Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “attribute measurement”

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 271 records · Page 15
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2023

Novel Earned Value Management System Maturity Framework and Its Relation to Project Performance

Earned value management systems (EVMS) are used by industry practitioners to successfully manage projects and programs; however, there has been no past study to characterize and evaluate the impact of EVMS maturity on project performance. This paper introduces a novel framework, developed to measure the EVMS maturity, composed of 56 attributes arrayed across ten subprocesses, which together make up an integrated project/program management system. This paper describes how the framework was conceived and developed, based on literature review and data collected from industry workshops. Then, it examines the relationship between EVMS maturity and ten project performance metrics through statistical analyses. The study analyzed project data from 35 projects and programs worth over $21.8 billion in total cost. For this sample, results showed statistically significant differences between projects with high and low EVMS maturity; on average, projects exhibiting high EVMS maturity have 54% less cost overruns and 19% less change orders versus their performance measurement baseline. Higher maturity projects and programs also achieve better customer satisfaction, meet business objectives more often, and are more often in compliance with EVMS standards and guidelines. This paper contributes to the body of knowledge by providing a practical and novel framework for assessing the maturity of earned value management systems. Practitioners can use the framework to improve their integrated project and program management.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗
NASA NTRS1993

Comparison of monthly rain rates derived from GPI and SSM/I using probability distribution functions

Three years of monthly rain rates over 5 deg x 5 deg latitude-longitude boxes have been calculated for oceanic regions 50 deg N-50 deg S from measurements taken by the Special Sensor Microwave/Imager on board the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program satellites using the technique developed by Wilheit et al. (1987, 1991). The annual and seasonal zonal-mean rain rates are larger than Jaeger's (1983) climatological estimates but are smaller than those estimated from the GOES precipitation index (GPI) for the same period. Regional comparison with the GPI showed that these rain rates are smaller in the north Indian Ocean and in the southern extratropics where the GPI is known to overestimate. The differences are also dominated by a jump at 170 deg W in the GPI rain rates across the mid-Pacific Ocean. This jump is attributed to the fusion of different satellite measurements in producing the GPI.

Chiu, Long S.↗
DOE OSTI2025

Spurious solar-wind effects on acceleration noise in LISA Pathfinder

Spurious solar-wind effects are a potential noise source in future Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) measurements. One noise coupling mechanism is constrained by estimating solar-wind effects on acceleration noise in LISA Pathfinder (LPF). While LISA is designed for drag-free differential measurement, predicting the realistic impact both bounds the operational environment and assesses whether LISA could provide serendipitous space-weather observations. Data from NASA's Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE), situated at the L1 Lagrange point, serves as a reliable source of solar-wind data. The data sets are compared over the 114 d time period from 1 March 2016 to 23 June 2016. This period gives the longest readily-available open data set, without interference from other commissioning activities. To evaluate space weather effects, the data from both satellites are formatted, gap-filled/interpolated, and fast-Fourier transformed for amplitude spectral density and coherence comparisons. Solar wind effects are not seen in a coherence plot between LPF and ACE; modest coherence in the planned LISA observational frequency band can be attributed to chance. This result indicates that measurable correlation due to solar-wind acceleration noise over 3 month timescales will be a negligible noise source. LISA is unlikely to inform solar wind measurements routinely. Another source of noise from the Sun, solar radiation pressure, is estimated to impart greater acceleration noise, but has yet to be analyzed.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS1973

Electrical screening procedure for solid ionic conductors

An electrical screening method has been developed for preliminary evaluation of polycrystalline specimens of candidates for use as solid ionic conductive electrolytes in batteries. The procedure measures dielectric loss and capacitance, from which are calculated an ac conductivity attributed provisionally to ions and an activation energy for that conductivity. Electronic conductivity is directly measured. The screening procedure applied to sodium beta-alumina yielded acceptable values for conductivity and activation energy.

Kautz, H. E.↗
NASA NTRS2015

Examination of the Measurement of Absorption Using the Reverberant Room Method for Highly Absorptive Acoustic Foam

The absorption coefficient for material specimens are needed to quantify the expected acoustic performance of that material in its actual usage and environment. The ASTM C423-09a standard, "Standard Test Method for Sound Absorption and Sound Absorption Coefficients by the Reverberant Room Method" is often used to measure the absorption coefficient of material test specimens. This method has its basics in the Sabine formula. Although widely used, the interpretation of these measurements are a topic of interest. For example, in certain cases the measured Sabine absorption coefficients are greater than 1.0 for highly absorptive materials. This is often attributed to the diffraction edge effect phenomenon. An investigative test program to measure the absorption properties of highly absorbent melamine foam has been performed at the Riverbank Acoustical Laboratories. This paper will present and discuss the test results relating to the effect of the test materials' surface area, thickness and edge sealing conditions. A follow-on paper is envisioned that will present and discuss the results relating to the spacing between multiple piece specimens, and the mounting condition of the test specimen.

