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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 55 records · Page 3
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1975

Evaluation of the dual differential radiometer for remote sensing of sediment and chlorophyll in turbid waters

The dual differential radiometer (DDR) was tested to determine its capability for measuring suspended sediment and chlorophyll in turbid waters. Measurements were obtained from a boat dock and from a helicopter with combinations of sample and reference filters with peak transmissions at various wavelengths. Water samples were taken concurrently and were analyzed for light scattering, particle count, and total chlorophyll. Least-squares estimates of the linear relationship between DDR output and the water parameters yielded correlation coefficients of less than 0.7. Under the turbid water conditions of the present tests, the DDR did not accurately measure either suspended sediment or chlorophyll. A precise knowledge of the spectral signatures of various pollutants might enable appropriate filters to be selected for tuning the DDR to monitor a particular pollutant.

Witte, W. G.↗
DOE OSTI2016

Implementation and testing of the on-the-fly thermal scattering Monte Carlo sampling method for graphite and light water in MCNP6

Here, a proper treatment of thermal neutron scattering requires accounting for chemical binding through a scattering law S(α,β,T). Monte Carlo codes sample the secondary neutron energy and angle after a thermal scattering event from probability tables generated from S(α,β,T) tables at discrete temperatures, requiring a large amount of data for multiscale and multiphysics problems with detailed temperature gradients. We have previously developed a method to handle this temperature dependence on-the-fly during the Monte Carlo random walk using polynomial expansions in 1/T to directly sample the secondary energy and angle. In this paper, the on-the-fly method is implemented into MCNP6 and tested in both graphite-moderated and light water-moderated systems. The on-the-fly method is compared with the thermal ACE libraries that come standard with MCNP6, yielding good agreement with integral reactor quantities like k-eigenvalue and differential quantities like single-scatter secondary energy and angle distributions. The simulation runtimes are comparable between the two methods (on the order of 5–15% difference for the problems tested) and the on-the-fly fit coefficients only require 5–15 MB of total data storage.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
NASA NTRS1993

Polarimetric backscattering from sea ice

Polarimetric backscattering from sea ice is presented. Theoretical models for backscattering are first presented for various ice types. Then, theoretical results are compared with experimental data for new thin ice, first-year ice, and multi-year ice. Sea ice is modeled as a layer medium containing random scatterers and rough interfaces. For multi-year sea ice with snow cover, the sea ice layer is modeled as an ice background with embedded spheroidal air bubbles and the snow layer as air with ice grains. The hummocky topography on multi-year ice is characterized by a Gaussian distribution which has an averaging effect on backscattering coefficients. First-year sea ice is described by an ice medium hosting ellipsoidal brine inclusions. These inclusions are oriented preferentially in the vertical direction due to the columnar structure of first-year sea ice. Azimuthally, the orientation of the brine pockets are random corresponding to the random c-axes in sea ice, unless the axes are oriented by sea currents. For thin ice in newly opened leads, it has been observed that there exists a thin brine layer with very high salinity on the top surface of the new ice. This brine layer is depicted as a medium with high permittivity which can significantly affect electromagnetic scattering signatures from the lower thin ice layer, with a higher fractional volume of brine inclusions due to higher salinity as compared to thick first-year sea ice. The rough medium interfaces are described as Gaussian rough surfaces characterized by root-mean-square heights and surface correlation lengths. The contribution from rough surface, calculated under the Kirchhoff approximation or small perturbation method, is assumed to be independent from volume scattering. The total loss including absorption and scattering losses in the scattering media is represented by the imaginary part of effective permittivity obtained from the strong fluctuation theory. The polarimetric scattering coefficients for different ice types are then derived under the distorted Born approximation.

Nghiem, S. V.↗
NASA NTRS2011

Spectrally-Invariant Approximation Within Atmospheric Radiative Transfer

Certain algebraic combinations of single scattering albedo and solar radiation reflected from, or transmitted through, vegetation canopies do not vary with wavelength. These "spectrally invariant relationships" are the consequence of wavelength independence of the extinction coefficient and scattering phase function in vegetation. In general, this wavelength independence does not hold in the atmosphere, but in cloud~dominated atmospheres the total extinction and total scattering phase function vary only weakly with wavelength. This paper identifies the atmospheric conditions under which the spectrally invariant approximation can accurately describe the extinction. and scattering properties of cloudy atmospheres. The validity of the assumptions and the accuracy of the approximation are tested with ID radiative transfer calculations using publicly available radiative transfer models: Discrete Ordinate Radiative Transfer (DISORT) and Santa Barbara DISORT Atmospheric Radiative Transfer (SBDART). It is shown for cloudy atmospheres with cloud optical depth above 3, and for spectral intervals that exclude strong water vapor absorption, that the spectrally invariant relationships found in vegetation canopy radiative transfer are valid to better than 5%. The physics behind this phenomenon, its mathematical basis, and possible applications to remote sensing and climate are discussed.

