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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 19 records
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2023

Comparison of different noble gas injections by massive gas injection on plasma disruption mitigation on Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak

Massive gas injection (MGI) is a traditional plasma disruption mitigation method. This method directly injected massive gas into the pre-disruption plasma and had been developed on the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST). Different noble gas injection experiments, including He, Ne, and Ar, were performed to compare the mitigation effect of plasma disruption by evaluating the key parameters such as flight time, pre-thermal quench (pre-TQ), and current quench (CQ). The flight time was shorter for low atomic number ( Z ) gas, and the decrease in flight time by increasing the amount of gas was insignificant. However, both pre-TQ and CQ durations decreased considerably with the increase in gas injection amount. The effect of atomic mass on pre-TQ and CQ durations showed the opposite trend. The observed trend could help in controlling CQ duration in a reasonable area. Moreover, the analysis of radiation distribution with different impurity injections indicated that low Z impurity could reduce the asymmetry of radiation, which is valuable in mitigating plasma disruption. These results provided essential data support for plasma disruption mitigation on EAST and future fusion devices.

Physics↗
DOE OSTI2024

Impact of gas injection location and divertor surface material on ITER fusion power operation phase divertor performance assessed with SOLPS-ITER *

Abstract The ITER divertor design and performance assessment, primarily based on the SOLPS-4.3 burning plasma database (Pitts R. et al 2019 Nucl. Mater. Energy 20 100696), assumes the use of beryllium (Be) as the divertor surface material and the injection of gas from the main chamber top. However, the current ITER baseline favors gas injection from the more toroidally symmetric sub-divertor region. This paper evaluates the implications of these assumptions for divertor performance in the ITER fusion power operation phase. The impact of the divertor surface material and the gas injection location on the main ions mirrors the hydrogen only low power phase scenario shown in Park J.-S. et al (2020 Nucl. Fusion 61 016021). However, during burning plasma operation, extrinsic impurity seeding will be required. In the case of neon (Ne), studied here, impurity retention is influenced by both the divertor surface material and the fueling location. Neon leakage increases due to more energetic reflection from tungsten than beryllium, but equivalent divertor performance can be achieved by adjusting the neon seeding rate. While the impurity seeding location does not affect the distributions of impurity or radiation, the fueling location does. Top fueling provides local ionization sources mainly in the mid-SOL under detached conditions, enhancing divergences of the flux there (source-driven flow), bringing stagnation points close to the fueling location, and equilibrating flows towards both targets. In contrast, the global flow pattern (in the absence of fluid drifts) in the case of sub-divertor fueling is biased towards the inner target. Impurity flows, driven by force balance, largely mirror those of the main ion flow, including the stagnation point. The case with top fueling enhances Ne retention and corresponding radiation in the outer divertor, effectively reducing the total and peak target heat fluxes by 20%–40%, compared to the case with divertor fueling. Meanwhile, the case with outer target fueling also achieves similar reductions by enhancing plasma-neutral interactions. These results suggest the possibility that the selection of the fueling location and throughput can be used as an actuator to control impurity divertor retention and divertor radiation asymmetry.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2025

Quantification and evaluation of strain reduction from small-bubble gas injection in Spallation Neutron Source target vessels

Small-bubble gas injection has been routinely utilized in the operation of Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) mercury targets since 2017 to mitigate cavitation-induced erosion damage to target vessels. Strain measurements of target vessels collected in-situ during initial operation with gas injection were used to study the gas injection effect on the structural response of targets to proton pulses. A significant strain reduction owing to gas injection was found by comparing the strain measurement data during operation with and without gas injection. The research presented here focuses on quantifying strain reductions in SNS targets and evaluating the effect of small-bubble gas injection by comparing different bubbler types and target designs. The strain measurement results show the gas injection significantly reduced strain in SNS target vessels; strain values decreased by 30% to 80% for targets operating with gas injection. Stress and strain responses of SNS targets were simulated to numerically evaluate the gas injection effect. Based on the predicted stresses with and without gas injection, the fatigue lifetimes of SNS jet-flow design target were estimated using fe-safe fatigue analysis software. The simulations show these reductions should improve the fatigue life of target vessels and allow SNS targets to meet their fatigue design goal.

