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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 739 records · Page 41

High-stability Shuttle pointing system

It was recognized that precision pointing provided by the Orbiter's attitude control system would not be good enough for Shuttle payload scientific experiments or certain Defense department payloads. The Annular Suspension Pointing System (ASPS) is being developed to satisfy these more exacting pointing requirements. The ASPS is a modular pointing system which consists of two principal parts, including an ASPS Gimbal System (AGS) which provides three conventional ball-bearing gimbals and an ASPS Vernier System (AVS) which magnetically isolates the payload. AGS performance requirements are discussed and an AGS system description is given. The overall AGS system consists of the mechanical hardware, sensors, electronics, and software. Attention is also given to system simulation and performance prediction, and support facilities.

Van Riper, R.↗

Success Using A Granular-Activated Carbon Filtration Swab to Rehabilitate Westbay{sup R} Multi-level Groundwater Monitoring Wells at the INL - 20544

In November 2015, tetrachloroethylene (PCE) was discovered in groundwater samples collected from a Westbay{sup R} multi-level groundwater monitoring well at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL).a Subsequent investigation determined that PCE was not present in the groundwater. The detected PCE was instead due to inadvertent contamination of the internal tubing fluid in the Westbay well-monitoring system, which is isolated from the surrounding groundwater. Further investigation showed that three of the 11 Westbay wells at the INL contained PCE-contaminated tubing fluid at concentrations above the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's maximum contaminant level for drinking water (5 μg/L). Loose sediment at the bottom of some Westbay wells was also found to contain PCE; the three wells were then identified for rehabilitation as part of the INL well maintenance program. The unique construction of the Westbay wells - i.e., the small diameter (5.72 cm [2.25 in.]) and the depths of the tubing fluid ranging from 144.8 to 419 m (475 to 1,376 ft) below ground surface - posed unique challenges to the rehabilitation. Because the tubing fluid provides structural integrity, the fluid cannot be removed and then replaced without damaging the integrity of the Westbay well. Additionally, the small diameter of the systems and the associated depths limit the availability of equipment that can be used for the rehabilitation. After an evaluation of potential methods, it was determined that the use of an in-well, custom-fabricated, granular-activated-carbon filtration swab deployed via a wire line would provide the safest and most cost-effective method for rehabilitation. Westbay well rehabilitation started at well MIDDLE-2051 in late June 2018 and paused in December 2018 for the season. The PCE concentration in the tubing fluid at MIDDLE-2051 was initially reduced to a maximum concentration of 3.81 μg/L from a maximum of 642 μg/L, while the concentration of PCE in the sediment had been reduced from 5,360 to 2,270 μg/kg. Sampling was performed at MIDDLE-2051 again in August 2019, and the tubing fluid increased to a maximum concentration of 45.4 μg/L, while the concentration in the sediment decreased further to 1,890 μg/kg due to desorption of PCE from the sediment to the tubing fluid. Rehabilitation resumed at well MIDDLE-2050A in late August 2019, and the PCE concentration in the tubing fluid had been reduced to a maximum concentration of 19.0 μg/L. Although the method has been shown to be time-consuming, it has proven to be effective and safe for personnel performing the work and to the integrity of the well. Future sample data results at all wells will help determine an estimated completion of the rehabilitation. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

