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Results for “Energy - Synthetic fuels”

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 73 records · Page 4
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1999

Synthesis of Fullerenes in Low Pressure Benzene/Oxygen Diffusion Flames

The interest in fullerenes is strongly increasing since their discovery by Kroto et al. in 1985 as products of the evaporation of carbon into inert gas at low pressure. Due to their all carbon closed-shell structure, fullerenes have many exceptional physical and chemical properties and a large potential for applications such as superconductors, sensors, catalysts, optical and electronic devices, polymers, high energy fuels, and biological and medical materials. This list is still growing, because the research on fullerenes is still at an early stage. Fullerenes can be formed not only in a system containing only carbon and an inert gas, but also in premixed hydrocarbon flames under reduced pressure and fuel rich conditions. The highest yields of fullerenes in flames are obtained under conditions of substantial soot formation. There is a need for more information on the yields of fullerenes under different conditions in order to understand the mechanisms of their formation and to enable the design of practical combustion systems for large-scale fullerene production. Little work has been reported on the formation of fullerenes in diffusion flames. In order to explore the yields of fullerenes and the effect of low pressure in diffusion flames, therefore we constructed and used a low pressure diffusion flame burner in this study.

Hebgen, Peter↗
NASA NTRS2005

An Overview of Wind-Driven Rovers for Planetary Exploration

The use of in-situ propulsion is considered enabling technology for long duration planetary surface missions. Most studies have focused on stored energy from chemicals extracted from the soil or the use of soil chemicals to produce photovoltaic arrays. An older form of in-situ propulsion is the use of wind power. Recent studies have shown potential for wind driven craft for exploration of Mars, Titan and Venus. The power of the wind, used for centuries to power wind mills and sailing ships, is now being applied to modern land craft. Efforts are now underway to use the wind to push exploration vehicles on other planets and moons in extended survey missions. Tumbleweed rovers are emerging as a new type of wind-driven science platform concept. Recent investigations by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) indicate that these light-weight, mostly spherical or quasi-spherical devices have potential for long distance surface exploration missions. As a power boat has unique capabilities, but relies on stored energy (fuel) to move the vessel, the Tumbleweed, like the sailing ships of the early explorers on earth, uses an unlimited resource the wind to move around the surface of Mars. This has the potential to reduce the major mass drivers of robotic rovers as well as the power generation and storage systems. Jacques Blamont of JPL and the University of Paris conceived the first documented Mars wind-blown ball in 1977, shortly after the Viking landers discovered that Mars has a thin CO2 atmosphere with relatively strong winds. In 1995, Jack Jones, et al, of JPL conceived of a large wind-blown inflated ball for Mars that could also be driven and steered by means of a motorized mass hanging beneath the rolling axis of the ball. A team at NASA Langley Research Center started a biomimetic Tumbleweed design study in 1998. Wind tunnel and CFD analysis were applied to a variety of concepts to optimize the aerodynamic characteristics of the Tumbleweed Rovers. Bare structures, structures carrying sails and a tumbleweed plant (of the Salsola genus) were tested in Langley's wind tunnels. Thomas Estier of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology developed a memory metal collapsible structure, the Windball. Numerous other researchers have also suggested spherical rovers.

Hajos, Gregory A.↗
NASA NTRS1955

Chemical and Physical Properties of Hi-Cal-2

As part of the Navy Project Zip to consider various boron-containing materials as possible high-energy fuels, the chemical and physical properties of Hi-Cal-2 prepared by the Callery Chemical Company were evaluated at the NACA Lewis laboratory. Elemental chemical analysis, heat of combustion, vapor pressure and decomposition, freezing point, density, self ignition temperature, flash point, and blow-out velocity were determined for the fuel. Although the precision of measurement of these properties was not equal to that obtained for hydrocarbons, this special release research memorandum was prepared to make the data available as soon as possible.

Spakowski, A. E.↗
NASA NTRS2014

Propulsion System Models for Rotorcraft Conceptual Design

The conceptual design code NDARC (NASA Design and Analysis of Rotorcraft) was initially implemented to model conventional rotorcraft propulsion systems, consisting of turboshaft engines burning jet fuel, connected to one or more rotors through a mechanical transmission. The NDARC propulsion system representation has been extended to cover additional propulsion concepts, including electric motors and generators, rotor reaction drive, turbojet and turbofan engines, fuel cells and solar cells, batteries, and fuel (energy) used without weight change. The paper describes these propulsion system components, the architecture of their implementation in NDARC, and the form of the models for performance and weight. Requirements are defined for improved performance and weight models of the new propulsion system components. With these new propulsion models, NDARC can be used to develop environmentally-friendly rotorcraft designs.

