Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “stabilization”

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.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 235 records · Page 13
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2019

Equation of state and strain-induced stabilization of δ-phase stabilized plutonium alloys

An in-situ high-pressure neutron diffraction experiment was conducted on a δ-phase stabilized plutonium alloy with isotope 242 Pu. Upon room-temperature compression, neither of the previously reported pressure-induced transformation paths, δ → α' or δ → γ’ → α', was observed up to 1.2 GPa. Instead, a drastic reduction in the diffraction intensity of the δ phase was observed when the pressure was above 0.8 GPa. At the highest pressure of the experiment (1.2 GPa), the diffraction data appear to be characteristic of an amorphous state, manifested by the diminishing intensities of all diffraction lines. Additionally, no evidence was found to support the transformation to a body-centered tetragonal structure (δ’), which was previously inferred from the diffraction line broadening during initial compression to 0.1 GPa. The discrepancies between the present and previous experiments suggest a substantial strain-induced stabilization of the δ-phase and is presumably attributed to the different stress states in the high-pressure environments. From the pressure - volume measurements, the determined isothermal bulk modulus for the δ-phase is in the range of 31.9 ± 1.3–34.8 ± 1.8 GPa using different pressure scales, comparable to those obtained from the resonant ultrasound spectroscopy measurements of the alloys of similar composition. Finally, the pressure-induced elastic softening is neither convinced in the present work, nor can it be resolved from the diffraction experiments if it is intrinsically weak.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2015

Flexible all-carbon photovoltaics with improved thermal stability

The structurally robust nature of nanocarbon allotropes, e.g., semiconducting single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) and C{sub 60}s, makes them tantalizing candidates for thermally stable and mechanically flexible photovoltaic applications. However, C{sub 60}s rapidly dissociate away from the basal of SWCNTs under thermal stimuli as a result of weak intermolecular forces that “lock up” the binary assemblies. Here, we explore use of graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) as geometrically tailored protecting layers to suppress the unwanted dissociation of C{sub 60}s. The underlying mechanisms are explained using a combination of molecular dynamics simulations and transition state theory, revealing the temperature dependent disassociation of C{sub 60}s from the SWCNT basal plane. Our strategy provides fundamental guidelines for integrating all-carbon based nano-p/n junctions with optimized structural and thermal stability. External quantum efficiency and output current–voltage characteristics are used to experimentally quantify the effectiveness of GNR membranes under high temperature annealing. Further, the resulting C{sub 60}:SWCNT:GNR ternary composites display excellent mechanical stability, even after iterative bending tests. - Graphical abstract: The incorporation of solvent resistant, mechanically flexible and electrically addressable 2-D soft graphene nanoribbons facilitates the assembly of photoconductive carbon nano-p/n junctions for thermally stable and flexible photovoltaic cells.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2021

Mesoscale-architecture-based crack evolution dictating cycling stability of advanced lithium ion batteries

The cracking phenomenon of Ni-rich NMC (LiNixMnyCo1-x-yO2, x = 0.6) secondary particles is frequently discovered and believed to be one of critical reasons deteriorating the long-term cycling stability of NMC cathode in lithium ion batteries (LIBs). However, the initiation and evolution of those cracks is still controversial due to the limited quantification especially by in situ monitoring, leading to the challenge of identifying an efficient approach to inhibit the formation of the fractures during repeated cycling. Herein, the irreversible, anisotropic cycling lattice and mesoscale expansion/shrinkage of nano-grain during the first cycle, as revealed by in situ X-ray diffraction (XRD) and in situ atomic force microscopy (AFM), have been quantified and confirmed to be the dominant driving forces of microcracks initiation at the grain boundaries. These microcracks preferentially nucleates at the core region with random oriented nano-grains in early stage. The further growth and aggregation of microcracks into macrocrack eventually results in microfracture propagation radially outward to the periphery region with more uniform nano-grain orientation. This mesoscale nano-grain architecture controlled cracking process highlight the importance of predictive synthesis of cathode materials with controllable multiscale crystalline architecture for high-performance LIBs.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
DOE OSTI2016

