Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “Ne”

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 397 records · Page 22

First-principles equation of state database for warm dense matter computation

We put together a first-principles equation of state (FPEOS) database for matter at extreme conditions by combining results from path integral Monte Carlo and density functional molecular dynamics simulations of the elements H, He, B, C, N, O, Ne, Na, Mg, Al, and Si as well as the compounds LiF , B 4 C , BN , CH 4 , CH 2 , C 2 H 3 , CH , C 2 H , MgO , and MgSiO 3 . For all these materials, we provide the pressure and internal energy over a density-temperature range from ~ 0.5 to 50 g cm - 3 and from ~ 10 4 to 10 9 K, which are based on ~ 5000 different first-principles simulations. We compute isobars, adiabats, and shock Hugoniot curves in the regime of L - and K -shell ionization. Invoking the linear mixing approximation, we study the properties of mixtures at high density and temperature. Furthermore, we derive the Hugoniot curves for water and alumina as well as for carbon-oxygen, helium-neon, and CH-silicon mixtures. We predict the maximal shock compression ratios of H 2 O , H 2 O 2 , Al 2 O 3 , CO , and CO 2 to be 4.61, 4.64, 4.64, 4.89, and 4.83, respectively. Finally we use the FPEOS database to determine the points of maximum shock compression for all available binary mixtures. We identify mixtures that reach higher shock compression ratios than their end members. We discuss trends common to all mixtures in pressure-temperature and particle-shock velocity spaces. In the Supplemental Material, we provide all FPEOS tables as well as computer codes for interpolation, Hugoniot calculations, and plots of various thermodynamic functions.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Electron acceleration at oblique angles via stimulated Raman scattering at laser irradiance >10 16 W cm –2 μm 2

The generation of hot, directional electrons via laser-driven stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) is a topic of great importance in inertial confinement fusion (ICF) schemes. Little recent research has been dedicated to this process at high laser intensity, in which back, side, and forward scatter simultaneously occur in high energy density plasmas, of relevance to, for example, shock ignition ICF. In this paper, we present an experimental and particle-in-cell (PIC) investigation of hot electron production from SRS in the forward and near-forward directions from a single speckle laser of wavelength λ 0 = 1.053μm, peak laser intensities in the range I 0 = 0.2–1.0×10 17 Wcm –2 and target electron densities between ne = 0.3–1.6% n c , where n c is the plasma critical density. As the intensity and density are increased, the hot electron spectrum changes from a sharp cutoff to an extended spectrum with a slope temperature T = 34 ± 1 keV and maximum measured energy of 350 keV experimentally. Multidimensional PIC simulations indicate that the high energy electrons are primarily generated from SRS-driven electron plasma wave phase fronts with k vectors angled ~50° with respect to the laser axis. These results are consistent with analytical arguments that the spatial gain is maximized at an angle which balances the tendency for the growth rate to be larger for larger scattered light wave angles until the kinetic damping of the plasma wave becomes important. The efficiency of generated high energy electrons drops significantly with a reduction in either laser intensity or target electron density, which is a result of the rapid drop in growth rate of Raman scattering at angles in the forward direction.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Mitigation of magneto-Rayleigh-Taylor instability growth in a triple-nozzle, neutron-producing gas-puff Z pinch

The gas-puff Z-pinch is a well-known source of x-rays and/or neutrons, but it is highly susceptible to the magneto-Rayleigh-Taylor instability (MRTI). Approaches to MRTI mitigation include density profile tailoring, in which nozzles are added or modified to alter the acceleration trajectory, and axial pre-magnetization, in which perturbations are smoothed out via magnetic field line tension. In this work, we present two-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic simulations of loads driven by an 850 kA,160 ns driver that suggest these mitigation strategies can be additive. The initial axial magnetic field, B z0 , to stabilize a 2.5-cm-radius Ne gas liner imploding onto an on-axis deuterium target can be reduced from 0.7 T to 0.3 T by adding a second liner with a radius of 1.25 cm. Because MRTI mitigation tends to increasingly lower yield with higher B z0 , the use of a lower field is advantageous. Here, we predict a reduction in yield penalty from > 100× with the single liner to < 10× with a double liner. A premagnetized, triple nozzle gas puff could therefore be an attractive source for intense neutrons or other fusion applications.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Micropinch formation dynamics in X pinches

