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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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DOE OSTI2024

Chatter detection in simulated machining data: a simple refined approach to vibration data

Vibration monitoring is a critical aspect of assessing the health and performance of machinery and industrial processes. This study explores the application of machine learning techniques, specifically the Random Forest (RF) classification model, to predict and classify chatter—a detrimental self-excited vibration phenomenon—during machining operations. While sophisticated methods have been employed to address chatter, this research investigates the efficacy of a novel approach to an RF model. The study leverages simulated vibration data, bypassing resource-intensive real-world data collection, to develop a versatile chatter detection model applicable across diverse machining configurations. The feature extraction process combines time-series features and Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) data features, streamlining the model while addressing challenges posed by feature selection. By focusing on the RF model’s simplicity and efficiency, this research advances chatter detection techniques, offering a practical tool with improved generalizability, computational efficiency, and ease of interpretation. The study demonstrates that innovation can reside in simplicity, opening avenues for wider applicability and accelerated progress in the machining industry.

42 ENGINEERING↗

DOE OSTI2022

A Framework for Closed-Loop Optimization of an Automated Mechanical Serial-Sectioning System via Run-to-Run Control as Applied to a Robo-Met.3D

Optimization of automated data collection is gaining increased interest for the purposes of enabling closed-loop self-correcting systems that inherently maximize operational efficiencies and reduce waste. Many data collection systems have several variables which influence data accuracy or consistency and which can require frequent user interaction to be monitored and maintained. Operating upon a Robo-MET.3D™ automated mechanical serial-sectioning system, a run-to-run control algorithm has been developed to accelerate data collection and reduce data inconsistency. Here, using historical data amassed over a decade of experiments, a linear regression model of the deterministic system dynamics is created and used to employ a run-to-run control algorithm that optimizes selected system inputs to reduce operator intervention and increase efficacy while reducing variance of system output.

42 ENGINEERING↗

DOE OSTI2022

Control of internal transport barriers in magnetically confined tokamak burning plasmas

The initiation, termination, and control of internal transport barriers associated with E × B flow shear near local minima of magnetic shear are examined for burning plasmas to determine if the positive feedback loops between profiles, instability, transport, and flow shear operate in regimes with fusion self-heating. A five-field transport model for the evolution of profiles of density, ion and electron temperature, ion and electron fluctuations, and radial electric field is utilized to examine the efficacy of controls associated with external inputs of heat and particles, including neutral beam injection, RF, pellets, and gas puffing. The response of the plasma to these inputs is studied in the presence of self-heating. The latter is affected by the external inputs and their modification of profiles and is, therefore, not an external control. Provided sufficient external power is applied, internal transport barriers can be created and controlled, both in ion and electron channels. Barrier control is sensitive to the locations of power deposition and pellet ablation, as well as temporal sequencing of external inputs.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

DOE OSTI2025

Perturbative treatment of nonlocal chiral interactions in auxiliary-field diffusion Monte Carlo calculations

Nuclear many-body systems, ranging from nuclei to neutron stars, are some of the most interesting physical phenomena in our universe, and quantum Monte Carlo (QMC) approaches are among the most accurate many-body methods currently available to study them. In recent decades, interactions derived from chiral effective field theory (EFT) have been widely adopted in the study of nuclear many-body systems. One drawback of the QMC approach is the requirement that the nuclear interactions need to be local, whereas chiral EFT interactions usually contain nonlocalities. In this work, we leverage the capability of computing second-order perturbative corrections to the ground-state energy in order to develop a self-consistent approach to including nonlocal operators in QMC calculations. In conclusion, we investigate both the deuteron and the neutron-matter equation of state in order to show the robustness of our technique and pave the way for future QMC calculations at higher orders in the EFT, where nonlocal operators cannot be avoided.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2023

Toward three-dimensional DNA industrial nanorobots

Nanoscale industrial robots have potential as manufacturing platforms and are capable of automatically performing repetitive tasks to handle and produce nanomaterials with consistent precision and accuracy. We demonstrate a DNA industrial nanorobot that fabricates a three-dimensional (3D), optically active chiral structure from optically inactive parts. By making use of externally controlled temperature and ultraviolet (UV) light, our programmable robot, ~100 nanometers in size, grabs different parts, positions and aligns them so that they can be welded, releases the construct, and returns to its original configuration ready for its next operation. Our robot can also self-replicate its 3D structure and functions, surpassing single-step templating (restricted to two dimensions) by using folding to access the third dimension and more degrees of freedom. Our introduction of multiple-axis precise folding and positioning as a tool/technology for nanomanufacturing will open the door to more complex and useful nano- and microdevices.

