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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 91 records · Page 5
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2011

Evaluation of Tribocharged Electrostatic Beneficiation of Lunar Simulant in Lunar Gravity

The lunar regolith has high concentrations of aluminum, silicon, calcium, iron, sodium, and titanium oxides. Liberation of these metals would provide necessary materials for structural and building material fabrication, spare part, machine and tool production, and construction and site preparation in-situ on the moon or other extraterrestrial body (Rao et al 1979). Ilmenite (FeTi03) is a mineral of interest on the moon as a source of iron, titanium, and oxygen (Cameron 1992, Zhao and Shadman 1993) and therefore enrichment of this mineral in the feedstock before processing would be a considerable advantage in reducing energy requirements to process regolith. Not only for construction materials, but shipping oxygen and water from earth is weight prohibitive, and so investigations into the potential production of oxygen from the oxides of lunar regolith are a major research initiative by NASA (Sibille et al. 2009, Moscatello et al. 2009). In this paper, the results of electrostatic beneficiation of two sets of lunar simulants on two different reduced gravity flight series are presented.

Quinn, Jacqueline W.↗
DOE OSTI2021

Force field for calcium sulfate minerals to predict structural, hydration, and interfacial properties

Calcium sulfates such as anhydrite, hemihydrate, and gypsum find widespread use in building materials, implants, and tissue healing. We introduce a simple and compatible atomistic force field for all calcium sulfate phases that reproduces a wide range of experimental data including lattice parameters, surface, hydration, mechanical, and thermal properties in 1% to 5% accuracy relative to experiments. The performance is several times better than prior force fields and DFT methods, which lead to errors in structures and energies up to 100%. We explain (hkl) cleavage energies, the dynamics of (hkl) water interfaces, and new insights into molecular origins of crystal-facet specific hydration and solubility. Impressive agreement of computed and experimentally measured hydration energies is shown. The models add to the Interface force field (IFF) and are compatible with multiple force fields (CHARMM, AMBER, GROMOS, CVFF, PCFF, OPLS-AA) for property predictions of sulfate-containing materials from atoms to the large nanometer scale.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2024

Carbon-sequestration gradient insulation composites

The massive use of carbon-sequestration building materials promises a potential global carbon sink in decarbonizing the building industry. Renewable biogenic materials from abundant agriculture waste for building practice have been around over thousands of years. However, in addition to their flammability and moisture problems, addressing their low thermal and structural performance is also becoming indispensable and urgent when it comes to environmentally sustainable and energy-efficient buildings. Here, we report a nature-inspired biogenic gradient insulation composite with an optimized silica concentration of 30 wt %, a density of 0.246 g/cm 3 , and a porosity of 86%. The gradient hybrid composite exhibits a thermal conductivity of 28.2 mW m -1 K -1 , which is the lowest achieved under optimal preparation conditions. Here, it also shows a flexural modulus of 590 MPa for the aerogel-rich layer without surface modification, and it demonstrates superior fire retardancy and superhydrophobicity after surface treatment.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2021

Confirmation of Radiological Non-Impact Status for TA-08-0032, TA-11-0024 and -0036

Environmental Protection and Compliance, Environmental Stewardship (EPC-ES) has evaluated radiological process knowledge and surveys and found that the structures and associated building materials in Technical Area 8 Building 32 and Technical Area 11 Buildings 24 and 36 (TA-08-0032, TA-11-00024, and TA-11-0036, respectively) are candidates for unrestricted use and public release. This finding is consistent with the requirements of DOE Order 458.1, Radiation Protection of the Public and the Environment and LANL Procedure FSD-004, Environmental Radiation Protection.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2023

Confirmation of Radiological Non-Impact Status for TA-16-380

Environmental Protection and Compliance, Environmental Stewardship (EPC-ES) has evaluated radiological process knowledge and surveys and found that the structure and associated building materials in Technical Area 16 Building 380 (TA-16-380) are candidates for unrestricted use and public release. This finding is consistent with the requirements of DOE Order 458.1, Radiation Protection of the Public and the Environment and LANL Procedure FSD-004, Environmental Radiation Protection.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2021