Marshak, A.↗
DOE OSTI2026

On the Statistical Uncertainty of Monte Carlo-Calculated Scattering Sensitivities

Sensitivity coefficients calculated with Monte Carlo codes are widely used for nuclear data uncertainty quantification in the modeling and simulation of complex 3D reactor systems. This study systematically compares sensitivity coefficients and associated statistical uncertainties for the multiplication factor and fuel temperature reactivity across multiple Monte Carlo codes (SCALE/KENO, SCALE/Shift, MCNP, and Serpent) using simple models representing light-water reactors and advanced reactor concepts. For multiplication factor sensitivities, statistical uncertainties are generally acceptable, although scattering sensitivities show significantly larger statistical uncertainties than, for example, fission and capture reactions. Fuel temperature reactivity sensitivities show significantly larger statistical uncertainties across all reactions. Elastic scattering sensitivities are the most problematic: all Monte Carlo codes fail to resolve energy-dependent coefficients, and they produce dramatically different energy-collapsed values. Critically, the use of these sensitivity coefficients in nuclear data uncertainty propagation leads to reduced statistical uncertainties in individual uncertainty contributions. This can lead to the masking of unusable sensitivity coefficients and producing misleading uncertainty results. The findings of this study show that new or enhanced methods are needed to improve Monte Carlo elastic scattering sensitivity calculations. Additionally, this study shows the relevance of verifying sensitivity coefficients through direct perturbation calculations for individual nuclide reactions, instead of only for total cross sections as commonly done.

Bostelmann, Rike [ORNL] (ORCID:0000000165968088)↗
NASA NTRS1979

Studies on remote sensing method of particle size and water density distribution in mists and clouds using laser radar techniques

A method of remote measurement of the particle size and density distribution of water droplets was developed. In this method, the size of droplets is measured from the Mie scattering parameter which is defined as the total-to-backscattering ratio of the laser beam. The water density distribution is obtained by a combination of the Mie scattering parameter and the extinction coefficient of the laser beam. This method was examined experimentally for the mist generated by an ultrasonic mist generator and applied to clouds containing rain and snow. Compared with the conventional sampling method, the present method has advantages of remote measurement capability and improvement in accuracy.

Shimizu, H.↗
NASA NTRS2011

Spectrally Invariant Approximation within Atmospheric Radiative Transfer

Certain algebraic combinations of single scattering albedo and solar radiation reflected from, or transmitted through, vegetation canopies do not vary with wavelength. These spectrally invariant relationships are the consequence of wavelength independence of the extinction coefficient and scattering phase function in vegetation. In general, this wavelength independence does not hold in the atmosphere, but in cloud-dominated atmospheres the total extinction and total scattering phase function vary only weakly with wavelength. This paper identifies the atmospheric conditions under which the spectrally invariant approximation can accurately describe the extinction and scattering properties of cloudy atmospheres. The validity of the assumptions and the accuracy of the approximation are tested with 1D radiative transfer calculations using publicly available radiative transfer models: Discrete Ordinate Radiative Transfer (DISORT) and Santa Barbara DISORT Atmospheric Radiative Transfer (SBDART). It is shown for cloudy atmospheres with cloud optical depth above 3, and for spectral intervals that exclude strong water vapor absorption, that the spectrally invariant relationships found in vegetation canopy radiative transfer are valid to better than 5%. The physics behind this phenomenon, its mathematical basis, and possible applications to remote sensing and climate are discussed.

Marshak, A.↗
NASA NTRS2016

In-Situ and Remotely-Sensed Observations of Biomass Burning Aerosols at Doi Ang Khang, Thailand During 7-SEAS BASELInE 2015

