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DOE OSTI2023

Machine learned interatomic potential for dispersion strengthened plasma facing components

Tungsten (W) is a material of choice for the divertor material due to its high melting temperature, thermal conductivity, and sputtering threshold. However, W has a very high brittle-to-ductile transition temperature, and at fusion reactor temperatures (≥1000 K), it may undergo recrystallization and grain growth. Dispersion-strengthening W with zirconium carbide (ZrC) can improve ductility and limit grain growth, but much of the effects of the dispersoids on microstructural evolution and thermomechanical properties at high temperatures are still unknown. We present a machine learned Spectral Neighbor Analysis Potential for W–ZrC that can now be used to study these materials. In order to construct a potential suitable for large-scale atomistic simulations at fusion reactor temperatures, it is necessary to train on ab initio data generated for a diverse set of structures, chemical environments, and temperatures. Further accuracy and stability tests of the potential were achieved using objective functions for both material properties and high temperature stability. Additionally, validation of lattice parameters, surface energies, bulk moduli, and thermal expansion is confirmed on the optimized potential. Tensile tests of W/ZrC bicrystals show that although the W(110)–ZrC(111) C-terminated bicrystal has the highest ultimate tensile strength (UTS) at room temperature, observed strength decreases with increasing temperature. At 2500 K, the terminating C layer diffuses into the W, resulting in a weaker W–Zr interface. Meanwhile, the W(110)–ZrC(111) Zr-terminated bicrystal has the highest UTS at 2500 K.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

DOE OSTI2019

Role of bond coat processing methods on the durability of plasma sprayed thermal barrier systems

Metallic alloy bond coats are used as an interlayer to promote adhesion of ceramic Thermal Barrier Coatings (TBCs) to the superalloy substrates. These bond coats can be applied through a variety of processing means such as Air Plasma Spray (APS), High-Velocity Oxy Fuel spray (HVOF), and Vacuum Plasma Spray (VPS). While widely adopted in the industry, some uncertainties remain as to the specific microstructural attributes which are influenced by the processing routes and their implications on durability. This paper seeks to elucidate these subtleties between bond coat deposition processing routes through an integrated study of processing to connect to furnace cycle durability on a single bond coat chemistry of NiCoCrAlYHfSi. A standard porous APS TBC top coating based on yttria stabilized zirconia (7YSZ) was consistently applied on these distinct bond coats and tested for durability in cyclic furnace testing at 1100 °C. The results point to substantial differences in durability which are not readily explained only by the variances in coating roughness. Detailed assessment of deposited bond coat properties (modulus, thermal expansion, chemistry) provided some explanation relative to durability. Here, the results suggest a complex interplay among roughness, compliance, aluminum diffusion pathway, and thermal expansion mismatch. Photo-stimulated luminescence piezospectroscopy (PLPS) provided additional insights enabling a comprehensive assessment of processing-performance linkages.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

DOE OSTI2014

Electrical detection of liquid lithium leaks from pipe joints

A test stand for flowing liquid lithium is under construction at Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory. As liquid lithium reacts with atmospheric gases and water, an electrical interlock system for detecting leaks and safely shutting down the apparatus has been constructed. A defense in depth strategy is taken to minimize the risk and impact of potential leaks. Each demountable joint is diagnosed with a cylindrical copper shell electrically isolated from the loop. By monitoring the electrical resistance between the pipe and the copper shell, a leak of (conductive) liquid lithium can be detected. Any resistance of less than 2 kΩ trips a relay, shutting off power to the heaters and pump. The system has been successfully tested with liquid gallium as a surrogate liquid metal. The circuit features an extensible number of channels to allow for future expansion of the loop. To ease diagnosis of faults, the status of each channel is shown with an analog front panel LED, and monitored and logged digitally by LabVIEW.