Absorption↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Development of a Knowledge Graph for Dataset Discovery and Identification at a NASA Data Center

The NASA Goddard Earth Sciences Data and Information Services Center (GES DISC) archives and distributes hundreds of Earth Science data collections to the public. These collections are used in research, resulting in the publication of thousands of scientific papers each year. As new users come to GES DISC for data, it is important for them to understand how prior research used the data. To help researchers, a knowledge graph (KG) was designed and implemented to connect publication citations with dataset metadata. The relationships created in the graph have the potential to allow the Web applications that utilize this information to directly connect the publication to the GES DISC datasets and services. These relationships are demonstrated using a web application prototype. In addition, the graph can also make connections between publications, datasets, and measurements based on the mentions of datasets and their attributes in the publications. To demonstrate this capability, a web application was created that takes the excerpt from the publication and returns a most likely dataset and measurement pairing, ranking the results based on how often these datasets and measurements were used in prior publications.

Nathaniel Crosby↗
DOE OSTI2023

Optical anisotropy of CsPbBr3 perovskite nanoplatelets

Abstract The two-dimensional CsPbBr 3 nanoplatelets have a quantum well electronic structure with a band gap tunable with sample thicknesses in discreet steps based upon the number of monolayers. The polarized optical properties of CsPbBr 3 nanoplatelets are studied using fluorescence anisotropy and polarized transient absorption spectroscopies. Polarized spectroscopy shows that they have absorption and emission transitions which are strongly plane-polarized. In particular, photoluminescence excitation and transient absorption measurements reveal a band-edge polarization approaching 0.1, the limit of isotropic two-dimensional ensembles. The degree of anisotropy is found to depend on the thickness of the nanoplatelets: multiple measurements show a progressive decrease in optical anisotropy from 2 to 5 monolayer thick nanoplatelets. In turn, larger cuboidal CsPbBr 3 nanocrystals, are found to have consistently positive anisotropy which may be attributed to symmetry breaking from ideal perovskite cubes. Optical measurements of anisotropy are described with respect to the theoretical framework developed to describe exciton fine structure in these materials. The observed planar absorption and emission are close to predicted values at thinner nanoplatelet sizes and follow the predicted trend in anisotropy with thickness, but with larger anisotropy than theoretical predictions. Dominant planar emission, albeit confined to the thinnest nanoplatelets, is a valuable attribute for enhanced efficiency of light-emitting devices.

77 NANOSCIENCE AND NANOTECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2024

Refining HPCToolkit for application performance analysis at exascale

As part of the US Department of Energy’s Exascale Computing Project (ECP), Rice University has been refining its HPCToolkit performance tools to better support measurement and analysis of applications executing on exascale supercomputers. To efficiently collect performance measurements of GPU-accelerated applications, HPCToolkit employs novel non-blocking data structures to communicate performance measurements between tool threads and application threads. To attribute performance information in detail to source lines, loop nests, and inlined call chains, HPCToolkit performs parallel analysis of large CPU and GPU binaries involved in the execution of an exascale application to rapidly recover mappings between machine instructions and source code. To analyze terabytes of performance measurements gathered during executions at exascale, HPCToolkit employs distributed-memory parallelism, multithreading, sparse data structures, and out-of-core streaming analysis algorithms. To support interactive exploration of profiles up to terabytes in size, HPCToolkit’s hpcviewer graphical user interface uses out-of-core methods to visualize performance data. The result of these efforts is that HPCToolkit now supports collection, analysis, and presentation of profiles and traces of GPU-accelerated applications at exascale. These improvements have enabled HPCToolkit to efficiently measure, analyze and explore terabytes of performance data for executions using as many as 64K MPI ranks and 64K GPU tiles on ORNL’s Frontier supercomputer. HPCToolkit’s support for measurement and analysis of GPU-accelerated applications has been employed to study a collection of open-science applications developed as part of ECP. This paper reports on these experiences, which provided insight into opportunities for tuning applications, strengths and weaknesses of HPCToolkit itself, as well as unexpected behaviors in executions at exascale.

Adhianto, Laksono↗
NASA NTRS1993

Fluorescence measurements of the thermal control experiments coatings on LDEF S0069 and A0114

Fluorescence measurements were made on the thermal control coatings from the Long Duration Experiment Facility (LDEF) S0069, Thermal Control Surfaces Experiment (TCSE); and the A0114, Interaction of Atomic Oxygen with Material Surfaces in Low Earth orbit. Fluorescence was observed in two types of thermal control coatings and is attributed to pigments or binders. In addition, fluorescence measurement on the silver Teflon from the front cover of TCSE led to confirmation of damage (cracking) to the metal layers during application.