The spring 2015 deployment of a suite of instrumentation at Doi Ang Khang (DAK) in northwestern Thailand enabled the characterization of air masses containing smoke aerosols from burning predominantly in Myanmar. Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) Sun photometer data were used to validate Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) Collection 6 "Deep Blue" aerosol optical depth (AOD) retrievals; MODIS Terra and Aqua provided results of similar quality, with correlation coefficients of 0.93-0.94 and similar agreement within expected uncertainties to global-average performance. Scattering and absorption measurements were used to compare surface and total column aerosol single scatter albedo (SSA); while the two were well-correlated, and showed consistent positive relationships with moisture (increasing SSA through the season as surface relative humidity and total columnar water vapor increased), in situ surface-level SSA was nevertheless significantly lower by 0.12-0.17. This could be related to vertical heterogeneity and/or instrumental issues. DAK is at approximately 1,500 meters above sea level in heterogeneous terrain, and the resulting strong diurnal variability in planetary boundary layer depth above the site leads to high temporal variability in both surface and column measurements, and acts as a controlling factor to the ratio between surface particulate matter (PM) levels and column AOD. In contrast, while some hygroscopic effects were observed relating to aerosol particle size and Angstrom exponent, relative humidity variations appear to be less important for this ratio here. As part of the Seven South-East Asian Studies (7-SEAS) project, the Biomass-burning Aerosols & Stratocumulus Environment: Lifecycles and Interactions Experiment (BASELInE) was intended to probe physicochemical processes, interactions, and feedbacks related to biomass burning aerosols and clouds during the spring burning season (February-April) in southeast Asia (SEA).

biomass burning↗
NASA NTRS2012

Spectral Invariant Approximation within Atmospheric Radiative Transfer; Applications to EarthCare

Certain algebraic combinations of single-scattering albedo and solar radiation reflected from, or transmitted through, vegetation canopies do not vary with wavelength. These "spectrally-invariant relationships" are the consequence of wavelength independence of the extinction coefficient and scattering phase function in vegetation. In general, this wavelength-independence does not hold in the atmosphere, but in cloud-dominated atmospheres the total extinction and total scattering phase function vary only weakly with wavelength. We identify the conditions under which the spectrally-invariant approximation can accurately describe the extinction and scattering properties of cloudy atmospheres. Validity of the assumptions and accuracy of the approximation is tested with radiative transfer calculations. We discuss the physics behind this phenomenon and possible applications to remote sensing, climate, and the EarthCare, mission in particular.

Marshak, Alexander↗
DOE OSTI2018

A dual-layer structure with record-high solar reflectance for daytime radiative cooling

We demonstrate a diffusive solar reflector with record high reflectance when integrated over the wavelength region from 0.28-4.0 μm. The reflector has a dual-layer structure consisting of a polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) sheet on top of a silver film. The thickness of the PTFE varies from 0.25 mm to 1 mm. Spectral reflectance and transmittance of the PTFE sheets (with and without a silver film) were measured using a monochromator and a Fourier-transform infrared spectrometer, with integrating spheres, at wavelengths from 0.28 μm to 15 μm. The scattering and absorption coefficients of the PTFE samples were obtained by fitting the reflectance and transmittance spectra. Integration over the solar irradiation spectrum (AM1.5) reveals that the total solar reflectance is approximately 0.99 for the reflector. This is the highest solar reflectance reported to date. A Monte Carlo ray-tracing method and a modified two-flux model were used to calculate the reflectance and compare with the experiments to shed light on mechanisms for the high reflectance. Our measurements also suggest that PTFE has a high emittance around 0.9 in the mid-infrared region. Therefore, we conclude the proposed structure holds promise for passive daytime radiative cooling.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
NASA NTRS2016

Quantitative Validation of the Integrated Medical Model (IMM) for ISS Missions

Lifetime Surveillance of Astronaut Health (LSAH) provided observed medical event data on 33 ISS and 111 STS person-missions for use in further improving and validating the Integrated Medical Model (IMM). Using only the crew characteristics from these observed missions, the newest development version, IMM v4.0, will simulate these missions to predict medical events and outcomes. Comparing IMM predictions to the actual observed medical event counts will provide external validation and identify areas of possible improvement. In an effort to improve the power of detecting differences in this validation study, the total over each program ISS and STS will serve as the main quantitative comparison objective, specifically the following parameters: total medical events (TME), probability of loss of crew life (LOCL), and probability of evacuation (EVAC). Scatter plots of observed versus median predicted TMEs (with error bars reflecting the simulation intervals) will graphically display comparisons while linear regression will serve as the statistical test of agreement. Two scatter plots will be analyzed 1) where each point reflects a mission and 2) where each point reflects a condition-specific total number of occurrences. The coefficient of determination (R2) resulting from a linear regression with no intercept bias (intercept fixed at zero) will serve as an overall metric of agreement between IMM and the real world system (RWS). In an effort to identify as many possible discrepancies as possible for further inspection, the -level for all statistical tests comparing IMM predictions to observed data will be set to 0.1. This less stringent criterion, along with the multiple testing being conducted, should detect all perceived differences including many false positive signals resulting from random variation. The results of these analyses will reveal areas of the model requiring adjustment to improve overall IMM output, which will thereby provide better decision support for mission critical applications.

