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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 451 records · Page 25
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2023

Using electron energy-loss spectroscopy to measure nanoscale electronic and vibrational dynamics in a TEM

Electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) can measure similar information to x-ray, UV–Vis, and IR spectroscopies but with atomic resolution and increased scattering cross-sections. Recent advances in electron monochromators have expanded EELS capabilities from chemical identification to the realms of synchrotron-level core-loss measurements and to low-loss, 10–100 meV excitations, such as phonons, excitons, and valence structures. EELS measurements are easily correlated with electron diffraction and atomic-scale real-space imaging in a transmission electron microscope (TEM) to provide detailed local pictures of quasiparticle and bonding states. This perspective provides an overview of existing high-resolution EELS (HR-EELS) capabilities while also motivating the powerful next step in the field—ultrafast EELS in a TEM. Ultrafast EELS aims to combine atomic-level, element-specific, and correlated temporal measurements to better understand spatially specific excited-state phenomena. Ultrafast EELS measurements also add to the abilities of steady-state HR-EELS by being able to image the electromagnetic field and use electrons to excite photon-forbidden and momentum-specific transitions. We discuss the technical challenges ultrafast HR-EELS currently faces, as well as how integration with in situ and cryo measurements could expand the technique to new systems of interest, especially molecular and biological samples.

Chemistry↗
DOE OSTI2026

Roadmap on advanced and / real-time characterisation of solid state materials and devices for energy applications

A strong societal and political drive is motivating the development and optimization of novel energy conversion and storage systems for decarbonization. The successful implementation of solid state devices such as fuel cells and secondary batteries depends, however, on achieving ambitious targets in terms of performance, reliability and cost competitiveness. Research and technology are addressing these needs through a holistic approach including exploration of new materials and nanoarchitectures, as well as system engineering. These significant efforts require the support of appropriate characterization tools capable of assessing nanometer-scale phenomena such as concentration profiles of ionic and electronic charges, local chemical compositions and their evolution over time across interfaces. This roadmap provides an overview of selected advanced characterization techniques for energy materials and devices. Specific focus is put on in situ/operando methods for probing electrochemical phenomena in real-time under realistic working conditions. Experts in the field provide an extensive review of the current state of the art in 2025 and the current and future challenges for the characterization of local chemistry and kinetics in the bulk of the material, in nanoarchitectures (e.g. thin films) and at the interfaces (e.g. grain boundaries, phase contacts, solid/liquid and solid/gas interfaces) . The aim is to provide a detailed guide to the techniques, describing opportunities and bottlenecks for their practical deployment and examples of successful applications.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
DOE OSTI2024

End-of-Life Plastics Management: A Review: Mechanical recycling, pyrolysis and hydrocracking methods

End-of-life plastics present a significant challenge to achieving a sustainable economy. It is crucial to develop environmentally friendly technologies to process the waste streams beyond landfilling. This review provides a detailed overview of end-of-life plastics management, covering mechanical recycling, pyrolysis and hydrocracking methods. Mechanical recycling is the predominant technique employed on a large scale in recycling end-of-life plastics, and this review discusses the technoeconomic assessment and life cycle assessment (LCA) of mechanical recycling. This review also summarises key studies concentrating on chemical recycling techniques for handling end-of-life plastics. Among these, pyrolysis and hydrocracking are discussed in depth. Recent advancements and fundamentals of these two techniques are covered, highlighting their significance in tackling the plastic waste challenge. The prospects of scaling up pyrolysis and hydrocracking technologies are interpreted in terms of technical and economic feasibility. The discussion concludes with recommendations for future research to commercialise chemical recycling of end-of-life plastics.

