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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 721 records · Page 40

The prologue - A look at Apollo and Apollo/Soyuz

The importance of man to the success of the Apollo missions is considered, giving attention to man's capabilities to provide rapid response to emergencies, the ability to carry out self-contained operations in the absence of communication with the ground, and the ability for rapid sensing, reaction, and vehicle control. In the upcoming Shuttle era the capabilities possessed by man are to be further utilized. The concern for the safety of men in space is one of the major reasons for the flight of the Apollo/Soyuz test project. Details regarding this project are discussed, taking into account the mission profile, hardware, program organization, mission communication modes, tracking, the participating astronauts and cosmonauts, and scientific studies.

Lee, C. M.↗

Identification of differences between finite element analysis and experimental vibration data

An important problem that has emerged from combined analytical/experimental investigations is the task of identifying and quantifying the differences between results predicted by F.E. analysis and results obtained from experiment. The objective of this study is to extend and evaluate the procedure developed by Sidhu for correlation of linear F.E. and modal test data to include structures with viscous damping. The desirability of developing this procedure is that the differences are identified in terms of physical mass, damping, and stiffness parameters instead of in terms of frequencies and modes shapes. Since the differences are computed in terms of physical parameters, locations of modeling problems can be directly identified in the F.E. model. From simulated data it was determined that the accuracy of the computed differences increases as the number of experimentally measured modes included in the calculations is increased. When the number of experimental modes is at least equal to the number of translational degrees of freedom in the F.E. model both the location and magnitude of the differences can be computed very accurately. When the number of modes is less than this amount the location of the differences may be determined even though their magnitudes will be under estimated.

Lawrence, C.↗

Identification of differences between finite element analysis and experimental vibration data

An important problem that has emerged from combined analytical/experimental investigations is the task of identifying and quantifying the differences between results predicted by F.E. analysis and results obtained from experiment. The objective of this study is to extend and evaluate the procedure developed by Sidhu for correlation of linear F.E. and modal test data to include structures with viscous damping. The desirability of developing this procedure is that the differences are identified in terms of physical mass, damping, and stiffness parameters instead of in terms of frequencies and modes shapes. Since the differences are computed in terms of physical parameters, locations of modeling problems can be directly identified in the F.E. model. From simulated data it was determined that the accuracy of the computed differences increases as the number of experimentally measured modes included in the calculations is increased. When the number of experimental modes is at least equal to the number of translational degrees of freedom in the F.E. model both the location and magnitude of the differences can be computed very accurately. When the number of modes is less than this amount the location of the differences may be determined even though their magnitudes will be underestimated.

Lawrence, Charles↗

Dynamics of reconfigurable artificial spin ice: Toward magnonic functional materials

Over the past few years, the study of magnetization dynamics in artificial spin ices has become a vibrant field of study. Artificial spin ices are ensembles of geometrically arranged, interacting magnetic nanoislands, which display frustration by design. These were initially created to mimic the behavior in rare earth pyrochlore materials and to study emergent behavior and frustration using two-dimensional magnetic measurement techniques. Recently, it has become clear that it is possible to create artificial spin ices, which can potentially be used as functional materials. In this perspective, we review the resonant behavior of spin ices in the GHz frequency range, focusing on their potential application as magnonic crystals. In magnonic crystals, spin waves are functionalized for logic applications by means of band structure engineering. While it has been established that artificial spin ices can possess rich mode spectra, the applicability of spin ices to create magnonic crystals hinges upon their reconfigurability. Consequently, we describe recent work aiming to develop techniques and create geometries allowing full reconfigurability of the spin ice magnetic state. We also discuss experimental, theoretical, and numerical methods for determining the spectral response of artificial spin ices and give an outlook on new directions for reconfigurable spin ices.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Fourier coefficients of noninterdependent collective motions in heavy-ion collisions

Here, we present a scenario in heavy-ion collisions where different modes of collective motions are noninterdependent, driven by factorized actions in the created nuclear medium. Such physics mechanisms could each dominate at a distinct evolution stage, or coexist simultaneously. If the probability of particle emission is modulated by each nondependent collective motion with a single-harmonic Fourier expansion, the particle azimuthal distribution should be the product of all these expansions. Consequently, nonleading cross terms between collectivity modes appear, and their contributions to experimental observables could be significant. In particular, we argue that the chiral magnetic effect (CME) and elliptic flow can develop separately, with their convolution affecting the observable that is sensitive to the shear-induced CME. We will use the event-by-event anomalous-viscous fluid dynamics model to illustrate the effects of this scenario. Besides giving insights into searches for the CME, we also propose feasible experimental tests based on conventional flow harmonics, and demonstrate the emergence of nonleading cross terms with a multiphase transport model.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Topological phase diagram of generalized Su-Schrieffer-Heeger models with interactions

