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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 OSTI2015

Towards direct realisation of the SI unit of sound pressure in the audible hearing range based on optical free-field acoustic particle measurements

Since the introduction of the International System of Units (the SI system) in 1960, weights, measures, standardised approaches, procedures, and protocols have been introduced, adapted, and extensively used. A major international effort and activity concentrate on the definition and traceability of the seven base SI units in terms of fundamental constants, and consequently those units that are derived from the base units. In airborne acoustical metrology and for the audible range of frequencies up to 20 kHz, the SI unit of sound pressure, the pascal, is realised indirectly and without any knowledge or measurement of the sound field. Though the principle of reciprocity was originally formulated by Lord Rayleigh nearly two centuries ago, it was devised in the 1940s and eventually became a calibration standard in the 1960s; however, it can only accommodate a limited number of acoustic sensors of specific types and dimensions. International standards determine the device sensitivity either through coupler or through free-field reciprocity but rely on the continuous availability of specific acoustical artefacts. Here, we show an optical method based on gated photon correlation spectroscopy that can measure sound pressures directly and absolutely in fully anechoic conditions, remotely, and without disturbing the propagating sound field. It neither relies on the availability or performance of any measurement artefact nor makes any assumptions of the device geometry and sound field characteristics. Most importantly, the required units of sound pressure and microphone sensitivity may now be experimentally realised, thus providing direct traceability to SI base units.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2018

Accurate Determination of the Values of Fundamental Physical Constants: The Basis of the New “Quantum” SI Units

The metric system appeared as the system of units designed for macroscopic (laboratory scale) measurements. The progress in accurate determination of the values of quantum constants (such as the Planck constant) in SI units shows that the capabilities in high-precision measurement of microscopic and macroscopic quantities in terms of the same units have increased substantially recently. At the same time, relative microscopic measurements (for example, the comparison of atomic transition frequencies or atomic masses) are often much more accurate than relative measurements of macroscopic quantities. This is the basis for the strategy to define units in microscopic phenomena and then use them on the laboratory scale, which plays a crucial role in practical methodological applications determined by everyday life and technologies. The international CODATA task group on fundamental constants regularly performs an overall analysis of the precision world data (the so-called Adjustment of the Fundamental Constants ) and publishes their recommended values. The most recent evaluation was based on the data published by the end of 2014; here, we review the corresponding data and results. The accuracy in determination of the Boltzmann constant has increased, the consistency of the data on determination of the Planck constant has improved; it is these two dimensional constants that will be used in near future as the basis for the new definition of the kelvin and kilogram, respectively. The contradictions in determination of the Rydberg constant and the proton charge radius remain. The accuracy of determination of the fine structure constant and relative atomic weight of the electron has improved. Overall, we give a detailed review of the state of the art in precision determination of the values of fundamental constants. The mathematical procedure of the Adjustment, the new data and results are considered in detail. The limitations due to macroscopic properties of material standards (such as the International prototype of the kilogram) and the isotopic composition of substances involved in precision studies in general (as standard measures for the triple point of water) and, in particular, in the determination of the fundamental constants are discussed. The perspectives of the introduction of the new quantum units, which will be free from the mentioned problems, are considered. Many physicists feel no sympathy for the International system of units (SI), believing that it does not properly reflect the character of physical laws. In fact, there are three parallel systems, namely the systems of quantities, system of their units and the related standards. The definition of the units, in particular, the SI units, above all, reflects our ability to perform precision measurements of physical values under certain conditions, in particular, to create appropriate standards. This requirement is not related to the beauty of fundamental laws of nature. More accurate determination of the fundamental constants is one of the areas where we accumulate such experience.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2022

RELAP5-3D British and SI Unit Conversion Task

The RELAP5-3D code uses conversion factors throughout the code to convert values between British and SI units. Conversion factors are typically in each of the separate routines that perform unit conversion. This results in inconsistent unit conversion and increases the likelihood of errors being introduced in the conversion factors. Unit conversion factors were relocated to a centralized module so that these values are only entered in one location. The unit conversion values were then replaced in the various locations with a unit conversion variable. The code was tested using the verification test set after making these changes and the results were analyzed. As expected, all the cases that use British input were found to have changed. In addition, three other cases changed due to changes in conversion factors.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
NASA NTRS1982

Thermodynamic and transport combustion properties of hydrocarbons with air. Part 1: Properties in SI units

