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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 73 records · Page 4

Divergence preserving reconstruction of the nodal components of a vector field from its normal components to edges

We have developed a new divergence preserving method for the reconstruction of the Cartesian components of a vector field from the orthogonal projection of a vector field to the normals to edges in two dimensional. In this method, discrete divergences computed from the nodal components and from the normal ones are exactly the same. Our new method consists of two stages. At the first stage, we use an extended version of the local procedure described in [J. Comput. Phys., 139:406–409, 1998] to obtain a ‘reference’ nodal vector. This local procedure is exact for linear vector fields; however, the discrete divergence is not preserved. Then, we formulate a constrained optimization problem, in which this reference vector plays the role of a target, and the divergence constraints are enforced by using Lagrange multipliers. It leads to the solution of ‘elliptic’ like discrete equations for the cell-centered Lagrange multipliers. The new global divergence preserving method is exact for linear vector fields. Here in this paper, we describe all details of our new method and present numerical results, which confirm our theory.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Quantum Calculations on Plant Cell Wall Component Interactions

In this paper, density functional theory calculations were performed to assess the relative interaction energies of plant cell wall components: cellulose, xylan, lignin and pectin. Monomeric and tetramer linear molecules were allowed to interact in four different configurations for each pair of compounds. The M0 5 -2X exchange-correlation functional which implicitly accounts for short- and mid-range dispersion was compared against MP2 and RI-MP2 to assess the reliability of the former for modeling van der Waals forces between these PCW components. Solvation effects were examined by modeling the interactions in the gas phase, in explicit H 2 O, and in polarized continuum models (PCM) of solvation. PCMs were used to represent water, methanol, and chloroform. The results predict the relative ranges of each type of interaction and when specific configurations will be strongly preferred. Finally, structures and energies are useful as a basis for testing classical force fields and as guidance for coarse-grained models of PCWs.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

The Path towards Plasma Facing Components: A Review of State-of-the-art in W-Based Refractory High-Entropy Alloys

Developing advanced materials for plasma-facing components (PFCs) in fusion reactors is a crucial aspect for achieving sustained energy production. Tungsten (W) - based refractory high-entropy alloys (RHEAs) have emerged as promising candidates due to their superior radiation tolerance and high-temperature strength. This review paper will focus on recent advancements in W-based RHEA research, particularly emphasizing the key role of modelling using machine learning (ML) in the stage of discovery by predicting properties for each composition and expediting the identification of optimal RHEA compositions with desired properties. Additionally, the application of additive manufacturing (AM) techniques for fabricating W-based RHEAs is explored, highlighting their advantages for rapid prototyping and multi-compositional sample production in a high throughput manner. The review critically evaluates the current understanding of mechanical properties relevant to PFC applications, including high-temperature strength and ductility. Furthermore, the radiation tolerance of W-based RHEAs under irradiated conditions is discussed. Finally, the validity of current AM-manufactured W-based RHEAs as PFC materials is assessed, and key challenges and opportunities for future research are identified. This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of W-based RHEAs for fusion applications and their potential to guide the development and validation of advanced refractory high entropy alloys.

Hatler, Caleb [University of Wisconsin-Madison]↗

Efficient Four-Component Dirac–Coulomb–Gaunt Hartree–Fock in the Pauli Spinor Representation

Four-component Dirac Hartree--Fock is an accurate mean-field method for treating molecular systems where relativistic effects are important. However, the computational cost and complexity of the two-electron interaction makes this method less common, even though we can consider the Dirac Hartree--Fock Hamiltonian the ``ground truth" of electronic structure, barring explicit quantum-electrodynamical effects. Being able to calculate these effects is then vital to the design of lower scaling methods for accurate predictions in computational spectroscopy and properties of heavy element complexes that must include relativistic effects for even qualitative accuracy. In this work, we present a Pauli quaternion formalism of maximal component- and spin-separation for computing the Dirac-Coulomb-Gaunt Hartree-Fock ground state, with a minimal floating-point-operation count algorithm. Furthermore, this approach also allows one to explicitly separate different spin physics from the two-body interactions, such as spin-free, spin-orbit, and the spin-spin contributions. Additionally, we use this formalism to examine relativistic trends in the periodic table, and analyze the basis set dependence of atomic gold and gold dimer systems.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Surprising Relationship between Silicon Anode Calendar Aging and Electrolyte Components in a Localized High-Concentration Electrolyte System