Exploration Exercise System (EES) Development

Exploration class missions will be required to have an exercise device that is lightweight, has a small footprint, and is capable of providing enough physical stimulus and exercise variability to be an effective countermeasure against muscle and bone loss that results from the microgravity environment. Exploration exercise device prototypes should be evaluated on the ground and in-orbit for feasibility of use in microgravity for long and short duration exploration missions and efficacy of the device to maintain multi-system health and performance. The European Enhanced Exploration Exercise Device (E4D) was selected as the exploration prototype device to be evaluated on ISS for efficacy and feasibility of use as a single multi-modality device for the exercise system for exploration missions. This effort supports the continued development, testing, and verification of E4D hardware and software, internal NASA integration (Human Health and Performance, ISS Vehicle Office, Engineering, and Flight Operations), and external integration across NASA, ESA, and the Danish Aerospace Company (DAC). Providing a feasibility and acceptability assessment from a physiological efficacy and hardware durability standpoint are critical for informing use and risk associated with use on exploration missions. Clearly defined objectives from end users, stakeholders, and Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) will be tested by crewmembers during acute use sessions and long duration use of the exercise device while on ISS. This effort will include a flight study where crewmembers will be asked to exercise using only the E4D during the duration of their mission and participate in a battery of physiological testing to evaluate the efficacy. Hardware is scheduled to launch in FY25 followed by 2 years of operational use after activation and checkout. A final recommendation will be provided to the Artemis program on acceptability of the device for exploration missions. The E4D needs a vibration isolation stabilization (VIS) system that serves as a platform for the exercise hardware to protect the vehicle from loads imparted during exercise. Exploration forward VIS systems will need to protect the vehicle and provide sufficient stabilization for the exerciser during performance of all critical exercises. These enabling capabilities need to be achieved within exploration vehicle power, thermal, mass, and volume limitations.

Kent Lawrence Kalogera↗

In Flight MiRNA Isolation and Recovery on the ISS Using the Wetlab-2 System

Due to advancements in RNA research, mi (micro) RNAs and other small nucleotide RNAs have become a major research field in biology including spaceflight research. The regulation of RNA transcription and processing by miRNAs makes miRNAs an appealing topic for genetics and molecular research. It has been estimated that over 60% of human gene transcripts are targets of miRNA regulation. In fact, this is true for all organisms, including plants and insects. Small nucleotide RNAs can also play a role in regulating gene expression, meaning that gene expression alone is not a complete picture of the potential genetic changes that occur in an organism during spaceflight. The goal of the WetLab-2 project is to isolate and recover miRNAs from various tissue sources on the International Space Station (ISS). No system currently exists that can isolate and recover small nucleotide RNA in space. However, the WetLab-2 system that was validated on the ISS in 2016 can be adapted to fit this purpose. We are currently testing the new modified protocols by running plant and mouse blood experiments in parallel, allowing us to demonstrate the effectiveness of the procedure on different sample types. We expect to be able to optimize and implement the modified miRNA protocols for use on future ISS flights.

miRNA↗

Magnetic Gimbal Proof-of-Concept Hardware performance results

The Magnetic Gimbal Proof-of-Concept Hardware activities, accomplishments, and test results are discussed. The Magnetic Gimbal Fabrication and Test (MGFT) program addressed the feasibility of using a magnetic gimbal to isolate an Electro-Optical (EO) sensor from the severe angular vibrations induced during the firing of divert and attitude control system (ACS) thrusters during space flight. The MGFT effort was performed in parallel with the fabrication and testing of a mechanically gimballed, flex pivot based isolation system by the Hughes Aircraft Missile Systems Group. Both servo systems supported identical EO sensor assembly mockups to facilitate direct comparison of performance. The results obtained from the MGFT effort indicate that the magnetic gimbal exhibits the ability to provide significant performance advantages over alternative mechanically gimballed techniques.

Stuart, Keith O.↗

NASA Spacecraft Fault Management Workshop Results

Fault Management is a critical aspect of deep-space missions. For the purposes of this paper, fault management is defined as the ability of a system to detect, isolate, and mitigate events that impact, or have the potential to impact, nominal mission operations. The fault management capabilities are commonly distributed across flight and ground subsystems, impacting hardware, software, and mission operations designs. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Discovery & New Frontiers (D&NF) Program Office at Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) recently studied cost overruns and schedule delays for 5 missions. The goal was to identify the underlying causes for the overruns and delays, and to develop practical mitigations to assist the D&NF projects in identifying potential risks and controlling the associated impacts to proposed mission costs and schedules. The study found that 4 out of the 5 missions studied had significant overruns due to underestimating the complexity and support requirements for fault management. As a result of this and other recent experiences, the NASA Science Mission Directorate (SMD) Planetary Science Division (PSD) commissioned a workshop to bring together invited participants across government, industry, academia to assess the state of the art in fault management practice and research, identify current and potential issues, and make recommendations for addressing these issues. The workshop was held in New Orleans in April of 2008. The workshop concluded that fault management is not being limited by technology, but rather by a lack of emphasis and discipline in both the engineering and programmatic dimensions. Some of the areas cited in the findings include different, conflicting, and changing institutional goals and risk postures; unclear ownership of end-to-end fault management engineering; inadequate understanding of the impact of mission-level requirements on fault management complexity; and practices, processes, and tools that have not kept pace with the increasing complexity of mission requirements and spacecraft systems. This paper summarizes the findings and recommendations from that workshop, as well as opportunities identified for future investment in tools, processes, and products to facilitate the development of space flight fault management capabilities.

