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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 1,477 records · Page 82
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2023

Ferroelectric control of magnetic anisotropy of 5 d transition metal monolayers

Electric field control of magnetism using ferroelectric materials offers promising applications in low-power spintronics. We have conducted systematic density functional theory calculations to investigate the magnetic properties of epitaxial 5 d transition metal monolayers on a ferroelectric substrate: PbTi⁢O 3 (PTO). Our study reveals that the magnetocrystalline anisotropy energy of the osmium monolayer is significantly enhanced to 18.1 meV/Os in the upward polarization state and, moreover, the anomalous Hall coefficient of osmium/PTO film is tunable by reversing the electric polarization of the PTO substrate. Additionally, the electric polarization reversal in PTO rotates the easy magnetization axis of the iridium and platinum monolayers by 90°, which is attributed to the rearrangement of interfacial charges. In conclusion, our findings suggest an efficient approach to control the magnetization direction of monoatomic layers and provide valuable insights for the development of low-energy spintronics devices.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2021

Diagnosis of information scrambling from Hamiltonian evolution under decoherence

We apply a quantum teleportation protocol based on the Hayden-Preskill thought experiment to quantify how scrambling a given quantum evolution is. It has an advantage over the direct measurement of out-of time ordered correlators when used to diagnose the information scrambling in the presence of decoherence effects stemming from a noisy quantum device. We demonstrate the protocol by applying it to two physical systems: Ising spin chain and SU(2) lattice Yang-Mills theory. To this end, we numerically simulate the time evolution of the two theories in the Hamiltonian formalism. The lattice Yang-Mills theory is implemented with a suitable truncation of Hilbert space on the basis of the Kogut-Susskind formalism. On a two-leg ladder geometry and with the lowest nontrivial spin representations, it can be mapped to a spin chain, which we call Yang-Mills-Ising model and is also directly applicable to future digital quantum simulations. Here, we find that the Yang-Mills-Ising model shows the signal of information scrambling at late times.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2017

Dynamical Dark Matter from strongly-coupled dark sectors

Dynamical Dark Matter (DDM) is an alternative framework for dark-matter physics in which the dark sector comprises a vast ensemble of particle species whose Standard-Model decay widths are balanced against their cosmological abundances. Previous studies of this framework have focused on a particular class of DDM ensembles—motivated primarily by Kaluza-Klein towers in theories with extra dimensions—in which the density of dark states scales roughly as a polynomial of the mass. In this paper, by contrast, we study the properties of a different class of DDM ensembles in which the density of dark states grows exponentially with mass. Ensembles with this Hagedorn-like property arise naturally as the “hadronic” resonances associated with the confining phase of a strongly coupled dark sector; they also arise naturally as the gauge-neutral bulk states of Type I string theories. We study the dynamical properties of such ensembles and demonstrate that an appropriate DDM-like balancing between decay widths and abundances can emerge naturally—even with an exponentially rising density of states. We also study the effective equations of state for such ensembles and investigate some of the model-independent observational constraints on such ensembles that follow directly from these equations of state. In general, we find that such constraints tend to introduce correlations between various properties of these DDM ensembles such as their associated mass scales, lifetimes, and abundance distributions. For example, we find that these constraints allow DDM ensembles with energy scales ranging from the GeV scale all the way to the Planck scale, but that the total present-day cosmological abundance of the dark sector must be spread across an increasing number of different states in the ensemble as these energy scales are dialed from the Planck scale down to the GeV scale. Furthermore, numerous other correlations and constraints are also discussed.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2017

Laser-pulse compression using magnetized plasmas

Proposals to reach the next generation of laser intensities through Raman or Brillouin backscattering have centered on optical frequencies. Higher frequencies are beyond the range of such methods mainly due to the wave damping that accompanies the higher-density plasmas necessary for compressing higher frequency lasers. However, we find that an external magnetic field transverse to the direction of laser propagation can reduce the required plasma density. Using parametric interactions in magnetized plasmas to mediate pulse compression, both reduces the wave damping and alleviates instabilities, thereby enabling higher frequency or lower intensity pumps to produce pulses at higher intensities and longer durations. Finally, in addition to these theoretical advantages, our method in which strong uniform magnetic fields lessen the need for high-density uniform plasmas also lessens key engineering challenges or at least exchanges them for different challenges.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2018