High thermal stability of La 2 O 3 and CeO 2 -stabilized tetragonal ZrO 2

Catalyst support materials of tetragonal ZrO 2 , stabilized by either La 2 O 3 (La 2 O 3 -ZrO 2 ) or CeO 2 (CeO 2 -ZrO 2 ), were synthesized under hydrothermal conditions at 200 °C with NH 4 OH or tetramethylammonium hydroxide as the mineralizer. From In Situ synchrotron powder X-ray diffraction and small-angle X-ray scattering measurements, the calcined La 2 O 3 -ZrO 2 and CeO 2 -ZrO 2 supports were nonporous nanocrystallites that exhibited rectangular shapes with thermal stability up to 1000 °C in air. These supports had an average size of ~10 nm and a surface area of 59-97 m 2 /g. The catalysts Pt/La 2 O 3 -ZrO 2 and Pt/CeO 2 -ZrO 2 were prepared by using atomic layer deposition with varying Pt loadings from 6.3-12.4 wt %. Mono-dispersed Pt nanoparticles of ~3 nm were obtained for these catalysts. As a result, the incorporation of La 2 O 3 and CeO 2 into the t-ZrO 2 structure did not affect the nature of the active sites for the Pt/ZrO 2 catalysts for the water-gas-shift (WGS) reaction.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2017

Thermal Stability of Metal Nanocrystals: An Investigation of the Surface and Bulk Reconstructions of Pd Concave Icosahedra [On the Thermal Stability of Metal Nanocrystals: An Investigation of the Surface and Bulk Reconstructions of Pd Concave Icosahedra]

Despite the remarkable success in controlling the synthesis of metal nanocrystals, it still remains a grand challenge to stabilize and preserve the shapes or internal structures of metastable kinetic products. In this work, we address this issue by systematically investigating the surface and bulk reconstructions experienced by a Pd concave icosahedron when subjected to heating up to 600 °C in vacuum. We used in situ high-resolution transmission electron microscopy to identify the equilibration pathways of this far-from-equilibrium structure. We were able to capture key structural transformations occurring during the thermal annealing process, which were mechanistically rationalized by implementing self-consistent plane-wave density functional theory (DFT) calculations. Specifically, the concave icosahedron was found to evolve into a regular icosahedron via surface reconstruction in the range of 200–400 °C, and then transform into a pseudospherical crystalline structure through bulk reconstruction when further heated to 600 °C. As a result, the mechanistic understanding may lead to the development of strategies for enhancing the thermal stability of metal nanocrystals.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2021

Robust, High-Performing Maize–Perovskite-Based Solar Cells with Improved Stability

Herein, we focus on improving the long-term chemical and thermomechan-ical stability of perovskite solar cells (PSCs), two major challenges currently limiting their commercial deployment. Our strategy incorporates a long-chain starch polymer into the perovskite precursor. The starch polymer confers multiple beneficial effects by forming hydrogen bonds with the methylammonium iodide precursor, templating perovskite growth that results in a compact and homogeneous film deposited in a simple one-step coating (antisolvent-free). The inclusion of starch in the methylammonium lead iodide films strongly improves their thermomechanical and environmental stability while maintaining a high photovoltaic performance. The fracture energy (G c ) of the film is increased to above 5 J/m 2 by creating a nanocomposite that provides intrinsic reinforcement at grain boundaries. Additionally, improved optoelectronic properties achieved with the starch polymer enable good photostability of the active layer and enhanced resistance to thermal cycling.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2022

Ce x Zr 1– x O 2 -Supported CrO x Catalysts for CO 2 -Assisted Oxidative Dehydrogenation of Propane–Probing the Active Sites and Strategies for Enhanced Stability

CO 2 -assisted oxidative dehydrogenation of propane (CO 2 -ODH) represents an attractive approach for propylene production and CO 2 utilization. As a soft oxidant, CO 2 can minimize overoxidation of the hydrocarbons to enhance the propylene selectivity while increasing the equilibrium yield. However, a major challenge of CO 2 -ODH is the rapid deactivation of the catalysts. The current study focuses on designing Ce x Zr 1–x O 2 -mixed oxide-supported CrO x catalysts for CO 2 -ODH with enhanced product selectivity and catalyst stability. By doping 0–30% Ce in the Ce x Zr 1–x O 2 mixed oxide support, propane conversion of 53–79% was achieved at 600 °C, with propylene selectivity up to 82%. Compared to the pure ZrO 2 -supported catalyst (i.e., 5 wt %Cr/ZrO 2 ), 20–30 %Ce doped catalysts (i.e., 5 wt %Cr/Ce 0.2 Zr 0.8 O 2 and 5 wt %Cr/Ce 0.3 Zr 0.7 O 2 ) inhibited the formation of CH 4 and ethylene and improved propylene selectivity from 57 to 77–82%. Detailed characterizations of the 5%Cr/Ce 0.2 Zr 0.8 O 2 catalyst and density functional theory (DFT) calculations indicated that Cr 3+ is the active species during the CO 2 -ODH reaction, and the reaction follows a non-redox dehydrogenation pathway. Coke formation was determined to be the primary reason for catalyst deactivation, and the addition of Ce to the ZrO 2 support greatly enhanced the coke resistance, leading to superior stability. Furthermore, coke removal by oxidizing the catalyst in air is effective in restoring its activity.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2015