Newhouse, Marilyn↗

The ISS 2B PVTCS Ammonia Leak: An Operational History

In 2006, the Photovoltaic Thermal Control System (PVTCS) for the International Space Station's 2B power channel began leaking ammonia at a rate of approximately 1.5lbm/year (out of a starting approximately 53lbm system ammonia mass). Initially, the operations strategy was "feed the leak," a strategy successfully put into action via Extra Vehicular Activity during the STS‐134 mission. During this mission the system was topped off with ammonia piped over from a separate thermal control system. This recharge was to have allowed for continued power channel operation into 2014 or 2015, at which point another EVA would have been required. Without these periodic EVAs to refill the 2B coolant system, the channel would eventually leak enough fluid as to risk pump cavitation and system failure, resulting in the loss of the 2B power channel - the most critical of the Space Station's 8 power channels. In mid‐2012, the leak rate increased to approximately 5lbm/year. Once discovered, an EVA was planned and executed within a 5 week timeframe to drastically alter the architecture of the PVTCS via connection to a dormant thermal control system not intended to be utilized as anything other than spare components. The purpose of this rerouting of the TCS was to increase system volume and to isolate the photovoltaic radiator, thought to be the likely leak source. This EVA was successfully executed on November 1st, 2012 and left the 2B PVTCS in a configuration where the system was now being adequately cooled via a totally different radiator than what the system was designed to utilize. Unfortunately, data monitoring over the next several months showed that the isolated radiator was not leaking, and the system itself continued to leak steadily until May 9th, 2013. It was on this day that the ISS crew noticed the visible presence of ammonia crystals escaping from the 2B channel's truss segment, signifying a rapid acceleration of the leak from 5lbm/year to 5lbm/day. Within 48 hours of the crew noticing the leak, an EVA was in progress to replace the coolant pump - the only other replaceable leak source. This paper will explore the management of the 2B PVTCS leak from the operations perspective. It will discuss the methodology of performing the STS‐134 refill, the considerations and contingency plans which went into the architectural overhaul of the system in 2012, and the unprecedented effort which went into the EVA response to the visible leak of May 2013. In particular the paper will focus on the techniques utilized by flight controllers to monitor the system health and to respond to such instances as the rapid May 2013 leak by putting the electrical system in a safe configuration for loss of cooling, and will use recorded telemetry of these events to describe system response to EVA crew and ground actions. It will discuss the innovative design for redundancy of the integrated truss structure's cooling systems which allowed for this leak to be managed with minimal impact to other ISS operations and electrical services, contrasted against the real unintended operations consequences of utilizing the flexibility of the spacecraft's design in this manner. The paper will discuss how the training of the crew and flight controller personnel has adapted to the changing architecture of the power system and the unpredictable nature of the 2B leak.