Chemistry↗
DOE OSTI2024

Southeast Regional CO 2 Utilization and Storage Acceleration Partnership (SECARB-USA): Regional Commercialization Plan (Final): Work Products 4.4.b (Regional Commercialization Plan) & 4.3 (Socioeconomic Impacts of CCUS and Workforce Readiness)

Commercialization of carbon capture and storage (CCS) within the SECARB-USA region is scaling up and will continue as governments and private companies expand on current decarbonization efforts. The Inflation Reduction Act (2022) enhanced 45Q tax credits beyond the 2018 Bipartisan Budget Act levels by incentivizing previously uneconomic projects to develop CCS plans and infrastructure. Additionally, the continued interest and support for CCS mitigates the relative risk of commercial-scale projects that are seeking long-term viability to develop capture facilities to accommodate their emissions reduction goals. This multifaceted Commercialization Plan provides an overview of the current status and potential for CCS in the Southeast and the pathways to achieve emissions reduction goals in the region by 2050. Specifically, the study addresses: • The current status of CCS activities in the SECARB region, • Assessment of buildout pathways for CCS projects and carbon transport infrastructure development opportunities, • Estimation of CCS job creation and economic impacts, and • The social justice considerations and public benefits associated with CCS activities in the SECARB-USA region.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2023

A Review of CCUS in the Context of Foams, Regulatory Frameworks and Monitoring

Greenhouse gas emission into the atmosphere is considered the main reason for the rise in Earth’s mean surface temperature. According to the Paris Agreement, to prevent the rise of the global average surface temperature beyond two degrees Celsius, global CO2 emissions must be cut substantially. While a transition to a net-zero emission scenario is envisioned by mid-century, carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) will play a crucial role in mitigating ongoing greenhouse gas emissions. Injection of CO2 into geological formations is a major pathway to enable large-scale storage. Despite significant recent technological advancements, mass deployment of these technologies still faces several technical and non-technical difficulties. This paper provides an overview of technical milestones reached thus far in CO2 capture, utilization, geological storage, monitoring technologies, and non-technical aspects such as regulatory frameworks and related policies in the US and the rest of the world. This paper describes different injection methods to store CO2 in various subsurface formations, the use of foams and the resulting potential gains in CO2 storage capacity, the role of nanoparticles for foam stabilization, and ensuring long-term storage safety. This work also addresses several safety-related aspects of geological storage and subsurface monitoring technologies that may mitigate risks associated with long-term storage.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2025

The ATLAS Inner Tracker Strip Detector System for the Phase-II Large Hadron Collider Upgrade

ATLAS is currently preparing for the HL-LHC upgrade, with an all-silicon Inner Tracker (ITk) that will replace the current Inner Detector. The ITk will feature a pixel detector surrounded by a strip detector, with the strip system consisting of four barrel layers and 12 endcap disks. After successful completion of a large-scale prototyping program, final design reviews have been completed in key areas, such as sensors, modules, front-end electronics, and ASICs. We present an overview of the strip system and highlight the final design choices of sensors, modules, and ASICs. We summarize the results achieved during prototyping and the current status of production and pre-production on various detector components, with an emphasis on QA and QC procedures.

Duden, Emily (ORCID:0000000290929344)↗
NASA NTRS1999

Large-Scale Distributed Computational Fluid Dynamics on the Information Power Grid Using Globus

This paper describes an experiment in which a large-scale scientific application development for tightly-coupled parallel machines is adapted to the distributed execution environment of the Information Power Grid (IPG). A brief overview of the IPG and a description of the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) algorithm are given. The Globus metacomputing toolkit is used as the enabling device for the geographically-distributed computation. Modifications related to latency hiding and Load balancing were required for an efficient implementation of the CFD application in the IPG environment. Performance results on a pair of SGI Origin 2000 machines indicate that real scientific applications can be effectively implemented on the IPG; however, a significant amount of continued effort is required to make such an environment useful and accessible to scientists and engineers.

Barnard, Stephen↗
NASA NTRS2017

Thermionic Energy Conversion in the Twenty-First Century: Advances and Opportunities for Space and Terrestrial Applications

Thermionic energy conversion (TEC) is the direct conversion of heat into electricity by the mechanism of thermionic emission, the spontaneous ejection of hot electrons from a surface. Although the physical mechanism has been known for over a century, it has yet to be consistently realized in a manner practical for large-scale deployment. This perspective article provides an assessment of the potential of TEC systems for space and terrestrial applications in the twenty-first century, overviewing recent advances in the field and identifying key research challenges. Recent developments as well as persisting research needs in materials, device design, fundamental understanding, and testing and validation are discussed.