Confirmation of Radiological Non-Impact Status for TA-22 Magazines

Environmental Protection and Compliance, Environmental Stewardship (EPC-ES) has evaluated radiological process knowledge and surveys and found that the structures and associated building materials in magazines and process building at Technical Area 22 (TA-22) are candidates for unrestricted use and public release. TA-22 magazines included in this analysis are: buildings TA-0011, -0012, -0014, -0015, -0016, -0017, -0019, -0021, -0022, -0023, -0024, -0035, and -0069 and building TA-22-0025, which is an a process building. This finding is consistent with the requirements of DOE Order 458.1 Radiation Protection of the Public and the Environment and LANL Procedure FSD-004 Environmental Radiation Protection.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2023

Tailoring biogenic straw insulation from additive manufacturing

In the pursuit of carbon-storing materials that could help accomplish high levels of building sustainability, wheat straw has emerged as a promising alternative to fossil fuel-based building materials. Straw is 100% biodegradable and abundant agricultural waste used in the construction 400 years ago, and it has been reported to have the lowest embodied carbon when measured against other typical insulating materials. Here, in this study, we report additive manufacturing of carbon-sequestration insulation panel materials by upcycling cellulose fibrils from wheat straw. Cellulose obtained from alkaline and 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine-1-oxyl radical-mediated oxidation shows thermal conductivity of 0.036 W m -1 K -1 , alongside elastic and flexural modulus of 900 MPa and 502 MPa, respectively. In addition, an in-situ hydrophobic treatment in the cellulose-based insulation panels is achieved with an average water contact angle of 133.7° Furthermore, the extrusion-based additive manufacturing of a 3D-printable ink obtained by mixing the cellulose and silica aerogel precursor is accomplished, with the printed material exhibiting structural integrity, thus showing great potential towards the development of state-of-the-art, sustainable materials for carbon-sequestration building applications.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2023

Carbon cycle extremes accelerate weakening of the land carbon sink in the late 21st century

Increasing surface temperature could lead to enhanced evaporation, reduced soil moisture availability, and more frequent droughts and heat waves. The spatiotemporal co-occurrence of such effects further drives extreme anomalies in vegetation productivity and net land carbon storage. However, the impacts of climate change on extremes in net biospheric production (NBP) over longer time periods are unknown. Using the percentile threshold on the probability distribution curve of NBP anomalies, we computed negative and positive extremes in NBP. Here we show that due to climate warming, about 88% of global regions will experience a larger magnitude of negative NBP extremes than positive NBP extremes toward the end of 2100, which accelerate the weakening of the land carbon sink. Our analysis indicates the frequency of negative extremes associated with declines in biospheric productivity was larger than positive extremes, especially in the tropics. While the overall impact of warming at high latitudes is expected to increase plant productivity and carbon uptake, high-temperature anomalies increasingly induce negative NBP extremes toward the end of the 21st century. Using regression analysis, we found soil moisture anomalies to be the most dominant individual driver of NBP extremes. The compound effect of hotness, dryness, and fire caused extremes at more than 50% of the total grid cells. The larger proportion of negative NBP extremes raises a concern about whether the Earth is capable of increasing vegetation production with a growing human population and rising demand for plant material for food, fiber, fuel, and building materials. The increasing proportion of negative NBP extremes highlights the consequences not only of reduction in total carbon uptake capacity but also of conversion of land to a carbon source.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2021

Penetration of Fission Products Ions into Complex Solids and the Effect of Ionic Wash Methods

During washing of radiologically impacted building surfaces, penetration of radionuclide ions into complex solids associated with these surfaces may occur. This study investigates the penetration of Cs-137, Sr-85, and Eu-152 solutions into numerous common building materials and radionuclide behavior when these materials were exposed to a static bath or low-pressure flow of tap water, 0.1 M potassium chloride (KCl), and 0.5 M KCl. The decontamination efficacy and the depth profile for residual contamination were measured to determine the conditions under which applying a wash solution has benefit compared to physically removing the surface material. On asphalt, 70-80% of the radionuclides were found to be within 0.02 mm of the surface. Concrete is more porous than asphalt, and 80% of the radionuclides were within 0.2 mm of the surface for Cs-137 and Eu-152 and 50-80% for Sr-85. Water effectively removed all contaminants from hard nonporous surfaces. Finally, this paper illustrates that a wash penalty factor concept-defined as ratio of the depth at which 50% of the radioactivity is found in the washed sample divided by the depth at which 50% of radioactivity is found in the control-can serve as a way to quantify whether the wash method increases the depth at which contamination penetrates into the material and thus the material becomes more difficult to decontaminate.

building materials↗
DOE OSTI2020

Chemical composition of material extractives influences microbial growth and dynamics on wetted wood materials

