Search NASA⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search NASA

Results for “Small scale processes”

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.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 937 records · Page 52

Large-Scale Structure of Chromatin: A Fractal Globule or a Logarithmic Fractal?

Two physical models are considered to describe the large-scale structure of chromatin in the nucleus of a biological cell in the interphase state: a fractal globule model and a logarithmic fractal model. Based on the classification of fractal objects developed by the small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) method, it is shown that the fractal globule model does not satisfy the experimental data on small-angle neutron scattering by the nuclei of biological cells. Conversely, the logarithmic fractal model well describes the experimental data on SANS and, hence, provides a good approximation to describe the large-scale structure of chromatin. The logarithmic fractal model predicts that the nuclear space is exactly half-filled with chromatin, and the second half consists of interchromatin voids filled with nucleoplasma in which various nuclear processes occur. Thus, two opposing trends are balanced in the structural organization of chromatin: an increase in the surface area of chromatin in the cell nucleus (accessibility to external agents) and a decrease in the volume occupied by chromatin (compactness of the nucleus).

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Efficient and selective dual-pathway polyolefin hydro-conversion over unexpectedly bifunctional M/TiO 2 -anatase catalysts

The huge scale of plastic waste generation and its environmental consequences drive the demands for catalytic plastic upcycling processes. Here, we report efficient polypropylene (PP) hydro-conversion over Ru and Ni supported on a sol-gel anatase TiO 2 (TiO 2 -A-SG). A small number of Brønsted acid sites on TiO 2 -A-SG enables hydrocracking, improving efficiency, steering the selectivity towards high-valued C 4-20 , and allowing more isomerization, compared to Ru-based monofunctional hydrogenolysis catalysts. The relative contribution of hydrocracking increases with lower hydrogen partial pressure, more branched substrates, and lower Ru loading. Ni/TiO 2 -A-SG exhibits superior hydrocracking activity and selectivity to Ni on conventional Brønsted-acidic supports, particularly zeolites. Further, mechanistic studies shows fast isomerization and sequential ß-scissions caused by strong polymer-catalyst interaction and fast cracking with abundant 3 C. This favors C 4-12 formation and prevents secondary reactions. This work demonstrated a novel, highly efficient noble-metal-free catalyst for plastic waste upcycling, while advancing the mechanistic understanding of polyolefin hydro-conversion.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Hazardous Waste Management Progress Report [SB14]

The Department of Energy (DOE) is the owner and part operator of multiple facilities in Northern California. The facilities include those located at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Sandia National Laboratories/California (SNL/CA) and SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC) among other sites. Through their operations, the facilities generate hazardous waste and, thereby, are subject to the requirements of Chapter 31 of the Title 22 California Code of Regulations, Waste Minimization. The Northern California sites are primarily research and development facilities in the areas relating to national security, high-energy physics, engineering, bioscience and environmental health and safety disciplines. As mentioned above these DOE facilities are primarily research and development facilities. The hazardous wastes generated may be associated with operations that range in size from small, bench scale R&D to major maintenance and operations waste streams. Therefore, even though this document breaks down the waste streams based on California Waste Codes (CWC), the quantities of waste within one waste code category could be from many different locations and dissimilar processes. Because of the nature of the work at the sites, it is not economically feasible to try to implement source reduction measures for every process that generates a portion of the waste stream. This document identifies the processes that generate the major portion of the waste within an identified major waste stream and reports on progress made toward source reduction. In accomplishing the mission, it is DOE’s goal to eliminate waste generation and emissions giving priority to those that may present the greatest risk to human health and the environment.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

Theory of Intramolecular Relaxation Processes

A master equation is derived to describe internal relaxation processes in molecular systems with a relatively small number of degrees of freedom. It is an inhomogeneous equation, taking into account nondiagonal elements of the coarse‐grained density matrix which prove to be the most relevant ones for the problem under consideration. Various relaxational time scales, inherent in a molecular system, can thus be shown to exist. Relaxation mechanisms and equilibrium states on these time scales can be determined. The general character and different types of solutions of the master equation are investigated. The theory is applied to internal vibrational relaxation and intramolecular rearrangement (isomerization) reactions.

