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At least 73 records · Page 4

Diffusion length variation and proton damage coefficients for InP/In(x)Ga(1-x)As/GaAs solar cells

Indium phosphide solar cells are more radiation resistant than gallium arsenide and silicon solar cells, and their growth by heteroepitaxy offers additional advantages leading to the development of lighter, mechanically strong and cost-effective cells. Changes in heteroepitaxial InP cell efficiency under 0.5 and 3 MeV proton irradiations are explained by the variation in the minority-carrier diffusion length. The base diffusion length versus proton fluence is calculated by simulating the cell performance. The diffusion length damage coefficient K(L) is plotted as a function of proton fluence.

Jain, R. K.↗

Backward deletion to minimize prediction errors in models from factorial experiments with zero to six center points

Population model coefficients were chosen to simulate a saturated 2 to the 4th fixed-effects experiment having an unfavorable distribution of relative values. Using random number studies, deletion strategies were compared that were based on the F-distribution, on an order statistics distribution of Cochran's, and on a combination of the two. The strategies were compared under the criterion of minimizing the maximum prediction error, wherever it occurred, among the two-level factorial points. The strategies were evaluated for each of the conditions of 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6 center points. Three classes of strategies were identified as being appropriate, depending on the extent of the experimenter's prior knowledge. In almost every case the best strategy was found to be unique according to the number of center points. Among the three classes of strategies, a security regret class of strategy was demonstrated as being widely useful in that over a range of coefficients of variation from 4 to 65%, the maximum predictive error was never increased by more than 12% over what it would have been if the best strategy had been used for the particular coefficient of variation. The relative efficiency of the experiment, when using the security regret strategy, was examined as a function of the number of center points, and was found to be best when the design used one center point.

Holms, A. G.↗

Evaluation of the pulse-contour method of determining stroke volume in man.

The pulse-contour method for determining stroke volume has been employed as a continuous rapid method of monitoring the cardiovascular status of patients. Twenty-one patients with ischemic heart disease and 21 patients with mitral valve disease were subjected to a variety of hemodynamic interventions. The pulse-contour estimations, using three different formulas derived by Warner, Kouchoukos, and Herd, were compared with indicator-dilution outputs. A comparison of the results of the two methods for determining stroke volume yielded correlation coefficients ranging from 0.59 to 0.84. The better performing Warner formula yielded a coefficient of variation of about 20%. The type of hemodynamic interventions employed did not significantly affect the results using the pulse-contour method. Although the correlation of the pulse-contour and indicator-dilution stroke volumes is high, the coefficient of variation is such that small changes in stroke volume cannot be accurately assessed by the pulse-contour method. However, the simplicity and rapidity of this method compared to determination of cardiac output by Fick or indicator-dilution methods makes it a potentially useful adjunct for monitoring critically ill patients.

Alderman, E. L.↗

Spontaneous fluctuations in cerebral blood flow: insights from extended-duration recordings in humans

To determine the dependence of cerebral blood flow (CBF) on arterial pressure over prolonged time periods, we measured beat-to-beat changes in mean CBF velocity in the middle cerebral artery (transcranial Doppler) and mean arterial pressure (Finapres) continuously for 2 h in six healthy subjects (5 men and 1 woman, 18-40 yr old) during supine rest. Fluctuations in velocity and pressure were quantified by the range [(peak - trough)/mean] and coefficients of variation (SD/mean) in the time domain and by spectral analysis in the frequency domain. Mean velocity and pressure over the 2-h recordings were 60 +/- 7 cm/s and 83 +/- 8 mmHg, associated with ranges of 77 +/- 8 and 89 +/- 10% and coefficients of variation of 9.3 +/- 2.2 and 7.9 +/- 2.3%, respectively. Spectral power of the velocity and pressure was predominantly distributed in the frequency range of 0.00014-0.1 Hz and increased inversely with frequency, indicating characteristics of an inverse power law (1/f(alpha)). However, linear regression on a log-log scale revealed that the slope of spectral power of pressure and velocity was steeper in the high-frequency (0.02-0.5 Hz) than in the low-frequency range (0.002-0.02 Hz), suggesting different regulatory mechanisms in these two frequency ranges. Furthermore, the spectral slope of pressure was significantly steeper than that of velocity in the low-frequency range, consistent with the low transfer function gain and low coherence estimated at these frequencies. We conclude that 1) long-term fluctuations in CBF velocity are prominent and similar to those observed in arterial pressure, 2) spectral power of CBF velocity reveals characteristics of 1/f(alpha), and 3) cerebral attenuation of oscillations in CBF velocity in response to changes in pressure may be more effective at low than that at high frequencies, emphasizing the frequency dependence of cerebral autoregulation.

