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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 775 records · Page 43
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2004

Nanotube Activities at NASA-Johnson Space Center

Nanotube activities at NASA-Johnson Space Center include production, purification, characterization as well as applications of single wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs). A parametric study of the pulsed laser ablation process is recently completed to monitor the effect of production parameters including temperature, buffer gas, flow rate, pressure, and laser fluence. Enhancement of production is achieved by rastering the graphite target and by increasing the target surface temperature with a cw laser. In-situ diagnostics during production included time resolved passive emission and laser induced fluorescence from the plume. The improvement of the purity by a variety of steps in the purification process is monitored by characterization techniques including SEM, TEM, Raman, UV-VIS-NIR and TGA. A recently established NASA-JSC protocol for SWCNT characterization is undergoing revision with feedback from nanotube community. Efforts at JSC over the past five years in composites have centered on structural polymer/nanotube systems. Recent activities broadened this focus to multifunctional materials, supercapacitors, fuel cells, regenerable CO2 absorbers, electromagnetic shielding, radiation dosimetry and thermal management systems of interest for human space flight. Preliminary tests indicate improvement of performance in most of these applications because of the large Surface area as well as high electrical and thermal conductivity exhibited by SWCNTs. Comparison with existing technologies and possible future improvements in the SWCNT materials sill be presented.

Arepalli, Sivaram↗
NASA NTRS1987

Nondestructive ultrasonic characterization of two-phase materials

The development of ultrasonic methods for the nondestructive characterization of mechanical properties of two phase engineering materials are described. The primary goal was to establish relationships between the nonlinearity parameter and the percentage of solid solution phase in two phase systems such as heat treatable aluminum alloys. The acoustoelastic constant was also measured on these alloys. A major advantage of the nonlinearity parameter over that of the acoustoelastic constant is that it may be determined without the application of stress on the material, which makes the method more applicable to inservice nondestructive characterization. The results obtained on the heat treatable 7075 and the work hardenable 5086 and 5456 aluminum alloys show that both the acoustoelastic constant and the acoustic nonlinearity parameter change considerable with the volume fraction of second phase precipitates in these aluminum alloys. A mathematical model was also developed to relate the effective acoustic nonlinearity parameter to volume fraction of second phase precipitates in an alloy. The equation is approximated to within experimental error by a linear expression for volume fractions up to approx. 10%.

Salama, Kamel↗
NASA NTRS1992

Electrical properties of teflon and ceramic capacitors at high temperatures

Space power systems and components are often required to operate efficiently and reliably in harsh environments where stresses, such as high temperature, are encountered. These systems must, therefore, withstand exposure to high temperature while still providing good electrical and other functional properties. Experiments were carried out to evaluate Teflon and ceramic capacitors for potential use in high temperature applications. The capacitors were characterized in terms of their capacitance and dielectric loss as a function of temperature, up to 200 C. At a given temperature, these properties were obtained in a frequency range of 50 Hz to 100 kHz. DC leakage current measurements were also performed in a temperature range from 25 to 200 C. The results obtained are discussed and conclusions are made concerning the suitability of the capacitors studied for high temperature applications.

Hammoud, A. N.↗
DOE OSTI2016

Spatial Support Vector Regression to Detect Silent Errors in the Exascale Era

As the exascale era approaches, the increasing capacity of high-performance computing (HPC) systems with targeted power and energy budget goals introduces significant challenges in reliability. Silent data corruptions (SDCs) or silent errors are one of the major sources that corrupt the executionresults of HPC applications without being detected. In this work, we explore a low-memory-overhead SDC detector, by leveraging epsilon-insensitive support vector machine regression, to detect SDCs that occur in HPC applications that can be characterized by an impact error bound. The key contributions are three fold. (1) Our design takes spatialfeatures (i.e., neighbouring data values for each data point in a snapshot) into training data, such that little memory overhead (less than 1%) is introduced. (2) We provide an in-depth study on the detection ability and performance with different parameters, and we optimize the detection range carefully. (3) Experiments with eight real-world HPC applications show thatour detector can achieve the detection sensitivity (i.e., recall) up to 99% yet suffer a less than 1% of false positive rate for most cases. Our detector incurs low performance overhead, 5% on average, for all benchmarks studied in the paper. Compared with other state-of-the-art techniques, our detector exhibits the best tradeoff considering the detection ability and overheads.