Thermodynamic and transport combustion properties were calculated for a wide range of conditions for the reaction of hydrocarbons with air. Three hydrogen-carbon atom ratios (H/C = 1.7, 2.0, 2.1) were selected to represent the range of aircraft fuels. For each of these H/C ratios, combustion properties were calculated for the following conditions: Equivalence ratio: 0, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, 1.0, 1.25 Water - dry air mass ratio: 0, 0.03 Pressure, kPa: 1.01325, 10.1325, 101.325, 1013.25, 5066.25 (or in atm: 0.01, 0.1, 1, 10, 50) Temperature, K: every 10 degrees from 200 to 900 K; every 50 degrees from 900 to 3000 K Temperature, R: every 20 degrees from 360 to 1600 R; very 100 degrees from 1600 to 5400 R. The properties presented are composition, density, molecular weight, enthalphy, entropy, specific heat at constant pressure, volume derivatives, isentropic exponent, velocity of sound, viscosity, thermal conductivity, and Prandtl number. Property tables are based on composites that were calculated by assuming both: (1) chemical equilibrium (for both homogeneous and heterogeneous phases) and (2) constant compositions for all temperatures. Properties in SI units are presented in this report for the Kelvin temperature schedules.

Gordon, S.↗
DOE OSTI2012

Absolute Cavity Pyrgeometer to Measure the Absolute Outdoor Longwave Irradiance with Traceability to International System of Units, SI

This article describes a method of measuring the absolute outdoor longwave irradiance using an absolute cavity pyrgeometer (ACP), U.S. Patent application no. 13/049, 275. The ACP consists of domeless thermopile pyrgeometer, gold-plated concentrator, temperature controller, and data acquisition. The dome was removed from the pyrgeometer to remove errors associated with dome transmittance and the dome correction factor. To avoid thermal convection and wind effect errors resulting from using a domeless thermopile, the gold-plated concentrator was placed above the thermopile. The concentrator is a dual compound parabolic concentrator (CPC) with 180{sup o} view angle to measure the outdoor incoming longwave irradiance from the atmosphere. The incoming irradiance is reflected from the specular gold surface of the CPC and concentrated on the 11 mm diameter of the pyrgeometer's blackened thermopile. The CPC's interior surface design and the resulting cavitation result in a throughput value that was characterized by the National Institute of Standards and Technology. The ACP was installed horizontally outdoor on an aluminum plate connected to the temperature controller to control the pyrgeometer's case temperature. The responsivity of the pyrgeometer's thermopile detector was determined by lowering the case temperature and calculating the rate of change of the thermopile output voltage versus the changing net irradiance. The responsivity is then used to calculate the absolute atmospheric longwave irradiance with an uncertainty estimate (U{sub 95}) of {+-}3.96 W m{sup 02} with traceability to the International System of Units, SI. The measured irradiance was compared with the irradiance measured by two pyrgeometers calibrated by the World Radiation Center with traceability to the Interim World Infrared Standard Group, WISG. A total of 408 readings were collected over three different nights. The calculated irradiance measured by the ACP was 1.5 W/m{sup 2} lower than that measured by the two pyrgeometers that are traceable to WISG, with a standard deviation of {+-}0.7 W m{sup -2}. These results suggest that the ACP design might be used for addressing the need to improve the international reference for broadband outdoor longwave irradiance measurements.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2026

Latest Development to Establish the World Reference with Traceability to SI Units for Measuring the Atmospheric Shortwave and Longwave Irradiance

To date, Interim world reference traceable to blackbody (not sky/atmosphere) is used as a reference noted as a World Infrared Standard Group (WISG). Plan forward: to develop a reference standards traceable to SI InfraRed Integrating Sphere (IRIS) Developed by the World Radiation Center (PMOD) is traceable to blackbody irradiance. Absolute Cavity Pyrgeometer (ACP) developed by NLR is a self-calibrating radiometer using heat substitution to measure the atmospheric longwave irradiance. ACP is a contribution to develop the world reference with traceability to SI, using the outdoor irradiance as the source, instead of blackbody.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2022

A Procedure to Correct the Historical Atmospheric Longwave Irradiance Data When the World Reference Is Established with Respect to the International System of Units

