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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 55 records · Page 3
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2020

Ion irradiation effects on Cr-coated zircaloy-4 surface wettability and pool boiling critical heat flux.

The concept of coating the currently used nuclear fuel cladding (zirconium-based alloy, typically Zircaloy-4 or Zirc-4) with an oxidation preventive layer is a progressing Accident tolerant Fuel (ATF) candidate alloys. The coated Zirc-4-based alloys could be a solution to suppress undesirable fast reaction kinetics with high-temperature steam. Zirc-4 has been the most preferred cladding material in pressurized water reactors (PWRs). Chromium (Cr) based alloys as a coating material provides excellent corrosion protection and good strength and wear resistance. In this paper, we present the surface wettability measurements and pool boiling Critical Heat Flux (CHF) for Cr-coated Zirc-4 claddings pre- and post-exposure to an ion irradiation environment. The wettability measurements, including static contact angle (contact angle, θ) and average surface roughness (surface roughness, Ra), are introduced for samples of different coating thicknesses (5–30 μm thick). The coatings fabricated by the cold spray of Cr-Al particles to 10 mm × 10 mm × 1.95 mm Zirc-4 substrates. Post fabrication, a Pilgering (cold rolling) process, was applied to finalize the coating thickness and resulted in a significant reduction in surface roughness of initially fabricated rough surfaces. The process produced three distinguished samples 5-μm unpolished (as machined), 5-μm, and 30-μm polished (cold rolled). The measurements are presented for the three surfaces and bare Zirc-4 as a baseline surface. The contact angle analyses were implemented in theoretical models from the literature to predict pool boiling CHF. Pool boiling experiments were conducted to measure the pool boiling CHF values and compare them to the predicted values. Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) images and Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDS) analysis was performed to characterize the surfaces for better understanding and interpreting the results. The SEM images showed localized surface damage due to ion irradiation. No recognized change in the measured surface roughness due to ion irradiation. The contact angles of irradiated Cr-coated surfaces are consistently higher (10°) than pre-irradiated surfaces. Decreasing the Cr-coating layer thickness resulted in lower contact angle pre- and post- ion irradiation. The predicted pool boiling CHF using the Kandlikar model is in good agreement with the experimentally measured CHF values within ±12% for all samples.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
NASA NTRS1984

Supercritical convection, critical heat flux, and coking characteristics of propane

The heat transfer characteristics of propane at subcritical and supercritical pressure were experimentally evaluated using electrically heated Monel K-500 tubes. A design correlation for supercritical heat transfer coefficient was established using the approach previously applied to supercritical oxygen. Flow oscillations were observed and the onset of these oscillations at supercritical pressures was correlated with wall-to-bulk temperature ratio and velocity. The critical heat flux measured at subcritical pressure was correlated with the product of velocity and subcooling. Long duration tests at fixed heat flux conditions were conducted to evaluate coking on the coolant side tube wall and coking rates comparable to RP-1 were observed.

Rousar, D. C.↗
NASA NTRS2000

Critical Heat Flux in Pool Boiling on Metal-Graphite Composite Surfaces

A study is conducted on high heat-flux pool boiling of pentane on micro-configured composite surfaces. The boiling surfaces are copper-graphite (Cu-Gr) and aluminum-graphite (Al-Gr) composites with a fiber volume concentration of 50%. The micro-graphite fibers embedded in the matrix contribute to a substantial enhancement in boiling heat-transfer performance. Correlation equations are obtained for both the isolated and coalesced bubble regimes, utilizing a mathematical model based on a metal-graphite, two-tier configuration with the aid of experimental data. A new model to predict the critical heat flux (CHF) on the composites is proposed to explain the fundamental aspects of the boiling phenomena. Three different factors affecting the CHF are considered in the model. Two of them are expected to become the main agents driving vapor volume detachment under microgravity conditions, using the metal-graphite composite surfaces as the heating surface and using liquids with an unusual Marangoni effect as the working fluid.