NASA Discipline Cardiopulmonary↗

Reliability, Risk and Cost Trade-Offs for Composite Designs

Risk and cost trade-offs have been simulated using a probabilistic method. The probabilistic method accounts for all naturally-occurring uncertainties including those in constituent material properties, fabrication variables, structure geometry and loading conditions. The probability density function of first buckling load for a set of uncertain variables is computed. The probabilistic sensitivity factors of uncertain variables to the first buckling load is calculated. The reliability-based cost for a composite fuselage panel is defined and minimized with respect to requisite design parameters. The optimization is achieved by solving a system of nonlinear algebraic equations whose coefficients are functions of probabilistic sensitivity factors. With optimum design parameters such as the mean and coefficient of variation (representing range of scatter) of uncertain variables, the most efficient and economical manufacturing procedure can be selected. In this paper, optimum values of the requisite design parameters for a predetermined cost due to failure occurrence are computationally determined. The results for the fuselage panel analysis show that the higher the cost due to failure occurrence, the smaller the optimum coefficient of variation of fiber modulus (design parameter) in longitudinal direction.

Shiao, Michael C.↗

Pulmonary blood flow redistribution by increased gravitational force

This study was undertaken to assess the influence of gravity on the distribution of pulmonary blood flow (PBF) using increased inertial force as a perturbation. PBF was studied in unanesthetized swine exposed to -Gx (dorsal-to-ventral direction, prone position), where G is the magnitude of the force of gravity at the surface of the Earth, on the Armstrong Laboratory Centrifuge at Brooks Air Force Base. PBF was measured using 15-micron fluorescent microspheres, a method with markedly enhanced spatial resolution. Each animal was exposed randomly to -1, -2, and -3 Gx. Pulmonary vascular pressures, cardiac output, heart rate, arterial blood gases, and PBF distribution were measured at each G level. Heterogeneity of PBF distribution as measured by the coefficient of variation of PBF distribution increased from 0.38 +/- 0.05 to 0.55 +/- 0.11 to 0.72 +/- 0.16 at -1, -2, and -3 Gx, respectively. At -1 Gx, PBF was greatest in the ventral and cranial and lowest in the dorsal and caudal regions of the lung. With increased -Gx, this gradient was augmented in both directions. Extrapolation of these values to 0 G predicts a slight dorsal (nondependent) region dominance of PBF and a coefficient of variation of 0.22 in microgravity. Analysis of variance revealed that a fixed component (vascular structure) accounted for 81% and nonstructure components (including gravity) accounted for the remaining 19% of the PBF variance across the entire experiment (all 3 gravitational levels). The results are inconsistent with the predictions of the zone model.

NASA Discipline Cardiopulmonary↗

Periodic steamwise variations of heat transfer coefficients for incline and staggered arrays of circular jets with crossflow of spent air

Heat transfer characteristics were measured for inline and staggered arrays of circular jets impinging on a surface parallel to the jet orifice plate. The impinging flow was constrained to exit in a single direction along the channel formed by the jet plate and the heat transfer surface. In this configuration the air discharged from upstream transverse rows of jet holes imposes a crossflow of increasing magnitude on the succeeding downstream jet rows. Streamwise heat transfer coefficient profiles were determined for a streamwise resolution of one-third the streamwise hole spacing, utilizing a specially constructed test surface.

Florschuetz, L. W.↗

Variation of the temperature coefficient of collapse field in bismuth-based bubble garnets

An approximation to the collapse-field formula is used to show its dependence on magnetization and wall energy and the effect of additions of Gd, Sm, and Eu on 1-micron Bi:YIG bubble materials. The collapse field, magnetization, and wall energy are fitted to quadratic functions of temperature from -50 to 150 C. It is shown that the addition of the various classes of rare earths reduces the temperature derivative of the collapse field in Bi:YIG. Gd influences the collapse field through the magnetization, Sm affects it through the domain wall energy, and Eu does both. The singular magnetic properties of Eu result in the most nearly constant temperature dependence of the collapse field and the best match to a barium-ferrite bias magnite.

