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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 487 records · Page 27
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1990

Theoretical hypervelocity ballistic limit for single or double plates using nonlinear modal analysis

The original research on the use on nonlinear vibration technique to solve for the hypervelocity ballistic limit for double plates is examined. Such structure is commonly found in typical Space Station design where the incoming space or man-made debris would be fragmented upon hitting the outer plate (shield) and the subsequent impact on the main wall would result in a much reduced damge of the space station or spacecraft. The existing few theoretical impact equations do not agree well with each other. The existing computer code bumper used at NASA-Johnson Space Center appears to predict an unconservative ballistic limit when compared with experimental data where the velocity ranges from 3 km/s to 8 km/s. Such unconservative prediction is unacceptable from a practical safe design point of view. The bumper code is based on Wilkinson's (1968) paper and his equations have not been improved nor modified even though they are viewed with suspicion due to lack of agreement with experiments. To make matters worse, there is not another theory which is better than Wilkinson's equation and the designers are forced to use purely empirical Nysmith (1969) or semiempirical equations developed by Cour-Palais in 1969. The Cour-Palais equations were later modified empirically in 1989. The purpose of the present investigation is to examine the many assumptions of the Wilkinson equation. An attempt is made to present design charts based on the modified-Wilkinson equation so that the designer can get a feel of the ranges of the parameters which are of interest and discard a huge range of parameters, thus, significantly reducing the number of test shots required. The analysis is based on a solution of the governing nonlinear differential equations for a plate, assuming axisymmetric behavior using polar coordinates.

Hui, David↗
NASA NTRS1994

High speed civil transport: Sonic boom softening and aerodynamic optimization

An improvement in sonic boom extrapolation techniques has been the desire of aerospace designers for years. This is because the linear acoustic theory developed in the 60's is incapable of predicting the nonlinear phenomenon of shock wave propagation. On the other hand, CFD techniques are too computationally expensive to employ on sonic boom problems. Therefore, this research focused on the development of a fast and accurate sonic boom extrapolation method that solves the Euler equations for axisymmetric flow. This new technique has brought the sonic boom extrapolation techniques up to the standards of the 90's. Parallel computing is a fast growing subject in the field of computer science because of its promising speed. A new optimizer (IIOWA) for the parallel computing environment has been developed and tested for aerodynamic drag minimization. This is a promising method for CFD optimization making use of the computational resources of workstations, which unlike supercomputers can spend most of their time idle. Finally, the OAW concept is attractive because of its overall theoretical performance. In order to fully understand the concept, a wind-tunnel model was built and is currently being tested at NASA Ames Research Center. The CFD calculations performed under this cooperative agreement helped to identify the problem of the flow separation, and also aided the design by optimizing the wing deflection for roll trim.

Cheung, Samson↗
NASA NTRS1973

Theoretical and experimental investigations of collective microwave phenomena in solids

Methods of generating microwave shear waves efficiently were studied. A new technique of mode conversion from a longitudinal wave to a shear wave was investigated and virtually 100% conversion efficiency could be obtained. Several aspects of Gunn oscillators were studied. One involved the detailed study of domains in Gunn oscillators using long samples of bulk gallium arsenide. Several new techniques were devised for measuring the properties of the domains. A fundamental theory of the efficiency of a Gunn oscillator was worked out. A computer program was devised to study the transient effect of domains passing through Gunn diodes. Some of the first planar epitaxial Gunn oscillators were made using liquid epitaxial material grown by liquid phase techniques on semi-insulating substrate. A new theory which predicted the properties of RF signals propagating in a thin film layer of GaAs was developed. The theory of the operation of a traveling wave amplifier is described.