Historical and traceable atmospheric longwave irradiance data sets with traceability to the International System of units (SI) are essential for renewable energy and atmospheric science research and applications. To date, all pyrgeometers used to measure the irradiance are traceable to the interim World InfraRed Standard Group (WISG) not to SI units. In 2013 the Absolute Cavity Pyrgeometer (ACP), [Reda et al., 2012] was developed at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to measure the atmospheric longwave irradiance. The ACP has been compared against the InfraRed Integrating Sphere (IRIS) developed by the Physikalisch-Meteorologisches Observatorium Davos/World Radiation Center (PMOD/WRC) [J. Grobner, 2012]. ACP and IRIS are absolute instruments traceable to SI units through the International Temperature Scale ITS-90. Results of six comparisons between ACP and IRIS at different location have shown that the irradiance measured by WISG pyrgeometers is underestimating clear-sky atmospheric longwave irradiance by 2 to 6 W/m 2 [Grobner et al., 2014]. Therefore, once the world reference is established with traceability to SI units the WISG would be corrected then used to calibrate field pyrgeometers with traceability to SI units. The described method below is used to correct the historical atmospheric longwave irradiance data sets in anticipation of the WISG scale change.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2022

A Procedure to Correct the Historical Atmospheric Longwave Irradiance Data When the World Reference Is Established with Respect to the International System of Units

Historical atmospheric longwave irradiance data sets with traceability to the International System of Units (SI) are essential for renewable energy and atmospheric science research and applications. To date, all pyrgeometers used to measure the irradiance are traceable to the interim World Infrared Standard Group (WISG), not to SI units. In 2013, the Absolute Cavity Pyrgeometer (ACP) (Reda et al. 2012) was developed at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to measure the atmospheric longwave irradiance. The ACP has been compared against the InfraRed Integrating Sphere (IRIS), developed by the Physikalisch-Meteorologisches Observatorium Davos/World Radiation Center (PMOD/WRC) (Grobner 2012). The ACP and the IRIS are absolute instruments traceable to SI units through the International Temperature Scale of 1990. Results of six comparisons between the ACP and the IRIS at different locations have shown that the irradiance measured by WISG pyrgeometers underestimates clear-sky atmospheric longwave irradiance by 2 W/m 2 to 6 W/m 2 (Grobner et al. 2014); therefore, once the world reference is established with traceability to SI units, the WISG would be corrected, then used to calibrate field pyrgeometers with traceability to SI units. The following described method is used to correct the historical atmospheric longwave irradiance data sets in anticipation of the WISG scale change.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
DOE OSTI2022

A Procedure to Correct the Historical Atmospheric Longwave Irradiance Data When the World Reference Is Established with Respect to the International System of Units

Historical atmospheric longwave irradiance data sets with traceability to the International System of Units (SI) are essential for renewable energy and atmospheric science research and applications. To date, all pyrgeometers used to measure the irradiance are traceable to the interim World Infrared Standard Group (WISG), not to SI units. In 2013, the Absolute Cavity Pyrgeometer (ACP) (Reda et al. 2012) was developed at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to measure the atmospheric longwave irradiance. The ACP has been compared against the InfraRed Integrating Sphere (IRIS), developed by the Physikalisch-Meteorologisches Observatorium Davos/World Radiation Center (PMOD/WRC) (Gröbner 2012). The ACP and the IRIS are absolute instruments traceable to SI units through the International Temperature Scale of 1990. Results of six comparisons between the ACP and the IRIS at different locations have shown that the irradiance measured by WISG pyrgeometers underestimates clear-sky atmospheric longwave irradiance by 2 W/m 2 to 6 W/m 2 (Gröbner et al. 2014); therefore, once the world reference is established with traceability to SI units, the WISG would be corrected, then used to calibrate field pyrgeometers with traceability to SI units. The following described method is used to correct the historical atmospheric longwave irradiance data sets in anticipation of the WISG scale change.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2023

Using an Absolute Cavity Pyrgeometer to Calibrate Pyrgeometers Outdoors with Respect to the International System of Units

