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At least 919 records · Page 51

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NASA NTRS2011

Fundamental Aeronautics Program: Overview of Project Work in Supersonic Cruise Efficiency

The Supersonics Project, part of NASA?s Fundamental Aeronautics Program, contains a number of technical challenge areas which include sonic boom community response, airport noise, high altitude emissions, cruise efficiency, light weight durable engines/airframes, and integrated multi-discipline system design. This presentation provides an overview of the current (2011) activities in the supersonic cruise efficiency technical challenge, and is focused specifically on propulsion technologies. The intent is to develop and validate high-performance supersonic inlet and nozzle technologies. Additional work is planned for design and analysis tools for highly-integrated low-noise, low-boom applications. If successful, the payoffs include improved technologies and tools for optimized propulsion systems, propulsion technologies for a minimized sonic boom signature, and a balanced approach to meeting efficiency and community noise goals. In this propulsion area, the work is divided into advanced supersonic inlet concepts, advanced supersonic nozzle concepts, low fidelity computational tool development, high fidelity computational tools, and improved sensors and measurement capability. The current work in each area is summarized.

Castner, Raymond↗

NASA NTRS2012

Fundamental Aeronautics Program: Overview of Propulsion Work in the Supersonic Cruise Efficiency Technical Challenge

The Supersonics Project, part of NASA's Fundamental Aeronautics Program, contains a number of technical challenge areas which include sonic boom community response, airport noise, high altitude emissions, cruise efficiency, light weight durable engines/airframes, and integrated multi-discipline system design. This presentation provides an overview of the current (2012) activities in the supersonic cruise efficiency technical challenge, and is focused specifically on propulsion technologies. The intent is to develop and validate high-performance supersonic inlet and nozzle technologies. Additional work is planned for design and analysis tools for highly-integrated low-noise, low-boom applications. If successful, the payoffs include improved technologies and tools for optimized propulsion systems, propulsion technologies for a minimized sonic boom signature, and a balanced approach to meeting efficiency and community noise goals. In this propulsion area, the work is divided into advanced supersonic inlet concepts, advanced supersonic nozzle concepts, low fidelity computational tool development, high fidelity computational tools, and improved sensors and measurement capability. The current work in each area is summarized.

Castner, Ray↗

NASA NTRS2024

Alignment of NASA’s Human System Risks with Technological Capability Gaps to Enable Integrated Research and Technology Development Strategic Planning

BACKGROUND: Radiation, reduced gravity, distance from earth, isolation and confinement, and habitation within artificially created and controlled life support environments are hazards that present risk to human space explorers. NASA’s Human System Risk Board (HSRB) maintains a set of twenty-nine different Human System Risks with subject matter experts from across the agency providing regular updates to the estimated likelihood and consequence associated with each risk. The Human Research Program (HRP) has historically used these risk classifications as a primary basis for identifying and prioritizing human research investments aimed at characterizing and/or mitigating the respective human system risks. In many cases, technology development is required to mature and validate risk mitigation strategies, however, NASA’s primary technology development programs have not typically used Human System Risks as a basis for strategic planning. A primary function of the Environmental Control and Life Support Systems (ECLSS) – Crew Health and Performance (CHP) System Capability Leadership Team (SCLT) is to continually identify, review, and update technological capability gaps and to establish and oversee multiyear strategic roadmaps aimed at guiding NASA’s technology development priorities in these areas. These roadmaps are intended to be agency-wide and independent of any program, directorate, or other organization within NASA. DESCRIPTION: The SCLT and HRP collaborated to establish a set of Human System Capability Gaps, which establish a formal linkage between the capability gaps used to prioritize investments across much of NASA, and the Human System Risks that are primarily used to inform and prioritize human research. This set of twenty-eight gaps was developed by subject matter experts, and each gap mapped to the primary associated Human System Risks. The gaps and risk mapping were then reviewed and approved via the HSRB, thereby formally aligning the research-focused Human System Risks with the technology-focused capability gaps. DISCUSSION: This effort has enabled development of integrated roadmaps and budget coordination with research and technology development activities that are formally linked to agency-recognized capability gaps and Human System Risks. Close and ongoing coordination between the SCLT, HRP, Mars Campaign Office, and the Health & Medical Technical Authority (HMTA) is essential to ensure alignment and prioritization of CHP-related research and technology development to enable NASA’s future exploration missions.

