Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “Hawai'i”

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 55 records · Page 3
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2014

The ISRU Field Tests 2010 and 2012 at Mauna Kea, Hawaii: Results from the Miniaturised Mossbauer Spectrometers Mimos II and Mimos IIA

The 2010 and 2012 In-Situ Resource Utilization Analogue Test (ISRU) [1] on the Mauna Kea volcano in Hawai'i was coordinated by the Northern Centre for Advanced Technology (NORCAT) in collaboration with the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), the German Aerospace Center (DLR), and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), through the PISCES program. Several instruments were tested as reference candidates for future analogue testing at the new field test site at the Mauna Kea volcano in Hawai'i. The fine-grained, volcanic nature of the material is a suitable lunar and martian analogue, and can be used to test excavation, site preparation, and resource utilization techniques. The 2010 location Pu'u Hiwahine, a cinder cone located below the summit of Mauna Kea (19deg45'39.29" N, 155deg28'14.56" W) at an elevation of ~2800 m, provides a large number of slopes, rock avalanches, etc. to perform mobility tests, site preparation or resource prospecting. Besides hardware testing of technologies and systems related to resource identification, also in situ science measurements played a significant role in integration of ISRU and science instruments. For the advanced Mössbauer instrument MIMOS IIA, the new detector technologies and electronic components increase sensitivity and performance significantly. In combination with the high energy resolution of the SDD it is possible to perform Xray fluorescence analysis simultaneously to Mössbauer spectroscopy. In addition to the Fe-mineralogy, information on the sample's elemental composition will be gathered. The 2010 and 2012 field campaigns demonstrated that in-situ Mössbauer spectroscopy is an effective tool for both science and feedstock exploration and process monitoring. Engineering tests showed that a compact nickel metal hydride battery provided sufficient power for over 12 hr of continuous operation for the MIMOS instruments.

Klingelhoefer, G.↗
DOE OSTI2024

Does manganese influence grass litter decomposition on a Hawaiian rainfall gradient?

Plant litter is a well-defined pool of organic matter (OM) in which the influence of manganese (Mn) on decomposition (both decomposition rate and the mix of compounds ultimately transferred to soil OM) has been clearly demonstrated in temperate forests. However, no similar study exists on grasslands and the effect of foliar Mn versus soil-derived Mn on litter decomposition is poorly known. We used a 5-month and 12-month field, and 10-month laboratory experiments to evaluate litter decomposition on the Kohala rainfall gradient (Island of Hawai‘i) in areas with different foliar and soil Mn abundances, and on which a single plant species (Pennisetum clandestinum) dominates primary production and the litter pool. The chemical imaging analyses of decomposed litter revealed that Mn 2+ oxidized to Mn 3+ and Mn 4+ on grass litter during decompositions—hallmarks of Mn-driven litter oxidation. However, these transformations and Mn abundance did not predict greater litter mass loss through decomposition. These observations demonstrate that the importance of Mn to an ecosystem’s C cycle does not rely solely on the metal’s abundance and availability.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2022

Context and mitigation of lost circulation during geothermal drilling in diverse geologic settings

Lost circulation is one of the most common and expensive problems facing geothermal energy development, representing up to 30% of drilling costs. We examined drilling records from four geothermal fields—McGinness Hills in central Nevada, Don A. Campbell and Steamboat Hills in western Nevada, and Puna Geothermal Venture on the Big Island of Hawai'i— to identify geologies most prone to lost circulation, as well as common mitigation strategies. Depths of lost circulation events varied, but their frequency often increased in the production interval. Lost circulation commonly occurred near fault intersections, and heavily faulted fields like McGinness Hills and Don A. Campbell showed secondary mineralization within approximately 100 m (328 ft) or less of where circulation was lost. Lost circulation mitigation strategies included using locally available materials (e.g., cotton seed hulls) as well as more expensive proprietary lost circulation materials, cement plugs above the reservoir, and drilling blind with aerated, polymer-based mud in the production zone. Addressing lost circulation using a well thought out decision-making approach and materials above the reservoir will save time and cost, and provide needed well integrity. Mitigation often requires a series of steps, typically applied from perceived least expensive to most, and are dependent on the severity and location in the well where circulation was lost and availability of materials. Placing cement plugs can cure lost circulation events, however these plugs are often expensive, time-consuming, and may not be successful.

