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Results for “economic production”

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 55 records · Page 3
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1977

New themes for space: Mankind's future needs and aspirations; Proceedings of the Bicentennial Space Symposium, Washington, D.C., October 6-8, 1976

Satellite communications, space manufacturing, remote sensing, and environmental observation are discussed. In the field of satellite communications, the special requirements of a military satellite communication system are explained, the use of satellites for mobile communications service is considered, and public service programs using NASA's ATS-6 and CTS satellites are discussed. Space stations and space manufacturing are examined with attention to equipment design, prospective products, and economic feasibility. Other topics include satellite power stations and the monitoring of crops and forests from space.

Schneider, W. C.↗
NASA NTRS1980

AgRISTARS: Soil moisture/early warning and crop condition assessment. Interface control document

The interactions and support functions required between the early warning/crop condition assessment (EW/CCA) project and soil moisture (SM) project are defined. The EW Project aims to develop, test and evaluate techniques and procedures for adapting remote sensing technology to provide early warning of events and the timely assessment of those factors which affect the quality and quantity of production of economically important crops. Those techniques to augment and reinforce the current assessment activities are to be developed to improve the definition of the relationship between the plant(s) and its environment. This assessment and evaluation will certainly include the need for soil moisture measurement and estimation. The SM Project aims to develop, test, and evaluate techniques and procedures to measure or predict soil moisture in the root zone using both contact and remote sensors.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS1982

TF34 Convertible Engine System Technology Program

The ability of the helicopter to function efficiently at zero flight speed is counterbalanced by a limitation to rather low forward flight speeds. An ability to fly efficiently at high speed would provide very significant improvements in rotorcraft productivity and economics. The implementation of such improvements would require the development of a suitable integrated power plant for both the vertical and horizontal flight modes. The engine should be a shaft output engine in the vertical flight mode. In the horizontal mode, the propulsor can be fan or propeller. A description is presented of a program concerned with the demonstration of a convertible turbofan/turboshaft engine. The program is nominally directed toward the demonstration of a propulsion system for an X-wing aircraft. However, the principles being investigated are applicable to any convertible turbofan/turboshaft engine application. At the current early stage of the program, no barrier problems have become apparent, and interesting possibilities for high speed rotorcraft flight are envisaged.

Abdalla, K. L.↗
NASA NTRS1985

Balloon-borne video cassette recorders for digital data storage

A high-speed, high-capacity digital data storage system has been developed for a new balloon-borne gamma-ray telescope. The system incorporates sophisticated, yet easy to use and economical consumer products: the portable video cassette recorder (VCR) and a relatively newer item - the digital audio processor. The in-flight recording system employs eight VCRs and will provide a continuous data storage rate of 1.4 megabits/sec throughout a 40 hour balloon flight. Data storage capacity is 25 gigabytes and power consumption is only 10 watts.

Althouse, W. E.↗
NASA NTRS1985

Balloon-borne video cassette recorders for digital data storage

A high speed, high capacity digital data storage system was developed for a new balloon-borne gamma-ray telescope. The system incorporates economical consumer products: the portable video cassette recorder (VCR) and a relatively newer item - the digital audio processor. The in-flight recording system employs eight VCRs and will provide a continuous data storage rate of 1.4 megabits/sec throughout a 40 hour balloon flight. Data storage capacity is 25 gigabytes and power consumption is only 10 watts.

Althouse, W. E.↗
NASA NTRS1991

HSCT designs for reduced sonic boom

The versatility of High Speed Civil Transports (HSCT) will be operationally limited by regulations that prohibit overland supersonic flight. This limitation gives impetus to the study of aerodynamic designs for reduced sonic boom. An HSCT design with an 'acceptable' sonic boom can allow routine overland supersonic cruise that would provide increased productivity and economic viability. During this four-year NASA-sponsored study, several configurations were designed for reduced sonic boom. An iterative technique was used in which the standard linear supersonic and Whitham sonic boom methods are extended. For the most severe sonic boom constraint of 72 dBA sonic boom loudness and 0.75 lb/sq ft shock strength at the ground, an economic benefit for operating at Mach 1.7 overland was not realized because of a decrease in the ratio of payload to takeoff gross weight. Additional design work is required to develop the best compromise between the low-boom requirements and optimum cruise performance.

Haglund, George T.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Overview of NASA human response to sonic boom program

For some routes the ability to fly at supersonic speeds over land as well as over water would greatly enhance the time benefit to the passenger. It would also increase the productivity and economic viability of the aircraft. There are no reliable guidelines which can be used to determine a sonic boom exposure which would be acceptable for overland supersonic flight. In addition to the peak pressure of the sonic boom, the detailed shape of the signature will also influence the perception, and therefore the community response, to sonic boom exposures. Initially, the program aims to develop the capability to predict human response to individual sonic booms. This will enable a quantitative assessment of the benefit of 'low boom' aircraft configurations and will also serve to guide the design of the aircraft and its operating conditions. This capability will form the foundation of studies to determine the relationship between sonic boom exposure and community response. Only then will it be possible to assess the feasibility of acceptable overland supersonic flight.