Fratello, V. J.↗

Ozone-temperature relationships in the stratosphere

Utilizing independent estimates of ozone and temperature fields from the SBUV (Nimbus 7) and NOAA operational satellites, respectively, for the period 1978-1981, the coefficient of variation between the two parameters is determined. This coefficient is defined as A = Delta-O3 x (T)/Delta T x (O3) wehre Delta is an incremental change in either temperature or ozone and the bracket is a mean state. In practice, A is determined on a daily basis by regression of ozone mixing ratio versus temperature around a latitude circle during the winter season and the bracket value is the daily zonal average. This has the advantage of keeping the solar zenith angle fixed for a daily value while allowing it to change during the season. This is done at 30, 10, 5, 2, and 1 mb from 20 deg to 60 deg latitude in both hemispheres. The results are summarized and compared with those determined from a one-dimensional photochemical model applied to different latitudes.

Miller, A. J.↗

The temperature variation of hydrogen diffusion coefficients in metal alloys

Hydrogen diffusion coefficients were measured as a function of temperature for a few metal alloys using an electrochemical evolution technique. Results from these measurements are compared to those obtained by the time-lag method. In all cases, diffusion coefficients obtained by the electrochemical method are larger than those by the time-lag method by an order of magnitude or more. These differences are attributed mainly to hydrogen trapping.

Danford, M. D.↗

The Impact of Alternative Trait-Scaling Hypotheses for the Maximum Photosynthetic Carboxylation Rate (V (sub cmax)) on Global Gross Primary Production

The maximum photosynthetic carboxylation rate (V (sub cmax)) is an influential plant trait that has multiple scaling hypotheses, which is a source of uncertainty in predictive understanding of global gross primary production (GPP). Four trait-scaling hypotheses (plant functional type, nutrient limitation, environmental filtering, and plant plasticity) with nine specific implementations were used to predict global V(sub cmax) distributions and their impact on global GPP in the Sheffield Dynamic Global Vegetation Model (SDGVM). Global GPP varied from 108.1 to 128.2 petagrams of Carbon (PgC) per year, 65 percent of the range of a recent model intercomparison of global GPP. The variation in GPP propagated through to a 27percent coefficient of variation in net biome productivity (NBP). All hypotheses produced global GPP that was highly correlated (r equals 0.85-0.91) with three proxies of global GPP. Plant functional type-based nutrient limitation, underpinned by a core SDGVM hypothesis that plant nitrogen (N) status is inversely related to increasing costs of N acquisition with increasing soil carbon, adequately reproduced global GPP distributions. Further improvement could be achieved with accurate representation of water sensitivity and agriculture in SDGVM. Mismatch between environmental filtering (the most data-driven hypothesis) and GPP suggested that greater effort is needed understand V(sub cmax) variation in the field, particularly in northern latitudes.

chlorophyll fluorescence↗

Comment on 'Guidance for an Aerocapture Maneuver

It is stated that the aerodynamic forces on the vehicle being aerocaptured are controlled by "altering the angle of attack" and thereby controlling the lift coefficient. Furthermore, the resulting variation of drag coefficient with angle of attack was ignored. The purpose of this Comment is to point out that an aerodynamic control method that is much more effective than the pitch modulation has been studied and utilized during entries for many years. During aerocapture, it is desirable to have a large range of lift coefficients available, while keeping the vehicle's ballistic coefficients constant. This is accomplished by modulating the vehicle's bank angle, i.e., by rolling the vehicle about its velocity vector. By this method, the angle of attack can be held constant (at the trim angle, if desired), and the C(sub D) and the ballistic coefficient remain constant. Furthermore, the vertical component of the normal force vector (essentially the lift) can be varied over its entire range, from maximum positive to maximum negative values. Reaction controls, rather than aerodynamic ones, are usually utilized to change the bank angle of the vehicle, thus requiring the use of fuel. However, the fuel expenditure that is required to change the bank angle is far less than the amount that would have to be used to continuously hold the vehicle at pitch angles that differ significantly from its trim angle of attack. Also, it has been shown that bank angle modulation to vary the lift can enlarge the entry corridor by increasing the entry angle for the undershoot boundary, where both the heating rate and deceleration reach a maximum. Finally, the crew's deceleration tolerance can be increased somewhat when the bank angle is varied, as opposed to the pitch angle. For bank modulation, the deceleration force vector can be kept at a constant angle with respect to the occupants whose tolerance to g loads is highest when the force is applied in a direction normal to the upper torso. The advantages of bank angle variation to modulate the lift vector were recognized long ago, and this method of control was used successfully on the Apollo command module during lunar return' and, more recently, for the Space Shuttle Orbiter.

