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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 109 records · Page 6
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2021

Faster Form of Electron Magnetic Reconnection with a Finite Length X-Line

Observations in Earth’s turbulent magnetosheath downstream of a quasiparallel bow shock reveal a prevalence of electron-scale current sheets favorable for electron-only reconnection where ions are not coupled to the reconnecting magnetic fields. In small-scale turbulence, magnetic structures associated with intense current sheets are limited in all dimensions. And since the coupling of ions are constrained by a minimum length scale, the dynamics of electron reconnection is likely to be 3D. Here, both 2D and 3D kinetic particle-in-cell simulations are used to investigate electron-only reconnection, focusing on the reconnection rate and associated electron flows. A new form of 3D electron-only reconnection spontaneously develops where the magnetic X-line is localized in the out-of-plane (z) direction. The consequence is an enhancement of the reconnection rate compared with two dimensions, which results from differential mass flux out of the diffusion region along z, enabling a faster inflow velocity and thus a larger reconnection rate. This outflow along z is due to the magnetic tension force in z just as the conventional exhaust tension force, allowing particles to leave the diffusion region efficiently along z unlike the 2D configuration.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Enhanced interactions of Kuroshio Extension with tropical Pacific in a changing climate

Quasi-decadal climate of the Kuroshio Extension (KE) is pivotal to understanding the North Pacific coupled ocean–atmosphere dynamics and their predictability. Recent observational studies suggest that extratropical-tropical coupling between the KE and the central tropical Pacific El Niño Southern Oscillation (CP-ENSO) leads to the observed preferred decadal time-scale of Pacific climate variability. By combining reanalysis data with numerical simulations from a high-resolution climate model and a linear inverse model (LIM), we confirm that KE and CP-ENSO dynamics are linked through extratropical-tropical teleconnections. Specifically, the atmospheric response to the KE excites Meridional Modes that energize the CP-ENSO (extratropicstropics), and in turn, CP-ENSO teleconnections energize the extratropical atmospheric forcing of the KE (tropicsextratropics). However, both observations and the model show that the KE/CP-ENSO coupling is non-stationary and has intensified in recent decades after the mid-1980. Given the short length of the observational and climate model record, it is difficult to attribute this shift to anthropogenic forcing. However, using a large-ensemble of the LIM we show that the intensification in the KE/CP-ENSO coupling after the mid-1980 is significant and linked to changes in the KE atmospheric downstream response, which exhibit a stronger imprint on the subtropical winds that excite the Pacific Meridional modes and CP-ENSO.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2023

How the existence of unstable neutral media restricts the aspect ratio of cold neutral media?

ABSTRACT The ubiquity of very thin and lengthy cold neutral medium (CNM) has been reported by multiple authors in the H i community. Yet, the reason of how the CNM can be so long and lengthy is still in debate. In this paper, we recognize a new type of instability due to the attractive nature of the pressure force in the unstable phase. We provide a new estimation of the average CNM filament aspect ratio with the consideration of force balances at the phase boundary, which is roughly 5–20 in common CNM environment. We show that most of the cold filaments are less filamentary than what usually predicted via MHD turbulence theory or inferred from observations: The average length of CNM filament is roughly 1/2 of that in isothermal MHD turbulence with similar turbulence conditions. This suggests that the ‘cold filaments’ that are identified in observations might not be in pressure equilibrium or generated via other mechanisms.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Length scales and scale-free dynamics of dislocations in dense solid solutions

The fundamental interactions between an edge dislocation and a random solid solution are studied by analyzing dislocation line roughness profiles obtained from molecular dynamics simulations of Fe 0.70 Ni 0.11 Cr 0.19 over a range of stresses and temperatures. These roughness profiles reveal the hallmark features of a depinning transition. Namely, below a temperature-dependent critical stress, the dislocation line exhibits roughness in two different length scale regimes which are divided by a so-called correlation length. This correlation length increases with applied stress and at the critical stress (depinning transition or yield stress) formally goes to infinity. Above the critical stress, the line roughness profile converges to that of a random noise field. Motivated by these results, a physical model is developed based on the notion of coherent line bowing over all length scales below the correlation length. Above the correlation length, the solute field prohibits such coherent line bow outs. Using this model, we identify potential gaps in existing theories of solid solution strengthening and show that recent observations of length-dependent dislocation mobilities can be rationalized.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
NASA NTRS1990

