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At least 343 records · Page 19

Novel Wiring Technologies for Aerospace Applications

Because wire failure in aerospace vehicles could be catastrophic, smart wiring capabilities have been critical for NASA. Through the years, researchers at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) have developed technologies, expertise, and research facilities to meet this need. In addition to aerospace applications, NASA has applied its knowledge of smart wiring, including self-healing materials, to serve the aviation industry. This webinar will discuss the development efforts of several wiring technologies at KSC and provide insight into both current and future research objectives.

novel↗

Highly Conductive Wire: Cu Carbon Nanotube Composite Ampacity and Metallic CNT Buckypaper Conductivity

NASA is currently working on developing motors for hybrid electric propulsion applications in aviation. To make electric power more feasible in airplanes higher power to weight ratios are sought for electric motors. One facet to these efforts is to improve (increase) the conductivity and (lower) density of the magnet wire used in motors. Carbon nanotubes (CNT) and composites containing CNT are being explored as a possible way to increase wire conductivity and lower density. Presented here are measurements of the current carrying capacity (ampacity) of a composite made from CNT and copper. The ability of CNT to improve the conductivity of such composites is hindered by the presence of semiconductive CNT (s-CNT) that exist in CNT supplies naturally, and currently, unavoidably. To solve this problem, and avoid s-CNT, various preferential growth and sorting methods are being explored. A supply of sorted 95 metallic CNT (m-CNT) was acquired in the form of thick film Buckypaper (BP) as part of this work and characterized using Raman spectroscopy, resistivity, and density measurements. The ampacity (Acm2) of the Cu-5volCNT composite was 3.8 lower than the same gauge pure Cu wire similarly tested. The lower ampacity in the composite wire is believed to be due to the presence of s-CNT in the composite and the relatively low (proper) level of longitudinal cooling employed in the test method. Although Raman spectroscopy can be used to characterize CNT, a strong relation between the ratios of the primary peaks GGand the relative amounts of m-CNT and s-CNT was not observed. The average effective conductivity of the CNT in the sorted, 95 m-CNT BP was 2.5 times higher than the CNT in the similar but un-sorted BP. This is an indication that improvements in the conductivity of CNT composites can be made by the use of sorted, highly conductive m-CNT.

wire↗

An Examination of Causes of Multi-Wire Bias During SLD Instrumentation Testing in the IRT

The Icing Research Tunnel (IRT) at NASA Glenn Research Center has been using the SEA Multi-Element Sensor (aka, the multi-wire) as its primary liquid water content instrument since 2011. Recent tests in the IRT with four different multi-wire probes (i.e., different serial numbers) have indicated situations that can result in biasing of the probe data. The reference data used in this report are multi-wire data that have been proven to agree well with the icing blade in low-impingement rate conditions. Data from these recent tests suggest that the presence of a canister probe located 4.45 ft axially downstream and 2.5 ft to the side may have caused multi-wire data to read around 5% low at an airspeed of 150 kts. Additionally, two probes of different serial numbers were observed to measure 5-15% lower than the reference probes, and the causes have been linked to excessive solder on the sensing element and to an out of date element calibration. For these reasons, the authors suggest the community be aware of the possible aerodynamic influences on the probe inlet and outlet, as well as the importance of regular calibration and maintenance of the probes.

aircraft icing↗

An Examination of Causes of Multi-Wire Bias during SLD Instrumentation Testing in the IRT

The Icing Research Tunnel (IRT) at NASA Glenn Research Center has been using the SEA Multi-Element Sensor (aka, the multi-wire) as its primary liquid water content instrument since 2011. Recent tests in the IRT with four different multi-wire probes (i.e., different serial numbers) have indicated situations that can result in biasing of the probe data. The reference data used in this report are multi-wire data that have been proven to agree well with the icing blade in low-impingement rate conditions. Data from these recent tests suggest that the presence of a canister probe located 4.45 ft axially downstream and 2.5 ft to the side may have caused multi-wire data to read around 5% low at an airspeed of 150 kts. Additionally, two probes of different serial numbers were observed to measure 5-15% lower than the reference probes, and the causes have been linked to excessive solder on the sensing element and to an out of date element calibration. For these reasons, the authors suggest the community be aware of the possible aerodynamic influences on the probe inlet and outlet, as well as the importance of regular calibration and maintenance of the probes.

aircraft icing↗

Two Wire System and Modified Olive Tip to Facilitate Implantation of Fenestrated TEVAR in Patient with Proximal Descending Aortic Pathology: First Two Cases