Tauber, Michael E.↗

Effect of Reynolds Number on the Force and Pressure Distribution Characteristics of a Two-Dimensional Lifting Circular Cylinder

A two-dimensional lifting circular cylinder has been tested over a Mach number range from 0.011 to 0.32 and a Reynolds number range from 135,000 to 1,580,000 to determine the force and pressure distribution characteristics. Two flaps having chords of 0.37 and 6 percent of the cylinder diameter, respectively, and attached normal to the surface were used to generate lift. A third configuration which had 6-percent flaps 1800 apart was also investigated. All flaps were tested through a range of angular positions. The investigation also included tests of a plain cylinder without flaps. The lift coefficient showed a wide variation with Reynolds number for the 6-percent flap mounted on the bottom surface at the 50-percent-diameter station, varying from a low of about 0.2 at a Reynolds number of 165,000 to a high of 1.54 at a Reynolds number of 350,000 and then decreasing almost linearly to a value of 1.0 at a Reynolds number of 1,580,000. The pressure distribution showed that the loss of lift with Reynolds number above the critical was the result of the separation point moving forward on the upper surface. Pressure distributions on a plain cylinder also showed similar trends with respect to the separation point. The variation of drag coefficient with Reynolds number was in direct contrast to the lift coefficient with the minimum drag coefficient of 0.6 occurring at a Reynolds number of 360,000. At this point the lift-drag ratios were a maximum at a value of 2.54. Tests of a flap with a chord of 0.0037 diameter gave a lift coefficient of 0.85 at a Reynolds number of 520,000 with the same lift-drag ratio as the larger flap but the position of the flap for maximum lift was considerably farther forward than on the larger flap. Tests of two 6-percent flaps spaced 180 deg apart showed a change in the sign of the lift developed for angular positions of the flap greater than 132 deg at subcriti- cal Reynolds numbers. These results may find use in application to air- craft using forebody strakes. The drag coefficient developed by the flaps when normal to the relative airstream was approximately equal to that developed by a flat plate in a similar attitude.

Lockwood, Vernard E.↗

Monte Carlo simulation of the effect of soil moisture variation on the microwave emission from soils

In this paper, results of a Monte Carlo simulation of the effect of noise on the relationship between the microwave emissivity of soil and its moisture content are presented. It is found that whenever the magnitude of the noise for the independent variable, in this case the soil moisture, is increased, both the slope of the regression and the correlation coefficient decrease. In particular, when the noise has magnitude equivalent to a coefficient of variation of 0.25, the slope and correlation coefficient are in good agreement with those obtained from the data of a 21-cm airborne microwave radiometer which was flown over a test site in hand county, South Dakota. The comparison was made using a linear relationship to determine the estimated emissivity from the ground measurements of soil moisture. The linear relationship was derived from a radiative transfer model calculation of the microwave emissivities using realistic soil-moisture profiles. The effect of surface roughness was included in the relationship, and the variability of the surface roughness was also simulated by a Monte Carlo technique.

Mo, T.↗

The problem of the structure of the surface of the lunar maria

The results are described of geological and morphological interpretation of large-scale photographs of the surface of lunar maria. A morphological classification is proposed for small craters. It is shown that the classification of a crater in a given morphological category, reflecting the degree of its morphological maturity, is determined by the age of the given crater. A check on the nature of distribution of small craters, as done on the basis of the nearest neighbor method, show that the distribution is governed by a near-random law. It is found that variations of the probability density function for the craters conform to a normal distribution law. An empirical relation is found for the coefficient of variation as a function of crater diameter and the dimensions of the area on which the counts are made. The rockfalls near craters of various morphological classes are described.

Florenskiy, K. P.↗