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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 451 records · Page 25
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2016

Aura OMI observations of regional SO2 and NO2 pollution changes from 2005 to 2015

The Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) onboard NASA's Aura satellite has been providing global observations of the ozone layer and key atmospheric pollutant gases, such as nitrogen dioxide (NO2/ and sulfur dioxide (SO2/, since October 2004. The data products from the same instrument provide consistent spatial and temporal coverage and permit the study of anthropogenic and natural emissions on local-to-global scales. In this paper, we examine changes in SO2 and NO2 over some of the world's most polluted industrialized regions during the first decade of OMI observations. In terms of regional pollution changes, we see both upward and downward trends, sometimes in opposite directions for NO2 and SO2, for different study areas. The trends are, for the most part, associated with economic and/or technological changes in energy use, as well as regional regulatory policies. Over the eastern US, both NO2 and SO2 levels decreased dramatically from 2005 to 2015, by more than 40 and 80 %, respectively, as a result of both technological improvements and stricter regulations of emissions. OMI confirmed large reductions in SO2 over eastern Europe's largest coal-fired power plants after installation of flue gas desulfurization devices. The North China Plain has the world's most severe SO2 pollution, but a decreasing trend has been observed since 2011, with about a 50% reduction in 2012- 2015, due to an economic slowdown and government efforts to restrain emissions from the power and industrial sectors. In contrast, India's SO2 and NO2 levels from coal power plants and smelters are growing at a fast pace, increasing by more than 100 and 50 %, respectively, from 2005 to 2015. Several SO2 hot spots observed over the Persian Gulf are probably related to oil and gas operations and indicate a possible underestimation of emissions from these sources in bottom-up emission inventories. Overall, OMI observations have proved valuable in documenting rapid changes in air quality over different parts of the world during last decade. The baseline established during the first 11 years of OMI is indispensable for the interpretation of air quality measurements from current and future satellite atmospheric composition missions.

Pollution trends↗
NASA NTRS1999

Integrated Avionics System (IAS), Integrating 3-D Technology On A Spacecraft Panel

As spacecraft designs converge toward miniaturization, and with the volumetric and mass challenges placed on avionics, programs will continue to advance the "state of the art" in spacecraft system development with new challenges to reduce power, mass and volume. Traditionally, the trend is to focus on high-density 3-D packaging technologies. Industry has made significant progress in 3-D technologies, and other related internal and external interconnection schemes. Although new technologies have improved packaging densities, a system packaging architecture is required that not only reduces spacecraft volume and mass budgets, but increase integration efficiencies, provide modularity and flexibility to accommodate multiple missions while maintaining a low recurring cost. With these challenges in mind, a novel system packaging approach incorporates solutions that provide broader environmental applications, more flexible system interconnectivity, scalability, and simplified assembly test and integration schemes. The Integrated Avionics System (IAS) provides for a low-mass, modular distributed or centralized packaging architecture which combines ridged-flex technologies, high-density COTS hardware and a new 3-D mechanical packaging approach, Horizontal Mounted Cube (HMC). This paper will describe the fundamental elements of the IAS, HMC hardware design, system integration and environmental test results.

Hunter, Don J.↗
DOE OSTI2022

Shared Mobility Data Availability and Usage Trends

In this report, we summarize data availability of new shared mobility technologies by mobility type and region and analyze how shared mobility usage varies by time and by demographic factors in the United States. The shared mobility technologies include ridehailing from transportation network companies (TNC), bikeshare, and scooter share. There is a wide range in shared mobility usage per capita across the country, even within urban areas. We observe that there was steady growth of new shared mobility usage from 2015 to early 2020, before COVID-19 reduced overall ridership. An analysis focused on Chicago shows that despite the availability of good public transportation, high usage of new shared mobility modes is centered in high income communities, especially by households who own less vehicles. However, we find that TNC is used for first-mile and last-mile in lower income communities. Analysis on the bikeshare usage also shows that household income is shown to not be a statistically significant factor when accounting for other factors including employment density, population density, percentage of college graduates, and bike-lane proximity.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
NASA NTRS1974

