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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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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2016

Electric Potential and Electric Field Imaging with Applications

The technology and techniques for remote quantitative imaging of electrostatic potentials and electrostatic fields in and around objects and in free space is presented. Electric field imaging (EFI) technology may be applied to characterize intrinsic or existing electric potentials and electric fields, or an externally generated electrostatic field may be used for (illuminating) volumes to be inspected with EFI. The baseline sensor technology, electric field sensor (e-sensor), and its construction, optional electric field generation (quasistatic generator), and current e-sensor enhancements (ephemeral e-sensor) are discussed. Demonstrations for structural, electronic, human, and memory applications are shown. This new EFI capability is demonstrated to reveal characterization of electric charge distribution, creating a new field of study that embraces areas of interest including electrostatic discharge mitigation, crime scene forensics, design and materials selection for advanced sensors, dielectric morphology of structures, inspection of containers, inspection for hidden objects, tether integrity, organic molecular memory, and medical diagnostic and treatment efficacy applications such as cardiac polarization wave propagation and electromyography imaging.

Generazio, Ed↗
NASA NTRS2017

Electric Potential and Electric Field Imaging with Dynamic Applications: 2017 Research Award Innovation

The technology and methods for remote quantitative imaging of electrostatic potentials and electrostatic fields in and around objects and in free space is presented. Electric field imaging (EFI) technology may be applied to characterize intrinsic or existing electric potentials and electric fields, or an externally generated electrostatic field may be used for illuminating volumes to be inspected with EFI. The baseline sensor technology (e-Sensor) and its construction, optional electric field generation (quasi-static generator), and current e- Sensor enhancements (ephemeral e-Sensor) are discussed. Critical design elements of current linear and real-time two-dimensional (2D) measurement systems are highlighted, and the development of a three dimensional (3D) EFI system is presented. Demonstrations for structural, electronic, human, and memory applications are shown. Recent work demonstrates that phonons may be used to create and annihilate electric dipoles within structures. Phonon induced dipoles are ephemeral and their polarization, strength, and location may be quantitatively characterized by EFI providing a new subsurface Phonon-EFI imaging technology. Initial results from real-time imaging of combustion and ion flow, and their measurement complications, will be discussed. These new EFI capabilities are demonstrated to characterize electric charge distribution creating a new field of study embracing areas of interest including electrostatic discharge (ESD) mitigation, crime scene forensics, design and materials selection for advanced sensors, combustion science, on-orbit space potential, container inspection, remote characterization of electronic circuits and level of activation, dielectric morphology of structures, tether integrity, organic molecular memory, atmospheric science, and medical diagnostic and treatment efficacy applications such as cardiac polarization wave propagation and electromyography imaging.

Generazio, Ed↗
NASA NTRS2017

Electric Potential and Electric Field Imaging with Dynamic Applications & Extensions

The technology and methods for remote quantitative imaging of electrostatic potentials and electrostatic fields in and around objects and in free space is presented. Electric field imaging (EFI) technology may be applied to characterize intrinsic or existing electric potentials and electric fields, or an externally generated electrostatic field made be used for volumes to be inspected with EFI. The baseline sensor technology (e-Sensor) and its construction, optional electric field generation (quasi-static generator), and current e- Sensor enhancements (ephemeral e-Sensor) are discussed. Critical design elements of current linear and real-time two-dimensional (2D) measurement systems are highlighted, and the development of a three dimensional (3D) EFI system is presented. Demonstrations for structural, electronic, human, and memory applications are shown. Recent work demonstrates that phonons may be used to create and annihilate electric dipoles within structures. Phonon induced dipoles are ephemeral and their polarization, strength, and location may be quantitatively characterized by EFI providing a new subsurface Phonon-EFI imaging technology. Results from real-time imaging of combustion and ion flow, and their measurement complications, will be discussed. Extensions to environment, Space and subterranean applications will be presented, and initial results for quantitative characterizing material properties are shown. A wearable EFI system has been developed by using fundamental EFI concepts. These new EFI capabilities are demonstrated to characterize electric charge distribution creating a new field of study embracing areas of interest including electrostatic discharge (ESD) mitigation, manufacturing quality control, crime scene forensics, design and materials selection for advanced sensors, combustion science, on-orbit space potential, container inspection, remote characterization of electronic circuits and level of activation, dielectric morphology of structures, tether integrity, organic molecular memory, atmospheric science, weather prediction, earth quake prediction, and medical diagnostic and treatment efficacy applications such as cardiac polarization wave propagation and electromyography imaging.