42 ENGINEERING↗

DOE OSTI2020

Solar Wind Turbulence from 1 to 45 au. III. Anisotropy of Magnetic Fluctuations in the Inertial Range Using Voyager and ACE Observations

We examine both Voyager and Advanced Composition Explorer magnetic field measurements at frequencies that characterize the inertial range and evaluate the anisotropy of the fluctuations as they relate to both the compressive component and underlying wavevector anisotropy of the turbulence. The magnetic fluctuation anisotropy as it relates to the compressive component is directly dependent upon both the plasma beta of the thermal proton component and the ratio of magnetic fluctuation magnitude to the strength of the mean magnetic field. This has been seen before at 1 au. The magnetic fluctuation anisotropy in the plane perpendicular to the mean magnetic field, which is a measure of the anisotropy of the underlying wavevector distribution, should depend on the angle between the mean magnetic field and the radial direction and should be confined to values between one and the index of the power spectrum, which is typically 5/3. Our results show that the average of this anisotropy exceeds the value of the spectral index and is out of bounds with the theory. Although the results are suggestive of past analyses, we find that spherical expansion of the turbulence may offer at least a partial explanation of the apparent amplification of this measured anisotropy.

heliosphere↗

DOE OSTI2023

Constructing the space of quasisymmetric stellarators through near-axis expansion

Abstract A simplified view of the space of optimised stellarators has the potential to guide and aid the design efforts of magnetic confinement configurations suitable for future fusion reactors. We present one such view for the class of quasisymmetric stellarators based on their approximate description near their centre (magnetic axis). The result is a space that captures existing designs and presents new ones, providing a common framework to study them. Such a simplified construction offers a basic topological approach, guided by certain theoretical and physical choices, which this paper presents in detail.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

DOE OSTI2017

Reassessing the roles of PIN proteins and anticlinal microtubules during pavement cell morphogenesis

The leaf epidermis is a biomechanical shell that influences the size and shape of the organ. Its morphogenesis is a multiscale process in which nanometer-scale cytoskeletal protein complexes, individual cells, and groups of cells pattern growth and define macroscopic leaf traits. Interdigitated growth of neighboring cells is an evolutionarily conserved developmental strategy. Understanding how signaling pathways and cytoskeletal proteins pattern cell walls during this form of tissue morphogenesis is an important research challenge. The cellular and molecular control of a lobed cell morphology is currently thought to involve PIN-FORMED (PIN)-type plasma membrane efflux carriers that generate subcellular auxin gradients. Auxin gradients were proposed to function across cell boundaries to encode stable offset patterns of cortical microtubules and actin filaments between adjacent cells. Many models suggest that long-lived microtubules along the anticlinal cell wall generate local cell wall heterogeneities that restrict local growth and specify the timing and location of lobe formation. Here we used Arabidopsis reverse genetics and multivariate long-term time-lapse imaging to test current cell shape control models. We found that neither PIN proteins nor microtubules along the anticlinal wall predict the patterns of lobe formation. In fields of lobing cells, anticlinal microtubules are not correlated with cell shape and are unstable at the time scales of cell expansion. Our analyses indicate that anticlinal microtubules have multiple functions in pavement cells, and that lobe initiation is likely controlled by complex interactions among cell geometry, cell wall stress patterns, and transient microtubule networks that span the anticlinal and periclinal walls.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2012

Annotation of Selaginella moellendorffii Major Intrinsic Proteins and the Evolution of the Protein Family in Terrestrial Plants

Major intrinsic proteins (MIPs) also called aquaporins form pores in membranes to facilitate the permeation of water and certain small polar solutes across membranes. MIPs are present in virtually every organism but are uniquely abundant in land plants.To elucidate the evolution and function of MIPs in terrestrial plants, the MIPs encoded in the genome of the spikemoss Selaginella moellendorffii were identified and analyzed. In total 19 MIPs were found in S. moellendorffii belonging to 6 of the 7 MIP subfamilies previously identified in the moss Physcomitrella patens. Only three of the MIPs were classified as members of the conserved water specific plasma membrane intrinsic protein (PIP) subfamily whereas almost half were found to belong to the diverse NOD26-like intrinsic protein (NIP) subfamily permeating various solutes. The small number of PIPs in S. moellendorffii is striking compared to all other land plants and no other species has more NIPs than PIPs. Similar to moss, S. moellendorffii only has one type of tonoplast intrinsic protein (TIP). Based on ESTs from non-angiosperms we conclude that the specialized groups of TIPs present in higher plants are not found in primitive vascular plants but evolved later in a common ancestor of seed plants. We also note that the silicic acid permeable NIP2 group that has been reported from angiosperms appears at the same time. We suggest that the expansion of the number MIP isoforms in higher plants is primarily associated with an increase in the different types of specialized tissues rather than the emergence of vascular tissue per se and that the loss of subfamilies has been possible due to a functional overlap between some subfamilies.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

