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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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Portable Cleanroom for NASA OSIRIS-REx Mission Deintegration

NASA Johnson Space Center (JSC) Infrastructure and Astromaterials Acquisition & Curation Office completed construction and commissioning of the OSIRIS-REx (OREx) Deintegration portable cleanroom at the Utah Test and Training Range (UTTR). The new portable cleanroom was designed to receive the OREx sample return capsule from the landing point on the range to an ISO7 environment. Scientists used the portable clean-room to deintegrate the sample canister from the sample return capsule. Once separated, the sample canister was put in a container under nitrogen purge for transportation to B31 at the Johnson Space Center for astromaterial sample extraction, preliminary analysis, and long-term curation. The portable cleanroom was built by a subcontractor at their facility and then deconstructed to be transported to the remote location at UTTR. Since construction was completed in a remote location all tools and materials had to be transported from contractor site in Dallas, TX. The cleanroom was constructed within an existing facility, which provided conditioned air, electric power, and protection from the elements. Careful coordination was required between the host facility, cleanroom contractor, mission scientists, and JSC facilities and curation personnel. An existing anteroom at JSC was transported to UTTR and added to the portable cleanroom after there was concern about contamination without one for personnel entry/exit. The scientific study of organics is critical for the mission, so a stringent contamination control plan was implemented for low organics. Given these mission requirements the cleanroom construction materials were carefully selected to not hinder the scientific search for amino acids and the study of organics in the samples. The same cleanroom contractor that built the long-term astromaterial curation cleanroom back at JSC Houston, TX was selected to build the portable cleanroom and instructed to use the same materials. The cleanroom had double doors to open and allow the sample return capsule to fit into the cleanroom on its stand and be transferred to a clean stand already in the cleanroom. The portable cleanroom successfully completed its mission and the sample canister was safely deintegrated and transported to JSC under nitrogen purge.

astromaterials curation↗
DOE OSTI2013

Performance of a Microfluidic Device for In Situ ToF-SIMS Analysis of Selected Organic Molecules at Aqueous Surfaces

Time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS) is a unique surface analysis technique because it can provide molecular recognition for organic and biological molecules. However, analyzing aqueous solution surfaces by ToF-SIMS is difficult, because ToF-SIMS is a high-vacuum technique, while the vapor pressure of water is about 2.3 kPa at room temperature (20 C). We designed and fabricated a self-contained microfluidic device, enabling in situ analysis of aqueous surfaces by scanning electron microscope (SEM) and ToF-SIMS, which has been briefly reported.1,2 In this study, we report more performance data, focusing on the performance of this device for in situ analysis of organic molecules at aqueous surfaces using ToF-SIMS. Three representative organic compounds (formic acid, glycerol, and glutamic acid) were tested, and their molecular signals were successfully observed. The device can be self-running in vacuum for 8 hours, and SIMS measurements are feasible at any time in this time range. The stability of this device under primary ion beam bombardment is also impressive. High fluence (6 × 1012 ions cm-2 s-1) measurements can be operated continuously for up to 30 minutes without any significant damage to the aperture. However, extra-high fluence measurements (>1 × 1014 ions cm-2 s-1) may lead to liquid bumping in the aperture, and the aqueous solutions may spread out quickly. Signal reproducibility is reasonably good, and relative standard deviation (RSD) for molecular ion signals can be controlled to be smaller than ±15% for consecutive measurements. Measurements at long time intervals (e.g., 60 min) show RSDs of ±40-50%. In addition, the detection limits of formic acid, glycerol, and glutamic acid are estimated to be 0.04%, 0.008%, and 0.002% (weight ratio), respectively.

Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory↗
DOE OSTI2018

Development of an Active, Man-Portable, Cooling System with Dehumidification Capabilities for Personal Protective Clothing/Equipment

Mainstream Engineering Corporation completed a highly successful SBIR program, during which we developed and commercialized products for microclimate cooling systems (MCS) and the heating, ventilation, air-conditioning, and refrigeration (HVAC/R) industry. We are marketing the MCS family of products for use with personal protective clothing/equipment (PPC/PPE) for firefighters, workers in clean rooms, HAZMAT response and other contamination/remediation teams, and military personnel that are required to wear Mission-Oriented Protective Posture (MOPP) suits and bomb disposal suits. Workers in these industries risk heat stress when confined within protective garments while in hot and humid environments. Our family of MCS and HVAC/R products that resulted from this SBIR program includes: 1. Active, Man-Portable, MCS for PPC/E—Our active system provides 350 W cooling of personal cooling for workers in thermally stressed environments. Although industrially hardened, this system is compact (0.69 ft 3 ) and lightweight (22.9 lbs). The MSC is easily decontaminated or disposed of between uses. 2. Miniature Screw Compressor for MCS—Our 350 Wcooling miniature screw compressor was originally designed for MCS and personal cooling systems. Occupying only 11 in 3 and weighing 1.4 lbs, the size and weight are less than any commercially available compressor with a similar cooling capacity. This miniature screw compressor is marketable as a low-pressure compressor or refrigerant pump. 3. Miniature Sliding Vane Compressor and Drive for MCS—Our 350 Wcooling compressor subassembly consists of a commercial miniature sliding vane compressor packaged with our motor controller. At 29.4 in3 and 1.5 lbs, this compressor is larger and heavier than the miniature screw but is lower cost and capable of producing higher head pressure. 4. Small Screw Compressor for HVAC/R—Our 50 kW cooling small screw compressor is for commercial HVAC/R applications. This compressor is extremely power dense at 0.34 ft 3 and 43 lbs and has a specific cooling capacity (kW/lb) five times greater than existing commercial compressors. We demonstrated high reliability (>5,100 hrs of operation and >3,400 on/off cycles), and we are currently discussing commercialization opportunities with laser manufacturers for cooling of their high-power devices. This final report summarizes the design, fabrication, testing, features, and benefits of each product. The commercialization potential and recommendations for the future are included.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2020

Phase Transformations among TiO2 Polymorphs

Polymorphs widely exist in nature and synthetic systems and are well known to determine material properties. Understanding phase transformation mechanisms among polymorphs enables the design of structures and tuning of phases to tailor material properties. However, current understanding is limited due to the lack of direct observations that track the processes and the structural evolution is not known at atomic scale. Here, integrating (semi) in situ transmission electron microscopy and density functional theory, we report atomic structural evolutions of phase transformation from anatase (A) to rutile (R), brookite (B), R-phase, and TiO. Besides the consistent paths with previous reports, we discover several unreported paths, including a [001] direction and (020) plane of anatase to [100]A and (011)R of rutile, respectively, ( , ) and , . Density functional theory analysis elucidates atomic structural evolution during the processes and over 16% of Ti-O bonds break and reform during the processes with energy barriers of ~0.7-1.0 eV per TiO2 formula unit. Under electron-beam irradiation, anatase particles transform into TiO2-R phase or TiO at high or room temperature, respectively. We also reveal the anisotropic nature of electron-beam effect, which is seldom discussed: dependence of crystallographic orientation with respect to electron-beam irradiation direction. Understanding the atomic structural evolution sheds light on interpreting and controlling TiO2 polymorphs and interface structures for various applications. The revealed electron-beam effects in our work provide guidance for in situ transmission electron microscopy studies.

Song, Miao↗
DOE OSTI2015

SU-F-BRD-11: A Virtual Simulator Designed for Collision Prevention in Proton Therapy