15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2022

Mineral Protection and Resource Limitations Combine to Explain Profile-Scale Soil Carbon Persistence

The fate of soil carbon (C) is largely controlled by microbial oxidation of organic matter (OM), which is constrained by a variety of mechanisms. OM association with soil minerals provides pronounced protection against microbial decomposition. However, factors such as climate, occlusion, and resource limitations also contribute to OM preservation. Here, we explore the factors explaining C distribution and age within an upland rainforest soil in Hawai'i, a site with abundant preferential flow paths (PFPs) and high short-range order (SRO) mineral content. We characterized lateral and vertical changes in Δ 14 C, SRO mineral content, C-functional group chemistry, and microbial community composition to elucidate the contributions of multiple protection mechanisms to OM preservation. Consistent with our expectation, SRO mineral content and Δ 14 C were strongly correlated (R 2 = 0.95), indicating strong mineral protection of OM throughout the profile. Surprisingly, distance from PFP was also a significant predictor of Δ 14 C and improved model fit, particularly in the shallow horizons (R 2 = 0.97). Elevated C/N ratios, decreased microbial abundance, and greater SRO mineral content suggest nitrogen limitations and enhanced mineral protection constrain OM turnover with distance from PFPs in deep, subsurface mineral horizons. Steady microbial abundance, increasing putative anaerobe abundance, and changes in C-functional group chemistry indicate oxygen limitations constrain OM turnover in the matrix of shallow mineral horizons. Given that oxygen and nutrient limitations contribute to OM preservation in this high SRO system—an exemplar of mineral protection—resource limitations may play an even more important role in OM preservation in other well-structured soils.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2024

Seismic Features Predict Ground Motions During Repeating Caldera Collapse Sequence

Abstract Applying machine learning to continuous acoustic emissions, signals previously deemed noise, from laboratory faults and slowly slipping subduction‐zone faults, demonstrates hidden signatures are emitted that describe physical details, including fault displacement and friction. However, no evidence currently exists to demonstrate that similar hidden signals occur during seismogenic stick‐slip on earthquake faults—the damaging earthquakes of most societal interest. We show that continuous seismic emissions emitted during the 2018 multi‐month caldera collapse sequence at the Kı̄lauea volcano in Hawai'i contain hidden signatures characterizing the earthquake cycle. Multi‐spectral data features extracted from 30 s intervals of the continuous seismic emission are used to train a gradient boosted tree regression model to predict the GNSS‐derived contemporaneous surface displacement and time‐to‐failure of the upcoming collapse event. This striking result suggests that at least some faults emit such signals and provide a potential path to characterizing the instantaneous and future behavior of earthquake faults.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2025

Automatic speech recognition predicts contemporaneous earthquake fault displacement

Abstract Significant progress has been made in probing the state of an earthquake fault by applying machine learning to continuous seismic waveforms. The breakthroughs were originally obtained from laboratory shear experiments and numerical simulations of fault shear, then successfully extended to slow-slipping faults. Here we apply the Wav2Vec-2.0 self-supervised framework for automatic speech recognition to continuous seismic signals emanating from a sequence of moderate magnitude earthquakes during the 2018 caldera collapse at the Kīlauea volcano on the island of Hawai’i. We pre-train the Wav2Vec-2.0 model using caldera seismic waveforms and augment the model architecture to predict contemporaneous surface displacement during the caldera collapse sequence, a proxy for fault displacement. We find the model displacement predictions to be excellent. The model is adapted for near-future prediction information and found hints of prediction capability, but the results are not robust. The results demonstrate that earthquake faults emit seismic signatures in a similar manner to laboratory and numerical simulation faults, and artificial intelligence models developed for encoding audio of speech may have important applications in studying active fault zones.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2022

The Spectroscopic Classification of Astronomical Transients (SCAT) Survey: Overview, Pipeline Description, Initial Results, and Future Plans