Oxide superconductors under magnetic field

One of the current most serious problems for the oxide superconductors from the standpoint of practical application is the various novel features derived mainly from their extremely short coherence. In particular, the coherence length so far observed in the cuprate superconductors is in the range of 0.1 nm perpendicular to the CuO2 plane. This seems to be creating most of the difficulties in the device fabrication and in the performance under the magnetic field. Some of the superconducting properties under the magnetic field will be discussed in terms of the short coherence length. A model will be presented based on the gradual strengthening of the pinning force with decrease in temperature and the weak coupling at the grain boundaries. Secondly, the broadening of the superconducting transition under the magnetic field is discussed. This is observed significantly only when the field is applied perpendicular to the basal plane and the relative orientation of the current to the field is insignificant in determining the extent of the broadening. Besides, the change in the strength of the pinning force does not affect the width of the broadening. From these observations discussions will be made on a model based on the giant fluctuation. Based on this model, it is predicted that the coherence length along the c-axis will be the single most important material parameter to determine the performance of the superconductor under a strong magnetic field. It seems that BYCO is superior in this regard to Bi- or Tl-systems as far as the performance at 77 K is considered, although another material with the coherence length slightly longer along the c-axis is still highly desired.

Kitazawa, K.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Oxide superconductors under magnetic field

One of the current most serious problems for the oxide superconductors from the standpoint of practical application is the various novel features derived mainly from their extremely short coherence. In particular, the coherence length so far observed in the cuprate superconductors is in the range of 0.1 nm perpendicular to the CuO2 plane. This seems to be creating most of the difficulties in the device fabrication and in the performance under the magnetic field. Some of the superconducting properties under the magnetic field will be discussed in terms of the short coherence length. A model will be presented based on the gradual strengthening of the pinning force with decrease in temperature and the weak coupling at the grain boundaries. Secondly, the broadening of the superconducting transition under the magnetic field is discussed. This is observed significantly only when the field is applied perpendicular to the basal plane and the relative orientation of the current to the field is insignificant in determining the extent of broadening. Besides, the change in the strength of the pinning force does not affect the width of the broadening. From these observations discussions will be made on a model based on the giant fluctuation. Based on this model, it is predicted that the coherence length along the c-axis will be the single most important material parameter to determine the performance of the superconductor under a strong magnetic field. It seems that BYCO is superior in this regard to Bi- or Tl-systems as far as the performance at 77 K is considered, although another material with the coherence length slightly longer along the c-axis is still highly desired.

Kitazawa, K.↗
NASA NTRS2002

Testing for X-ray Periodicities in Seyfert Galaxies

The Deep Survey instrument on the Extreme Ultraviolet Explorer obtained long, continuous light-curves of 10 Seyfert galaxies with durations of 5-33 days each. We present a uniform reduction of these data, which account for a total of 209 days of observation. Several of the light curves are uniquely suited to a search for periodicity or QPOs in the range of hours to days that might be expected from dynamical effects in the inner accretion disks around approximately 10(exp 8) solar mass black holes. Power spectra show features in three of the longest observations that could be transient periods: 0.9 days in RX J0437.4-4711, 2.1 days in Ton S180, and 5.8 days in 1H 0419-577. These period values seem to be unrelated to the length of the observations, which are similar in the three cases, but they do roughly scale as the luminosity of the objects, which would be expected in a dynamical scenario if the black hole masses also scale with luminosity. The significance of these periods will be evaluated in a future publication by using the method of Timmer & Konig (1995), which properly takes into account the red-noise properties of AGN light curves.

