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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 253 records · Page 14
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1990

Microwave characterization of high-temperature superconducting thin films using stripline resonators

A method was derived for the extraction of the surface resistivity (Rs) of high-Tc superconducting (HTS) thin films at microwave frequencies, using a stripline resonator circuit. Surface resistivity values were calculated by measuring the difference in Q-values of a stripline resonator configuration when an HTS thin film was substituted for one of the metallic ground planes. Cryogenic tests were completed for several stripline resonator structures, yielding accurate predictions of the HTS thin-film performance at frequencies between 3 and 26 GHz (in harmonics of approximately 3 GHz). These results were then used to illustrate the dependence of HTS surface resistivity on frequency and temperature in the microwave frequency band.

Macdonald, Alan D.↗
NASA NTRS1954

A flow calorimeter for determining combustion efficiency from residual enthalpy of exhaust gases

A flow calorimeter for determining the combustion efficiency of turbojet and ram-jet combustors from measurement of the residual enthalpy of combustion of the exhaust gas is described. Briefly, the calorimeter catalytically oxidizes the combustible constituents of exhaust-gas samples, and the resultant temperature rise is measured. This temperature rise is related to the residual enthalpy of combustion of the sample by previous calibration of the calorimeter. Combustion efficiency can be calculated from a knowledge of the residual enthalpy of the exhaust gas and the combustor input enthalpy. An accuracy of +-0.2 Btu per cubic foot was obtained with prepared fuel-air mixtures, and the combustion efficiencies of single turbojet combustors measured by both the flow-calorimeter and heat-balance methods compared within 3 percentage units. Flow calorimetry appears to be a suitable method for determining combustion efficiencies at high combustor temperatures where ordinary thermocouples cannot be used. The method is fundamentally more accurate than heat-balance methods at high combustion efficiencies and can be used to verify near-100-percent efficiency data.

Evans, Albert↗
NASA NTRS1980

A new method of efficient heat transfer and storage at very high temperatures

A unique, high temperature (1000-2000 K) continuously operating capacitive heat exchanger system is described. The system transfers heat from a combustion or solar furnace to a working gas by means of a circulating high temperature molten refractory. A uniform aggregate of beads of a glass-like refractory is injected into the furnace volume. The aggregate is melted and piped to a heat exchanger where it is sprayed through a counter-flowing, high pressure working gas. The refractory droplets transfer their heat to the gas, undergoing a phase change into the solid bead state. The resulting high temperature gas is used to drive a suitable high efficiency heat engine. The solidified refractory beads are delivered back to the furnace and melted to continue the cycle. This approach avoids the important temperature limitations of conventional tube-type heat exchangers, giving rise to the potential of converting heat energy into useful work at considerably higher efficiencies than currently attainable and of storing energy at high thermodynamic potential.

Shaw, D.↗
NASA NTRS2013

High Energy, Low Temperature Gelled Bi-propellant Formulation Preparation Method

A method for preparing a gelled liquid propane (GLP) composition comprises the introduction of liquid propane into an evacuated mixing vessel containing a gellant and mixing the liquid propane with the gellant. A bi-propellant system comprising GLP is particularly well-suited for outer planet missions greater than 3 AU from the sun and also functions in earth and near earth environments. Additives such as powders of boron, carbon, lithium, and/or aluminum can be added improve performance or enhance hypergolicity. The gelling agent can be silicon dioxide, clay, carbon, or organic or inorganic polymers. The bi-propellant system may be, but need not be, hypergolic.

DiSalvo, Roberto↗
DOE OSTI2020

Radiant boiler for pressurized oxy-combustion and method of radiant trapping to control heat flux in high temperature particle-laden flows at elevated pressure

A boiler has a shell surrounding a vertical centerline. The shell defines an inner surface having an inner diameter and an inner length extending between an upper upstream end and a lower downstream end. The inner surface defines a hollow interior, the boiler having a pre-combustion zone, a combustion zone downstream from the pre-combustion zone, and a post-combustion zone downstream from the combustion zone. The shell is tapered outward along its length in at least a portion of the combustion zone. An oxidizer inlet is in fluid communication with the pre-combustion zone, and a fuel nozzle introduces fuel into the combustion zone. A tube assembly is mounted in the hollow interior of the shell for transferring heat to fluid flowing through the tube assembly. A flue duct is in fluid communication with the post-combustion zone for transporting flue gases from the hollow interior.