Fatigue life estimation↗
DOE OSTI2018

Regimes of Micro-bubble Formation Using Gas Injection into Ladle Shroud

Gas injection into a ladle shroud is a practical approach to produce micro-bubbles in tundishes, to promote inclusion removal from liquid steel. A semi-empirical model was established to characterize the bubble formation considering the effect of shearing action combined with the non-fully bubble break-up by turbulence. The model shows a good accuracy in predicting the size of bubbles formed in complex flow within the ladle shroud.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2022

Quantifying the reduction in cavitation-induced erosion damage in the Spallation Neutron Source mercury target by means of small-bubble gas injection

Here, a model developed to represent the progress of erosion damage in liquid-metal spallation target vessels was modified to incorporate the effect of gas injection on the erosion rate. The liquid mercury target system for the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory now operates with helium gas injection to reduce target vessel fatigue stress and cavitation-induced erosion damage. Erosion damage is a primary degradation phenomenon affecting the service life of SNS target vessels, and cavitation mitigation techniques, such as small-bubble gas injection, have been implemented to reduce damage and extend target lifetimes. Erosion depths in samples removed from SNS targets after operation were measured using laser line scanning. These measurements confirmed that gas injection reduced erosion damage. However, quantifying the damage reduction due to gas injection was complicated by variations in lifetime, power, and gas injection rates between different targets. In this study, the operating power and gas injection rate of targets were incorporated into an erosion damage prediction model to quantify their effects on erosion damage reduction. Values of a power scaling factor, β, were calculated by comparing modeled with measured erosion damage. These values indicate that the use of gas injection at the SNS reduced damage to a level equivalent to operating targets without gas injection at 35–47% of the actual beam power. To account for the gas injection effect on the cavitation damage, a simple exponential form based on analysis of the scaling factor β was developed to incorporate the gas rate history with a scaling factor γ in the erosion damage modeling.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
DOE OSTI2016

Maximization of ICRF power by SOL density tailoring with local gas injection

We report that experiments have been performed under the coordination of the International Tokamak Physics Activity (ITPA) on several tokamaks, including ASDEX Upgrade (AUG), JET and DIII-D, to characterize the increased Ion cyclotron range of frequency (ICRF) antenna loading achieved by optimizing the position of gas injection relative to the RF antennas. On DIII-D, AUG and JET (with the ITER-Like Wall) a 50% increase in the antenna loading was observed when injecting deuterium in ELMy H-mode plasmas using mid-plane inlets close to the powered antennas instead of divertor injection and, with smaller improvement when using gas inlets located at the top of the machine. The gas injection rate required for such improvements (similar to 0.7 x 10(22) el s(-1) in AUG, similar to 1.0 x 10(22) el s(-1) in JET) is compatible with the use of this technique to optimize ICRF heating during the development of plasma scenarios and no degradation of confinement was observed when using the mid-plane or top inlets compared with divertor valves. An increase in the scrape-off layer (SOL) density was measured when switching gas injection from divertor to outer mid-plane or top. On JET and DIII-D, the measured SOL density increase when using main chamber puffing is consistent with the antenna coupling resistance increase provided that the distance between the measurement lines of sight and the injection location is taken into account. Optimized gas injection was also found to be beneficial for reducing tungsten (W) sputtering at the AUG antenna limiters, and also to reduce slightly the W and nickel (Ni) content in JET plasmas. Modeling the specific effects of divertor/top/mid-plane injection on the outer mid-plane density was carried out using both the EDGE2D-EIRENE and EMC3-EIRENE plasma boundary code packages; simulations indeed indicate that outer mid-plane gas injection maximizes the density in the mid-plane close to the injection point with qualitative agreement with the AUG SOL density measurements for EMC3-EIRENE. Field line tracing for ITER in the 15 MA Q(DT) = 10 reference scenario indicates that the planned gas injection system could be used to tailor the density in front the antennas. Lastly, benchmarking of EMC3-EIRENE against AUG and JET data is planned as a first step towards the ITER SOL modelling required to quantify the effect of gas injection on the SOL density in front of the antennas.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2022

3D Simulations of gas injection on callovo-oxfordian claystone assuming spatial heterogeneity and anisotropy

A series of gas injection tests on Callovo-Oxfordian (COx) claystone from the Bure underground research laboratory (URL) in France were carried out at the British Geological Survey (BGS). The tests were performed using a triaxial apparatus specifically designed to capture small volumetric strains induced by the injected gas flow and consequent material dilatancy. The long-duration experiments were monitored throughout. Measurements also included pressure, stresses (axial and radial stresses prescribed for each test stage), rate of gas inflow, gas outflow volume as well as pore-pressures observed at various points of the sample. A coupled hydro-gas-mechanical 3D numerical model has been developed to simulate the tests. Initial permeability is assumed heterogeneous throughout the specimen and embedded fractures are incorporated in the formulation. Gas pressure-induced deformations during the test lead to variations of permeability due to changes in matrix porosity and, especially, fracture aperture as well as fracture orientation due to material anisotropy. A programme of sensitivity analyses involving the variation of different aspects and parameters of the model contributes to a better understanding of the phenomena and highlights its complexity. The model is able to reproduce the observed behaviour of the tests.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2021