Kino, G. S.↗
NASA NTRS1993

The Effects of Gravity on Wrinkled Laminar Flames

The effects of gravity are significant to the dynamics of idealized unconfined open premixed flames. Moderate to low turbulence Reynolds number flames, i.e., wrinkled laminar flames, of various unconfined geometries have been used extensively for investigating fundamental processes of turbulent flame propagation and to validate theoretical models. Without the wall constraints, the flames are free to expand and interact with surrounding ambient air. The flow field in which the flame exists is determined by a coupling of burner geometry, flame orientation and the gravity field. These complex interactions raise serious questions regarding the validity of comparing the experimental data of open flames with current theoretical and numerical models that do not include the effects of gravity nor effects of the larger aerodynamic flowfield. Therefore, studies of wrinkled laminar flame in microgravity are needed for a better understanding of the role of gravity on flame characteristics such as the orientation, mean aerodynamics stretch, flame wrinkle size and burning rate. Our approach to characterize and quantify turbulent flame structures under microgravity is to exploit qualitative and quantitative flow visualization techniques coupled with video recording and computer controlled image analysis technologies. The experiments will be carried out in the 2.2 second drop tower at the NASA Lewis Research Center. The longest time scales of typical wrinkled laminar flames in the geometries considered here are in the order of 10 msec. Hence, the duration of the drop is sufficient to obtain the amount of statistical data necessary for characterize turbulent flame structures.

Kostiuk, Larry W.↗
NASA NTRS1994

The Algorithm Selection Problem

Work on NP-hard problems has shown that many instances of these theoretically computationally difficult problems are quite easy. The field has also shown that choosing the right algorithm for the problem can have a profound effect on the time needed to find a solution. However, to date there has been little work showing how to select the right algorithm for solving any particular problem. The paper refers to this as the algorithm selection problem. It describes some of the aspects that make this problem difficult, as well as proposes a technique for addressing it.

Minton, Steve↗
NASA NTRS2002

Micromechanics Modeling of Fracture in Nanocrystalline Metals

Nanocrystalline metals have very high theoretical strength, but suffer from a lack of ductility and toughness. Therefore, it is critical to understand the mechanisms of deformation and fracture of these materials before their full potential can be achieved. Because classical fracture mechanics is based on the comparison of computed fracture parameters, such as stress intlmsity factors, to their empirically determined critical values, it does not adequately describe the fundamental physics of fracture required to predict the behavior of nanocrystalline metals. Thus, micromechanics-based techniques must be considered to quanti@ the physical processes of deformation and fracture within nanocrystalline metals. This paper discusses hndamental physicsbased modeling strategies that may be useful for the prediction Iof deformation, crack formation and crack growth within nanocrystalline metals.

Glaessgen, E. H.↗
DOE OSTI2022

Machine‐Learning Spectral Indicators of Topology

Abstract Topological materials discovery has emerged as an important frontier in condensed matter physics. While theoretical classification frameworks have been used to identify thousands of candidate topological materials, experimental determination of materials’ topology often poses significant technical challenges. X‐ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) is a widely used materials characterization technique sensitive to atoms’ local symmetry and chemical bonding, which are intimately linked to band topology by the theory of topological quantum chemistry (TQC). Moreover, as a local structural probe, XAS is known to have high quantitative agreement between experiment and calculation, suggesting that insights from computational spectra can effectively inform experiments. In this work, computed X‐ray absorption near‐edge structure (XANES) spectra of more than 10 000 inorganic materials to train a neural network (NN) classifier that predicts topological class directly from XANES signatures, achieving F 1 scores of 89% and 93% for topological and trivial classes, respectively is leveraged. Given the simplicity of the XAS setup and its compatibility with multimodal sample environments, the proposed machine‐learning‐augmented XAS topological indicator has the potential to discover broader categories of topological materials, such as non‐cleavable compounds and amorphous materials, and may further inform field‐driven phenomena in situ, such as magnetic field‐driven topological phase transitions.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
NASA NTRS1975

Douglas Experience in Flight Flutter Testing

Douglas Aircraft Company experience in flight flutter testing is reviewed briefly, with comments on state-of-the-art excitation and instrumentation techniques used up to the present time. The limitations of previous techniques are discussed with emphasis on the problem of: (1) establishing a flutter margin of safety for predicted marginal flutter modes; (2) resolving instances of flutter not predicted by theoretical calculations in advance; and (3) delaying the airplane demonstration by time consumed in acquisition and reduction of flutter data. Current Douglas philosophy in flight flutter testing is presented and a description given of steady-state vane excitation system development, automatic data handling system, and the potential application of automatic computing methods for increasing flutter data yield.