Shepherd, Kevin P.↗
NASA NTRS2000

Analysis of Advanced Rotorcraft Configurations

Advanced rotorcraft configurations are being investigated with the objectives of identifying vehicles that are larger, quieter, and faster than current-generation rotorcraft. A large rotorcraft, carrying perhaps 150 passengers, could do much to alleviate airport capacity limitations, and a quiet rotorcraft is essential for community acceptance of the benefits of VTOL operations. A fast, long-range, long-endurance rotorcraft, notably the tilt-rotor configuration, will improve rotorcraft economics through productivity increases. A major part of the investigation of advanced rotorcraft configurations consists of conducting comprehensive analyses of vehicle behavior for the purpose of assessing vehicle potential and feasibility, as well as to establish the analytical models required to support the vehicle development. The analytical work of FY99 included applications to tilt-rotor aircraft. Tilt Rotor Aeroacoustic Model (TRAM) wind tunnel measurements are being compared with calculations performed by using the comprehensive analysis tool (Comprehensive Analytical Model of Rotorcraft Aerodynamics and Dynamics (CAMRAD 11)). The objective is to establish the wing and wake aerodynamic models that are required for tilt-rotor analysis and design. The TRAM test in the German-Dutch Wind Tunnel (DNW) produced extensive measurements. This is the first test to encompass air loads, performance, and structural load measurements on tilt rotors, as well as acoustic and flow visualization data. The correlation of measurements and calculations includes helicopter-mode operation (performance, air loads, and blade structural loads), hover (performance and air loads), and airplane-mode operation (performance).

Johnson, Wayne↗
NASA NTRS2016

Modeling Global Water Use for the 21st Century: Water Futures and Solutions (WFaS) Initiative and Its Approaches

To sustain growing food demand and increasing standard of living, global water use increased by nearly 6 times during the last 100 years, and continues to grow. As water demands get closer and closer to the water availability in many regions, each drop of water becomes increasingly valuable and water must be managed more efficiently and intensively. However, soaring water use worsens water scarcity conditions already prevalent in semi-arid and arid regions, increasing uncertainty for sustainable food production and economic development. Planning for future development and investments requires that we prepare water projections for the future. However, estimations are complicated because the future of the world's waters will be influenced by a combination of environmental, social, economic, and political factors, and there is only limited knowledge and data available about freshwater resources and how they are being used. The Water Futures and Solutions (WFaS) initiative coordinates its work with other ongoing scenario efforts for the sake of establishing a consistent set of new global water scenarios based on the shared socio-economic pathways (SSPs) and the representative concentration pathways (RCPs). The WFaS "fast track" assessment uses three global water models, namely H08, PCR-GLOBWB, and WaterGAP. This study assesses the state of the art for estimating and projecting water use regionally and globally in a consistent manner. It provides an overview of different approaches, the uncertainty, strengths and weaknesses of the various estimation methods, types of management and policy decisions for which the current estimation methods are useful. We also discuss additional information most needed to be able to improve water use estimates and be able to assess a greater range of management options across the water-energy-climate nexus.

soaring↗
NASA NTRS2018

Coordinating AgMIP Data and Models Across Global and Regional Scales for 1.5°C and 2.0°C Assessments

The Agricultural Model Intercomparison and Improvement Project (AgMIP) has developed novel methods for Coordinated Global and Regional Assessments (CGRA) of agriculture and food security in a changing world. The present study aims to perform a proof of concept of the CGRA to demonstrate advantages and challenges of the proposed framework. This effort responds to the request by the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) for the implications of limiting global temperature increases to 1.5°C and 2.0°C above pre-industrial conditions. The protocols for the 1.5°C/2.0°C assessment establish explicit and testable linkages across disciplines and scales, connecting outputs and inputs from the Shared Socio-economic Pathways (SSPs), Representative Agricultural Pathways (RAPs), Half a degree Additional warming, Prognosis and Projected Impacts (HAPPI) and Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5) ensemble scenarios, global gridded crop models, global agricultural economics models, site-based crop models and within-country regional economics models. The CGRA consistently links disciplines, models and scales in order to track the complex chain of climate impacts and identify key vulnerabilities, feedbacks and uncertainties in managing future risk. CGRA proof-of-concept results show that, at the global scale, there are mixed areas of positive and negative simulated wheat and maize yield changes, with declines in some bread basket regions, at both 1.5°C and 2.0°C. Declines are especially evident in simulations that do not take into account direct CO2 effects on crops. These projected global yield changes mostly resulted in increases in prices and areas of wheat and maize in two global economics models. Regional simulations for 1.5°C and 2.0°C using site-based crop models had mixed results depending on the region and the crop. In conjunction with price changes from the global economics models, productivity declines in the Punjab, Pakistan, resulted in an increase in vulnerable households and the poverty rate. This article is part of the theme issue ‘The Paris Agreement: understanding the physical and social challenges for a warming world of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels’.

interdisciplinary↗
NASA NTRS1992

Conversion of bioprocess ethanol to industrial chemical products - Applications of process models for energy-economic assessments

An assessment approach for accurate evaluation of bioprocesses for large-scale production of industrial chemicals is presented. Detailed energy-economic assessments of a potential esterification process were performed, where ethanol vapor in the presence of water from a bioreactor is catalytically converted to ethyl acetate. Results show that such processes are likely to become more competitive as the cost of substrates decreases relative to petrolium costs. A commercial ASPEN process simulation provided a reasonably consistent comparison with energy economics calculated using JPL developed software. Detailed evaluations of the sensitivity of production cost to material costs and annual production rates are discussed.

