Dynamics of gaseous material ejection following laser breakdown on the surface of CaF2
Abstract not provided
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Surface Metrology for X-ray Mirrors using Deflectometry (Final Report)
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Integrating Applied Energy and BER Smart Data Capabilities to Develop a DOE Data Fabric for Energy-Water R&D
Focal Area(s): 1) Data acquisition and assimilation enabled by machine learning, AI, and advanced methods including experimental/network design/optimization, unsupervised learning (including deep learning), and hardware-related efforts involving AI (e.g., edge computing). Science Challenge: DOE R&D, including DOE’s Basic Energy Research (BER)’s Environmental Systems Science Division (EESSD) program and DOE’s applied energy research (AER) programs (EERE, FE, and NE) are producers and consumers of Earth systems datasets. This white paper focuses on the first topic area from the call in relation to how crosscutting resources and innovations from DOE’s EESSD and AER can be brought to bear to mutual benefit and more efficient energy-water, Earth system data resources through improved. The overarching challenge posed by this call focuses on how DOE can directly leverage artificial intelligence (AI) to engineer a substantial (paradigm-changing) improvement in Earth System Predictability? While stemming from DOE BER’s EESSD program, this is a challenge that is faced and also being addressed by DOE’s AER programs. Over the past decade plus, FE, EERE, and NE programs have made important strides towards addressing this need. These strides are in many ways highly complementary to EESSD’s MODEX efforts. Energy water systems spanning metocean to groundwater to surface water systems all are data driven whether for basic energy or applied energy. These are remote, multi-variate, complex natural, and in many cases engineered, systems. Key needs and challenges of both EESSD and AER include developing data-focused tools to enhance data search and discovery to fill in knowledge gaps (address sparse data challenge), and rapidly transform datasets, including disparate and multi-source data. Leveraging DOE on-premise computing (HPC, exascale) infrastructure supports the computing-intensive algorithms required to execute these data acquisition and transformation processes to derive enriched knowledge and data, driving AI/ML and big data analytics for these systems. The opportunity lies in combining BER and AER efforts to provide a more robust, advanced, efficient and complete computing data fabric to address energy-water data acquisition and assimilation needs which currently pose significant impediments to AI/ML predictions and research.
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
Temperature Effects on Droplet Oscillation Decay with Application to Fuel Property Measurement
Observation of oscillation decay in droplets has been shown to be an effective approach in determining physical properties such as viscosity and surface tension for emerging biofuels using μl quantities. Herein this work extends the approach to higher temperatures relevant to fuel injection conditions for internal combustion engines. Experiments are conducted that use high-resolution strobed imaging of moving, heated, μm-sized, fuel droplets to capture shape oscillation decay through image processing and analysis. Two fuels are investigated, iso-butanol and a primary reference fuel (PRF 84), which is a mixture of iso-octane and n-heptane. A piezoelectric droplet generator is used to generate a continuous train of single droplets, which are given an initial perturbation and subsequently undergo damped oscillations, captured using strobed imaging. Surface tension and viscosity calculated at four different temperatures ranging from 30°C-55°C using the frequency and decay time associated with the fundamental mode are found to be within ~ 10% of reference values obtained from the literature. Complementary numerical simulations are performed that utilize a volume-of-fluid approach to track transient droplet oscillation phenomena along with heat and mass transfer in a 2D axisymmetric domain. Simulations, where droplet size and temperature can be independently varied, capture an expected decrease in oscillation frequency and increase in decay time, with increase in fuel temperature. The simulations are further used to study the relative contribution to deviations in surface tension and viscosity predictions due to heat and mass transfer from the droplet, as well as viscous effects violating the inviscid flow assumption in the droplet oscillation theory. Mass loss effects are found to be negligible. Temperature change due to heat transfer is found to have the next highest sensitivity, particularly for the more volatile PRF 84, which has a lower viscosity and associated Ohnesorge number. For isobutanol, which has a higher viscosity and Ohnesorge number, viscous effects contribute the most to deviation in fuel property predictions.