Philbrick, J.↗
NASA NTRS1979

Numerical method for predicting flow characteristics and performance of nonaxisymmetric nozzles, theory

The theoretical foundation and formulation of a numerical method for predicting the viscous flowfield in and about isolated three dimensional nozzles of geometrically complex configuration are presented. High Reynolds number turbulent flows are of primary interest for any combination of subsonic, transonic, and supersonic flow conditions inside or outside the nozzle. An alternating-direction implicit (ADI) numerical technique is employed to integrate the unsteady Navier-Stokes equations until an asymptotic steady-state solution is reached. Boundary conditions are computed with an implicit technique compatible with the ADI technique employed at interior points of the flow region. The equations are formulated and solved in a boundary-conforming curvilinear coordinate system. The curvilinear coordinate system and computational grid is generated numerically as the solution to an elliptic boundary value problem. A method is developed that automatically adjusts the elliptic system so that the interior grid spacing is controlled directly by the a priori selection of the grid spacing on the boundaries of the flow region.

Thomas, P. D.↗
NASA NTRS1957

On panel flutter and divergence of infinitely long unstiffened and ring-stiffened thin-walled circular cylinders

A preliminary theoretical investigation of the panel flutter and divergence of infinitely long, unstiffened and ring-stiffened thin-walled circular cylinders is described. Linearized unsteady potential-flow theory is utilized in conjunction with Donnell's cylinder theory to obtain equilibrium equations for panel flutter. Where necessary, a simplified version of Flugge's cylinder theory is used to obtain greater accuracy. By applying Nyquist diagram techniques, analytical criteria for the location of stability boundaries are derived. A limited number of computed results are presented.

Leonard, Robert W↗
NASA NTRS2000

Analysis of the DFP/AFCS Systems for Compensating Gravity Distortions on the 70-Meter Antenna

This paper presents the theoretical computations showing the expected performances for both systems. The basic analysis tool is a Physical Optics reflector analysis code that was ported to a parallel computer for faster execution times. There are several steps involved in computing the RF performance of the various systems. 1 . A model of the RF distortions of the main reflector is required. This model is based upon measured holography maps of the 70-meter antenna obtained at 3 elevation angles. The holography maps are then processed (using an appropriate gravity mechanical model of the dish) to provide surface distortion maps at all elevation angles. 2. From the surface distortion maps, ray optics is used to determine the theoretical shape of the DFP that will exactly phase compensate the distortions. 3. From the theoretical shape and a NASTRAN mechanical model of the plate, the actuator positions that generate a surface that provides the best RMS fit to the theoretical model are selected. Using the actuator positions and the NASTRAN model provides an accurate description of the actual mirror shape. 4. Starting from the mechanical drawings of the feed, a computed RF feed pattern is generated. This pattern is expanded into a set of spherical wave modes so that a complete near field analysis of the reflector system can be obtained. 5. For the array feed, the excitation coefficients that provide the maximum gain are computed using a phase conjugate technique. The basic experimental geometry consisted of a dual shaped 70-meter antenna system; a refocusing ellipse, a DFP and an array feed system. To provide physical insight to the systems performance, focal plane field plots are presented at several elevations. Curves of predicted performance are shown for the DFP system, monopulse tracking system, AFCS and combined DFP/AFCS system. The calculated results show that the combined DFP/AFCS system is capable of recovering the majority of the gain lost due to gravity distortion.

Imbriale, William A.↗
DOE OSTI2026

Two-pion contribution to the hadronic vacuum polarization with staggered quarks

We present results from the first lattice QCD calculation of the two-pion contributions to the light-quark connected vector-current correlation function obtained from staggered-quark operators. We employ the MILC Collaboration’s gauge-field ensemble with 2 + 1 + 1 flavors of highly improved staggered sea quarks at a lattice spacing of a ≈ 0.15 fm with a light sea-quark mass at its physical value. The two-pion contributions allow for a refined determination of the noisy long-distance tail of the vector-current correlation function, which we use to compute the light-quark connected contribution to hadronic vacuum polarization (HVP) with improved statistical precision. We compare our results with traditional noise-reduction techniques used in lattice QCD calculations of the light-quark connected HVP, namely, the so-called fit and bounding methods. We observe a factor of roughly 3 improvement in the statistical precision in the determination of the HVP contribution to the muon’s anomalous magnetic moment over these approaches. We also lay the group theoretical groundwork for extending this calculation to finer lattice spacings with increased numbers of staggered two-pion taste states.