Zwiener, J. M.↗
NASA NTRS1989

En route noise test preliminary results

Preliminary results are reported from ground measurements of noise emitted by a full-scale advanced single-rotation turbofan model mounted on the wing of the NASA Lewis Propfan Test Assessment aircraft during test flights in October 1987. The procedures and instruments employed in the test program are described, and the data are presented in tables. The repeatability of the measurements is shown to be good within one test day, with day-to-day variations attributed to cross-wind convection. Fair agreement is found between these measurements and the predictions of ray-tracing models.

Willshire, William L., Jr.↗
DOE OSTI2020

Effects of Asymmetric Molecular Architecture on Chain Stretching and Dynamics in Miktoarm Star Copolymers

We use broad-band dielectric spectroscopy (BDS) and small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) to investigate the impact of architectural asymmetry in the miktoarm star copolymer on the dielectric polymer relaxations. The miktoarm copolymers studied contain one or two polystyrene (PS) chains of constant molecular weight and two identical poly(cis-1,4-isoprene) (PI) chains with varied molecular weights. Using the chains in the PI block as dielectric probes, we find that the architecturally asymmetric miktoarm star copolymer systems (PSPI 2 ) feature distributions in chain relaxation times and dielectric relaxation strengths that are not dependent on molecular weight or morphology, in stark contrast to the effects of morphological confinement observed for symmetric diblock systems (PS-b-PI or PS 2 PI 2 ). Along with evidence from the SAXS measurements regarding phase separation, these results are attributed to influences from chain stretching within the framework of the Gaussian chain model for block copolymer systems. As such, the molecular architecture in block copolymers happens to be a versatile handle to control polymer chain dynamics and, ultimately, the macroscopic physicochemical properties in architecturally complex polymers.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2023

Monolithically Integrated $\varepsilon$-Ge/In x Ga 1-x As Quantum Well Laser Design: Experimental and Theoretical Investigation

Here, we have analyzed the electrical and optical phenomenon occurring in a $\varepsilon$-Ge/In x Ga 1-x -Ge/In x Ga 1-x As quantum well (QW) laser through self-consistent physical solvers calibrated using in-house experimental results. A separate confinement heterostructure QW design is proposed to enable lasing from tensile strained germanium ($\varepsilon$-Ge/In x Ga 1-x -Ge) in the range of 1.55 um to 4 um wavelengths as a function of QW thickness and indium (In) composition. Different recombination mechanisms were analyzed as a function of tensile strain in $\varepsilon$-Ge/In x Ga 1-x -Ge QW. Minority carrier lifetime and band alignment are key attributes of a QW laser, which were measured using microwave photoconductive decay and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (as a function of In composition), respectively. The transition point of Ge to a direct bandgap material is re-affirmed to be at $\varepsilon$-Ge/In x Ga 1-x = 1.6% (In ~24%) and the transition from type I to type II for $\varepsilon$-Ge/In x Ga 1-x -Ge/In x Ga 1-x As QW is found to be at In ~55%. Also, the transition to a TM mode dominant laser is identified at In ~15%. Using a tunable waveguide design to optimize confinement as a function of In composition, strain, wavelength, QW thickness, refractive index, and geometry, the $\varepsilon$-Ge/In x Ga 1-x -Ge QW laser design provided a net material gain of ~2000 cm -1 and a threshold current density of ~5 kA/cm 2 , which is an improvement over existing Ge based lasers. In conclusion, the impact of In composition and QW thickness on the band structure, polarized gain spectra, and various lasing metrics were analyzed to show $\varepsilon$-Ge/In x Ga 1-x -Ge/InGaAs QW lasers as promising for integrated photonics.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2020

Scaling Up Energy Efficiency Investment in Emerging Markets - Private Sector Perspectives

Since 2000, electricity demand has flattened and decoupled from Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries. This trend is anticipated to continue for the next several decades and is largely attributed to the implementation of energy efficiency measures. However, non-OECD countries (emerging markets) have experienced, and are projected to continue experiencing, increasing electricity demands. If the world is to meet the requirements of the Paris Agreement, annual investments in clean energy and energy efficiency need to increase by a factor of six by 2050, compared to 2015. Information presented in this paper is based on qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis methods to provide an empirical understanding of barriers to private sector clean energy investment including microgrid development, energy efficiency, smart grid development, and utility-scale wind and solar in emerging markets. Through literature review, a survey, and a series of webinar dialogues, USAID and the U.S. Department of Energy National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) solicited input from private sector actors, including developers, project financiers, manufacturers and technical assistance service providers, on the challenges they face to market entry in emerging markets, and their suggestions for improving market competitiveness.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2024

Notes on Linear FM Chirp for Radar

One of the most iconic of radar waveforms is the Linear FM chirp. It is well-behaved and well-understood, and has become the gold standard against which other radar waveforms are measured. It has a number of desirable attributes, but is not without some issues. It may be processed by a number of techniques with many variations. Details of the Linear FM chirp are presented and discussed in this report.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2024