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Adsorption Equilibrium and Kinetics at Goethite-Water and Related Interfaces
This research study is an important component of a broader comprehensive project, “Geochemistry of Interfaces: From Surfaces to Interlayers to Clusters,” which sought to identify and evaluate the critical molecular phenomena at metal-oxide interfaces that control many geochemical and environmental processes. The primary goal of this research study was to better understand and predict adsorption of metal ions at mineral/water surfaces. Macroscopic data in traditional batch experiments was used to develop predictive models that characterize sorption in complex systems containing a wide range of background solution compositions. Our studies focused on systems involving alkaline earth metal (Mg 2+ , Ca 2+ , Sr 2+ , Ba 2+ ) and heavy metal (Hg 2+ , Co 2+ , Cd 2+ , Cu 2+ , Zn 2+ , Pb 2+ ) cations. The anions we selected for study included Cl - , NO 3 - , ClO 4 - , SO 4 2- , CO 3 2- and SeO 3 2- and the background electrolyte cations we examined included (Na + , K + , Rb + and Cs + ) because these represent a range of ion sizes and have varying potentials for forming ion-pairs or ternary complexes with the metal ions studied. The research led to the development of a modified titration congruency approach for estimating site densities for mineral oxides such as goethite. The CD-MUSIC version of the surface complexation modeling approach was applied to potentiometric titration data and macroscopic adsorption data for single-solute heavy metals, oxyanions, alkaline earth metals and background electrolytes over a range of pH and ionic strength. The model was capable of predicting sorption in bi-solute systems containing multiple cations, cations and oxyanions, and transition metal cations and alkaline earth metal ions. Incorporation of ternary complexes was required for modeling Pb(II)-Se(IV) and Cd(II)-Se(IV) systems. -Both crystal face contributions and capacitance values were shown to be sensitive to varying specific surface area but were successfully accounted for in the modeling strategy. The insights gained from the macroscopic, spectroscopic and CD-MUSIC modeling developed in this study can be used to guide the implementation of less complex models which may be more applicable to field conditions. The findings of this research suggest that surface complexation models can be used as a predictive tool for fate and transport modeling of metal ions and oxyanions in fresh and saline systems typical of energy production waters and wastewaters.
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Partial Support of the Fast-Track Consensus Study on Foundational Research Gaps and Future Directions for Digital Twins (Final Report)
This study from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine was launched to explore the foundational research gaps and opportunities for digital twins. As part of the information gathering process, the committee organized three targeted workshops—in engineering, climate sciences, and biomedical sciences—to better understand domain-specific nuances and barriers to developing digital twins. These sessions enabled cross-sector experts to surface field-specific needs, challenges, and open questions related to digital twins. Thousands of participants across multiple domains engaged in the discussions, which workshops were summarized in three separate Proceedings-in-Brief.
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Research on Resistance Heating Behavior of High-Strength Steel and its Hot-Stamping Forming
A hot-stamping process of high-strength steel sheet using resistance heating (RH) was developed to improve springback and formability. The RH curves of S355J2W steel and the microstructure and mechanical properties after RH were explored to control and guide the RH time and the selected current density for the subsequent RH hot-stamping forming. Moreover, scanning electron microscopy observations revealed the microstructure evolution in RH and the improvement of mechanical properties at a current density of 0-6.67 A mm{sup −2}, showing the advantage of the application of RH to these materials. The results showed that steel strength can be increased by up to 3.2% and the elongation can be improved by up to 33% after RH. In addition, the forming height increased and the forming angle is closer to the desired angle with the increased current density in cap-shaped RH hot-stamping forming experiment, which means that the forming accuracy is improved. A comparison of the forming accuracy of cap-shaped parts formed by RH under different current densities with those heated to the same temperature by furnace heating (FH) shows that there is no obvious difference between them. The heating time of RH is much shorter than that of the FH, and the surface quality of the parts formed by RH hot-stamping is better than that of the parts formed by FH hot-stamping. These results demonstrate that the RH method has the advantages of efficiency, safety, energy saving and the improvement of surface quality as well as a clear understanding of the benefits of RH hot-stamping forming for materials properties and forming accuracy; this work also develops and applies fundamental theory to practical engineering of bogie cover plate manufacturing.
