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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
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1971

Studies of reaction geometry in oxidation and reduction of the alkaline silver electrode

Two methods of surface area estimations of sintered silver electrodes have given roughness factors of 58 and 81. One method is based on constant current oxidation, the other is based on potentiostatic oxidation. Examination of both wire and sintered silver electrodes via scanning electron microscopy at various stages of oxidation have shown that important structural features are mounds of oxide. In potentiostatic oxidations these appear to form on sites instantaneously nucleated while in constant current oxidations progressive nucleation is indicated.

Butler, E. A.↗
NASA NTRS1993

Geometrical approach to neural net control of movements and posture

In one approach to modeling brain function, sensorimotor integration is described as geometrical mapping among coordinates of non-orthogonal frames that are intrinsic to the system; in such a case sensors represent (covariant) afferents and motor effectors represent (contravariant) motor efferents. The neuronal networks that perform such a function are viewed as general tensor transformations among different expressions and metric tensors determining the geometry of neural functional spaces. Although the non-orthogonality of a coordinate system does not impose a specific geometry on the space, this "Tensor Network Theory of brain function" allows for the possibility that the geometry is non-Euclidean. It is suggested that investigation of the non-Euclidean nature of the geometry is the key to understanding brain function and to interpreting neuronal network function. This paper outlines three contemporary applications of such a theoretical modeling approach. The first is the analysis and interpretation of multi-electrode recordings. The internal geometries of neural networks controlling external behavior of the skeletomuscle system is experimentally determinable using such multi-unit recordings. The second application of this geometrical approach to brain theory is modeling the control of posture and movement. A preliminary simulation study has been conducted with the aim of understanding the control of balance in a standing human. The model appears to unify postural control strategies that have previously been considered to be independent of each other. Third, this paper emphasizes the importance of the geometrical approach for the design and fabrication of neurocomputers that could be used in functional neuromuscular stimulation (FNS) for replacing lost motor control.

Review↗
NASA NTRS1991

I-BIEM calculations of the frequency dispersion and AC current distribution at disk and ring-disk electrodes

The Iterative Boundary Integral Equation Method (I-BIEM) has been applied to the problem of frequency dispersion at a disk electrode in a finite geometry. The I-BIEM permits the direct evaluation of the AC potential (a complex variable) using complex boundary conditions. The point spacing was made highly nonuniform, to give extremely high resolution in those regions where the variables change most rapidly, i.e., in the vicinity of the edge of the disk. Results are analyzed with respect to IR correction, equipotential surfaces, and reference electrode placement. The current distribution is also examined for a ring-disk configuration, with the ring and the disk at the same AC potential. It is shown that the apparent impedance of the disk is inductive at higher frequencies. The results are compared to analytic calculations from the literature, and usually agree to better than 0.001%.

Boris D Cahan↗
NASA NTRS1991

I-BIEM calculations of the frequency dispersion and ac current distribution at disk and ring-disk electrodes

The Iterative Boundary Integral Equation Method (I-BIEM) has been applied to the problem of frequency dispersion at a disk electrode in a finite geometry. The I-BIEM permits the direct evaluation of the AC potential (a complex variable) using complex boundary conditions. The point spacing was made highly nonuniform, to give extremely high resolution in those regions where the variables change most rapidly, i.e., in the vicinity of the edge of the disk. Results are analyzed with respect to IR correction, equipotential surfaces, and reference electrode placement. The current distribution is also examined for a ring-disk configuration, with the ring and the disk at the same AC potential. It is shown that the apparent impedance of the disk is inductive at higher frequencies. The results are compared to analytic calculations from the literature, and usually agree to better than 0.001 percent.

Cahan, Boris D.↗
NASA NTRS1986

Optical efficiency of far-infrared photoconductors

The present optimization of the geometry of far-IR photoconductive detectors with diffraction-limited throughput, on the basis of experimental and theoretical results, gives attention to the internal optical path relative to measured absorption length, photoconductive gain, uniformity of illumination, cosmic ray cross section, and design compatibility with the requirements of one- and two-dimensional arrays. It is demonstrated that a rod-shaped, square cross section detector geometry, having lateral face electrodes and a beveled backface with which to trap the radiation by total internal reflection, exhibits responsivity commensurate with that of the best available detectors in integrating cavities.

Wang, J.-Q.↗
NASA NTRS1995

Advanced Dependent Pressure Vessel (DPV) nickel-hydrogen spacecraft cell and battery design