Rohatgi, Naresh K.↗
NASA NTRS1978

An economic model of the manufacturers' aircraft production and airline earnings potential, volume 3

A behavioral explanation of the process of technological change in the U. S. aircraft manufacturing and airline industries is presented. The model indicates the principal factors which influence the aircraft (airframe) manufacturers in researching, developing, constructing and promoting new aircraft technology; and the financial requirements which determine the delivery of new aircraft to the domestic trunk airlines. Following specification and calibration of the model, the types and numbers of new aircraft were estimated historically for each airline's fleet. Examples of possible applications of the model to forecasting an individual airline's future fleet also are provided. The functional form of the model is a composite which was derived from several preceding econometric models developed on the foundations of the economics of innovation, acquisition, and technological change and represents an important contribution to the improved understanding of the economic and financial requirements for aircraft selection and production. The model's primary application will be to forecast the future types and numbers of new aircraft required for each domestic airline's fleet.

Kneafsey, J. T.↗
NASA NTRS2010

Habitat Size Optimization of the O'Neill - Glaser Economic Model for Space Solar Satellite Production

Creating large space habitats by launching all materials from Earth is prohibitively expensive. Using space resources and space based labor to build space solar power satellites can yield extraordinary profits after a few decades. The economic viability of this program depends on the use of space resources and space labor. To maximize the return on the investment, the early use of high density bolo habitats is required. Other shapes do not allow for the small initial scale required for a quick population increase in space. This study found that 5 Man Year, or 384 person bolo high density habitats will be the most economically feasible for a program started at year 2010 and will cause a profit by year 24 of the program, put over 45,000 people into space, and create a large system of space infrastructure for the further exploration and development of space.

Curreri, Peter A.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Space resources. Volume 3: Materials

Space Resources addresses the issues of using space resources to support life on the Moon and for exploration of Mars. This volume - Materials - covers a number of technical and policy issues regarding the materials in space (mainly lunar and asteroidal) which can be used to support space operations. In part 1, nature and location of these materials, exploration strategy, evaluation criteria, and the technical means to collect or mine these materials is discussed. A baseline lunar mine and the basics of asteroid mining are presented and critiqued. In part 2, the beneficiation of ores and the extraction of such materials as oxygen, metals, and the makings of concrete are discussed. In part 3, the manufacturing and fabrication of nonterrestrial products are discussed. The economic tradeoffs between bringing needed products from Earth and making these products on location in space is considered.

Mckay, Mary Fae↗
NASA NTRS1979

Hydrogen in the U.S. energy picture

A study of hydrogen in the U.S. program performed by the Hydrogen Energy Systems Technology (HEST) investigation is reported. Historic production and use of hydrogen, hydrogen use projections, hydrogen supply, economics of hydrogen production and supply, and future research and development needs are discussed. The study found current U.S. hydrogen utilization to be dominated by chemical and petroleum industries, and to represent 3% of total energy consumption. Hydrogen uses are projected to grow by a factor of 5 to 20 during the remainder of this century, and new applications in synthetic fuel from coal manufacture and directly as energy storage or fuel are expected to develop. The study concluded that development of new methods of supplying hydrogen replacing natural gas and petroleum feedstocks with alternate sources such as coal and heavy oils, and electrolysis techniques is imperative.

Kelley, J. H.↗
NASA NTRS1977

Economic Benefits of Improved Information on Worldwide Crop Production: An Optimal Decision Model of Production and Distribution with Application to Wheat, Corn, and Soybeans

An optimal decision model of crop production, trade, and storage was developed for use in estimating the economic consequences of improved forecasts and estimates of worldwide crop production. The model extends earlier distribution benefits models to include production effects as well. Application to improved information systems meeting the goals set in the large area crop inventory experiment (LACIE) indicates annual benefits to the United States of $200 to $250 million for wheat, $50 to $100 million for corn, and $6 to $11 million for soybeans, using conservative assumptions on expected LANDSAT system performance.

Andrews, J.↗
NASA NTRS1986

Constant-Elasticity-of-Substitution Simulation

Program simulates constant elasticity-of-substitution (CES) production function. CES function used by economic analysts to examine production costs as well as uncertainties in production. User provides such input parameters as price of labor, price of capital, and dispersion levels. CES minimizes expected cost to produce capital-uncertainty pair. By varying capital-value input, one obtains series of capital-uncertainty pairs. Capital-uncertainty pairs then used to generate several cost curves. CES program menu driven and features specific print menu for examining selected output curves. Program written in BASIC for interactive execution and implemented on IBM PC-series computer.

Reiter, G.↗