MHD simulations of cold bubble formation from 2/1 tearing mode during massive gas injection in a tokamak

Massive gas injection (MGI) experiments have been carried out in many tokamaks to study disruption dynamics and mitigation schemes. Two events often observed in those experiments are the excitation of the m = 2, n = 1 magnetohydrodynamic mode, and the formation of cold bubble structure in the temperature distribution before the thermal quench (TQ). Here m is the poloidal mode number, n the toroidal mode number. The physics mechanisms underlying those phenomena, however, have not been entirely clear. In this work, our recent NIMROD simulations of the MGI process in a tokamak have reproduced the main features of both events, which has allowed us to examine and establish the causal relation between them. In these simulations, the 3/1 and 2/1 islands are found to form successively after the arrival of impurity ion cold front at the corresponding q = 3 and q = 2 rational surfaces. At the interface between impurity and plasma, a local thin current sheet forms due to an enhanced local pressure gradient and moves inward following the gas cold front, this may contribute to the formation of a dominant 2/1 mode. Following the growth of the 2/1 tearing mode, the impurity penetration into the core region inside the q = 2 surface gives rise to the formation of the cold bubble temperature structure and initiates the final TQ. Here, a subdominant 1/1 mode developed earlier near the q = 1 surface alone does not cause such a cold bubble formation, however, the exact manner of the preceding impurity penetration depends on the nature of the 1/1 mode: kink-tearing or quasi-interchange.

2/1 tearing mode↗
DOE OSTI2017

Fast piezoelectric valve offering controlled gas injection in magnetically confined fusion plasmas for diagnostic and fuelling purposes

In magnetically confined fusion plasmas controlled gas injection is crucial for plasma fuelling as well as for various diagnostic applications such as active spectroscopy. In this paper, we present a new, versatile system for the injection of collimated thermal gas beams into a vacuum chamber. This system consists of a gas pressure chamber, sealed by a custom made piezo valve towards a small capillary for gas injection. The setup can directly be placed inside of the vacuum chamber of fusion devices as it is small and immune against high magnetic fields. This enables gas injection close to the plasma periphery with high duty cycles and fast switch on/off times ≲ 0.5 ms. In this work, we present the design details of this new injection system and a systematic characterization of the beam properties as well as the gas flowrates which can be accomplished. The thin and relatively short capillary yields a small divergence of the injected beam with a half opening angle of 20°. The gas box is designed for pre-fill pressures of 10 mbar up to 100 bars and makes a flowrate accessible from 10 18 part/s up to 10 23 part/s. It hence is a versatile system for both diagnostic as well as fuelling applications. Finally, the implementation of this system in ASDEX Upgrade will be described and its application for line ratio spectroscopy on helium will be demonstrated on a selected example.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2019

Effect of Bath Depth and Nozzle Geometry on Spout Height in Submerged Gas Injection at Bottom

Spout height is a widely used parameter to quantitatively analyze the performance of the submerged gas injection in industrial applications. However, the effect of bath depth and nozzle geometry on spout height in submerged gas injection is still unclear. In this work, the effect of bath depth and nozzle geometry on spout height in submerged gas injection at bottom was experimentally investigated. Circular-shaped, three-leaf-shaped, four-leaf-shaped, and four-flower-shaped nozzles were used for this study. Spout height was extracted from the images captured by high-speed camera and analyzed by digital image processing. The results indicate that the effect of nozzle geometry on spout height is as important as gas flow rate and bath depth. Through dimensional analysis, predictive correlations of spout height from circular shape and four-leaf shape were developed with dimensionless bath depth and a modified Froude number using orifice perimeter and opening area as characteristic parameters. Experimental data were compared with the correlations from literature and good agreement was found.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2024

Progress of Gas Injection EOR Surveillance in the Bakken Unconventional Play—Technical Review and Machine Learning Study

Although considerable laboratory and modeling activities were performed to investigate the enhanced oil recovery (EOR) mechanisms and potential in unconventional reservoirs, only limited research has been reported to investigate actual EOR implementations and their surveillance in fields. Eleven EOR pilot tests that used CO2, rich gas, surfactant, water, etc., have been conducted in the Bakken unconventional play since 2008. Gas injection was involved in eight of these pilots with huff ‘n’ puff, flooding, and injectivity operations. Surveillance data, including daily production/injection rates, bottomhole injection pressure, gas composition, well logs, and tracer testing, were collected from these tests to generate time-series plots or analytics that can inform operators of downhole conditions. A technical review showed that pressure buildup, conformance issues, and timely gas breakthrough detection were some of the main challenges because of the interconnected fractures between injection and offset wells. The latest operation of co-injecting gas, water, and surfactant through the same injection well showed that these challenges could be mitigated by careful EOR design and continuous reservoir monitoring. Reservoir simulation and machine learning were then conducted for operators to rapidly predict EOR performance and take control actions to improve EOR outcomes in unconventional reservoirs.