Robotics↗

DOE OSTI2018

High-Speed Composite Microactuator Based on Ti{sub 2}NiCu Alloy with Shape Memory Effect

Samples of microactuators are made of a bimorph composite of Ti{sub 2}NiCu alloy with a thermoelastic martensitic transition and the shape memory effect, and their response rate is investigated. The active layer of the composite actuator is a layer of the rapidly quenched Ti{sub 2}NiCu alloy, pseudoplastically prestretched, and an amorphous layer of the same alloy is used as an elastic layer. Typical sizes of the microactuator are 30 × 2 × 2 μm. The controlled amplitude of the displacement of the microactuator tip is approximately 1 μm. The response rate of the microactuator was investigated by scanning electron microscopy. Activation of the microactuator was achieved by heating when electric pulses were passed through it. Full activation of the microactuator at frequencies up to 1 kHz was demonstrated; partial activation was observed at frequencies up to 8 kHz. The possibility of operating the device in a self-oscillating mode at frequencies of the order of 100 kHz is demonstrated.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

DOE OSTI2020

Photo-cleaned Backgroundless Ion Chambers (Final Report for PDRD SR18010)

Ion chambers are often employed to measure the concentration of tritium within flowing gases. In real world environments the active surfaces of ion chambers become covered with tritiated surface contaminants. This tritiated surface contamination will create a large background response that can mask the signature of interest, which is the tritium concentration in the gas phase. Previous efforts to reduce the effects of surface contamination in ion chambers utilize inert coatings (e.g., gold) and low surface area electrodes (e.g., wire mesh), but this route only reduces the effect and does not necessarily alter the ratio of surface contamination to current collection area. Additionally, gold coating may add a substantial cost to the instrument. In the Tritium Facility, ion chambers are periodically cleaned using an alcohol-based process. This process is time consuming and often leads to ion chamber wear and breakage. In addition, periodic cleaning does not address tritium level ambiguities in gloveboxes. An ideal solution to this issue would be to either develop an ion chamber that does not accrue surface contamination, or one that is self-cleaning while it is in operation.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

DOE OSTI2023

X-ray Free Electron Laser Accelerator Lattice Design Using Laser-Assisted Bunch Compression

We report the start-to-end modeling of our accelerator lattice design employing a laser-assisted bunch compression (LABC) scheme in an X-ray free electron laser (XFEL), using the proposed Matter-Radiation Interactions in Extremes (MaRIE) XFEL parameters. The accelerator lattice utilized a two-stage bunch compression scheme, with the first bunch compressor performing a conventional bulk compression enhancing the beam current from 20 A to 500 A, at 750 MeV. The second bunch compression was achieved by modulating the beam immediately downstream of the first bunch compressor by a laser with 1-μm wavelength in a laser modulator, accelerating the beam to the final energy of 12 GeV, and compressing the individual 1-μm periods of the modulated beam into a sequence of microbunches with 3-kA current spikes by the second bunch compressor. The LABC architecture presented had been developed based on the scheme of enhanced self-amplified spontaneous emission (ESASE), but operated in a disparate regime of parameters. Enabled by the novel technology of the cryogenic normal conducting radiofrequency photoinjector, we investigated an electron beam with ultra-low emittance at the starting point of the lattice design. Our work aimed at mitigating the well-known beam instabilities to preserve the beam emittance and suppress the energy spread growth.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗

NASA NTRS1976

Experiments with a self-correcting wind tunnel

The feasibility of controlling the flow actively through the walls of a transonic, porous wall wind tunnel in order to minimize wall interference effects on a test model is demonstrated. The method is based upon measuring the components of the disturbance velocity at discrete points along an imaginary surface in the flow field within the tunnel. A mathematical formulation of the flow field exterior to the surface including the boundary condition for unconfined flow, i.e., that all disturbance vanish at infinite, is used to determine if these measured velocity components are consistent with that boundary condition. If they are not, the theory provides a better approximation to the velocity component for unconfined flow, and the flow through the tunnel walls is readjusted iteratively until the measured quantities are consistent with unconfined flow. A brief review of theoretical methods is followed by a description of the Calspan self correcting wind tunnel design and operation, calibration with and without active wall control. Typical results obtained by approximating a conventional porous wall wind tunnel for an 0012 airfoil show that active wall control largely reproduces the correct shock wave position, eliminates wall interference of lift and drag, and reduces the interference effects on pitching moment to 10%.

