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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
NASA NTRS1991

Hydrodynamic behavior and electrochemical impedance of the Hanging Meniscus Rotating Disk (HMRD) electrode. I - Meniscus shape under rotation. II - I-BIEM calculations of frequency dispersion and minimization

The shape equations for an HMRD in static and rotating configurations are developed and solved numerically. A rationale for the applicability of the standard Levich equations to the rotating case is given. The region of stability of the HMRD is examined, and the observed small negative intercept for a Levich plot is explained. The iterative boundary integral equation method is applied to the problem of frequency dispersion at an HMRD electrode. It is shown that a range of disk sizes and heights can be chosen to give almost uniform primary and secondary current distribution and minimal frequency disperison.

Cahan, Boris D.↗
NASA NTRS2010

Meniscus Shapes in Detached Bridgman Growth

In detached Bridgman crystal growth, most of the melt is in contact with the ampoule wall, but the crystal is separated from the wall by a small gap, typically 1-100 micrometers. A liquid free surface, or meniscus, bridges across this gap at the position of the melt-crystal interface. Meniscus shapes have been calculated for the case of detached Bridgman growth in cylindrical ampoules by solving the Young-Laplace equation. Key parameters affecting meniscus shapes are the growth angle, contact angle of the meniscus to the ampoule wall, the pressure differential across the meniscus, and the Bond number, a measure of the ratio of gravitational to capillary forces. In general, for specified values of growth and contact angles, solutions exist only over a finite range of pressure differentials. For intermediate values of the Bond number, there are multiple solutions to the Young-Laplace equations. There are also cases where, as a function of pressure differential, existence intervals alternate with intervals where no solutions exist. The implications of the meniscus shape calculations on meniscus stability are discussed.

Volz, M. P.↗
NASA NTRS2022

The Dark Annulus of a Drop in a Hele-Shaw Cell Is Caused by the Refraction of Light through Its Meniscus

Knowing the meniscus shape of confined drops is important for understanding how they make first contact and then coalesce. When imaged from the top view by brightfield microscopy, a liquid drop (e.g., corn syrup) confined in a Hele-Shaw cell, surrounded by immiscible liquid (e.g., mineral oil), had a dark annulus, and the width of the annulus decreased with increasing concentration of corn syrup. Since the difference in the annulus width was presumed to be related to the meniscus shape of the drops, three-dimensional images of the drops with different concentrations were obtained using confocal fluorescence microscopy, and their cross-sectional meniscus profile was determined by image processing. The meniscus of the drops remained circular despite varying concentration. Since the refractive index of corn syrup increased with concentration, while the surface tension coefficient between corn syrup and mineral oil remained unchanged, the observed change in the annulus width was then attributed to the refraction of light passing through the drop’s meniscus. As such, a ray optics model was developed, which predicted that the annulus width of the drop would decrease as the refractive index of the drop approached that of the surrounding liquid. Therefore, the dark annulus of the drops in the Hele-Shaw cell was caused by the refraction of light passing through the circular meniscus of the drop.

Sangjin Ryu↗
DOE OSTI2020

Ring patterns generated by an expanding colloidal meniscus

The drop-and-dry is a common technique allowing for creation of periodic nanoparticle (NP) structures for sensing, photonics, catalysis, etc. However, the reproducibility and scalability of this approach for fabrication of NP-based structures faces serious challenges due to the complexity of the simple, at first glance, evaporation process. In this work we study the effect of the spatial confinement on the NP self-assembly under slow solvent evaporation, when the air-liquid-substrate contact line (CL) expands from the center towards the walls of a cylindrical cell, forming a toroid. Using in situ video monitoring of the stick-slip CL motion, we find regular hydrodynamic perturbations in the meniscus, and reveal fine details of the formation of quasiperiodic rings of close packed NP layers. We report that drying of the toroidal NP droplet has a number of important differences from drying of the classical hemispherical colloidal drops. In toroidal drops we observe linear-in-time average meniscus motion, in contrast to the hemispherical drops where the meniscus moves as a square root of time. While both droplet geometries produce NP ring patterns, the ring width for the toroidal drop decreases with increasing ring radius, while it decreases with decreasing the radius of the hemispherical drop. We suggest that free ligands are the main cause of the Marangoni instabilities driving the periodic vorticity in the meniscus. Finally, we show that the usually ignored contact line tension may yield a considerable contribution to the CL pinning causing the CL slip-stick motion and the ring formation.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
NASA NTRS1993