Purpose: In proton therapy, collisions between patient and nozzle potentially occur in attaining minimal air gap due to the large nozzle structure. Thus, we developed software predicting the collisions of the nozzle and patient by simulating treatments. Methods: 3D modeling of a gantry inner-floor, nozzle and robotic-couch was done by using the SolidWorks based on the manufacturer’s machine data. To obtain patient body information, a 3D-scanner was utilized to scan a patient right before CT scanning. From the acquired images, a 3D-image of the patient’s body contour was reconstructed. The accuracy of the image was confirmed against the CT image for a humanoid phantom. The machine components and the virtual patient were combined on the treatment-room coordinate system, resulting in a virtual simulator. The simulator simulated the motion of its components such as rotation and translation of gantry, nozzle and couch, in real scale. Collision, if any, was examined both in static mode and dynamic mode. The static mode checks only at fixed positions of the machine’s components while dynamic mode examines while one component is in motion. Collision was notified if any voxel of two components, for example a nozzle and a patient or couch, overlapped when calculating volume locations. The event and collision point are visualized and colliding volumes are reported. Results: All components were successfully assembled and the motions could be accurately controlled. The 3D-shape of a phantom agreed with CT images within a deviation of 2 mm. Collision situations can be simulated within minutes and the results are displayed and reported. Conclusion: The developed software will be useful in improving patient safety and clinical efficiency for proton therapy. This work was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea funded by Ministry of Science, ICT & Future Planning (2012M3A9B6055201, 2013M2A2A7043507), and Samsung Medical Center grant (GFO1130081)

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS2012

NASA's Lunar Polar Ice Prospector, RESOLVE: Mission Rehearsal in Apollo Valley

After the completion of the Apollo Program, space agencies didn't visit the moon for many years. But then in the 90's, the Clementine and Lunar Prospector missions returned and showed evidence of water ice at the poles. Then in 2009 the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite indisputably showed that the Cabeus crater contained water ice and other useful volatiles. Furthermore, instruments aboard the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) show evidence that the water ice may also be present in areas that receive several days of continuous sunlight each month. However, before we can factor this resource into our mission designs, we must understand the distribution and quantity of ice or other volatiles at the poles and whether it can be reasonably harvested for use as propellant or mission consumables. NASA, in partnership with the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), has been developing a payload to answer these questions. The payload is named RESOLVE. RESOLVE is on a development path that will deliver a tested flight design by the end of 2014. The team has developed a Design Reference Mission using LRO data that has RESOLVE landing near Cabeus Crater in May of2016. One of the toughest obstacles for RESOLVE's solar powered mission is its tight timeline. RESOLVE must be able to complete its objectives in the 5-7 days of available sunlight. The RESOLVE team must be able to work around obstacles to the mission timeline in real time. They can't afford to take a day off to replan as other planetary missions have done. To insure that this mission can be executed as planned, a prototype version of RESOLVE was developed this year and tested at a lunar analog site on Hawaii, known as Apollo Valley, which was once used to train the Apollo astronauts. The RESOLVE team planned the mission with the same type of orbital imagery that would be available from LRO. The simulation team prepositioned a Lander in Apollo Valley with RESOLVE on top mounted on its CSA rover. Then the mission simulation began as the operations team's consoles came alive with data and images. They executed the mission just like the real mission with lunar communications delays and limited bandwidth and a realistic remote mission control room. This paper will describe the RESOLVE payload in detail and describe the results of the mission simulation in Hawaii.

Larson, William E.↗
DOE OSTI2016

Gap Size Uncertainty Quantification in Advanced Gas Reactor TRISO Fuel Irradiation Experiments