20 FOSSIL-FUELED POWER PLANTS↗
DOE OSTI2022

High-temperature, irradiation-resistant thermocouple, coaxial thermocouple, and related methods

A coaxial thermocouple includes a wire, an insulation layer surrounding the wire, a sheath surrounding the insulation layer, and an electrical junction formed between the wire and the sheath and at one longitudinal end of the coaxial thermocouple, the electrical junction including a swaged end with an outer diameter of the sheath reducing in diameter along a longitudinal length of the coaxial thermocouple until the sheath contacts the wire within the insulation layer. The wire includes a first material and the sheath includes a second material where the first material includes one of molybdenum (Mo) or niobium (Nb) and the second material includes the other of molybdenum (Mo) or niobium (Nb).

Skifton, Richard S.↗
DOE OSTI2023

Radial particle-based terrestrial thermocline for high temperature thermal storage

A system or method for thermal storage includes a recess or containment unit having a first storage layer and a second storage layer comprising a permeable filler material. An intermediate layer is disposed between the storage layers. A primary well traverses the layer in the recess. The primary well is in thermal communication with the first permeable filler material and the second permeable filler material. A heat source is provided for heating an inlet fluid. An input pump is in fluid communication with the primary well and the heat source. The primary well receives heated inlet fluid from the inlet pump and injects the fluid into the second layers. The heated inlet fluid transfers heat to the respective permeable filler material radially from the primary well toward an outer periphery of the thermocline recess.

Ho, Clifford K.↗
DOE OSTI2021

Online Monitoring System for Concrete Structures Affected by Alkali-Silica Reaction

This report presents a comprehensive study of developing ultrasonic wave and acoustic emission (AE) techniques for long-term monitoring of alkali-silica reaction (ASR) development in concrete. Small, medium, and full-scale concrete specimens were cast, conditioned, and monitored for various periods, from at least one year to 2.4 years. The reactive concrete specimens contain coarse or fine reactive aggregates to study the effects of different types of reactive aggregates. Confinements were also designed to simulate the 2-dimensional confinement effects of reinforcement in the shield building of nuclear power plants. The concrete specimens were stored in a environmental chamber with high humidity and high temperature to accelerate the ASR development. The ultrasonic monitoring data shows high sensitivity to ASR development and could detect cracking initiation well before visible surface cracks occurred. However, the linear ultrasonic analysis based on wave velocity is strongly affected by temperature variation. Therefore, a nonlinear ultrasonic method was proposed to measure thermally induced nonlinear acoustic responses of concrete (thermal modulation of ultrasonic wave). The measured nonlinear acoustic parameter shows a high correlation with ASR expansion across specimens with different reactive aggregates and confinement conditions. The same conclusion was obtained from nonlinear resonance tests on small concrete prisms. Compared to the linear acoustic methods, the nonlinear tests show high sensitivities to ASR damage from internal microcracking initiation at the early stage to visible cracks at the late stage of ASR. The attributes of the thermal modulation of nonlinear ultrasonic method include high sensitivity, immunity to temperature effects, and strong correlation with ASR expansion, which demonstrate great potentials of the nonlinear ultrasonic method for diagnosis of ASR damage and prediction of concrete deterioration process. Acoustic emission is a passive sensing technique for damage assessment, and access to only one surface is needed even for thick and heavily reinforced elements such as the walls utilized for nuclear shield building. Additionally, relatively few sensors are required to monitor the progression of the damage process. Results indicate that the AE data can be related to the damage rating index, which is a petrography-based means of assessing damage due to ASR in reinforced concrete. Furthermore, AE is capable of detecting ASR damage long before surface cracking is visually noticeable. Boundary conditions play in important role in the progression of ASR damage and differences in boundary conditions are reflected in the AE data. Entropy based data assessment methods provide a means to assess the damage state, and convolutional neural network based data assessment provided a means to assess the damage state in real-time. Results indicate that artificial neural network models may be used as a means to predict volumetric expansion based on AE data.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
NASA NTRS2006

Analytical, Numerical, and Experimental Investigation on a Non-Contact Method for the Measurements of Creep Properties of Ultra-High-Temperature Materials

Responsive access to space requires re-use of components such as rocket nozzles that operate at extremely high temperatures. For such applications, new ultra-hightemperature materials that can operate over 2,000 C are required. At the temperatures higher than the fifty percent of the melting temperature, the characterization of creep properties is indispensable. Since conventional methods for the measurement of creep is limited below 1,700 C, a new technique that can be applied at higher temperatures is strongly demanded. This research develops a non-contact method for the measurement of creep at the temperatures over 2,300 C. Using the electrostatic levitator in NASA MSFC, a spherical sample was rotated to cause creep deformation by centrifugal acceleration. The deforming sample was captured with a digital camera and analyzed to measure creep deformation. Numerical and analytical analyses have also been conducted to compare the experimental results. Analytical, numerical, and experimental results showed a good agreement with one another.