Generazio, Ed↗
NASA NTRS2018

RFID-Enabled Angular Position Sensing System

An angular position sensing system includes a first support with ring-shaped elements disposed thereon and spaced apart from one another in a curvilinear arrangement. Each ring-shaped element includes an electrically-conductive ring and an RFID integrated circuit electrically coupled to its electrically-conductive ring. A second support has an antenna coupled thereto that defines an electrically-conductive path commensurate in size and shape to at least a portion of the electrically-conductive ring. An interrogator transmits a signal to the antenna wherein electric current is generated along the antenna's electrically-conductive path and electromagnetic energy emanates from the antenna. Any ring-shaped element and its RFID integrated circuit energized by the electromagnetic energy generates in response a data transmission for receipt by the interrogator. A processor coupled to the interrogator derives information related to an angular position of one of the first support and second support using the data transmission.

Fink, Patrick W.↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Exit Presentation - Jared Ruzicka

The exit presentation provides an in depth examination of Spring 2020 NIFS intern, Jared Ruzicka’s, work on POST2 including creation of a module containing heritage aerodatabases and manual automation. The aerodatabase module incorporates a variety of legacy fortran and .dat aerodatabases into a POST2 module with example inputdecks verified by MATLAB mex files for 3 and 6 DOF simulations in nominal and dispersed conditions. The manual automation project discusses the transfer of the POST2 User’s Manual from word documents to text-based markdown files and the process through which a python script converts the manual to a PDF with improved formatting and compliance potential in a fraction of current manual generation time.

Jared Ruzicka↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Preliminary Results from Propellant Mass Gauging with Electrical Capacitance Tomography

Propellants mass gauging technologies designed to work in an accelerated environment, where the propellant remains settled at one end of the propellant tank, do not work well in a microgravity environment because the propellant is not necessarily settled. While some microgravity mass gauging technologies exist at various TRLs, most of them have major disadvantages. Improvements in microgravity propellant mass gauging will result in improvements to many areas of propellant management, which influences performance and mission assurance. Electrical Capacitance Tomography (ECT) is a sensing technology that is able to reconstruct the liquid distribution inside of a tank, which can then be integrated to obtain mass. ECT mass gauging recently achieved high accuracy in laboratory testing, <0.1% liquid volume measurement error, even during sloshing. While ECT mass gauging will theoretically work during all phases of flight, it had not yet been tested in microgravity. The NASA KSC Launch Services Program, with support from the Flight Opportunities Program, successfully flew an ECT liquid mass gauging system experiment on a Zero-G parabolic flight aircraft. Basics of ECT measurement theory, details of the experiment setup and flights, and preliminary results will be discussed. The preliminary results suggest that, even in the current prototype generation, ECT sensor systems will be useful as a propellant mass gauging technology in both an accelerated and microgravity environment.

mass gauging↗
NASA NTRS2024

Revolutionary Vertical Lift Technology Lift + Cruise Concept Vehicle Powertrain Dynamic Model

The Lift + Cruise (L+C) is one of several Revolutionary Vertical Lift Technology (RVLT) concept aircraft identified by NASA to investigate Urban Air Mobility (UAM) requirements. This six-passenger vehicle has a conventional tube-and-wing configuration, but with eight lift rotors (four on each wing) and a pusher rotor on the tail. This arrangement allows it to take off and land vertically as well as fly like an airplane. This report presents a novel dynamic model of the L+C powertrain built using the Toolbox for the Modeling and Analysis of Thermodynamic Systems (T-MATS) and the Electrical Modeling and Thermal Analysis Toolbox (EMTAT), both of which are NASA-developed toolboxes, and together are capable of modeling hybrid-electric powertrain architectures. This research effort models the complex behavior of the powertrain at the mechanical timescale (15 to 20 ms). The model consists of a turboshaft engine, generator, direct current bus, energy storage management system, gearboxes, and electric propulsor systems coupled together to create a dynamic model that mimics the operation of the multidomain powertrain. Two control algorithms, designed to equalize the power consumed to the power produced, are compared to assess their practicality: (1) independent proportional-integral (PI) control and (2) linear quadratic integral regulator (LQIR) control. Simulation results highlight the key features present in the model and demonstrate its operation under the two control schemes.