The impact of material chemical composition on microbial growth on building materials remains relatively poorly understood. We investigate the influence of the chemical composition of material extractives on microbial growth and community dynamics on 30 different wood species that were naturally inoculated, wetted, and held at high humidity for several weeks. Microbial growth was assessed by visual assessment and molecular sequencing. Unwetted material powders and microbial swab samples were analyzed using reverse phase liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry. Different wood species demonstrated varying susceptibility to microbial growth after 3 weeks and visible coverage and fungal qPCR concentrations were correlated (R 2 = 0.55). Aspergillaceae was most abundant across all samples; Meruliaceae was more prevalent on 8 materials with the highest visible microbial growth. A larger and more diverse set of compounds was detected from the wood shavings compared to the microbial swabs, indicating a complex and heterogeneous chemical composition within wood types. Several individual compounds putatively identified in wood samples showed statistically significant, near-monotonic associations with microbial growth, including C 11 H 16 O 4 , C 18 H 34 O 4 , and C 6 H 15 NO. A pilot experiment confirmed the inhibitory effects of dosing a sample of wood materials with varying concentrations of liquid C 6 H 15 NO (assuming it presented as Diethylethanolamine).

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS2009

Quantifying the Dependencies of Rooftop Temperatures on Albedo

The thermal properties of building materials directly effect the conditions inside of buildings Heat transfer is not a primary design driver in building design. Rooftop modifications lower heat transfer, which lowers energy consumption and costs. The living environmental laboratory attitude at UCSD makes it the perfect place to test the success of these modifications.

Dominquez, Anthony↗
DOE OSTI2020

Thermal Management by Engineering the Alignment of Nanocellulose

One of the grand current research challenges is to improve the energy efficiency of residential and commercial buildings, which cumulatively consume more than 40% of the energy generated globally. In addition to improving the comfort of the inhabitants and mitigating the growing energy consumption problem, new building materials and technologies could provide a safe strategy for geoengineering to mitigate global climate change. Herein, recent progress in developing such advanced materials from nanocellulose, which is often derived from wood or even dirty feedstocks like waste, is reviewed. By using chemical and bacteria-enabled processing, nanocellulose can be used to fabricate broadband photonic reflectors, thermally super-insulating aerogels, solar gain regulators, and low-emissivity coatings, with potential applications in windows, roofs, walls, and other components of buildings envelopes. These material developments draw inspiration from advanced energy management found in nature, such as the nanoporous photonic structures that evolved in cuticles of beetles. Fabrication of such materials takes advantage of mesoscale liquid crystalline self-assembly, which allows for pre-designed control of cellulose nanoparticle orientations at the mesoscale. Finally, with the potential fully realized, such materials could one day transform the current energy-lossy buildings into energy plants on Earth and possibly even enable extraterrestrial habitats.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2020

Remediation of Temporary Storage Sites in Support of the Port Hope Area Initiative - 20295

The Port Hope Area Initiative is a community-based solution for the long-term management of historic low level radioactive waste (LLRW) resulting from 60 years of uranium and radium processing operations in the Town of Port Hope which is located in Ontario, Canada. The Eldorado refinery, on the north shore of Lake Ontario, began refining radium-226 from pitchblende ore, later transitioning to the refining of uranium. Through the history of the operation, LLRW was deposited throughout the town of Port Hope as a result of fugitive emissions from the plant and/or through the re-use of process residues as building material and backfill. Historical clean-up activities conducted in the late 1970's involved the remediation of approximately 400 properties and the relocation of 100,000 cubic metres of contaminated soil to a disposal facility in Chalk River operated by Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL). Owing to space limitations at that disposal facility, any LLRW identified through construction monitoring since that time has been stored in the community at three temporary storage sites located throughout the town. These include: the Centre Pier mound that contained approximately of 19,800 m{sup 3} of LLRW-impacted soil that originated from the construction of a new water treatment plant; two mounds located at a licensed storage facility containing LLRW obtained from residential clean-up activities (11,000 m{sup 3}); and a small pad adjacent to the municipal sewage treatment plant containing 2200 m{sup 3} of LLRW-containing sludge. With the construction of a new long-term waste management facility (LTWMF) that has been designed to house all of the LLRW identified within Port Hope, the three sites were early candidates for remediation. The clean-up of the three temporary storage sites was a significant milestone for the Port Hope Area Initiative. After a decade of planning and consultation, this work represents the first sites in the municipality to be remediated with the waste being safety removed and transferred to the newly constructed LTWMF. This paper discusses the challenges associated with the clean-up activities for these three sites and the strategies employed to address those challenges. These included weather-related challenges, owing to the seasons over which the work was conducted as well as those associated with working within a closely-knit community. Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL), working on behalf of the federal government, has worked diligently to develop a positive and trusting relationship with the community. Consequently, the successful execution of this project needed to be sensitive to, and respectful of the needs of the community. In addition to the usual Health, Safety and Environment training, project staff received community awareness training that spoke to the history of this community-based initiative and the expected behavior when working within the community. Transportation routes were defined based on safety and the need to minimize disruption to local traffic while haul-times where scheduled around school bus hours to enhance public safety. The successful completion of this first of many remediation projects to be completed under the Port Hope Area Initiative reflected years of careful planning. Nevertheless, there were a number of 'lessons learned' that have been applied on other ongoing projects be completed under the Port Hope Area Initiative. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2024