The Advanced Gas Reactor (AGR)-3/4 experiment is the combination of the third and fourth tests conducted within the tristructural isotropic fuel development and qualification research program. The AGR-3/4 test consists of twelve independent capsules containing a fuel stack in the center surrounded by three graphite cylinders and shrouded by a stainless steel shell. This capsule design enables temperature control of both the fuel and the graphite rings by varying the neon/helium gas mixture flowing through the four resulting gaps. Knowledge of fuel and graphite temperatures is crucial for establishing the functional relationship between fission product release and irradiation thermal conditions. These temperatures are predicted for each capsule using the commercial finite-element heat transfer code ABAQUS. Uncertainty quantification reveals that the gap size uncertainties are among the dominant factors contributing to predicted temperature uncertainty due to high input sensitivity and uncertainty. Gap size uncertainty originates from the fact that all gap sizes vary with time due to dimensional changes of the fuel compacts and three graphite rings caused by extended exposure to high temperatures and fast neutron irradiation. Gap sizes are estimated using as-fabricated dimensional measurements at the start of irradiation and post irradiation examination dimensional measurements at the end of irradiation. Uncertainties in these measurements provide a basis for quantifying gap size uncertainty. However, lack of gap size measurements during irradiation and lack of knowledge about the dimension change rates lead to gap size modeling assumptions, which could increase gap size uncertainty. In addition, the dimensional measurements are performed at room temperature, and must be corrected to account for thermal expansion of the materials at high irradiation temperatures. Uncertainty in the thermal expansion coefficients for the graphite materials used in the AGR-3/4 capsules also increases gap size uncertainty. This study focuses on analysis of modeling assumptions and uncertainty sources to evaluate their impacts on the gap size uncertainty.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Development of Integrated Mechanical Pods

This presentation highlights early wins, updated progress, and upcoming developments on ‘national-scale shared development platform’ for rapid prototyping, testing and validation of various integrated Mechanical Pod solutions and form factors. Such pod solutions consist of a set of all-electric heat pump mechanical equipment that have integrated functionalities through built-in controls, with heating, cooling, hot water, ventilation (including energy recovery), electrical management, and battery storage within a single package. The presentation draws inspiration from the success of bathroom pods in the US modular construction industry, UK’s efforts with unitizing mechanical systems as ‘utility cupboards’, and VEIC’s early wins in design-build of all-electric Mechanical Pod solutions in Vermont. The presentation includes researchers and partners involved with NREL in Design for Manufacturing and Assembly (DfMA), Virtual Design and Construction (VDC), and digital twin based process optimization modeling of integrated Mechanical Pod solutions. The presentation aims to highlight early wins from such a platform and how various physical and virtual tools are currently being employed as part of NREL’s ongoing multi-year project funded by US DOE. Streamlined procurement, coordination, installation, and O&M of Mechanical Pods such that the majority of work is delegated to the off-site modular factory implies monetary savings. Such a seemingly basic shift in location of the construction process leads to great reduction in complexity, first cost, lead time, and waste, and greater opportunities for innovative compartmentalization and integration of mechanical systems appropriately sized for each apartment or hotel guest room. However, past studies on unitized combination systems show that high installation costs, maintenance issues, challenges with system integration, limitations in existing electrical infrastructure, and lack of architecturally appealing solutions are key barriers. NREL and partners aim to address key barriers through DfMA approach, rapid prototyping and testing, and digital twin process optimization modeling. The presentation is also a call for interested entities to partner with NREL as part of the national-scale development platform, help drive both product and process innovation, and encourage open source sharing of learnings. Learning objectives include (1) learn about the vision of national-scale shared development platform for process-product innovation on integrated mechanical pod solutions and how to get involved, (2) gain an understanding of the components of an all-electric, high performance home, design characteristics and equipment included in an all-electric mechanical pod, integration of mechanical systems within a modular factories’ assembly line, and the system’s commissioning, operation and maintenance. The pre-planning and coordination with the factory and sub-contractors are also highlighted, (3) gain an understanding of using process modeling tools to quantify resource-constrained performance of operations (such as integration of energy efficiency strategies) to manufacture modules of varying design, (4) gain insights on virtual design, rapid prototyping, and emulated testing of various form factors across different climatic conditions. The need for such preliminary testing with open source sharing of learnings will also be highlighted.