Vareha, Anthony↗

Differential cross-sections for events with missing transverse momentum and jets measured with the ATLAS detector in 13 TeV proton-proton collisions

Measurements of inclusive, differential cross-sections for the production of events with missing transverse momentum in association with jets in proton-proton collisions at √s = 13 TeV are presented. The measurements are made with the ATLAS detector using an integrated luminosity of 140 fb –1 and include measurements of dijet distributions in a region in which vector-boson fusion processes are enhanced. They are unfolded to correct for detector resolution and efficiency within the fiducial acceptance, and are designed to allow robust comparisons with a wide range of theoretical predictions. A measurement of differential cross sections for the Z → νν process is made. The measurements are generally well-described by Standard Model predictions except for the dijet invariant mass distribution. Auxiliary measurements of the hadronic system recoiling against isolated leptons, and photons, are also made in the same phase space. Ratios between the measured distributions are then derived, to take advantage of cancellations in modelling effects and some of the major systematic uncertainties. These measurements are sensitive to new phenomena, and provide a mechanism to easily set constraints on phenomenological models. To illustrate the robustness of the approach, these ratios are compared with two common Dark Matter models, where the constraints derived from the measurement are comparable to those set by dedicated detector-level searches.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Microscale THMC Modeling of Pressure Solution in Salt Rock: Impacts of Geometry and Temperature

Abstract Pressure solution, a mechanism that involves tight coupling between the geometry and thermal-hydro-mechanical-chemical (THMC) processes, plays an important role in diagenesis. In this study, we make the first attempt to conduct microscale THMC modeling to understand and quantify the impacts of geometry and temperature on pressure solution, taking natural salt rock as an example. This modeling capability is achieved by expanding a novel MC code that we developed previously (Hu et al. J Geophys Res: Solid Earth 126:e2021JB023112, 2021) to include temperature effects. We first conduct a simulation of an example that involves a single brine inclusion within a single halite grain and find that the temperature impact is limited for that case. We then extract geometry from an image of a natural salt rock and conduct simulations with different cases: (A) only temperature and no stress, (B) only stress and no temperature, and (C) with both stress and temperature. These different cases result in quite different phenomena. In case A, dissolution and precipitation occur across the entire system due to isolated pore space reaching a localized mass balance between dissolution, precipitation, and diffusion. In case B, intense geometric features (e.g., major asperities, inclusions) in one area undergo stress concentration, thus dominating pressure solution in that area. In case C, pressure solution is spread out at contacting highly stressed geometric features close to the hotter side. We conclude that geometric features dominate stress distribution, thus dominating pressure solution in a natural salt rock that may be affected by the temperature if a sufficient temperature gradient is applied.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗

Two-zone stratified wetwell model development and implementation for RELAP-7

The Reactor Core Isolation Cooling (RCIC) system consists of a turbine, pump and wetwell and is used in many US Boiling Water Reactors (BWRs) as an important heat removal system. The wetwell is a major heat sink within containment. Experimental investigations have shown that thermal stratification may occur in the wetwell during RCIC operation. Current systems-level analysis codes lack stratified wetwell models. Here, this paper describes the development of a stratified wetwell model for the RELAP-7 code. This paper uses a simple two-zone model for the wetwell water that can capture thermal stratification. This model assumes that a buoyant plume transports heat and mass from the steam injection site to the upper water zone. The buoyant plume assumption requires that steam is injected at a low enough rate so it adds negligible momentum. Model validation against experimental data shows similar trends of temperature field development in the suppression pool.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗

A phase-field study of stainless-steel oxidation from high-temperature carbon dioxide exposure

An electrochemical phase-field model has been developed to investigate the oxidation mechanisms of the 21-2N valve stainless steel alloy exposed to carbon dioxide at 973 K. Three oxide phases observed in oxidation experiments are included in the model: Mn 3 O 4 , Cr 2 O 3 , and MnCr 2 O 4 . Local charge neutrality and the conserved current condition are assumed to include the impact of the electric potential on oxidation, though it is found to be negligible when the system is electrically isolated. The sensitivity of the oxidation processes to the values of the diffusion mobilities is examined, and the oxidation rate is calibrated against experimental data by modifying the sensitive mobilities. We find that both inward oxygen and outward metal diffusion are important for oxidation. Furthermore, by investigating the impact of the order of the initial oxide layers, we find that Cr 2 O 3 serves as a barrier to outward Mn diffusion. Moreover, controlling the initial oxide layer order can be used to limit oxidation.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Fingerprinting shock-induced deformations via diffraction