We investigate interacting Su-Schrieffer-Heeger (SSH) chains with two- and three-site unit cells using density matrix renormalization group (DMRG) simulations. By selecting appropriate filling fractions and sweeping across interaction strength 𝐽 𝑧 and dimerization 𝛿, we map out their phase diagrams and identify transition lines via entanglement entropy and magnetization measurements. In the two-site model, we observe the emergence of an interaction-induced antiferromagnetic intermediate phase between the topologically trivial and nontrivial regimes, as well as a critical region at negative 𝐽 𝑧 with suppressed magnetization and finite-size scaling of entanglement entropy. In contrast, the three-site model lacks an intermediate phase and exhibits asymmetric edge localization and antiferromagnetic ordering in both positive and negative 𝐽 𝑧 regimes. We further examine the response of edge states to Ising perturbations. In the two-site model, zero-energy edge modes are topologically protected and remain robust up to a finite interaction strength. However, in the three-site model, where the edge states reside at finite energy, this protection breaks down. Despite this, the edge-localized nature of these states survives in the form of polarized modes whose spatial profiles reflect the noninteracting limit.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

A Comparison of Emerging Nonfluoropolymer-Based Coextruded PV Backsheets to Industry-Benchmark Technologies

As the photovoltaic (PV) industry is rapidly expanding around the world, there has been an increasing interest in extending the lifespan of PV modules. Concern has also emerged regarding the recyclability of modules and their component materials, including fluoropolymer-based backsheets. Laminated polyethylene-terephthalate (PET) core backsheets have traditionally been used in the PV industry, but new, coextruded polyolefin (PO) backsheets show promise as an improved alternative. In this work, minimodule and coupon samples of seven different backsheets (made of layers including contemporary PET and fluoropolymers, novel PO, and polyamide materials) were run through hygrometric- or UV photolytic-accelerated aging to identify and better understand each material's degradation modes and the backsheets' field reliability. In addition to the artificial aging, the natural weathering methods used in this article are described. The comprehensive set of chemical, mechanical, and structural characterizations at intermittent read points in this article is presented, including: visual appearance and color; gloss; mechanical tensile testing; I-V performance; electroluminescence (EL) imaging; dielectric breakdown; Fourier-transform infrared-chemical structure; X-ray-polymer structure; and differential scanning calorimetry-crystalline content. After 4000 h of aging, a strong correlation occurs between initial physical characteristics (mechanical tensile test) and operating performance (EL and I-V characteristics).

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

Towards reverse mode automatic differentiation of Kokkos-based codes

Derivative computation is a key component of optimization, sensitivity analysis, uncertainty quantification, and the solving of nonlinear problems. Automatic differentiation (AD) is a powerful technique for evaluating such derivatives, and in recent years, has been integrated into programming environments such as Jax, PyTorch, and TensorFlow to support derivative computations needed for training of machine learning models, facilitating wide-spread use of these technologies. The C++ language has become the de facto standard for scientific computing due to numerous factors, yet language complexity has made the wide-spread adoption of AD technologies for C++ difficult, hampering the incorporation of powerful differentiable programming approaches into C++ scientific simulations. This is exacerbated by the increasing emergence of architectures, such as GPUs, with limited memory capabilities and requiring massive thread-level concurrency. C++ AD tools must effectively use these environments to bring novel scientific simulations to next-generation DOE experimental and observational facilities. In this project, we investigated source transformation-based automatic differentiation using LLVM compiler infrastructure to automatically generate portable and efficient gradient computations of Kokkos-based code. We have demonstrated that our proposed strategy is feasible by investigating the usage of a prototype LLVM-based source transformation tool to generate gradients of simple functions made of sequences of simple Kokkos parallel regions. Speedups of up to 500x compared to Sacado were observed on NVIDIA V100 GPU.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

Manufacturing and characterization of continuous fiber-reinforced thermoplastic tape overmolded long fiber thermoplastic