Subasi, Omer↗
DOE OSTI2023

At-wavelength characterization of X-ray wavefronts in Bragg diffraction from crystals

The advent of next-generation synchrotron radiation sources and X-ray free-electron lasers calls for high-quality Bragg-diffraction crystal optics to preserve the X-ray beam coherence and wavefront. This requirement brings new challenges in characterizing crystals in Bragg diffraction in terms of Bragg-plane height errors and wavefront phase distortions. Here, a quantitative methodology to characterize crystal optics using a state-of-the-art at-wavelength wavefront sensing technique and statistical analysis is proposed. The method was tested at the 1-BM-B optics testing beamline at the Advanced Photon Source for measuring silicon and diamond crystals in a self-referencing single-crystal mode and an absolute double-crystal mode. The phase error sensitivity of the technique is demonstrated to be at the λ/100 level required by most applications, such as the characterization of diamond crystals for cavity-based X-ray free-electron lasers.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2018

Characterization of the Interface of an Alloy 625 Overlay on Steels Using Nanoindentation

Industry standards require postweld heat treatment (PWHT) to reduce the heat-affected zone hardness of steels such as F22 (2.25Cr-1Mo) and AISI 8630 overlaid (clad) with Alloy 625 weld metal. PWHT results in carbon diffusion and accumulation at the interface between the steel and overlay. The accumulation of carbon in a planar solidification growth zone adjacent to the fusion boundary results in high hardness and the potential for hydrogen-assisted cracking. The planar growth zone (PGZ) is so narrow that normal Vickers hardness testing cannot fully reveal the hardness distribution in this zone. This study focused on the application of nanoindentation to characterize the hardness in the narrow microstructural regions adjacent to the fusion boundary. The development of nanohardness maps revealed that the PGZ is not necessarily the region that exhibits peak hardness after PWHT. The highest hardness values were associated with clusters of M{sub 7}C{sub 3} carbides in specific subregions in the PGZ and also in the partially-mixed zone adjacent to the fusion boundary or in steel “swirl” structures. It was also confirmed in this study that nanohardness has a linear correlation with Vickers hardness values. The results presented here provide new insight into the role of carbon diffusion during PWHT and its effect on interface embrittlement associated with Alloy 625 overlays on steel.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2018

Solvothermal synthesis and characterization of highly monodisperse organically functionalized vanadium oxide nanocrystals for thermochromic applications

Highlights: • Vanadium oxide nanocrystals is synthesized via an improved solvothermal method. • Vanadium oxide nanocrystals possess a structure of distorted paramontroseite VO{sub 2}(P). • Thermally annealed nanocrystal thin films exhibit good thermochromic properties. - Abstract: We report on the synthesis and characterization of highly monodisperse organically functionalized vanadium oxide (VO{sub x}) nanocrystals with a size of 7–10 nm. We show that how these nanocrystals can be prepared by an improved solvothermal reaction and confirm their composition and structure through various materials characterization techniques. Our results revealed that VO{sub x} nanocrystals have a crystalline structure almost identical to that of paramontroseite VO{sub 2}(P) and the majority of vanadium is in oxidation state of V(IV). VO{sub x} nanocrystal films can be readily prepared via a spin coating technique. Once thermally annealed at ∼350 °C under an air/N{sub 2} flow, the films exhibited good thermochromic properties (luminous transmittance (T{sub lum}) ≈49–66%, infrared switching efficiency (ΔT{sub 2000nm}) ≈28–43%, and solar modulating ability (ΔT{sub sol}) ≈7.4–10.7%), corresponding to a phase transition between monoclinic VO{sub 2}(M) and rutile VO{sub 2}(R).

77 NANOSCIENCE AND NANOTECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2024

Addressing Critical Problems in Materials Science Through Multiscale and Multimode Characterization (Project 1); Characterization and Optimization of Novel Triple-Conducting Oxide Materials for Energy Applications (Project 2) (CRADA Final Report)