Hofacker, G. Ludwig↗

High aspect ratio template and method for producing same

Millimeter to nano-scale structures manufactured using a multi-component polymer fiber matrix are disclosed. The use of dissimilar polymers allows the selective dissolution of the polymers at various stages of the manufacturing process. In one application, biocompatible matrixes may be formed with long pore length and small pore size. The manufacturing process begins with a first polymer fiber arranged in a matrix formed by a second polymer fiber. End caps may be attached to provide structural support and the polymer fiber matrix selectively dissolved away leaving only the long polymer fibers. These may be exposed to another product, such as a biocompatible gel to form a biocompatible matrix. The polymer fibers may then be selectively dissolved leaving only a biocompatible gel scaffold with the pores formed by the dissolved polymer fibers.

Sakamoto, Jeff S.↗

High aspect ratio template and method for producing same for central and peripheral nerve repair

Millimeter to nano-scale structures manufactured using a multi-component polymer fiber matrix are disclosed. The use of dissimilar polymers allows the selective dissolution of the polymers at various stages of the manufacturing process. In one application, biocompatible matrixes may be formed with long pore length and small pore size. The manufacturing process begins with a first polymer fiber arranged in a matrix formed by a second polymer fiber. End caps may be attached to provide structural support and the polymer fiber matrix selectively dissolved away leaving only the long polymer fibers. These may be exposed to another product, such as a biocompatible gel to form a biocompatible matrix. The polymer fibers may then be selectively dissolved leaving only a biocompatible gel scaffold with the pores formed by the dissolved polymer fibers. The scaffolds may be used in, among other applications, the repair of central and peripheral nerves. Scaffolds for the repair of peripheral nerves may include a reservoir for the sustained release of nerve growth factor. The scaffolds may also include a multifunctional polyelectrolyte layer for the sustained release of nerve growth factor and enhance biocompatibility.

Sakamoto, Jeff S.↗

In-Can Melter for Vitrification of Waste Coming from Decommissioning and Dismantling Operations - 19020

Some waste streams from decommissioning and dismantling operations are identified as an issue in terms of handling, transportation, adapted conditioning matrix or evacuation outlet within the existing regulations. In this context, the consortium of the DEM and MELT project which gathers Orano, the CEA and ECM technologies are currently developing and qualifying a specific vitrification tool designed to match the requirements and constraints of D and D projects. The main characteristics of this In-Can vitrification process are presented hereafter: - Suitable for high or medium level waste; - Flexible enough to accommodate uncertainties on waste composition; - Adequately dimensioned and compact to be implemented and operated inside an existing cell or close to the waste to be treated; - Designed for a short duration of use, as a decommissioning tool, aimed to be dismantled just after the treatment operation; - Designed in order to produce a small amount of secondary waste; - Requiring low investment and operation costs. The In-Can melting process has already been developed by the CEA for an internal application (defense waste vitrification) and can be rated TRL 7. That means it has been tested at full scale at a prototypical demonstration level with a range of simulants in an operational environment. This paper presents the In-Can vitrification process and its performances for a typical D and D waste highly loaded with Cs. The vitrification tests results will be in particular discussed in terms of process parameters, glass properties and cesium volatility. This paper also highlights the methodology and the organization (material, process, technological and long term behavior teams) deployed in order to adapt and qualify the In-Can process for all kind of wastes (liquid, solid, highly loaded with Tc and Cs, waste with no route, ...) from the matrix design definition to the full qualification. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

Activating magnetite ores for aqueous ironmaking at high current densities

Low-temperature electrochemical cells reducing iron oxides to metal in alkaline electrolytes can support fully electrified steelmaking processes. Previous studies on these cells have primarily focused on high-surface-area hematite, Fe 2 O 3 , reactants whereas attempts to reduce suspensions of magnetite, Fe 3 O 4 —one of the two feedstocks for existing ironmaking reactors—have generally been limited to low rates of reaction (<30 mA cm −2 ). Here, in this study, we control the crystalline domain size of Fe 2 O 3 and Fe 3 O 4 particles in 10 M NaOH electrolytes to study how the nanoscale morphology of oxides controls the rate of electrochemical ironmaking. Rotating-ring disk electrode measurements of Fe 2+ , in situ Raman spectroscopy of the electrode surface, and ex situ electron microscopy were consistent with a hypothesized passivation process at Fe 3 O 4 surfaces that may prevent the continuous formation of soluble intermediates. Sufficiently small (<100 nm diameter) oxide particles yielded Fe partial current densities >160 mA cm −2 , a fivefold increase relative to previously reported rates for Fe 3 O 4 suspensions and comparable to active Fe 2 O 3 . Electron microscopy revealed that electrodeposited films were composed of micron-scale crystalline Fe domains with a porous film of Fe 3 O 4 nanoparticles and supports a model where Fe is grown primarily from soluble Fe 2+ intermediates. Based on these insights, inactive blast-furnace-grade iron-oxides were transformed into high surface area nanoparticles (1.6 to 229.2 m 2 g −1 ) via reprecipitation, leading to a ninefold enhancement in faradaic efficiency and an Fe partial current density of 120 mA cm −2 . When integrated with chlor-iron cells producing reagents for reprecipitation, this approach could lead to a cost-competitive process for electrochemical ironmaking from industrially relevant feedstocks.