revolutionary vertical lift technology↗
NASA NTRS2015

The Substorm Current Wedge: Further Insights from MHD Simulations

Using a recent magnetohydrodynamic simulation of magnetotail dynamics, we further investigate the buildup and evolution of the substorm current wedge (SCW), resulting from flow bursts generated by near-tail reconnection. Each flow burst generates an individual current wedge, which includes the reduction of cross-tail current and the diversion to region 1 (R1)-type field-aligned currents (earthward on the dawn and tailward on the duskside), connecting the tail with the ionosphere. Multiple flow bursts generate initially multiple SCW patterns, which at later times combine to a wider single SCW pattern. The standard SCWmodel is modified by the addition of several current loops, related to particular magnetic field changes: the increase of Bz in a local equatorial region (dipolarization), the decrease of |Bx| away from the equator (current disruption), and increases in |By| resulting from azimuthally deflected flows. The associated loop currents are found to be of similar magnitude, 0.1-0.3 MA. The combined effect requires the addition of region 2 (R2)-type currents closing in the near tail through dawnward currents but also connecting radially with the R1 currents. The current closure at the inner boundary, taken as a crude proxy of an idealized ionosphere, demonstrates westward currents as postulated in the original SCW picture as well as North-South currents connecting R1- and R2-type currents, which were larger than the westward currents by a factor of almost 2. However, this result should be applied with caution to the ionosphere because of our neglect of finite resistance and Hall effects.

reconnection↗
NASA NTRS1986

Generation of lower-hybrid noise by superthermal cross-field ion currents

A kinetic model for generating lower-hybrid waves by a low-density, superthermal ion beam directed across a magnetic field is investigated. Growth rate calculations demonstrate the salient features of the process, in particular, the small threshold drift of several background ion thermal speeds required for instability. The mechanism is suitable for collisionless dissipation in systems which evince the characteristics of anomalous resistivity in the presence of relatively small electrical currents.

Barbosa, D. D.↗
NASA NTRS1977

The structure of cometary ionospheres. II - CO-rich comets

The structure of the ionosphere of a CO-rich comet is computed using two different models. The first one, the photochemical model, assumes that the dissociation and ionization of cometary neutrals and ions are due to photoionization, and photodissociation by solar UV radiation together with dissociative recombinations and ion-neutral reactions. The second one, the internal source model, also incorporates the ionization and dissociation effects of an electric current discharging through the inner coma. The generation of this current has been discussed in earlier papers. It is concluded that the internal source model can explain qualitatively the basic morphology of the ionospheres of CO-rich comets such as Humason (1962, VIII) and Morehouse (1908, III), whereas the photochemical model cannot. The main aim of this paper is not so much to provide accurate numerical estimates as to draw attention to a process which may very well dominate the structures of cometary ionospheres.

Ip, W.-H.↗
NASA NTRS1990

Procedures for minimizing the effects of high solar activity on satellite tracking and ephemeris generation

We are currently experiencing a period of high solar radiation combined with wide short-term fluctuations in the radiation. The short-term fluctuations, especially when combined with highly energetic solar flares, can adversely affect the mission of U.S. Space Command's Space Surveillance Center (SSC) which catalogs and tracks the satellites in orbit around the Earth. Rapidly increasing levels of solar electromagnetic and/or particle radiation (solar wind) causes atmospheric warming, which, in turn, causes the upper-most portions of the atmosphere to expand outward, into the regime of low altitude satellites. The increased drag on satellites from this expansion can cause large, unmodeled, in-track displacements, thus undermining the SSC's ability to track and predict satellite position. On 13 March 1989, high solar radiation levels, combined with a high-energy solar flare, caused an exceptional amount of short-term atmospheric warming. The SSC temporarily lost track of over 1300 low altitude satellites--nearly half of the low altitude satellite population. Observational data on satellites that became lost during the days following the 13 March 'solar event' was analyzed and compared with the satellites' last element set prior to the event (referred to as a geomagnetic storm because of the large increase in magnetic flux in the upper atmosphere). The analysis led to a set of procedures for reducing the impact of future geomagnetic storms. These procedures adjust selected software limit parameters in the differential correction of element sets and in the observation association process and must be manually initiated at the onset of a geomagnetic storm. Sensor tasking procedures must be adjusted to ensure that a minimum of four observations per day are received for low altitude satellites. These procedures have been implemented and, thus far, appear to be successful in minimizing the effect of subsequent geomagnetic storms on satellite tracking and ephemeris computation.