Here, we present the Spectroscopic Classification of Astronomical Transients (SCAT) survey, which is dedicated to spectrophotometric observations of transient objects such as supernovae and tidal disruption events. SCAT uses the SuperNova Integral-Field Spectrograph (SNIFS) on the University of Hawai’i 2.2 m (UH2.2m) telescope. SNIFS was designed specifically for accurate transient spectrophotometry, including absolute flux calibration and host-galaxy removal. We describe the data reduction and calibration pipeline including spectral extraction, telluric correction, atmospheric characterization, nightly photometricity, and spectrophotometric precision. We achieve ≲5% spectrophotometry across the full optical wavelength range (3500–9000 Å) under photometric conditions. The inclusion of photometry from the SNIFS multi-filter mosaic imager allows for decent spectrophotometric calibration (10%–20%) even under unfavorable weather/atmospheric conditions. SCAT obtained ≈640 spectra of transients over the first 3 yr of operations, including supernovae of all types, active galactic nuclei, cataclysmic variables, and rare transients such as superluminous supernovae and tidal disruption events. These observations will provide the community with benchmark spectrophotometry to constrain the next generation of hydrodynamic and radiative transfer models.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2023

2023 Risk Management Plan and Register for Low-Power WEC for Non-Grid Applications

This is an updated risk management plan and risk register for the design, build and test of a novel, remote, low-power wave energy converter (WEC) for non-grid applications. This Columbia Power Technologies project seeks to develop a prototype low-power WEC that lowers the total cost of ownership and provides robust, new capabilities for customers in the maritime environment. The testing location for this prototype is the U.S. Navy Wave Energy Test Site (WETS) in Kaneohe Bay, O'ahu, Hawai'i. Detailed in the Risk Management Plan document is a Failure Modes, Effects, and Criticality Analysis (FMEC) that systematically identifies all potential failure modes and their effects on the system. Risk registers for major subsystems were completed according to the methodology described in the Risk Management Plan and are also included here.

16 TIDAL AND WAVE POWER↗
DOE OSTI2022

2021 Annual Site Environmental Report for Sandia National Laboratories, Kauai Test Facility, Hawaii

Sandia National Laboratories is a multimission laboratory managed and operated by National Technology & Engineering Solutions of Sandia, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Honeywell International Inc., for the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration. The National Nuclear Security Administration’s Sandia Field Office administers the contract and oversees contractor operations at Sandia National Laboratories, Kaua‘i Test Facility in Hawai‘i. Activities at the site are conducted in support of U.S. Department of Energy weapons programs, and the site has operated as a rocket preparation launching and tracking facility since 1962.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2023

Innovative Subsurface Learning and Hawaiian Exploration using Advanced Tomography (ISLAND HEAT) Phase 1 (Final Report)

The Innovative Subsurface Learning and Hawaiian Exploration using Advanced Tomography (ISLAND HEAT) project aims to leverage and enhance existing Hawai'i geothermal play fairway analysis (PFA) results and validate a conceptual model-driven, optimized, least-cost exploration and geophysical suite at a proven geothermal field with known permeability, the Puna Geothermal Venture, located in the Lower East Rift Zone. The abundance of geophysical scrutinization before, during, and after the 2018 Kilauea eruption at and around the broader Puna system offers a rare opportunity to elucidate geophysical expressions within a dynamic magmatic rift setting. Development of the methodology continues with its application at a second prospective site identified by the PFA, Mauna Kea, which serves as confirmation of the integrated approach.

15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2025

2024 SNL/KTF Annual Site Environmental Report (ASER)

Sandia National Laboratories is a multimission laboratory managed and operated by National Technology & Engineering Solutions of Sandia, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Honeywell International Inc., for the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration. The National Nuclear Security Administration’s Sandia Field Office administers the contract and oversees contractor operations at the Sandia National Laboratories Kaua‘i Test Facility in Hawai‘i. Activities at the site are conducted in support of U.S. Department of Energy weapons programs, and the site has operated as a rocket preparation launching and tracking facility since 1962.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2022

