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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

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NASA NTRS1972

Reliability of the global NASCOM network.

Transmission media reliability is an extremely important factor in the design and operation of a real-time communications network. It has had a profound effect not only on the configuration design of the NASCOM network itself, but on the philosophy of command/control of all NASA spacecraft, manned and unmanned. In an effort to obtain the highest possible level of circuit reliability and performance, goals or criteria have been established for each type of circuit. Also, special management techniques have been used in an effort to improve circuit reliability. The results of these efforts, as well as general technological improvements in the transmission media, are illustrated by showing measured composite circuit reliability over the past nine years and actual circuit performance measured during Apollo 8 through 15.

Stelter, L. R.↗

NASA NTRS2001

Flame Synthesis of Single- and Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes and Nanofibers

Metal-catalyzed carbon nanotubes are highly sought for a diverse range of applications that include nanoelectronics, battery electrode material, catalysis, hydrogen storage media and reinforcing agents in polymer composites. These latter applications will require vast quantities of nanotubes at competitive prices to be economically feasible. Moreover, reinforcing applications may not require ultrahigh purity nanotubes. Indeed, functionalization of nanotubes to facilitate interfacial bonding within composites will naturally introduce defects into the tube walls, lessening their tensile strength. Current methods of aerosol synthesis of carbon nanotubes include laser ablation of composite targets of carbon and catalyst metal within high temperature furnaces and decomposition of a organometallics in hydrocarbons mixtures within a tube furnace. Common to each approach is the generation of particles in the presence of the reactive hydrocarbon species at elevated temperatures. In the laser-ablation approach, the situation is even more dynamic in that particles and nanotubes are borne during the transient cooling phase of the laser-induced plasma for which the temperature far exceeds that of the surrounding hot gases within the furnace process tube. A shared limitation is that more efficient methods of nanoparticle synthesis are not readily incorporated into these approaches. In contrast, combustion can quite naturally create nanomaterials such as carbon black. Flame synthesis is well known for its commercial scalability and energy efficiency. However, flames do present a complex chemical environment with steep gradients in temperature and species concentrations. Moreover, reaction times are limited within buoyant driven flows to tens of milliseconds. Therein microgravity can greatly lessen temperature and spatial gradients while allowing independent control of flame residence times. In preparation for defining the microgravity experiments, the work presented here focuses on the effect of catalyst particle size and reactant gas in 1g.

VanderWal, R. L.↗

NASA NTRS2017

Functionalized Media and Methods of Making and Using Therefor

Methods, compositions, devices and kits are provided herein for separating, scavenging, capturing or identifying a metal from a target using a medium or scaffold with a selenium-containing functional group. The medium or the scaffold including the selenium-containing functional group has affinity and specificity to metal ions or compounds having one or more metals, and efficiently separates, recovers, and scavenges of the metals from a target such as a sample, solution, suspension, or mixture.

Huang, Yongsong↗

DOE OSTI2020

An inelastic homogenization framework for layered materials with planes of weakness

Many geologic materials have a composite structure, in which macroscopic mechanical behavior is determined by the properties, shape, and heterogeneous distribution of individual constituents. In particular, sedimentary rocks commonly exhibit a layered microstructure, with distinct bedding planes that can also form planes of weakness. In this work, we present a homogenization framework for modeling inelastic layered media. The proposed constitutive model allows for distinct micro-constitutive laws for each layer, explicit representation of layer distributions, as well as incorporation of imperfect bonding at the interface between adjacent layers. No a priori assumptions are needed regarding the specific constitutive models used for the layers and interfaces, providing significant modeling flexibility. The overall framework provides a simple and physically-motivated way of defining anisotropic material behavior as an emergent property of the layered microstructure. The model is calibrated using triaxial and true-triaxial experimental data to demonstrate its ability to describe anisotropic deformation and multiple modes of failure.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗

NASA NTRS1990

Input-output characterization of fiber reinforced composites by P waves

Input-output characterization of fiber composites is studied theoretically by tracing P waves in the media. A new path motion to aid in the tracing of P and the reflection generated SV wave paths in the continuum plate is developed. A theoretical output voltage from the receiving transducer is calculated for a tone burst. The study enhances the quantitative and qualitative understanding of the nondestructive evaluation of fiber composites which can be modeled as transversely isotropic media.

Renneisen, John D.↗

DOE OSTI2022

Heterologous expression of phosphite dehydrogenase in the chloroplast or nucleus enables phosphite utilization and genetic selection in Picochlorum spp.