PROJECT 1: Address critical problems in materials science and simultaneously advance the state-of-the-art in multiscale and multimode characterization using the combined advanced analytical capabilities and expertise of Colorado School of Mines (CSM) and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). The primary effort of the Phase I of this CRADA is to establish the International Center for Multiscale Characterization using shared resources at both NREL and CSM. Phase II will focus on capability development and marketing, choosing candidate materials science issues in the areas of structure imaging, chemical composition mapping, and correlating properties and performance of materials for impact in energy-related, environmental and critical materials areas. The CRADA will be modified to include specific topics of concern in materials science to industry member partners. Advanced analytical capabilities and expertise at CSM and NREL will be used to advance materials understanding and performance through characterization of multiscale phenomena including structural imaging, chemical composition mapping, and other techniques correlating properties and performance of materials. PROJECT 2: As part of the International Center for Materials Characterization, work under Modification #1 will be led by Colorado School of Mines (CSM), working in collaboration with NREL staff to mentor and advise CSM postdoctoral researchers on set up of diffusion annealing experiments. The purpose of the modification is to provide for NREL staff to mentor and advise CSM postdoctoral researchers on set up of diffusion annealing experiments, including mentoring and advising the CSM-NREL team on proper Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (SIMS) data analysis as needed. SIMS measurements of 10-20 samples will be performed at NREL during the project duration.

08 HYDROGEN↗
NASA NTRS2003

Characterization of the Effects of Precursor Mineralogy on Hematite Spectra: Application to Martian Hematite Mineralization

The Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES) instrument aboard Mars Global Surveyor discovered several isolated deposits of gray, crystalline hematite in Sinus Meridiani, Aram Chaos, and Valles Marineris. A variety of formation mechanisms has been proposed for the martian hematite deposits, including aqueous and nonaqueous processes. Comparison of the average Sinus Meridiani hematite spectrum measured by TES to laboratory emissivity spectra for a variety of naturally occurring hematites shows small but potentially important differences. In particular, the emissivity minimum at 300 and 445/cm in the Sinus Meridiani (SM) spectrum is displaced 10-25/cm to lower frequencies compared to some natural hematite samples. In addition, these bands in the TES data are narrower than the broad bands seen in many natural hematite spectra. These differences may imply that the natural variability of hematite spectra has not been fully characterized, especially with respect to the reaction pathway (precursor mineralogy and temperature of hematite formation) and crystal morphology. Here, we describe the thermal infrared spectral characteristics of several series of synthetic hematite samples derived by direct precipitation, dehydroxylation of fine-grained goethite and the oxidation of magnetite. Several natural hematite sample spectra are also presented for comparison. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and Mossbauer spectral analyses of selected samples were performed in order to help determine the causes of the changes seen in the infrared spectra.

Glotch, Timothy D.↗
DOE OSTI2025

Heavy boron doping effects on biaxially tensile strained germanium (>1.5%) investigated via structural characterization, effective lifetime assessment and atomistic modeling

Highly tensile strained germanium (ε-Ge) represents an essential material system for emerging electronic and photonics applications. Moreover, adjusting the doping levels to moderate or high concentrations can effectively tailor the properties of ε-Ge for specific applications. This article combines experimental characterization with a theoretical framework to examine the effects of heavy elemental boron (B) doping on pseudomorphic sub-50 nm ε-Ge. High resolution X-ray diffractometry is used to validate tensile strain levels of 1.53% and 1.68% in Ge epilayers, surpassing the indirect-to-direct band gap crossover point at ∼1.5% biaxial tensile strain. Cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy revealed visual evidence of stacking faults and surface roughening in 1.68% ε-Ge, although a coherent and abrupt Ge/III–V heterointerface is observed, devoid of interfacial misfit dislocations. Effective lifetime measurements demonstrated approximately twofold enhancement in 1.53% B-doped ε-Ge (N B ∼7 × 10 19 cm −3 ) compared to its unstrained B-doped counterpart, while no such improvement was observed in 1.68% B-doped ε-Ge. This lack of enhancement is attributed to the presence of stacking faults and surface roughness within the ε-Ge epilayer. Through density functional theory calculations, we independently demonstrate that substitutional B atoms induce local deformation of Ge–Ge bonds in both unstrained Ge and ε-Ge epilayers, resulting in an additive tensile strain. This phenomenon could potentially lead to dynamic reduction and overcoming of the critical layer thickness for the system, facilitating the nucleation and subsequent glide of 90° leading Shockley partial dislocations, thereby generating stacking faults. In essence, these findings establish an upper limit on the B-doping concentration that can be achieved in highly ε-Ge epilayers, and collectively, offer valuable insights into the significance of heavy doping in Ge-based heterostructures. As such, this study delineates a fundamental constraint for integrating heavily doped ε-Ge in high-performance optoelectronic systems, necessitating precise strain-doping co-optimization to avoid performance degradation.