Project plan hydrogen energy systems technology. Phase 1: Hydrogen energy systems technology study

An overview of the potential need for hydrogen as a source of energy in the future was presented in order to identify and define the technology requirements for the most promising approaches to meet that need. The following study objectives were discussed: (1) determination of the future demand for hydrogen, based on current trends and anticipated new uses, (2) identification of the critical research and technology advances required to meet this need considering, to the extent possible, raw material limitations, economics, and environmental effects, and (3) definition and recommendation of the scope and space of a National Hydrogen Energy Systems Technology Program and outline of a Program Development Plan.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS1983

Current trends and research challenges in land remote sensing

The use of space technology to conduct repetitive global surveys of terrestrial surface conditions is reviewed. The state-of-the-art is determined by the measurement capabilities of orbital sensor systems, the maneuvering and data transmission capabilities of orbital platforms, and the sophistication of the user community. Introduction of the Landsat Thematic Mapper and SPOT sensor systems and operational use of the Space Shuttle are discussed. Research challenges of the 1980's are related to the removal of atmospheric and topographic effects in remotely sensed imagery, the extraction of information from high dimensionality data sets, and the ability to conduct meaningful ground truth surveys to support the analysis and interpretation of remotely sensed data.

Settle, M.↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Trends in Small Satellite Presentations from 2017-2019

As the small satellite community expands and new technologies emerge, it is important to understand and interpret these changes over time. In doing so, we observe progress and aid future development within the field. During the summer of 2020 we compiled for assessment purposes, archived presentation data for years 2017-2019 from three primary sources: the CubeSat Developers Workshop, Interplanetary Small Satellite Conference, and the Small Satellite Conference. A few examples of the information we recorded and compiled were presenter names and affiliations, presentation topic, and mission progress status. Ultimately, we reviewed roughly 600 presentations between the three conferences and the data obtained therein form the basis of our trend assessment. The paper focuses on trends interpreted through the assessment of key elements available in the content of each presentation to include: SmallSat mission developers, subsystem developments and the expanded scope for small satellite destinations. Data was generalized using various forms of analysis depending on the type of information being assessed. In the end, we achieved our goal of reducing the content to its key points and major takeaways from the conference proceedings. In this presentation, the observed trends in data and our findings will be discussed. First, we will cover changes in presentation topics by categorizing them as either: science, technology, science/technology, or other. Our next topic will be about the agencies and organizations at the forefront of small satellite research and development. The following section will explain trends in subsystem developments for telecommunications, propulsion, power, and thermal management. Further discussion will highlight how the scope of interplanetary spaceflight has expanded since 2017 as new small spacecraft missions venture beyond low-Earth orbit into deep space exploration. And finally, we will observe what information was lacking in archived presentations which included but not limited to: mission’s funding source, presentation focus area, and software used.

Small Satellite↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Trends in Small Satellite Presentations from 2017 - 2019

As the small satellite community expands and new technologies emerge, it is important to understand and interpret these changes over time. In doing so, we observe progress and aid future development within the field. During the summer of 2020 we compiled for assessment purposes, archived presentation data for years 2017-2019 from three primary sources: the CubeSat Developers Workshop, Interplanetary Small Satellite Conference, and the Small Satellite Conference. A few examples of the information we recorded and compiled were presenter names and affiliations, presentation topic, and mission progress status. Ultimately, we reviewed roughly 600 presentations between the three conferences and the data obtained therein form the basis of our trend assessment. The paper focuses on trends interpreted through the assessment of key elements available in the content of each presentation to include: SmallSat mission developers, subsystem developments and the expanded scope for small satellite destinations. Data was generalized using various forms of analysis depending on the type of information being assessed. In the end, we achieved our goal of reducing the content to its key points and major takeaways from the conference proceedings. In this presentation, the observed trends in data and our findings will be discussed. First, we will cover changes in presentation topics by categorizing them as either: science, technology, science/technology, or other. Our next topic will be about the agencies and organizations at the forefront of small satellite research and development. The following section will explain trends in subsystem developments for telecommunications, propulsion, power, and thermal management. Further discussion will highlight how the scope of interplanetary spaceflight has expanded since 2017 as new small spacecraft missions venture beyond low-Earth orbit into deep space exploration. And finally, we will observe what information was lacking in archived presentations which included but not limited to: mission’s funding source, presentation focus area, and software used.

