphology and structure could be due to a competition between two mechanisms: (1) disorder-induced swelling and (2) irradiation-induced amorphous-to-crystalline transformation.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2016

Concerted growth and ordering of cobalt nanorod arrays as revealed by tandem in situ SAXS-XAS studies

The molecular and ensemble dynamics for the growth of hierarchical supercrystals of cobalt nanorods have been studied by in situ tandem X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy – Small Angle X-ray Scattering (XAS - SAXS). The super-crystals were obtained by reducing a Co(II) precursor under H 2 in the presence of a long chain amine and a long chain carboxylic acid. Complementary time-dependent ex situ TEM studies were also performed. The experimental data provide critical insights into the nanorod growth mechanism, and unequivocal evidence for a concerted growth-organization process. Nanorod formation involves cobalt nucleation, a fast atom by atom anisotropic growth and a slower oriented attach-ment process that continues well after cobalt reduction is complete. As a result, smectic-like ordering of the nanorods appears very early in the process, as soon as nanoparticle elongation appears, and nanorod growth takes place inside organized super-lattices, which can be regarded as mesocrystals.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2011

Report on Sodium Compatibility of Advanced Structural Materials

This report provides an update on the evaluation of sodium structural materials. The report is a deliverable (level 3) in FY11 (M3A11AN04030403), under the Work Package A-11AN040304, “Sodium Compatibility of Advanced Structural Materials” performed by Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), as part of Advanced Structural Materials Program for the Advanced Reactor Concepts. This work package supports the advanced structural materials development by providing corrosion and tensile data from the standpoint of sodium compatibility of advanced structural alloys. The scope of work involves exposure of advanced structural alloys such as G92, mod.9Cr-1Mo (G91) ferritic-martensitic steels and HT-UPS austenitic stainless steels to a flowing sodium environment with controlled impurity concentrations. The exposed specimens are analyzed for their corrosion performance, microstructural changes, and tensile behavior. Previous reports examined the thermodynamic and kinetic factors involved in the design, fabrication, and construction of a forced convection sodium loop for sodium compatibility studies of advanced materials. This report presents the results on corrosion performance, microstructure, and tensile properties of advanced ferritic-martensitic and austenitic alloys exposed to liquid sodium at 550°C for up to 2700 h and at 650°C for up to 5064 h in the forced convection sodium loop. The oxygen content of sodium was controlled by the cold-trapping method to achieve ~1 wppm oxygen level. Four alloys were examined, G92 in the normalized and tempered condition (H1 G92), G92 in the cold-rolled condition (H2 G92), G91 in the normalized and tempered condition, and hot-rolled HT-UPS. G91 was included as a reference to compare with advanced alloy, G92. It was found that all four alloys showed weight loss after sodium exposures at 550 and 650°C. The weight loss of the four alloys was comparable after sodium exposures at 550°C; the weight loss of ferritic-martensitic steels, G92 and G91 is more significant than that of austenitic stainless steel, HT-UPS after sodium exposures at 650°C. Sodium exposures up to 2700 h at 550°C had no significant influence on tensile properties, while sodium exposures up to 5064 h at 650°C dramatically lowered the tensile strengths of the four alloys. The ultimate tensile strength of H1 G92, H2 G92, and G91 ferritic-martensitic steels was reduced to as much as nearly half of its initial value after sodium exposures at 650°C. Though the uniform elongation was recovered to some extent, these three ferritic-martensitic steels showed considerable strain softening after sodium exposures. The yield stress of HT-UPS austenitic stainless steel increased, the ultimate tensile strength decreased, and the total elongation was reduced after sodium exposures at 650°C. The dynamic strain aging effect observed in the as-received HT-UPS specimens became less pronounced after sodium exposures at 650°C. Microstructural characterization of sodium-exposed specimens showed no appreciable surface deterioration or grain structure changes under an optical microscope, except for the H2 G92 steel, in which the martensite structure transformed to large grain ferrite after sodium exposures at 650°C. TEM observations of the sodium-exposed H2 G92 steel showed significant recrystallization after sodium exposure for 2700 h at 550°C, and transformation of martensite to ferrite and high density of precipitates in nearly dislocation-free matrix after sodium exposures at 650°C. Further microstructural analysis and evaluation of decarburization/carburization behavior is needed to understand the dramatic changes in the tensile strengths of advanced ferritic-martensitic and austenitic steels after sodium exposures at 650°C.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2015

