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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 397 records · Page 22
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2015

Dynamic Pattern Formation in Electron-Beam-Induced Etching [Emergent formation of dynamic topographic patterns in electron beam induced etching]

Here, we report highly ordered topographic patterns that form on the surface of diamond, span multiple length scales, and have a symmetry controlled by the precursor gas species used in electron-beam-induced etching (EBIE). The pattern formation dynamics reveals an etch rate anisotropy and an electron energy transfer pathway that is overlooked by existing EBIE models. Therefore, we, modify established theory such that it explains our results and remains universally applicable to EBIE. Furthermore, the patterns can be exploited in controlled wetting, optical structuring, and other emerging applications that require nano- and microscale surface texturing of a wide band-gap material.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2012

Engineering a Hyperthermophilic Archaeon for Temperature-Dependent Product Formation

Microorganisms growing near the boiling point have enormous biotechnological potential but only recently have molecular engineering tools become available for them. We have engineered the hyperthermophilic archaeon Pyrococcus furiosus, which grows optimally at 100 degrees C, to switch its end products of fermentation in a temperature-controlled fashion without the need for chemical inducers. The recombinant strain (LAC) expresses a gene (ldh) encoding lactate dehydrogenase from the moderately thermophilic Caldicellulosiruptor bescii (optimal growth temperature [T-opt] of 78 degrees C) controlled by a "cold shock" promoter that is upregulated when cells are transferred from 98 degrees C to 72 degrees C. At 98 degrees C, the LAC strain fermented sugar to produce acetate and hydrogen as end products, and lactate was not detected. When the LAC strain was grown at 72 degrees C, up to 3 mM lactate was produced instead. Expression of a gene from a moderately thermophilic bacterium in a hyperthermophilic archaeon at temperatures at which the hyperthermophile has low metabolic activity provides a new perspective to engineering microorganisms for bioproduct and biofuel formation. IMPORTANCE Extremely thermostable enzymes from microorganisms that grow near or above the boiling point of water are already used in biotechnology. However, the use of hyperthermophilic microorganisms themselves for biotechnological applications has been limited by the lack of their genetic accessibility. Recently, a genetic system for Pyrococcus furiosus, which grows optimally near 100 degrees C, was developed in our laboratory. In this study, we present the first heterologous protein expression system for a microorganism that grows optimally at 100 degrees C, a first step towards the potential expression of genes involved in biomass degradation or biofuel production in hyperthermophiles. Moreover, we developed the first system for specific gene induction in P. furiosus. As the cold shock promoter for protein expression used in this study is activated at suboptimal growth temperatures of P. furiosus, it is a powerful genetic tool for protein expression with minimal interference of the host's metabolism and without the need for chemical inducers.

Basen, M↗
DOE OSTI2018

Pattern formation during electrochemical and liquid metal dealloying

Dealloying has evolved from a problematic corrosion process to a versatile tool for scalable fabrication of nanostructured metals. While the original, and majority of, work in the area has focused on electrochemical dealloying, a powerful variation of dealloying—liquid metal dealloying—has recently gained popularity. This process relies on a melt to carry out selective dissolution, replacing the traditional electrolyte solution. While electrolytes and molten metals are both suitable dealloying media, they can lead to very different morphologies. In this article, we compare and contrast what is known about the microscale physics and chemistry controlling microstructural evolution in electrochemical and liquid metal dealloying. Here, we conclude that the core phenomenology of porosity evolution—a competition between dissolution and interface diffusion—is similar in both dealloying processes, but that the relative magnitudes of these two processes control interfacial pattern formation.

McCue, Ian↗
DOE OSTI2016

Insights into hydrocarbon chain and aromatic ring formation in the interstellar medium: computational study of the isomers of C{sub 4}H{sub 3}{sup +} C{sub 6}H{sub 3}{sup +} and C{sub 6}H{sub 5}{sup +} and their formation pathways

Small hydrocarbons such as acetylene is present in circumstellar envelopes of carbon-rich stars, but the processes that yield larger molecules, and eventually polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), remain poorly understood. To gain additional insight into the early steps of such processes, electronic structure calculations were performed on the potential energy surfaces of C{sub 4}H{sub 3}{sup +}, C{sub 6}H{sub 3}{sup +} and C{sub 6}H{sub 5}{sup +}. The results establish reactive pathways from acetylene and its ion to formation of the first aromatic ring. We characterize the stable isomers, their spectroscopic properties, and many of the transition structures that represent barriers to isomerization. The pathways to stabilized C{sub 4}H{sub 3}{sup +} and C{sub 6}H{sub 3}{sup +} are most likely to arise from unimolecular decomposition of hot C{sub 4}H{sub 4}{sup +} and C{sub 6}H{sub 4}{sup +} by H atom elimination. By contrast, we found an ion-molecule pathway to C{sub 6}H{sub 5}{sup +} to be very stable to fragmentation and elimination reactions even without collisional stabilization. This aromatic species is a good nucleation center for the growth of larger PAHs in interstellar conditions.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2017

Formation of Globular Clusters with Internal Abundance Spreads in r -Process Elements: Strong Evidence for Prolonged Star Formation

Several globular clusters (GCs) in the Galaxy are observed to show internal abundance spreads in r -process elements (e.g., Eu). We propose a new scenario that explains the origin of these GCs (e.g., M5 and M15). In this scenario, stars with no/little abundance variations first form from a massive molecular cloud (MC). After all of the remaining gas of the MC is expelled by numerous supernovae, gas ejected from asymptotic giant branch stars can be accumulated in the central region of the GC to form a high-density intracluster medium (ICM). Merging of neutron stars then occurs to eject r -process elements, which can be efficiently trapped in and subsequently mixed with the ICM. New stars formed from the ICM can have r -process abundances that are quite different from those of earlier generations of stars within the GC. This scenario can explain both (i) why r -process elements can be trapped within GCs and (ii) why GCs with internal abundance spreads in r -process elements do not show [Fe/H] spreads. Our model shows (i) that a large fraction of Eu-rich stars can be seen in Na-enhanced stellar populations of GCs, as observed in M15, and (ii) why most of the Galactic GCs do not exhibit such internal abundance spreads. Our model demonstrates that the observed internal spreads of r -process elements in GCs provide strong evidence for prolonged star formation (∼10{sup 8} yr).