Propulsion System Models↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Overview of NASA’s Break the Ice Lunar Challenge Phase 1

As NASA works to extend human exploration of the solar system, a sustained presence on the Moon will be critical for developing and testing the technologies and systems needed for future missions to Mars and beyond. In situ resource utilization (ISRU)—the use of lunar materials for life support, fuel, energy, manufacturing, and construction—is necessary to limit the delivery of supplies from Earth. One of the most important of these resources is water. Water supports all life on Earth and will be critical to supporting human exploration beyond Earth. On the Moon, water is trapped in icy regolith at the lunar poles, including inside permanently dark and cold craters. Novel approaches are needed to excavate the icy regolith and transport it for processing in support of permanent human missions on the Moon. To accelerate the development of such approaches and to seek diverse ideas, NASA’s Centennial Challenges launched the Break the Ice Lunar Challenge in November 2020. Phase 1 of the challenge was focused on stimulating innovative approaches for excavating icy regolith and delivering water in extreme lunar environmental conditions. The challenge sought to incentivize solutions for maximizing water delivery while minimizing energy use and the mass of equipment required to be transported to the lunar surface. Submissions for phase 1 of the challenge were due in June 2021 and winners were announced in August 2021. This paper provides details about the execution of the challenge, solutions received, criteria used to select winning solutions, and status of the phase 2 of the challenge.

Naveen Vetcha↗
NASA NTRS2007

Global Energy Issues and Alternate Fueling

This viewgraph presentation describes world energy issues and alternate fueling effects on aircraft design. The contents include: 1) US Uses about 100 Quad/year (1 Q = 10(exp 15) Btu) World Energy Use: about 433 Q/yr; 2) US Renewable Energy about 6%; 3) Nuclear Could Grow: Has Legacy Problems; 4) Energy Sources Primarily NonRenewable Hydrocarbon; 5) Notes; 6) Alternate Fuels Effect Aircraft Design; 7) Conventional-Biomass Issue - Food or Fuel; 8) Alternate fuels must be environmentally benign; 9) World Carbon (CO2) Emissions Problem; 10) Jim Hansen s Global Warming Warnings; 11) Gas Hydrates (Clathrates), Solar & Biomass Locations; 12) Global Energy Sector Response; 13) Alternative Renewables; 14) Stratospheric Sulfur Injection Global Cooling Switch; 15) Potential Global Energy Sector Response; and 16) New Sealing and Fluid Flow Challenges.

Hendricks, Robert C.↗
NASA NTRS1983

Economic competitiveness of fuel cell onsite integrated energy systems

The economic competitiveness of fuel cell onsite integrated energy systems (OS/IES) in residential and commercial buildings is examined. The analysis is carried out for three different buildings with each building assumed to be at three geographic locations spanning a range of climatic conditions. Numerous design options and operating strategies are evaluated and two economic criteria are used to measure economic performance. In general the results show that fuel cell OS/IES's are competitive in most regions of the country if the OS/IES is properly designed. The preferred design is grid connected, makes effective use of the fuel cell's thermal output, and has a fuel cell powerplant sized for the building's base electrical load.

Bollenbacher, G.↗
NASA NTRS2005

Strained Hydrocarbons as Potential Hypergolic Fuels

A storable combination of high-energy hypergolic fuel and oxidizer is advantageous to the future of reusable launch vehicles (RLVs). The combination will allow an increase in energy per unit volume of fuel and eliminate the need for an external ignition system. Strained systems have been studied as potential high-density fuels. Adding hypergolic functional groups, such as amino groups, to these hydrocarbons will potentially allow auto ignition of strained systems with hydrogen peroxide. Several straight chain amines and their strained counterparts containing an equivalent number of carbon atoms have been purchased and synthesized. These amines provide initial studies to determine the effects of fuel vapor pressure, strain energy, fuel miscibility, and amine substitution upon fuel ignition time and hypergolicity with hydrogen peroxide as an oxidizer.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS2009