Thermionic energy conversion↗
DOE OSTI2023

Conquering Data Chaos: Research Data Management with Kubernetes

Managing massive volumes of data and effectively making it accessible to researchers poses significant challenges and is a barrier to scientific discovery. In many cases, critical data is locked up in unwieldy file formats or one-off databases and is too large to effectively process on a single machine. This talk explores the role of Kubernetes, an open-source container orchestration platform, in addressing research data management challenges. I will discuss how we are using a set of publicly available open-source and home-grown tools in the National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) Data, Analysis, and Visualization (DAV) group to help researchers overcome data-related bottlenecks. The talk will begin by providing an overview of the data challenges faced in research data management, including data storage, processing, and analysis. I will highlight Kubernetes' ability to handle large-scale data by leveraging containerization and distributed computing, including distributed storage. Kubernetes allows researchers to encapsulate data processing infrastructure and workflows into portable containers, enabling reproducibility and ease of deployment. Kubernetes can then schedule and manage the resource allocation of these containers to enable efficient utilization of limited computing resources, leading to more efficient data processing and analysis. I will discuss some limitations of traditional, siloed approaches to dealing with data and emphasize the need for solutions which foster collaboration. I will highlight how we are using Kubernetes at NREL to facilitate data sharing and cooperation among research teams. Kubernetes' flexible architecture enables the deployment of shared computing environments, such as Apache Superset, where researchers can seamlessly access and analyze shared datasets. Providing the ability to have one research team easily consume data generated by another, utilizing Kubernetes' as a central data platform, is one of the major wins we've encountered by adopting the platform. Finally, I will showcase real-world use cases from NREL where we have used Kubernetes to solve some persistent data challenges involving large volumes of sensor and monitoring data. I will discuss the challenges we encountered when creating our cluster and making it available as a production-ready resource. I will also discuss the specific suite of tools, including Postgres and Apache Druid for columnar and timeseries data, and Redpanda Kafka for streaming data we have deployed in our infrastructure, and the process that went into the selection of these tools.

collaborative environment↗
DOE OSTI2024

Trends and Drivers of Terrestrial Sources and Sinks of Carbon Dioxide: An Overview of the TRENDY Project

The terrestrial biosphere plays a major role in the global carbon cycle, and there is a recognized need for regularly updated estimates of land-atmosphere exchange at regional and global scales. An international ensemble of Dynamic Global Vegetation Models (DGVMs), known as the “Trends and drivers of the regional scale terrestrial sources and sinks of carbon dioxide” (TRENDY) project, quantifies land biophysical exchange processes and biogeochemistry cycles in support of the annual Global Carbon Budget assessments and the REgional Carbon Cycle Assessment and Processes, phase 2 project. DGVMs use a common protocol and set of driving data sets. A set of factorial simulations allows attribution of spatio-temporal changes in land surface processes to three primary global change drivers: changes in atmospheric CO 2 , climate change and variability, and Land Use and Land Cover Changes (LULCC). Here, we describe the TRENDY project, benchmark DGVM performance using remote-sensing and other observational data, and present results for the contemporary period. Simulation results show a large global carbon sink in natural vegetation over 2012–2021, attributed to the CO 2 fertilization effect (3.8 ± 0.8 PgC/yr) and climate (–0.58 ± 0.54 PgC/yr). Forests and semi-arid ecosystems contribute approximately equally to the mean and trend in the natural land sink, and semi-arid ecosystems continue to dominate interannual variability. The natural sink is offset by net emissions from LULCC (–1.6 ± 0.5 PgC/yr), with a net land sink of 1.7 ± 0.6 PgC/yr. Despite the largest gross fluxes being in the tropics, the largest net land-atmosphere exchange is simulated in the extratropical regions.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS1980

Overview on the study of the solar cycle from space

Recent insights into the workings of the solar system are reviewed as factors to be considered when formulating key questions to be answered during a large scale program to study the solar cycle. The main objectives of the Solar Cycle and Dynamics Mission are to determine the causes (physical origins and mechanisms) of the solar cycle and the effects of these mechanisms on the heliosphere, the vast region that includes the corona, interplanetary medium, and the terrestrial environment. The mission should be able to obtain synoptic data on solar variability associated with the cycle, and over at least a fraction of a single 11-year cycle.