Lahert, Shaun [Utah U.; Illinois U., Urbana] (ORCI↗
DOE OSTI2026

Machine learning approach for vibronically renormalized electronic band structures

Here, we present a machine learning (ML) method for efficient computation of vibrational thermal expectation values of physical properties from first principles. Our approach is based on the nonperturbative frozen phonon formulation in which stochastic Monte Carlo algorithm is employed to sample configurations of nuclei in a supercell at finite temperatures based on a first-principles phonon model. A deep-learning neural network is trained to accurately predict physical properties associated with sampled phonon configurations, thus bypassing the time-consuming ab initio calculations. To incorporate the point-group symmetry of the electronic system into the ML model, group-theoretical methods are used to develop a symmetry-invariant descriptor for phonon configurations in the supercell. We apply our ML approach to compute the temperature dependent electronic energy gap of silicon based on density functional theory (DFT). We show that, with less than a hundred DFT calculations for training the neural network model, an order of magnitude larger number of sampling can be achieved for the computation of the vibrational thermal expectation values. Our work highlights the promising potential of ML techniques for finite temperature first-principles electronic structure methods.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2021

Development of Approaches to Model Excited State Charge and Energy Transfer in Solution

The development of next generation energy conversion and catalytic systems requires fundamental understanding of the interplay between photo-excitation and the resulting proton and electron transfer processes that occur in solution. To address these challenges requires accurate and efficient methods to compute ground and excited states, as well as the ability to treat the dynamics of energy transfer in the presence of solvent fluctuations. Our team is developing accurate and efficient theoretical models for solution phase reactions. These developments provide an improved understanding of photo-initiated excitations, electron transfer, and proton coupled electron transfer processes. Our research team brings together expertise in electron and nuclear dynamics (classical and quantum), electronic structure, and analysis of solvation networks. We are developing and validating techniques for modeling condensed phase charge and energy transfer and to simulate the methods to monitor them using optical and vibrational spectroscopy.

74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2022

A New Constraint on the Nuclear Equation of State from Statistical Distributions of Compact Remnants of Supernovae

Abstract Understanding how matter behaves at the highest densities and temperatures is a major open problem in both nuclear physics and relativistic astrophysics. Our understanding of such behavior is often encapsulated in the so-called high-temperature nuclear equation of state (EOS), which influences compact binary mergers, core-collapse supernovae, and other phenomena. Our focus is on the type (either black hole or neutron star) and mass of the remnant of the core collapse of a massive star. For each six candidates of equations of state, we use a very large suite of spherically symmetric supernova models to generate a sample of synthetic populations of such remnants. We then compare these synthetic populations to the observed remnant population. Our study provides a novel constraint on the high-temperature nuclear EOS and describes which EOS candidates are more or less favored by an information-theoretic metric.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS1974

Ovonic switching in tin selenide thin films

Amorphous tin selenide thin films which possess Ovonic switching properties were fabricated using vacuum deposition techniques. Results obtained indicate that memory type Ovonic switching does occur in these films the energy density required for switching from a high impedance to a low impedance state is dependent on the spacing between the electrodes of the device. The switching is also function of the magnitude of the applied voltage pulse. A completely automated computer controlled testing procedure was developed which allows precise control over the shape of the applied voltage switching pulse. A survey of previous experimental and theoretical work in the area of Ovonic switching is also presented.

Baxter, C. R.↗
NASA NTRS1987

Tidal estimation in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans, 3 deg x 3 deg solution

An estimation technique was developed to extrapolate tidal amplitudes and phases over entire ocean basins using existing gauge data and the altimetric measurements provided by satellite oceanography. The technique was previously tested. Some results obtained by using a 3 deg by 3 deg grid are presented. The functions used in the interpolation are the eigenfunctions of the velocity (Proudman functions) which are computed numerically from a knowledge of the basin's bottom topography, the horizontal plan form and the necessary boundary conditions. These functions are characteristic of the particular basin. The gravitational normal modes of the basin are computed as part of the investigation; they are used to obtain the theoretical forced solutions for the tidal constituents. The latter can provide the simulated data for the testing of the method and serve as a guide in choosing the most energetic functions for the interpolation.

Sanchez, Braulio V.↗