Diffusion of self-propelled particles in complex media

The diffusion of active microscopic organisms in complex environments plays an important role in a wide range of biological phenomena from cell colony growth to single organism transport. Here, we investigate theoretically and computationally the diffusion of a self-propelled particle (the organism) embedded in a complex medium composed of a collection of nonmotile solid particles that mimic soil or other cells. Under such conditions we find that the rotational relaxation time of the swimming direction depends on the swimming velocity and is drastically reduced compared to a pure Newtonian fluid. This leads to a dramatic increase (of several orders of magnitude) in the effective rotational diffusion coefficient of the self-propelled particles, which can lead to “self-trapping” of the active particles in such complex media. An analytical model is put forward that quantitatively captures the computational results. Our work sheds light on the role that the environment plays in the behavior of active systems and can be generalized in a straightforward fashion to understand other synthetic and biological active systems in heterogenous environments.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2021

Monolayer 2D semiconducting tellurides for high-mobility electronics

Discovery and design of two-dimensional (2D) materials with suitable band gaps and high carrier mobility are of vital importance for the photonics, optoelectronics, and high-speed electronics. In this work, based on first principles calculations using density functional theory with Perdew-Burke-Ernzerhof and Heyd-Scuseria-Ernzerhoffunctionals, we introduce a family of monolayer isostructural semiconducting tellurides MNTe 4 , with M={Ti,Zr,Hf} and N={Si,Ge}. We find that these compounds have been identified to possess direct band gaps from 1.0 to 1.31 eV, which are well suited for photonics and optoelectronics applications. Additionally, anisotropic in-plane transport behavior is observed, and small electron and hole (0.11–0.15m e ) effective masses are identified along the dominant transport direction. Ultrahigh carrier mobility is predicted for this family of 2D compounds, which host great promise for potential applications in high-speed electronic devices. Furthermore, detailed analysis of electronic structures reveals the origins of the promising properties of this unique class of 2D telluride materials.

2-dimensional systems↗
DOE OSTI2017

Understanding and controlling chromaticity shift in LED devices

Chromaticity shift in light-emitting diode (LED) devices arises from multiple mechanisms, and at least five different chromaticity shift modes (CSMs) have been identified to date. This paper focuses on the impacts of irreversible phosphor degradation as a cause of chromaticity shifts in LED devices. The nitride phosphors used to produce warm white LEDs are especially vulnerable to degradation due to thermal and chemical effects such as reactions with oxygen and water. As a result, LED devices utilizing these phosphors were found to undergo either a green shift or, less commonly, a red shift depending on the phosphor mix in the LED devices. These types of chromaticity shifts are classified as CSM-2 (green shift) and CSM-5 (red shift). This paper provides an overview of the kinetic processes responsible for green and red chromaticity shifts along with examples from accelerated stress testing of 6” downlights. Both CSMs appear to proceed through analogous mechanisms that are initiated at the surface of the phosphor. A green shift is produced by the surface oxidation of the nitride phosphor that changes the emission profile to lower wavelengths. As the surface oxidation reaction proceeds, reactant limitations slow the rate and bulk oxidation processes become more prevalent. We found that a red chromaticity shift arises from quenching of the green phosphor, also possibly due to surface reactions of oxygen, which shift the emission chromaticity in the red direction. In conclusion, we discuss the implications of these findings on projecting chromaticity.