A CFD Approach to Modeling Spacecraft Fuel Slosh

Energy dissipation and resonant coupling from sloshing fuel in spacecraft fuel tanks is a problem that occurs in the design of many spacecraft. In the case of a spin stabilized spacecraft, this energy dissipation can cause a growth in the spacecrafts' nutation (wobble) that may lead to disastrous consequences for the mission. Even in non-spinning spacecraft, coupling between the spacecraft or upper stage flight control system and an unanticipated slosh resonance can result in catastrophe. By using a Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) solver such as Fluent, a model for this fuel slosh can be created. The accuracy of the model must be tested by comparing its results to an experimental test case. Such a model will allow for the variation of many different parameters such as fluid viscosity and gravitational field, yielding a deeper understanding of spacecraft slosh dynamics. In order to gain a better understanding of the dynamics behind sloshing fluids, the Launch Services Program (LSP) at the NASA Kennedy Space Center (KSC) is interested in finding ways to better model this behavior. Thanks to past research, a state-of-the-art fuel slosh research facility was designed and fabricated at Embry Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU). This test facility has produced interesting results and a fairly reliable parameter estimation process to predict the necessary values that accurately characterize a mechanical pendulum analog model. The current study at ERAU uses a different approach to model the free surface sloshing of liquid in a spherical tank using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) methods. Using a software package called Fluent, a model was created to simulate the sloshing motion of the propellant. This finite volume program uses a technique called the Volume of Fluid (VOF) method to model the interaction between two fluids [4]. For the case of free surface slosh, the two fluids are the propellant and air. As the fuel sloshes around in the tank, it naturally displaces the air. Using the conservation of mass, momentum, and energy equations, as well as the VOF equations, one can predict the behavior of the sloshing fluid and calculate the forces, pressure gradients, and velocity field for the entire liquid as a function of time.

Marsell, Brandon↗
NASA NTRS1987

High temperature solid oxide regenerative fuel cell for solar photovoltaic energy storage

A hydrogen-oxygen regenerative fuel cell energy storage system based on high temperature solid oxide fuel cell technology is discussed which has application to darkside energy storage for solar photovoltaics. The forward and reverse operating cycles are described, and heat flow, mass, and energy balance data are presented to characterize the system's performance and the variation of performance with changing reactant storage pressure. The present system weighs less than nickel hydrogen battery systems after 0.7 darkside operation, and it maintains a specific weight advantage over radioisotope generators for discharge periods up to 72 hours.

Bents, David J.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Alkaline regenerative fuel cell systems for energy storage

A description is presented of the results of a preliminary design study of a regenerative fuel cell energy storage system for application to future low-earth orbit space missions. The high energy density storage system is based on state-of-the-art alkaline electrolyte cell technology and incorporates dedicated fuel cell and electrolysis cell modules. In addition to providing energy storage, the system can provide hydrogen and oxygen for attitude control of the satellite and for life support. During the daylight portion of the orbit the electrolysis module uses power provided by the solar array to generate H2 and O2 from the product water produced by the fuel cell module. The fuel cell module supplies electrical power during the dark period of the orbit.

Schubert, F. H.↗
NASA NTRS1976

Performance characteristics of a diesel engine using low- and medium-energy gases as a fuel supplement (fumigation)

The use of low- and medium-energy gases derived from solid waste is investigated. Gases that simulate those gases that could be derived from refuse were injected into the air inlet of a 298-kilowatt (400 horsepower) diesel engine as a fuel supplement. This process is called fumigation. Three different gases with thermal-energy contents of 6.11 MJ/cu m (164 Btu/cu ft), 18.1 MJ/cu m (485 Btu/cu ft), and 18.8 MJ/cu m (505 Btu/cu ft, respectively, were used at rates ranging as high as 20 percent of the normal fuel oil energy at four different engine load points. The test results indicated approximately 100 percent gas energy utilization with no observable deleterious effect on the engine.

Monford, L. G.↗
NASA NTRS1974

Comparative evaluation of solar, fission, fusion, and fossil energy resources. Part 4: Energy from fossil fuels

The conversion of fossil-fired power plants now burning oil or gas to burn coal is discussed along with the relaxation of air quality standards and the development of coal gasification processes to insure a continued supply of gas from coal. The location of oil fields, refining areas, natural gas fields, and pipelines in the U.S. is shown. The technologies of modern fossil-fired boilers and gas turbines are defined along with the new technologies of fluid-bed boilers and MHD generators.

Williams, J. R.↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Fuel Cell Technologies for Energy Storage

This presentation provides an overview of primary fuel cells, regenerative fuel cells, and water electrolyzers as well as how the local environment influences the designs and operations of these systems.

Fuel Cell↗