Noyes, R. W.↗
NASA NTRS1990

Overview of the 27-28 October FIRE Cirrus IFO case: Meteorology and cloud fields

A detailed description of the meteorology of the 27 and 28 October FIRE Cirrus IFO case is presented. The progression of synoptic scale events over the region is reviewed including the evolution of surface and upper air features, i.e., the surface cyclone that formed to the west over Montana on the 27th and moved through Wisconsin late on the 28th and the associated short wave ridge aloft. A summary of the corresponding cloud conditions observed over the area of aircraft operations is given including characterization of the cloud forms and cloud heights based on information derived from debriefings of the aircrews, surface observations, airborne (ER-2) and surface lidars observations and satellite imagery (GOES). The correspondence between the resolved meteorological features (subsynoptic rawinsonde network) and the development of cloud layers is illustrated. In particular, the discussion emphasizes the relationship between vertical thermodynamic structure and the character and vertical structure of the cloud fields. The role of the larger scale in maintaining the observed vertical structure is quantified both with respect to its control via forced ascent and advective processes. Based on results of these analyses, conclusions are drawn with respect to the design of future field missions.

Starr, David OC.↗
DOE OSTI2024

Advanced Electrode Structures for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells: Current Status and Path Forward

Abstract Proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) have demonstrated their viability as a promising candidate for clean energy applications. However, performance of conventional PEMFC electrodes, especially the cathode electrode, suffers from low catalyst utilization and sluggish mass transport due to the randomly distributed components and tortuous transport pathways. Development of alternative architectures in which the electrode structure is controlled across a range of length scales provides a promising path toward overcoming these limitations. Here, we provide a comprehensive review of recent research and development of advanced electrode structures, organized by decreasing length-scale from the millimeter-scale to the nanometer-scale. Specifically, advanced electrode structures are categorized into five unique architectures for specific functions: (1) macro-patterned electrodes for enhanced macro-scale mass transport, (2) micro-patterned electrodes for enhanced micro-scale mass transport, (3) electrospun electrodes with fiber-based morphology for enhanced in-plane proton transport and through-plane O 2 transport, (4) enhanced-porosity electrodes for improved oxygen transport through selective inclusion of void space, and (5) catalyst film electrodes for elimination of carbon corrosion and ionomer poisoning. The PEMFC performance results achieved from each alternative electrode structure are presented and tabulated for comparison with conventional electrode architectures. Moreover, analysis of mechanisms by which new electrode structures can improve performance is presented and discussed. Finally, an overview of current limitations and future research needs is presented to guide the development of electrode structures for next generation PEMFCs. Graphical Abstract Development of improved electrode architectures with the control of structure on length scales ranging from millimeters to nanometers could enable a new generation of fuel cells with increased performance and reduced cost. This paper presents an in-depth review and critical analysis of recent developments and future outlook on the design of advanced electrode structures.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
NASA NTRS1998