Davis, Lynn↗
DOE OSTI2024

Criteria for Grid-Forming Inverters Transitioning Between Current Limiting Mode and Normal Operation

Here, this letter focuses on the fault recovery analysis of inverters using multi-loop droop based grid-forming control, taking into account different current limiting strategies. A criterion is proposed to determine when the inverter can exit the current limiting mode after fault clearance. The theoretical findings are verified through electromagnetic transient simulations using the direct (d)-axis priority-based current limiting method, circular current limiting method, and virtual impedance method.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗
DOE OSTI2023

Quantifying co-benefits of water quality policies: An integrated assessment model of land and nitrogen management

Due to the nature of nitrogen cycling, policies designed to address water quality concerns have the potential to provide benefits beyond the targeted water quality improvements. For example, actions to protect water quality by reducing nitrate leaching from agriculture also reduce emissions of nitrous oxide, a potent greenhouse gas. These positive effects, which are incidental to the regulation's intended target, are termed “co-benefits.” To quantify the co-benefits associated with reduced nitrate leaching, we integrate an economic model of farmer decision making with a model of terrestrial nitrogen cycling for the watershed surrounding Lake Mendota, Wisconsin, USA. Our modeling approach provides a framework that links air and water pollutants in an agri-environmental system and offers a direction for future studies. Our model results highlight the finding that the co-benefits from nitrous oxide abatement are substantial, and their inclusion increases the benefit–cost ratio of water quality policies. Consideration of these co-benefits has the potential to reverse the conclusions of benefit–cost analysis in the assessment of current water quality policies.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2020

PASSAT: particle accelerator helioScopes for Slim Axion-like-particle deTection

We propose a novel method to search for axion-like particles (ALPs) at particle accelerator experiments. ALPs produced at the target via the Primakoff effect subsequently enter a region with a magnetic field, where they are converted to photons that are then detected. Dubbed Particle Accelerator helioScopes for Slim Axion-like-particle deTection (PASSAT), our proposal uses the principle of the axion helioscope but replaces ALPs produced in the Sun with those produced in a target material. Since we rely on ALP-photon conversions , our proposal probes light (slim) ALPs that are otherwise inaccessible to laboratory-based experiments which rely on ALP decay, and complements astrophysical probes that are more model-dependent. As a first application, we reinterpret existing data from the NOMAD experiment in light of PASSAT, and constrain the parameter space for ALPs lighter than $$\sim 100~\mathrm{eV}$$ ~ 100 eV and ALP-photon coupling larger than $$\sim 10^{-4}~\mathrm{GeV}^{-1}$$ ~ 10 - 4 GeV - 1 . As benchmarks of feasible low-cost experiments improving over the NOMAD limits, we study the possibility of re-using the magnets of the CAST and the proposed BabyIAXO experiments and placing them at the proposed BDF facility at CERN, together with some new detectors. We find that these realizations of PASSAT allow for a direct probe of the parameter space for ALPs lighter than $$\sim 100~\mathrm{eV}$$ ~ 100 eV and ALP-photon coupling larger than $$\sim 4\times 10^{-6}~\mathrm{GeV}^{-1}$$ ~ 4 × 10 - 6 GeV - 1 , which are regions that have not been probed yet by experiments with laboratory-produced ALPs. In contrast to other proposals aiming at detecting single or two-photon only events in hadronic beam dump environments, that rely heavily on Monte Carlo simulations, the background in our proposal can be directly measured in-situ , its suppression optimized, and the irreducible background statistically subtracted. Sensitivity evaluations with other beams will be the subject of a future paper. The measurements suggested in this paper represent an additional physics case for the BDF at CERN beyond those already proposed.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Isogeometric large-eddy simulations of turbulent particle-laden flows

In recent years, isogeometric analysis (IGA) has attracted significant attention from the computational mechanics community due to its ability to integrate design and analysis. Besides, IGA is also a higher-order discretization technique for solving partial differential equations, showing high approximation capability per degree of freedom. In this paper, we extend the application realm of IGA to particle-laden flows based on Eulerian–Eulerian description that couples Navier–Stokes equations with a density transport equation through a Boussinesq approximation. The coupled systems are solved by using quadratic non-uniform rational B-spline (NURBS) functions and a recently developed residual-based variational multiscale (VMS) formulation, which introduces coupling between the fine velocity scales and density equation residuals. We deploy the proposed approach to perform large-eddy simulations (LES) of dilute particle-laden flows over a flat surface at Reynolds number = 10,000. We compare the simulation results against direct numerical simulation (DNS) results from the literature. We find that combining VMS and IGA, the proposed approach enables accurate prediction of a wide range of flow/particle statistics with a relatively lower mesh resolution.