Vidal, R. J.↗

NASA NTRS1985

The NASA Langley 0.3-m transonic cryogenic tunnel

The Langley 0.3-m Transonic Cryogenic Tunnel (0.3-m TCT) can operate from ambient to cryogenic temperatures at absolute pressures from 1 to 6 bars. Since the 0.3-m TCT began operation in 1973, it has been used to develop instrumentation and operating techniques for cryogenic tunnels as well as for aerodynamic tests where advantage can be taken of the extremely wide range of Reynolds number available. This paper describes the present capabilities of the 0.3-m TCT and gives an overview of recent research activities which include both steady and unsteady testing. Emphasis is given to safety and the development of testing techniques for cryogenic tunnels. Results of studies aimed at establishing the lower limits of operating temperature are presented and the impact of these studies on tunnel operation is discussed. Finally, the design features and operating characteristics of a new self-streamlining wall test section recently installed in the tunnel circuit are described.

Kilgore, R. A.↗

NASA NTRS1989

Flight experiment of thermal energy storage

Thermal energy storage (TES) enables a solar dynamic system to deliver constant electric power through periods of sun and shade. Brayton and Stirling power systems under current considerations for missions in the near future require working fluid temperatures in the 1100 to 1300+ K range. TES materials that meet these requirements fall into the fluoride family of salts. These salts store energy as a heat of fusion, thereby transferring heat to the fluid at constant temperature during shade. The principal feature of fluorides that must be taken into account is the change in volume that occurs with melting and freezing. Salts shrink as they solidify, a change reaching 30 percent for some salts. The location of voids that form as result of the shrinkage is critical when the solar dynamic system reemerges into the sun. Hot spots can develop in the TES container or the container can become distorted if the melting salt cannot expand elsewhere. Analysis of the transient, two-phase phenomenon is being incorporated into a three-dimensional computer code. The code is capable of analysis under microgravity as well as 1 g. The objective of the flight program is to verify the predictions of the code, particularly of the void location and its effect on containment temperature. The four experimental packages comprising the program will be the first tests of melting and freezing conducted under microgravity. Each test package will be installed in a Getaway Special container to be carried by the shuttle. The package will be self-contained and independent of shuttle operations other than the initial opening of the container lid and the final closing of the lid. Upon the return of the test package from flight, the TES container will be radiographed and finally partitioned to examine the exact location and shape of the void. Visual inspection of the void and the temperature data during flight will constitute the bases for code verification.

Namkoong, David↗

NASA NTRS1993

On the combustion of a laminar spray

A spray combustor, with flow velocities in the laminar range, exhibits a unique operating mode where large amplitude, self-induced oscillations of the flame shape occur. The phenomenon, not previously encountered, only occurs when fuel is supplied in the form of fine liquid droplets and does not occur when fuel is supplied in gaseous form. Several flow mechanisms are coupled in such a fashion as to trigger and maintain the oscillatory motion of the flame. These mechanisms include heat transfer and evaporation processes, dynamics of two-phase flows, and effects of gravity (buoyancy forces). An interface volume, lying above the fuel nozzle and below the flame was found to be the most susceptible to gravity effects and postulated to be responsible for inducing the oscillatory motion. Heptane fuel was used in the majority of the tests. Tests performed with iso-octane also showed similar results.

Levy, Yeshayahou↗

NASA NTRS1996

The shuttle main engine: A first look

Anyone entering the Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) team attends a two week course to become familiar with the design and workings of the engine. This course provides intensive coverage of the individual hardware items and their functions. Some individuals, particularly those involved with software maintenance and development, have felt overwhelmed by this volume of material and their lack of a logical framework in which to place it. To provide this logical framework, it was decided that a brief self-taught introduction to the overall operation of the SSME should be designed. To aid the people or new team members with an interest in the software, this new course should also explain the structure and functioning of the controller and its software. This paper presents a description of this presentation.