Highly silanized cellulose biocomposites for sustainable insulation materials

Microfibrillated lignocellulose networks, derived from agricultural byproducts, represent an environmentally friendly biogenic material production due to their abundant availability to circular bioeconomy and inherent carbon sink in life cycle analysis. Yet, its vulnerability to moisture and flammability, coupled with challenges in creating highly reinforced insulation materials, poses challenges for the carbon-zero green building sector. Here we address these challenges with a new concept of in-situ grafting polymerization of nanoporous silica in pre-formed lignocellulosic fiber networks. The seamlessly integrating nanoporous silica with cellulose through hydrogen bonding networks enabled us to prepare highly reinforced biogenic composites for green building insulations. A high reinforcement biocomposite with hierarchal arrangements of nanoporous silica within the cellulose network exhibits remarkable attributes. It boasts a thermal conductivity of 24.2 mW·m –1 ·K –1 , a flexural modulus of 942 MPa, and soundproofing with a 20.8 % noise reduction, as well as the fire resistance characterized by an extended time to ignition and a reduced peak heat release rate of 144 kW·m –2 at 35 kW·m –2 of incident radiant heat flux. Furthermore, it demonstrates a reduced water absorption capacity, dropping from 5.12 g·g –1 to 0.75 g·g –1 . Altogether, this study opens the new pathways towards sustainable carbon-zero building materials in the context of circular bioeconomy.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
NASA NTRS2003

JSC Mars-1 Martian Soil Simulant: Melting Experiments and Electron Microprobe Studies

JSC Mars-1 has been developed as a Martian regolith simulant, and is the <1 mm size fraction of a palagonitic tephra (a glassy volcanic ash altered at low temperatures) from Pu'u Nene cinder cone on the Island of Hawaii. The Mars-1 simulant forms the basis for numerous terrestrial studies which aim to evaluate the suitability of Martian soil for materials processing. Martian soil may be sintered to form building materials for construction, and also melted or reacted to extract metals for various uses, as well as oxygen for life support.

Carpenter, P.↗
NASA NTRS2018

Discrete Assemblers Utilizing Conventional Motion Systems

An alternative to additive manufacturing is disclosed, introducing an end-to-end workflow in which discrete building blocks are reversibly joined to produce assemblies called digital materials. Described is the design of the bulk-material building blocks and the devices that are assembled from them. Detailed is the design and implementation of an automated assembler, which takes advantage of the digital material structure to avoid positioning errors within a large tolerance. To generate assembly sequences, a novel CAD/CAM workflow is described for designing, simulating, and assembling digital materials. The structures assembled using this process have been evaluated, showing that the joints perform well under varying conditions and that the assembled structures are functionally precise.

Langford, William Kai↗
NASA NTRS1992

Construction and development of a human base on Mars

Ways in which various construction-oriented activities might be carried out on the surface of Mars are addressed, with emphasis on determining the power, mass, and manpower requirements for these activities. Attention is given to the soil mechanics of Mars, a series of guidelines and fundamental calculations for building various structures such as inflatables, foundations, and in situ material buildings, construction procedures such as laying pipe or cables and setting up solar arrays, and equipment needs and uses for a nominal base on Mars. Under the assumption of some types of construction machines, the construction time is estimated. Most of the work is shown to be completable within a reasonable time scale (10 yr or more), although some work requires impractical construction time. This work includes the covering of both rigid and inflatable habitat modules. It is suggested that alternative types of construction machines are required for this type of work.

Gwynne, Owen↗