Although localized high-concentration electrolytes (LHCEs) have been shown to improve the calendar lifetime of silicon anodes, the roles of the electrolyte constituents in calendar aging are not well understood. Here, in this work, we utilize a voltage hold protocol and an LHCE with varying molar ratios of lithium bis(fluorosulfonyl)imide (LiFSI), tetramethylene sulfone (TMS), and 1,1,2,2-tetrafluoroethyl-2,2,3,3-tetrafluoropropyl ether (TTE) to probe the component roles during aging. Interestingly, the estimated calendar lifetime and irreversible lithium losses from the V-hold experiments are independent of the electrolyte formulations. Contrarily, the solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) composition depends on the electrolyte formulation. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy shows that TMS-coordinated species decompose to form insoluble alkanes and lithium hydroxide (LiOH), while lithium fluoride (LiF) originates from the anion-coordination complex. The SEI composition does not appear to play a significant role in the silicon anode passivity, as measured by parasitic current, suggesting that the SEI-electrolyte interactions dictate the calendar aging mechanisms.

Si anode↗

In-situ neutron diffraction study of deformation behavior of a multi-component high-entropy alloy

Deformation behavior of a high-entropy alloy (HEA) was investigated by in situ tensile deformation with neutron diffraction. It was found that the face-centered cubic (FCC) HEA alloy showed strong crystal elastic and plastic anisotropy, and the evolution of its lattice strains and textures were similar to those observed in conventional FCC metals and alloys. Our results demonstrated that, in spite of chemical complexity, the multi-component HEA behaved like a simple FCC metal and the deformation was caused by the motion of mixed dislocations.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Effect of hydrothermal condition on the formation of multi-component oxides of Ni-based metallic glass under high temperature water near the critical point

The specific feature of multi-component oxides synthesized by hydrothermal process under high temperature (633 K) and highly pressurized water (18.9 MPa) near critical point. Effects of hydrothermal processing duration times 24 hours and 72 hours, respectively, on the oxide formation of the Ni{sub 59}Zr{sub 20}Ti{sub 16}Si{sub 2}Sn{sub 3} metallic glass synthesized by powder metallurgy process were characterized by X-ray diffractometer, differential scanning calorimeter along with the particle size, morphology and crystalline phase of the oxides. The crystallization of the needle-shape NiTiO{sub 3}, ZrTiO{sub 4} and ZrSnO{sub 4} ternary oxide phases observed on the surface of metallic glass at below glass transition temperature and the morphology of oxide phases changed to plate-shape around 2 μm in diameter by the increase processing time. This hydrothermal processing in subcritical water provides accelerated dense metal oxide crystals due to the reaction medium being at higher pressure than conventional oxidation processing.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Contamination control and assay results for the Majorana Demonstrator ultra clean components

The Majorana Demonstrator is a neutrinoless double beta decay experiment utilizing enriched Ge-76 detectors in 2 separate modules inside of a common solid shield at the Sanford Underground Research Facility. The Demonstrator has utilized world leading assay sensitivities to develop clean materials and processes for producing ultra-pure copper and plastic components. This experiment is now operating, and initial data provide new insights into the success of cleaning and processing. Post production copper assays after the completion of Module 1 showed an increase in U and Th contamination in finished parts compared to starting bulk material. A revised cleaning method and additional round of surface contamination studies prior to Module 2 construction have provided evidence that more rigorous process control can reduce surface contamination. In conclusion, this article describes the assay results and discuss further studies to take advantage of assay capabilities for the purpose of maintaining ultra clean fabrication and process design.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

The thioreduction component CcmG confers efficiency and the heme ligation component CcmH ensures stereo-specificity during cytochrome c maturation

In many Gram-negative bacteria, including Rhodobacter capsulatus, cytochrome c maturation (Ccm) is carried out by a membrane-integral machinery composed of nine proteins (CcmA to I). During this process, the periplasmic thiol-disulfide oxidoreductase DsbA is thought to catalyze the formation of a disulfide bond between the Cys residues at the apocytochrome c heme binding site (CXXCH). Subsequently, a Ccm-specific thioreductive pathway involving CcmG and CcmH reduces this disulfide bond to allow covalent heme ligation. Currently, the sequence of thioredox reactions occurring between these components and apocytochrome c, and the identity of their active Cys residues are unknown. In this work, we first investigated protein-protein interactions among the apocytochrome c, CcmG, and the heme ligation components CcmF, CcmH, and CcmI. We found that they all interact with each other, forming a CcmFGHI-apocytochrome c complex. Using purified wild-type CcmG, CcmH, and apocytochrome c, as well as their respective Cys mutant variants we determined the rates of thiol-disulfide exchange reactions between selected pairs of Cys residues from these proteins. We established that CcmG can efficiently reduce the disulfide bond of apocytochrome c and also resolve a mixed disulfide bond formed between apocytochrome c and CcmH. We further show that C45 of CcmH and C34 of apocytochrome c are most likely to form this mixed disulfide bond, which is consistent with the stereo-specificity of the heme-apocytochrome c ligation reaction. We conclude that CcmG confers efficiency, and CcmH ensures stereo-specificity during Ccm, and present a comprehensive model for thioreduction reactions that lead to heme-apocytochrome c ligation.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