Introduction: Although Fenestrated TEVAR (F-TEVAR) has been considered to be a more physiologic approach to treat proximal descending aortic pathology, its application is still limited due to availability, cost and technical difficulties. We introduce a new design of fenestrated stent graft with a new delivery system and successfully performed first in human implantation in two patients, one with an aortic aneurysm and one with an acute aortic dissection. Materials and Methods: The design of these two wires fenestrated stent graft include creation of an additional lumen at the side of the olive tip during manufacture, from which an additional wire can be introduced for a side branch passing into the fenestration, running inside the stent graft and exit the delivery sheath through additional hub. The two wires will facilitate delivery and deployment of the stent graft. One patient with descending aortic aneurysm and another with Stanford B aortic dissection is included in this first in human study. Results: The aneurysm and dissection were completely excluded immediately after the TEVAR. Six month follow up CT showed good position of the stent graft and patent LSA in both patients. In the patient with aortic dissection, expansion of the true lumen and partial thrombosis of the false lumen was seen. Conclusions: This is a report of a two wire system in 2 patients with distal aortic arch pathology demonstrating a good technical and clinical success using pre-cannulated fenestrations through a modified nose cone olive. Level of Evidence: Level 4, report of two cases.

62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE↗

The Impact of High Pressure, Doping and the Size of Crystalline Boron Grains on Creation of High-Field Pinning Centers in In Situ MgB{sub 2} Wires

In this work, we investigated the influence of isostatic pressure (of 0.1 MPa and 1.1 GPa) during heat treatment, doping, size and shape of crystalline boron grains, and annealing time at low annealing temperature (570 °C) on the formation of high-field pinning centers in MgB{sub 2} wires. The results indicate that high isostatic pressure (1.1 GPa) at low annealing temperature (570 ° C) and annealing time of 120 min significantly increases the density of high-field pinning centers in MgB{sub 2} wires with small and large boron grains. Transport measurements show that an increase of annealing time from 120 to 210 min at 1.1 GPa slightly decreases the critical current density (J{sub c}) and irreversibility field (B{sub irr}) in MgB{sub 2} wires with large boron grains, suggesting that longer annealing time weakly affects the density of high-field pinning centers. On the other hand, for MgB{sub 2} wires with small boron grains, the annealing time of 210 min significantly reduces J{sub c} and B{sub irr}. This indicates that the longer annealing time at 1.1 GPa significantly reduces the density of high-field pinning centers. Our studies indicate that dislocations created by the hot isostatic pressure process significantly increase B{sub irr} in the temperature range from 5 to 12 K. On the other hand, strains due to the shrinkage of MgB{sub 2} material increase B{sub irr} in the temperature range from 12 to 34 K. The results show that small grains of crystalline boron and high isostatic pressure lead to a high density of dislocations and strains during transformation to the MgB{sub 2} phase.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Pulsed TIG Welding–Brazing of Aluminum–Stainless Steel with an Al-Cu Twin Hot Wire

A TIG welding–brazing process with a twin aluminum hot wire technique was utilized to control the heat input, improve the joint formation, suppress the interfacial intermetallic compounds (IMCs) and increase the joint strength, thereby creating reliable joints between an aluminum alloy and stainless steel with an ER2319 filler. Twin wires with reasonable diameters and filling modes led to a satisfactory weld of parent metals with varying thicknesses. By the hot wire technique, the reasonable range of the welding current was extended and the thickness of the interfacial IMC at the seam bottom was reduced. In addition, both the tensile strength and stability of the joints increased compared with a cold wire. The IMC consisted of θ-(Fe,Cu){sub 4}Al{sub 13} and minor Cr{sub 0.7}Fe{sub 0.3}Al{sub 6}, and the precipitated phases in the weld were Al{sub 2}Cu and Al{sub 2}CuMg. With an increasing welding current, the IMC thickness significantly increased, while the joint strength decreased. The fracture positions of the joints varied with the corresponding welding currents.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Ultrafast Charge Transfer between Light Absorber and Co 3 O 4 Water Oxidation Catalyst across Molecular Wires Embedded in Silica Membrane