Microalgae present a path to ameliorate problems associated with climate change via capture and reduction of CO2 to sustainable fuels and chemicals. Picochlorum is a genus of algae recently recognized for potential application in these regards due to its high productivity, thermotolerance, and halotolerance. Foundational genetic tools have recently been established in this genus. However, at present, genetic markers are limited, hindering genetic throughput and trait stacking approaches. To expand the suite of genetic tools and markers available for this genus, we sought to heterologously express the phosphite dehydrogenase (ptxD) gene from Pseudomonas stutzeri WM88 in both the nucleus and chloroplast of Picochlorum renovo and Picochlorum celeri. Additionally, the resultant strains allow for utilization of phosphite as a sole phosphorous source and as a nuclear and plastidial selection marker for genetic engineering. Growth analysis indicated comparable growth and composition when transgenic algae were grown in media containing phosphite as a sole phosphorus source, as compared to the conventionally used phosphate. Combined, these results expand the genetic toolbox available to the Picochlorum genus and present a potential crop protection and biocontainment strategy.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗

NASA NTRS2010

Comprehensive T-Matrix Reference Database: A 2007-2009 Update

The T-matrix method is among the most versatile, efficient, and widely used theoretical techniques for the numerically exact computation of electromagnetic scattering by homogeneous and composite particles, clusters of particles, discrete random media, and particles in the vicinity of an interface separating two half-spaces with different refractive indices. This paper presents an update to the comprehensive database of T-matrix publications compiled by us previously and includes the publications that appeared since 2007. It also lists several earlier publications not included in the original database.

Mishchenko, Michael I.↗

NASA NTRS1991

Characterization of magneto-optical media

Amorphous rare earth-transition metal (RE-TM) alloys and compositionally modulated TM/TM films were characterized in terms of their magnetic, magneto-optic, and galvanomagnetic properties. The loop tracer, vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM), and Rutherford Backscattering (RBS) facility were used to characterize and analyze the various properties of these magneto-optical storage media. Kerr effect, ellipticity, coercivity, and anisotropy at various temperatures, magnetoresistance, and resistivity are among the properties measured in Co/Pt films, Co/Pd films, and TbFeCo films.

Hajjar, Roger A.↗

NASA NTRS1985

Parametric study of stress-intensity factors in bonded composite stringer panels

Stress-intensity factors are determined for an infinite cracked orthotropic sheet adhesively bonded to an orthotropic stringer. Since the stringer is modeled as a semi-infinite sheet, the solution is most appropriate for a crack tip located near a stringer edge. Both adherends are treated as homogeneous, orthotropic media which are representative of many fiber-reinforced composite materials. The complex variable theory of elasticity was used to obtain a set of integral equations describing the problem. The integral equations are replaced by an equivalent sheet of algebraic equations, which are solved to obtain the shear stress distribution in the adhesive layer. From these adhesive stresses, the stress-intensity factors are found. A parametric study is conducted to determine the sensitivity of the system to material properties and specimen configuration. Unless the crack tip is very close to or under the stringer, the stress-intensity factor is approximately that of the unstiffened sheet. However, as the crack propagates beneath the stringer, the stress-intensity factor decreases significantly. Increasing the stringer stiffness or the adhesive stiffness also decreases the stress-intensity factor.

Bigelow, C. A.↗

NASA NTRS2000

RFI and SCRIMP Model Development and Verification

Vacuum-Assisted Resin Transfer Molding (VARTM) processes are becoming promising technologies in the manufacturing of primary composite structures in the aircraft industry as well as infrastructure. A great deal of work still needs to be done on efforts to reduce the costly trial-and-error methods of VARTM processing that are currently in practice today. A computer simulation model of the VARTM process would provide a cost-effective tool in the manufacturing of composites utilizing this technique. Therefore, the objective of this research was to modify an existing three-dimensional, Resin Film Infusion (RFI)/Resin Transfer Molding (RTM) model to include VARTM simulation capabilities and to verify this model with the fabrication of aircraft structural composites. An additional objective was to use the VARTM model as a process analysis tool, where this tool would enable the user to configure the best process for manufacturing quality composites. Experimental verification of the model was performed by processing several flat composite panels. The parameters verified included flow front patterns and infiltration times. The flow front patterns were determined to be qualitatively accurate, while the simulated infiltration times over predicted experimental times by 8 to 10%. Capillary and gravitational forces were incorporated into the existing RFI/RTM model in order to simulate VARTM processing physics more accurately. The theoretical capillary pressure showed the capability to reduce the simulated infiltration times by as great as 6%. The gravity, on the other hand, was found to be negligible for all cases. Finally, the VARTM model was used as a process analysis tool. This enabled the user to determine such important process constraints as the location and type of injection ports and the permeability and location of the high-permeable media. A process for a three-stiffener composite panel was proposed. This configuration evolved from the variation of the process constraints in the modeling of several different composite panels. The configuration was proposed by considering such factors as: infiltration time, the number of vacuum ports, and possible areas of void entrapment.

Loos, Alfred C.↗

DOE OSTI2020

Elastic gas barrier coating compositions

An elastic gas barrier coating composition includes a barrier material dispersed in an aqueous media, a polysulfide, and a curing agent reactive with the polysulfide. When applied to a substrate and cured to form a coating, the barrier material forms a continuous phase and a polysulfide elastomer forms a discontinuous phase. An elastic gas coating is also disclosed that includes a continuous phase with a barrier material and a discontinuous phase with a polysulfide elastomer. Substrates at least partially coated with elastic gas barrier coating compositions are further disclosed.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