High temporal resolution x-ray streak camera studies of micropinch formation in Cu hybrid x pinches reveal key plasma conditions. Analysis of Ne-like Cu lines indicate an average electron temperature of about 200 eV and 4.5×10 28 m -3 electron density. Here, the spectra suggest that the electron temperature jumps to about 1 keV, inferred from the continuum and the postcontinuum line emission that includes Li-like Cu lines. There is no sign of a rapid temperature change or a substantial surge in radiation emission during the 200 ps precontinuum x-ray burst, suggesting that the radiative collapse process does not play a major role in micropinch formation. Two-dimensional extended Magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations, coupled to a collisional-radiative spectral analysis code, suggest the significance of the rapid radial implosion of high-temperature, low-density plasma, the axial outflow, and the dynamic plasma pressure in micropinch formation.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Study of Quasielastic Barrier Distributions as a Step towards the Synthesis of Superheavy Elements with Hot Fusion Reactions

The excitation functions for quasielastic scattering of Ne 22 + Cm 248 , Mg 26 + Cm 248 , and Ca 48 + U 238 are measured using a gas-filled recoil ion separator. The quasielastic barrier distributions are extracted for these systems and are compared with coupled-channel calculations. The results indicate that the barrier distribution is affected dominantly by deformation of the actinide target nuclei, but also by vibrational or rotational excitations of the projectile nuclei, as well as neutron transfer processes before capture. From a comparison between the experimental barrier distributions and the evaporation residue cross sections for Sg ( Z = 106 ), Hs (108), Cn (112), and Lv (116), it is suggested that the hot fusion reactions take advantage of a compact collision, where the projectile approaches along the short axis of a prolately deformed nucleus. Overall, a new method is proposed to estimate the optimum incident energy to synthesize unknown superheavy nuclei using the barrier distribution.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Extending the Southern Shore of the Island of Inversion to F 28

Detailed spectroscopy of the neutron-unbound nucleus 28 F has been performed for the first time following proton/neutron removal from 29 Ne/ 29 F beams at energies around 230 MeV / nucleon . The invariant-mass spectra were reconstructed for both the 27 F(*) + n and 26 F(*) + 2n coincidences and revealed a series of well-defined resonances. A near-threshold state was observed in both reactions and is identified as the 28 F ground state, with S n ( 28 F) = -199(6) keV, while analysis of the 2n decay channel allowed a considerably improved S n ( 27 F) = 162(60) keV to be deduced. Comparison with shell-model predictions and eikonal-model reaction calculations have allowed spin-parity assignments to be proposed for some of the lower-lying levels of 28 F. Importantly, in the case of the ground state, the reconstructed 27 F + n momentum distribution following neutron removal from 29 F indicates that it arises mainly from the 1p 3/2 neutron intruder configuration. Finally, this demonstrates that the island of inversion around N = 20 includes 28 F, and most probably 29 F, and suggests that 28 O is not doubly magic.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

First Observation of the Four-Proton Unbound Nucleus 18 Mg

18 Mg was observed, for the first time, by the invariant-mass reconstruction of 14 O + 4p events. The ground-state decay energy and width are E T = 4.865(34) MeV and Γ = 115(100) keV, respectively. The observed momentum correlations between the five particles are consistent with two sequential steps of prompt 2p decay passing through the ground state of 16 Ne. The invariant-mass spectrum also provides evidence for an excited state at an excitation energy of 1.84(14) MeV, which is likely the first excited 2 + state. As this energy exceeds that for the 2 + state in 20 Mg, this observation provides an argument for the demise of the N = 8 shell closure in nuclei far from stability. Furthermore, in open systems this classical argument for shell strength is compromised by Thomas-Ehrman shifts.

6 ≤ A ≤ 19↗

Multiscale Imaging of Nuclear Deformation at the Electron-Ion Collider

We show within the Color Glass Condensate framework that exclusive vector meson production at high energy is sensitive to the geometric deformation of the target nucleus at multiple length scales. Studying e+U collisions and varying the deformation of the uranium target, we demonstrate that larger deformations result in enhanced incoherent vector meson production cross sections. Further, different multipole deformation parameters affect different regions of transverse momentum transfer. Employing JIMWLK evolution to study the Bjorken-x dependence of our results, we find that the ratio of incoherent to coherent cross sections decreases with decreasing x, largely independently of the quadrupole deformation of the target. Comparing results for the same process using 20 Ne targets with 16 O targets, we find that differences in deformation are clearly visible in the incoherent cross section. These findings show that certain observables at the Electron-Ion Collider are very sensitive to nuclear structure. Consequently, deformations need to be taken into account when interpreting experimental results. More importantly, this also means that |t|-differential diffractive vector meson production could become a powerful tool, enabling the most direct measurements of nuclear structure at different length scales, ranging from nuclear deformation at low |t| to nucleon and subnucleon-size scales at higher |t|.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