Lee, Jonghyun↗
DOE OSTI2023

Stability of refractory materials in high temperature steam

The present invention relates, in part, to a discovery of a method for using atomic layer deposition (ALD) to improve the stability of refractory materials in high temperature steam, and compositions produced by the method.

Weimer, Alan W.↗
DOE OSTI2020

Low-temperature synthesis process of making MgzMxOy, where M is Mn, V or Fe, for manufacture of electrode materials for group II cation-based batteries

Preparation, characterization, and an electrochemical study of Mg 0.1 V 2 O 5 prepared by a novel sol-gel method with no high-temperature post-processing are disclosed. Cyclic voltammetry showed the material to be quasi-reversible, with improved kinetics in an acetonitrile-, relative to a carbonate-, based electrolyte. Galvanostatic test data under a C/10 discharge showed a delivered capacity >250 mAh/g over several cycles. Based on these results, a magnesium anode battery, as disclosed, would yield an average operating voltage ˜3.2 Volts with an energy density ˜800 mWh/g for the cathode material, making the newly synthesized material a viable cathode material for secondary magnesium batteries.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
NASA NTRS1990

Application of thermal life prediction model to high-temperature aerospace alloys B1900+Hf and Haynes 188

The results of the application of a newly proposed thermomechanical fatigue (TMF) life prediction method to a series of laboratory TMF results on two high-temperature aerospace engine alloys are presented. The method, referred to as TMF/TS-SRP, is based on three relatively recent developments: the total strain version of the method of Strainrange Partitioning (TS-SRP), the bithermal testing technique for characterizing TMF behavior, and advanced viscoplastic constitutive models. The high-temperature data reported in a companion publication are used to evaluate the constants in the model and to provide the TMF verification data to check its accuracy. Predicted lives are in agreement with the experimental lives to within a factor of approximately 2.

Halford, Gary R.↗
DOE OSTI2023

Citizen and machine learning-aided high-resolution mapping of urban heat exposure and stress

Abstract Through conversion of land cover to more built-up, impervious surfaces, cities create hotter environments than their surroundings for urban residents, with large differences expected between different parts of the city. Existing measurements of ambient air temperature and heat stress, however, are often insufficient to capture the intra-urban variability in heat exposure. This study provides a replicable method for modeling air temperature, humidity, and moist heat stress over the urban area of Chapel Hill while engaging citizens to collect high-temporal and spatially-resolved air temperature and humidity measurements. We use low-cost, consumer-grade sensors combined with satellite remote sensing data and machine learning to map urban air temperature and relative humidity over various land-cover classes to understand intra-urban spatial variability of ambient heat exposure at a relatively high resolution (10 m). Our findings show that individuals may be exposed to higher levels of air temperature and moist heat stress than weather station data suggest, and that the ambient heat exposure varies according to land cover type, with tree-covered land the coolest and built-up areas the warmest, and time of day, with higher air temperatures observed during the early afternoon. Combining our resulting dataset with sociodemographic data, policymakers and urban planners in Chapel Hill can use data output from this method to identify areas exposed to high temperature and moist heat stress as a first step to design effective mitigation measures.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS1992

Application of a thermal fatigue life prediction model to high-temperature aerospace alloys B1900 + Hf and Haynes 188

The results of the application of a newly proposed thermomechanical fatigue (TMF) life prediction method to a series of laboratory TMF results on two high-temperature aerospace engine alloys are presented. The method, referred to as TMF/TS-SRP, is based on three relatively recent developments: the total strain version of the method of Strain Range Partitioning (TS-SRP), the bithermal testing technique for characterizing TMF behavior, and advanced viscoplastic constitutive models. The high-temperature data reported in a companion publication are used to evaluate the constants in the model and to provide the TMF verification data to check its accuracy. Predicted lives are in agreement with the experimental lives to within a factor of approximately 2.

Halford, G. R.↗
DOE OSTI2024

Equilibrium core modeling of a pebble bed reactor similar to the Xe-100 with SCALE