NASA NTRS1983

The stability of coronal loops - Finite-length and pressure-profile limits

Results are described from a quickly converging, necessary-and-sufficient, MHD-stability test for coronal-loop models. The primary stabilizing influence arises from magnetic line tying at the photosphere, and this end conditions requires a series expansion of possible loop excitations. The stability boundary is shown to quickly approach a limit as the number of terms increases, providing a critical length for the loop in proportion to its transverse magnetic scale. Several models of force-free-field profiles are tested and the stability behavior of a localized current channel, embedded in an external current-free region, is shown to be superior to that of other, broader, current profiles. Pressure-gradient effects, leading to increased or decreased stability, are shown to be amplified by line tying. Long loops must either conduct low net current, or exhibit an axial-field reversal coexisting with a low-pressure core. The limits on stability depend on the magnetic aspect ratio, the plasma-to-magnetic pressure ratio, and the field orientation at the loop edge. Applications of these results to the structure of coronal loops are described.

Einaudi, G.↗

DOE OSTI2020

A temperature-sensitive FERONIA mutant allele that alters root hair growth

Abstract In plants, root hairs undergo a highly polarized form of cell expansion called tip-growth, in which cell wall deposition is restricted to the root hair apex. In order to identify essential cellular components that might have been missed in earlier genetic screens, we identified conditional temperature-sensitive (ts) root hair mutants by ethyl methanesulfonate mutagenesis in Arabidopsis thaliana. Here, we describe one of these mutants, feronia-temperature sensitive (fer-ts). Mutant fer-ts seedlings were unaffected at normal temperatures (20°C), but failed to form root hairs at elevated temperatures (30°C). Map based-cloning and whole-genome sequencing revealed that fer-ts resulted from a G41S substitution in the extracellular domain of FERONIA (FER). A functional fluorescent fusion of FER containing the fer-ts mutation localized to plasma membranes, but was subject to enhanced protein turnover at elevated temperatures. While tip-growth was rapidly inhibited by addition of rapid alkalinization factor 1 (RALF1) peptides in both wild-type and fer-ts mutants at normal temperatures, root elongation of fer-ts seedlings was resistant to added RALF1 peptide at elevated temperatures. Additionally, at elevated temperatures fer-ts seedlings displayed altered reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation upon auxin treatment and phenocopied constitutive fer mutant responses to a variety of plant hormone treatments. Molecular modeling and sequence comparison with other Catharanthus roseus receptor-like kinase 1L (CrRLK1L) receptor family members revealed that the mutated glycine in fer-ts is highly conserved, but is not located within the recently characterized RALF23 and LORELI-LIKE-GLYCOPROTEIN 2 binding domains, perhaps suggesting that fer-ts phenotypes may not be directly due to loss of binding to RALF1 peptides.

Plant Sciences↗

DOE OSTI2023

Photon production rate from Transverse-Longitudinal ( T – L) mesonic correlator on the lattice

Thermal photons from the QGP provide important information about the interaction among plasma constituents. The photon production rate from a thermally equilibrated system is proportional to the transverse spectral function ρ T (ω = |k → |,k → ). One can also calculate the photon production rate from the difference between ρ T (ω, k → ) (transverse) and ρ L (ω, k → ) (longitudinal) projections, as ρL vanishes on the photon point. Because the UV part of ρ T – ρ L is suppressed, the corresponding Euclidean correlator receives most of its contribution from the IR part. We calculate the T – L correlator on N f = 2 + 1 flavour HISQ configurations with m l = m s /5 at temperature of about 1.15T ρc (220 MeV). We have used two ansätze for the spectral function: 1) A polynomial connected to the UV region consistent with OPE expansion and 2) a hydro-inspired spectral function. We have also applied the Backus-Gilbert method to estimate the spectral function. All these different approaches are combined to estimate the photon production rate.