DOE OSTI2024

Physics-informed neural networks for heterogeneous poroelastic media

This study presents a novel physics-informed neural network (PINN) framework for modeling poroelasticity in heterogeneous media with material interfaces. The approach introduces a composite neural network (CoNN) where separate neural networks predict displacement and pressure variables for each material. While sharing identical activation functions, these networks are independently trained for all other parameters. To address challenges posed by heterogeneous material interfaces, the CoNN is integrated with the Interface-PINNs (I-PINNs) framework (Sarma et al., Comput. Methods Appl. Mech. Eng. 429: 117135, 2024), allowing different activation functions across material interfaces. Further, this ensures accurate approximation of discontinuous solution fields and gradients. Performance and accuracy of this combined architecture were evaluated against the conventional PINNs approach, a single neural network (SNN) architecture, and the eXtended PINNs (XPINNs) framework through two one-dimensional benchmark examples with discontinuous material properties. The results show that the proposed CoNN with I-PINNs architecture achieves an RMSE that is two orders of magnitude better than the conventional PINNs approach and is at least 40 times faster than the SNN framework. Compared to XPINNs, the proposed method achieves an RMSE at least one order of magnitude better and is 40% faster.

42 ENGINEERING↗

NASA NTRS1993

Analytic expression for epithermal neutron spectra amplitudes as a function of water content

The epithermal portion of an equilibrium neutron spectrum in a planetary body is a function of the water content of its material. The neutrons are produced at high energies but are moderated by elastic and inelastic scattering until they either are captured by surrounding nuclei or escape. We have derived an expression that explicitly shows the dependance of epithermal neutron spectra on water content. Additionally, we compared its predictions to calculations done by Boltzman transport code for infinite media for silicon, oxygen, and a possible lunar composition, and we have obtained very good agreement.

Drake, Darrell↗

DOE OSTI2024

A comprehensive strategy for stable, high productivity cultivation of microalgae with controllable biomass composition

This project was performed primarily as a partnership between three Universities – The University of Toledo (UToledo), Montana State University (MSU) and The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC). North Carolina State University also contributed to the project through a sub-subcontract. The project developed fundamental and applied knowhow for cultivation systems that are not restricted by (i) proximate availability of flue gas or other high concentration CO 2 sources and (ii) the energy and infrastructure burden to deliver CO 2 over long distances. To overcome these constraints, this project focused on cultivation of alkaliphilic algal cultures in high pH, high alkalinity media (pH>10, alkalinity >100mEq) and demonstrated high biomass productivity, improvement of biomass composition for fuel production, and culture stability. The high media alkalinity ensured availability of sufficient HCO 3 - in solution for high rates of carbon fixation while the high pH of the media facilitated rapid scavenging of atmospheric CO 2 . Overall, the direct air capture rates (DAC) in our system were sufficient to achieve high biomass productivities using atmospheric CO 2 alone. The project also developed and validated toolkits related to metabolic flux modeling and microbiome characterization.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗

NASA NTRS1987

Damage growth in composite laminates with interleaves

The influence of placing interleaves between fiber reinforced plies in multilayered composite laminates is investigated. The geometry of the composite is idealized as two dimensional, isotropic, linearly elastic media made of a damaged layer bonded between two half planes and separated by thin interleaves of low extensional and shear moduli. The damage in the layer is taken in the form of a symmetric crack perpendicular to the interface and may extend up to the interface. The case of an H-shaped crack in the form of a broken layer with delamination along the interface is also analyzed. The interleaves are modeled as distributed shear and tension springs. Fourier integral transform techniques are used to develop solutions in terms of singular integral equations. An asymptotic analysis of the integral equations based on Muskhelishvili's techniques reveals logarithmically singular axial stresses in the half plane at the crack tips for the broken layer. For the H shaped crack, similar singularities are found to exist in the axial stresses at the interface crack tips in the layer and the half plane. The solution of the equations is found numerically for the stresses and displacements by using the Hadamard's concept of direct differentiation of Cauchy integrals as well as Gaussian integration techniques.

Goree, James G.↗

NASA NTRS1986

Particle size reduction of Si3N4 with Si3N4 milling hardware

The grinding of Si3N4 powder using reaction bonded Si3N4 attrition, vibratory, and ball mills with Si3N4 media was examined. The rate of particle size reduction and the change in the chemical composition of the powder were determined in order to compare the grinding efficiency and the increase in impurity content resulting from mill and media wear for each technique. Attrition and vibratory milling exhibited rates of specific surface area increase that were approximately eight times that observed in ball milling. Vibratory milling introduced the greatest impurity pickup.

Herbell, T. P.↗

NASA NTRS1986

Particle-size reduction of Si3N4 powder with Si3N4 milling hardware

Herbell, T. P.↗

NASA NTRS2009

NASA TEERM Project: Corn Based Blast Media

Coatings removal is a necessary part of the maintenance, repair, and overhaul activities at many NASA centers and contractor support sites. Sensitive substrates, such as composites and thin aluminum alloys require special handling such as the use of chemical stripping, pneumatic hand sanding, or softer blast media. Type V, acrylic based PMB is commonly used to de-coat, strip, or de-paint the delicate substrates of the Solid Rocket Boosters (SRBs) currently used in support of the Shuttle and slated to be used in support of CxP.

Griffin, Chuck↗