Here, the mechanism of visible light-induced hole transfer from a molecular light absorber, in the form of a free-base porphyrin, coupled to a Co 3 O 4 nanoparticle catalyst for water oxidation by a molecular wire (p-oligo(phenylenevinylene) featuring three aryl units) is investigated by transient absorption spectroscopy. The wires are covalently anchored on the Co 3 O 4 surface and embedded in a dense, yet ultrathin (2 nm), silica layer that separates light absorber and catalyst. The porphyrin is electrostatically adsorbed on the silica surface, and aqueous colloidal solutions of the core–shell particles are used for transient optical measurements. Pulsed optical excitation of the porphyrin results in rapid injection of the photogenerated hole onto the molecular wire and concurrent formation of reduced light absorber in less than 1 picosecond (ps). Ultrafast charge separation was monitored by transient absorption of the wire radical cation, which is given by bands in the 500 to 600 nm region and at 1130 nm, while formation of reduced porphyrin was characterized by absorption at 700 nm. Forward transfer of the hole to Co 3 O 4 catalyst proceeds in 255 ± 23 ps. Ultrafast transfer of positive charge from the molecular assembly to a metal oxide nanoparticle catalyst for water oxidation is unprecedented. Holes on Co 3 O 4 recombined with electrons of the reduced sensitizer with biphasic kinetics on a much longer time scale of ten to several hundred nanoseconds. Finally, the unusually efficient hole transfer coupling of a molecular light absorber with an Earth-abundant metal oxide catalyst by silica-embedded p-oligo(phenylenevinylene) offers an approach for integrated artificial photosystems featuring product separation on the nanoscale.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Carbon nanospikes grown on metal wires as microelectrode sensors for dopamine

Carbon nanomaterials are advantageous as electrodes for neurotransmitter detection, but the difficulty of nanomaterials deposition on electrode substrates limits the reproducibility and future applications. In our study, we used plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) to directly grow a thin layer of carbon nanospikes (CNS) on cylindrical metal substrates. No catalyst is required and the CNS surface coverage is uniform over the cylindrical metal substrate. We characterized the CNS growth on several metallic substrates including tantalum, niobium, palladium, and nickel wires. Using fast-scan cyclic voltammetry (FSCV), bare metal wires could not detect 1 mu M dopamine while carbon nanospike coated wires could. Moreover, the highest sensitivity and optimized S/N ratio was recorded from carbon nanospike-tantalum (CNS-Ta) microwires grown for 7.5 minutes, which had a LOD of 8 +/- 2 nM for dopamine with FSCV. CNS-Ta microelectrodes were more reversible and had a smaller Delta E-p for dopamine than carbon-fiber microelectrodes, suggesting faster electron transfer kinetics. The kinetics of dopamine redox were adsorption controlled at CNS-Ta microelectrodes and repeated electrochemical measurements displayed stability for up to ten hours in vitro and over a ten day period as well. The oxidation potential was significantly different for ascorbic acid and uric acid compared to dopamine. Finally, growing carbon nanospikes on metal wires is a promising method to produce uniformly-coated, carbon nanostructured cylindrical microelectrodes for sensitive dopamine detection.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Effects of catalyst droplets on wire growth and the resulting branched structures during VLS growth

Vapor-liquid-solid (VLS) method is vastly employed to grow hierarchical structures with unique properties. However, key questions remain, such as what controls the branched structures and what the roles of catalyst droplet size are during the growth. Here, an in-depth understanding of the kinetics of the nucleation, growth, and subsequent coalescence processes of Bi liquid catalyst droplets is provided by direct observation of PbSe branched wire growth in an environmental transmission electron microscope. This brings a kinetic control of the branch density by varying the parameters, such as temperature. In addition, the dependence of wire growth rate on the catalyst droplet size is revealed, i.e., the smaller the catalyst size the larger the wire growth rate, unlike the wire growth controlled by Gibbs-Thomson effect, possibly due to different mass transport pathways and atomic surface diffusion. These results extend the fundamental understanding of the VLS growth mechanism of branched structures and benefit the structure design of hierarchical materials with tailored properties.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Ferroelectric and photocatalytic behavior of bismuth ferrite nano wire

Multiferroic bismuth ferrite nanowires are prepared through polyol method with an average diameter of 35 nm with a narrow size distribution. The band gap was determined to be 2.10 eV, indicating their potential application as visible-light-response photo catalyst. The magnificent photocatalytic behaviors of BiFeO{sub 3} nanowires are understood from the methyl violet degradation under visible light irradiation. Moreover, the nano-wire takes only a lesser time for the diffusion of electron-hole pair from the surface of the sample. Further the BiFeO{sub 3} nano-wire was characterized using XRD, SEM, and U-V. The ferroelectric studies of BiFeO{sub 3} nano-wire show a frequency dependent property and maximum coercivity of 2.7 V/cm were achieved with a remanent polarization at 0.5 µC/cm{sup 2} at the frequency 4 kHz. The coercivity of BiFeO{sub 3} nano wire changes with variation of frequency from 1 kHz to 4 kHz.