TEM↗

Microwave Structure Construction Capability Year One Accomplishments

The Microwave Structure Construction Capability (MSCC) element, part of the Moon to Mars Planetary Autonomous Construction Project (MMPACT) was initiated in 2020. MSCC is responsible for creating horizontal and vertical infrastructure on the moon using microwave energy. Microwave energy was selected since it is the only method to volumetrically heat the regolith. All other sintering/melting methods rely on thermal conduction through the very low conductivity surface, resulting in an inefficient process. Advances were achieved in materials characterization and understanding, microwave sintering in vacuum, and microwave design and analyses. Two dielectric property testing systems have been developed at Radiance Technologies and JPL. These will examine dielectric properties at cryogenic temperatures and over a broad frequency range. Permittivity and permeability testing at -60 ̊C in vacuum from 0.05 to 3 GHz has been generated at JPL. Additional modifications will be made to go to -190 ̊C (LN2). Radiance Technologies created a test system to measure dielectric properties at greater than 10 GHz and initiated work on developing a vacuum capable, portable test system to measure dielectric properties of Apollo regolith and simulants from 100 MHz to 18 GHz. These tests are to identify optimal heating frequencies and protocols. During microwave sintering at about 1100 ̊C, volatiles were creating difficulty in achieving a reasonably dense specimen. Due to processing in vacuum and the nature of the lunar regolith, some volatiles and porosity are expected. However, the Earth produced simulants have non-lunar materials in them that create volatiles that aren’t representative of lunar regolith. Therefore, a five month effort was conducted to establish a heat treat method to remove these non-lunar materials. Tests were conducted using TGA mass spectrometry, heating in vacuum and conducting mass spectrometry, dielectric and DTA, Raman, BET, particle size analysis, morphological analysis, carbon and sulfur chemical content determination and microscopy. The process has been scaled-up to 6 kg batch size and undergoing evaluation. A 36 kg batch size is the target for JSC-1A and other limited availability simulants. These calcining protocols will be standard for NASA and beyond. MSCC has also created scalable processes for fabricating synthetic lunar materials. Processes to fabricate Anorthite (plagioclase CaAl2Si2O8), Diopside (pyroxene CaMgSi₂O₆), and Enstatite (pyroxene Mg2Si2O6) have been generated. These materials will enable generation of microwave sintering models to bound various composition ranges anticipated on the Moon, therefore mitigating the need for a precise simulant with respect to location on the Moon. Successful microwave sintering in air using a horn applicator was demonstrated. All previous microwave vacuum sintering in the literature was at small scale and in a contained enclosure thus taking advantage of reflections. This is the first to use a lunar like microwave applicator to sinter ceramic in a bed as it would be done on the Moon. Small scale and inert sintering were conducted to assist in developing protocols with quicker turnaround times than larger scale testing. Testing has anchored thermal analysis predicting heat flow in vacuum during microwave sintering. Thermal conductivity testing was also initiated. Microwave coupling to the regolith has been modeled by multiple organizations and with different software packages. At least six horn designs and applicator configurations for both magnetron and solid state sources are being examined. Optimal simulant container designs for microwaves have also been generated. The power and electronics design for the solid state microwave system has been initiated. Concept designs for a lander based microwave sintering have been evaluated.

microwave↗

Confronting Future Models with Future Satellite Observations of Clouds and Aerosols