First Observation of Cyclotron Radiation from MeV-Scale e ± following Nuclear β Decay

We present an apparatus for detection of cyclotron radiation yielding a frequency-based β ± kinetic energy determination in the 5 keV to 2.1 MeV range, characteristic of nuclear β decays. The cyclotron frequency of the radiating β particles in a magnetic field is used to determine the β energy precisely. Our work establishes the foundation to apply the cyclotron radiation emission spectroscopy (CRES) technique, developed by the Project 8 Collaboration, far beyond the 18-keV tritium endpoint region. We report initial measurements of β – ’s from 6 He and β + ’s from 19 Ne decays to demonstrate the broadband response of our detection system and assess potential systematic uncertainties for β spectroscopy over the full (MeV) energy range. To our knowledge, this is the first direct observation of cyclotron radiation from individual highly relativistic β’s in a waveguide. Furthermore, this work establishes the application of CRES to a variety of nuclei, opening its reach to searches for new physics beyond the TeV scale via precision β-decay measurements.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗

Metastable phase of UTe 2 formed under high pressure above 5 GPa

Uranium ditelluride (UTe 2 ) has attracted recent interest due to its unique superconducting properties, which include the potential for a topological odd-parity superconducting state. Recently, ac-calorimetry measurements under pressure indicate a change in the ground state of UTe 2 from superconducting to antiferromagnetic at 1.4 GPa. In this work, we investigate the effect of pressure on the crystal structure of UTe 2 up to 25 GPa at room temperature using x-ray diffraction. We find that UTe 2 , which at ambient conditions has an orthorhombic (Immm) structure, transforms to a body-centered tetragonal (I4/mmm) structure at 5 GPa in a quasihydrostatic neon (Ne) pressure-transmitting medium. In the absence of a pressure-transmitting medium, this transformation occurs between 5 and 8 GPa. The data were fit with a third-order Birch-Murnaghan equation of state resulting in values of B 0 = 46.0 ± 0.6 GPa , B' = 9.3 ± 0.5 (no pressure medium), and B 0 = 42.5 ± 2.0 GPa , B' = 9.3 (fixed) (neon pressure medium) for the Immm phase. For the I4/mmm phase, B 0 = 78.9 ± 0.5 GPa GPa and B' = 4.2 ± 0.1 (no pressure-transmitting medium), and B 0 = 70.0 ± 1.1 GPa and B' = 4.1 ± 0.2 (neon pressure medium). The high-pressure tetragonal phase is retained after decompression to ambient pressure, with approximately 30% remaining after 2 days. We argue that the observed phase transition into a higher-symmetry structure at P ~ 5 GPa (orthorhombic to tetragonal) is accompanied by an increase in the shortest distance between uranium atoms from 3.6 Å (orthorhombic) to 3.9 Å (tetragonal), which suggests localization of the 5ƒ electrons, albeit with a 10.7% decrease in volume.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Resonant structure of 18 Na and the N = 8 shell

The resonant structure of the proton-unbound nucleus 18 Na has been studied via knockout reactions of a 20 Mg beam on a 9 Be target. Three resonant states in 18 Na are identified through the invariant-mass reconstruction of 17 Ne+1⁢𝑝 events, including the 1$^−_1$ ground state with one-proton decay energy of 1.38(2) MeV. In comparison with the low-lying states in the mirror neutron-rich nucleus 18 N, the 1$^−_1$ ground state and 2$^−_1$ excited state with 𝜋⁢(1⁢𝑑 5/2 ) 3 ⊗ 𝜈⁢1⁢𝑝 1/2 configurations in 18 Na likely correspond to different proton seniorities, 𝜈=3 and 1, respectively, while the 0$^−_1$ and 1$^−_2$ states with 𝜋⁢(1⁢𝑑 5/2 ) 2⁢ (2⁢𝑠 1/2 ) ⊗ 𝜈⁢1⁢𝑝 1/2 configuration show obvious Thomas-Ehrman shifts. With the more-precise atomic mass of 18 Na, the one-neutron separation energy 𝑆𝑛⁡( 19 Na)=20.31⁢(2)⁢MeV is derived. Based on the systematics of the differences in experimental one-neutron separation energy in the isotopic chains from 𝑍=9 to 12, the shell effects at 𝑁=8 for proton-rich nuclei are discussed.