Evaporation from a meniscus within a capillary tube in microgravity

The following represents a summary of progress made on the project 'Evaporation from a Capillary Meniscus in Microgravity' being conducted at the University of Dayton during the period 1 Dec. 1992 to 30 Nov. 1993. The efforts during this first year of the grant focused upon the following specific tasks: (1) application of a 3-D scattering particle image velocimetry technique to thin film velocity field measurement; (2) modeling the thermo-fluid behavior of the evaporating meniscus in 0-g within large diameter capillaries; (3) conceptualization of the space flight test cell (loop) configuration; (4) construction of prototypes of the test loop configuration; (5) conduct of experiments in 0-g in the 2.2 second drop tower at NASA-LeRC to study evaporation from a capillary meniscus within a square cuvette; and (6) investigation of the effect of vibrations on the stability of the meniscus. An overview of the work completed within these six task areas is presented.

Hallinan, K. P.↗
NASA NTRS1994

Effects of thermocapillarity on an evaporating extended meniscus in microgravity

An analytical investigation of the effects of thermocapillarity on the flow field within and heat transfer from the extended meniscus region of a heated meniscus which is re-supplied by capillarity is presented. Microgravity conditions are considered. The analysis shows that even for extremely small temperature differences between the wall and the vapor (less than 1 mK) thermocapillary stresses at the liquid-vapor interface due to a non-uniform interfacial temperature drastically alters the flow field. At the same time, these stresses were shown to have only a slight effect on the heat transfer from the extended meniscus but increasing with an increasing temperature difference. Additionally, thermocapillary effects were shown to be sensitive to pore size. A criterion was established from a scaling analysis identifying the conditions necessary for thermocapillarity to affect the operation of capillary-pumped heat transport devices in microgravity. A critical Marangoni number and corresponding critical temperature difference between wall and vapor were identified.

Hallinan, Kevin P.↗
NASA NTRS1993

An augmented Young-Laplace model of an evaporating meniscus in a micro-channel with high heat flux

High flux evaporations from a steady meniscus formed in a 2 micron channel is modeled using the augmented Young-Laplace equation. The heat flux is found to be a function of the long range van der Waals dispersion force which represents interfacial conditions between heptane and various substrates. Heat fluxes of (1.3-1.6) x 10(exp 6) W/m(exp 2) based on the width of the channel are obtained for heptane completely wetting the substrate at 100 C. Small channels are used to obtain these large fluxes. Even though the real contact angle is 0 deg, the apparent contact angle is found to vary between 24.8 deg and 25.6 deg. The apparent contact angle, which represents viscous losses near the contact line, has a large effect on the heat flow rate because of its effect on capillary suction and the area of the meniscus. The interfacial heat flux is modeled using kinetic theory for the evaporation rate. The superheated state depends on the temperature and the pressure of the liquid phase. The liquid pressure differs from the pressure of the vapor phase due to capillarity and long range van der Waals dispersion forces which are relevant in the ultra think film formed at the leading edge of the meniscus. Important pressure gradients in the thin film cause a substantial apparent contact angle for a complete wetting system. The temperature of the liquid is related to the evaporation rate and to the substrate temperature through the steady heat conduction equation. Conduction in the liquid phase is calculated using finite element analysis except in the vicinity of the thin film. A lubrication theory solution for the thin film is combined with the finite element analysis by the method of matched asymptotic expansions.

