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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 577 records · Page 32
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2019

Comprehensive study of the magnetic phase transitions in Tb 3 Co combining thermal, magnetic and neutron diffraction measurements

A comprehensive study of the magnetic phase transitions in Tb 3 Co has been undertaken combining different techniques. Using single crystal neutron diffraction in the paramagnetic state a weak crystal structure distortion from the room temperature orthorhombic structure of the Fe 3 C type described with the Pnma space group toward structure with lower symmetry has been observed with cooling below 100 K. At 81 K there is a second order phase transition to an antiferromagnetic incommensurate phase with the propagation vector k = (0.155, 0, 0). As derived from thermal diffusivity measurements, the critical exponents for this transition are very close to the 3D-Heisenberg universality class, proving that the magnetic interactions are short-range but with a deviation from perfect isotropy due to crystal field effects. At T 2 ≈ 70 K there is another magnetic phase transition to a ferromagnetic state whose character is shown to be weakly first order. The low temperature magnetic state has a non-coplanar ferromagnetic structure with strong ferromagnetic components of Tb magnetic moments along the crystallographic c-axis. The application of an external magnetic field B = 2 T along the crystallographic c-axis suppresses the incommensurate antiferromagnetic phase and gives rise to the ferromagnetic phase. The magnetic entropy peak change as well as the refrigerant capacity indicate that Tb 3 Co is a competitive magnetocaloric material in this temperature range.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2015

An in-situ neutron diffraction study of a multi-phase transformation and twinning-induced plasticity steel during cyclic loading

In-situ neutron diffraction during cyclic tension-compression loading (∼+3.5% to −2.8%) of a 17Mn-3Al-2Si-1Ni-0.06C steel that exhibits concurrent transformation and twinning -induced plasticity effects indicated a significant contribution of intragranular back stresses to the observed Bauschinger effect. Rietveld analysis revealed a higher rate of martensitic transformation during tension compared to compression. Throughout cycling, α′-martensite exhibited the highest phase strains such that it bears an increasing portion of the macroscopic load as its weight fraction evolves. On the other hand, the ε-martensite strain remained compressive as it accommodated most of the internal strains caused by the shape misfit associated with the γ→ε and/or ε→α′ transformations.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2020

Asymptotic growth of the 4d $ \mathcal{N} $ = 4 index and partially deconfined phases

We study the Cardy-like asymptotics of the 4d N = 4 index and demonstrate the existence of partially deconfined phases where the asymptotic growth of the index is not as rapid as in the fully deconfined case. We then take the large-N limit after the Cardy-like limit and make a conjecture for the leading asymptotics of the index. While the Cardy-like behavior is derived using the integral representation of the index, we demonstrate how the same results can be obtained using the Bethe ansatz type approach as well. In doing so, we discover new non-standard solutions to the elliptic Bethe ansatz equations including continuous families of solutions for SU(N) theory with N ≥ 3. Here, we argue that the existence of both standard and continuous non-standard solutions has a natural interpretation in terms of vacua of N = 1* theory on R 3 × S 1 .

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Experimental study of high-k turbulence during an energy confinement degradation phase in EAST ohmic plasmas

In this paper, we present experimental studies of both high-k(r) ( cm(-1), and , respectively; ) and high- ( cm(-1), and , respectively; ) turbulence behavior during an ohmic energy confinement degradation phase in experimental advanced superconducting tokamak (EAST). High-k(r) turbulence from density fluctuation at and high- turbulence from density fluctuation at -0.97 were measured by tangential and poloidal CO2 laser collective scattering diagnostics, respectively. Note that k(r), , and are radial wavenumber, poloidal wavenumber, perpendicular wavenumber and ion gyroradius at electron temperature, respectively. Both high-k(r)/ turbulence power and energy confinement time are found to be temporally correlated to line-averaged electron density n(e) in the plasma current flat-top phase (I-p = 0.4 MA): when the n(e) shows continuous increase/decrease, the high-k(r)/ turbulence power increases/decreases correspondingly and the shows corresponding decrease/increase; the stable n(e) is related to stable both and high-k(r)/ turbulence power. Statistical results of high-k(r)/ turbulence power versus further imply that high-k(r)/ turbulence shows a strong correlation with plasma energy confinement degradation in high line-averaged n(e) condition, but high-k(r) and high- turbulence have relatively weak and no dependence on the transition between linear range in low-n(e) condition and energy confinement degradation in the high-n(e) condition, respectively. Moreover, profiles of electron temperature T-e and n(e) as well as their normalized gradients in a part of high- density fluctuation measurement region also have been given to qualitatively explain the enhancement of turbulence power with the increase of line-averaged n(e).