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Tailored PEDOT:PSS hole transport layer for higher performance in perovskite solar cells: Enhancement of electrical and optical properties with improved morphology
Precise control over the charge carrier dynamics throughout the device can result in outstanding performance of perovskite solar cells (PSCs). Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrene sulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) is the most actively studied hole transport material in p-i-n structured PSCs. However, charge transport in the PEDOT:PSS is limited and inefficient because of its low conductivity with the presence of the weak ionic conductor PSS. In addition, morphology of the underlying PEDOT:PSS layer in PSCs plays a crucial role in determining the optoelectronic quality of the active perovskite absorber layer. This work is focused on realization of a non-wetting conductive surface of hole transport layer suitable for the growth of larger perovskite crystalline domains. This is accomplished by employing a facile solvent-engineered (ethylene glycol and methanol) approach resulting in removal of the predominant PSS in PEDOT:PSS. The consequence of acquiring larger perovskite crystalline domains was observed in the charge carrier dynamics studies, with the achievement of higher charge carrier lifetime, lower charge transport time and lower transfer impedance in the solvent-engineered PEDOT:PSS-based PSCs. Use of this solvent-engineered treatment for the fabrication of MAPbI3 PSCs greatly increased the device stability witnessing a power conversion efficiency of 18.18%, which corresponds to ~37% improvement compared to the untreated PEDOT:PSS based devices.
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OC7 phase I: CFD investigation of viscous forces on rectangular members of semisubmersibles
In Phase I of the Offshore Code Comparison Collaboration 7 (OC7) project, we aim to address key questions related to the modeling of viscous hydrodynamic loads on floating platforms. Here, this paper presents results from a collaborative effort within Phase I of the OC7 project. We investigate viscous forces acting on the rectangular members of semisubmersible platforms using high-fidelity computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. The parametric CFD analyses include two-and-a-half-dimensional (2.5D) simulations of pontoon sections of two different semisubmersible platform designs (the VolturnUS-S and the INO WINDMOOR) and full three-dimensional (3D) structure simulations of the VolturnUS-S platform. We extract both the added mass and drag coefficients that are typically used in engineering-level hydrodynamic models from the 2.5D forced oscillation simulations with various Keulegan-Carpenter numbers and compare them to the coefficients from the 3D forced oscillation simulations. We observe consistent variation of the coefficients along the pontoon legs due to 3D platform and free-surface effects. With the breadth of the simulations and component-level detailed analyses, this work establishes a useful database and several empirical formulas for selecting hydrodynamic coefficients when modeling semisubmersible platforms in engineering tools.
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Autonomous quantum error correction and fault-tolerant quantum computation with squeezed cat qubits
We propose an autonomous quantum error correction scheme using squeezed cat (SC) code against excitation loss in continuous-variable systems. Through reservoir engineering, we show that a structured dissipation can stabilize a two-component SC while autonomously correcting the errors. The implementation of such dissipation only requires low-order nonlinear couplings among three bosonic modes or between a bosonic mode and a qutrit. While our proposed scheme is device independent, it is readily implementable with current experimental platforms such as superconducting circuits and trapped-ion systems. Compared to the stabilized cat, the stabilized SC has a much lower dominant error rate and a significantly enhanced noise bias. Furthermore, the bias-preserving operations for the SC have much lower error rates. In combination, the stabilized SC leads to substantially better logical performance when concatenating with an outer discrete-variable code. The surface-SC scheme achieves more than one order of magnitude increase in the threshold ratio between the loss rate κ 1 and the engineered dissipation rate κ 2 . Under a practical noise ratio κ 1 /κ 2 = 10 -3 , the repetition-SC scheme can reach a 10 -15 logical error rate even with a small mean excitation number of 4, which already suffices for practically useful quantum algorithms.