77 NANOSCIENCE AND NANOTECHNOLOGY↗

Power and energy of exploding wires

Exploding wires are used in many high-energy applications, such as initiating explosives. Previous work analyzing gold wire burst in detonator applications has shown burst current and action metrics to be inconsistent with burst phenomenon across multiple firing-sets. Energy density better captures the correlation between different wire geometries, different electrical inputs, and explosive initiation. This idea has been expanded upon, to analyze the burst properties in power-energy space. Further inconsistencies in the understanding of wire burst and its relation to peak voltage have been found. An argument will be made for redefining the definition of burst. The result is a more broad understanding of rapid metal phase transition and the initiation of explosives in EBW applications.

42 ENGINEERING↗

A free-standing wire scattering technique to monitor calibration variations of the DIII-D density profile reflectometer

Real-time phase calibration of the ITER profile reflectometer is essential due to the long plasma duration and expected waveguide path length changes during a discharge. Progress has been recently made in addressing this issue by employing a phase calibration technique on DIII-D that monitors calibration variations that occur during each plasma discharge. By installing a thin free-standing metallic wire (1 mm diameter) near the end of the overmoded waveguide transmission system (oriented perpendicular to the waveguide axis), the round-trip phase shift from the wire is detected simultaneously with the plasma phase shifts. Variations in the reflectometer round trip path length (-26 m) are then calculated after each DIII-D plasma discharge, allowing the calibration phase to be accurately monitored and updated. The round-trip reflectometer path length is observed to vary by -3 mm (root mean square value) during a typical DIII-D discharge. Using the variations in calibration phase, the density profile measurement accuracy can be improved. Since the wire retro-reflected power is -0.01 of the plasma signal, minimal effect is observed on the reflected signal from the plasma. Importantly, through a suitable choice in wire diameter, the calibration signal can be made approximately independent of the V-band reflectometer launch polarization. Furthermore, this is particularly important on DIII-D since orthogonal X- and O-mode polarized beams are coupled into the same transmission waveguide and launch antenna.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Study of SXR/EUV radiation of exploded foils and wires with spectral, spatial and temporal resolution simultaneously on KING electric discharge facility.

The results of studies of the soft X-ray and extreme ultraviolet (SXR/EUV) radiation of thin flat aluminum foils and wires under the explosion in an electric discharge on the compact high-current KING generator are presented. These studies were based on the SXR/EUV spectroscopy with a spectral resolution of 6 Å, a temporal resolution of 5 ns and a spatial resolution of 200 μm. To study the plasma radiation of exploded foils and wires in the SXR/EUV range, we used a transmission diffraction grating spectrograph which in combination with two additional slits provided spectral and spatial resolution. The spectrograph was coupled with a 4-frame recorder based on a microchannel plate for providing temporal resolution. The analysis and comparison of the spectral, spatial, temporal, and energy characteristics of the SXR/EUV radiation of plasma formed under the explosion of foils and wires of a similar mass made of aluminum was carried out. Here, the spectra were calculated as well and the plasma parameters and their changes in time and space were estimated on the basis of these calculations and comparison with relevant experimental results. Experiments have shown that when foils explode, a single intense source of SXR/EUV radiation is formed with radiated energy in the range of 10-20 J and a power of up to 100 MW in the quantum energy range from 30 to 250 eV. At the same time, the radiation power under the explosion of foils turned out to be about twice above the power under the explosion of wires of comparable mass.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

A viable dipole magnet concept with REBCO CORC ® wires and further development needs for high-field magnet applications

REBCO coated conductors maintain a high engineering current density above 16 T at 4.2 K. That fact will significantly impact markets of various magnet applications including high-field magnets for high-energy physics and fusion reactors. One of the main challenges for the high-field accelerator magnet is the use of multi-tape REBCO cables with high engineering current density in magnet development. Several approaches developing high-field accelerator magnets using REBCO cables are demonstrated. In this paper, we introduce an alternative concept based on the canted cos θ (CCT) magnet design using conductor on round core (CORC®) wires that are wound from multiple REBCO tapes with a Cu core. We report the development and test of double-layer three-turn CCT dipole magnets using CORC ® wires at 77 and 4.2 K. The scalability of the CCT design allowed us to effectively develop and demonstrate important magnet technology features such as coil design, winding, joints and testing with minimum conductor lengths. The test results showed that the CCT dipole magnet using CORC ® wires was a viable option in developing a REBCO accelerator magnet. One of the critical development needs is to increase the engineering current density of the 3.7 mm diameter CORC® wire to 540 A mm -2 at 21 T, 4.2 K and to reduce the bending radius to 15 mm. Furthermore, this would enable a compact REBCO dipole insert magnet to generate a 5 T field in a background field of 16 T at 4.2 K.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Correlation of critical current density to quasi-biaxial texture and grain boundary cleanliness in fully dense Bi-2212 wires

