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Results for “Energy proportionality”

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 19 records

Energy Proportionality and Performance in Data Parallel Computing Clusters

Energy consumption in datacenters has recently become a major concern due to the rising operational costs andscalability issues. Recent solutions to this problem propose the principle of energy proportionality, i.e., the amount of energy consumedby the server nodes must be proportional to the amount of work performed. For data parallelism and fault tolerancepurposes, most common file systems used in MapReduce-type clusters maintain a set of replicas for each data block. A coveringset is a group of nodes that together contain at least one replica of the data blocks needed for performing computing tasks. In thiswork, we develop and analyze algorithms to maintain energy proportionality by discovering a covering set that minimizesenergy consumption while placing the remaining nodes in lowpower standby mode. Our algorithms can also discover coveringsets in heterogeneous computing environments. In order to allow more data parallelism, we generalize our algorithms so that itcan discover k-covering sets, i.e., a set of nodes that contain at least k replicas of the data blocks. Our experimental results showthat we can achieve substantial energy saving without significant performance loss in diverse cluster configurations and workingenvironments.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

Thrifty: An Exascale Architecture for Energy Proportional Computing

The objective of this project is to design different aspects of a novel exascale architecture called Thrifty. Our goal is to focus on the challenges of power/energy efficiency, performance, and resiliency in exascale systems. The project includes work on computer architecture (Josep Torrellas from University of Illinois), compilation (Daniel Quinlan from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory), runtime and applications (Laura Carrington from University of California San Diego), and circuits (Wilfred Pinfold from Intel Corporation). In this report, we focus on the progress at the University of Illinois during the last year of the grant (September 1, 2013 to August 31, 2014). We also point to the progress in the other collaborating institutions when needed.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

Fish energy budget under ocean warming and flame retardant exposure

Highlights: • Energy proportion spent for growth dominated the mode of energy allocation (56–68%). • Energy channelled for R was around 26%, followed by excretion (F: 4–16%; U: 2–3%). • Energy budget parameters were significantly affected by warming and BDE-209 exposure. • Higher levels occurred under warming conditions: for weight, protein, ash and RGR. • Higher levels occurred under both stressors: for FE, AER, RMR and K{sub 1}. Climate change and chemical contamination are global environmental threats of growing concern for the scientific community and regulatory authorities. Yet, the impacts and interactions of both stressors (particularly ocean warming and emerging chemical contaminants) on physiological responses of marine organisms remain unclear and still require further understanding. Within this context, the main goal of this study was to assess, for the first time, the effects of warming (+ 5 °C) and accumulation of a polybrominated diphenyl ether congener (BDE-209, brominated flame retardant) through dietary exposure on energy budget of the juvenile white seabream (Diplodus sargus). Specifically, growth (G), routine metabolism (R), excretion (faecal, F and nitrogenous losses, U) and food consumption (C) were calculated to obtain the energy budget. The results demonstrated that the energy proportion spent for G dominated the mode of the energy allocation of juvenile white seabream (56.0–67.8%), especially under the combined effect of warming plus BDE-209 exposure. Under all treatments, the energy channelled for R varied around 26% and a much smaller percentage was channelled for excretion (F: 4.3–16.0% and U: 2.3–3.3%). An opposite trend to G was observed to F, where the highest percentage (16.0 ± 0.9%) was found under control temperature and BDE-209 exposure via diet. In general, the parameters were significantly affected by increased temperature and flame retardant exposure, where higher levels occurred for: i) wet weight, relative growth rate, protein and ash contents under warming conditions, ii) only for O:N ratio under BDE-209 exposure via diet, and iii) for feed efficiency, ammonia excretion rate, routine metabolic rate and assimilation efficiency under the combination of both stressors. On the other hand, decreased viscerosomatic index was observed under warming and lower fat content was observed under the combined effect of both stressors. Overall, under future warming and chemical contamination conditions, fish energy budget was greatly affected, which may dictate negative cascading impacts at population and community levels. Further research combining other climate change stressors (e.g. acidification and hypoxia) and emerging chemical contaminants are needed to better understand and forecast such biological effects in a changing ocean.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