77 NANOSCIENCE AND NANOTECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2019

Characterization of borate glasses doped with copper oxide for optical application

Borate glasses having the formula x CuO–(50 − x)B{sub 2}O{sub 3}–30Na{sub 2}O–20ZnO where x = 0, 0.2, 0.5, 1, 4 and 7 mol% were investigated. The samples were prepared using the conventional melt-quenching technique. Physical properties were studied such as; X-ray diffraction, FTIR spectra, and UV–visible transmission. The optical basicity, average electro negativity have been estimated. The estimated optical basicity, unlike electron negativity, exhibits an increase with increasing the CuO content. FTIR spectra show that BO{sub 4} ratio decreases with increasing CuO content leading to the formation of non-bridging oxygen’s. Some optical parameters such as the optical band gap, band tail width, crystal field strength and the UV and NIR cut off were determined. The transmission spectrum revealed that the glassy samples containing high content of copper oxide behave as bandpass filters at higher content. The characterized parameters of these filters were found to be highly affected by the addition of CuO. In these glasses the broad absorption band observed at the wavelength 550 nm is characterized by the existence of Cu{sup 2+} ions. The optical absorption and ESR studies suggest that, the Cu-ions exist in the Cu{sup 2+} state and act as modifiers by increasing the degree of disorder in the glass network. Hence, the present system behaves as a bandpass filter in the ultraviolet–visible region.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2015

Generation of localized strain in a thin film piezoelectric to control individual magnetoelectric heterostructures

Experimental results demonstrate the ability of a surface electrode pattern to produce sufficient in-plane strain in a PbZr0.52Ti0.48O3 (PZT) thin film clamped by a Si substrate to control magnetism in a 1000 nm diameter Ni ring. The electrode pattern and the Ni ring/PZT thin film heterostructure were designed using a finite element based micromagnetics code. The magnetoelectric heterostructures were fabricated on the PZT film using e-beam lithography and characterized using magnetic force microscopy. Application of voltage to the electrodes moved one of the “onion” state domain walls. This method enables the development of complex architectures incorporating strain-mediated multiferroic devices.

Cui, Jizhai↗
DOE OSTI2024

Utilizing digitized occurrence records of Midwestern feral Cannabis sativa to develop ecological niche models

Hemp (Cannabis sativa L.) has historically played a vital role in agriculture across the globe. Feral and wild populations have served as genetic resources for breeding, conservation, and adaptation to changing environmental conditions. However, feral populations of Cannabis, specifically in the Midwestern United States, remain poorly understood. This study aims to characterize the abiotic tolerances of these populations, estimate suitable areas, identify regions at risk of abiotic suitability change, and highlight the utility of ecological niche models (ENMs) in germplasm conservation. The Maxent algorithm was used to construct a series of ENMs. Validation metrics and MOP (Mobility-oriented Parity) analysis were used to assess extrapolation risk and model performance. We also projected the final projected under current and future climate scenarios (2021–2040 and 2061–2080) to assess how abiotic suitability changes with time. Climate change scenarios indicated an expansion of suitable habitat, with priority areas for germplasm collection in Indiana, Illinois, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska. This study demonstrates the application of ENMs for characterizing feral Cannabis populations and highlights their value in germplasm conservation and breeding efforts. Populations of feral C. sativa in the Midwest are of high interest, and future research should focus on utilizing tools to aid the collection of materials for the characterization of genetic diversity and adaptation to a changing climate.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS2006

Integrated Modeling and Simulation Verification, Validation, and Accreditation Strategy for Exploration Systems Mission Directorate

Models and simulations (M&S) are critical resources in the exploration of space. They support program management, systems engineering, integration, analysis, test, and operations and provide critical information and data supporting key analyses and decisions (technical, cost and schedule). Consequently, there is a clear need to establish a solid understanding of M&S strengths and weaknesses, and the bounds within which they can credibly support decision-making. Their usage requires the implementation of a rigorous approach to verification, validation and accreditation (W&A) and establishment of formal process and practices associated with their application. To ensure decision-making is suitably supported by information (data, models, test beds) from activities (studies, exercises) from M&S applications that are understood and characterized, ESMD is establishing formal, tailored W&A processes and practices. In addition, to ensure the successful application of M&S within ESMD, a formal process for the certification of analysts that use M&S is being implemented. This presentation will highlight NASA's Exploration Systems Mission Directorate (ESMD) management approach for M&S W&A to ensure decision-makers receive timely information on the model's fidelity, credibility, and quality.