EAST tokamak↗
DOE OSTI2015

A pseudo-3D approach based on electron backscatter diffraction and backscatter electron imaging to study the character of phase boundaries between Mg and long period stacking ordered phase in a Mg–2Y–Zn alloy

In Mg–2 at.% Y–1 at.% Zn alloys, the LPSO (Long Period Stacking Ordered) phase is important to improve mechanical properties of the material. The aim of this paper is to present a study on the phase boundary character in these two-phase alloys. Using EBSD pattern analysis it was found that the 24R structure is the dominant LPSO phase structure in the current alloy. The phase boundary character between the Mg matrix and the LPSO phase was investigated using an improved pseudo-3D EBSD (electron backscatter diffraction) technique in combination with BSE or SE (backscatter or secondary electron) imaging. A large amount of very low-angle phase boundaries was detected. The (0 0 0 2) plane in the Mg matrix which is parallel to the (0 0 0 24) plane in the LPSO phase was found to be the most frequent plane for these phase boundaries. This plane is supposed to be the habit plane of the eutectic co-solidification of the Mg matrix and the LPSO phase. - Highlights: • It is shown that for the investigated alloy the LPSO phase has mainly 24R crystal structure. • A new method is presented which allows accurate determination of the 5-parameter grain or phase boundary character. • It is found that the low-angle phase boundaries appearing in the alloy all have basal phase boundary planes.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2020

Relationships between Immersion Freezing and Crystal Habit for Arctic Mixed-Phase Clouds—A Numerical Study

Abstract The number concentration of ice particles in Arctic mixed-phase clouds is a major controlling factor of cloud lifetime. The relationships between ice nucleation mode and ice crystal habit development are not yet constrained by observations. This study uses a habit-predicting microphysical scheme within a 3D large-eddy simulation model to evaluate the relationship between immersion freezing and ice habit in a simulated Arctic mixed-phase cloud case. Three immersion freezing parameterizations are considered: a volume-dependent freezing scheme (VF), a parameterization limited to activated droplets (C-AC), and a parameterization limited to coarse aerosol particles (C-CM). Both C-AC and C-CM are based on classical nucleation theory. The freezing rate with VF is found to be greater in downdraft regions than in updraft regions due to the downdraft having a higher number concentration of large droplets. The C-AC cases show active freezing of small droplets near cloud top, whereas in the C-CM cases, mainly the 8–32- μ m-sized droplets freeze in updraft regions near the cloud base. Because the initial crystal size is assumed to affect the axis ratio of hexagonal plates, the VF cases produce crystals with larger axis ratios, resulting in smaller mode radii than the C-AC cases. In all cases, irregular polycrystals dominate near cloud top and a band-like structure develops within the cloud, which qualitatively agrees with previous observations. In the VF and C-CM cases, unactivated large droplets arising from coarse-mode aerosol particles contributed significantly to the freezing rate, producing an important influence on crystal habit.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2016

Experimental study on the effect of nozzle hole-to-hole angle on the near-field spray of diesel injector using fast X-ray phase-contrast imaging

Fuel atomization and vaporization process play a critical role in determining the engine combustion and emission. The primary near-nozzle breakup is the vital link between the fuel emerging from the nozzle and the fully atomized spray. In this study, the near-nozzle spray characteristics of diesel injector with different umbrella angle (UA) were investigated using high-speed X-ray phase-contrast imaging and quantitative image processing. A classic ‘dumbbell’ profile of spray width (SW) composed of three stages: opening stage, semisteady stage and closing stage. The SW peak of two-hole injectors was more than twice of that of single-hole injector at the opening and closing stages, corresponding to the hollow-cone spray. This indicated the vortex flow was formed with the increase of the UA. The higher injection pressure had little influence on the SW while led to earlier breakup closer to the nozzle. Significant fuel effect on the SW at higher needle lift was found. However, this effect could be neglect at lower needle lift due to the leading role of internal flow and cavitation on the near-field spray characteristics. In addition, the morphology-based breakup process was observed, which highlighted the important effect of internal flow on the spray development. The possibility of using hollow-cone spray in diesel injector was also discussed.