The distinctive quasi-biaxial texture of Bi 2 Sr 2 CaCu 2 O x (Bi-2212) plays an important role in enabling high critical current density ($J_c$) in Bi-2212 round wires (RWs). Here we studied three over pressure heat treated wires with $J_c$ varying by a factor of ~10, all being fully dense. Using electron backscatter diffraction, we observed the differences in biaxial texture in these three wires. Transmission electron microscopy also revealed differences in grain boundary (GB) cleanliness and connectivity. These analyses showed that high $J_c$ is unambiguously correlated to the best biaxial texture, which is in turn correlated to slow cooling from the liquid melt into solid Bi-2212. However, at 4.2 K, there is a negligible difference in intragrain pinning in the three wires, suggesting that the $J_c$ variation by a factor of ~10 is primarily due to variable filament and intergrain connectivity. In this work, the principal determinants of intergrain connectivity is the quasi-biaxial texture and GB cleanliness. Overall, $J_c$ optimization of the Bi-2212 RW is a complex multi-variable process, but this study shows that maximizing the biaxial texture quality is an important first step in such an optimization process.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Joint tests at INL and CEA of a transient hot wire needle probe for in-pile thermal conductivity measurement

Thermal conductivity is a key property that must be known for proper design, testing, and deployment of new fuels and structural materials in nuclear reactors. Thermal conductivity is highly dependent on the physical structure, chemical composition, and the state of the material. Typically, thermal conductivity changes that occur during irradiation are currently measured out-of-pile using a 'cook and look' approach. But repeatedly removing samples from a test reactor to make measurements is expensive, has the potential to disturb phenomena of interest, and only provides understanding of the sample's end state when each measurement is made. There are also limited thermo-physical property data available for advanced fuels; and such data are needed for simulation codes, the development of next generation reactors, and advanced fuels for existing nuclear plants. Being able to quickly characterize fuel thermal conductivity during irradiation can improve the fidelity of data, reduce costs of post-irradiation examinations, increase understanding of how fuels behave under irradiation, and confirm or improve existing thermal conductivity measurement techniques. This paper discusses efforts to develop and evaluate an innovative in-pile thermal conductivity sensor based on the transient hot wire thermal conductivity method (THWM), using a single needle probe (NP) containing a line heat source and thermocouple embedded in the fuel. The sensor that has been designed and manufactured by the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) includes a unique combination of materials, geometry, and fabrication techniques that make the hot wire method suitable for in-pile applications. In particular, efforts were made to minimize the influence of the sensor and maximize fuel hot-wire heating. The probe has a thermocouple-like construction with high temperature resistant materials that remain ductile while resisting transmutation and materials interactions. THWM-NP prototypes were fabricated for both room temperature proof-of-concept evaluations and high temperature testing. Evaluations have been performed jointly by the INL and the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA), both in Idaho Falls (USA) and in Cadarache (France), in the framework of a collaborative program for instrumentation of Material Testing Reactors. Initial tests were conducted on samples with a large range of thermal conductivities and temperatures ranging from 20 deg. C to 600 deg. C. Particularly, tests were recently performed on a sample having thermal conductivity and dimensions similar to UO{sub 2} and MOX nuclear fuels, in order to validate the ability of this sensor to operate for in-pile characterization of Light Water Reactors fuels. The results of the tests already completed at INL and CEA indicate that the Transient Hot Wire Needle Probe offers an enhanced method for in-pile detection of thermal conductivity. (authors)

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗

WIRE: Resource-efficient Scaling with Online Prediction for DAG-based Workflows

This paper introduces WIRE that manages resources for the DAG-based workflows on IaaS clouds. WIRE predicts and plans resources over the MAPE (Monitor-Analyze-Plan-Execute) loops to: 1) Estimate task performance with online data, 2) Conduct simulations to predict the upcoming loads based on online estimates and workflow DAGs, 3) Apply a resource-steering policy to size cloud instance pools for the maximal parallelism that is consistent with low cost. We implement WIRE on Pegasus WMS/HTCondor and evaluate its performance on the ExoGENI network cloud. The results show that WIRE attains low resource cost with the performance that is typically within a factor of two of optimal.

Xie, Bing↗