Zhang, Nengli↗
NASA NTRS2022

Flow Visualization, Heat Transfer, and Critical Heat Flux of Flow Boiling in Earth Gravity with Saturated Liquid-Vapor Mixture Inlet Conditions – In Preparation for Experiments Onboard the International Space Station

This study investigates flow boiling of n-Perfluorohexane with saturated two-phase mixture inlet in a rectangular channel of dimensions 114.6-mm heated length, 2.5-mm width, and 5 mm-height. The experiments were performed as part of the Mission Sequence Testing of the Flow Boiling and Condensation Experiment’s (FBCE) Flow Boiling Module (FBM) in the vertical upflow configuration in Earth gravity using the same experimental system that was launched to the International Space Station (ISS) in August 2021. The operating parameters varied are heating configuration (single- and double-sided), mass velocity (380 – 2400 kg/m2s), inlet quality (0.011 – 0.519), and inlet pressure (120 – 179 kPa). High-speed video photographs are presented to explain the two-phase flow patterns within the channel’s heated length. Flow patterns are constituted by low-density and high-density fronts moving along the channel, with the high-density fronts gradually reducing in length due to evaporation. Heat transfer results in terms of flow boiling curves, streamwise wall temperature profiles, streamwise heat transfer coefficient profiles, and average heat transfer coefficients are presented and trends discussed. CHF data from the present experiments are combined with prior databases to compile a consolidated FBCE-CHF database for saturated inlet to expand the ranges of operating conditions and include other flow orientations in Earth gravity. Experimental CHF trends are also discussed. The interfacial lift-off model shows a good CHF predictive accuracy evidenced by a mean absolute error of 11.97% for this consolidated database after constraining it to mass velocities greater than or equal to 500 kg/m2s. Finally, this study confirmed reliability of the upcoming ISS experiments for saturated inlet conditions and the collected Earth-gravity data will be compared to ISS microgravity data.

Flow boiling↗
DOE OSTI2020

A novel approach for critical heat flux enhancement during severe accident mitigation with removal of radioactive materials from the coolant

In this paper, a new system, which consists of mature and proven technologies, is suggested for simultaneous objectives in nuclear power plants: CHF enhancement and effective decontamination. It consists of multifunctional magnetic nanoparticles and a collector part. CHF enhancement for severe accident mitigation strategies like IVR-ERVC and core catcher is expected along with an efficient decontamination process of target radioactive nuclides, and through the collector part, where external magnetic fields are applied, working fluid can be effectively purified. The multifunctional magnetic nanoparticle possesses potentials to severe accident scenarios based on its distinct characteristics. Also, a nanofluid system is strongly affected by environments and state of the immersed particles; the CHF enhancement can be stably achieved in real applications with proper consideration and optimization.

Kam, Dong Hoon↗
DOE OSTI2021

Hybrid Improved Empirical Mode Decomposition and Artificial Neural Network Model for the Prediction of Critical Heat Flux (CHF)

Three Hybrid artificial neural network (ANN) models namely radial basis function (RBF), generalized regression neural networks (GRNN), and multi-layer perceptron (MLP) combined with empirical mode decomposition (EMD) are developed for CHF predictive modelling using CHF experimental databases.First, the original experimental inputs data series are decomposed into several intrinsic mode functions (IMFs) and one residual by EMD, whose components are divided into high, medium and low components. The performance parameters of the hybrid models indicates that the root mean square error (RMSE) are 0.8831, 0.6522, and 0.4149; the mean absolute error (MAE) are 0.6697, 0.4636, and 0.1935. The values of the R-square of the developed prediction approach utilizing EMD-RBF, EMD-GRNN, and EMD-MLP models are 0.8553, 0.9302, and 0.9818, and the index of agreement are 0.9464, 0.9700, and 0.9894., The value of the R-square and the index of agreement of the proposed models are much higher than those of the simple models .The Pearson's test results show that the association strength between the measured and the predicted values of the proposed model EMD-MLP is the strongest. These results show the following: (a) compared with other related, recent studies, the prediction accuracy of the hybrid model EMD- MLP proposed in this research is the best hybrid model; (b) the proposed hybrid model (EMD-MLP) attains superior performance compared with simple models.

