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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 379 records · Page 21
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2017

Scaling Limits and Generic Bounds for Exploration Processes

We consider exploration algorithms of the random sequential adsorption type both for homogeneous random graphs and random geometric graphs based on spatial Poisson processes. At each step, a vertex of the graph becomes active and its neighboring nodes become blocked. Given an initial number of vertices N growing to infinity, we study statistical properties of the proportion of explored (active or blocked) nodes in time using scaling limits. We obtain exact limits for homogeneous graphs and prove an explicit central limit theorem for the final proportion of active nodes, known as the jamming constant, through a diffusion approximation for the exploration process which can be described as a unidimensional process. We then focus on bounding the trajectories of such exploration processes on random geometric graphs, i.e., random sequential adsorption. As opposed to exploration processes on homogeneous random graphs, these do not allow for such a dimensional reduction. Instead we derive a fundamental relationship between the number of explored nodes and the discovered volume in the spatial process, and we obtain generic bounds for the fluid limit and jamming constant: bounds that are independent of the dimension of space and the detailed shape of the volume associated to the discovered node. Lastly, using coupling techinques, we give trajectorial interpretations of the generic bounds.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2014

Materials selection for oxide-based resistive random access memories

The energies of atomic processes in resistive random access memories (RRAMs) are calculated for four typical oxides, HfO{sub 2}, TiO{sub 2}, Ta{sub 2}O{sub 5}, and Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}, to define a materials selection process. O vacancies have the lowest defect formation energy in the O-poor limit and dominate the processes. A band diagram defines the operating Fermi energy and O chemical potential range. It is shown how the scavenger metal can be used to vary the O vacancy formation energy, via controlling the O chemical potential, and the mean Fermi energy. The high endurance of Ta{sub 2}O{sub 5} RRAM is related to its more stable amorphous phase and the adaptive lattice rearrangements of its O vacancy.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2015

High-speed quantum-random number generation by continuous measurement of arrival time of photons

We demonstrate a novel high speed and multi-bit optical quantum random number generator by continuously measuring arrival time of photons with a common starting point. To obtain the unbiased and post-processing free random bits, the measured photon arrival time is converted into the sum of integral multiple of a fixed period and a phase time. Theoretical and experimental results show that the phase time is an independent and uniform random variable. A random bit extraction method by encoding the phase time is proposed. An experimental setup has been built and the unbiased random bit generation rate could reach 128 Mb/s, with random bit generation efficiency of 8 bits per detected photon. The random numbers passed all tests in the statistical test suite.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
NASA NTRS1977

Absolute value optimization to estimate phase properties of stochastic time series

Most existing deconvolution techniques are incapable of determining phase properties of wavelets from time series data; to assure a unique solution, minimum phase is usually assumed. It is demonstrated, for moving average processes of order one, that deconvolution filtering using the absolute value norm provides an estimate of the wavelet shape that has the correct phase character when the random driving process is nonnormal. Numerical tests show that this result probably applies to more general processes.

Scargle, J. D.↗
DOE OSTI2015

Resolvent-Techniques for Multiple Exercise Problems

We study optimal multiple stopping of strong Markov processes with random refraction periods. The refraction periods are assumed to be exponentially distributed with a common rate and independent of the underlying dynamics. Our main tool is using the resolvent operator. In the first part, we reduce infinite stopping problems to ordinary ones in a general strong Markov setting. This leads to explicit solutions for wide classes of such problems. Starting from this result, we analyze problems with finitely many exercise rights and explain solution methods for some classes of problems with underlying Lévy and diffusion processes, where the optimal characteristics of the problems can be identified more explicitly. We illustrate the main results with explicit examples.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
NASA NTRS1995

Investigation of computational and spectral analysis methods for aeroacoustic wave propagation