Andrew F J Abercromby↗

NASA NTRS1995

US in-space electric propulsion experiments

Arcjet and ion propulsion offer potentially significant reductions in the mass of propulsion systems required for Earth orbiting satellites and planetary spacecraft. For this reason, they have been the subject of validation and demonstration programs. After examining the benefits of electric propulsion, this paper discusses the technology base for the Electric Propulsion Space Experiment (ESEX) arcjet demonstration experiment and the NASA Technology Application Readiness (NSTAR) ion propulsion validation program. As part of the Advanced Research Global Observation Spacecraft (ARGOS), ESEX will perform ten 15-min firings of a 30-kW ammonia arcjet. NASA's validation program, NSTAR, consists of two major elements: a ground-test element and an in-space experiment. The ground element will validate the life, integrability, and performance of low-power ion propulsion. The in-space element will demonstrate the feasibility of integrating and flying an ion propulsion system. The experiment will measure the interactions among the ion propulsion system, the host spacecraft, and the surrounding space plasma. It will provide a quantitative assessment of the ability of ground testing to replicate the in-space performance ion thrusters. By involving industry in NSTAR, a commercial source for this technology will be ensured. Furthermore, the successful completion of the NSTAR validation program will stimulate commercial and government (both civilian and military) uses of this technology.

Stocky, John F.↗

NASA NTRS2008

Rotorcraft Technology for HALE Aeroelastic Analysis

Much of technology needed for analysis of HALE nonlinear aeroelastic problems is available from rotorcraft methodologies. Consequence of similarities in operating environment and aerodynamic surface configuration. Technology available - theory developed, validated by comparison with test data, incorporated into rotorcraft codes. High subsonic to transonic rotor speed, low to moderate Reynolds number. Structural and aerodynamic models for high aspect-ratio wings and propeller blades. Dynamic and aerodynamic interaction of wing/airframe and propellers. Large deflections, arbitrary planform. Steady state flight, maneuvers and response to turbulence. Linearized state space models. This technology has not been extensively applied to HALE configurations. Correlation with measured HALE performance and behavior required before can rely on tools.

Young, Larry↗

NASA NTRS1992

The NASA sponsored HSCT propulsion studies

One objective of the NASA-sponsored High Speed Civil Transport (HSCT) propulsion studies is to determine the potential benefits of alternative advanced technologies. These benefits should be explicitly expressed in terms of meeting either environmental acceptability or economic viability. The potential benefit information is used to screen alternative technology candidates to the most promising technologies that, if successfully developed, will enable the propulsion system to achieve high performance and low weight without unduly sacrificing favorable emissions and noise characteristics. A second objective is the provision of key information to high-level decision makers--enabling them to make rational decisions concerning the technology program content. It will be necessary to pursue more than one concept/technology until experimental validity is convincingly demonstrated. Some technologies will likely fail to achieve their stated goals, and timely program redirection depends upon far-sighted system studies to provide such information.

Strack, William C.↗

NASA NTRS2013

Conceptual Design of a Flight Validation Mission for a Hypervelocity Asteroid Intercept Vehicle

Near-Earth Objects (NEOs) are asteroids and comets whose orbits approach or cross Earth s orbit. NEOs have collided with our planet in the past, sometimes to devastating effect, and continue to do so today. Collisions with NEOs large enough to do significant damage to the ground are fortunately infrequent, but such events can occur at any time and we therefore need to develop and validate the techniques and technologies necessary to prevent the Earth impact of an incoming NEO. In this paper we provide background on the hazard posed to Earth by NEOs and present the results of a recent study performed by the NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center s Mission Design Lab (MDL) in collaboration with Iowa State University s Asteroid Deflection Research Center (ADRC) to design a flight validation mission for a Hypervelocity Asteroid Intercept Vehicle (HAIV) as part of a Phase 2 NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) research project. The HAIV is a two-body vehicle consisting of a leading kinetic impactor and trailing follower carrying a Nuclear Explosive Device (NED) payload. The HAIV detonates the NED inside the crater in the NEO s surface created by the lead kinetic impactor portion of the vehicle, effecting a powerful subsurface detonation to disrupt the NEO. For the flight validation mission, only a simple mass proxy for the NED is carried in the HAIV. Ongoing and future research topics are discussed following the presentation of the detailed flight validation mission design results produced in the MDL.