Ternary superlattice boosting interface-stabilized magnetic chirality

In cobalt-nickel multilayers grown on iridium surfaces, magnetic homo-chirality can be stabilized by Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interactions (DMI) at the interface with the substrate. When thickness of the multilayers is increased beyond threshold values, then non-chiral bulk properties exceed interface contributions and this type of chirality vanishes. Here, we use spin-polarized low energy electron microscopy to measure these thickness thresholds, and we determine estimates of the strength of the DMI from the measurements. Even though the same 5d heavy metal is used as a substrate, a remarkably large variation is found between the two 3d magnets: our results indicate that the strength of the DMI at Co/Ir interfaces is three times larger than at Ni/Ir interfaces. We show how this finding provides ways to extend interfacial-DMI stabilization of domain wall chirality to 3d/5d/3d ternary multilayers such as [Ni/Ir/Co]{sub n}. Such strategies may extend chirality-control to larger film thickness and a wider range of substrates, which may be useful for designing new spintronics devices.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

H-treatment impact on conductive-filament formation and stability in Ta{sub 2}O{sub 5}-based resistive-switching memory cells

In this article, we evidence the lower formation energy and improved stability of the conductive filament (CF) formed in TiN\Ta{sub 2}O{sub 5}\Ta resistive-switching memory cells treated in NH{sub 3} atmosphere at 400 °C. This annealing treatment results in (i) lower forming voltage, (ii) lower CF resistance, and (iii) longer retention lifetime of the oxygen-vacancy (V{sub o}) chain constituting the CF. Atomistic insights into these processes are provided by ab initio calculations performed for hydrogen (H) species incorporated in non-stoichiometric Ta{sub 2}O{sub 5} supercells: (i) V{sub o} formation energy is reduced by the presence of H, (ii) V{sub o}-chain CF conductivity is increased by V{sub o} + OH complex formation, and (iii) V{sub o}-chain retention is strengthened by the stable V{sub o} + OH complex. As a result, efficient CF formation and excellent state stability are obtained after 15 days at 250 °C.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2015

Synergistic stabilization of metastable Fe{sub 23}B{sub 6} and γ-Fe in undercooled Fe{sub 83}B{sub 17}

Previous investigations of undercooled liquid Fe{sub 83}B{sub 17} near the eutectic composition have found that metastable crystalline phases, such as Fe{sub 23}B{sub 6}, can be formed and persist down to ambient temperature even for rather modest cooling rates. Using time-resolved high-energy x-ray diffraction on electrostatically levitated samples of Fe{sub 83}B{sub 17}, we demonstrate that the Fe{sub 23}B{sub 6} metastable phase and fcc γ-Fe grow coherently from the undercooled Fe{sub 83}B{sub 17} liquid and effectively suppress the formation of the equilibrium Fe{sub 2}B + bcc α-Fe phases. The stabilization of γ-Fe offers another opportunity for experimental investigations of magnetism in metastable fcc iron.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2015

Interface and thickness dependent domain switching and stability in Mg doped lithium niobate

Controlling ferroelectric switching in Mg doped lithium niobate (Mg:LN) is of fundamental importance for optical device and domain wall electronics applications that require precise domain patterns. Stable ferroelectric switching has been previously observed in undoped LN layers above proton exchanged (PE) phases that exhibit reduced polarization, whereas PE layers have been found to inhibit lateral domain growth. Here, Mg doping, which is known to significantly alter ferroelectric switching properties including coercive field and switching currents, is shown to inhibit domain nucleation and stability in Mg:LN above buried PE phases that allow for precise ferroelectric patterning via domain growth control. Furthermore, piezoresponse force microscopy (PFM) and switching spectroscopy PFM reveal that the voltage at which polarization switches from the “up” to the “down” state increases with increasing thickness in pure Mg:LN, whereas the voltage required for stable back switching to the original “up” state does not exhibit this thickness dependence. This behavior is consistent with the presence of an internal frozen defect field. The inhibition of domain nucleation above PE interfaces, observed in this study, is a phenomenon that occurs in Mg:LN but not in undoped samples and is mainly ascribed to a remaining frozen polarization in the PE phase that opposes polarization reversal. This reduced frozen depolarization field in the PE phase also influences the depolarization field of the Mg:LN layer above due to the presence of uncompensated polarization charge at the PE-Mg:LN boundary. These alterations in internal electric fields within the sample cause long-range lattice distortions in Mg:LN via electromechanical coupling, which were corroborated with complimentary Raman measurements.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2015