biodiesel↗
DOE OSTI2016

Dehydration of 1-octadecanol over H-BEA: A combined experimental and computational study

Liquid phase dehydration of 1-octdecanol, which is intermediately formed during the hydrodeoxygenation of microalgae oil, has been explored in a combined experimental and computational study. The alkyl chain of C18 alcohol interacts with acid sites during diffusion inside the zeolite pores, resulting in an inefficient utilization of the Brønsted acid sites for samples with high acid site concentrations. The parallel intra- and inter- molecular dehydration pathways having different activation energies pass through alternative reaction intermediates. Formation of surface-bound alkoxide species is the rate-limiting step during intramolecular dehydration, whereas intermolecular dehydration proceeds via a bulky dimer intermediate. Octadecene is the primary dehydration product over H-BEA at 533 K. Despite of the main contribution of Brønsted acid sites towards both dehydration pathways, Lewis acid sites are also active in the formation of dioctadecyl ether. The intramolecular dehydration to octadecene and cleavage of the intermediately formed ether, however, require strong BAS. L. Wang, D. Mei and J. A. Lercher, acknowledge the partial support from the US Department of Energy, Office of Science, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, Division of Chemical Sciences, Geosciences & Biosciences. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) is a multiprogram national laboratory operated for DOE by Battelle. Computing time was granted by the grand challenge of computational catalysis of the William R. Wiley Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory (EMSL) and by the National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC). EMSL is a national scientific user facility located at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) and sponsored by DOE’s Office of Biological and Environmental Research.

1-octadecanol↗
DOE OSTI2016

Pressure-induced phase transition of calcite and aragonite: A first principles study

The thermodynamic phase stabilities of calcite and aragonite have been investigated from lattice vibrational analyses based on first-principles calculations. Different pressure dependences in phonon feature were found between the two polymorphs, suggesting different physical origins of the pressure-induced phase transitions. In the most stable phase in calcite (calcite I), an imaginary phonon mode consisting of rotation of CO{sub 3} ions with slight displacement of Ca ions appears at the F point in the Brillouin zone above 0.8 GPa. Such a soft mode means that external pressure induces the lattice-dynamical instability of calcite I leading to the phase transition to calcite II. On the other hand, the origin of the phase transition in aragonite is not due to such a lattice-dynamical instability. The estimated thermodynamical properties indicate that a first-order phase transition occurs between aragonite and post-aragonite at 34.7 GPa, coinciding with the reported experimental value at room temperature (35 GPa).

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2024

Dissociative electron attachment studies of gas-phase acetic acid using a velocity map imaging technique

Abstract Advancing instrumentation to explore dissociative electron attachment (DEA) studies allows previously unattainable information to be acquired. Using a newly constructed velocity map imaging spectrometer, we revisited a study on DEA to gas-phase acetic acid. We discuss possible fragmentation channels and compared the corresponding ion yields with previous high electron-energy resolution results. We focus on the channels occurring at higher energies, particularly near 10 eV, and calculate their thermodynamic thresholds. Moreover, we expand previous studies and perform time-sliced imaging near the 10 eV resonance to obtain the kinetic energy distribution of the fragment ions.

Optics↗
DOE OSTI2020

Phase Transitions in Metal–Organic Frameworks Directly Monitored through In Situ Variable Temperature Liquid-Cell Transmission Electron Microscopy and In Situ X-ray Diffraction

Zr 6 -based metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) with tetratopic organic linkers have been extensively investigated owing to their versatile structural tunability. While diverse topologies and polymorphism in the resulting MOFs are often encountered with tetratopic linkers and Zr 6 nodes, reports on phase transitions within these systems are rare. Thus, we have a limited understanding of polymorph transformations, hindering the rational development of pure phase materials. In this study, a phase transition from a microporous MOF, scu-NU-906, to a mesoporous MOF, csq-NU-1008, was discovered and monitored through in situ variable temperature liquid-cell transmission electron microscopy (VT-LCTEM), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), and in situ variable temperature powder X-ray diffraction (VT-PXRD). Furthermore, it was found that the microporous- to-mesoporous transformation in the presence of formic acid occurs via a concomitant dissolution–reprecipitation process.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2024

Shape equilibria of vesicles with rigid planar inclusions

Motivated by recent studies of two-phase lipid vesicles possessing 2D solid domains integrated within a fluid bilayer phase, we study the shape equilibria of closed vesicles possessing a single planar, circular inclusion.