Most computational fluid dynamics (CFD) schemes are not adequately accurate for solving aeroacoustics problems, which have wave amplitudes several orders of magnitude smaller yet with frequencies larger than the flow field variations generating the sound. Hence, a computational aeroacoustics (CAA) algorithm should have minimal dispersion and dissipation features. A dispersion relation preserving (DRP) scheme is, therefore, applied to solve the linearized Euler equations in order to simulate the propagation of three types of waves, namely: acoustic, vorticity, and entropy waves. The scheme is derived using an optimization procedure to ensure that the numerical derivatives preserve the wave number and angular frequency of the partial differential equations being discretized. Consequently, simulated waves propagate with the correct wave speeds and exhibit their appropriate properties. A set of radiation and outflow boundary conditions, compatible with the DRP scheme and derived from the asymptotic solutions of the governing equations, are also implemented. Numerical simulations are performed to test the effectiveness of the DRP scheme and its boundary conditions. The computed solutions are shown to agree favorably with the exact solutions. The major restriction appears to be that the dispersion relations can be preserved only for waves with wave lengths longer than four or five spacings. The boundary conditions are found to be transparent to the outgoing disturbances. However, when the disturbance source is placed closer to a boundary, small acoustic reflections start appearing. CAA generates enormous amounts of temporal data which needs to be reduced to understand the physical problem being simulated. Spectral analysis is one approach that helps us in extracting information which often can not be easily interpreted in the time domain. Thus, three different methods for the spectral analysis of numerically generated aeroacoustic data are studied. First, the capabilities of two traditional methods for spectral analysis, namely, the Blackman-Tukey method and periodogram method, are compared in estimating the spectra of a simple-periodic process. The periodogram is then applied to analyze transitory-deterministic processes. Finally, these two methods are compared with a more recent method, referred as the Weighted-Overlapped-Segment-Averaging (WOSA) method, in estimating the spectra of a chaotic (random-like) process. From the demonstrative case for the spectral analyses of data generated by simple-periodic process, the periodogram method is found to give a better estimate of the steep-sloped spectra than the Blackman-Tukey method. Also, for this problem, the Hanning window is found to perform better with the periodogram method than with the Blackman-Tukey method. Finally, for the spectral analysis of data generated by the chaotic process, the periodogram method does not perform well, whereas, the WOSA and Blackman-Tukey methods give equivalently good results.

Vanel, Florence O.↗
DOE OSTI2017

Long history of Cl-36 Assessment of Graphite Waste by EDF Engineering and the Latest Suggested Developments - 17043

Prior to 2005, the EDF initial version for the radiological inventory of graphite was based on the maximum values of the measures, namely a very pessimistic way. In 2008, a scientific method was developed by EDF to evaluate the inventory by reverse activation calculation, in order to limit the overestimation. The radiological inventory computation principles can be compared to those of all engineering studies. First, the calculation is simplified by taking margins, and if the results are not satisfactory enough, some simplifications are suppressed to reduce these margins even if computation becomes more complicated. On EDF piles, the gain obtained in 2008 represented a factor 50 relative to the initial version of Cl-36, even with a very penalizing multiplicative factor for uncertainty. Today, the accurate calculation of the uncertainty no longer justifies such a factor. A gain of about 150 now occurs compared to the initial version of Cl-36. It is more than 2 orders of magnitude, which is already enough to assess again the necessary type of disposal because Cl-36 is one of the key radionuclides. After global presentation of graphite waste management in France, the paper focuses on the inventory scientific process of EDF nuclear graphite, the purity of graphite and its consequences, its particular sampling, the lessons learned, the initial method description, the link with the demonstration of the completely random point process of chlorine in nuclear graphite and the last suggested precise uncertainty computation of inventory of Cl-36. The method confirmation for concentration assessment, the history of the EDF method development and its benefits are also emphasized. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
NASA NTRS1990

Small-scale transition in a plane mixing layer

An experimental study was conducted to investigate the generation process of random small-scale turbulence in an originally laminar mixing layer. The evolutions of the two types of deterministic structures, the spanwise and streamwise vortices, were first clarified in order to determine their roles in the transition process. A scaling rule for the streamwise distance from the trailing edge of the splitter plate to the vortex merging position was found for various velocity ratios. After this stremwise lengthscale was determined, it became clear that the spanwise wavelength of the streamwise vortices doubled after the merging of the spanwise structures which nominally doubled streamwise wavelengths. The most interesting finding was that the random small-scale eddies were produced by the interactions between the merging spanwise structures and the streamwise vortices.