Spectroscopy and dynamics of charge transfer excitons in type-II band aligned quantum confined heterostructures

We illustrate effect of charge transfer (CT) in type-II quantum confined heterostructure by comparing CdSe quantum dots (QDs), CdSe/CdTe heterostructure quantum dots (HQDs) and CdSe/CdTe/CdSe quantum well-quantum dots (QWQDs) heterostructures. CdSe core QDs were synthesized using a kinetic growth method where QD size depends on reaction time. For shell coating we used modified version of successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR). Size of different QDs ∼5 to 7 nm were measured by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Strong red shift from ∼597 to ∼746 nm in photoluminescence (PL) spectra from QDs to QWQDs shows high tunability which is not possible with single constituent semiconductor QDs. PL spectra have been recorded at different temperatures (10K-300K). Room temperature time correlated single photon counting (TCSPC) measurements for QDs to QWQDs show three exponential radiative decay. The slowest component decay constant in QWQDs comes around eight fold to ∼51 ns as compared to ∼6.5 ns in HQD suggesting new opportunities to tailor the radiative carrier recombination rate of CT excitons.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2018

Solvothermal hot injection synthesis of core-shell AgNi nanoparticles

Silver-nickel core-shell nanoparticles (NP) were prepared by solvothermal hot injection synthesis by simultaneous thermolysis/reduction of AgNO 3 and Ni(acac) 2 precursors in the hot mixture of octadecene and oleylamine. Oleylamine decreases decomposition temperature of AgNO 3 to that of Ni(acac) 2 thus ensuring favorable reaction conditions. The prepared AgNi NPs with different Ag/Ni ratios were completely characterized. Dynamic light scattering (DLS) and small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) were used for particle size characterization of as-prepared AgNi colloids. There is no dependence of the particle size (13–21 nm by SAXS) on the Ag/Ni stoichiometric ratio, but the ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy (UV–vis) reveals that the intensity of the surface plasmon (SPR) decreases with increasing Ni content. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) verified the results of DLS and SAXS and showed spherical nanoparticle shape. Distribution of individual elements in the nanoparticles was mapped by high resolution scanning transmission electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (STEM-EDS) and revealed their core-shell structure where an Ag nucleus is covered by a thin amorphous Ni layer. Upon heating to 400 °C, Ni crystallization is substantiated by appearance of diffractions in the high-temperature X-ray powder diffractograms (HT-XRD) and of a magnetic moment. Ultimate phase separation was proven by scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray analysis (SEM-EDS) in samples heated to 1000 °C. The reaction course and nanoparticle formation studied by DLS, UV–vis, and Ag and Ni elemental analyses reveal an initial Ag seed formation with subsequent Ni overlayer deposition after 180 s.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2015

Gas tungsten arc welding and friction stir welding of ultrafine grained AISI 304L stainless steel: Microstructural and mechanical behavior characterization

In the present study, an ultrafine grained (UFG) AISI 304L stainless steel with the average grain size of 650 nm was successfully welded by both gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW) and friction stir welding (FSW). GTAW was applied without any filler metal. FSW was also performed at a constant rotational speed of 630 rpm and different welding speeds from 20 to 80 mm/min. Microstructural characterization was carried out by High Resolution Scanning Electron Microscopy (HRSEM) with Electron Backscattered Diffraction (EBSD) and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM). Nanoindentation, microhardness measurements and tensile tests were also performed to study the mechanical properties of the base metal and weldments. The results showed that the solidification mode in the GTAW welded sample is FA (ferrite–austenite) type with the microstructure consisting of an austenite matrix embedded with lath type and skeletal type ferrite. The nugget zone microstructure in the FSW welded samples consisted of equiaxed dynamically recrystallized austenite grains with some amount of elongated delta ferrite. Sigma phase precipitates were formed in the region ahead the rotating tool during the heating cycle of FSW, which were finally fragmented into nanometric particles and distributed in the weld nugget. Also there is a high possibility that the existing delta ferrite in the microstructure rapidly transforms into sigma phase particles during the short thermal cycle of FSW. These suggest that high strain and deformation during FSW can promote sigma phase formation. The final austenite grain size in the nugget zone was found to decrease with increasing Zener–Hollomon parameter, which was obtained quantitatively by measuring the peak temperature, calculating the strain rate during FSW and exact examination of hot deformation activation energy by considering the actual grain size before the occurrence of dynamic recrystallization. Mechanical properties observations showed that the welding efficiency of the FSW welded sample is around 70%, which is more than 20% higher than the GTAW welded sample. - Highlights: • Microstructure and mechanical properties of UFG 304L stainless steel were studied during GTAW and FSW. • Sigma phase formation mechanism was studied during FSW of 304L stainless steel. • THERMOCALC analysis was performed to obtain possible formation temperatures for sigma phase. • Nano-mechanical twins were found in the TMAZ region.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2022