The Anthropology of Aquaculture

Aquaculture is nothing new. It has a long, fascinating history that stretches from antiquity at least 8,000 years ago. What is new is the evolution of aquaculture in modern times into highly intensive monocultures which arose in the 1970–1980's. Modern aquaculture production has grown worldwide but remains concentrated in Asia due to the: (1) increased demands for aquatic foods as explosive population growth occurred in coastal cities with increasing affluence, (2) expansion of scientific and engineering breakthroughs, (3) high export values of aquatic foods, and (4) sharp decline of costs of global to local transport/shipping. The pioneering anthropologist Claude Levi-Strauss brought the idea of “structuralism” to anthropology: the concept that societies throughout history followed universal patterns of behavior. A qualitative document analysis of the key anthropological literature to assess aquaculture developments from antiquity to the beginning of the modern era was conducted to evaluate if there was adequate evidence to support a theory of anthropological “structuralism” for aquaculture in human history. Seven case studies of the cultural/environmental history of aquaculture were reviewed in diverse parts of the world (China, Australia, Egypt, Europe, South America, Canada/USA, Hawai'i). Analysis supports the structural theory that whenever the demands of aquatic/seafood-eating peoples exceeded the abilities of their indigenous fishery ecosystems to provide for them, they developed aquaculture. Modern aquaculture concepts and new communities of practice in “restoration aquaculture” have beginnings in Indigenous anthropology and archeology in aquaculture and point the way for Indigenous nations to engage as leaders of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) ecosystem approach to aquaculture worldwide. Bringing ancient knowledge of Indigenous aquaculture into the modern context is an essential part of an alternative, “radical transformation” of modern aquaculture. There is an urgent need to develop and promote locally designed and culturally appropriate aquaculture systems that fit into the livelihoods of communities as part of a larger, diverse portfolio of food security.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2024

An Improved Sampling and Baiting Method for Phytophthora tropicalis and P. heveae Detection in Macadamia integrifolia

Macadamia nuts are, economically, the second most important crop in the state of Hawai’i. A recent decline in yield and acreage has been attributed to insect damage and diseases such as Macadamia Quick Decline (MQD) caused by Phytophthora tropicalis and P. heveae. To develop an improved methodology for the diagnosis and treatment of MQD, investigations were undertaken to better understand the pathosystem of the disease. These investigations included sampling from multiple locations from sectioned trees utilizing two methods of tissue collection and isolations using two baiting techniques. The collection of tissue from the cambium and phloem of trees after scraping away the bark and in locations of recent or current sap exudation using a narrow diameter steel awl proved to be an efficient means for the molecular detection of the MQD pathogens from infected trees exhibiting MQD symptoms. In addition, a more efficient and cost-effective baiting method using apple puree was developed.

Plant Sciences↗
NASA NTRS2001

Workshop on Mercury: Space Environment, Surface, and Interior

This volume contains abstracts that have been accepted for presentation at the Workshop on Mercury: Space Environment, Surface, and Interior, October 4-5, 2001. The Scientific Organizing Committee consisted of Mark Robinson (Northwestern University), Marty Slade (Jet Propulsion Laboratory), Jim Slavin (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center), Sean Solomon (Carnegie Institution), Ann Sprague (University of Arizona), Paul Spudis (Lunar and Planetary Institute), G. Jeffrey Taylor (University of Hawai'i), Faith Vilas (NASA Johnson Space Center), Meenakshi Wadhwa (The Field Museum), and Thomas Watters (National Air and Space Museum). Logistics, administrative, and publications support were provided by the Publications and Program Services Departments of the Lunar and Planetary Institute.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS2003

Jupiter's Hot, Mushy Moon

Jupiter's moon Io is the most volcanically active body in the Solar System. Observations by instruments on the Galileo spacecraft and on telescopes atop Mauna Kea in Hawai'i indicate that lava flows on Io are surprisingly hot, over 1200 oC and possibly as much as 1300 oC; a few areas might have lava flows as hot as 1500 oC. Such high temperatures imply that the lava flows are composed of rock that formed by a very large amount of melting of Io's mantle. This has led Laszlo Keszthelyi and Alfred S. McEwen of the University of Arizona and me to reawaken an old hypothesis that suggests that the interior of Io is a partially-molten mush of crystals and magma. The idea, which had fallen out of favor for a decade or two, explains high-temperature hot spots, mountains, calderas, and volcanic plains on Io. If correct, Io gives us an opportunity to study processes that operate in huge, global magma systems, which scientists believe were important during the early history of the Moon and Earth, and possibly other planetary bodies as well. Though far from proven, the idea that Io has a ocean of mushy magma beneath its crust can be tested with measurements by future spacecraft.