Djeddou, Messaoud↗
DOE OSTI2024

Enhanced Models for the Simulation of Two-Phase Boiling Flow and Critical Heat Flux with the STAR-CCM+ and NEK-2P CFD Codes: Executive Summary (Final Report)

The goal of the project was to develop, verify and validate an advanced two-phase boiling flow modeling capability that enhances the existing two-phase flow modeling of the STAR-CCM+ Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) code. The project focused on the simulation of two phase flow and heat transfer phenomena that occur in Boiling Water Reactor (BWR) and Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) fuel bundles under various operating conditions. The extended STAR-CCM+ two-phase flow models implemented during the project follow the approach similar to the Extended Boiling Framework [1-6] previously developed at Argonne but include more fundamental physical models of boiling phenomena. The development and validation of the extended two-phase models is supported by the U.S. DOE GAIN program and performed in collaboration with Framatome U.S. Inc.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
NASA NTRS2004

Flow Boiling Critical Heat Flux in Reduced Gravity

This study provides systematic method for reducing power consumption in reduced gravity systems by adopting minimum velocity required to provide adequate CHF and preclude detrimental effects of reduced gravity . This study proves it is possible to use existing 1 ge flow boiling and CHF correlations and models to design reduced gravity systems provided minimum velocity criteria are met

Mudawar, Issam↗
NASA NTRS1993

Vaporization heat transfer of dielectric liquids on enhanced surfaces covered with screen wicks

Experiments were conducted to investigate the vaporization heat transfer characteristics for the dielectric liquid FC-72 on several wicking surfaces which may be used in flat-plate heat pipes. The wicking materials studied included microstructure enhanced surfaces and coarse surfaces covered with screen meshes. Experimental data for q versus deltaT curves and critical heat fluxes were obtained for the two different operating conditions of a heat pipe, evaporation, and shallow pool boiling. When the liquid level was above the heated surface, the height of the liquid level above the surface was varied from 0 to 10 mm. When the liquid level was below the heated surface, the distance from the liquid level to the edge of the surface was adjusted from 0 to 15 mm. Experimental results revealed that for shallow pool boiling when the heated surface was covered with a wire screen mesh, the heat transfer coefficient increased at lower heat fluxes but the critical heat flux (CHF) decreased for all the surfaces tested. In the case of evaporation, both CHF and the heat transfer coefficient increased as the microstructure surfaces were covered with screen meshes.

Gu, C. B.↗
NASA NTRS2016

Flow Boiling and Condensation Experiment (FBCE) for the International Space Station

An effective means to reducing the size and weight of future space vehicles is to replace present mostly single-phase thermal management systems with two-phase counterparts. By capitalizing upon both latent and sensible heat of the coolant rather than sensible heat alone, two-phase thermal management systems can yield orders of magnitude enhancement in flow boiling and condensation heat transfer coefficients. Because the understanding of the influence of microgravity on two-phase flow and heat transfer is quite limited, there is an urgent need for a new experimental microgravity facility to enable investigators to perform long-duration flow boiling and condensation experiments in pursuit of reliable databases, correlations and models. This presentation will discuss recent progress in the development of the Flow Boiling and Condensation Experiment (FBCE) for the International Space Station (ISS) in collaboration between Purdue University and NASA Glenn Research Center. Emphasis will be placed on the design of the flow boiling module and on new flow boiling data that were measured in parabolic flight, along with extensive flow visualization of interfacial features at heat fluxes up to critical heat flux (CHF). Also discussed a theoretical model that will be shown to predict CHF with high accuracy.

flow boiling↗
DOE OSTI2023

Experimental investigation of power transient flow boiling

To advance the mechanistic understanding of power transients in flow boiling, experimental investigations are performed to capture the thermal response of four different kinds of cladding materials, including FeCrAls, to Fuchs reactivity initiated accident transients and linear ramp power transients. The transition boiling regime is phenomenologically reflected in power-transient flow boiling, which is different from steady-state boiling. In light of this, the critical heat flux that is usually featured with temperature overshooting does not indicate thermal safety margin of cladding materials as conservatively as the maximum heat flux, which is greater than critical heat flux in the power transient boiling curve. This is physically attributed to the thermal energy deposition on the cladding wall. In addition, the thermal energy released from the cladding wall results in different boiling heat transfer coefficient for the decreasing and increasing power stages respectively during the Fuchs power transient. The maximum heat flux difference gap, which appears due to changes in cladding materials and transient time scales, is appreciable under an intermediate heat convection regime. However, this difference gap is gradually weakened by the progressive increasing of mass flux and/or inlet subcooling due to the enhanced dominance of heat convection over heat conduction. Finally, the small difference gap of maximum heat flux is found to be insignificant under the weak heat convection because of power transient induced annular flow instability.

42 ENGINEERING↗