CMB and matter power spectra with non-linear dark-sector interactions

An interaction between dark matter and dark energy, proportional to the product of their energy densities, results in a scaling behavior of the ratio of these densities with respect to the scale factor of the Robertson-Walker metric. This gives rise to a class of cosmological models which deviate from the standard model in an analytically tractable way. In particular, it becomes possible to quantify the role of potential dark-energy perturbations. We investigate the impact of this interaction on the structure formation process. Using the (modified) CAMB code we obtain the CMB spectrum as well as the linear matter power spectrum. It is shown that the strong degeneracy in the parameter space present in the background analysis is considerably reduced by considering Planck data. Our analysis is compatible with the ΛCDM model at the 2σ confidence level with a slightly preferred direction of the energy flow from dark matter to dark energy.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Performance evaluation of radiant cooling system integrated with air system under different operational strategies

The paper describes a parametric study developed to estimate the energy savings potential of a radiant cooling system installed in a commercial building in India. The study is based on numerical modeling of a radiant cooling system installed in an Information Technology (IT) office building sited in the composite climate of Hyderabad. To evaluate thermal performance and energy consumption, simulations were carried out using the ANSYS FLUENT and EnergyPlus softwares, respectively. The building model was calibrated using the measured data for the installed radiant system. Then this calibrated model was used to simulate the energy consumption of a building using a conventional all-air system to determine the proportional energy savings. For proper handling of the latent load, a dedicated outside air system (DOAS) was used as an alternative to Fan Coil Unit (FCU). A comparison of energy consumption calculated that the radiant system was 17.5 % more efficient than a conventional all-air system and that a 30% savings was achieved by using a DOAS system compared with a conventional system. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulation was performed to evaluate indoor air quality and thermal comfort. It was found that a radiant system offers more uniform temperatures, as well as a better mean air temperature range, than a conventional system. To further enhance the energy savings in the radiant system, different operational strategies were analyzed based on thermal analysis using EnergyPlus. Lastly, the energy savings achieved in this parametric run were more than 10% compared with a conventional all-air system.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

Electronic 1/f noise as a probe of dimensional effects on spin-glass dynamics

Over the past decade, spin-glass simulations have improved to the point that they now access time- and length-scales comparable to experiments at the mesoscale. A recent series of thin-film field-cooled/zero-field-cooled magnetization (FC/ZFC) experiments demonstrated activated spin dynamics, with a temperature-independent activation energy proportional to the logarithm of the film thickness and with coefficients in remarkable agreement with the simulation. These measurements require the application of small magnetic fields, which has been shown to affect the spin-glass energy landscape. Measurements of the 1/f noise in metallic spin-glasses have been previously shown to be a sensitive probe of the spin dynamics, and the measurements can be made without applying a magnetic field. In this mini-review, we review these techniques and discuss how transport measurements can fit into the current landscape of spin-glass measurements. We compare previous measurements to more recent measurements on similar films, made with ostensibly different cooling protocols, and compare both the previous and recent measurements to the magnetometry. The transport measurements—taken over a wider range of temperature than magnetometry—suggest that the maximum spin-glass energy barrier height is temperature-dependent, not fixed, possibly due to two-dimensional dynamics. We discuss this possibility, along with future measurements, which may be able to resolve this mystery.