Barbee, Brent W.↗

DOE OSTI2016

FAST v8 Verification and Validation for a Megawatt-Scale Wind Turbine with Aeroelastically Tailored Blades: Preprint

This paper presents findings from a verification and validation exercise on the latest version of the U.S. Department of Energy/National Renewable Energy Laboratory's in-house wind turbine aeroelastic design code FAST v8. Results from a set of 1141 FAST simulations were compared to those from Siemens' BHawC design code results, as well as experimental data from a heavily instrumented 2.3-MW Siemens wind turbine located at the National Wind Technology Center. The code validation was performed following the IEC-61400-13 standard, where a set of select quantities of interest from simulations at various wind speed and atmospheric turbulence conditions were used for a three-way comparison between FAST, BHawC, and the measurements. Results highlight many improvements of the latest version of FAST over its previous versions. This paper also provides comments from the authors on the data quality, and avenues for potential future work using these results.

17 WIND ENERGY↗

NASA NTRS2017

CubeSat Infrared Atmospheric Sounder (CIRAS) NASA InVEST Technology Demonstration

Infrared sounders measure the upwelling radiation of the Earth in the Midwave Infrared (MWIR) and Longwave Infrared (LWIR) region of the spectrum with global daily coverage from space. The observed radiances are assimilated into weather forecast models and used to retrieve lower tropospheric temperature and water vapor for climate studies. There are several operational sounders today including the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) on Aqua, the Crosstrack Infrared Sounder (CrIS) on Suomi NPP and JPSS, and the Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI) on the MetOp spacecraft. The CubeSat Infrared Atmospheric Sounder (CIRAS) is a NASA In-flight Validation of Earth Science Technologies (InVEST) program to demonstrate three new instrument technologies in an imaging sounder configuration. The first is a 2D array of High Operating Temperature Barrier Infrared Detector (HOT-BIRD) material, selected for its high uniformity, low cost, low noise and higher operating temperatures than traditional materials. The detectors are hybridized to a commercial ROIC and commercial camera electronics. The second technology is a MWIR Grating Spectrometer (MGS) designed to provide imaging spectroscopy for atmospheric sounding in a CubeSat volume. The MGS employs an immersion grating or grism, has no moving parts, and is based on heritage spectrometers including the OCO-2. The third technology is a Black Silicon infrared blackbody calibration target. The Black Silicon offers very low reflectance over a broad spectral range on a flat surface and is more robust than carbon nanotubes. JPL will also develop the mechanical, electronic and thermal subsystems for the CIRAS payload. The spacecraft will be a commercially available CubeSat. The integrated system will be a complete 6U CubeSat capable of measuring temperature and water vapor profiles with good lower tropospheric sensitivity. The low cost of CIRAS enables multiple units to be flown to improve temporal coverage or measure 3D Atmospheric Motion Vector (AMV) winds. CIRAS will launch in 2019 and is only a technology demonstration. However, what we learn will benefit future instruments that support operational weather forecasting and climate studies.