Energy & Fuels↗
DOE OSTI2026

Radiation asymmetry during shattered pellet and massive gas injection in DIII-D

Infrared thermography of the first wall in DIII-D is used to show the toroidal peaking of plasma radiation during mitigated disruptions with shattered pellet injection (SPI) and with massive gas injection (MGI). During MGI, the radiation peak location is shown to be due to the n = 1 magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) activity and continuously variable in toroidal phase based on externally applied error fields, consistent with previous experimental results. Furthermore, the measured toroidal peaking factor (TPF) is in agreement with the previous estimates based on radiometry, with a total TPF of 1.07 ± 0.05 when integrated over the entire duration of the disruption, and a value of 1.3 ± 0.1 during the thermal quench (TQ). For SPI, the location of the radiation peak is found to be determined predominantly by the particle source location, and thus can be varied on DIII-D by injecting from either of two toroidally separated injectors. 3D non-linear MHD simulations with the NIMROD code support this picture. The localized SPI particle source leads to higher peaking than for MGI, with a total TPF of 1.3 ± 0.1 over the full disruption and a TQ TPF of 1.9 +0.5/−0.3, a value also consistent with the NIMROD simulations. This TQ value is close to or potentially exceeding the allowable limit for the previously planned Be first wall in ITER, pointing to the importance of radiation asymmetries depending on the choice of first wall material.

Physics - Plasma physics↗
DOE OSTI2021

Cryo nanomanipulator probe with integrated gas injection

A probe assembly for use with a charged particle instrument includes an elongate body having a proximal end for positioning outside of a charged particle instrument enclosed environment, a distal end for positioning within the enclosed environment and a longitudinal axis. A port interface is located on the body between the proximal and distal ends, and is coupleable to a nanomanipulator system of the charged particle instrument. A probe needle is positioned at a distal end of the body and is selectively positionable from outside the enclosed environment to contact a specimen within the enclosed environment. At least one gas injection needle is adjustably positioned near the probe needle. The gas injection needle is connectable to a source of pressurized gas to selectively inject gas in the area of the probe needle within the enclosed environment.

Perea, Daniel E.↗
DOE OSTI2018

Effect of Hydrogen Addition on Softening and Melting Reduction Behaviors of Ferrous Burden in Gas-Injection Blast Furnace

The softening and melting reduction behaviors of ferrous burden in a gas-injection blast furnace (BF) have been investigated experimentally with the assistance of H{sub 2}. The results indicate that the initial softening temperature of the burden in the BF is lower than that in the traditional BF, while the opposite trend is observed for its melting and dripping temperatures, thus widening the softening range and narrowing the melting zone. As a result, the permeability of the stock column is apparently improved, owing to the decreased amount of the produced melt. After H{sub 2} gas is added, the thickness of the iron shell of the burden pellet increases, and the quantity of its liquid wüstite core decreases due to the higher reduction degree. The reduction rate of iron oxides is much faster than the carburization rate with the H{sub 2} addition, and the dripping behavior of the ferrous burden is determined by the carburization with a high reduction potential. After taking into account the effects of H{sub 2} addition on the iron oxide reduction rate, melt quantity, burden microstructure, and energy consumed by the gas-injection BF, it has been concluded that the optimal H{sub 2} content lies in the range between 10 and 15 pct.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2017

Maximize Liquid Oil Production from Shale Oil and Gas Condensate Reservoirs by Cyclic Gas Injection

The current technology to produce shale oil reservoirs is the primary depletion using fractured wells (generally horizontal wells). The oil recovery is less than 10%. The prize to enhance oil recovery (EOR) is big. Based on our earlier simulation study, huff-n-puff gas injection has the highest EOR potential. This project was to explore the potential extensively and from broader aspects. The huff-n-puff gas injection was compared with gas flooding, water huff-n-puff and waterflooding. The potential to mitigate liquid blockage was also studied and the gas huff-n-puff method was compared with other solvent methods. Field pilot tests were initiated but terminated owing to the low oil price and the operator’s budget cut. To meet the original project objectives, efforts were made to review existing and relevant field projects in shale and tight reservoirs. The fundamental flow in nanopores was also studied.

04 OIL SHALES AND TAR SANDS↗