1/f noise↗

Future grid mix impacts on whole-building life cycle assessment

Building construction and operation are a significant contribution to global greenhouse gas emissions, so understanding and mitigating emissions is crucial for reliable and realistic emissions accounting. Whole-building Life Cycle Assessment (WBLCA) is an emissions accounting method that considers lifetime environmental impacts of a building during its construction, operation, and eventual end-of-life. When performing WBLCAs, emission calculations from the building's operation over the entire building lifespan are typically based on today's energy grid mixes. This method does not consider changes or advancements in the clean energy proportion within the grid mix and can over or under-inflate results, skewing the ratio of embodied vs. operational environmental impacts. While a variety of prediction tools estimate what future grid emissions might be, predictions can vary widely. To predict the clean energy ratio within future grid mixes and the potential impact these changes might have on WBLCA, annual data from several existing U.S. grid models was averaged and probabilistic modeling was used to extend the usable projections of shorter forecasts. Results show that clean energy sources will likely continue to increase over time, although the rate of growth varies by model. On average, by 2085, the clean energy penetration of the grid is projected to reach ~81% and renewable energy is projected to reach ~71%, although no widespread consensus is reached. To understand how the future grid mix impacts lifetime building emissions within a WBLCA context, the team analyzed two 2021 IECC-compliant all-electric residential buildings: one built from traditional materials and construction processes and the other built with carbon sequestering materials and modular assembly, with a portion of energy generated on site. The results indicate that a moderate estimate of future electricity grid mixes shows a reduction of yearly operational emissions for traditional residential buildings of 55% between 2025 and 2085, and a corresponding reduction of 48% of total emissions over a 60 year building lifespan. This study offers a nuanced approach to account for the variability of future grid mix models and provides an average trend-line based on a robust collection of scenarios.

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)↗

Topological self-dual configurations in a Maxwell–Higgs model with a CPT-odd and Lorentz-violating nonminimal coupling

We have studied the existence of topological self-dual configurations in a nonminimal CPT-odd and Lorentz-violating (LV) Maxwell–Higgs model, where the LV interaction is introduced by modifying the minimal covariant derivative. The Bogomol’nyi–Prasad–Sommerfield formalism has been implemented, revealing that the scalar self-interaction implying self-dual equations contains a derivative coupling. The CPT-odd self-dual equations describe electrically neutral configurations with finite total energy proportional to the total magnetic flux, which differ from the charged solutions of other CPT-odd and LV models previously studied. In particular, we have investigated the axially symmetrical self-dual vortex solutions altered by the LV parameter. For large distances, the profiles possess general behavior similar to the vortices of Abrikosov–Nielsen–Olesen. However, within the vortex core, the profiles of the magnetic field and energy can differ substantially from ones of the Maxwell–Higgs model depending if the LV parameter is negative or positive.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Fabrication of Low-Cost Large-Volume Ceramic A 2 HfX 6 (A= Cs or Tl, X = Cl, Br, or I) Scintillators for Gamma Ray Detection (SBIR Phase I Final Technical Report)

Scintillator crystals play an important role in the radiation detection field. Widespread use of scintillators as gamma-ray detectors is largely generated by their extensive availability and tunable properties, such high light output, high stopping power (Z eff ), fast decay time, and good proportionality. Additionally, the cost for manufacturing a scintillation detector like NaI:Tl is usually considerably lower than the cost for manufacturing a semiconductor detector like CdZnTe. Because there is no such thing as an ideal scintillation material, an application requiring certain detection characteristics may incorporate a scintillator tailored to its specific properties. The vast variety of applications and requirements necessitates more research into new scintillation materials and/or better methods of producing existing materials.The goal of this project was to grow low cost and environmentally stable inorganic transparent ceramic scintillators with excellent gamma ray resolution, excellent energy proportionality, excellent detection efficiency due to high density (>5 g/cm 3 ) and very high Z eff (55-80), and good light yields (>40,000 ph/MeV). In Phase I Xtallized Intelligence, Inc. (XI, Inc) developed a novel ceramic fabrication technique to produce low cost and environmentally stable highly efficient inorganic transparent ceramic scintillators of various dimensions. XI, Inc., collaborating with Fisk University (Fisk), investigated the scintillation properties of these new ceramic scintillators and compared them to in their single crystal counterparts. The results of this Phase I project show that successful production of high-quality inorganic halide ceramic scintillators Cs 2 HfCl 6 (CHC) and Tl 2 HfCl 6 (THC). Both ceramic CHC and THC scintillators have achieved good performance close to the performance of their single crystal counterparts. Fabricating these inorganic ceramic scintillators mitigate many issues encountered during conventional bulk crystal growth by melt methods. Additional benefits of the ceramic fabrication technique include high production yield, low production cost, fast production time, and no material waste Inorganic transparent ceramic scintillators produced in this project will enhance cost effectiveness at the instrument level based on low projected cost of the proposed compounds, as much smaller crystal sizes would be required to achieve similar efficiency as current radioisotope identification devices (RIID’s) used in homeland security applications as well as spectrometers in high energy physics applications.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

