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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 541 records · Page 30
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2023

Thermostructural evolution of boron carbide characterized using in-situ x-ray diffraction

Boron carbide, with a nominal stoichiometry of B 4 C, is a highly desired ceramic candidate for armor applications due to its high hardness derived from the complex crystal structure. However, stress-induced local amorphization can lead to failure and is a known challenge for this material which must be addressed for applications in ballistic environments. Understanding boron carbide's atomic structural behavior and bonding environment is critical in determining effective strategies to mitigate these issues. Here, in this work, the thermo-structural behavior of B 4 C has been studied in detail using a conical nozzle levitator system coupled with in-situ synchrotron X-ray diffraction. Lattice expansion and the resulting thermal expansion coefficients (CTEs) were determined from 25-2100 °C. Rietveld refinements showed anisotropic atomic displacement for each of the 4 unique sites as a function of temperature. An exceptionally large z-axis displacement for the boron chain center is linked to bond weakness and may be linked to faster expansion of the α 33 relative to α 11 CTEs. Thermally induced lattice changes can inform the use of boron carbide at elevated temperatures as well as help develop strategies for mitigating structural failure for armor applications.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2019

Strong quadrature squeezing and quantum amplification in a coupled Bose–Einstein condensate—optomechanical cavity based on parametric modulation

We consider an optomechanical cavity with a movable end-mirror as a quantum mechanical oscillator (MO) containing an interacting cigar-shaped Bose–Eisenstein condensate (BEC). It is assumed that both the MO and the BEC interact with the radiation pressure of the cavity field in the red-detuned and weak coupling regimes while the two-body atomic collisions frequency of the BEC and the mechanical spring coefficient of the MO are coherently modulated. By analyzing the scattering matrix, we show that in the largely different cooperativities regime together with strong modulations, the mechanical mode of the MO and the Bogoliubov mode of the BEC exhibit quadrature squeezing which can surpass the so-called 3dB limit (up to 75 dB) with high robustness to the thermal noises. Surprisingly, in this regime by controlling the system and modulation parameters, a very high degree of squeezing (up to 16 dB) together with high purity of quantum state for the output cavity field is achievable. Furthermore, one can attain simultaneous strong quantum amplification, added-noise suppression, and controllable gain-bandwidth for the complementary quadratures of squeezed ones in the subsystems.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2021

Bimodal particle distributions with increased thermal conductivity for solid particles as heat transfer media and storage materials

Solid particles are being considered in several high temperature thermal energy storage systems and as heat transfer media in a variety of advanced power generation systems, particularly in concentrated solar power plants. The downside of such an approach is the low overall heat transfer coefficients caused by the inherently low thermal conductivity values of the low-cost solid media when coupled to heat exchanger for the power cycle working fluid. Choosing the right particle size distribution, emittance, and material of the solid media can all make a substantial difference in packed bed thermal conductivity. Current research though exclusively focuses on continuous unimodal distributions of particles. Here, in this work, we propose the use of a binary particle system with a bimodal size distribution to significantly increase packed bed thermal conductivity by reducing packed bed porosity. This is the first study related to ceramic solid particle heat transfer that has considered the thermal conductivity of non-unimodal size distributions at room and elevated temperatures. The following study found that for the binary particle system using Carbo particles CP 16/30 – CP 70/140 where the large particle volume fraction was 50% there was an 17–47% increase in packed bed thermal conductivity when compared with a nearly unimodal particle size distribution of CP 16/30 between 50 and 300 °C. Two different porosity and effective thermal conductivity models were studied, with one providing better prediction of porosity but both effective thermal conductivity models providing less predictive capacity. Importantly this approach can have a substantial impact of thermal performance, with little to no impact on the particle cost.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2026

Jordan–Wigner Transformation for the Description of Strong Correlation in Fermionic Systems

Seniority is a useful way of organizing Hilbert space for strongly correlated systems. The exact zero-seniority wave function, doubly occupied configuration interaction (DOCI), provides accurate results (given the right orbitals) for many strongly correlated electronic systems but has a combinatorial computational cost. In many cases, pair coupled cluster doubles provide a polynomial-cost approximation that closely reproduces the energies of DOCI, but it breaks down in some cases and, as shown herein, it does not provide particularly good density matrices. In this article, we demonstrate that by using the Jordan–Wigner transformation to turn the seniority zero problem back into a Fermionic one, we can provide mean-field variational results of DOCI quality for the Hubbard model and a few small molecular dissociation examples, with polynomial cost, both for the energies and for density matrices, all while being protected from collapse. This success is rooted in the proof we provide, showing that the Hartree–Fock wave function on the Jordan–Wigner-transformed Hamiltonian transforms back to variational coupled cluster doubles in the seniority zero representation, but restricted to have determinant rather than permanent amplitude coefficients, without compromising its overall accuracy.