Mathematics↗
DOE OSTI2013

Elevated CO2 influences microbial carbon and nitrogen cycling

Background: Elevated atmospheric CO2 (eCO2) has been shown to have significant effects on terrestrial ecosystems. However, little is known about its influence on the structure, composition, and functional potential of soil microbial communities, especially carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) cycling. A high-throughput functional gene array (GeoChip 3.0) was used to examine the composition, structure, and metabolic potential of soil microbial communities from a grassland field experiment after ten-year field exposure to ambient and elevated CO2 concentrations. Results: Distinct microbial communities were established under eCO2. The abundance of three key C fixation genes encoding ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco), carbon monoxide dehydrogenase (CODH) and propionyl-CoA/acetyl-CoA carboxylase (PCC/ACC), significantly increased under eCO2, and so did some C degrading genes involved in starch, cellulose, and hemicellulose. Also, nifH and nirS involved in N cycling were significantly stimulated. In addition, based on variation partitioning analysis (VPA), the soil microbial community structure was largely shaped by direct and indirect eCO2-driven factors. Conclusions: These findings suggest that the soil microbial community structure and their ecosystem functioning for C and N cycling were altered dramatically at eCO2. This study provides new insights into our understanding of the feedback response of soil microbial communities to elevated CO2 and global change.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2022

Persistent memory as an effective alternative to random access memory in metagenome assembly

Abstract Background The assembly of metagenomes decomposes members of complex microbe communities and allows the characterization of these genomes without laborious cultivation or single-cell metagenomics. Metagenome assembly is a process that is memory intensive and time consuming. Multi-terabyte sequences can become too large to be assembled on a single computer node, and there is no reliable method to predict the memory requirement due to data-specific memory consumption pattern. Currently, out-of-memory (OOM) is one of the most prevalent factors that causes metagenome assembly failures. Results In this study, we explored the possibility of using Persistent Memory (PMem) as a less expensive substitute for dynamic random access memory (DRAM) to reduce OOM and increase the scalability of metagenome assemblers. We evaluated the execution time and memory usage of three popular metagenome assemblers (MetaSPAdes, MEGAHIT, and MetaHipMer2) in datasets up to one terabase. We found that PMem can enable metagenome assemblers on terabyte-sized datasets by partially or fully substituting DRAM. Depending on the configured DRAM/PMEM ratio, running metagenome assemblies with PMem can achieve a similar speed as DRAM, while in the worst case it showed a roughly two-fold slowdown. In addition, different assemblers displayed distinct memory/speed trade-offs in the same hardware/software environment. Conclusions We demonstrated that PMem is capable of expanding the capacity of DRAM to allow larger metagenome assembly with a potential tradeoff in speed. Because PMem can be used directly without any application-specific code modification, these findings are likely to be generalized to other memory-intensive bioinformatics applications.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2016

Ebolavirus Glycoprotein Fc Fusion Protein Protects Guinea Pigs against Lethal Challenge