High power heating of magnetic reconnection in merging tokamak experiments

Significant ion/electron heating of magnetic reconnection up to 1.2 keV was documented in two spherical tokamak plasma merging experiment on MAST with the significantly large Reynolds number R∼10{sup 5}. Measured 1D/2D contours of ion and electron temperatures reveal clearly energy-conversion mechanisms of magnetic reconnection: huge outflow heating of ions in the downstream and localized heating of electrons at the X-point. Ions are accelerated up to the order of poloidal Alfven speed in the reconnection outflow region and are thermalized by fast shock-like density pileups formed in the downstreams, in agreement with recent solar satellite observations and PIC simulation results. The magnetic reconnection efficiently converts the reconnecting (poloidal) magnetic energy mostly into ion thermal energy through the outflow, causing the reconnection heating energy proportional to square of the reconnecting (poloidal) magnetic field B{sub rec}{sup 2} ∼ B{sub p}{sup 2}. The guide toroidal field B{sub t} does not affect the bulk heating of ions and electrons, probably because the reconnection/outflow speeds are determined mostly by the external driven inflow by the help of another fast reconnection mechanism: intermittent sheet ejection. The localized electron heating at the X-point increases sharply with the guide toroidal field B{sub t}, probably because the toroidal field increases electron confinement and acceleration length along the X-line. 2D measurements of magnetic field and temperatures in the TS-3 tokamak merging experiment also reveal the detailed reconnection heating mechanisms mentioned above. The high-power heating of tokamak merging is useful not only for laboratory study of reconnection but also for economical startup and heating of tokamak plasmas. The MAST/TS-3 tokamak merging with B{sub p} > 0.4 T will enables us to heat the plasma to the alpha heating regime: T{sub i} > 5 keV without using any additional heating facility.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Vertical equilibrium, energetics, and star formation rates in magnetized galactic disks regulated by momentum feedback from supernovae

Recent hydrodynamic (HD) simulations have shown that galactic disks evolve to reach well-defined statistical equilibrium states. The star formation rate (SFR) self-regulates until energy injection by star formation feedback balances dissipation and cooling in the interstellar medium (ISM), and provides vertical pressure support to balance gravity. In this paper, we extend our previous models to allow for a range of initial magnetic field strengths and configurations, utilizing three-dimensional, magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations. We show that a quasi-steady equilibrium state is established as rapidly for MHD as for HD models unless the initial magnetic field is very strong or very weak, which requires more time to reach saturation. Remarkably, models with initial magnetic energy varying by two orders of magnitude approach the same asymptotic state. In the fully saturated state of the fiducial model, the integrated energy proportions E{sub turb}:E{sub th}:δE{sub mag}: E-bar {sub mag} are 0.35:0.39:0.15:0.11, while the proportions of midplane support P{sub turb}:P{sub th}:δΠ{sub mag}: Π-bar {sub mag} are 0.49:0.18:0.18:0.15. Vertical profiles of total effective pressure satisfy vertical dynamical equilibrium with the total gas weight at all heights. We measure the “feedback yields” η{sub c}≡P{sub c}/Σ{sub SFR} (in suitable units) for each pressure component, finding that η{sub turb}∼3.5−4 and η{sub th}∼1.1−1.4 are the same for MHD as in previous HD simulations, and δη{sub mag}∼1.3−1.5. These yields can be used to predict the equilibrium SFR for a local region in a galaxy based on its observed gas and stellar surface densities and velocity dispersions. As the ISM weight (or dynamical equilibrium pressure) is fixed, an increase in η from turbulent magnetic fields reduces the predicted Σ{sub SFR} by ∼20−30% relative to the HD case.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Preliminary study of radio frequency waves in hypervelocity impact plasma