Hale, Joseph P.↗
DOE OSTI2024

VUV light collection enhancement with metasurface lenses

Vacuum-ultraviolet (VUV) light has applications in many areas of fundamental research and technology, including high-energy physics (HEP) experiments and especially those based on scintillation of noble elements (xenon and argon).There are persistent challenges associated with the detection of the VUV photons in particle detectors, e.g. strong absorption by structural materials and low detection efficiency of the photosensors.Metasurfaces are relatively novel nano-fabricated devices which offer unprecedented control of light with a wide field of view and diffraction-limited focusing.This contribution will present the first linear metasurface lens operating in the VUV spectral range with the measured diffraction efficiencies above 50%.The design and fabrication processes will be described in detail, as well as the characterization measurements, and possible applications in the HEP experiments will be discussed.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
NASA NTRS1991

Emerging polyheterocyclic films, coatings and resins - Thermoplastic polyquinolines

The processing and performance characteristics of a soluble, thermoplastic polyquinoline suggest its utility in a variety of high performance applications. The polymer is characterized by excellent thermal and oxidative stability, very low moisture absorption, good mechanical properties, very low dielectric constant, and an unusually low thermal expansion coefficient. This polymer, designated PQ-100 (TM), can be cast into strong, transparent, free standing films from common solvents. Coatings of variable thickness can be spin-coated on to silicon and other surfaces. After processing into films, PQ-100 (TM) can be rendered insoluble in a wide range of solvents using a proprietary process. The low CTE contributes to very low residual stress when the polymer is spin-coated onto silicon wafers. PQ-100 (TM) is currently under evaluation for use as an interlayer dielectric substrate in high-density interconnect applications, including multichip modules. Many of the characteristics of the polymer also suggest its utility as a high-performance film and as a matrix resin for specialty composite applications.

Hendricks, Neil H.↗
DOE OSTI2022

Thermal Management System for an Electric Machine with Additively Manufactured Hollow Conductors with Integrated Heat Pipes: Preprint

This paper discusses steps taken to size a thermal management system for an aircraft propulsion electric machine containing additively manufactured coils integrated with heat pipes aimed at boosting its specific power. Experimental setups are used to size and characterize heat pipes for the application and 3D thermal FEA is used to determine optimum heat transfer coefficient of convective boundaries. Geometric details of fin-based surface area enhancement required to reach target combined overall heat transfer coefficient (U) and surface area (A) performance (UA) in W/K, is worked out for relevant boundaries and the resulting UA is verified in 3D thermal FEA. Thermal management system's UA (by extension specific power) sensitivity to coolant temperature is explored and temperature distribution plots of optimized machine components are presented and discussed.

additive manufacturing↗
DOE OSTI2025

A modeling study of ocean thermal energy conversion resource and potential environmental effects around Kailua-Kona, Hawaii

Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) offers a promising renewable energy solution through a heat exchange process using the temperature difference between warm surface seawater and cold deep seawater. Because accurate resource characterization is critical for the optimal design and implementation of OTEC systems, a high-resolution numerical model is employed to better characterize the OTEC resource at Kona, Hawaii. Our model provides detailed spatial and temporal variability of the thermal gradient, which is essential for assessing the viability and efficiency of OTEC systems. The model results reveal distinct patterns and dynamics not captured by existing observations or models (e.g., lower-resolution information). These findings highlight the importance of using high-resolution models for accurate predictions of thermal gradient variability, ultimately supporting more efficient and sustainable OTEC deployment. Additionally, the study investigates the impacts of mixed water discharge from OTEC plants that can cause shock to organisms living in the surface water and potentially destabilize the water column. Understanding these effects is vital for minimizing any potential negative environmental consequences and ensuring the long-term viability of OTEC operations. Further, our model improves OTEC resource characterization, which can lead to optimal design and deployment of OTEC systems. The analysis of OTEC water discharge impacts can accelerate the development of OTEC technologies, overcoming permitting/consenting challenges. These findings contribute to the broader adoption of high-resolution modeling in ocean energy resource characterization, particularly for OTEC applications.

30 DIRECT ENERGY CONVERSION↗