Pagano, Thomas S.↗

DOE OSTI2021

Cadmium Telluride Photovoltaics Accelerator Consortium Solicitation: Request for Proposals Information

Cadmium telluride photovoltaics (CdTe PV) is a leading PV technology built on U.S. innovations that currently holds significant market share within domestic utility scale PV systems. In order to keep pace with a highly competitive and innovative global PV module market, CdTe manufacturing needs readily adaptable advances at the cell and module levels that simultaneously enable higher conversion efficiencies and manufacturing cost reductions without risking long-term module durability. In pursuit of this goal, the Department of Energy (DOE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) has asked the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to launch and support a Consortium to accelerate domestic CdTe technology development through a competitive solicitation process. NREL will competitively select a CdTe Consortium with the goals of enhancing U.S. competitiveness and expanding domestic CdTe PV material and module production through 2030. NREL will provide coordination and oversight through development of technical scopes, review of technical proposals, subcontract support, and review of deliverables along with research support to the Consortium. The new Consortium is expected to include major U.S. companies and universities that possess strong technology development, transfer, and validation capabilities. The research and analysis output of the CdTe Consortium will inform purchasing, design, deployment, and operations decisions of companies in the domestic CdTe PV supply chain, leading to increased material and module production in the U.S.

41 EE - Solar Energy Technologies Office (EE-4S)↗

DOE OSTI2012

Development of strong-sense validation benchmarks for the fluoride salt-cooled high-temperature reactor

The Fluoride salt-cooled High-temperature Reactor (FHR) is a class of reactor concepts currently under development for the U. S. Dept. of Energy. The FHR is defined as a Generation IV reactor that features low-pressure liquid fluoride salt cooling, coated-particle fuel, a high-temperature power cycle, and fully passive decay heat rejection. Recent experimental work using simulant fluids have been performed to demonstrate key 'proof of principle' FHR concepts and have helped inform the reactor design process. An important element of developing FHR technology is to sufficiently validate the predictive accuracy of the computer codes used to model system response. This paper presents a set of thermal-hydraulics experiments, defined as Strong-Sense Benchmarks (SSB's), which will help establish the FHR validation domain for simulant fluid suitability. These SSB's are more specifically designed to investigate single-phase natural circulation which is the dominant mode of FHR decay heat removal during off-normal conditions. SSB s should be viewed as engineering reference standards and differ from traditional confirmatory experiments in the sense that they are more focused on fundamental physics as opposed to reproducing high levels of physical similarity with the prototypical design. (authors)

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗

DOE OSTI2025

Casing Annulus Monitoring of CO 2 Injection Using Wireless Autonomous Distributed Sensor Networks

Effective and secure carbon subsurface storage, involving the deep underground injection of CO 2 into geological formations where it is permanently trapped, is paramount to mitigating CO 2 emissions (Figure I). Ensuring the integrity of these storage sites and detecting potential leakage through the casing annulus necessitates robust monitoring. This work provides the first integrated demonstration of a wireless casing-annulus monitoring architecture that can operate in highly attenuating cement-brine environments relevant to CO 2 storage. This project focused on developing and validating a novel sensor system for integration with autonomous monitoring near the cement reservoir interface. The goal was a fully integrated Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 4/5 field validation of a distributed wireless intelligent sensor system providing real-time, direct subsurface formation measurements to enhance fluid movement monitoring in the cemented casing annulus. Achieving this objective required the development and integration of 1) wireless autonomous microsensor technology by California Institute of Technology (Caltech); 2) sensor packaging and emplacement technology by Research Triangle Institute (RTI); and 3) smart well completions using wireless active casing collars and NOV pipe by the Sandia National Lab (SNL). The collaboration with the Caltech team in this project aimed to develop millimeter-scale radio frequency identification (RFID) sensors capable of detecting CO 2 , pH, and/or methane levels. These sensors are engineered to be impervious to fluids, allowing them to be mixed with cement and installed within the casing annulus. They operate using RFID protocols at frequencies of 902–928 MHz for both power and communication. A Sandia National Laboratories’ team engaged their expertise in the development of a Smart Collar system designed for the wireless data collection from these RFID sensors embedded in the cement annulus and transmission of this information to the ground surface via IntelliPipe/IntelliServ NOV drill pipe. This is accomplished through inductive coupling at the collar, which facilitates data transfer through each segment of the pipe. Because the system cannot transmit a direct current signal to power the Smart Collar, both power and communication were implemented using alternating current and electromagnetic signals at varying frequencies. Furthermore, the developed microsensor technology had to be demonstrated and validated in comparison with reference transducer measurements in a field test site at The University of Texas at Austin (UT-Austin). Although the full sensor suite did not reach field-deployment readiness, the system-level integration achieved in this project establishes a validated pathway for future incorporation of advanced microsensors.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗

DOE OSTI2022

NREL Facilities Accelerate Marine Energy Technology Development [Poster]

Once marine energy device developers have a theoretical design in mind, it's time to transform that idea into a commercially ready device. And for that, they can turn to experts at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). NREL's marine energy researchers have extensive experience moving technology ideas from prototype manufacturing through laboratory and field validation. The lab's facilities cover five phases of the validation life cycle to ensure marine energy technologies can survive harsh open-water environments. From prototype fabrication to grid integration at all scales, NREL offers end-to-end marine energy device design and validation capabilities.

16 TIDAL AND WAVE POWER↗

NASA NTRS1999

NCV Flow Diagnostic Test Results

There were two objectives for this test. First, was to assess the reasons why there is approximately 1.5 drag counts (cts) discrepancy between measured and computed drag improvement of the Non-linear Cruise Validation (NCV) over the Technology Concept Airplane (TCA) wing body (WB) configurations. The Navier-Stokes (N-S) pre-test predictions from Boeing Commercial Airplane Group (BCAG) show 4.5 drag cts of improvement for NCV over TCA at a lift coefficient (CL) of 0. I at Mach 2.4. The pre-test predictions from Boeing Phantom Works - Long Beach, BPW-LB, show 3.75 drag cts of improvement. BCAG used OVERFLOW and BPW-LB used CFL3D. The first test entry to validate the improvement was held at the NASA Langley Research Center (LARC) UPV;T, test number 1687. The experimental results showed that the drag improvement was only 2.6 cts, not accounting for laminar run and trip drag. This is approximately 1.5 cts less than predicted computationally. In addition to the low Reynolds Number (RN) test, there was a high RN test in the Boeing Supersonic Wind Tunnel (BSWT) of NCV and TCA. BSV@T test 647 showed that the drag improvement of NCV over TCA was also 2.6 cts, but this did account for laminar run and trip drag. Every effort needed to be done to assess if the improvement measured in LaRC UPWT and BSWT was correct. The second objective, once the first objective was met, was to assess the performance increment of NCV over TCA accounting for the associated laminar run and trip drag corrections in LaRC UPWT. We know that the configurations tested have laminar flow on portions of the wing and have trip drag due to the mechanisms used to force the flow to go from laminar to turbulent aft of the transition location.

Cappuccio, Mina↗

DOE OSTI2021

A Combined Water and CO2 Direct Air Capture System (CRADA 521)

The primary objective of this project is to demonstrate the outstanding technical and economic performance of a transformational Hybrid DAC (HDAC) technology that simultaneously captures CO2 and water from the air. Air is passed over a CO2 selective sorbent to remove ≥85% of the CO2 from the air stream. The atmospheric water extraction (AWE) section of the unit utilizes a novel isothermal pressure swing regeneration cycle with desiccant beds thermally coupled by heat pipes that provide a passive heat transfer mechanism to “cancel” the heat of water vapor adsorption. By proving system performance through this demonstration project, our initial technoeconomic analysis (TEA) will be validated, showing that HDAC technology: 1) is deployable in many more locations with limited water resources, 2) improves the financial returns, and 3) reduces risks from volatility in the price of CO2.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

NASA NTRS2005

Novel Space-based Solar Power Technologies and Architectures for Earth and Beyond