The NASA Aerosol, Clouds, Convection and Precipitation (ACCP) Study convened a workshop in November 2020 to understand the future of modeling aerosols, clouds, convection and precipitation, and how satellite data can contribute to that future. ACCP is a project to define a satellite mission to be launched late in the 2020’s to advance cloud and aerosol science, following the recommendations of the latest NASA Decadal Survey. The ACCP modeling workshop goal was to answer the following questions: 1. What will be the critical science questions for clouds and aerosols in 10 years? 2. Where will simulations of clouds and aerosols across scales of space (process models to global) and time (nowcasting to climate prediction) be in 10 years? 3. What data will be available from space? What data would provide the most benefit? 4. What are the state of the art methods for confronting models with cloud and aerosol observations, including assimilation and climatological analysis techniques? The virtual workshop was anchored by a series of pre-recorded talks. Two days of synchronous sessions focused on discussion of the talks, along with small group breakout exercises. After an introduction to the ACCP concept came a panel discussing the future of modeling clouds and aerosols across scales. Participants were then asked to contribute their ideas. On the second day, there were two panel discussions. First came a discussion of the future of satellite observing systems. Second was a discussion of model-data synthesis methods. Finally, participants were asked to develop their own model-data synthesis proposal. The meeting began with an overview of the ACCP mission concept by Graeme Stephens (NASA-JPL). ACCP is a satellite mission for clouds and aerosols, likely anchored by advanced active lidar and radar systems in space, designed to observe detailed aerosol profile and type information, as well as cloud microphysics and dynamics. ACCP will integrate across sensors and observational types to get multi-spectral views of the same scenes, with better resolution than is available today. Launch is scheduled for 2027 or 2029. ACCP is being thought of as a comprehensive mission that may comprise more than one platform and more than one orbit plane (i.e., inclined and polar), with multiple combinations of sensors.

Future Models↗

Bridging Empirical and Physical Approaches for Landslide Monitoring and Early Warning

Rainfall-triggered landslides typically occur and are evaluated at local scales, using slope-stability models to calculate coincident changes in driving and resisting forces at the hillslope level in order to anticipate slope failures. Over larger areas, detailed high resolution landslide modeling is often infeasible due to difficulties in quantifying the complex interaction between rainfall infiltration and surface materials as well as the dearth of available in situ soil and rainfall estimates and accurate landslide validation data. This presentation will discuss how satellite precipitation and surface information can be applied within a landslide hazard assessment framework to improve landslide monitoring and early warning by considering two disparate approaches to landslide hazard assessment: an empirical landslide forecasting algorithm and a physical slope-stability model. The goal of this research is to advance near real-time landslide hazard assessment and early warning at larger spatial scales. This is done by employing high resolution surface and precipitation information within a probabilistic framework to provide more physically-based grounding to empirical landslide triggering thresholds. The empirical landslide forecasting tool, running in near real-time at http://trmm.nasa.gov, considers potential landslide activity at the global scale and relies on Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) precipitation data and surface products to provide a near real-time picture of where landslides may be triggered. The physical approach considers how rainfall infiltration on a hillslope affects the in situ hydro-mechanical processes that may lead to slope failure. Evaluation of these empirical and physical approaches are performed within the Land Information System (LIS), a high performance land surface model processing and data assimilation system developed within the Hydrological Sciences Branch at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. LIS provides the capabilities to quantify uncertainty from model inputs and calculate probabilistic estimates for slope failures. Results indicate that remote sensing data can provide many of the spatiotemporal requirements for accurate landslide monitoring and early warning; however, higher resolution precipitation inputs will help to better identify small-scale precipitation forcings that contribute to significant landslide triggering. Future missions, such as the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) mission will provide more frequent and extensive estimates of precipitation at the global scale, which will serve as key inputs to significantly advance the accuracy of landslide hazard assessment, particularly over larger spatial scales.

Kirschbaum, Dalia↗

CO2 Flux Estimation Errors Associated with Moist Atmospheric Processes

Vertical transport by moist sub-grid scale processes such as deep convection is a well-known source of uncertainty in CO2 source/sink inversion. However, a dynamical link between vertical transport, satellite based retrievals of column mole fractions of CO2, and source/sink inversion has not yet been established. By using the same offline transport model with meteorological fields from slightly different data assimilation systems, we examine sensitivity of frontal CO2 transport and retrieved fluxes to different parameterizations of sub-grid vertical transport. We find that frontal transport feeds off background vertical CO2 gradients, which are modulated by sub-grid vertical transport. The implication for source/sink estimation is two-fold. First, CO2 variations contained in moist poleward moving air masses are systematically different from variations in dry equatorward moving air. Moist poleward transport is hidden from orbital sensors on satellites, causing a sampling bias, which leads directly to small but systematic flux retrieval errors in northern mid-latitudes. Second, differences in the representation of moist sub-grid vertical transport in GEOS-4 and GEOS-5 meteorological fields cause differences in vertical gradients of CO2, which leads to systematic differences in moist poleward and dry equatorward CO2 transport and therefore the fraction of CO2 variations hidden in moist air from satellites. As a result, sampling biases are amplified and regional scale flux errors enhanced, most notably in Europe (0.43+/-0.35 PgC /yr). These results, cast from the perspective of moist frontal transport processes, support previous arguments that the vertical gradient of CO2 is a major source of uncertainty in source/sink inversion.