74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Giant magnetoelectric effect at low frequencies in polymer-based thin film composites

A polymer-based magnetoelectric 2-2 composite was fabricated in a thin film approach by direct spin coating of polyvinylidenefluoride-co-trifluoroethylene onto a Metglas substrate without the usage of an adhesive for the mechanical coupling between the piezoelectric and magnetostrictive materials. For a prototype single-sided clamped cantilever, a magnetoelectric coefficient as high as 850 V cm{sup −1} Oe{sup −1} is observed at its fundamental bending mode resonance frequency at 27.8 Hz and a detection limit of 10 pTHz{sup −1/2} at its second bending mode resonance frequency at 169.5 Hz.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2017

Electrical anisotropy and coexistence of structural transitions and superconductivity in IrT e 2

In this work, we report experimental investigations of the electrical transport, magnetic, and thermodynamic properties of IrTe 2 single crystals. The resistivity, magnetization, and specific heat display anomalies at T S1 ≈ 283K,T S2 ≈ 167K, and T c ≈2.5K, corresponding to two structural and one superconducting phase transitions, respectively, demonstrating the coexistence of all of these transitions in high-quality stoichiometric samples. While there is little magnetic anisotropy, a large ab-plane (ρab) and c-axis (ρc) electrical resistivity ratio (ρ c /ρ ab ≈730 at T=4K) is observed. This two-dimensional (2D) electronic character is further reflected in the disparate temperature dependences of ρ ab and ρ c , with ρab exhibiting a Fermi-liquid-like T 2 dependence below ~25K, while ρc deviates significantly from this standard metallic behavior. In contrast, the magnetization is almost isotropic and negative over a wide temperature range. Furthermore, this can be explained by larger diamagnetism induced by electronic structure reconstruction as probed by the Hall effect and smaller positive contribution from itinerant electrons due to a low density of states (DOS) at the Fermi level. A small electronic specific heat coefficient with γ ≈ 1.8mJ/molK 2 confirms this assertion. This implies that IrTe 2 is a weakly coupled superconductor. The connection between the superconductivity and the two structural transitions is discussed.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2018

Effect of Ion Streaming on Diffusion of Dust Grains in Dissipative System

The presence of strong electric fields in the sheath region of laboratory complex plasma induces an ion drift and perturbs the field around dust grains. The downstream focusing of ions leads to the formation of oscillatory kind of attractive wake potential which superimpose with the normal Debye-Hückel (DH) potential. The structural properties of complex plasma and diffusion coefficient of dust grains in the presence of such a wake potential have been investigated using Langevin dynamics simulation in the subsonic regime of ion flow. The study reveals that the diffusion of dust grains is strongly affected by the ion flow, so that the diffusion changes its character in the wake potential to the DH potential dominant regimes. The dependence of the diffusion coefficient on the parameters, such as the neutral pressure, dust grain size, ion flow velocity, and Coulomb coupling parameter, have been calculated for the subsonic regime by using the Green-Kubo expression, which is based on the integrated velocity autocorrelation function. It is found that the diffusion and the structural property of the system is intimately connected with the interaction potential and significantly get affected in the presence of ion flow in the subsonic regime.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2018