energy levels↗

Deviations from the Isobaric Multiplet Mass Equation due to Threshold States

Recent studies have completed the A=16 isospin quintets for states with J π =0 + and 2 + . The dependence of their masses as a function of isospin projection shows evidence for deviations from quadratic behavior indicating isospin violation beyond the expectation from two-body forces. The deviation is most pronounced for the 2 + states. Predictions from the shell model embedded in the continuum (SMEC) allow us to explain that this isospin violation is associated with a modification of the nuclear structure due to the open-quantum-system nature of the proton-rich members of the quintet. In particular, the 0 + and 2 + states in 16 Ne and the 2 + state in 16 F are threshold resonances located just above a proton-decay threshold where s-wave coupling to the continuum is expected. The measured deviations of these threshold states from the quadratic behavior of the remaining members of the multiplets makes it possible to obtain information on the magnitude and the energy dependence of the continuum-coupling energy correction. Finally, continuum coupling is also indicated for the ground state of 8 C, but this time through p-wave coupling

coulomb energies & analogue states↗

High-resolution electron time-of-flight spectrometers for angle-resolved measurements at the SQS Instrument at the European XFEL

A set of electron time-of-flight spectrometers for high-resolution angle-resolved spectroscopy was developed for the Small Quantum Systems (SQS) instrument at the SASE3 soft X-ray branch of the European XFEL. The resolving power of this spectrometer design is demonstrated to exceed 10 000 (E/ΔE), using the well known Ne 1s –1 3p resonant Auger spectrum measured at a photon energy of 867.11 eV at a third-generation synchrotron radiation source. At the European XFEL, a width of ~0.5 eV full width at half-maximum for a kinetic energy of 800 eV was demonstrated. It is expected that this linewidth can be reached over a broad range of kinetic energies. An array of these spectrometers, with different angular orientations, is tailored for the Atomic-like Quantum Systems endstation for high-resolution angle-resolved spectroscopy of gaseous samples.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Techno-Economic Impact of Partial String Failure in Multi-string Energy Storage Systems

Electric utilities and large industrial/commercial customers, which integrate multi-MW multi-string energy storage systems (ESS), are typically at a significant risk of string failure. This results in the loss of system performance and capacity. In order to evaluate the accurate costs and benefits associated with a particular battery system, it is essential to incorporate the costs associated with battery string failure and, as a result, reduced capacity. This report analyzes how the economic losses can be estimated based on market rules and ESS availability. A framework for calculation of economic losses is developed and implemented with an illustrative string failure case for Independent System Operator (ISO-NE) forward capacity market. Further scenarios and case studies are analyzed by varying the probability of string failure as well as the capacity bid into the market. These scenarios are used to assess the variability of economic losses and the impact of string failure on the final realized benefits from the battery's market participation.

Fotedar, Vanshika↗

Prediction of DIII-D Pedestal Structure From Externally Controllable Parameters

The sharp increase of pressure at the edge of a high confinement mode (H-mode) plasma, the pedestal, strongly impacts overall plasma performance. Predicting the pedestal is a necessity to control and optimize tokamak operations. Here, an experimental data-driven machine learning (ML) approach is presented that predicts the pedestal heights and widths of electron density (n e ) and electron temperature (T e ) profiles as well as the separatrix ne from externally controllable parameters such as the plasma shape, heating method and power, and gas puff rate and integrated gas puff. The OMFIT framework was used with DIII-D data to efficiently, robustly, and automatically build a database of pedestal parameters to train machine learning models. Database creation was enabled by the search engine tool for DIII-D data, TokSearch, which parallelizes data fetching, enabling fast searches through basic signals of thousands of DIII-D shots and selection of relevant time intervals. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) separated the database into three clusters that represent classes of plasma shapes that are regularly used in DIII-D. The most important parameters for setting the pedestal structure were plasma current (I p ), toroidal magnetic field (B Φ ), neutral beam heating power (P NBI ) and shaping quantities. The Deep Jointly Informed Neural Networks (DJINN) algorithm was applied to identify suitable neural network (NN) architectures that appropriately capture the features of the pedestal database. Separate NNs were implemented for each pedestal parameter, and ensembling methods were used to improve the prediction accuracy and allowed estimation of the prediction uncertainty. The pedestal predictions of the test dataset lie within the measurement uncertainties of the pedestal parameters. The NN outperformed simple Linear Regression (LR) analysis, indicating non-linear dependencies in the pedestal structure. The presented achievements illustrate a promising path for future research, using feature extraction to infer experimental trends and thereby improve pedestal models as well as deploying NN for a fast pedestal prediction in DIII-D scenario development.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Design and Testing of a Prototype Eddy Current Actuated Valve for the ITER Shattered Pellet Injection System