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Application of nanofiltration for Rare Earth Elements recovery from coal fly ash leachate: Performance and cost evaluation
Here this work evaluated nanofiltration (NF) as a potential step in the recovery process of Rare Earth Elements (REEs) from leachates of coal combustion fly ashes. A pre-treatment step, by pH adjustment and microfiltration (MF), has been studied to separate REEs by major elements. The individual and combined effects of applied pressure (12–24 bar) and NF feed acidity (pH 1.5–3.5) on rejection of six critical REEs and permeate flux have been investigated via response surface methodology (RSM). The resulting model equations were used to develop a cost model for the recovery chain, in order to select the optimum NF operating conditions. The optimization of the REE recovery chain, including pre-treatment and NF, was done with respect to the objective of maximizing the difference between NF concentrate economic value and treatment cost. NF with an appropriate MF pre-treatment has been effective in concentrating REEs from fly ash leachate, reaching the maximum potential gain at the optimum operating conditions of 12 bar and pH 3.5.
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Long-Range Dipole–Dipole Interactions in a Plasmonic Lattice
Spontaneous emission of quantum emitters can be enhanced by increasing the local density of optical states, whereas engineering dipole-dipole interactions requires modifying the two-point spectral density function. Here, we experimentally demonstrate long-range dipole-dipole interactions (DDIs) mediated by surface lattice resonances in a plasmonic nanoparticle lattice. Using angle-resolved spectral measurements and fluorescence lifetime studies, we show that unique nanophotonic modes mediate long-range DDI between donor and acceptor molecules. We observe significant and persistent DDI strengths for a range of densities that map to similar to 800 nm mean nearest-neighbor separation distance between donor and acceptor dipoles, a factor of similar to 100 larger than free space. Here, our results pave the way to engineer and control long-range DDIs between an ensemble of emitters at room temperature.
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In situ environmental scanning electron microscope observations of colloidal failure mechanisms using the Brazilian disk test
This paper presents data produced using a novel test fixture to study the crack initiation and fracture mechanisms in brittle colloidal systems, in situ in an Environmental Scanning Electron Microscope (ESEM), based on the Brazilian disk test. The test is based on diametral compression loading of a disk of material, which causes a tensile stress in the centre of the disk perpendicular to the loading direction. Key advantages over commercial tensile tests are simplicity of specimen preparation, especially important for fragile and brittle materials, which because of their nature in many cases cannot be microscopically characterised after testing. The test was successful in creating the desired perpendicular tensile stresses and yielded diametral cracks across the latex specimens. It was found that when end crushing was minimal, multiple cracks initiated at several points on the disk and a number of factors appeared to influence the propagation of cracks through the latex, these include: particle packing arrangements, surface defects, and the presence of other cracks. Following the onset of fracture, it was observed that the cracks connected to form a single failure route, here described as the path of least resistance. This, in essence, resulted in the crack taking a route around stronger, more ordered regions of the latex (be they “crystals” or surface defects). The experimental results presented and discussed here represent the first attempt to utilise this loading arrangement in the study of crack propagation in colloidal systems.
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Engineered Water for Improved Oil Recovery from Fractured Reservoirs (Final Scientific/Technical Report)
The goal of this proposal is to field test the novel technology of engineered water (modifying ionic composition and/or adding surfactants or nanoparticles) injection to improve oil recovery from the carbonate matrix in fractured reservoirs. Carbonate reservoirs tend to be oil-wet/mixed-wet due to positively charged carbonate mineral surfaces and negatively charged acidic/asphaltic components in the oil. Many carbonate reservoirs are also highly fractured. Water injection does not work efficiently in fractured oil-wet reservoirs because water does not imbibe into the matrix. The water composition can be engineered with ionic modification, surfactants and nanoparticles which can change the wettability of carbonate rocks towards more water-wet conditions which can imbibe water into the matrix and push the oil into the fractures. The engineered water can also lower interfacial tension and minimize capillary forces so that gravity can push the oil up and out of the matrix. Wettability alteration also increases water relative permeability which can also improve oil recovery in non-fractured carbonate reservoirs. This technology, if successful, can be a game changer for West Texas carbonates.