Exploring the observational constraints on the simulation of brown carbon

Organic aerosols (OA) that strongly absorb solar radiation in the near-UV are referred to as brown carbon (BrC). The sources, evolution, and optical properties of BrC remain highly uncertain and contribute significantly to uncertainty in the estimate of the global direct radiative effect (DRE) of aerosols. Previous modeling studies of BrC optical properties and DRE have been unable to fully evaluate model performance due to the lack of direct measurements of BrC absorption. In this study, we develop a global model simulation (GEOS-Chem) of BrC and test it against BrC absorption measurements from two aircraft campaigns in the continental US (SEAC 4 RS and DC3). To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to compare simulated BrC absorption with direct aircraft measurements. We show that BrC absorption properties estimated based on previous laboratory measurements agree with the aircraft measurements of freshly emitted BrC absorption but overestimate aged BrC absorption. In addition, applying a photochemical scheme to simulate bleaching/degradation of BrC improves model skill. The airborne observations are therefore consistent with a mass absorption coefficient (MAC) of freshly emitted biomass burning OA of 1.33 m 2 g -1 at 365 nm coupled with a 1-day whitening e-folding time. Using the GEOS-Chem chemical transport model integrated with the RRTMG radiative transfer model, we estimate that the top-of-the-atmosphere all-sky direct radiative effect (DRE) of OA is -0.344 Wm -2 , 10 % higher than that without consideration of BrC absorption. Therefore, our best estimate of the absorption DRE of BrC is +0.048 Wm -2 . We suggest that the DRE of BrC has been overestimated previously due to the lack of observational constraints from direct measurements and omission of the effects of photochemical whitening.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2020

Nonadiabatic Electronic Energy Transfer in Chemical Oxygen-Iodine Laser: Powered by Derivative Coupling or Spin-Orbit Coupling?

Derivative couplings near a conical intersection and spin-orbit couplings between different spin states are known to facilitate nonadiabatic transitions in molecular systems. In this report, we investigate a prototypical electronic energy transfer process, I( 2 P 3/2 )+O 2 (a 1 Δ g )→I( 2 P 1/2 )+ O 2 (X 3 Σ g - ), which is of great importance for the chemical oxygen-iodine laser. To understand the nonadiabatic dynamics, this multistate process is investigated in full dimensionality with quantum wave packets using diabatic potential energy surfaces coupled by both derivative and spin-orbit couplings, all determined from first principles. A near quantitative agreement with structural, energetic, and kinetic measurements is achieved. Detailed analyses suggest that the nonadiabatic dynamics is largely controlled by derivative coupling near conical intersections, which leads to a small effective barrier and hence a slightly positive temperature dependence of the rate coefficient. The new findings should extend our understanding of energy transfer, provide a quantitative basis for numerical simulations of the chemical oxygen-iodine laser, and have important implications in other electronic energy transfer processes.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2014

Analysis of double stub tuner control stability in a phased array antenna with strong cross-coupling

Active stub tuning with a fast ferrite tuner (FFT) has greatly increased the ability of fusion ion cyclotron range of frequency (ICRF) systems (50–100 MHz) by allowing for the antenna system to respond dynamically to changes in the plasma load impedance such as during the L–H transition or edge localized modes (ELMs). A high power waveguide double-stub tuner is under development for use with the Alcator C-Mod lower hybrid current drive (LHCD) system at 4.6 GHz. The amplitude and relative phase shift between adjacent columns of an LHCD antenna are critical for control of the launched n || spectrum. Adding a double-stub tuning network will perturb the phase and amplitude of the forward wave particularly if the unmatched reflection coefficient is high. This effect can be compensated by adjusting the phase of the low power microwave drive for each klystron amplifier. Cross-coupling of the reflected power between columns of the launcher must also be considered. The problem is simulated by cascading a scattering matrix for the plasma provided by a linear coupling model with the measured launcher scattering matrix and that of the FFTs. The solution is advanced in an iterative manner similar to the time-dependent behavior of the real system. System performance is presented under a range of edge density conditions from under-dense to over-dense and a range of launched n || . Simulations suggest power reflection coefficients (Γ 2 ) of less than 1% with no contamination of the n || spectrum. Instability of the FFT tuning network can be difficult for certain plasma conditions and relative phasings, but reducing the control gain of the FFT network stabilizes the system.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2025

Serpent - Bison - THM Preliminary Multiphysics Modeling of a Nuclear Thermal Propulsion System Fuel Assembly

This work demonstrates the Monte Carlo neutronic and Thermo-Hydraulic coupling scheme using the Serpent code and MOOSE application Bison and Thermo Hydraulic Module. The coupling scheme is then applied to the reference BWX Technologies Nuclear Ther- mal Propulsion system at he fuel assembly level where it’s used to perform an analysis of the isothermal material coefficients and potential material reactivity worth. A method is developed to isolate which feedback effects should be considered for proceeding with reduced order deterministic neutronic modeling where branch off analysis must be con- ducted. The convergence behavior of the coupling scheme is demonstrated where it fol- lows the standard Picard iteration approach. Verification studies for the method of deduc- ing relevant feedback effects is also demonstrated.