Ebola virus (EBOV), a member of the Filoviridae that can cause severe hemorrhagic fever in humans and nonhuman primates, poses a significant threat to the public health. Currently, there are no licensed vaccines or therapeutics to prevent and treat EBOV infection. Several vaccines based on the EBOV glycoprotein (GP) are under development, including vectored, virus-like particles, and protein-based subunit vaccines. We previously demonstrated that a subunit vaccine containing the extracellular domain of the Ebola ebolavirus (EBOV) GP fused to the Fc fragment of human IgG1 (EBOVgp-Fc) protected mice against EBOV lethal challenge. Here, we show that the EBOVgp-Fc vaccine formulated with QS-21, alum, or polyinosinic-polycytidylic acid-poly-L-lysine carboxymethylcellulose (poly-ICLC) adjuvants induced strong humoral immune responses in guinea pigs. The vaccinated animals developed anti-GP total antibody titers of approximately 10 5 –10 6 and neutralizing antibody titers of approximately 10 3 as assessed by a BSL-2 neutralization assay based on vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) pseudotypes. The poly-ICLC formulated EBOVgp-Fc vaccine protected all the guinea pigs against EBOV lethal challenge performed under BSL-4 conditions whereas the same vaccine formulated with QS-21 or alum only induced partial protection. Vaccination with a mucin-deletedEBOVgp-Fc construct formulated with QS-21 adjuvant did not have a significant effect in anti-GP antibody levels and protection against EBOV lethal challenge compared to the full-lengthGP construct. The bulk of the humoral response induced by the EBOVgp-Fc vaccine was directed against epitopes outside the EBOV mucin region. Our findings indicate that different adjuvants can eliciting varying levels of protection against lethal EBOV challenge in guinea pigs vaccinated with EBOVgp-Fc,and suggest that levels of total anti-GP antibodies elicit by protein-based GP subunit vaccines do not correlate with protection. In conclusion, our data further support the development of Fc fusions of GP as a candidate vaccine for human use.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2023

Probing rutile solid-phase crystallization of atomically mixed Mn-alloyed TiO 2 coatings through XANES analysis

Phase transformation via dopant introduction is an emerging strategy for tuning the electronic and catalytic properties of oxides. However, developing a general theory of ternary alloys and their microstructure evolution remains challenging due to the knowledge gaps in how point defects such as dopants lead to the formation of complex or metastable phases. We investigate the influence of Mn concentration and annealing temperature on the microstructure evolution of amorphous Mn-alloyed TiO 2 synthesized via Atomic Layer Deposition. In conclusion, our findings reveal a new crystallization pathway resulting in a direct amorphous TiO 2 to rutile transformation without an intermediate anatase phase and our multi-parameter thermal processing conditions show potential for AI-assisted data acquisition and analysis for studying complex oxide coatings.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2021

Toward Robust and Routine Determination of Mw for Small Earthquakes: Application to the 2020 Mw 5.7 Magna, Utah, Seismic Sequence

To better characterize seismic hazard, particularly, for induced seismicity, there is an increasing interest in methods to estimate moment magnitude (M w ) for small earthquakes. M w is generally preferred over other magnitude types, but, it is difficult to estimate M w for earthquakes with local magnitude (M L ) <3-3.5, using conventional moment tensor (MT) inversion. The 2020 M ww 5.7 Magna, Utah, seismic sequence provides an opportunity to illustrate and evaluate the value of spectral methods for this purpose. Starting with a high-quality seismic catalog of 2103 earthquakes (M L <5.6), we estimate M w using two independent spectral methods—one based on direct waves, yielding M w,direct , and the other based on coda waves, yielding M w,coda . For the direct-wave method, we present a non-parametric (NP) inversion scheme that solves for apparent geometrical spreading, G(R), and site effects (S), similar to other NP procedures that have been used to calibrate regional M L scales. The NP inversion is constrained using M ws derived from MTs for nine events in the Magna sequence. We recover statistically robust and physically reasonable G(R) and S and compute M w,direct for 635 Magna earthquakes down to M L 0.7. For the coda-wave method, we consider two separate calibration schemes involving previous MT solutions and compute M w,coda for 311 earthquakes down to M L 1.0. For 280 of the events that were processed with both methods—M w,direct and M w,coda —are strongly correlated (r = 0.98), with a mean difference of only 0.05. We compare M w,direct and M w,coda with M L and find reasonably good agreement for M L <3.6 with the theoretically predicted relationship of M w =(2/3)M L +C, in which C is a regional constant. Our results imply that seismic network operators can use spectral-based M w estimates to replace M L estimates for events with M L ≥1.0, and possibly smaller. The main requirement is the existence of a small number of MT solutions for calibration purposes.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2018