validation↗
NASA NTRS2001

Extinction and Scattering Properties of Soot Emitted from Buoyant Turbulent Diffusion Flames

Extinction and scattering properties at wavelengths of 250-5200 nm were studied for soot emitted from buoyant turbulent diffusion flames in the long residence time regime where soot properties are independent of position in the overfire region and characteristic flame residence times. Flames burning in still air and fueled with gas (acetylene, ethylene, propane, and propylene) and liquid (benzene, toluene, cyclohexane, and n-heptane) hydrocarbon fuels were considered Measured scattering patterns and ratios of total scattering/absorption cross sections were in good agreement with predictions based on the Rayleigh-Debye-Gans (RDG) scattering approximation in the visible. Measured depolarization ratios were roughly correlated by primary particle size parameter, suggesting potential for completing RDG methodology needed to make soot scattering predictions as well as providing a nonintrusive way to measure primary soot particle diameters. Measurements of dimensionless extinction coefficients were in good agreement with earlier measurements for similar soot populations and were independent of fuel type and wavelength except for reduced values as the near ultraviolet was approached. The ratios of the scattering/absorption refractive index functions were independent of fuel type within experimental uncertainties and were in good agreement with earlier measurements. The refractive index function for absorption was similarly independent of fuel type but was larger than earlier reflectometry measurements in the infrared. Ratios of total scattering/absorption cross sections were relatively large in the visible and near infrared, with maximum values as large as 0.9 and with values as large as 0.2 at 2000 nm, suggesting greater potential for scattering from soot particles to affect flame radiation properties than previously thought.

Krishnan, S. S.↗
NASA NTRS2001

Extinction and Scattering Properties of Soot Emitted from Buoyant Turbulent Diffusion Flames

Extinction and scattering properties at wavelengths of 250-5200 nm were studied for soot emitted from buoyant turbulent diffusion flames in the long residence time regime where soot properties are independent of position in the overfire region and characteristic flame residence times. Flames burning in still air and fueled with gas (acetylene, ethylene, propane, and propylene) and liquid (benzene, toluene, cyclohexane, and n-heptane) hydrocarbon fuels were considered. Measured scattering patterns and ratios of total scattering/absorption cross sections were in good agreement with predictions based on the Rayleigh-Debye-Gans (RDG) scattering approximation in the visible. Measured depolarization ratios were roughly correlated by primary particle size parameter, suggesting potential for completing RDG methodology needed to make soot scattering predictions as well as providing a nonintrusive way to measure primary soot particle diameters. Measurements of dimensionless extinction coefficients were in good agreement with earlier measurements for similar soot populations and were independent of fuel type and wavelength except for reduced values as the near ultraviolet was approached. The ratios of the scattering/absorption refractive index functions were independent of fuel type within experimental uncertainties and were in good agreement with earlier measurements. The refractive index junction for absorption was similarly independent of fuel type but was larger than earlier reflectometry measurements in the infrared. Ratios of total scattering/absorption cross sections were relatively large in the visible and near infrared, with maximum values as large as 0.9 and with values as large as 0.2 at 2000 nm, suggesting greater potential for scattering from soot particles to affect flame radiation properties than previously thought.

Krishnan, S. S.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Laboratory measurements of selected optical, physical, chemical, and remote-sensing properties of five water mixtures containing Calvert clay and a nonfluorescing dye

Total suspended solids concentrations ranged from 6.1 ppm to 24.3 ppm and sizes ranged between 1.5 micrometers and 10 micrometers with the most frequently occurring size less than 2 micrometers. Iron concentration was less than 1 percent of the total suspended solids. Nonfluorescing dye concentrations of the two mixtures were 20 ppm and 40 ppm. Attenuation coefficient for the five mixtures ranged from 4.8/m to 21.3/m. Variations in volume scattering function with phase angle were typical. Variations in attenuation and absorption coefficient with wavelength were similar for the mixtures without the dye. Attenuation coefficient of the mixtures with the dye increased for wavelengths less than 600 nm due to the dye's strong absorption peak near 500 nm. Reflectance increased as the concentration of Calvert clay increased and peaked near 600 nm. The nonfluorescent dye decreased the magnitude of the peak, but had practically no effect on the variation for wavelengths greater than 640 nm. At wavelengths less than 600 nm, the spectral variations of the mixtures with the dye were significantly different from those mixtures without the dye.