Overview of the X-33 Extended Flight Test Range

On July 1, 1996, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration signed a Cooperative Agreement No. NCC8-115 with Lockheed Martin Skunk Works to develop and flight test the X-33, a scaled version of a reusable launch vehicle. The development of an Extended Test Range, with range instrumentation providing continuous vehicle communications from Edwards Air Force Base Ca. to landing at Malmstrom Air Force Base Montana, was required to flight test the mach 15 vehicle over 950 nautical miles. The cooperative agreement approach makes Lockheed Martin Skunk Works responsible for the X-33 program. When additional Government help was required, Lockheed "subcontracted" to NASA Field Centers for certain work. It was through this mechanism that Dryden Flight Research Center became responsible for the Extended Test Range. The Extended Test Range Requirements come from two main sources: 1) Range Safety and 2) Lockheed Martin Skunk Works. The range safety requirements were the most challenging to define and meet. The X-33 represents a vehicle that launches like a rocket, reenters the atmosphere and lands autonomously like an aircraft. Historically, rockets have been launched over the oceans to allow failed rockets to be destroyed using explosive devices. Such approaches had to be reconsidered for the X-33 flying over land. Numerous range requirements come from Lockheed Martin Skunk Works for interface definitions with the vehicle communication subsystems and the primary ground operations center, defined the Operations Control Center. Another area of considerable interest was the reentry plasma shield that causes "blackout" of the radio frequency signals, such as the range safety commands. Significant work was spent to analyze and model the blackout problem using a cooperative team of experts from across the country. The paper describes the Extended Test Range a, an unique Government/industry team of personnel and range assets was established to resolve design issues and accomplish the X-33 requirements. The paper will also provide an overview of the technical approaches used to meet program requirements. The advances used to develop the extended test range will be discussed to show how other hypersonic and Access to Space programs can benefit from the development of the extended test range. Acknowledgment: The work described in this paper was NASA supported through cooperative agreement NCC8-115 with Lockheed Martin Skunk Works.

Mackall, D.↗
NASA NTRS1981

NASA remote sensing programs: Overview

In the Earth remote sensing area, NASA's three functions are to understand the basic mechanics and behavior of the Earth, evaluate what resources are available (in the way of minerals, and hydrocarbons on a general scale), and to arrange a scheme for managing our national assets. The capabilities offered by LANDSAT D and technology improvements needed are discussed. The French SPOT system, its orbits, possibilities for stereo imagery, and levels of preprocessing and processing with several degrees of radiometric and geometric corrections are examined. Progress in the AgRISTARS project is mentioned as well as future R & D programs in the use of fluorescence, microwave measurements, and synthetic aperture radar. Other areas of endeaver include studying man environment interactions and Earth radiation budgets, and the establishment of data systems programs.

Raney, W. P.↗
DOE OSTI2022

Computational Modeling of Battery Materials

This chapter provides a broad overview of the various computational modeling techniques used to gain fundamental insights into coupled electrochemical processes that occur in battery materials at electronic-to-mesoscopic scales. Furthermore, representative successes of these techniques in modeling electrodes, electrolytes, and electrode-electrolyte interfaces are highlighted to establish the current state-of-the-art in the field.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
DOE OSTI2024

CMB in 10 Minutes

The Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) is one of our most powerful tools for studying fundamental physics. By observing the CMB, we can learn about the energy scale of inflation, probe the possibilities of particles beyond the Standard Model, and understand more about dark matter and dark energy. This talk will provide an overview of the exciting work being done by the CMB group at Fermilab to further our understanding of physics through CMB experiments.

Saunders, Lauren J.↗
DOE OSTI2021

Simulating Large PEPs Tensor Networks on Small Quantum Devices

We systematically map low bond dimension PEPs tensor networks to quantum circuits. By measuring and reusing qubits, we are in principle able to simulate an N×M square lattice PEPs network (for arbitrary M) of bond dimension 2 using N+ 2 qubits. We then seek to determine if this mapping can yield useful values for long-range loop observables in the presence of quantum device noise in the topological Wen plaquette model by mapping a 3×3 PEPs tensor network to a 5-qubit quantum circuit and executing it on the Honeywell System Model H1-1 trapped-ion device. We find that, for this system size, the noisy observable values are indeed sufficient for diagnosing topological vs. trivial order as the Wen model is perturbed by a magnetic field term in the Hamiltonian. We provide an overview of the experimental procedure and its results. We then explain in greater detail our method for mapping 2D tensor networks to quantum circuits and its scaling properties. This serves as a proof-of-concept of the utilty of the measure-and-reuse approach for simulating large 2D quantum systems on small quantum devices.

MacCormack, Ian↗