Small Satellites↗
NASA NTRS2014

Introduction

The 2014 SPIE Sensing Technologies for Global Health, Military Medicine and Environmental Monitoring conference embraced a wealth of state-of-the-art information in basic and applied science. This event covered the latest developments in the following areas: Non-invasive Disease Diagnostics for Global Health- This opening series of two consecutive sessions focused on oral biospecimen based rapid assays and point-of-care devices for the detection of pathogens causing infectious diseases, biomarkers for cancer, and analytes for noncommunicable diseases such as diabetes. They also covered presentations on the human proteasome and microbiome with linkage to human diseases and diagnostic approaches. The sessions were built on the past experience and expertise of the National Institutes of Health, National Institutes of Dental and Craniofacial Research. Military Medicine I: Traumatic Brain Injury and PTSD-This assembly covered oral-biomarker based diagnostics for brain damage and TBI as well as prevention and rehabilitation technologies. Neurorehabilitation and noninvasive neuromodulation were also discussed as critical approaches for effective functioning. Military Medicine II: Physiology and Medicine of Extreme Environments and Spaceflight-This scientific segment showcased physiological, pharmacological and diagnostic sensing methodologies during spaceflight per the National Aeronautics and Space Administration as well as military-relevant toxicans and future sensing trends per the Department of Defense. It also included latest technologies to determine hydration status in warfighters, eye surgery using the latest laser technologies, and sensing tools for blood analysis.  Sensing Technologies for Disease Diagnostics and Environmental Monitoring-This closing series of two consecutive sessions provided the venues to learn and discuss more results on the next generation of diagnostic tools and field technologies for diseases, including biomarker detection by digital imaging, multiplex technologies, capillary electrophoresis and molecular platforms serving as labs-on-chips. This conference allowed cross-fertilization of ideas, projects and collaborative work by a multidisciplinary audience of national and international colleagues from the academia, industry and federal government: The National Institutes of Health, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and the Department of Defense.

Wotring, Virginia E.↗
NASA NTRS2001

Automating Trend Analysis for Spacecraft Constellations

Spacecraft trend analysis is a vital mission operations function performed by satellite controllers and engineers, who perform detailed analyses of engineering telemetry data to diagnose subsystem faults and to detect trends that may potentially lead to degraded subsystem performance or failure in the future. It is this latter function that is of greatest importance, for careful trending can often predict or detect events that may lead to a spacecraft's entry into safe-hold. Early prediction and detection of such events could result in the avoidance of, or rapid return to service from, spacecraft safing, which not only results in reduced recovery costs but also in a higher overall level of service for the satellite system. Contemporary spacecraft trending activities are manually intensive and are primarily performed diagnostically after a fault occurs, rather than proactively to predict its occurrence. They also tend to rely on information systems and software that are oudated when compared to current technologies. When coupled with the fact that flight operations teams often have limited resources, proactive trending opportunities are limited, and detailed trend analysis is often reserved for critical responses to safe holds or other on-orbit events such as maneuvers. While the contemporary trend analysis approach has sufficed for current single-spacecraft operations, it will be unfeasible for NASA's planned and proposed space science constellations. Missions such as the Dynamics, Reconnection and Configuration Observatory (DRACO), for example, are planning to launch as many as 100 'nanospacecraft' to form a homogenous constellation. A simple extrapolation of resources and manpower based on single-spacecraft operations suggests that trending for such a large spacecraft fleet will be unmanageable, unwieldy, and cost-prohibitive. It is therefore imperative that an approach to automating the spacecraft trend analysis function be studied, developed, and applied to missions such as DRACO with the intent that mission operations costs be significantly reduced. The goal of the Constellation Spacecraft Trend Analysis Toolkit (CSTAT) project is to serve as the pathfinder for a fully automated trending system to support spacecraft constellations. The development approach to be taken is evolutionary. In the first year of the project, the intent is to significantly advance the state of the art in current trending systems through improved functionality and increased automation. In the second year, the intent is to add an expert system shell, likely through the adaptation of an existing commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) or government-off-the-shelf (GOTS) tool to implement some level of the trending intelligence that humans currently provide in manual operations. In the third year, the intent is to infuse the resulting technology into a near-term constellation or formation-flying mission to test it and gain experience in automated trending. The lessons learned from the real missions operations experience will then be used to improve the system, and to ultimately incorporate it into a fully autonomous, closed-loop mission operations system that is truly capable of supporting large constellations. In this paper, the process of automating trend analysis for spacecraft constellations will be addressed. First, the results of a survey on automation in spacecraft mission operations in general, and in trending systems in particular will be presented to provide an overview of the current state of the art. Next, a rule-based model for implementing intelligent spacecraft subsystem trending will be then presented, followed by a survey of existing COTS/GOTS tools that could be adapted for implementing such a model. The baseline design and architecture of the CSTAT system will be presented. Finally, some results obtained from initial software tests and demonstrations will be presented.