Schreur, Barbara↗

NASA NTRS1996

Nonlinear Control of Large Disturbances in Magnetic Bearing Systems

In this paper, the nonlinear operation of magnetic bearing control methods is reviewed. For large disturbances, the effects of displacement constraints and power amplifier current and di/dt limits on bearing control system performance are analyzed. The operation of magnetic bearings exhibiting self-excited large scale oscillations have been studied both experimentally and by simulation. The simulation of the bearing system has been extended to include the effects of eddy currents in the actuators, so as to improve the accuracy of the simulation results. The results of these experiments and simulations are compared, and some useful conclusions are drawn for improving bearing system robustness.

Jiang, Yuhong↗

NASA NTRS1995

On the Oscillation of Combustion of a Laminar Spray

A spray combustor, with flow velocities in the laminar range, exhibits a unique operating mode where large amplitude, self-induced oscillations of the flame shape occur. The phenomenon, not previously encountered, only occurs when fuel is supplied in the form of fine liquid droplets and does not occur when fuel is supplied in gaseous form. Several flow mechanisms are coupled in such a fashion as to trigger and maintain the oscillatory motion of the flame. These mechanisms include heat transfer and evaporation processes, dynamics of two-phase flows, and effects of gravity (buoyancy forces). An interface volume, lying between the fuel nozzle and the flame was found to be the most susceptible to gravity effects, and postulated to be responsible for inducing the oscillatory motion. Heptane fuel was used in the majority of the tests.

Levy, Yeshayahou↗

NASA NTRS1998

Broadband Fan Noise Generated by Small Scale Turbulence

This report describes the development of prediction methods for broadband fan noise from aircraft engines. First, experimental evidence of the most important source mechanisms is reviewed. It is found that there are a number of competing source mechanism involved and that there is no single dominant source to which noise control procedures can be applied. Theoretical models are then developed for: (1) ducted rotors and stator vanes interacting with duct wall boundary layers, (2) ducted rotor self noise, and (3) stator vanes operating in the wakes of rotors. All the turbulence parameters required for these models are based on measured quantities. Finally the theoretical models are used to predict measured fan noise levels with some success.

Glegg, Stewart A. L.↗

NASA NTRS1976

Ultrasonic Inspection

Automation Industries Inc. has had more than $2 million in contracts to produce innovative equipment for the Apollo program. When Marshall Space Flight Center sought a fast nondestructive way to inspect butt welds in aluminum alloys for spacecraft, the company developed a reliable ultrasonic device using multiple transducers called "delta manipulators" which detect lack of weld penetration not readily seen in radiograph automation. Industry soon adapted the ultrasonic equipment to a unique rail inspection device that saves countless man hours. Device is contained in self propelled railroad cars produced and operated by the company to check old track welds for deterioration.

Source record↗

NASA NTRS2001

The International Space Station human life sciences experiment implementation process

The selection, definition, and development phases of a Life Sciences flight research experiment has been consistent throughout the past decade. The implementation process, however, has changed significantly within the past two years. This change is driven primarily by the shift from highly integrated, dedicated research missions on platforms with well defined processes to self contained experiments with stand alone operations on platforms which are being concurrently designed. For experiments manifested on the International Space Station (ISS) and/or on short duration missions, the more modular, streamlined, and independent the individual experiment is, the more likely it is to be successfully implemented before the ISS assembly is completed. During the assembly phase of the ISS, science operations are lower in priority than the construction of the station. After the station has been completed, it is expected that more resources will be available to perform research. The complexity of implementing investigations increases with the logistics needed to perform the experiment. Examples of logistics issues include- hardware unique to the experiment; large up and down mass and volume needs; access to crew and hardware during the ascent or descent phases; maintenance of hardware and supplies with a limited shelf life,- baseline data collection schedules with lengthy sessions or sessions close to the launch or landing; onboard stowage availability, particularly cold stowage; and extensive training where highly proficient skills must be maintained. As the ISS processes become better defined, experiment implementation will meet new challenges due to distributed management, on-orbit resource sharing, and adjustments to crew availability pre- and post-increment. c 2001. Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

Research↗