NuSTAR OBSERVATIONS OF GRB 130427A ESTABLISH A SINGLE COMPONENT SYNCHROTRON AFTERGLOW ORIGIN FOR THE LATE OPTICAL TO MULTI-GEV EMISSION

GRB 130427A occurred in a relatively nearby galaxy; its prompt emission had the largest GRB fluence ever recorded. The afterglow of GRB 130427A was bright enough for the Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope ARray (NuSTAR) to observe it in the 3-79 keV energy range long after its prompt emission (∼1.5 and 5 days). This range, where afterglow observations were previously not possible, bridges an important spectral gap. Combined with Swift, Fermi, and ground-based optical data, NuSTAR observations unambiguously establish a single afterglow spectral component from optical to multi-GeV energies a day after the event, which is almost certainly synchrotron radiation. Such an origin of the late-time Fermi/Large Area Telescope >10 GeV photons requires revisions in our understanding of collisionless relativistic shock physics.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Regression-Based Analytics for Response Dynamics of SDN Solutions and Components

We consider Software-Defined Network (SDN) solutions that dynamically setup and teardown connections, and also their response dynamics of connectivity and TCP throughput. There is a wide variety of choices for controllers, switches, andsoftware modules, and objective analytics of measurements are needed to compare the response dynamics of solutions based on their combinations. Throughput and ping measurements during connection changes contain significant statistical variations due to the complexities of controllers, northbound scripts, and network devices. We propose analytical methods to estimate response regression functions, which provide a rigorous and objective comparison of different SDN solutions and their components, namely, controllers, switches, and OpenFlow versions. We apply this approach in two scenarios: (a) switching of long-haul connections emulated in hardware by ANUE devices over a testbed consisting of HP and Cisco switches, and (b) multi-site science infrastructure emulated using VMs and Mininet. The results provide useful practical insights including: (i) the dpctl method responds seconds faster than the OpenDayLight (ODL) method on average under OpenFlow 1.0, but performs similar to ODL under OpenFlow 1.3, and (ii) the ping response of dpctl is about 0.6 sec faster than ODL for the second scenario.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

Plasma Facing Component Characterization and Correlation With Plasma Conditions in Lithium Tokamak Experiment-β

Lithium coatings in the Lithium Tokamak eXperiment (LTX) led to flat temperature profiles. The flat temperature profiles were observed along with a hot, low density edge, implying a broad, collisionless scrape-off layer (SOL). Additionally, in vacuo X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) measurements established that lithium coatings evaporatively deposited onto high-Z plasma facing components (PFCs) became oxidized while retaining the ability to achieve good plasma performance long after lithium was applied to the PFCs. Longstanding theory predicted flat temperature profiles with low recycling walls, which was presumed to be due to hydrogen binding with elemental lithium to form lithium hydride. The presence of oxidized lithium, however, raised questions regarding the exact mechanism of hydrogen retention in LTX. To investigate these questions, the upgraded facility LTX- β includes a new sample exposure probe (SEP) for more detailed in vacuo analysis of PFC samples. The SEP is equipped with a vacuum suitcase capable of transporting samples representative of the LTX- β outer midplane PFCs to a stand-alone XPS system while maintaining pressures lower than the LTX- β base vacuum to limit the contamination between sample exposure and analysis. The low-energy resolution XPS system used in past experiments could only enable the determination of elemental percentages on the PFC sample surfaces. Because the new XPS system has higher energy resolution, it is more direct to assign chemical compounds to the measured binding energies. This capability has been confirmed by comparing XPS data from PFC test samples with measurements using a commercial high-resolution XPS system. Quartz crystal microbalances (QCMs) were used to quantify the thickness of the deposited lithium on the LTX- β PFCs. This article describes the application of the SEP to characterize the PFC surfaces using XPS and their relationship to plasma conditions.