Davis, George↗
DOE OSTI2022

Design and Implementation of Smart Buildings: A Review of Current Research Trend

The building sector is one of the largest contributors to the world’s total energy use and greenhouse gas emissions. Advancements in building energy technologies have played a critical role in enhancing the energy sustainability of the built environment. Extensive research and new techniques in energy and environmental systems for buildings have recently emerged to address the global challenges. This study reviews existing articles in the literature, mostly since 2000, to explore technological advancement in building energy and environmental systems that can be applied to smart homes and buildings. This review study focuses on an overview of the design and implementation of energy-related smart building technologies, including energy management systems, renewable energy applications, and current advanced smart technologies for optimal function and energy-efficient performance. To review the advancement in building energy-related technologies, a systematic review process is adopted based on available published reviews and research types of articles. Review-type articles are first assessed to explore the current literature on the relevant keywords and to capture major research scopes. Research-type papers are then examined to investigate associated keywords and work scopes, including objectives, focuses, limitations, and future needs. Throughout the comprehensive literature review, this study identifies various techniques of smart home/building applications that have provided detailed solutions or guidelines in different applications to enhance the quality of people’s daily activities and the sustainability of the built environmental system. This paper shows trends in human activities and technology advancements in digital solutions with energy management systems and practical designs. Understanding the overall energy flow between a building and its environmentally connected systems is also important for future buildings and community levels. This paper assists in understanding the pathway toward future smart homes/buildings and their technologies for researchers in related research fields.

renewable system integration↗
NASA NTRS1984

Unsteady flow in turbomachinery: An overview

The importance of understanding and modeling the unsteady flow phenomena in turbomachinery is discussed. Historical events in the application and development of gas turbines for aircraft propulsion are traced. Technology advancements over the years are highlighted with focus on the compression system components. Trends in compressor research within the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA)/National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) are noted. The impact of technology advancements on the increased occurrences of unsteady flow related problems in advanced engine development programs is discussed. The impact of the new and more demanding requirements being imposed on the propulsion system to meet advanced aircraft mission needs are also noted. Brief discussions on the present day understanding and modeling capability of the unsteady flow phenomena are presented to include discussions on rotating stall, surge, flutter, forced response and noise generation.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS1986

Aircraft research and development trends in the US and USSR

Research and development related to aircraft has shown significant progress in both the U.S. and the USSR. In some cases, the indications are that technological advances have resulted in new aircraft concepts and, in other cases, there are indications of particular national needs or objectives that have driven the required research and development to meet the need. The progression of aircraft development tends to reflect factors other than technology such as the political atmosphere, the world environment, and other contending national objectives. The trends in aircraft research and development in the U.S. and USSR will be traced from the early 1900's and, in a time-frame manner, will be related to other influencing factors.

