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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 37 records · Page 2

Influence of humidity on performance and microscopic dynamics of an ionic liquid in supercapacitor

We investigated the influence of water molecules on the diffusion, dynamics, and electrosorption of a room temperature ionic liquid (RTIL), [BMIm + ][Tf 2 N - ], confined in carbide-derived carbon with a bimodal nanoporosity. Water molecules in pores improved the charge storage densities and rate handling abilities of these materials in supercapacitor electrode configurations. We measured the water-dependent microscopic dynamics of the RTIL cations using quasi-elastic neutron scatting (QENS). The ionic liquid demonstrated greater mobility with increasing water uptake, facilitated by the nanoporous carbon environment, up to a well-defined saturation point. We concluded that water molecules displaced RTIL ions attached to the pore surfaces and improved the diffusivity of the displaced cations. This effect consequently increased capacitance and rate handling of the electrolyte in water-containing pores. Our findings suggest the possible effect of immiscible co-solvents on energy and power densities of energy storage devices, as well as the operating viability of non-aqueous supercapacitor electrolytes in humid environments.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Search for microscopic black holes and string balls in final states with leptons and jets with the ATLAS detector at s $ \sqrt{s} $ = 8 TeV

A search for an excess of events with multiple high transverse momentum objects including charged leptons and jets is presented, using 20.3 fb -1 of proton-proton collision data recorded by the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider in 2012 at a centre-of-mass energy of $ \sqrt{s} $ = 8 TeV. No excess of events beyond Standard Model expectations is observed. Using extra-dimensional models for black hole and string ball production and decay, exclusion contours are determined as a function of the mass threshold for production and the fundamental gravity scale for two, four and six extra dimensions. For six extra dimensions, mass thresholds of 4.8-6.2 TeV are excluded at 95 % confidence level, depending on the fundamental gravity scale and model assumptions. Upper limits on the fiducial cross-sections for non-Standard Model production of these final states are set.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Microscopic Behaviors of Tri-n-Butyl Phosphate, n-Dodecane and Their Mixtures at Air/Liquid and Liquid/Liquid Interfaces: An AMBER Polarizable Force Field Study

In solvent extraction processes for recovering metal ions from used nuclear fuel, as well as other industrial applications, a better understanding of the metal complex phase transfer phenomenon would greatly aid ligand design and process optimization. We have approached this challenge by utilizing classical molecular dynamics simulations technique to gain visual appreciation of the vapor/liquid and liquid/liquid interface between tri-n-butyl phosphate (TBP) and n-dodecane with air and water. In this study, we successfully reparameterized polarizable force fields for TBP and n-dodecane that accurately reproduced several of their thermophysical properties such as: density, heat of vaporization, and dipole moment. Our models were able to predict the surface and interfacial tension of different systems when compared to experimental results also performed by us. Through this study, we gained numerous atomistic understanding of the behaviors of TBP and n-dodecane at the interface against air and water, useful in further computational studies of such systems. Lastly, our studies indicate that the initial configuration of a simulation may have a large effect on the final result.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Microscopic insight into the origin of enhanced glass-forming ability of metallic melts on micro-alloying

Extensive efforts have been made to develop metallic-glasses with large casting diameter. Such efforts were hindered by the poor understanding of glass formation mechanisms and the origin of the glass-forming ability (GFA) in metallic glass-forming systems. In this work, we have investigated relaxation dynamics of a model bulk glass-forming alloy system that shows the enhanced at first and then diminished GFA on increasing the percentage of micro-alloying. The micro-alloying did not have any significant impact on the thermodynamic properties. The GFA increasing on micro-alloying in this system cannot be explained by the present theoretical knowledge. Our results indicate that atomic caging is the primary factor that influences the GFA. The composition dependence of the atomic caging time or residence time is found to be well correlated with GFA of the system.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Spectro-Microscopic Analysis of Soot Particle Composition and Source Attribution

Ambient soot particles significantly impact Earth’s radiative balance, human health, and atmospheric visibility. Their microstructural properties depend on formation and aging mechanisms, which vary by emission source and atmospheric processes. Hence, accurately identifying sources of soot enhances our understanding of their physicochemical properties and atmospheric implications. This study used a multi-modal approach to characterize and attribute sources of submicron soot particles collected in Israel during new particle formation events, biomass burning episodes, and background atmospheric conditions. Synchrotron-based X-ray microscopy was used to map soot (elemental carbon), organic carbon, and inorganic species. Implemented atomic force microscopy showed highly diverse phase states, with soot consistently exhibiting a solid-like phase. Automated µ-Raman analysis was subsequently performed on ~690 particles, identifying three soot classes based on spectral features corresponding to the "Defect" (D) and "Graphite" (G) bands of soot. We applied two-peak and five-peak fitting approaches to deconvolute the “Defect” peaks (D1, D2, D3, and D4) and G band from average Raman, revealing varying degrees of graphitic order. The degree of graphitic order was determined from metrics such as the D3 peak area, often observed when soot was internally mixed with organic material. Raman spectral features, along with temporal variations in particle classes contributions, suggest that Particle Type 1 corresponds to traffic related soot and Particle Type 2 to less graphitic soot from biomass burning, while Particle Type 3 is associated with more heterogeneous particulate representative of soot-OC mixtures emitted during new particle formation and biomass burning episodes.

Rivera-Adorno, Felipe (ORCID:0000000273557999)↗

Microscopic model for intersubband gain from electrically pumped quantum-dot structures

We study theoretically the performance of electrically pumped self-organized quantum dots as a gain material in the mid-infrared range at room temperature. We analyze an AlGaAs/InGaAs based structure composed of dots-in-a-well sandwiched between two quantum wells. We numerically analyze a comprehensive model by combining a many-particle approach for electronic dynamics with a realistic modeling of the electronic states in the whole structure. We investigate the gain both for quasi-equilibrium conditions and current injection. We find, comparing different structures, that steady-state gain can only be realized by an efficient extraction process, which prevents an accumulation of electrons in continuum states, that make the available scattering pathways through the quantum-dot active region too fast to sustain inversion.

77 NANOSCIENCE AND NANOTECHNOLOGY↗