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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 523 records · Page 29

Microbial interactions in the anaerobic oxidation of methane: model simulations constrained by process rates and activity patterns: Process modelling of anaerobic methane oxidation

Proposed syntrophic interactions between the archaeal and bacterial cells mediating anaerobic oxidation of methane coupled with sulfate reduction include electron transfer through (1) the exchange of H2 or small organic molecules between methane-oxidizing archaea and sulfate-reducing bacteria, (2) the delivery of disulfide from methane-oxidizing archaea to bacteria for disproportionation and (3) direct interspecies electron transfer. Each of these mechanisms was implemented in a reactive transport model. The simulated activities across different arrangements of archaeal and bacterial cells and aggregate sizes were compared to empirical data for AOM rates and intra-aggregate spatial patterns of cell-specific anabolic activity determined by FISH-nanoSIMS. Additionally, simulation results showed that rates for chemical diffusion by mechanism (1) were limited by the build-up of metabolites, while mechanisms (2) and (3) yielded cell specific rates and archaeal activity distributions that were consistent with observations from single cell resolved FISH-nanoSIMS analyses. The novel integration of both intra-aggregate and environmental data provided powerful constraints on the model results, but the similarities in model outcomes for mechanisms (2) and (3) highlight the need for additional observational data (e.g. genomic or physiological) on electron transfer and metabolic functioning of these globally important methanotrophic consortia.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Role of interfaces in damage process of irradiated lithium aluminate nanocrystals

Molecular dynamics simulations were performed to understand the differences in the response of single crystal and nanocrystalline ?-LiAlO2 to energy deposition by 10 keV Li recoils. The simulations are performed at 573 K and focus on the damage production in the absence of thermal annealing. The grain boundaries in the nanocrystals are found to be amorphous. Analyses of the fate of the beam ions show that the amorphous grain boundaries and differently oriented nanograins increase the number of back-scattered ions and decrease the number of transmitted ions. Damaged regions protruding from the grain boundaries provide a direct evidence of the role of the grain boundaries as scattering centers in collision cascades. The simulations show that the defect density produced in the nanocrystals is about twice that in the single crystals. In both samples, Li defects account for 70% of the defects, demonstrating that LiO4 tetrahedra is much more susceptible to damage than AlO4 tetrahedra. Furthermore, Li defects occur preferentially near grain boundaries. Diffusion simulations confirm the limited thermal diffusion of defects at 573 K, effectively separating the damage production from thermal annealing in the irradiation simulations. Nevertheless, the mean square displacements of grain boundary defects are found to be larger than lattice defects and surface defects.

lithium aluminate, interfaces, irradiation, molecu↗

Status Quo of Heliostat Field Deployment Processes

Deployment of the solar field of a concentrating solar power plant is one of many factors that are integral to the success of a project. Knowledge transfer from outside the industry is limited due to the unique nature of heliostats, which redirect sunlight to a receiver with high precision while maintaining a high level of reflectivity. Moreover, learning from project to project can be limited due to the site-specific nature of projects, as the market includes several developers, each with their own unique design. In this paper, we discuss the state of the art in heliostat field deployment. We cover all the key aspects of deployment from project assessment to a fully functioning system, which include site selection, layout development, supply chain, assembly, site preparation and construction, calibration, and operations and maintenance.

concentrating solar power↗