30 DIRECT ENERGY CONVERSION↗
DOE OSTI2015

A virtual simulator designed for collision prevention in proton therapy

Purpose: In proton therapy, collisions between the patient and nozzle potentially occur because of the large nozzle structure and efforts to minimize the air gap. Thus, software was developed to predict such collisions between the nozzle and patient using treatment virtual simulation. Methods: Three-dimensional (3D) modeling of a gantry inner-floor, nozzle, and robotic-couch was performed using SolidWorks based on the manufacturer’s machine data. To obtain patient body information, a 3D-scanner was utilized right before CT scanning. Using the acquired images, a 3D-image of the patient’s body contour was reconstructed. The accuracy of the image was confirmed against the CT image of a humanoid phantom. The machine components and the virtual patient were combined on the treatment-room coordinate system, resulting in a virtual simulator. The simulator simulated the motion of its components such as rotation and translation of the gantry, nozzle, and couch in real scale. A collision, if any, was examined both in static and dynamic modes. The static mode assessed collisions only at fixed positions of the machine’s components, while the dynamic mode operated any time a component was in motion. A collision was identified if any voxels of two components, e.g., the nozzle and the patient or couch, overlapped when calculating volume locations. The event and collision point were visualized, and collision volumes were reported. Results: All components were successfully assembled, and the motions were accurately controlled. The 3D-shape of the phantom agreed with CT images within a deviation of 2 mm. Collision situations were simulated within minutes, and the results were displayed and reported. Conclusions: The developed software will be useful in improving patient safety and clinical efficiency of proton therapy.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2020

Experimental demonstration and performance evaluation of a complex fenestration system for daylighting and thermal harvesting

Two significant design strategies for mitigating building energy consumption are daylight redirection and solar energy harvesting. Effective daylighting implementation enhances the amount of useful natural light within a space and offsets the need for electric lighting. Solar energy harvesting systems can mitigate energy costs from mechanical systems by managing incoming thermal loads or capturing solar energy that can be used to supplement thermal systems in the building. While there are many available façade-based technologies that can perform daylighting or solar thermal energy harvesting, there remains a limitation in available systems that can perform both of them simultaneously. This paper, describes the design and experimental demonstration of a Liquid Filled Prismatic Louver (LFPL) system, which combines both energy-saving strategies. The LFPL system was installed in a south-facing room in New York City and evaluated for indoor daylight penetration and potential for thermal energy harvesting. Daylight redirection is achieved through the prismatic louver geometry and proper orientation, whereas thermal energy harvesting is achieved through IR absorption from the liquid (e.g., water) within the prisms. Daylighting performance was evaluated by illuminance measurements at key locations within the space, whereas thermal harvesting performance was evaluated through temperature measurements and thermal imaging analysis. We show that the LFPL system, with all prismatic elements oriented at the same angle, achieve a 2-fold and 8-fold enhancement in daylight redirection to the ceiling, for prism orientations of 10° and 20°, respectively. We also demonstrate the system’s capability to adjust to specific lighting needs, within the space, through the dynamic individual orientation of prismatic elements; thus, achieving a concentrated ceiling illuminance enhancement of ~100 times and ~200 times at 2.5 and 4.3 m away from the window sill, providing workplane illuminance enhancement of 6 and 2 times more than in the case of the control room with regular windows. Furthermore, we illustrate a reduction of potential heating loads at locations close to the window from the combination of infrared absorption in the water volume and the redirection of the incoming solar radiation, leading to a reduction of the workplane temperature by an average of 7–10 °C.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2012

Recent developments in high-temperature photonic crystals for energy conversion

After decades of intense studies focused on cryogenic and room temperature nanophotonics, scientific interest is furthermore growing in high-temperature nanophotonics aimed at solid-state energy conversion. These latest extensive research efforts are spurred by a renewed interest in high temperature thermal-to-electrical energy conversion schemes including thermophotovoltaics (TPV), solar–thermophotovoltaics, solar–thermal, and solar–thermochemical energy conversion systems. This field is profiting tremendously from the outstanding degree of control over the thermal emission properties that can be achieved with nanoscale photonic materials. The key to obtaining high efficiency in this class of high temperature energy conversion is the spectral and angular matching of the radiation properties of an emitter to those of an absorber. Together with the achievements in the field of high-performance narrow bandgap photovoltaic cells, the ability to tailor the radiation properties of thermal emitters and absorbers using nanophotonics facilitates a route to achieving the impressive efficiencies predicted by theoretical studies. In this review, we will discuss the possibilities of emission tailoring by nanophotonics in the light of high temperature thermal-to-electrical energy conversion applications, and give a brief introduction to the field of TPV. We will demonstrate how a class of large area 2D metallic photonic crystals can be designed and employed to efficiently control and tailor the spectral and angular emission properties, paving the way towards new and highly efficient thermophotovoltaic systems and enabling other energy conversion schemes based on high-performance high-temperature nanoscale photonic materials.