Spearman, M. L.↗
DOE OSTI2024

Computing in AEC Education: Hindsight, Insight, and Foresight

In the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) fields, computing and information technologies play an increasingly prevalent and complex role in day-to-day work. Consequently, educators must adjust and, in many cases, reimagine curricula and teaching methodologies to adapt to the changing landscape. Past research efforts led by the ASCE Computing Division Education Committee, formerly called the Task Committee on Computing Education of the Technical Council on Computing and Information Technology (TCCIT), have regularly surveyed AEC educators to understand computing trends in AEC curricula, with the latest survey taking place nearly a decade ago. This work presents the results of an updated survey that used this prior work as a springboard, providing timely insights into the computing skills and curricular barriers faced by AEC educators today. The results showed that the technical skills used by students have evolved, but the barriers faced in incorporating new skills into curricula have remained largely the same. In addition to comparisons with prior surveys, this work presents the results of an expanded, open-ended portion of the survey that explores educator perspectives on the future of the AEC workforce in a broader lens than used in previous surveys. Thematic analysis of these open-ended responses revealed themes that were common among responses and provided organization to the findings. For example, educators provided their vision of what competencies the future AEC workforce would need, which were thematically organized into a continuum based on the level of interaction between humans and technology. These results suggest an increasingly complex and evolving relationship between the AEC workforce and emerging technology, highlighting the need for educators to encourage the development of technological adaptability and agility. Overall, this work provides a systematic comparison of current educational practices in AEC computing with a decade ago to illustrate educational shifts and adds a prediction of AEC trends from experts in AEC education, providing crucial discussion of curricular transformations that will better position students for success in the workforce.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2022

Intersections of Disadvantaged Communities and Renewable Energy Potential: Data Set and Analysis to Inform Equitable Investment Prioritization in the United States

Renewable energy development can bolster local economies through job creation, local tax revenues, and reduced energy costs; however, communities most in need of economic development and employment opportunities often see lower levels of renewable energy deployment. We sought to identify areas where disadvantaged community indicators and high generation potential from cost-effective renewable energy opportunities intersect and deployment could lead to economic development and job creation. This presentation will highlight several of our findings. This research and the associated county-level data set are intended to inform national- and state-level energy-related assistance programs, economic development efforts, and infrastructure programs seeking to prioritize investments in disadvantaged communities.

community energy planning↗
DOE OSTI2020

Cost of saving natural gas through efficiency programs funded by utility customers: 2012–2017

This study estimates the cost of saving a therm of natural gas from energy efficiency programs funded by utility customers during the period 2012 to 2017. Berkeley Lab researchers compiled and analyzed efficiency program data reported by investor-owned utilities and other program administrators in a dozen states representative of the four U.S. Census regions — Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma, Rhode Island and Utah. Depending on the year, the dataset accounts for about 50 percent to 70 percent of annual national spending on natural gas efficiency programs. The estimated cost of saving natural gas during the study period is $0.40 per therm. The analysis also includes estimates of the program administrator cost of saved energy for three core sectors for natural gas: commercial and industrial, residential, and low-income households. It aggregates these sectors to provide regional and national values. Our metrics include savings-weighted averages, unweighted medians, and interquartile ranges (25th and 75th percentiles) of the levelized program administrator cost of saving gas, in constant 2017 dollars. In addition, the study analyzes cost trends during the study period, finding that average program costs trended downward. The U.S. Department of Energy’s Building Technologies Office supported this work.

03 NATURAL GAS↗
NASA NTRS1981

Performance of large inert-gas thrusters

The performance of large inert-gas thrusters is predicted based on present knowledge of ion optics performance and discharge chamber operation. Calculated performance data are given for argon and xenon propellants. The effect of varying propellant utilization and thruster diameter is discussed and the optimum choice of beam diameter for very large systems is indicated for low, intermediate, and high specific impulses. Optimum discharge chamber depths are also specified. Although detailed design considerations may modify the predictions, the general trends indicated should still be useful for directing future technology efforts and evaluating mission studies involving large thrusters.

Kaufman, H. R.↗