Halpern, Jules P.↗
NASA NTRS1989

Length-of-day variations caused by El Nino-Southern Oscillation and Quasi-Biennial Oscillation

Two prominent interannual atmospheric fluctuations, the El Nino-Southern Oscillation in the troposphere-ocean system and the Quasi-Biennial Oscillation in the equatorial stratosphere, account for most of the observed interannual length-of-day (LOD) variation from 1964 through 1987, with a relative contribution of about 2 to 1. Thus the atmosphere-LOD connection extends from seasonal and shorter periods to interannual periods up to about 10 years.

Chao, B. Fong↗
NASA NTRS1990

An experimental study of counter-rotating cores in elliptical galaxies

Recent observational studies (Franx and Illingworth 1987; Jedrzejewski and Schechter 1988; Bender 1988; Illingworth and Franx 1989) have shown that some elliptical galaxies have a small region near the center that rotates in the opposite direction from the outer parts of the galaxy. Often the rotation in the central part is much faster than that in the outer part. A few other galaxies show a small region near the center that rotates in the same direction as the rest of the galaxy, but much faster. Either way, the part near the center that shows a strange pattern of rotation (the 'core') has been interpreted as a distinct dynamical subsystem. Very briefly, the observational data seem to be that anomalies show up in rotation curves near the centers of some elliptical galaxies and that galaxies with these strange rotational properties do not show a photometric signature: there are no noticeable bumps in the brightness profile and no unusual shapes of isophotal contours that would suggest an excess of matter concentrated near the center. No strong color variations have been reported. The puzzle is to learn what we can about elliptical galaxies in general, and about galaxies with strange central regions in particular, from these observational facts. The authors' approach is experimental. They make a guess about the form of the dynamically distinct subsystem, and then build a galaxy model to test experimental consequences such as the amount of matter required to produce observable effects and the length of time over which these effects would remain observable. They sidestep questions about how the galaxy might have gotten to be that way in the first place. That gives them more freedom to explore a variety of suggestions about what kind of dynamical system might give rise to the observed rotational patterns.

Miller, R. H.↗
DOE OSTI2021

The variation in self-organized anode plasma pattern structure with solution electrolyte type in 1 atm DC glow discharge

Abstract Plasma self-organization on anode surfaces in 1 atm DC glow discharges remains poorly understood. This effort aims to elucidate the nature of self-organization through the experimental study of resulting patterns on liquid anode surfaces with 13 different electrolytes and thus improves our understanding of the underlying physical processes that give rise to self-organization by investigating electrolyte sensitivity. Self-organization pattern formation and behavior were studied as a function of discharge current, solution ionic strength, and their chemical property evaluation. The response of the patterns to variation in these parameters was measured using an imaging camera and optical emission spectroscopy. Observed pattern characteristic length scales for all of the electrolytes were ranged from 2 to 13 mm and typically increased with current over the investigated range of 20–80 mA. Complex self-organized pattern structures not reported to date were also observed. The parameters associated with pattern formation and morphology complexity are discussed and summarized.

Physics↗
NASA NTRS1990

Combined trellis coding and feedforward processing for MSS applications

The idea of using a multiple (more than two) symbol observation interval to improve error probability performance is applied to differential detection of trellis coded MPSK over a mobile satellite (fading) channel. Results are obtained via computer simulation. It is shown that only a slight increase (e.g., one symbol) in the length of the observation interval will provide a significant improvement in bit error probability performance both in AWGN and fading environments.

Divsalar, D.↗
NASA NTRS1979

Initial ISEE observations of the bow shock

ISEE 1 and 2 magnetic-field profiles across three terrestrial bow shock crossings are shown to illustrate the control of the bow shock structure and upstream waves by solar-wind conditions, especially by the direction of the interplanetary field. The quasi-perpendicular shocks examined have thicknesses of the order of a ion inertial length. Upstream waves observed for field directions of about 45 deg to the shock normal are observed to be carried back towards the bow shock by the solar wind, while propagating upstream at what appears to be the magnetosonic velocity. These studies are continuing.