Usry, J. W.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Evaluation and universal curves of the photon loss probability

In the transfer of radiation in a plasma, an important parameter (which measures the coupling between the radiation field and the electron gas) is the photon loss probability per scattering epsilon, defined as the ratio of collisional de-excitation to total de-excitation. The evaluation of epsilon requires normally knowledge of specific collisional excitation rates and radiative transition rate coefficients. In the considered investigation a general formula for epsilon is obtained which depends only on electron density, temperature, and line wavelength. Use is made of a simple Bethe-Coulomb expression recently derived by Kastner (1980) for the collisional excitation rate coefficient. Epsilon is obtained as a function of the three variables, and universal curves of it can be constructed with one of the variables as parameter. As an example of the application of the considered procedure, the variation of epsilon with height h in the solar atmosphere is shown in a graph for several solar lines.

Kastner, S. O.↗
NASA NTRS2012

Sensitivity of Multiangle, Multispectral Polarimetric Remote Sensing Over Open Oceans to Water-Leaving Radiance: Analyses of RSP Data Acquired During the MILAGRO Campaign

For remote sensing of aerosol over the ocean, there is a contribution from light scattered underwater. The brightness and spectrum of this light depends on the biomass content of the ocean, such that variations in the color of the ocean can be observed even from space. Rayleigh scattering by pure sea water, and Rayleigh-Gans type scattering by plankton, causes this light to be polarized with a distinctive angular distribution. To study the contribution of this underwater light polarization to multiangle, multispectral observations of polarized reflectance over ocean, we previously developed a hydrosol model for use in underwater light scattering computations that produces realistic variations of the ocean color and the underwater light polarization signature of pure sea water. In this work we review this hydrosol model, include a correction for the spectrum of the particulate scattering coefficient and backscattering efficiency, and discuss its sensitivity to variations in colored dissolved organic matter (CDOM) and in the scattering function of marine particulates. We then apply this model to measurements of total and polarized reflectance that were acquired over open ocean during the MILAGRO field campaign by the airborne Research Scanning Polarimeter (RSP). Analyses show that our hydrosol model faithfully reproduces the water-leaving contributions to RSP reflectance, and that the sensitivity of these contributions to Chlorophyll a concentration [Chl] in the ocean varies with the azimuth, height, and wavelength of observations. We also show that the impact of variations in CDOM on the polarized reflectance observed by the RSP at low altitude is comparable to or much less than the standard error of this reflectance whereas their effects in total reflectance may be substantial (i.e. up to >30%). Finally, we extend our study of polarized reflectance variations with [Chl] and CDOM to include results for simulated spaceborne observations.

Chowdhary, Jacek↗
NASA NTRS1987

Canopy reflectance, photosynthesis, and transpiration. II - The role of biophysics in the linearity of their interdependence

The ability of satellite sensor systems to estimate area-averaged canopy photosynthetic and transpirative properties is evaluated. The near linear relationship between the simple ratio (SR) and normalized difference (ND) and the surface biophysical properties of canopy photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) absorption, photosynthesis, and bulk stomatal resistance is studied. The models utilized to illustrate the processes of canopy reflectance, photosynthesis, and resistance are described. The dependence of SR, the absorbed fraction of PAR, and canopy photosynthesis and resistance on total leaf area index is analyzed. It is noted that the SR and ND vegetation indices and vegetation-dependent qualities are near-linearly related due to the proportion of leaf scattering coefficient in visible and near IR wavelength regions. The data reveal that satellite sensor systems are useful for the estimation of photosynthesis and transpirative properties.

Sellers, P. J.↗
DOE OSTI2018

Localized Symmetry Breaking for Tuning Thermal Expansion in ScF 3 Nanoscale Frameworks

The local symmetry, beyond the averaged crystallographic structure, tends to bring unu-sual performances. Negative thermal expansion is a peculiar physical property of solids. Here in this paper, we report the delicate design of the localized symmetry breaking to achieve the controllable thermal expansion in ScF 3 nano-scale frameworks. Intriguingly, an isotropic zero thermal expansion is concurrently engineered by localized symmetry breaking, with a remarkably low coefficient of thermal expansion of about +4.0×10-8/K up to 675K. This mechanism is investigated by the joint analysis of atomic pair dis-tribution function of synchrotron X-ray total scattering and extended X-ray absorption fine structure spectra. A localized rhombohedral distortion presumably plays a critical role in stiffening ScF 3 nano-scale frameworks and concomitantly suppressing transverse thermal vibrations of fluorine atoms. This physical scenario is also theoretically corroborated by the extinction of phonon modes with negative Grüneisen parameters in the rhombohedral ScF 3 . The present work opens an untraditional chemical modification to achieve controllable thermal expansion by breaking local symmetries of materials.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