30 DIRECT ENERGY CONVERSION↗
DOE OSTI2026

Analysis of strategies to meet ASHRAE S241 infectious aerosol control targets by space type and region using EnergyPlus™ simulations

Professional organizations, such as ASHRAE, have recently proposed new voluntary standards for controlling infectious aerosols. Specifically, ASHRAE Standard 241 (S241) defines equivalent clean air targets for a range of space types that can be met through combinations of mitigation measures. This paper seeks to inform the selection of measures by space type and climate zone through building simulations that quantify the impacts of increased outdoor air ventilation; increasing filtration and/or adding germicidal ultraviolet (GUV) in the central heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems; or using portable air cleaners (PACs), upper room GUV, or whole room GUV approaches to increase equivalent clean air delivery. The measures are assessed individually and in practical combinations for their ability to meet S241 in four space types (offices, classrooms, dining areas, and healthcare waiting rooms) using prototype buildings modeled using EnergyPlus. The mitigation measures are compared holistically against baseline building operations using metrics for equivalent clean air, energy, and comfort. The results in this study show that single measures can meet S241 for offices with minimal impacts on energy and comfort, while either upper room GUV systems or combinations of measures such as MERV 13 HVAC filtration with PACs are needed to meet S241 for classrooms. The dining area and healthcare waiting room targets cannot be met in this study when assuming design occupancy and MS2 as the challenge agent, even when combining multiple measures together. This paper provides valuable considerations when designing measures to meet S241 for a range of spaces and scenarios.

GUV↗
DOE OSTI2021

A review of thermal physics and management inside lithium-ion batteries for high energy density and fast charging

Traditionally it has been assumed that battery thermal management systems should be designed to maintain the battery temperature around room temperature. That is not always true as lithium-ion battery (LIB) R&D is pivoting towards the development of high energy density and fast charging batteries. Therefore, it is necessary to have a comprehensive review of thermal considerations for LIBs targeted for high energy density and fast charging, i.e., the optimal thermal condition, thermal physics (heat transport and generation) inside the battery, and thermal management strategies. As the energy density and charge rate increases, the optimal battery temperature can shift to be higher than room temperature. In the first part of the review various sources of heat generation inside LIBs and various approaches to minimizing battery heat generation are summarized. The importance of heat of mixing due to ion diffusion during fast charging is also highlighted. To improve the temperature uniformity and avoid excessive internal temperature rise, heat transfer inside the battery needs to be enhanced, and reducing the thermal contact resistance between the electrodes and separator can significantly increase the effective thermal conductivity of batteries. In the second part of the review various challenges and latest developments related to thermal transport and properties of LIBs are discussed. Finally, a summary of latest advancement on smart control of internal temperature of LIBs is discussed as depending on the ambient temperature and the optimal temperature; the battery heat needs to be retained or dissipated to elevate or avoid temperature rise.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
DOE OSTI2015

Novel techniques and devices for in-situ film coatings of long, small diameter tubes or elliptical and other surface contours