Russell, C. T.↗
NASA NTRS1998

Conditions for Aeronomic Applicability of the Classical Electron Heat Conduction Formula

Conditions for the applicability of the classical formula for heat conduction in the electrons in ionized gas are investigated. In a fully ionised gas ( V(sub en) much greater than V(sub ei)), when the mean free path for electron-electron (or electron-ion) collisions is much larger than the characteristic thermal scale length of the observed system, the conditions for applicability break down. In the case of the Venus ionosphere this breakdown is indicated for a large fraction of the electron temperature data from altitudes greater than 180 km, for electron densities less than 10(exp 4)/cc cm. In a partially ionised gas such that V(sub en) much greater than V(sub ei) there is breakdown of the formula not only when the mean free path of electrons greatly exceeds the thermal scale length, but also when the gradient of neutral particle density exceeds the electron thermal gradient. It is shown that electron heat conduction may be neglected in estimating the temperature of joule heated electrons by observed strong 100 Hz electric fields when the conduction flux is limited by the saturation flux. The results of this paper support our earlier aeronomical arguments against the hypothesis of planetary scale whistlers for the 100 Hz electric field signal. In turn this means that data from the 100 Hz signal may not be used to support the case for lightning on Venus.

Cole, K. D.↗
NASA NTRS1993

The growth of small corrosion fatigue cracks in alloy 2024

The corrosion fatigue crack growth characteristics of small surface and corner cracks in aluminum alloy 2024 is established. The damaging effect of salt water on the early stages of small crack growth is characterized by crack initiation at constituent particle pits, intergranular microcracking for a less than 100 micrometers, and transgranular small crack growth for a micrometer. In aqueous 1 percent NaCl and at a constant anodic potential of -700 mV(sub SCE), small cracks exhibit a factor of three increase in fatigue crack growth rates compared to laboratory air. Small cracks exhibit accelerated corrosion fatigue crack growth rates at low levels of delta-K (less than 1 MPa square root of m) below long crack delta-K (sub th). When exposed to Paris regime levels of crack tip stress intensity, small corrosion fatigue cracks exhibit growth rates similar to that observed for long cracks. Results suggest that crack closure effects influence the corrosion fatigue crack growth rates of small cracks (a less than or equal to 100 micrometers). This is evidenced by similar small and long crack growth behavior at various levels of R. Contrary to the corrosion fatigue characteristics of small cracks in high strength steels, no pronounced chemical crack length effect is observed for Al by 2024 exposed to salt water.

Piascik, Robert S.↗
DOE OSTI2022

Determination of Location-Specific Solidification Cracking Susceptibility for a Mixed Dissimilar Alloy Processed by Wire-Arc Additive Manufacturing

Solidification cracking is a major obstacle when joining dissimilar alloys using additive manufacturing. In this work, location-specific solidification cracking susceptibility has been investigated using an integrated computational materials engineering (ICME) approach for a graded alloy formed by mixing P91 steel and Inconel 740H superalloy. An alloy mixture of 26 wt.% P91 and 74 wt.% Inconel 740H, with high configurational and total entropy, was fabricated using wire arc additive manufacturing. Microstructure characterization revealed intergranular solidification cracks in the FCC matrix, which increased in length along with the enrichment of Nb (~27 to 56 wt.%) and Cu (~87 wt.%) in the middle and top regions. DICTRA simulations to model location-specific solidification cracking susceptibility showed that the top region with the highest cooling rate (270 K/s) has the highest solidification cracking susceptibility in comparison with the middle and bottom regions. This is in good agreement with the experimentally observed varying crack length. From Scheil simulations, it was deduced that enrichment of Nb and Cu affected the solidification range as high as ~77%, in comparison with the matrix composition. The overall solidification cracking susceptibility and freezing range was highest for the 26 wt.% P91 alloy amongst the mixed compositions between P91 steel and 740H superalloy, proving that solidification characteristics play a major role in alloy design for additive manufacturing.