Bala, Dibyendu↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Auroral ovals versus flare ribbons: Optical footprints of explosive magnetic field reconfiguration in Earth’s magnetosphere and the Sun’s corona

Despite drastically different plasma conditions in the two systems, eruptive energy release events in solar active regions and in Earth’s magnetosphere have a lot in common. Both solar active region eruptions and the substorm activity in the nightside magnetosphere are known to be associated with an abrupt large-scale reorganization of the supporting magnetic systems enabling the conversion and dissipation of the stored free magnetic energy. The rate of energy accumulation in either system tends to be by orders of magnitude slower than the energy release rate, leading to the formation of an impulsive loading-unloading cycle involving a relatively long pre-reconnection phase (substorm growth phase, pre-flare stressing of an active region magnetic field), a short and explosive reconnection phase (substorm breakup and expansion, eruptive flares and CMEs), and a prolonged post-reconnection phase (substorm recovery phase and the post-flare active region reconfiguration). In Earth’s magnetosphere, this loading-unloading cycle is diagnosed by monitoring characteristic changes in the particle precipitation pattern in the northern and southern auroral ovals marking the boundary between the open and close magnetic flux. The position, shape, structure, and dynamics of the auroral borealis were shown to communicate critically important information about an upcoming substorm, the location and timing of the initial reconnection onset, and the subsequent return of the magnetosphere to a lower-energy state. On the Sun, a similar role is played by the chromospheric flare ribbons which enable a detailed diagnostics of the overlying reconnecting magnetic field. In this talk, we’ll discuss similarities and differences in using auroral and flare ribbon observations for monitoring eruptive energy release in respectively Earth’s magnetosphere and solar corona. Special emphasis will be placed on the quantitative interpretation of the two types of optical signatures for empirical diagnostics of the underlying reconnection activity and for constraining its theoretical models. We’ll also compare forecasting capabilities of the two types of optical signatures in the context of space weather prediction objectives.

V. M. Uritskiy↗

DOE OSTI2014

Multi-dimensional instability of obliquely propagating ion acoustic solitary waves in electron-positron-ion superthermal magnetoplasmas

The solitary structures of multi–dimensional ion-acoustic solitary waves (IASWs) have been considered in magnetoplasmas consisting of electron-positron-ion with high-energy (superthermal) electrons and positrons are investigated. Using a reductive perturbation method, a nonlinear Zakharov-Kuznetsov equation is derived. The multi-dimensional instability of obliquely propagating (with respect to the external magnetic field) IASWs has been studied by the small-k (long wavelength plane wave) expansion perturbation method. The instability condition and the growth rate of the instability have been derived. It is shown that the instability criterion and their growth rate depend on the parameter measuring the superthermality, the ion gyrofrequency, the unperturbed positrons-to-ions density ratio, the direction cosine, and the ion-to-electron temperature ratio. Clearly, the study of our model under consideration is helpful for explaining the propagation and the instability of IASWs in space observations of magnetoplasmas with superthermal electrons and positrons.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

DOE OSTI2015

A singular finite element technique for calculating continuum damping of Alfvén eigenmodes

Damping due to continuum resonances can be calculated using dissipation-less ideal magnetohydrodynamics provided that the poles due to these resonances are properly treated. We describe a singular finite element technique for calculating the continuum damping of Alfvén waves. A Frobenius expansion is used to determine appropriate finite element basis functions on an inner region surrounding a pole due to the continuum resonance. The location of the pole due to the continuum resonance and mode frequency is calculated iteratively using a Galerkin method. This method is used to find the complex frequency and mode structure of a toroidicity-induced Alfvén eigenmode in a large aspect ratio circular tokamak and is shown to agree closely with a complex contour technique.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

DOE OSTI2014

Institute for High Heat Flux Removal (IHHFR). Phases I, II, and III

The IHHFR focused on interdisciplinary applications as it relates to high heat flux engineering issues and problems which arise due to engineering systems being miniaturized, optimized, or requiring increased high heat flux performance. The work in the IHHFR focused on water as a coolant and includes: (1) the development, design, and construction of the high heat flux flow loop and facility; (2) test section development, design, and fabrication; and, (3) single-side heat flux experiments to produce 2-D boiling curves and 3-D conjugate heat transfer measurements for single-side heated test sections. This work provides data for comparisons with previously developed and new single-side heated correlations and approaches that address the single-side heated effect on heat transfer. In addition, this work includes the addition of single-side heated circular TS and a monoblock test section with a helical wire insert. Finally, the present work includes: (1) data base expansion for the monoblock with a helical wire insert (only for the latter geometry), (2) prediction and verification using finite element, (3) monoblock model and methodology development analyses, and (4) an alternate model development for a hypervapotron and related conjugate heat transfer controlling parameters.