In this study, devices and techniques that can, via physical vapor deposition,coat various surface contours or very long small aperture pipes, are described. Recently, a magnetron mole was developed in order to in-situ coat accelerator tube sections of the Brookhaven National Lab relativistic heavy ion collider that have 7.1 cm diameter with access points that are 500 m apart, for copper coat the accelerator vacuum tube in order to alleviate the problems of unacceptable ohmic heating and of electron clouds. A magnetron with a 50 cm long cathode was designed fabricated and successfully operated to copper coat a whole assembly containing a full-size, stainless steel, cold bore, of the accelerator magnet tubing connected to two types bellows, to which two additional pipes made of accelerator tubing were connected. The magnetron is mounted on a carriage with spring loaded wheels that successfully crossed bellows and adjusted for variations in vacuum tube diameter, while keeping the magnetron centered. Electrical power and cooling water were fed through a cable bundle. The umbilical cabling system, which is enclosed in a flexible braided metal sleeve, is driven by a motorized spool. To increase cathode lifetime, movable magnet package was developed, and thickest possible cathode was made, with a rather challenging target to substrate distance of less than 1.5 cm. Optimized process to ensure excellent adhesion was developed. Coating thickness of 10 μm Cu passed all industrial tests and even exceeded maximum capability of a 12 kg pull test fixture. Room temperature radio frequency (RF) resistivity measurement indicated that 10 μm Cu coated stainless steel accelerator tube has conductivity close to copper tubing. Work is in progress to repeat the RF resistivity measurement at cryogenic temperatures. Over 20 years ago, a device using multi axis robotic manipulators controlling separate robotic assemblies resulted in nine-axes of motion combined with conformal shape of the cathodes that can adapt to various curved surface contours was developed and successfully used for depositing optical coating on aircraft canopies. The techniques can be utilized for in situ coating of elliptical and other surface contour RF cavities and long beam pipes with thick superconducting films. Plans are to incorporate ion assisted deposition in those techniques for attaining dense, adherent and defect free coatings.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2017

Corrosion of Structural Materials for Advanced Supercritical Carbon- Dioxide Brayton Cycle

The supercritical carbon-dioxide (referred to as SC-CO 2 hereon) Brayton cycle is being considered for power conversion systems for a number of nuclear reactor concepts, including the sodium fast reactor (SFR), fluoride saltcooled high temperature reactor (FHR), and high temperature gas reactor (HTGR), and several types of small modular reactors (SMR). The SC-CO 2 direct cycle gas fast reactor has also been recently proposed. The SC-CO 2 Brayton cycle (discussed in Chapter 1) provides higher efficiencies compared to the Rankine steam cycle due to less compression work stemming from higher SC-CO 2 densities, and allows for smaller components size, fewer components, and simpler cycle layout. For example, in the case of a SFR using a SC-CO 2 Brayton cycle instead of a steam cycle would also eliminate the possibility of sodium-water interactions. The SC-CO 2 cycle has a higher efficiency than the helium Brayton cycle, with the additional advantage of being able to operate at lower temperatures and higher pressures. In general, the SC-CO 2 Brayton cycle is well-suited for any type of nuclear reactor (including SMR) with core outlet temperature above ~ 500°C in either direct or indirect versions. In all the above applications, materials corrosion in high temperature SC-CO 2 is an important consideration, given their expected lifetimes of 20 years or longer. Our discussions with National Laboratories and private industry early on in this project indicated materials corrosion to be one of the significant gaps in the implementation of SC-CO 2 Brayton cycle. Corrosion can lead to a loss of effective load-bearing wall thickness of a component and can potentially lead to the generation of oxide particulate debris which can lead to three-body wear in turbomachinery components. Another environmental degradation effect that is rather unique to CO 2 environment is the possibility for simultaneous occurrence of carburization during oxidation of the material. Carburization can potentially lead to embrittlement of structural alloys in SC-CO 2 Brayton cycle. An important consideration in regards to corrosion is that the temperatures can vary widely across the various sections of the SC-CO 2 Brayton cycle, from room temperature to 750°C, with even higher temperatures being desirable for higher efficiencies. Thus the extent of corrosion and corrosion mechanisms in various components and SC-CO 2 Brayton cycle will be different, requiring a judicious selection of materials for different sections of the cycle. The goal of this project was to address materials corrosion-related challenges, identify appropriate materials, and advance the body of scientific knowledge in the area of high temperature SC-CO 2 corrosion. The focus was on corrosion of materials in SC-CO 2 environment in the temperature range of 450°C to 750°C at a pressure of 2900 psi for exposure duration for up to 1000 hours. The Table below lists the materials tested in the project. The materials were selected based on their high temperature strength, their code certification status, commercial availabilities, and their prior or current usage in the nuclear reactor industry. Additionally, pure Fe, Fe-12%Cr, and Ni-22%Cr were investigated as simple model materials to more clearly understand corrosion mechanisms. This first phase of the project involved testing in research grade SC-CO 2 (99.999% purity). Specially designed autoclaves with high fidelity temperature, pressure, and flow control capabilities were built or modified for this project.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
NASA NTRS1996