20 FOSSIL-FUELED POWER PLANTS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Investigation of the Self-Assembly Behavior of Statistical Bottlebrush Copolymers via Self-Consistent Field Theory Simulations

Bottlebrush copolymers, a class of high-density side-chain-grafted copolymers with high molecular weights, have recently attracted extensive research attention due to the dramatic reduction of chain entanglement in these copolymers, unique self-assembly behaviors, and distinctive physical properties. In this study, we employ self-consistent field theory simulations to systemically investigate the phase behavior of statistical bottlebrush copolymers A-stat-B, an intriguing subclass of bottlebrush copolymers with random or alternating sequences of A and B side chains. We find that a broader variety of ordered mesophases can be stabilized in the melts of these copolymers relative to the more extensively studied bottlebrush block copolymers. In particular, we observe that these statistical copolymers can stabilize sphere phases over a larger range of species volume fractions than their diblock and tetrablock counterparts but require much higher segregation strength to achieve this. The sphere and hexagonally packed cylinder phases formed by conformationally symmetric statistical bottlebrush copolymers possess interesting discrete core–shell structures with the backbone and lower volume fraction side-chain species forming shells and cores, respectively. Moreover, we uncover a new strategy of stabilizing the Frank–Kasper phase A15 by introducing conformational asymmetry through different side-chain lengths and also observe deflection of order–order phase boundaries and significant mixing between the backbones and short side chains as conformational asymmetry is introduced.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
NASA NTRS1989

Atmospheric occultation of a solar flare in hard x rays

The objective of this study is two-fold: to investigate the absorption of hard x rays along a tangential path through the terrestrial atmosphere, and to locate, other than the use of imaging devices, the flare source of x ray emission in the sun. Observational data were taken with the Hard X Ray Burst Spectrometer (HXRBS) on board the Solar Maximum Mission satellite (SMM). The occultation event chosen for investigation is the flare on 14 October 1981. Night fell on SMM during the decaying phase of the flare. In about fifteen seconds, the x ray flux decreased to zero. The model for computing synthetic light curve, which is directly comparable to the observed curve, consists of two computing programs. One is a modified version of an existing code, which compute the coordinates of the tangent points of the SMM-sun lines. The other program computed the atmospheric densities along the angles (N to S and E to W) measured from the center of the sun. The various model also depends on the destination of the terrestrial atmosphere at geocentric positions of SMM and the sun, the mean atmospheric densities at different heights and latitudes, and the x ray absorption cross of nitrogen, oxygen, and argon. The optical length, at a given time and for a x ray energy, is computed with the two angular parameters. The fit of a particular synthetic light, curve, i.e., the exponentials of the optical lengths, to the observed eclipse curve, yields the desired angular parameters.

Chen, Kwan-Yu↗
DOE OSTI2021

Predicting Fracture Network Development in Crystalline Rocks

The geometric properties of fractures influence whether they propagate, arrest, or coalesce with other fractures. Thus, quantifying the relationship between fracture network characteristics may help predict fracture network development, and perhaps precursors to catastrophic failure. To constrain the relationship and predictability of fracture characteristics, we deform eight one centimeter tall rock cores under triaxial compression while acquiring in situ X-ray tomograms. The tomograms reveal precise measurements of the fracture network characteristics above the spatial resolution of 6.5 µm. We develop machine learning models to predict the value of each characteristic using the other characteristics, and excluding the macroscopic stress or strain imposed on the rock. The models predict fracture development more accurately in the experiments performed on granite and monzonite, than the experiments on marble. Fracture network development may be more predictable in these igneous rocks because their microstructure is more mechanically homogeneous than the marble, producing more systematic fracture development that is not strongly impeded by grain contacts and cleavage planes. The varying performance of the models suggest that fracture volume, length, and aperture are the most predictable of the characteristics, while fracture orientation is the least predictable. Orientation does not correlate with length, as suggested by the idea that the orientation evolves with increasing differential stress and thus fracture length. This difference between the observed and expected relationship between orientation and length highlights the influence of mechanical heterogeneities and local stress perturbations on fracture growth as fractures propagate, link, and coalesce.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