Accurate measurement of the atmospheric longwave irradiance is important for renewable energy and atmospheric science applications. Pyrgeometers are deployed outdoors all over the world to measure the atmospheric longwave irradiance and presently are calibrated with traceability to the interim standards for atmospheric longwave radiation measurement, the standards are based on four pyrgeometers and their average irradiance is the World InfraRed Standard Group (WISG) which is developed and maintained by The Physikalisch-Meteorologisches Observatorium Davos/World Radiation Center (PMOD/WRC). Since 2013 the InfraRed Integrating Sphere (IRIS) developed by PMOD/WRC and the Absolute Cavity Pyrgeometer (ACP) developed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) have been compared outdoors six times at different locations and the difference between the measured atmospheric longwave irradiance by ACP and IRIS was less than 2 W/m2 with traceability to the International System of Units (SI). During the six comparisons the irradiance measured by the interim WISG was 5 W/m2 lower than the irradiance measured by the average irradiance measured by the ACP and IRIS [1]. Based on this discrepancy, the World Meteorological Organization's Commission for Instruments and Methods of Observation (CIMO) recommended that the interim WISG should be adjusted to be traceable to SI units [2]. In anticipation of CIMO's expert team agreement on establishing the world reference using the average irradiance measured by ACP and IRIS in this article we describe a procedure to calibrate pyrgeometers with traceability to SI. One Absolute Cavity Pyrgeometer (ACP95F3) was used to calibrate four pyrgeometers traceable to SI units. Three Eppley PIRs and one Kipp&Zonen CG4 were originally calibrated with traceability to the interim WISG. Using the described procedure below, the responsivity of each pyrgeometer was then adjusted to match the irradiance measured by ACP. Outdoor data was collected during one clear sky nights monitored by the output thermopile voltage of ACP95F3. The irradiance measured by the PIRs was calculated using NREL equation and the CG4 using NREL equation and PMOD/WRC equation. Using the NREL equation, the calculated uncertainty (U_95) of the PIRs varied from 2.43 W/m2 to 2.67 W/m2, and for the CG4 using the NREL equation U_95 equals 1.97 W/m2, and using the PMOD equation U_95 equals 2.88 W/m2 with respect to SI.

International System of Units↗
DOE OSTI2023

Using an Absolute Cavity Pyrgeometer to Calibrate Pyrgeometers Outdoors with Respect to the International System of Units

Accurate measurement of the atmospheric longwave irradiance is important for renewable energy and atmospheric science applications. Pyrgeometers are deployed outdoors all over the world to measure the atmospheric longwave irradiance and presently are calibrated with traceability to the interim standards for atmospheric longwave radiation measurement, the standards are based on four pyrgeometers and their average irradiance is the World InfraRed Standard Group (WISG) which is developed and maintained by The Physikalisch-Meteorologisches Observatorium Davos/World Radiation Center (PMOD/WRC). Since 2013 the InfraRed Integrating Sphere (IRIS) developed by PMOD/WRC and the Absolute Cavity Pyrgeometer (ACP) developed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) have been compared outdoors six times at different locations and the difference between the measured atmospheric longwave irradiance by ACP and IRIS was less than 2 w/m2 with traceability to the International System of Units (SI). During the six comparisons the irradiance measured by the interim WISG was 5 w/m2 lower than the irradiance measured by the average irradiance measured by the ACP and IRIS [1]. Based on this discrepancy, the World Meteorological Organization's Commission for Instruments and Methods of Observation (CIMO) recommended that the interim WISG should be adjusted to be traceable to SI units [2]. In anticipation of CIMO's expert team agreement on establishing the world reference using the average irradiance measured by ACP and IRIS in this article we describe a procedure to calibrate pyrgeometers with traceability to SI. One Absolute Cavity Pyrgeometer (ACP95F3) was used to calibrate four pyrgeometers traceable to SI units. Three Eppley PIRs and one Kipp&Zonen CG4 were originally calibrated with traceability to the interim WISG. Using the described procedure below, the responsivity of each pyrgeometer was then adjusted to match the irradiance measured by ACP. Outdoor data was collected during one clear sky night monitored by the output thermopile voltage of ACP95F3. The irradiance measured by the PIRs and CG4 was calculated using NREL equation. The calculated uncertainty (U95) of the PIRs varied from 2.43 w/m2 to 2.67 w/m2 , and for the CG4 equals 1.97 w/m2 with respect to SI.

absolute cavity pyrgeometer↗
DOE OSTI2018

Results of Absolute Cavity Pyrgeometer and Infrared Integrating Sphere Comparisons