Polyalkylene Glycol (PAG) Based Lubricant for Light & Medium Duty Axles

The axle lubricant (SAE 75W-140) widely used in the market place over the last few years is primarily formulated from polyalpha olefin (PAO) basestock. This investigation focused on polyalkylene glycol (PAG) base stock which is significantly different chemically from PAO and because of their polar nature it is hypothesized that it can adsorb relatively easily on contacting surfaces resulting in significant friction reduction and improve fuel economy. Axle efficiency is generally quite high at high torque range but it could be quite low at low torque range representative of EPA drive cycles. Therefore, this project primarily focus on improving axle efficiency in the low torque range while maintaining all durability attributes. The objective of this project is to develop novel lubricant formulations that are expected to improve the fuel efficiency of light, medium, heavy-duty, and military vehicles by at least 2% over Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) 75W-140 axle lubricants (improvement based on comparative results from engine dynamometer testing, chassis dynamometer testing or test track, e.g., SAE J1321) without adverse impacts on vehicle performance or durability. The proposed research project followed a structured approach beginning with lubricant formulations by varying base oil chemistry and additive components followed by physical property characterization. Lubricant performance evaluations started with simple laboratory friction, wear, oxidation, and corrosion tests which guided into identification of performance areas requiring improvements. This required an iterative lubricant reformulation. Once a few acceptable formulations were identified, they are evaluated in more complex component tests including ASTM tests (L-37 - load carrying capacity under low speed and high torque, L42 – load carrying properties under high speed and shock loading, L-60 - thermal and oxidative stability, and L-33-1 moisture corrosion resistance). Two issues were observed following L-42 tests; toxicological and foaming. This required reformulation and repeating all ASTM tests. During repeat tests it was observed that some of the additives precipitated out of solution. Since it was discovered quite late in the program, and the time it may need to find a solution to this issue, the team changed direction of the program to switch to use of an oil soluble PAG as a co-basestock (15-30%) with mineral oil used in a commercial formulation (SAE 75W-85). This formulation strategy helped passing all ASTM tests. This was followed by Ford proprietary axle efficiency, gear wear, and chassis roll dynamometer tests for fuel economy evaluations. Axle efficiency was improved up to 7% when a full PAG formulation was used but no such significant improvement was observed with PAG as co-basestock formulation. Chassis roll fuel economy improved by 1.9% with PAG co-basestock formulation (conforming to SAE 75W-85) compared to SAE 75W-140 baseline. However, it was observed that the improvement is mostly due to reduced viscosity of candidate formulation when compared to a full mineral oil based SAE 75W-85 formulation. PAG as co-basestock also exhibited unacceptable wear in proprietary gear wear test. This investigation highlighted challenges with PAG formulations including identification of additive components that stay in PAG solution for intended duration, and meeting component durability requirement.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2016

The Distribution of Radioactive 44 Ti in Cassiopeia A

The distribution of elements produced in the inner-most layers of a supernova explosion is a key diagnostic for studying the collapse of massive stars. Here we present the results of a 2.4 Ms NuSTAR observing campaign aimed at studying the supernova remnant Cassiopeia A (Cas A). We perform spatially-resolved spectroscopic analyses of the 44 Ti ejecta which we use to determine the Doppler shift and thus the three-dimensional (3D) velocities of the 44 Ti ejecta. We nd an initial 44Ti mass of 1.54±0.21x10 -4 M which has a present day average momentum direction of 340°±15° projected on to the plane of the sky (measured clockwise from Celestial North) and tilted by 58°±20° into the plane of the sky away from the observer, roughly opposite to the inferred direction of motion of the central compact object. We find some 44 Ti ejecta that are clearly interior to the reverse shock and some that are clearly exterior to the reverse shock. Where we observe 44 Ti ejecta exterior to the reverse shock we also see shock-heated iron; however, there are regions where we see iron but do not observe 44 Ti. This suggests that the local conditions of the supernova shock during explosive nucleosynthesis varied enough to suppress the production of 44 Ti in some regions by at least a factor of two, even in regions that are assumed to be the result of processes like α-rich freezeout that should produce both iron and titanium.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