Wayner, P. C., Jr.↗
DOE OSTI2024

Multi‐Material Gradient Printing Using Meniscus‐enabled Projection Stereolithography (MAPS)

Light‐based additive manufacturing methods are widely used to print high‐resolution 3D structures for applications in tissue engineering, soft robotics, photonics, and microfluidics, among others. Despite this progress, multi‐material printing with these methods remains challenging due to constraints associated with hardware modifications, control systems, cross‐contamination, waste, and resin properties. Here, a new printing platform coined Meniscus‐enabled Projection Stereolithography (MAPS) is reported, a vat‐free method that relies on generating and maintaining a resin meniscus between a crosslinked structure and bottom window to print lateral, vertical, discrete, or gradient multi‐material 3D structures with no waste and user‐defined mixing between layers. MAPS is compatible with a wide range of resins shown and can print complex multi‐material 3D structures without requiring specialized hardware, software, or complex washing protocols. MAPS's ability to print structures with microscale variations in mechanical stiffness, opacity, surface energy, cell densities, and magnetic properties provides a generic method to make advanced materials for a broad range of applications.

bioprinting↗
DOE OSTI2022

Integration of polyurethane meniscus scaffold during ACL revision is not reliable at 5 years despite favourable clinical outcome

Abstract Purpose The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical outcome at 5‐year follow‐up of a one‐step procedure combining anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction and partial meniscus replacement using a polyurethane scaffold for the treatment of symptomatic patients with previously failed ACL reconstruction and partial medial meniscectomy. Moreover, the implanted scaffolds have been evaluated by MRI protocol in terms of morphology, volume, and signal intensity. Methods Twenty patients with symptomatic knee laxity after failed ACL reconstruction and partial medial meniscectomy underwent ACL revision combined with polyurethane‐based meniscal scaffold implant. Clinical assessment at 2‐ and 5‐year follow‐ups included VAS, Tegner Activity Score, International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC), Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC), and the Lysholm Score. MRI evaluation of the scaffold was performed according to the Genovese scale with quantification of the scaffold’s volume at 1‐ and 5‐year follow‐ups. Results All scores revealed clinical improvement as compared with the preoperative values at the 2‐ and 5‐year follow‐ups. However, a slight, but significant reduction of scores was observed between 2 and 5 years. Concerning the MRI assessment, a significant reduction of the scaffold’s volume was observed between 1 and 5 years. Genovese Morphology classification at 5 years included two complete resorptions (Type 3) and all the remaining patients had irregular morphology (Type 2). With regard to the Genovese Signal at the 5‐year follow‐up, three were classified as markedly hyperintense (Type 1), 15 as slightly hyperintense (Type 2), and two as isointense (Type 1). Conclusion Simultaneous ACL reconstruction and partial meniscus replacement using a polyurethane scaffold provides favourable clinical outcomes in the treatment of symptomatic patients with previously failed ACL reconstruction and partial medial meniscectomy at 5 years. However, MRI evaluation suggests that integration of the scaffold is not consistent. Level of evidence Level IV.

Pereira, Hélder↗
NASA NTRS1983

Silicon Sheet Quality is Improved By Meniscus Control

Better quality silicon crystals for solar cells are possible with instrument that monitors position of meniscus as sheet of solid silicon is drawn from melt. Using information on meniscus height, instrument generates feedback signal to control melt temperature. Automatic control ensures more uniform silicon sheets.

Yates, D. A.↗
DOE OSTI2021

Meniscus Guided Coating and Evaporative Crystallization of UiO-66 Metal Organic Framework Thin Films