Nutrient management effects on sweetpotato genotypes under controlled environment

Sweetpotato is one of several crops recommended by National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for bioregenerative life support studies. One of the objectives of the Tuskegee University NASA Center is to optimize growth conditions for adaptability of sweetpotatoes for closed bioregenerative systems. The role of nutrient solution management as it impacts yield has been one of the major thrusts in these studies. Nutrient solution management protocol currently used consists of a modified half Hoagland solution that is changed at 14-day intervals. Reservoirs are refilled with deionized water if the volume of the nutrient solution was reduced to 8 liters or less before the time of solution change. There is the need to recycle and replenish nutrient solution during crop growth, rather than discard at 14 day intervals as previously done, in order to reduce waste. Experiments were conducted in an environmental growth room to examine the effects of container size on the growth of several sweetpotato genotypes grown under a nutrient replenishment protocol. Plants were grown from vine cuttings of 15cm length and were planted in 0.15 x 0.15 x 1.2m growth channels using a closed nutrient film technique system. Nutrient was supplied in a modified half strength Hoagland's solution with a 1:2.4 N:K ratio. Nutrient replenishment protocol consisted of daily water replenishment to a constant volume of 30.4 liters in the small containers and 273.6 liters in the large container. Nutrients were replenished as needed when the EC of the nutrient solution fell below 1200 mhos/cm. The experimental design used was a split-plot with the main plot being container size and genotypes as the subplot. Nine sweetpotato genotypes were evaluated. Results showed no effect of nutrient solution container size on storage root yield, foliage fresh and dry mass, leaf area or vine length. However, plants grown using the large nutrient solution container accumulated more storage root dry mass than those with the small containers. Although plants grown with the smaller containers showed greater water uptake, plant nutrient uptake was lower than with the larger container. All genotypes evaluated showed variation in their responses to all parameters measured.

Solanaceae/genetics/growth & development↗
NASA NTRS2010

Electrical Switching of Perovskite Thin-Film Resistors

Electronic devices that exploit electrical switching of physical properties of thin films of perovskite materials (especially colossal magnetoresistive materials) have been invented. Unlike some related prior devices, these devices function at room temperature and do not depend on externally applied magnetic fields. Devices of this type can be designed to function as sensors (exhibiting varying electrical resistance in response to varying temperature, magnetic field, electric field, and/or mechanical pressure) and as elements of electronic memories. The underlying principle is that the application of one or more short electrical pulse(s) can induce a reversible, irreversible, or partly reversible change in the electrical, thermal, mechanical, and magnetic properties of a thin perovskite film. The energy in the pulse must be large enough to induce the desired change but not so large as to destroy the film. Depending on the requirements of a specific application, the pulse(s) can have any of a large variety of waveforms (e.g., square, triangular, or sine) and be of positive, negative, or alternating polarity. In some applications, it could be necessary to use multiple pulses to induce successive incremental physical changes. In one class of applications, electrical pulses of suitable shapes, sizes, and polarities are applied to vary the detection sensitivities of sensors. Another class of applications arises in electronic circuits in which certain resistance values are required to be variable: Incorporating the affected resistors into devices of the present type makes it possible to control their resistances electrically over wide ranges, and the lifetimes of electrically variable resistors exceed those of conventional mechanically variable resistors. Another and potentially the most important class of applications is that of resistance-based nonvolatile-memory devices, such as a resistance random access memory (RRAM) described in the immediately following article, Electrically Variable Resistive Memory Devices (MFS-32511-1).

Liu, Shangqing↗