22 - GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2024

Inelastic Triatom-Atom Quantum Close-Coupling Dynamics in Full Dimensionality: All Rovibrational Mode Quenching of Water Due to the H Impact on a Six-Dimensional Potential Energy Surface

The rovibrational level populations, and subsequent emission in various astrophysical environments, are driven by inelastic collision processes. The available rovibrational rate coefficients for water have been calculated using a number of approximations. We present a numerically exact calculation for the rovibrational quenching for all water vibrational modes due to collisions with atomic hydrogen. The scattering theory implements a quantum close-coupling (CC) method on a high level ab initio six-dimensional (6D) potential energy surface (PES). Total rovibrational quenching cross sections for excited bending levels were compared with earlier results on a 4D PES with the rigid-bender closecoupling (RBCC) approximation. General agreement between 6D-CC and 4DRBCC calculations are found, but differences are evident including the energy and amplitude of low-energy orbiting resonances. Quenching cross sections from the symmetric and asymmetric stretch modes are provided for the first time. The current 6D-CC calculation provides accurate inelastic data needed for astrophysical modeling.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2015

MODELING OF THE GROUNDWATER TRANSPORT AROUND A DEEP BOREHOLE NUCLEAR WASTE REPOSITORY

The concept of disposal of high-level nuclear waste in deep boreholes drilled into crystalline bedrock is gaining renewed interest and consideration as a viable mined repository alternative. A large amount of work on conceptual borehole design and preliminary performance assessment has been performed by researchers at MIT, Sandia National Laboratories, SKB (Sweden), and others. Much of this work relied on analytical derivations or, in a few cases, on weakly coupled models of heat, water, and radionuclide transport in the rock. Detailed numerical models are necessary to account for the large heterogeneity of properties (e.g., permeability and salinity vs. depth, diffusion coefficients, etc.) that would be observed at potential borehole disposal sites. A derivation of the FALCON code (Fracturing And Liquid CONvection) was used for the thermal-hydrologic modeling. This code solves the transport equations in porous media in a fully coupled way. The application leverages the flexibility and strengths of the MOOSE framework, developed by Idaho National Laboratory. The current version simulates heat, fluid, and chemical species transport in a fully coupled way allowing the rigorous evaluation of candidate repository site performance. This paper mostly focuses on the modeling of a deep borehole repository under realistic conditions, including modeling of a finite array of boreholes surrounded by undisturbed rock. The decay heat generated by the canisters diffuses into the host rock. Water heating can potentially lead to convection on the scale of thousands of years after the emplacement of the fuel. This convection is tightly coupled to the transport of the dissolved salt, which can suppress convection and reduce the release of the radioactive materials to the aquifer. The purpose of this work has been to evaluate the importance of the borehole array spacing and find the conditions under which convective transport can be ruled out as a radionuclide transport mechanism. Preliminary results show that modeling of the borehole array, including the surrounding rock, predicts convective flow in the system with physical velocities of the order of 10-5 km/yr over 105 years. This results in an escape length on the order of kilometers, which is comparable to the repository depth. However, a correct account of the salinity effects reduces convection velocity and escape length of the radionuclides from the repository.