As the nuclear industry moves towards licensing and constructing advanced reactors, new attention has been focused on the advanced reactor designs that have past operational experience, such as pebble-bed high-temperature gas-cooled reactors (PB-HTGRs). Pebble-bed reactor designs have many advantages, such as their higher operating temperatures and online refueling capabilities. However, high-fidelity computational modeling of pebble-bed reactor designs, from reactor startup to operation at equilibrium, is more challenging compared to conventionally fueled reactors due to the continuous movement of the fuel pebbles through the reactor during operation. In previous work at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), the SCALE Leap-In method for Cores at Equilibrium (SLICE) was developed around tools within the SCALE code system. This iterative method can effectively generate pebble-bed reactor zone-wise fuel inventories at equilibrium core operation within a reasonable computational time. The objective of this work was to further verify the ORNL SLICE method and to investigate the impact of considering temperature profiles during the application of the method. The SLICE method was applied to a modular high-temperature gas-cooled reactor design based upon publicly available design specifications of the Xe-100 pebble-bed reactor. Upon comparing the results from the SLICE method to published literature, the differences in the eigenvalue k effective were on the order of several hundred pcm (percent millirho). To investigate one possible cause of these differences, a study looking at the sensitivity of the full-core equilibrium k effective and discharge nuclide inventory to temperature was performed by developing equilibrium cores of two additional temperature profiles. From this temperature study, differences on the order of hundreds of pcm for the full-core equilibrium k effective , and up to 15% difference for the discharge inventories were found. In conclusion, these results indicated the strong dependence on temperature that needs to be considered for future work in equilibrium modeling of PB-HTGRs.

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗
NASA NTRS1982

Rapid solidification processing

Rapid solidification in materials was studied. Crystalline and noncrystalline metals, polymers, ceramics, solidification mechanism and resulting structure, innovative processing techniques, properties and applications are investigated. The following programs are outlined: alloys which offer high strength at elevated temperatures, and processing methods necessary to achieve these goals; structure and structure property relations in ferrous alloys; Corrosion related aspects and high temperature oxidation resistance of fine grained alloys; relation of solidification theory to structures produced, on innovative processes for rapid solidification, and on solidification at high undercoolings. Studies on rapid solidification of polymeric materials are demonstrated.

Source record↗
DOE OSTI2025

A Method for Rapid and Precise Triple Oxygen Isotope Measurements via High-Temperature Conversion to CO Followed by Nickel-Catalyzed CO to CO 2 Conversion and Laser Spectroscopy

Triple oxygen isotopic compositions ( 16 O, 17 O, 18 O) have conventionally been measured via isotope ratio mass spectrometry using O 2 as an analyte. Conversion of sample oxygen to O 2 typically utilizes fluorination chemistry or catalytic equilibration between CO 2 and O 2 . Recently, laser spectroscopy has become a viable alternative for triple oxygen isotope (Δ' 17 O) measurements due to its ease and rapid throughput. Laser spectrometers are currently available for Δ' 17 O analysis of either H 2 O or CO 2 as the analyte gas. So far, these instruments have been used to measure Δ' 17 O of water, carbonate (CO 2 liberated by acid digestion), and atmospheric CO 2 samples. Here, we present a new method for high-precision Δ' 17 O analysis of CO 2 via tunable infrared laser direct absorption spectroscopy that is compatible with a wider range of geochemically important materials. This approach involves converting sample oxygen to CO 2 in two steps. First, the sample oxygen is liberated and reduced to CO by high-temperature conversion at 1450 °C in the presence of excess elemental carbon. Then, CO is catalytically converted to CO 2 over hot nickel at 350 °C. The conversion process is rapid (10 to 30 min) and quantitative. Spectroscopic Δ' 17 O analysis of the resulting CO 2 takes approximately 45 min. By measuring several oxygen isotope standards, we demonstrate that the method is precise (1σ = 12 per meg for procedural replicates) and accurate (within 11 per meg of previously reported values). The method can be applied to most pyrolytic materials where quantitative oxygen conversion is attainable, such as sulfate, phosphate, nitrate, and oxide minerals, water, and organic molecules.

Ellis, Nicholas M. [University of California, Berk↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Predicting Char Yield of High-Temperature Resins

A simulation technique has been developed for predicting the char yield of organic resins during high-temperature processing. In silico methods can aid in the screening of new advanced materials for a number of important properties, but no chemistry-sensitive protocol currently exists for predicting the important experimental value of char yield. The proposed method utilizes a reactive force field (ReaxFF) to model the chemical transformation of precursor monomers into carbonized structures during three processing stages: ramp-up to pyrolysis temperatures (~3000 K), pyrolysis, and quenching. Achieving good agreement with experimental char yields requires continuous removal of small by-product molecules to mimic outgassing, and the application of high pressure to encourage the formation of a dense, glassy network. Six different resin chemistries were investigated: an ethynyl, a phenylethynyl, a cyanate ester, a phthalonitrile, acrylonitrile, and adamantane. These candidates represent a diverse group of precursors with respect to initial cyclic content, presence of heteroatoms, and types of reactive groups. The protocol developed accurately predicts the relative char yield between the investigated chemistries and provides quantitative agreement with experimental values, especially for high char yield resins. Several simulated properties of the carbonized structures are compared with experimental results, including outgassing products, morphology of the final chemical configurations, cyclic content, and mechanical properties.

polymer simulations, molecular dynamics↗