Abstract During the various stages of shock loading, many transient modes of deformation can activate and deactivate to affect the final state of a material. In order to fundamentally understand and optimize a shock response, researchers seek the ability to probe these modes in real-time and measure the microstructural evolutions with nanoscale resolution. Neither post-mortem analysis on recovered samples nor continuum-based methods during shock testing meet both requirements. High-speed diffraction offers a solution, but the interpretation of diffractograms suffers numerous debates and uncertainties. By atomistically simulating the shock, X-ray diffraction, and electron diffraction of three representative BCC and FCC metallic systems, we systematically isolated the characteristic fingerprints of salient deformation modes, such as dislocation slip (stacking faults), deformation twinning, and phase transformation as observed in experimental diffractograms. This study demonstrates how to use simulated diffractograms to connect the contributions from concurrent deformation modes to the evolutions of both 1D line profiles and 2D patterns for diffractograms from single crystals. Harnessing these fingerprints alongside information on local pressures and plasticity contributions facilitate the interpretation of shock experiments with cutting-edge resolution in both space and time.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Size-dependent femtosecond proton transfer in protonated methanol clusters

Methanol clusters (CH 3 OH) n are prototypical hydrogen-bonded systems that bridge isolated molecules and bulk liquid methanol. Strong-field ionization of these clusters can trigger ultrafast charge migration, proton transfer, and isomerization; however, the onset timescales of these pathways remain largely unexplored despite extensive steady-state mass-spectrometric evidence for protonation and chemical rearrangement. Here we use femtosecond time-resolved strong-field ionization and disruptive probing to directly track the early-time dynamics of methanol clusters. Transient mass spectra yield size-dependent timescales for the formation of protonated clusters H + (CH 3 OH) n (n = 1–3) and an associated CHO˙ + radical cation. We find that both proton-transfer and subsequent stabilization become markedly faster with increasing cluster size. These measurements establish methanol clusters as a complementary benchmark to water for understanding ionization-initiated proton motion and chemical reorganization in hydrogen-bonded liquids.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Effect of local structure and stoichiometry on the dynamic behavior of bi-metal interfaces

Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations are performed to investigate the failure behavior of Al/Al, Al/Fe, and Al/AlFe bi-layers under high strain-rate shock loading. Additional simulations are performed to invesigate solely the tensile response of these systems and to isolate the effects of loading history on damage and failure. Specifically, the compression stage of the shock is excluded from the tensile simulations. This study shows that local structure variation, including the introduction of serrations, plays different roles in controlling damage nucleation depending on the specific loading condition. Under shock loading, the stress for void nucleation and the resulting void distribution is insensitive to an interface structure, whereas under pure tensile loading, the opposite is true, even though the strain rate is comparable. The above difference can be explained based on the corresponding change in the total deformation prior to damage nucleation under shock loading, which is missing from the pure tensile loading. Therefore, it is concluded that whether local interface structure matters under high strain-rate loading depends on the specific loading history and the stress state: the local structure variation matters only when it alters the deformation behavior, and subsequently, damage nucleation and evolution.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Accurate noncovalent interactions in atomistic systems via quantum Drude oscillators

Accurately modeling polarization and van der Waals (vdW) interactions in atomistic systems typically requires high-level quantum-mechanical methods that are computationally expensive, hence limited in applicability. To address this challenge, efficient yet physically grounded models are needed—ones that not only enable accurate predictions but also provide insight into how noncovalent interactions scale in complex molecular and material systems. This review highlights the quantum Drude oscillator (QDO) model, a physically motivated and computationally efficient framework that captures the essential features of electronic response, including polarization and dispersion forces, across a wide range of chemical and material systems. We discuss how the QDO model quantitatively reproduces the polarization response of many-electron atoms and how key components of noncovalent interactions—exchange-repulsion, polarization, and dispersion—emerge naturally in QDO dimers. Furthermore, the model provides predictive scaling laws that elucidate trends in polarizability and dispersion across the periodic table and in molecular assemblies. By uniting interpretability, accuracy, and efficiency, the QDO model offers a versatile approach for modeling noncovalent interactions in systems ranging from isolated molecules to complex condensed phases and nanostructured materials.