Polymer stabilization of the smectic C-alpha* liquid crystal phase—Over tenfold thermal stabilization by confining networks of photo-polymerized reactive mesogens

The smectic C*-alpha (SmC{sub α}*) phase is one of the sub-phases of ferroelectric liquid crystals that has drawn much interest due to its electro-optical properties and ultrafast switching. Generally observed above the ferroelectric SmC* phase in temperature, the SmC{sub α}* commonly shows only very narrow phase temperature range of a few degree Celsius. To broaden the SmC{sub α}* phase, polymer stabilization was investigated for thermal phase stabilization. Two different reactive monomers were tested in three mixtures, and all three broadened the temperature range of the SmC{sub α}* phase from 3 °C to 39 °C. The current reversal method was used to determine the phase existence versus temperature. Moreover, the texture and network structure was studied by polarized optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy, with the latter revealing the confinement of the smectic layer structure within the porous polymer network.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2019

Non-axisymmetric equilibrium and stability using the ELITE stability code

Linear perturbation theory is used to model the ideal magnetohydrodynamic stability of tokamak equilibria under the application of external 3D magnetic perturbations. We use the ELITE code to produce both a linear plasma response, as well as the linear axisymmetric toroidal eigenmodes which are used as basis functions for the 3D perturbative stability analysis. In this work, the symmetry breaking produces coupling of modes with different toroidal mode number, n, leading to modification of the linear growth rates, and poloidal localisation of the nonaxisymmetric peeling–ballooning mode at sufficiently large applied field.

3D MHD stability↗
DOE OSTI2012

Stability of CIGS Solar Cells and Component Materials Evaluated by a Step-Stress Accelerated Degradation Test Method: Preprint

A step-stress accelerated degradation testing (SSADT) method was employed for the first time to evaluate the stability of CuInGaSe2 (CIGS) solar cells and device component materials in four Al-framed test structures encapsulated with an edge sealant and three kinds of backsheet or moisture barrier film for moisture ingress control. The SSADT exposure used a 15 degrees C and then a 15% relativehumidity (RH) increment step, beginning from 40 degrees C/40%RH (T/RH = 40/40) to 85 degrees C/70%RH (85/70) as of the moment. The voluminous data acquired and processed as of total DH = 3956 h with 85/70 = 704 h produced the following results. The best CIGS solar cells in sample Set-1 with a moisture-permeable TPT backsheet showed essentially identical I-V degradation trend regardless of theAl-doped ZnO (AZO) layer thickness ranging from standard 0.12 um to 0.50 um on the cells. No clear 'stepwise' feature in the I-V parameter degradation curves corresponding to the SSADT T/RH/time profile was observed. Irregularity in I-V performance degradation pattern was observed with some cells showing early degradation at low T/RH < 55/55 and some showing large Voc, FF, and efficiency degradation due to increased series Rs (ohm-cm2) at T/RH = 70/70. Results of (electrochemical) impedance spectroscopy (ECIS) analysis indicate degradation of the CIGS solar cells corresponded to increased series resistance Rs (ohm) and degraded parallel (minority carrier diffusion/recombination) resistance Rp, capacitance C, overall time constant Rp*C, and 'capacitor quality' factor (CPE-P), whic were related to the cells' p-n junction properties. Heating at 85/70 appeared to benefit the CIGS solar cells as indicated by the largely recovered CPE-P factor. Device component materials, Mo on soda lime glass (Mo/SLG), bilayer ZnO (BZO), AlNi grid contact, and CdS/CIGS/Mo/SLG in test structures with TPT showed notable to significant degradation at T/RH = 70/70. At T/RH = 85/70, substantial blistering of BZO layers on CIGS cell pieces was observed that was not seen on BZO/glass, and a CdS/CIGS sample displayed a small darkening and then flaking feature. Additionally, standard AlNi grid contact was less stable than thin Ni grid contact at T/RH = 70/70. The edge sealant and moisture-blocking films were effective to block moisture ingress, as evidenced by the good stability of most CIGS solar cells and device components at T/RH = 85/70 for 704 h, and by preservation of the initial blue color on the RH indicator strips. The SSADT experiment is ongoing to be completed at T/RH = 85/85.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