Reliably mitigating disruptions is essential for ITER to meet its long-term operational research plan without damage to the in-vessel components. Currently, the shattered pellet injection (SPI) technique is the most effective radiator of thermal energy and has been chosen for the baseline disruption mitigation system (DMS) for ITER. The SPI process uses cryogenic temperatures to desublimate material into the barrel of a pipe gun forming a solid cylindrical pellet. Pellets for ITER will initially be hydrogen and hydrogen-neon mixtures. Once formed, pellets are dislodged and accelerated using high-pressure gas (40-60 bar) delivered by a fast-opening valve. The solenoid valves currently used for SPI experiments will not operate in an ITER environment due to the large background magnetic field. An ITER prototype fast-opening valve, called a flyer plate valve (FPV), has been designed and has undergone a wide range of testing. The FPV operates by pulsing current through a pancake coil that is closely coupled with a ``flyer plate.'' The flyer plate is an aluminum plate in which eddy currents are generated creating a repulsive force from the pancake coil. The force generated in the flyer plate rapidly lifts the valve tip off the seat and delivers a pulse of gas to the rear of the pellet, breaking it free from the barrel and accelerating the pellet downstream to its intended target. The design of the valve has been iterated on over the lifetime of this project, as the DMS for ITER shifted from massive gas injection (MGI) to SPI. The most recent design has been tested, and operational ranges have been mapped. The valve must survive 3000+ cycles in an ITER-like magnetic field. The principal functional requirement of this valve is to reliably dislodge and accelerate hydrogen (or H-Ne mixture) pellets into ITER. The valve was mated with an ITER SPI test stand and has been shown to be capable of launching pellets reliably. The valve and power supply design will be discussed in this article, along with the various testing setups used to determine the feasibility of this valve for use on ITER.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

A Non-Cooperative Game-Based Distributed Beam Scheduling Framework for 5G Millimeter-Wave Cellular Networks

Here, this paper studies the problem of distributed beam scheduling for 5G millimeter-Wave (mm-Wave) cellular networks where base stations (BSs) belonging to different operators share the same spectrum without centralized coordination among them. Our goal is to design efficient distributed scheduling algorithms to maximize the network utility, which is a function of the achieved throughput by the user equipment (UEs), subject to the average and instantaneous power consumption constraints of the BSs. We propose a Media Access Control (MAC) and a power allocation/adaptation mechanism utilizing the Lyapunov stochastic optimization framework and non-cooperative games. In particular, we first decompose the original utility maximization problem into two sub-optimization problems for each time frame, which are a convex optimization problem and a non-convex optimization problem, respectively. By formulating the distributed scheduling problem as a non-cooperative game where each BS is a player attempting to optimize its own utility, we provide a distributed solution to the non-convex sub-optimization problem via finding the Nash Equilibrium (NE) of the game whose weights are determined optimally by the Lyapunov optimization framework. Finally, we conduct simulation under various network settings to show the effectiveness of the proposed game-based beam scheduling algorithm in comparison to that of several reference schemes.

42 ENGINEERING↗

Tigers at a crossroads: Shedding light on the role of Bangladesh in the illegal trade of this iconic big cat

Abstract Unsustainable wildlife trade is a major threat to many species, but quantifying trade remains challenging, as seizure data provides an incomplete understanding. For this reason, integrating multiple types of information, including interviews with actors involved in trade, is crucial if we are to understand the problem better. Hence, in this study, we digitized Bangladesh Forest Department tiger seizure records to identify trade routes and interviewed 163 individuals involved in trafficking tigers through Bangladesh's air, sea and land ports, including poachers, smugglers, and traders. We identified six ports used to import tigers, 14 ports used for tiger export and three ports showing bi‐directional trade. Elite Bangladeshis were the most important consumer group, and tigers were sourced from populations in NE India, Myanmar and Bangladesh Sundarbans to supply domestic demand. Tiger products were exported to 14 countries, including seven G20 nations, with Bangladeshi expatriates as the consumer group in three countries (United Kingdom, Germany and Qatar). Rising economic development in Bangladesh over the last decade, combined with deep‐rooted cultural ties to tiger consumption, has led to a rise in domestic demand. Additionally, rapid growth in international transport links has increased smuggling and connected local traders with global markets, increasing the complexity of global trade. These findings suggest Bangladesh is poised to play a pivotal role in tiger conservation over the next decade, requiring strong national strategies to reduce trade opportunities, disrupt networks and weaken demand.

Uddin, Nasir↗