Khabibrakhmanov, Almaz [Univ. of Luxembourg, Luxem↗

Localized triplons and site stuffing in the quantum dimer magnet BiYbGeO5

Thermodynamic and muon spin relaxation measurements have recently highlighted BiYbGeO5 as a new example of a rare-earth-based quantum dimer magnet with isolated Yb3+ spin-1/2 dimers. However, direct spectroscopic evidence of the triplet excitations and measurements of the structural disorder are lacking. In this work, polycrystalline BiYbGeO5 was synthesized using conventional high-temperature solid-state methods and investigated via high-resolution neutron powder diffraction and inelastic neutron scattering. Diffraction measurements down to 58 mK reveal no signatures of magnetic order and indicate that nearly 20% of Yb3+ sites are replaced by nonmagnetic Bi3+, introducing significant structural disorder. Inelastic neutron scattering shows dispersionless triplon excitations, consistent with localized, noninteracting spin dimers. Fits to the triplet excitation spectrum with an XXZ-type anisotropic exchange give 𝐽XX=0.100⁢(1)⁢meV and 𝐽Z=0.202⁢(1)⁢meV. These findings establish BiYbGeO5 as a structurally disordered but magnetically well-isolated quantum dimer system, providing a model platform for studying the resilience of entangled spin states to site dilution.

Kapoor, Rachit [Brock University, Canada]↗

Opportunities for gas-phase science at short-wavelength free-electron lasers with undulator-based polarization control

Free-electron lasers (FELs) are the world's most brilliant light sources with rapidly evolving technological capabilities in terms of ultrabright and ultrashort pulses over a large range of photon energies. Their revolutionary and innovative developments have opened new fields of science regarding nonlinear light-matter interaction, the investigation of ultrafast processes from specific observer sites, and approaches to imaging matter with atomic resolution. A core aspect of FEL science is the study of isolated and prototypical systems in the gas phase with the possibility of addressing well-defined electronic transitions or particular atomic sites in molecules. Notably for polarization-controlled short-wavelength FELs, the gas phase offers new avenues for investigations of nonlinear and ultrafast phenomena in spin-orientated systems, for decoding the function of the chiral building blocks of life as well as steering reactions and particle emission dynamics in otherwise inaccessible ways. This roadmap comprises descriptions of technological capabilities of facilities worldwide, innovative diagnostics and instrumentation, as well as recent scientific highlights, novel methodology, and mathematical modeling. The experimental and theoretical landscape of using polarization controllable FELs for dichroic light-matter interaction in the gas phase will be discussed and comprehensively outlined to stimulate and strengthen global collaborative efforts of all disciplines. Published by the American Physical Society 2025

Ilchen, Markus↗

Improving Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) for Readout Signals Using Adaptive Filters on Reconfigurable Controls Hardware

This study investigates the optimization of Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) in superconducting quantum computing readout signals through adaptive filtering. Quantum computing technology has the potential to revolutionize various fields by delivering exponential speedup in solving certain computational problems. However, the technology's practical implementation is hindered by the difficulty of extracting clean, reliable signals during the readout phase, with various sources of noise presenting a significant barrier to clean signals. This noise, often present in readout profiles due to imperfect isolation, degrades the system's overall SNR, thus impeding the ability to extract the quantum state accurately. The research leverages the power of adaptive filtering to improve the SNR of quantum computing readout signals. Specifically, an adaptive filter is implemented in a PYNQ overlay on an FPGA, and eventually will be connected to a quantum computing system. The system models the noise with a Least Mean Squares (LMS) adaptive filter, and then subtracts the estimated noise from the received signal to improve the SNR. A Direct Memory Access (DMA) channel is used to handle the signal processing, delivering efficient, high-speed data transfer between the PYNQ system and the hardware. The study explores the benefits of this adaptive filtering technique, potentially providing a significant contribution to practical and fast quantum computing.

Johnson, Hans↗