Huang, Lein-Saing↗
DOE OSTI2016

Monte Carlo Techniques for Nuclear Systems - Theory Lectures

These are lecture notes for a Monte Carlo class given at the University of New Mexico. The following topics are covered: course information; nuclear eng. review & MC; random numbers and sampling; computational geometry; collision physics; tallies and statistics; eigenvalue calculations I; eigenvalue calculations II; eigenvalue calculations III; variance reduction; parallel Monte Carlo; parameter studies; fission matrix and higher eigenmodes; doppler broadening; Monte Carlo depletion; HTGR modeling; coupled MC and T/H calculations; fission energy deposition. Solving particle transport problems with the Monte Carlo method is simple - just simulate the particle behavior. The devil is in the details, however. These lectures provide a balanced approach to the theory and practice of Monte Carlo simulation codes. The first lectures provide an overview of Monte Carlo simulation methods, covering the transport equation, random sampling, computational geometry, collision physics, and statistics. The next lectures focus on the state-of-the-art in Monte Carlo criticality simulations, covering the theory of eigenvalue calculations, convergence analysis, dominance ratio calculations, bias in Keff and tallies, bias in uncertainties, a case study of a realistic calculation, and Wielandt acceleration techniques. The remaining lectures cover advanced topics, including HTGR modeling and stochastic geometry, temperature dependence, fission energy deposition, depletion calculations, parallel calculations, and parameter studies. This portion of the class focuses on using MCNP to perform criticality calculations for reactor physics and criticality safety applications. It is an intermediate level class, intended for those with at least some familiarity with MCNP. Class examples provide hands-on experience at running the code, plotting both geometry and results, and understanding the code output. The class includes lectures & hands-on computer use for a variety of Monte Carlo calculations. Beginning MCNP users are encouraged to review LA-UR-09-00380, "Criticality Calculations with MCNP: A Primer (3nd Edition)" (available at http:// mcnp.lanl.gov under "Reference Collection") prior to the class. No Monte Carlo class can be complete without having students write their own simple Monte Carlo routines for basic random sampling, use of the random number generator, and simplified particle transport simulation.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
NASA NTRS1992

Clustering, randomness and regularity in cloud fields. I - Theoretical considerations. II - Cumulus cloud fields

The current controversy existing in reference to the regularity vs. clustering in cloud fields is examined by means of analysis and simulation studies based upon nearest-neighbor cumulative distribution statistics. It is shown that the Poisson representation of random point processes is superior to pseudorandom-number-generated models and that pseudorandom-number-generated models bias the observed nearest-neighbor statistics towards regularity. Interpretation of this nearest-neighbor statistics is discussed for many cases of superpositions of clustering, randomness, and regularity. A detailed analysis is carried out of cumulus cloud field spatial distributions based upon Landsat, AVHRR, and Skylab data, showing that, when both large and small clouds are included in the cloud field distributions, the cloud field always has a strong clustering signal.

Weger, R. C.↗
DOE OSTI2018

Road Network State Estimation Using Random Forest Ensemble Learning

Network-scale travel time prediction not only enables traffic management centers (TMC) to proactively implement traffic management strategies, but also allows travelers make informed decisions about route choices between various origins and destinations. In this paper, a random forest estimator was proposed to predict travel time in a network. The estimator was trained using two years of historical travel time data for a case study network in St. Louis, Missouri. Both temporal and spatial effects were considered in the modeling process. The random forest models predicted travel times accurately during both congested and uncongested traffic conditions. The computational times for the models were low, thus useful for real-time traffic management and traveler information applications.

30 DIRECT ENERGY CONVERSION↗