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2017

The Formation of IRIS Diagnostics. IX. The Formation of the C i 135.58 NM Line in the Solar Atmosphere

The C i 135.58 nm line is located in the wavelength range of NASA’s Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph ( IRIS ) small explorer mission. We study the formation and diagnostic potential of this line by means of non local-thermodynamic-equilibrium modeling, employing both 1D and 3D radiation-magnetohydrodynamic models. The C i/C ii ionization balance is strongly influenced by photoionization by Ly α emission. The emission in the C i 135.58 nm line is dominated by a recombination cascade and the line forming region is optically thick. The Doppler shift of the line correlates strongly with the vertical velocity in its line forming region, which is typically located at 1.5 Mm height. With IRIS , the C i 135.58 nm line is usually observed together with the O i 135.56 nm line, and from the Doppler shift of both lines, we obtain the velocity difference between the line forming regions of the two lines. From the ratio of the C i/O i line core intensity, we can determine the distance between the C i and the O i forming layers. Combined with the velocity difference, the velocity gradient at mid-chromospheric heights can be derived. The C i/O i total intensity line ratio is correlated with the inverse of the electron density in the mid-chromosphere. We conclude that the C i 135.58 nm line is an excellent probe of the middle chromosphere by itself, and together with the O i 135.56 nm line the two lines provide even more information, which complements other powerful chromospheric diagnostics of IRIS such as the Mg ii h and k lines and the C ii lines around 133.5 nm.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS1981

The modification stage of basin formation - Conditions of ring formation

The impact cratering process may be divided into three stages, including a short high pressure phase of initial contact between the projectile and target, a longer cratering flow phase during which material is both ejected and displaced to form the transient crater, and a still longer modification phase during which the transient crater is modified into the final observed form. The present investigation is concerned with the nature of the modification stage as constrained by the initial boundary condition which comprises the transient crater and its surroundings, and the final boundary condition which comprises the structure of observed craters and basins. A brief description is provided of an interpretation of basin ring structure based on geophysical, geological, and dimensional analysis of craters and basins on the moon, Mercury, and Mars, on structural observations of terrestrial impact and explosion craters, and on an empirical crater restoration model. A scenario of basin formation is constructed, and relations of this scenario to observed morphology are discussed.

Croft, S. K.↗
NASA NTRS1985

Formation of mesosiderites by low-velocity impacts as a natural consequence of planet formation

It is argued here that, during the period of planet formation, mesosiderites originated by the low-velocity collisions of large metallic core fragments with the surface of a differentiated asteroid-size body. Relative velocities of the asteroids native to this region were low because it was distant from massive protoplanets. However, a few differentiated asteroids were destroyed by high-velocity collisions with interlopers perturbed by protoplanets into high eccentric orbits. These collisions reduced mantles and crusts to small silicate fragments, but left cores in the form of large, durable metal fragments. Mesosiderite-like pyroxenite-basalt-metal mixtures were formed when large core fragments accreted at low velocities to the regolith of an intact asteroid. Most of the olivine in mesosiderite and howardite breccias are attributed here to the mantles of the disrupted parent bodies. The low olivine contents indicate that the amount of debris accreted from disrupted asteroids was small relative to the volumes of the regoliths.

Wasson, J. T.↗
NASA NTRS1989

Protostellar formation in rotating interstellar clouds. VIII - Inner core formation

The results are presented of a variety of spherically symmetric one-dimensional (1D) calculations intended to determine the robustness of the dynamical hiccup phenomenon in protostellar cores. The 1D models show that the phenomenon is relatively insensitive to changes in the equations of state, numerical resolution, initial density and temperature, and the radiative transfer approximation. In 1D, the hiccup results in an explosive destruction of the entire inner protostellar core. Inner core formation is studied with a sequence of three-dimensional models which show that rapid inner core rotation stabilizes the hiccup instability. Instead, the inner core becomes quite flat and undergoes a cycle of binary fragmentation, binary decay into a single object surrounded by a bar, breakup of the bar into a binary, etc. When lesser amounts of rotation are involved, the inner core does hiccup somewhat, but mass is ejected in only a few directions, leading to several broad streams of ejecta.

Boss, Alan P.↗
NASA NTRS2002

Magnetite Formation from Thermal Decomposition of Siderite: Implications for Inorganic Magnetite Formation in Martian Meteorite ALH84001

A biogenic mechanism for formation of a subpopulation magnetite in Martian meteorite ALH84001 has been suggested [McKay et al., 1996; Thomas-Keprta, et al., 2000]. We are developing experimental evidence for an alternating working hypothesis, that the subpopulation was produced inorganically by the thermal decomposition of siderite [Golden et al., 2000].

Morris, RIchard V.↗
DOE OSTI2018

Formation of β-NiAl Phase During Casting of a Ni-Based Superalloy

A high-refractory Ni-based superalloy prototype was melted on a research scale while simulating industry practices. Ingots were vacuum induction melted and subjected to a computationally optimized homogenization heat treatment prior to fabrication which consisted of forging and hot rolling. Failure of one of the ingots at the early stage of the forging process was attributed to the precipitation of the β-NiAl phase during melting which stabilized the eutectic constituent.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