Cost-effective carbon fiber precursor selections of polyacrylonitrile-derived blend polymers: carbonization chemistry and structural characterizations

Blending polyacrylonitrile (PAN) with plastic wastes and bio-based polymers provides a convenient and inexpensive method to realize cost-effective carbon fiber (CF) precursors. In this work, PAN-based blend precursors are investigated using ReaxFF reactive molecular dynamics simulations with respect to the formation of all-carbon rings, the evolutions of oxygen-containing and nitrogen-containing species, and the migration of carbon atoms to form turbostratic graphene. From these simulations, we identify that PAN/cellulose (CL) blend manifests the highest carbon yield and the most substantial all-carbon ring formation. This ReaxFF-based finding is confirmed by Raman and TEM experiments indicating high crystallinity for PAN/CL-derived blend CFs. We trace the pathway of gasification and carbonization of PAN/CL to elaborate the mechanism of the formation of all-carbon ring networks. We discover that the acetals of CL can catalyze the cyclization of the blend precursor, allowing for the search for CL derivatives or the other kinds of bio-based polymers with similar functionalities as alternative blends. In addition, we examine the structural characteristics using the carbon–carbon (C–C) radial distribution functions, C–C bond length distributions, and sp2 C atom ratios for the four representative precursors, i.e., PAN, oxidized PAN, PAN/nylon 6,6, and PAN/CL. Our simulation results show the most extensive all-carbon ring cluster and graphitic structure growths for PAN/CL. Here, we propose PAN/CL as a cost-effective alternative CF precursor, since (a) CL is naturally abundant and eco-friendly for production, (b) the blend precursor PAN/CL does not require oxidation treatment, (c) PAN/CL has a high carbon yield with substantial all-carbon ring formation, and (d) PAN/CL based CFs potentially provide a mechanical property enhancement.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2020

Biomineralization of Cu 2 S Nanoparticles by Geobacter sulfurreducens

Biomineralization of Cu has been shown to control contaminant dynamics and transport in soils. However, very little is known about the role that subsurface microorganisms may play in the biogeochemical cycling of Cu. In this study, we investigate the bioreduction of Cu(II) by the subsurface metal-reducing bacterium Geobacter sulfurreducens. Rapid removal of Cu from solution was observed in cell suspensions of G. sulfurreducens when Cu(II) was supplied, while transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analyses showed the formation of electron-dense nanoparticles associated with the cell surface. Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) point analysis and EDX spectrum image maps revealed that the nanoparticles are rich in both Cu and S. This finding was confirmed by X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) and extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) analyses, which identified the nanoparticles as Cu 2 S. Biomineralization of Cu x S nanoparticles in soils has been reported to enhance the colloidal transport of a number of contaminants, including Pb, Cd, and Hg. However, formation of these Cu x S nanoparticles has only been observed under sulfate-reducing conditions and could not be repeated using isolates of implicated organisms. As G. sulfurreducens is unable to respire sulfate, and no reducible sulfur was supplied to the cells, these data suggest a novel mechanism for the biomineralization of Cu 2 S under anoxic conditions. The implications of these findings for the biogeochemical cycling of Cu and other metals as well as the green production of Cu catalysts are discussed.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS2012

MTP Observations During the ATTREX Integration and Test Flight

MTP temperature calibration is excellent and agrees with the MMS calbration (or MMS agrees with MTP, since its calibration was com pleted long before that of MMS!) center dot Having radiosondes laun ched from the Global Hawk base is extremely important for accurate tem pe rature calibration in radiosonde - sparse oceanic regions center. The MTP measurement of the cold-point will make an important contribution to the future ATTREX field campaigns because the demonstrated sp ati al variation of cold- point requires continuous measurements which only the MTP can provide. Profiling with the aircraft is not adequate. The MTP-measured isentropes will be important in studying atmospheric dynamics in the TTL, and how t his dynamics affects both the composition and (possibly) the thermal structure of the TTL.