Accurate and traceable atmospheric longwave irradiance measurements are required for understanding radiative impacts on the Earth's energy budget. The standard to which pyrgeometers are traceable is the interim World Infrared Standard Group (WISG), maintained in the Physikalisch-Meteorologisches Observatorium Davos (PMOD). The WISG consists of four pyrgeometers that were calibrated using Rolf Philipona's Absolute Sky-scanning Radiometer [1]. The Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) facility has recently adopted the WISG to maintain the traceability of the calibrations of all Eppley precision infrared radiometer (PIR) pyrgeometers. Subsequently, Julian Grobner [2] developed the infrared interferometer spectrometer and radiometer (IRIS) radiometer, and Ibrahim Reda [3] developed the absolute cavity pyrgeometer (ACP). The ACP and IRIS were developed to establish a world reference for calibrating pyrgeometers with traceability to the International System of Units (SI). The two radiometers are unwindowed with negligible spectral dependence, and they are traceable to SI units through the temperature scale (ITS-90). The two instruments were compared directly to the WISG three times at PMOD and twice at the Southern Great Plains (SGP) facility to WISG-traceable pyrgeometers. The ACP and IRIS agreed within +/- 1 W/m2 to +/- 3 W/m2 in all comparisons, whereas the WISG references exhibit a 2-5 Wm2 low bias compared to the ACP/IRIS average, depending on the water vapor column, as noted in Grobner et al. [4]. Consequently, a case for changing the current WISG has been made by Grobner and Reda. However, during the five comparisons the column water vapor exceeded 8 mm. Therefore, it is recommended that more ACP and IRIS comparisons should be held under different environmental conditions and water vapor column content to better establish the traceability of these instruments to SI with established uncertainty.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗
NASA NTRS1995

A PC program for estimating measurement uncertainty for aeronautics test instrumentation

A personal computer program was developed which provides aeronautics and operations engineers at Lewis Research Center with a uniform method to quickly provide values for the uncertainty in test measurements and research results. The software package used for performing the calculations is Mathcad 4.0, a Windows version of a program which provides an interactive user interface for entering values directly into equations with immediate display of results. The error contribution from each component of the system is identified individually in terms of the parameter measured. The final result is given in common units, SI units, and percent of full scale range. The program also lists the specifications for all instrumentation and calibration equipment used for the analysis. It provides a presentation-quality printed output which can be used directly for reports and documents.

Blumenthal, Philip Z.↗
NASA NTRS1976

Liquid rocket disconnects, couplings, fittings, fixed joints, and seals

State of the art and design criteria for components used in liquid propellant rocket propulsion systems to contain and control the flow of fluids involved are discussed. Particular emphasis is placed on the design of components used in the engine systems of boosters and upper stages, and in spacecraft propulsion systems because of the high pressure and high vibration levels to which these components are exposed. A table for conversion of U.S. customary units to SI units is included with a glossary, and a list of NASA space vehicle design criteria monographs issued to September 1976.

Source record↗
DOE OSTI2019

Establishing the World Reference for Measuring the Atmospheric Longwave Irradiance with Traceability to the International System of Units

Advancing climate change research requires accurate and traceable measurement of atmospheric longwave irradiance. Measurement capabilities are limited to an estimated uncertainty of larger than +/- 6 W/m2 using the interim World Infrared Standard Group (WISG). Two independently designed and calibrated absolute radiometers measuring downwelling longwave irradiance were compared during five outdoor comparisons in 2013, 2015, and 2017 at the Physikalisch Meteorologisches Observatorium Davos World Radiation Center (PMOD/WRC) and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Atmospheric Radiation Measurement program (ARM) in the Southern Great Planes (SGP). Two Absolute Cavity Pyrgeometers (ACPs) developed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and four Integrating Sphere Infrared Radiometers (IRISs) developed by PMOD/WRC took part in these intercomparisons.From the five comparisons, the difference between the irradiance measured by ACPs and IRISs varied from 0.2 W/m2 to 2.5 W/m2 based on atmospheric conditions, which is within the combined stated uncertainties of +/- 3 W/m2. The irradiance measured by the WISG is lower than the average irradiance measured by ACPs and IRISs. The magnitude of difference varied from 0.2 W/m2 to 6.6 W/m2 depending on the integrated water vapor. A concerted effort to establish a world reference for measuring the atmospheric longwave irradiance with lower uncertainty and with traceability to the International System of Units (SI) by using the ACPs and IRISs as the reference started at the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). The Commission for Instruments and Methods of Observation Commission (CIMO) Task Team on Radiation References (TT) meeting was held in 2017 at the National Physical Laboratory (NPL), in Teddington, United Kingdom to discuss specific recommendation on the traceability of the atmospheric longwave irradiance to the International System of units (SI).

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