Light-weight construction, design freedom, integration of functions, and compelling cost element are desired by Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) and their suppliers. The emergence of overmolding of continuous-discontinuous reinforcement enables design freedom and ability to tailor stiffness, strength, and damage tolerance for structural applications. In this work, long fiber thermoplastics (LFT) are overmolded with continuous fiber-reinforced thermoplastic (CFRTP) tape are combined using extrusion compression molding process to evaluate the structural performance. The CFRTP tape overmolded LFT samples were characterized using nondestructive and destructive techniques to track fiber alignment, fiber distribution, manufacturing defects, interfacial bonding of the tape – LFT and effect of CFRTP tape on LFT. Mode 1 fracture toughness, G 1c for tape overmolded LFT was higher by 25–30% compared to literature reported G 1c . This response was attributed to excellent fiber distribution, good fiber wetting, and absence of voids at the interface. Three-point bend test indicated that CFRTP tape overmolded LFT composites were better able to resist damage under the bending load compared to constituent LFT composite. Flexural strength of the overmolded composite was higher by 119–142%, and modulus higher by 77–65% compared to constituent LFT composite. Simulated flexural results accurately represents the mechanical behavior of composites. Here, the penetration energy of tape overmolded LFT composites determined by LVI test was in the range of 27.66–30.15 J, which is significantly higher than constituent LFT composite, 7.76 J. CFRTP tape overmolded LFT composite exhibits progressive fiber fracture, matrix cracking, and interfacial debonding failure, whereas, constituent LFT composite showed catastrophic fiber fracture.

42 ENGINEERING↗

Generation of Fragment Angular Momentum in Fission

A recent analysis of experimental data [J. Wilson et al., Nature (London) 590, 566 (2021)] found that the angular momenta of nuclear fission fragments are uncorrelated. Based on this finding, the authors concluded that the spins are therefore determined only after scission has occurred. We show here that the nucleon-exchange mechanism, as implemented in the well-established event-by-event fission model freya, while agitating collective rotational modes in which the two spins are highly correlated, nevertheless leads to fragment spins that are largely uncorrelated. We find that this counterexample invalidates the conclusion in [J. Wilson et al.] that uncorrelated spins must necessarily have been generated after scission (a potentious conclusion that would rule out all models that generate the fragment spins prior to scission). Furthermore, it was reported [J. Wilson et al.] that the mass dependence of the average fragment spin has a sawtooth structure. We demonstrate that such a behavior naturally emerges when shell and deformation effects are included in the moments of inertia of the fragments at scission.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Surface topography-connections between lubrication and failure initiation

The characteristics of the initial surface topography is intimately connected to the machining process by which it is produced. Both processes create a near surface region of residual stresses, microstructure and hardness that is different from the bulk. The material properties in this rather undefined region can significantly influence the mode of failure, such as wear, scuffing or fatigue, as well as the degree of failure resistance for a given material. Under full film elastohydrodynamic (EHD) conditions, where shear is accomodated within a relatively thick lubricant film, the normal and shear stresses are distributed uniformly over the near surface region, and the surface topography has little influence on the lubrication or failure process. Under more typical conditions where surface roughness and lubricant film thickness are of the same order of magnitude, the surface topography not only emerges as an important parameter in failure initiation, but it also becomes intimately involved in the lubrication process itself.

Wedeven, L. D.↗

Enhanced Component Performance Study: Emergency Diesel Generators 1998-2024

This report presents an enhanced performance evaluation of the emergency power system (EPS) and high-pressure core spray (HPCS) emergency diesel generators (EDGs) at U.S. commercial nuclear power plants. This report evaluates component performance over time using (1) Institute of Nuclear Power Operations (INPO) Industry Reporting and Information System (IRIS) data from 1998 through 2024 and (2) maintenance unavailability performance data from Mitigating Systems Performance Index (MSPI) Basis Document data from 2002 through 2024. The objective is to show estimates of current failure probabilities and rates related to EDGs, trend these data on an annual basis, determine if the current data are consistent with the probability distributions currently recommended for use in Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) probabilistic risk assessments, show how the reliability data differ for different EDG manufacturers and for EDGs with different ratings; and summarize the subcomponents, causes, detection methods, and recovery associated with each EDG failure mode. The EDG failure modes considered are fail to start (FTS), fail to load and run (FTLR), and fail to run after one hour of operation (FTR>1H). Engineering analyses were performed with respect to time-period and failure mode without regard to the actual number of EDGs at each plant. The factors analyzed include subcomponent, failure cause, detection method, recovery, manufacturer, and EDG rating. The following increasing trends were identified for EDGs for the most recent 10-year period: • EPS and HPCS EDG frequency of start demands (demands per reactor year) • EPS and HPCS EDG frequency of FTLR demands • EPS and HPCS EDG frequency of run>1H hours. The following decreasing trends were identified for EDGs for the most recent 10-year period: • EPS EDG FTR>1H failure rate • EPS EDG unreliability • EPS and HPCS EDG frequency of FTR>1H events (failures per reactor year).