moist atmospheric processes↗

High-efficiency perovskite photovoltaic modules achieved via cesium doping

Perovskite solar modules have been attracting increasing attention due to their market potential, yet publications concerned with theintrinsic scale-up potential of different perovskite compositions remain relatively scarce. On the other hand, while great success is being made towards improving the power conversion efficiency (PCE) of perovskite solar cells (PSCs) by cesium cation (Cs + ) doping of the perovskite, more attention is being paid to the perovskite phase stabilization effect of Cs + doping, and less to other properties that are critical to understand and futher improve the PSC's. In this work, moderately-Cs-doped MAPbI 3 was employed as a model perovskite material in order to exclude the phase stabilization effect. Our systematic study revealed the influence of Cs + in organic-inorganic hybrid perovskites on the crystal structure, crystallization process, trap state density, band structure and charge (i.e., ions or photo-carriers) transport. Markedly, it has been observed that Cs + doping can greatly increase the carrier diffusion length in the perovskite films, thus improving the potential to scale-up PSC's.The PCE of small area devices (0.09 cm 2 ) was increased to 21.72% from 19.73%, with decreased hysteresis behavior and increased operational stability (T85 = 1000 h) after Cs + doped, where T85 refers to the retention of 85% of the initial PCE. Moreover, a PCE of 21.08% was obtained for a Cs + -containing perovskite module with an active area > 30 cm 2 , which demonstrates a better "reproducibility" than the reference sample (MAPbI3-based perovskite modules, PCE = 18.26%).

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

Polymer informatics: Current status and critical next steps

Artificial intelligence (AI) based approaches are beginning to impact several domains of human life, science and technology. Polymer informatics is one such domain where AI and machine learning (ML) tools are being used in the efficient development, design and discovery of polymers. Surrogate models are trained on available polymer data for instant property prediction, allowing screening of promising polymer candidates with specific target property requirements. Questions regarding synthesizability, and potential (retro)synthesis steps to create a target polymer, are being explored using statistical means. Data-driven strategies to tackle unique challenges resulting from the extraordinary chemical and physical diversity of polymers at small and large scales are being explored. Other major hurdles for polymer informatics are the lack of widespread availability of curated and organized data, and approaches to create machine-readable representations that capture not just the structure of complex polymeric situations but also synthesis and processing conditions. Methods to solve inverse problems, wherein polymer recommendations are made using advanced AI algorithms that meet application targets, are being investigated. As various parts of the burgeoning polymer informatics ecosystem mature and become integrated, efficiency improvements, accelerated discoveries and increased productivity can result. Here in this paper, we review emergent components of this polymer informatics ecosystem and discuss imminent challenges and opportunities.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Development of In-Situ Chlorine Generator for Metal Purification (End of Contract Report)

It has been demonstrated that rare-earth and actinide metals can be purified via conversion to chlorides and heating to volatilize impurities. To this end, BYU has been working towards designing, building, and testing a system that incorporates the chlorine gas generation method into the chloride volatility process. The efforts made towards the project tasks listed in the Statement of Work are addressed in the following sections. Finally, a report on information related to this project that has been published or presented is addressed. By the end of the contract period, small-scale tests using LaCl 3 -CaCl 2 to generate Cl 2 had been conducted, the produced Cl 2 was successfully reacted with Ce foil to create CeCl 3 , initial designs for the large-scale apparatus were completed, and manufacturing for the large-scale apparatus had begun.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

MRT 7365 Power flow physics and key physics phenomena: EMPIRE verification suite

This milestone work baselines electromagnetic particle-in-cell capability of the EMPIRE plasma simulation code to model key processes germane to the physics of electrode plasmas arising in magnetically-insulated transmission lines operating at or near 20 MA. This evaluation is done so through the provision of benchmark verification problems designed to exercise the individual and combined physics models on a small-scale surrogate geometry for the final-feed-to-load region of the Z accelerator under representative operating conditions. In this report, we overview our test designs, and present a portfolio of simulation results along with performance assessments which altogether establish state-of-the-art. In particular, two main verification categories are covered this report: (1) Z-relevant desorption physics (Temkin isotherm), and (2) two approaches to simulate electrode plasma creation and dynamics (automatic creation versus self-consistent creation through direct simulation Monte Carlo collisions).

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