Modeling↗
DOE OSTI2014

Analysis of double stub tuner control stability in a many element phased array antenna with strong cross-coupling

Active stub tuning with a fast ferrite tuner (FFT) allows for the system to respond dynamically to changes in the plasma impedance such as during the L-H transition or edge localized modes (ELMs), and has greatly increased the effectiveness of fusion ion cyclotron range of frequency systems. A high power waveguide double-stub tuner is under development for use with the Alcator C-Mod lower hybrid current drive (LHCD) system. Exact impedance matching with a double-stub is possible for a single radiating element under most load conditions, with the reflection coefficient reduced from Γ to Γ{sup 2} in the “forbidden region.” The relative phase shift between adjacent columns of a LHCD antenna is critical for control of the launched n{sub ∥} spectrum. Adding a double-stub tuning network will perturb the phase of the forward wave particularly if the unmatched reflection coefficient is high. This effect can be compensated by adjusting the phase of the low power microwave drive for each klystron amplifier. Cross-coupling of the reflected power between columns of the launcher must also be considered. The problem is simulated by cascading a scattering matrix for the plasma provided by a linear coupling model with the measured launcher scattering matrix and that of the FFTs. The solution is advanced in an iterative manner similar to the time-dependent behavior of the real system. System performance is presented under a range of edge density conditions from under-dense to over-dense and a range of launched n{sub ∥}.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2024

Testing of a 40-kWth Counterflow Particle-Supercritical Carbon Dioxide Narrow-Channel, Fluidized Bed Heat Exchanger

Particle-based primary heat exchangers (HXs) must deliver sCO2 fluid temperatures above 700°C to couple particle-based concentrating solar receivers and thermal energy storage (TES) sub-systems with efficient sCO2 power cycles. Particle-sCO2 HX designs have struggled to meet DOE cost targets (≤ $150/kWth) due to the amount of expensive nickel alloys necessary for manufacturing full-scale, particle-sCO2 HXs. Our team has demonstrated that mild bubbling fluidization of falling particles in a counterflow narrow-channel fluidized bed can reduce required HX surface area and thus, costs by increasing particle-wall heat transfer coefficients hT,w > 800 W m-2 K-1. This paper reports on the fabrication and testing of a stainless steel, particle-sCO2 HX with 12 fluidized-bed channels approximately 10.5 mm deep spaced between diffusion-bonded, micro-channel sCO2 plates. The HX with a core length of ≈0.56 m is fed with CARBOBEAD HSP particles through a short, fluidized freeboard zone just above the core. Testing to date in the National Solar Thermal Test Facility (NSTTF) at Sandia National Laboratories has shown that parallel bed fluidization maintains uniform particle inventory across the instrumented channels. Heat transfer thermal duty between the particle and sCO2 flows exceeds 30 kWth with sCO2 inlet temperatures of 200ºC and particle inlet temperatures up to 440ºC and mass flow rates of 0.2 kg s-1 fluidized by counterflowing gas flow rates of 0.005 kg s-1. Tests at higher particle and sCO2 inlet temperatures (600ºC and 400ºC respectively) are targeted to achieve > 40 kWth with model-predicted overall heat transfer coefficients U > 400 W m-2 K-1.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2024

Higher-form symmetry and chiral transport in real-time Abelian lattice gauge theory

We study classical lattice simulations of theories of electrodynamics coupled to charged matter at finite temperature, interpreting them using the higher-form symmetry formulation of magnetohydrodynamics (MHD). We compute transport coefficients using classical Kubo formulas on the lattice and show that the properties of the simulated plasma are in complete agreement with the predictions from effective field theories. In particular, the higher-form formulation allows us to understand from hydrodynamic considerations the relaxation rate of axial charge in the chiral plasma observed in previous simulations. A key point is that the resistivity of the plasma – defined in terms of Kubo formulas for the electric field in the 1-form formulation of MHD – remains a well-defined and predictive quantity at strong electromagnetic coupling. However, the Kubo formulas used to define the conventional conductivity vanish at low frequencies due to electrodynamic fluctuations, and thus the concept of the conductivity of a gauged electric current must be interpreted with care.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Anomalous dimensions from gauge couplings in SMEFT with right-handed neutrinos

Standard Model Neutrino Effective Field Theory (SMNEFT) is an effective theory with Standard Model (SM) gauge-invariant operators constructed only from SM and right-handed neutrino fields. For the full set of dimension-six SMNEFT operators, we present the gauge coupling terms of the one-loop anomalous dimension matrix for renormalization group evolution (RGE) of the Wilson coefficients between a new physics scale and the electroweak scale. We find that the SMNEFT operators can be divided into five subsets which are closed under RGE. Our results apply for both Dirac and Majorana neutrinos. We also discuss the operator mixing pattern numerically and comment on some interesting phenomenological implications.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