cold-point↗
DOE OSTI2026

Strong Effect of Nonpolar Solvent Molecular Structure on CdSe Nanoplatelet Stacking

We report a drastic difference in stacking behavior of oleic acid-stabilized 4-monolayer (4 ML) CdSe nanoplatelets (NPLs) in toluene and methylcyclohexane (MCH), two nonpolar solvents that differ in the conformational flexibility of their molecules. Using liquid cell transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and small angle scattering (SAXS) techniques, we show that NPLs form microns-long ribbons consisting of 4 ML CdSe NPLs in toluene, the solvent widely used to form stable colloidal solutions of a broad range of quasi-spherical nanoparticles. In contrast, 4 ML CdSe NPLs are well dispersed in MCH. The difference in stacking behavior of NPLs in toluene and MCH suggests that the conformational flexibility of the solvent molecules, such as the ability to adopt multiple chair conformations, modulates nanoplatelet interactions. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations reveal that solvent molecules subtly alter the structure of the organic ligand shell. These solvent-dependent changes propagate to the inorganic core, modulating the degree of CdSe nanoplatelet (NPL) twisting and, consequently, the properties of the nanoparticles. We show that toluene better solvates oleate ligands while MCH induces a bimodal oleate span distribution, which can lead to increased solubility of CdSe NPLs. In addition, the solvent can also influence the inorganic core, which, in turn, can modify the nanoparticle properties. We demonstrate that destabilization of toluene solution containing ribbons of 4 ML CdSe NPLs without CdS shells results in the formation of NPL assemblies with amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) with a low threshold of 14 µJ cm−2 that is comparable with that of CdSe/CdS core/shell NPLs. Our results emphasize that the solvent plays a major role in mediating interactions between NPLs and hence their processability for fabrication of functional structures.

CdSe↗
DOE OSTI2016

Tau mediates microtubule bundle architectures mimicking fascicles of microtubules found in the axon initial segment

Tau, an intrinsically disordered protein confined to neuronal axons, binds to and regulates microtubule dynamics. Although there have been observations of string-like microtubule fascicles in the axon initial segment (AIS) and hexagonal bundles in neurite-like processes in non-neuronal cells overexpressing Tau, cell-free reconstitutions have not replicated either geometry. Here we map out the energy landscape of Tau-mediated, GTP-dependent ‘active’ microtubule bundles at 37°C, as revealed by synchrotron SAXS and TEM. Widely spaced bundles (wall-to-wall distance D w–w ≈25–41nm) with hexagonal and string-like symmetry are observed, the latter mimicking bundles found in the AIS. A second energy minimum (D w–w ≈16–23nm) is revealed under osmotic pressure. The wide spacing results from a balance between repulsive forces, due to Tau’s projection domain (PD), and a stabilizing sum of transient sub-k B T cationic/anionic charge–charge attractions mediated by weakly penetrating opposing PDs. In the end, we find that this landscape would be significantly affected by charge-altering modifications of Tau associated with neurodegeneration.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2020

Aerotaxy: gas-phase epitaxy of quasi 1D nanostructures

Cost- and resource-efficient growth is necessary for many applications of semiconductor nanowires. We here present the design, operational details and theory behind Aerotaxy, a scalable alternative technology for producing quality crystalline nanowires at a remarkably high growth rate and throughput. Using size-controlled Au seed particles and organometallic precursors, Aerotaxy can produce nanowires with perfect crystallinity and controllable dimensions, and the method is suitable to meet industrial production requirements. Here, we explain why Aerotaxy is an efficient method for fabricating semiconductor nanowires and explain the technical aspects of our custom-built Aerotaxy system. Investigations using SEM (Scanning Electron Microscope), TEM (Transmission Electron Microscope)and other characterization methods are used to support the claim that Aerotaxy is indeed a scalable method capable of producing nanowires with reproducible properties. We have investigated both binary and ternary III–V semiconductor material systems like GaAs and GaAsP. In addition, common aspects of Aerotaxy nanowires deduced from experimental observations are used to validate the Aerotaxy growth model, based on a computational flow dynamics (CFD) approach. We compare the experimental results with the model behaviour to better understand Aerotaxy growth.

77 NANOSCIENCE AND NANOTECHNOLOGY↗