Taylor, G. Jeffrey↗
NASA NTRS2004

Applying Tafkaa For Atmospheric Correction of Aviris Over Coral Ecosystems In The Hawaiian Islands

Growing concern over the health of coastal ecosystems, particularly coral reefs, has produced increased interest in remote sensing as a tool for the management and monitoring of these valuable natural resources. Hyperspectral capabilities show promising results in this regard, but as yet remain somewhat hindered by the technical and physical issues concerning the intervening water layer. One such issue is the ability to atmospherically correct images over shallow aquatic areas, where complications arise due to varying effects from specular reflection, wind blown surface waves, and reflectance from the benthic substrate. Tafkaa, an atmospheric correction algorithm under development at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, addresses these variables and provides a viable approach to the atmospheric correction issue. Using imagery from the Advanced Visible InfraRed Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) over two shallow coral ecosystems in the Hawai ian Islands, French Frigate Shoals and Kane ohe Bay, we first demonstrate how land-based atmospheric corrections can be limited in such an environment. We then discuss the input requirements and underlying algorithm concepts of Tafkaa and conclude with examples illustrating the improved performance of Tafkaa using the same AVIRIS images.

Goodman, James A.↗
NASA NTRS2008

Probing the Distribution of Ozone on Mars

We present the application of infrared heterodyne line shapes of ozone on Mars to those produced by radiative transfer modeling of ozone profiles predicted by photochemistry-coupled general circulation models (GCM), and to contemporaneous column abundances measured by Mars Express SPICAM. Ozone is an important tracer of photochemistry in Mars' atmosphere, serving as an observable with which to test predictions of photochemical models. Infrared heterodyne measurements of ozone absorption features on Mars have been obtained at various Martian seasons from 1988 until present at the NASA Infrared Telescope Facility (IRTF) on Mauna Kea, Hawai'i [I]. The NASAiGoddard Space Flight Center spectrometers used were the Infrared Heterodyne Spectrometer (IRHS) [2, 3] and, since 2003, the Heterodyne Instrument for Planetary Wind and Composition (HIPWAC) [4]. A description the infrared heterodyne technique applied to ground-base observations of Martian ozone can be found in [I]. The most recent measurements on February 21-24 2008 UT at Ls=35deg were made by HIPWAC on or near the Mars Express orbital path with the goal of acquiring spectra that can be directly compared to nadir observations by SPICAM.

Fast, K. E.↗
NASA NTRS2009

Lunar Regolith Simulant Feed System for a Hydrogen Reduction Reactor System

One of the goals of In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) on the moon is to produce oxygen from the lunar regolith which is present in the form of Ilmenite (FeTi03) and other compounds. A reliable and attainable method of extracting some of the oxygen from the lunar regolith is to use the hydrogen reduction process in a hot reactor to create water vapor which is then condensed and electrolyzed to obtain oxygen for use as a consumable. One challenge for a production system is to reliably acquire the regolith with an excavator hauler mobility platform and then introduce it into the reactor inlet tube which is raised from the surface and above the reactor itself. After the reaction, the hot regolith (-1000 C) must be expelled from the reactor for disposal by the excavator hauler mobility system. In addition, the reactor regolith inlet and outlet tubes must be sealed by valves during the reaction in order to allow collection of the water vapor by the chemical processing sub-system. These valves must be able to handle abrasive regolith passing through them as well as the heat conduction from the hot reactor. In 2008, NASA has designed and field tested a hydrogen reduction system called ROxygen in order to demonstrate the feasibility of extracting oxygen from lunar regolith. The field test was performed with volcanic ash known as Tephra on Mauna Kea volcano on the Big Island of Hawai'i. The tephra has similar properties to lunar regolith, so that it is regarded as a good simulant for the hydrogen reduction process. This paper will discuss the design, fabrication, operation, test results and lessons learned with the ROxygen regolith feed system as tested on Mauna Kea in November 2008.

Mueller, R. P.↗