Maan, Anurag↗

Peak selection matters in Principal Component Analysis: A case study of syntrophic microbes

In situ liquid time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS) is a powerful technique to address surface characterization of living biofilms in hydrated conditions. Principal component analysis (PCA) is an important tool to process a large amount of data and interpret the information from ToF-SIMS spectra. However, ToF-SIMS data analysis is still a great challenge in complicated bacterial biofilms, because many interference peaks from the medium may result in inaccurate interpretation of ToF-SIMS spectral analysis. In this study, two syntrophic Geobacter populations were investigated using in situ liquid ToF-SIMS to reveal the biofilm surface changes between them as due to direct interspecies electron transfer (DIET). Peak overlay is an effective strategy to eliminate the matrix effects in handling complex ToF-SIMS data and was used to accomplish peak selection in this work. Both all peak and selected peak spectral PCA showed a distinctive separation among different samples. However, medium samples occupied high scores values in all peak PCA compared with the selected peak PCA, suggesting a strong interference from the medium as the matrix effect. Amino acids and lipids contributed significantly in separating all samples in selected peak PCA, which indicated that surface membrane components such as pili and proteins are important in the co-cultured Geobacter community compared to controls such as the single population planktonic cells and biofilms, respectively. Additionally, the spectral PCA results of high intensity and high resolution data obtained from liquid ToF-SIMS were compared. Selected peak PCA obtained nice separation among samples in both data sets; however, the high resolution data showed better separation between co-culture planktonics and co-culture aggregates, confirming that the higher mass accuracy is useful in analysis of microbial samples. Furthermore, amino acid and water cluster as an important media for microbial metabolite were selected for a more focused selected peak PCA comparison. Consistent scores and loadings plots were achieved. In conclusion, we show that peak selection is critical for acquiring effective microbial information and interpretation of syntrophic Geobacter using spectral data from in situ liquid ToF-SIMS.

spectral overlay, peak selection, matrix effect, P↗

Distance-preserving rigidity penalty on deformable image registration of multiple skeletal components in the neck

Purpose: This study aims at developing and testing a novel rigidity penalty suitable for the deformable registration of tightly located skeletal components in the head and neck from planning computed tomography (CT) and daily cone-beam CT (CBCT) scans of patients undergoing radiotherapy. Methods: The proposed rigidity penalty is designed to preserve intervoxel distances within each bony structure. This penalty was tested in the intensity-based B-spline deformable registration of five cervical vertebral bodies (C1–C5). The displacement vector fields (DVFs) from the registrations were compared to the DVFs generated by using rigid body motions of the cervical vertebrae, measured by the surface registration of vertebrae delineated on CT and CBCT images. Twenty five pairs of planning CT (reference) and treatment CBCTs (target) from five patients were aligned without and with the penalty. An existing penalty based on the orthonormality of the deformation gradient tensor was also tested and the effects of the penalties compared. Results: The mean magnitude of the maximum registration error with the proposed distance-preserving penalty was (0.86, 1.12, 1.33) mm compared to (2.11, 2.49, 2.46) without penalty and (1.53, 1.64, 1.64) with the existing orthonormality-based penalty. The improvement in the accuracy of the deformable image registration was also verified by comparing the Procrustes distance between the DVFs. With the proposed penalty, the average distance was 0.11 (σ 0.03 mm) which is smaller than 0.53 (0.1 mm) without penalty and 0.28 (0.04 mm) with the orthonormality-based penalty. Conclusions: The accuracy of aligning multiple bony elements was improved by using the proposed distance-preserving rigidity penalty. The voxel-based statistical analysis of the registration error shows that the proposed penalty improved the integrity of the DVFs within the vertebral bodies.

62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE↗

Giant viruses with an expanded complement of translation system components

The discovery of giant viruses blurred the sharp division between viruses and cellular life. Giant virus genomes encode proteins considered as signatures of cellular organisms, particularly translation system components, prompting hypotheses that these viruses derived from a fourth domain of cellular life. Here in this paper we report the discovery of a group of giant viruses (Klosneuviruses) in metagenomic data. Compared with other giant viruses, the Klosneuviruses encode an expanded translation machinery, including aminoacyl transfer RNA synthetases with specificities for all 20 amino acids. Notwithstanding the prevalence of translation system components, comprehensive phylogenomic analysis of these genes indicates that Klosneuviruses did not evolve from a cellular ancestor but rather are derived from a much smaller virus through extensive gain of host genes.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