The dependent pressure vessel (DPV) nickel-hydrogen (NiH2) battery is being developed as a potential spacecraft battery design for both military and commercial satellites. Individual pressure vessel (IPV) NiH2 batteries are currently flying on more than 70 Earth orbital satellites and have accumulated more than 140,000,000 cell-hours in actual spacecraft operation. The limitations of standard NiH2 IPV flight battery technology are primarily related to the internal cell design and the battery packaging issues associated with grouping multiple cylindrical cells. The DPV cell design offers higher specific energy and reduced cost, while retaining the established IPV NiH2 technology flight heritage and database. The advanced cell design offers a more efficient mechanical, electrical and thermal cell configuration and a reduced parts count. The internal electrode stack is a prismatic flat-plate arrangement. The flat individual cell pressure vessel provides a maximum direct thermal path for removing heat from the electrode stack. The cell geometry also minimizes multiple-cell battery packaging constraints by using an established end-plateltie-rod battery design. A major design advantage is that the battery support structure is efficiently required to restrain only the force applied to a portion of the end cell. As the cells are stacked in series to achieve the desired system voltage, this increment of the total battery weight becomes small. The geometry of the DPV cell promotes compact, minimum volume packaging and places all cell terminals along the length of the battery. The resulting ability to minimize intercell wiring offers additional design simplicity and significant weight savings. The DPV battery design offers significant cost and weight savings advantages while providing minimal design risks. Cell and battery level design issues will be addressed including mechanical, electrical and thermal design aspects. A design performance analysis will be presented at both the cell and battery level. The DPV is capable of delivering up to 76 Watt-hours per kilogram (Wh/kg) at the cell level and 70 Wh/kg at the full battery level. This represents a 40 percent increase in specific energy at the cell level and a 60 percent increase in specific energy at the battery level compared to current IPV NiH2 technology.

Coates, Dwaine↗
NASA NTRS2003

Electrical Breakdown in a Martian Gas Mixture

The high probability for dust interactions during Martian dust storms and dust devils combined with the cold, dry climate of Mars most likely result in airborne dust that is highly charged. On Earth, potential gradients up to 5 kV/m have been recorded and in some cases resulted in lightning. Although the Martian atmosphere is not conducive to lightning generation, it is widely believed that electrical discharge in the form of a corona occurs. In order to understand the breakdown of gases, Paschen measurements are taken which relate the minimum potential required to spark across a gap between two electrodes. The minimum potential is plotted versus the pressure-distance value for electrodes of a given geometry. For most gases, the potential decreases as the pressure decreases. For CO2, the minimum in the curve happens to be at Mars atmospheric pressures (5-7 mm Hg) for many distances and geometries. However, a very small amount (<0.1%) of mixing gases radically changes the curve, as noted by Leach. Here, we present the first experimental results of a Paschen curve for a Mars gas mixture compared with 100% pure CO2.

Buhler, C. R.↗
NASA NTRS1982

Hyperthermia heating apparatus

Electromagnetic energy is delivered to a localized area of a patient's body in a hyperthermic treatment so that it provides a uniform distribution of electromagnetic flux lines within the localized area of the patient's body and produces a uniform and localized heating gradient. An electrode array includes a number of electrodes which are arranged in pair, with the electrodes in each pair being spaced a particular distance apart. The array is driven by a balanced line system which is electromagnetically coupled to each pair of electrodes and which is shielded by a ground coaxial shield which itself is ground to the body of the patient. Each electrode is embedded in a Teflon stand-off in order to move the region of strong field, from the body, produced by rapidly changing potentials. The two pairs of electrodes forming a cross-like geometry are used with the balanced line systems. The electrical power is either multiplexed among the electrodes or the second pair is driven by a potential which is sinusoidal and which is 90% out of phase with the first balanced line system which is also sinusoidal.

Gammell, P. M.↗
NASA NTRS2009

Regenerative Performance of the NASA Symmetrical Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Design

The NASA Glenn Research Center is developing both a novel cell design (BSC) and a novel ceramic fabrication technique to produce fuel cells predicted to exceed a specific power density of 1.0 kW/kg. The NASA Glenn cell design has taken a completely different approach among planar designs by removing the metal interconnect and returning to the use of a thin, doped LaCrO3 interconnect. The cell is structurally symmetrical. Both electrodes support the thin electrolyte and contain micro-channels for gas flow-- a geometry referred to as a bi-electrode supported cell or BSC. The cell characteristics have been demonstrated under both SOFC and SOE conditions. Electrolysis tests verify that this cell design operates at very high electrochemical voltage efficiencies (EVE) and high H2O conversion percentages, even at the low flow rates predicted for closed loop systems encountered in unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) applications. For UAVs the volume, weight and the efficiency are critical as they determine the size of the water tank, the solar panel size, and other system requirements. For UAVs, regenerative solid oxide fuel cell stacks (RSOFC) use solar panels during daylight to generate power for electrolysis and then operate in fuel cell mode during the night to power the UAV and electronics. Recent studies, performed by NASA for a more electric commercial aircraft, evaluated SOFCs for auxiliary power units (APUs). System studies were also conducted for regenerative RSOFC systems. One common requirement for aerospace SOFCs and RSOFCs, determined independently in each application study, was the need for high specific power density and volume density, on the order of 1.0 kW/kg and greater than 1.0 kW/L. Until recently the best reported performance for SOFCs was 0.2 kW/kg or less for stacks. NASA Glenn is working to prototype the light weight, low volume BSC design for such high specific power aerospace applications.

Cable, Thomas L.↗
NASA NTRS1996

New Concentric Electrode Metal-Semiconductor-Metal Photodetectors

A new metal-semiconductor-metal (MSM) photodetector geometry is proposed. The new device has concentric metal electrodes which exhibit a high degree of symmetry and a design flexibility absent in the conventional MSM device. The concentric electrodes are biased to alternating potentials as in the conventional interdigitated device. Because of the high symmetry configuration, however, the new device also has a lower effective capacitance. This device and the conventional MSM structure are analyzed within a common theoretical framework which allows for the comparison of the important performance characteristics.

Towe, Elias↗