Production rate calibration for cosmogenic 10 Be in pyroxene by applying a rapid fusion method to 10 Be-saturated samples from the Transantarctic Mountains, Antarctica

Measurements of multiple cosmogenic nuclides in a single sample are valuable for various applications of cosmogenic nuclide exposure dating and allow for correcting exposure ages for surface weathering and erosion and establishing exposure–burial history. Here we provide advances in the measurement of cosmogenic 10 Be in pyroxene and constraints on the production rate that provide new opportunities for measurements of multi-nuclide systems, such as 10 Be/ 3 He, in pyroxene-bearing samples. We extracted and measured cosmogenic 10 Be in pyroxene from two sets of Ferrar Dolerite samples collected from the Transantarctic Mountains in Antarctica. One set of samples has 10 Be concentrations close to saturation, which allows for the production rate calibration of 10 Be in pyroxene by assuming production–decay equilibrium. The other set of samples, which has a more recent exposure history, is used to determine if a rapid fusion method can be successfully applied to samples with Holocene to Last Glacial Maximum exposure ages. From measured 10 Be concentrations in the near-saturation sample set we find the production rate of 10 Be in pyroxene to be 3.74 ± 0.10 atoms g -1 yr -1 , which is consistent with 10 Be/ 3 He paired nuclide ratios from samples assumed to have simple exposure. Given the high 10 Be concentration measured in this sample set, a sample mass of ~ 0.5 g of pyroxene is sufficient for the extraction of cosmogenic 10 Be from pyroxene using a rapid fusion method. However, for the set of samples that have low 10 Be concentrations, measured concentrations were higher than expected. We attribute spuriously high 10 Be concentrations to failure in removing all meteoric 10 Be and/or a highly variable and poorly quantified procedural blank background correction.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS1976

Cosmic X-ray observations with OSO-8

The GSFC Cosmic X-ray Spectroscopy experiment aboard OSO-8 has operated successfully since launch providing spectral and temporal data on X-ray sources in tha energy range 2-60 keV. Analysis of quick look data shows a variety of spectral features, some stable, others variable, which will increase understanding of the nature of individual sources. In particular, observed emission and absorption features that can be attributed to iron will result in abundance measures of this important element in sources such as some X-ray binaries, the supernova remnant Cas A, and the nucleus of the galaxy Cen A.

Serlemitsos, P. J.↗
NASA NTRS1982

Soybean canopy reflectance as a function of view and illumination geometry

The results of an experiment designed to characterize a soybean field by its reflectance at various view and illumination angles and by its physical and agronomic attributes are presented. Reflectances were calculated from measurements at four wavelength bands through eight view azimuth and seven view zenith directions for various solar zenith and azimuth angles during portions of three days. An ancillary data set consisting of the agronomic and physical characteristics of the soybean field is described. The results indicate that the distribution of reflectance from a soybean field is a function of the solar illumination and viewing geometry, wavelength and row direction, as well as the state of development of the canopy. Shadows between rows greatly affected the reflectance in the visible wavelength bands and to a lesser extent in the near infrared wavelengths. A model is proposed that describes the reflectance variation as a function of projected solar and projected viewing angles. The model appears to approximate the reflectance variations in the visible wavelength bands from a canopy with well defined row structure.

Bauer, M. E.↗
NASA NTRS1985

The superconducting cavity stability ruby maser oscillator

Analysis of an application of the rudy maser to a superconducting Cavity Stabilized oscillator shows many attractive features. These derive from the mechancial stability inherent in an all-cryogenic design and from the properties of the ruby maser itself. A multiple-cavity design has been developed to allow physical separation of the high-Q superconducting cavity and the ruby element with its requried applied magnetic field. Mode selection is accomplished in this design by tuning the ruby by means of the applied field. We conclude that such an oscillator would perform well, even with cavity Q's as low as 10 to the 8th power allowing the use of a superconductor-on-sapphire resonator with its greater rigidity and lower thermal expansion. A first test of the Superconducting Cavity Stabilized Maser Oscillator (SCSMO) confirms the efficacy of the multiple-cavity design and the applicability of the ruby maser. Frequency variation less than 4x10 to the minus 11th power was measured in the stabilized mode and is attributed to the reference oscillator and to instabilities in the pump source. Variation of 10 to the minus 10th power was observed in the low-Q unstabilized mode, again attributable to pump fluctuations. Even so, direct scaling to a Q of 10 the 9th power predicts a stability better than 10 to the minus 15th power. Together with results showing the lowest losses to date in sapphire at microwave frequencies, and preliminary experiments on superconductor-on-sapphire resonators, frequency stability, levels as low as 10 to the minus 17th power are indicated.

Dick, G. J.↗