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Advances in Electrospun Poly(ε-caprolactone)-Based Nanofibrous Scaffolds for Tissue Engineering
Tissue engineering has great potential for the restoration of damaged tissue due to injury or disease. During tissue development, scaffolds provide structural support for cell growth. To grow healthy tissue, the principal components of such scaffolds must be biocompatible and nontoxic. Poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) is a biopolymer that has been used as a key component of composite scaffolds for tissue engineering applications due to its mechanical strength and biodegradability. However, PCL alone can have low cell adherence and wettability. Blends of biomaterials can be incorporated to achieve synergistic scaffold properties for tissue engineering. Electrospun PCL-based scaffolds consist of single or blended-composition nanofibers and nanofibers with multi-layered internal architectures (i.e., core-shell nanofibers or multi-layered nanofibers). Nanofiber diameter, composition, and mechanical properties, biocompatibility, and drug-loading capacity are among the tunable properties of electrospun PCL-based scaffolds. Scaffold properties including wettability, mechanical strength, and biocompatibility have been further enhanced with scaffold layering, surface modification, and coating techniques. In this article, we review nanofibrous electrospun PCL-based scaffold fabrication and the applications of PCL-based scaffolds in tissue engineering as reported in the recent literature.
Polymer Science↗
A coherent description of thermal radiative devices and its application on the near-field negative electroluminescent cooling
Using the transmissivity between two thermal reservoirs and the generalized Planck distributions, we describe the devices that use radiative energy transfer between thermal reservoirs in a unified formalism. In this work, four types of devices are distinguished. For power generators that use the temperature difference between reservoirs, photovoltaic (PV) and thermoradiative (TR) devices respectively use the low temperature photovoltaic cell and high-temperature thermoradiative cell to generate electricity. For active cooling, the electroluminescent (EL) cooling devices apply a forward bias voltage on the object we want to cool, whereas the negative EL cooling devices apply a reverse bias voltage to the heat sink. The relationship among these four devices is explicated. The performance of the negative EL cooling is analyzed, both in the Shockley-Queisser (blackbody spectrum and radiative recombination) framework and the near-field enhancement. The “impedance match” condition derived for PV systems is applied to the negative EL devices. One advantageous feature of the negative EL cooling is that it does not apply the voltage to the target object which we want to cool, and the near-field enhancement can apply to various target materials that support the surface resonant modes.
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Anatomy of a diffracting detonation in a circular arc of explosive
Using high-resolution numerical simulation, study diffraction of a detonation as it traverses a 270° finite-thickness condensed-phase explosive arc. This geometry admits a steady solution in a frame rotating with angular speed ω 0 , which thereby facilitates a detailed analysis of how the loss of energy from the detonation reaction zone due to the diffraction process slows the propagation of the detonation. There exists a region of subsonic flow, between the detonation shock and the curve of sonic flow (labelled the DDZ), which is responsible for setting ω 0 . Although the DDZ spans the entire thickness for thin arcs, it is localized to a region near the inside surface as the arc is thickened. Furthermore the explosive energy release near this inside surface plays a disproportionate role in the diffraction process.
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Thermoosmotic Transport in Nanochannels Grafted with pH-responsive Polyelectrolyte Brushes Modelled Using Augmented Strong Stretching Theory
In this paper, we develop a theory to establish that the thermoosmotic (TOS) effects, induced by the application of an axial temperature gradient, leads to a massive enhancement in liquid transport in nanochannels grafted with charged polyelectrolyte (PE) brushes. Here, we quantify the TOS transport by quantifying the induced electric field and the induced TOS flow field. The different components of the electric field, namely the ionic component, the thermal component, and the osmotic component, as well as the contributions of different ions to these components, are quantified. Furthermore, we express the TOS velocity as a combination of chemiosmotic (COS), thermal, and electroosmotic (EOS) components. The COS and the thermal components augment each other and the overall strength and direction of the TOS flow are dictated by the direction and the relative strength of the EOS component. Most importantly, we compare the cases of brush-grafted nanochannels with those of the brush-free nanochannels of identical surface charge densities: the TOS transport is massively augmented in the brush-grafted nanochannels attributed to the combination of the localization of the EDL (and hence any body force that depends on the EDL charge density) away from the nanochannel wall (i.e., the location of the maximum drag force) and the presence of a possible molecular slip (experienced by the liquid) along the brush surface.
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