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗

Operating and Managing a Backup Control Center

Due to the criticality of continuous mission operations, some control centers must plan for alternate locations in the event an emergency shuts down the primary control center. Johnson Space Center (JSC) in Houston, Texas is the Mission Control Center (MCC) for the International Space Station (ISS). Due to Houston s proximity to the Gulf of Mexico, JSC is prone to threats from hurricanes which could cause flooding, wind damage, and electrical outages to the buildings supporting the MCC. Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) has the capability to be the Backup Control Center for the ISS if the situation is needed. While the MSFC Huntsville Operations Support Center (HOSC) does house the BCC, the prime customer and operator of the ISS is still the JSC flight operations team. To satisfy the customer and maintain continuous mission operations, the BCC has critical infrastructure that hosts ISS ground systems and flight operations equipment that mirrors the prime mission control facility. However, a complete duplicate of Mission Control Center in another remote location is very expensive to recreate. The HOSC has infrastructure and services that MCC utilized for its backup control center to reduce the costs of a somewhat redundant service. While labor talents are equivalent, experiences are not. Certain operations are maintained in a redundant mode, while others are simply maintained as single string with adequate sparing levels of equipment. Personnel at the BCC facility must be trained and certified to an adequate level on primary MCC systems. Negotiations with the customer were done to match requirements with existing capabilities, and to prioritize resources for appropriate level of service. Because some of these systems are shared, an activation of the backup control center will cause a suspension of scheduled HOSC activities that may share resources needed by the BCC. For example, the MCC is monitoring a hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico. As the threat to MCC increases, HOSC must begin a phased activation of the BCC, while working resource conflicts with normal HOSC activities. In a long duration outage to the MCC, this could cause serious impacts to the BCC host facility s primary mission support activities. This management of a BCC is worked based on customer expectations and negotiations done before emergencies occur. I.

Marsh, Angela L.↗

Orientation-dependent stabilization of MgCr 2 O 4 spinel thin films

AB 2 O 4 normal spinels with a magnetic B site can host a variety of magnetic and orbital frustrations leading to spin-liquid phases and field-induced phase transitions. Here, we report the epitaxial growth of (111)-oriented MgCr 2 O 4 thin films. By characterizing the structural and electronic properties of films grown along the (001) and (111) directions, the influence of growth orientation has been studied. Despite distinctly different growth modes observed during deposition, the comprehensive characterization reveals no measurable disorder in the cation distribution nor multivalency issue for Cr ions in either orientation. Contrary to a naive expectation, the (111) stabilized films exhibit a smoother surface and a higher degree of crystallinity than (001)-oriented films. The preference in growth orientation is explained within the framework of heteroepitaxial stabilization in connection to a significantly lower (111) surface energy. Furthermore, these findings open broad opportunities in the fabrication of two-dimensional kagome-triangular heterostructures with emergent magnetic behavior inaccessible in bulk crystals.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

A Bimodal Diagnostic Cloud Fraction Parameterization. Part I: Motivating Analysis and Scheme Description

Cloud fraction parameterizations are beneficial to regional, convection-permitting numerical weather prediction. For its operational regional midlatitude forecasts, the Met Office uses a diagnostic cloud fraction scheme that relies on a unimodal, symmetric subgrid saturation-departure distribution. This scheme has been shown before to underestimate cloud cover and hence an empirically based bias correction is used operationally to improve performance. This first of a series of two papers proposes a new diagnostic cloud scheme as a more physically based alternative to the operational bias correction. The new cloud scheme identifies entrainment zones associated with strong temperature inversions. Additionally, for model grid boxes located in this entrainment zone, collocated moist and dry Gaussian modes are used to represent the subgrid conditions. The mean and width of the Gaussian modes, inferred from the turbulent characteristics, are then used to diagnose cloud water content and cloud fraction. It is shown that the new scheme diagnoses enhanced cloud cover for a given gridbox mean humidity, similar to the current operational approach. It does so, however, in a physically meaningful way. Using observed aircraft data and ground-based retrievals over the southern Great Plains in the United States, it is shown that the new scheme improves the relation between cloud fraction, relative humidity, and liquid water content. An emergent property of the scheme is its ability to infer skewed and bimodal distributions from the large-scale state that qualitatively compare well against observations. A detailed evaluation and resolution sensitivity study will follow in Part II.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