Research, development and studies of novel space-based solar power systems, technologies and architectures for Earth and beyond are needed to reduce the cost of clean electrical power for terrestrial use and to provide a stepping stone for providing an abundance of power in space, i.e., manufacturing facilities, tourist facilities, delivery of power between objects in space, and between space and surface sites. The architectures, technologies and systems needed for space to Earth applications may also be used for in-space applications. Advances in key technologies, i.e., power generation, power management and distribution, power beaming and conversion of beamed power are needed to achieve the objectives of both terrestrial and extraterrestrial applications. Power beaming or wireless power transmission (WPT) can involve lasers or microwaves along with the associated power interfaces. Microwave and laser transmission techniques have been studied with several promising approaches to safe and efficient WPT identified. These investigations have included microwave phased array transmitters, as well as laser transmission and associated optics. There is a need to produce "proof-of-concept" validation of critical WPT technologies for both the near-term, as well as far-term applications. Investments may be harvested in near-term beam safe demonstrations of commercial WPT applications. Receiving sites (users) include ground-based stations for terrestrial electrical power, orbital sites to provide power for satellites and other platforms, future space elevator systems, space vehicle propulsion, and space to surface sites. This paper briefly discusses achieving a promising approach to the solar power generation and beamed power conversion. The approach is based on a unique high-power solar concentrator array called Stretched Lens Array (SLA) for both solar power generation and beamed power conversion. Since both versions (solar and laser) of SLA use many identical components (only the photovoltaic cells need to be different), economies of manufacturing and scale may be realized by using SLA on both ends of the laser power beaming system in a space solar power application. Near-term uses of this SLA-laser-SLA system may include terrestrial and space exploration in near Earth space. Later uses may include beamed power for bases or vehicles on Mars.

Howell, Joe T.↗

DOE OSTI2014

RANS Simulation RRF of Single Lab-Scaled DOE RM1 MHK Turbine

Attached are the .cas and .dat files for the Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) simulation of a single lab-scaled DOE RM1 turbine implemented in ANSYS FLUENT CFD-package. The lab-scaled DOE RM1 is a re-design geometry, based of the full scale DOE RM1 design, producing same power output as the full scale model, while operating at matched Tip Speed Ratio values at reachable laboratory Reynolds number (see attached paper). In this case study taking advantage of the symmetry of lab-scaled DOE RM1 geometry, only half of the geometry is models using (Single) Rotating Reference Frame model [RRF]. In this model RANS equations, coupled with k-\omega turbulence closure model, are solved in the rotating reference frame. The actual geometry of the turbine blade is included and the turbulent boundary layer along the blade span is simulated using wall-function approach. The rotation of the blade is modeled by applying periodic boundary condition to sets of plane of symmetry. This case study simulates the performance and flow field in the near and far wake of the device at the desired operating conditions. The results of these simulations were validated against in-house experimental data. Please see the attached paper.

16 TIDAL AND WAVE POWER↗

DOE OSTI2020

Forecasting Commercial Building Electricity Consumption, Zone Airflow and Zone Temperature: Update - Development of a Generalized Machine Learning Approach

The U.S. power grid is being transformed to make it smarter, more efficient, and cleaner. This transformation is leading to the addition of a significant of energy generated by distributed, variable, and renewable resources. Because of the variable nature of renewable generation, the short- and long-term supply and demand imbalances are less predictable, and conventional approaches to mitigating the imbalances will be less efficient or cost effective. To address this challenge and to support the mission and the vision of the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) Building Technologies Office has developed a Grid-Interactive Efficient Building Strategy. The strategy focuses on simultaneously improving building energy efficiency and supporting reliability and resilience of the electric grid more efficiently and at a lower cost. In addition, EERE and DOE’s Office of Electricity created an initiative led by DOE and supported by the national laboratories under the Grid Modernization Lab Consortium structure to enhance grid modernization. The work reported in this document is part of the first set of projects funded under the initiative to design, develop, and validate scalable transactive control technologies for the commercial buildings sector. Transactive controls requires the ability of individual end-use loads to express flexibility as a function of a transactive signal (e.g., price). Empirical grey- and black-box models have been widely used to express flexibility. Although this approach is generally easy to construct and simple to use, it does not capture non-linear behavior that some end-use loads represent. Therefore, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) with support from Western Washington University conducted this research to explore the use of deep machine learning (ML) techniques. The work reported in this document is limited to forecasting whole building electricity consumption, the zone airflow and the zone temperature predictions.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