Orbital debris and meteoroids can cause mechanical and electrical anomalies by impacting spacecraft. Although mechanical damage tends to occur only from particles with masses >10 –3 g, electrical damage can be a result of hypervelocity (> 10 km/s) impacts (HVI) even with smaller particles. In HVI, the projectile speed exceeds the speed of sound in the material and has enough energy to create plasma by ionizing the material near the surface, which can then emit radio frequency (RF) waves. In this paper, we conduct a preliminary study on the characteristics of impact-generated RF emission with the ultimate goal of building an RF predictive model for risk assessment of HVI electrical effects that can damage spacecraft. First, we introduce wavelet analysis as a method for denoising and quantifying the total RF signal energy. An appropriate mother wavelet and the number of decomposition levels are selected using a synthetic signal. Second, the total energy of the RF emission is calculated using Parseval’s theorem. Results suggest that the total RF signal energy is proportional to the energy flux of the impactor. Lastly, spectrograms of the RF emission are analyzed to characterize features that can be used in the future to predict impacts that can cause electrical damage to satellites.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Langmuir vacuum and superconductivity

It is shown that, in the 'jelly' model of cold electron-ion plasma, the interaction between electrons and the quantum electromagnetic vacuum of Langmuir waves involves plasma superconductivity with an energy gap proportional to the energy of the Langmuir quantum.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

GRAVITATIONAL CONTRACTION VERSUS SUPERNOVA DRIVING AND THE ORIGIN OF THE VELOCITY DISPERSION–SIZE RELATION IN MOLECULAR CLOUDS

Molecular cloud (MC) observations show that clouds have non-thermal velocity dispersions that scale with the cloud size as σ ∝ R {sup 1/2} at a constant surface density, and for varying surface density scale with both the cloud’s size and surface density, σ {sup 2} ∝ R Σ. The energy source driving these chaotic motions remains poorly understood. We describe the velocity dispersions observed in a cloud population formed in a numerical simulation of a magnetized, stratified, supernova (SN)-driven, interstellar medium, including diffuse heating and radiative cooling, before and after we include the effects of the self-gravity of the gas. We compare the relationships between velocity dispersion, size, and surface density measured in the simulated cloud population to those found in observations of Galactic MCs. Our simulations prior to the onset of self-gravity suggest that external SN explosions alone do not drive turbulent motions of the observed magnitudes within dense clouds. On the other hand, self-gravity induces non-thermal motions as gravitationally bound clouds begin to collapse in our model, approaching the observed relations between velocity dispersion, size, and surface density. Energy conservation suggests that the observed behavior is consistent with the kinetic energy being proportional to the gravitational energy. However, the clouds in our model show no sign of reaching a stable equilibrium state at any time, even for strongly magnetized clouds. We conclude that gravitationally bound MCs are always in a state of gravitational contraction and their properties are a natural result of this chaotic collapse. In order to agree with observed star formation efficiencies, this process must be terminated by the early destruction of the clouds, presumably from internal stellar feedback.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Utilizing high-resolution genetic markers to track population-level exposure of migratory birds to renewable energy development

With new motivation to increase the proportion of energy demands met by zero-carbon sources, there is a greater focus on efforts to assess and mitigate the impacts of renewable energy development on sensitive ecosystems and wildlife, of which birds are of particular interest. One challenge for researchers, due in part to a lack of appropriate tools, has been estimating the effects from such development on individual breeding populations of migratory birds. To help address this, we utilize a newly developed, high-resolution genetic tagging method to rapidly identify the breeding population of origin of carcasses recovered from renewable energy facilities and combine them with maps of genetic variation across geographic space (called ‘genoscapes’) for five species of migratory birds known to be exposed to energy development, to assess the extent of population-level effects on migratory birds. We demonstrate that most avian remains collected were from the largest populations of a given species. In contrast, those remains from smaller, declining populations made up a smaller percentage of the total number of birds assayed. Results suggest that application of this genetic tagging method can successfully define population-level exposure to renewable energy development and may be a powerful tool to inform future siting and mitigation activities associated with renewable energy programs.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