BACKFLIP: A Comparison of Market-Benchmark Backsheet Technologies to Novel Non-Fluoro-Based Coextruded Materials and Their Correlation and Impact on PV Module Degradation Rates: Final Results of the Study at 4000 Hours or 2 Years

As the photovoltaic (PV) industry is rapidly expanding around the world, there has been an increasing interest in extending the lifespan of PV modules. Concern has also emerged regarding the recyclability of modules and their component materials, including fluoropolymer-based backsheets. Laminated polyethylene-terephthalate (PET) core backsheets have traditionally been used in the PV industry, but new, co-extruded polyolefin (PO) backsheets show promise as an improved alternative. Mini-module and coupon samples of seven different backsheets (made of layers including contemporary PET and fluoropolymers, novel PO, and polyamide (PA) materials) were run through hygrometric- or UV photolytic-accelerated aging to identify and better understand each material's degradation modes and the backsheets' field reliability. In addition to the artificial aging, the natural weathering methods used in this study are described. The comprehensive set of chemical, mechanical, and structural characterizations at intermittent read points in this study is presented, including: visual appearance and color; gloss; mechanical tensile testing; I-V performance; electroluminescence (EL) imaging; dielectric breakdown; FTIR-chemical structure; X-ray-polymer structure (WAXS); and DSC-crystalline content. After 4000 h of accelerated aging or 2y of outdoor aging, a strong correlation occurs between initial physical characteristics (mechanical tensile test) and operating performance (EL and I-V characteristics).

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

Size dependent lattice pseudosymmetry for frustrated decahedral nanoparticles

Geometric frustration—where geometry prevents simultaneous satisfaction of local interactions—generates pseudosymmetry and emergent behaviors across physical and biological systems. At the nanoscale, pseudosymmetric features in crystalline materials manifest as local strain and distortion, but how they depend on particle size and control structural stability remains unclear. Here, we report the first study of a size-dependent crossover in pseudosymmetry in multi-twinned gold nanoparticles (NPs), combining four-dimensional scanning transmission electron microscopy with nanoscale strain mapping grounded in continuum solid mechanics. Analysis of more than 20 decahedral NPs (20–55 nm) reveals pronounced heterogeneity in multiple modes of in-plane strain and displacement field in small NPs as five tetrahedral grains close the geometric gap, without extended defects. With increasing particle size, strain fields homogenize across grains and local phases shift from predominantly low-symmetry body-centered tetragonal motifs at small sizes to face-centered cubic character approaching the bulk limit. We identify a crossover particle size of ~35 nm, well below bulk, correlating with a transition from modified-Wulff shapes to pentagonal bipyramids, consistent with finite element predictions. This quantitative framework for mapping size-dependent strain and pseudosymmetry enables precise design and control of functional crystalline solids and phase transformation for catalysis, photonics, electronics, and energy storage.

Lin, Oliver [University of Illinois at Urbana-Cham↗

BACKFLIP: A Comparison of Emerging Non-Fluoropolymer-Based, Co-Extruded PV Backsheets to Industry-Benchmark Technologies

As the photovoltaic (PV) industry is rapidly expanding around the world, there has been an increasing interest in extending the lifespan of PV modules. Concern has also emerged regarding the recyclability of modules and their component materials, including fluoropolymer-based backsheets. Laminated polyethylene-terephthalate (PET) core backsheets have traditionally been used in the PV industry, but new, co-extruded polyolefin (PO) backsheets show promise as an improved alternative. Mini-module and coupon samples of seven different backsheets (made of layers including contemporary PET and fluoropolymers, novel PO, and polyamide (PA) materials) were run through hygrometric- or UV photolytic-accelerated aging to identify and better understand each material’s degradation modes and the backsheets’ field reliability. In addition to the artificial aging, the natural weathering methods used in this study are described. The comprehensive set of chemical, mechanical, and structural characterizations at intermittent read points in this study is presented, including: visual appearance and color; gloss; mechanical tensile testing; I-V performance; electroluminescence (EL) imaging; dielectric breakdown; FTIR-chemical structure; X-ray-polymer structure (WAXS); and DSC-crystalline content. After 4000 h of aging, a strong correlation occurs between initial physical characteristics (mechanical tensile test) and operating performance (EL and I-V characteristics).

41 EE - Solar Energy Technologies Office (EE-4S)↗