Chemistry↗
DOE OSTI2012

Atomic-resolution study of polarity reversal in GaSb grown on Si by scanning transmission electron microscopy

The atomic-resolved reversal of the polarity across an antiphase boundary (APB) was observed in GaSb films grown on Si by high-angle annular dark-field scanning transmission electron microscopy (HAADF-STEM). The investigation of the interface structure at the origin of the APB reveals that coalescence of two domains with Ga-prelayer and Sb-prelayer causes the sublattice reversal. The local strain and lattice rotation distributions of the APB, attributed to the discordant bonding length at the APB with the surrounding GaSb lattice, were further studied using the geometric phase analysis technique. The crystallographic characteristics of the APBs and their interaction with other planar defects were observed with HAADF-STEM. The quantitative agreement between experimental and simulated images confirms the observed polarities in the acquired HAADF-STEM data. The self-annihilation mechanism of the APBs is addressed based on the rotation induced by anti-site bonds and APBs' faceting.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2014

First-principle calculation of core level binding energies of Li{sub x}PO{sub y}N{sub z} solid electrolyte

We present first-principle calculations of core-level binding energies for the study of insulating, bulk phase, compounds, based on the Slater-Janak transition state model. Those calculations were performed in order to find a reliable model of the amorphous Li{sub x}PO{sub y}N{sub z} solid electrolyte which is able to reproduce its electronic properties gathered from X-ray photoemission spectroscopy (XPS) experiments. As a starting point, Li{sub 2}PO{sub 2}N models were investigated. These models, proposed by Du et al. on the basis of thermodynamics and vibrational properties, were the first structural models of Li{sub x}PO{sub y}N{sub z}. Thanks to chemical and structural modifications applied to Li{sub 2}PO{sub 2}N structures, which allow to demonstrate the relevance of our computational approach, we raise an issue concerning the possibility of encountering a non-bridging kind of nitrogen atoms (=N{sup −}) in Li{sub x}PO{sub y}N{sub z} compounds.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2016

Study of Ising antiferromagnet with Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction

We have studied the ground state phase diagram of the Ising model with DM interaction in 1D rings using linear spin wave theory. We have also computed the properties using exact diagonalization of finite rings of sizes up to 32. It is shown that the ground state has two phases, a gapped Neel order phase in the D < J limit and a gapless chiral phase in the D > J limit. The results are in good agreement between spin wave theory and exact diagonalization..

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2012

Investigating the performance of catalyst layer micro-structures with different platinum loadings

In this study a four-phase micro-structure of a PEFC catalyst layer was reconstructed by randomly placing overlapping spheres for each solid catalyst phase. The micro-structure was mirrored to make a micro-structure. A body-fit computational mesh was produced for the reconstructed micro-structure in OpenFOAM. Associated conservation equations were solved within all the phases with electrochemical reaction as the boundary condition at the interface between ionomer and platinum phases. The study is focused on the platinum loading of CL. The polarization curves of the micro-structure performance have been compared for different platinum loadings. This paper gives increased insight into the relatively greater losses at decreased platinum loadings.

08 HYDROGEN↗
DOE OSTI2018

West Valley Demonstration Project (WVDP) Annual Site Environmental Report (ASER) for Calendar Year 2017

West Valley Demonstration Project (WVDP) Annual Site Environmental Report (ASER) for Calendar Year 2017. The report, prepared for the U.S. Department of Energy West Valley Demonstration Project office (DOE-WVDP), summarizes the environmental protection program at the WVDP for calendar year (CY) 2017. Monitoring and surveillance of the facilities used by the DOE are conducted to verify protection of public health and safety and the environment. The report is a key component of DOE’s effort to keep the public informed of environmental conditions at the WVDP. The quality assurance protocols applied to the environmental monitoring program ensure the validity and accuracy of the monitoring data. In addition to demonstrating compliance with environmental laws, regulations, and directives, evaluation of data collected in 2017 continued to indicate that WVDP activities pose no threat to public health or safety, or to the environment.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