Thin-film fabrication of metal organic frameworks (MOFs) has been explored for a range of applications, including separations, catalysis, sensing, and charge transport. However, many fabrication techniques have obstacles, including slow crystallization, control over film thickness, and control over crystallinity. Recently, a meniscus-guided coating technique, called solution shearing, has been shown to create MOF thin films within minutes and with control over the film thickness. However, there have been no previous reports of solution shearing based evaporative crystallization of zirconium-based MOFs, which have been widely studied for the aforementioned applications. In this work, for the first time, we show that (i) the zirconium 1,4-dicarboxybenzene MOF, UiO-66, can be formed using evaporative crystallization during solution shearing, and (ii) a wide range of parameters can be tuned to control the film thickness, coverage, and crystallinity. Finally, we bring the solution shearing technique closer to separation applications by growing a full film of UiO-66 crystals up to the resolution of scanning electron microscopy (SEM) on anodic alumina oxide (AAO). This is the first instance of UiO-66 crystals being formed using an evaporative crystallization-based flow coating method, and solution shearing shows the promise to be applicable to form large area zirconium-based MOF crystals in a rapid manner (within seconds to minutes).

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2021

Probing Molecular Assembly of Small Organic Molecules during Meniscus-Guided Coating Using Experimental and Molecular Dynamics Approaches

Evaporation-based thin-film coating processes are ubiquitous in fields such as organic electronics, dye coatings, and the pharmaceutical industry. Based on experimental observations of enhanced thin-film alignment during meniscus-guided coating (MGC), a molecular dynamics simulation was developed to describe the thin-film formation that occurs due to the interplay between evaporation and fluid dynamics. The process of solvent evaporation from solution is first examined, which leads to the formation of a solid thin film after evaporation is complete. Next, an MGC process was simulated by introducing a flow profile coupled with the evaporative system. In this work, we gain insights into how molecules respond and reorient in the presence of a flow profile. These results indicate that both the evaporation and the flow profile have an impact on orienting small molecules in a thin film during the MCG process. Combining experimental techniques with simulations helps enhance the understanding of the forces that are significant in directing molecular aggregation during coating processes.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
NASA NTRS1983

Meniscus Imaging for Crystal-Growth Control

Silicon crystal growth monitored by new video system reduces operator stress and improves conditions for observation and control of growing process. System optics produce greater magnification vertically than horizontally, so entire meniscus and melt is viewed with high resolution in both width and height dimensions.

Sachs, E. M.↗
NASA NTRS1983

Gas-Jet Meniscus Control in Ribbon Growth

Gas jet used to control shape of meniscus and thus to regulate ribbon thickness in vertical silicon-ribbon growth. Gas jet also cools ribbon, increasing maximum possible pull speed for silicon, contact angle of 11 degrees plus or minus 1 degree required for constant thickness ribbon growth. Cooling effect of gas jet increases maximum possible pull speed.

Zoutendyk, J. A.↗
NASA NTRS1983

Studies of the Inverted Meniscus Deposition of Silicon on Ceramic

Controlled temperature profiles essential to production of solar cells. Studies of inverted meniscus process for depositing silicon coatings on ceramic substrates described in new report. When fully developed, processed used to manufacture low-cost solar photovoltaic cells.

Zook, J. D.↗
NASA NTRS1985

Analysis of high-speed growth of silicon sheet in inclined-meniscus configuration

The study of high speed growth of silicon sheet in inclined-meniscus configurations is discussed. It was concluded that the maximum growth rates in vertical and inclined growth are set by thermal-capillary limits. Also, the melt/crystal interface was determined to be flat. And, vertical growth is qualitatively modelled by one dimensional heat transfer.

Thomas, P. D.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Thermocapillary flow about an evaporating meniscus

The steady motion and thermal behavior of an evaporating superheated liquid in a small cavity bounded by isothermal sidewalls is examined. Scaling analyses and a two-dimensional finite element model are used to investigate the influence of thermocapillarity, buoyancy, and temperature-dependent mass flux on flowfield, interfacial heat transfer, and meniscus morphology. Numerical investigations indicate the existence of two counter-rotating cells symmetric about the cavity center. Results also show that evaporation tends to counteract this circulation by directing flow toward the hotter sidewalls. Although thermocapillarity and evaporation yield different flowfield distributions, both effects tend to increase interfacial temperature and heat transfer.

Schmidt, G. R.↗