2-D Boiling Curves↗

NASA NTRS1985

Thermal barrier coating life prediction model

This is the first report of the first phase of a 3-year program. Its objectives are to determine the predominant modes of degradation of a plasma sprayed thermal barrier coating system, then to develop and verify life prediction models accounting for these degradation modes. The first task (Task I) is to determine the major failure mechanisms. Presently, bond coat oxidation and bond coat creep are being evaluated as potential TBC failure mechanisms. The baseline TBC system consists of an air plasma sprayed ZrO2-Y2O3 top coat, a low pressure plasma sprayed NiCrAlY bond coat, and a Rene'80 substrate. Pre-exposures in air and argon combined with thermal cycle tests in air and argon are being utilized to evaluate bond coat oxidation as a failure mechanism. Unexpectedly, the specimens pre-exposed in argon failed before the specimens pre-exposed in air in subsequent thermal cycles testing in air. Four bond coats with different creep strengths are being utilized to evaluate the effect of bond coat creep on TBC degradation. These bond coats received an aluminide overcoat prior to application of the top coat to reduce the differences in bond coat oxidation behavior. Thermal cycle testing has been initiated. Methods have been selected for measuring tensile strength, Poisson's ratio, dynamic modulus and coefficient of thermal expansion both of the bond coat and top coat layers.

Hillery, R. V.↗

NASA NTRS2010

Space Borne and Ground-Based Observations of Transient Processes Occurring Around Substorm Onset

The combined THEMIS five spacecraft in-situ and ground magnetic and visible camera arrays have advanced considerably our understanding of the causal relationship between midtail plasma flows, transient ionospheric features, and ground magnetic signatures. In particular recent work has shown a connection between equatorward moving visible ionospheric transients and substorm onset, in both white-light and 6300 nm emissions. These observations, together with THEMIS in-situ measurements of bulk flows, provides strict constraints on the sequence of events leading to substorm auroral onset.We first provide a brief summary of these observations, highlighting in particular areas where the two observations differ, and suggest reasons for the differences. Next, by combining the observed correlation of flow and Pi2 waveform with a unified model of global Pi2 generation and substorm current wedge initiation we present a self-consistent description of the dynamical processes and communicative pathways that occur just prior to and during substorm expansion onset.

Kepko, L.↗

NASA NTRS2004

Effect of Sintering on Mechanical and Physical Properties of Plasma-Sprayed Thermal Barrier Coatings

The effect of sintering on mechanical and physical properties of free-standing plasma-sprayed ZrO2-8 wt% Y2O3 thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) was determined by annealing them at 1316 C in air. Mechanical and physical properties of the TBCs, including strength, modes I and II fracture toughness, elastic modulus, Poisson s response, density, microhardness, fractography, and phase stability, were determined at ambient temperature as a function of annealing time ranging from 0 to 500 h. All mechanical and physical properties, except for the amount of monoclinic phase, increased significantly in 5 to 100 h and then reached a plateau above 100 h. Annealing resulted in healing of microcracks and pores and in grain growth, accompanying densification of the TBC s body due to the sintering effect. However, an inevitable adverse effect also occurred such that the desired lower thermal conductivity and good expansivity, which makes the TBCs unique in thermal barrier applications, were degraded upon annealing. A model was proposed to assess and quantify all the property variables in response to annealing in a normalized scheme. Directionality of as-sprayed TBCs appeared to have an insignificant effect on their properties, as determined via fracture toughness, microhardness, and elastic modulus measurements.

Choi, Sung R.↗

NASA NTRS2011

Linking Space-Borne and Ground-Based Observations Observed Around Substorm Onset to Magnetospheric Processes

The combined THEMIS five spacecraft in-situ and ground magnetic and camera arrays have advanced considerably our understanding of the causal relationship between midtail plasma flows, transient ionospheric features, and ground magnetic signatures. In particular, recent work has shown a connection between equatorward moving visible ionospheric transients and substorm onset, in both 6300 nm and white-light emissions. Although both observations detail pre-onset auroral features the interpretations differ substantially. We first provide a brief summary of these observations, highlighting in particular areas where the two observations differ, and suggest reasons for the differences. We then detail how these observations relate to dynamical magnetospheric processes, and show how they constrain models of transient convection. Next, we pull together observations and models of Pi2 generation, substorm current wedge (SCW) initiation and dipolarization to present a self-consistent description of the dynamical processes and communicative pathways that occur just prior to and during substorm expansion onset. Finally, we present a summary of open questions and suggest a roadmap for future work.

Kepko, Larry↗