Bredvik, Gordon D.↗
NASA NTRS1995

Preliminary chaotic model of snapover on high voltage solar cells

High voltage power systems in space will interact with the space plasma in a variety of ways. One of these, snapover, is characterized by sudden enlargement of the current collection area across normally insulating surfaces generating enhanced electron current collection. Power drain on solar array power systems results from this enhanced current collection. Optical observations of the snapover phenomena in the laboratory indicates a functional relation between glow area and bia potential as a consequence of the fold/cusp bifurcation in chaos theory. Successful characterizations of snapover as a chaotic phenomena may provide a means of snapover prevention and control through chaotic synchronization.

Mackey, Willie R.↗
NASA NTRS2010

Multiple Exhaust Nozzle Effects on J-2X Gas Generator Outlet Impedance

The current test setup of the J-2X gas generator system uses a multiple nozzle configuration to exhaust hot gases to drive the propellant supply turbines. Combustion stability assessment of this gas generator design requires knowledge of the impedance effects the multiple nozzle configuration creates on the combustion chamber acoustic modes. Parallel work between NASA and Sierra Engineering is presented, showing two methods used to calculate the effective end impedance resulting from multiple nozzle configurations. The NASA method is a simple estimate of the effective impedance using the long wavelength approximation. Sierra Engineering has developed a more robust numerical integration method implemented in ROCCID to accommodate for multiple nozzles. Analysis using both methods are compared to J-2X gas generator test data collected over the past year.

Kenny, R. Jeremy↗
NASA NTRS1999

TurboBrayton Cryocooler: A Flight Worthy and Promising Future

A new development in cryocooler technology, a reverse TurboBrayton cycle cryocooler, developed by Creare, Inc. of Hanover, NH, has now been flight tested. This cooler provides high reliability and long life. With no linear moving components common in current flight cryocoolers, the TurboBrayton cooler requires no active control systems to provide a vibration-free signature. The cooler provides first stage cooling for advanced cryogenic systems and serves as a direct replacement for stored cryogen systems with a longer lifetime. Following a successful flight on STS-95, a TurboBrayton cryocooler will be flown on Hubble Space Telescope (HST) in 2000 to provide renewed refrigeration capability for the Near Infrared Camera and Multi-Object Spectrometer (NICMOS). The TurboBrayton cycle cooler is a promising technology already being considered for additional flight programs such as Next Generation Space Telescope (NGST) and Constellation X. These future missions require an advanced generation of the cooler that is currently under development to provide cooling at 10K and less. This paper presents an overview of the current generation cooler with recent flight test results and details the current plans and development progress on the next generation TurboBrayton technology for future missions.

Gibbon, Judith A.↗
NASA NTRS1993

Influence of a new generation of operations support systems on current spacecraft operations philosophy: The users feedback

Current trends in the spacecraft mission operations area (spacecraft & mission complexity, project duration, required flexibility are requiring a breakthrough for what concerns philosophy, organization, and support tools. A major evolution is related to space operations 'informationalization', i.e adding to existing operations support & data processing systems a new generation of tools based on advanced information technologies (object-oriented programming, artificial intelligence, data bases, hypertext) that automate, at least partially, operations tasks that used be performed manually (mission & project planning/scheduling, operations procedures elaboration & execution, data analysis & failure diagnosis). All the major facets of this 'informationalization' are addressed at MATRA MARCONI SPACE, operational applications were fielded and generic products are becoming available. These various applications have generated a significant feedback from the users (at ESA, CNES, ARIANESPACE, MATRA MARCONI SPACE), which is now allowing us to precisely measure how the deployment of this new generation of tools, that we called OPSWARE, can 'reengineer' current spacecraft mission operations philosophy, how it can make space operations faster, better, and cheaper. This paper can be considered as an update of the keynote address 'Knowledge-Based Systems for Spacecraft Control' presented during the first 'Ground Data Systems for Spacecraft Control' conference in Darmstadt, June 1990, with a special emphasis on these last two years users feedback.

Darroy, Jean Michel↗
NASA NTRS1974

Anisotropic proton instability magnetospheric /APIM/ hiss - An introduction

Plasmaspheric hiss is broadband ELF noise between 100 and 2000 Hz generally occurring inside the plasmasphere. It is proposed that some plasmaspheric ELF hiss is generated by ring current protons. The mechanism by which waves are generated is the anisotropic proton instability magnetospheric (APIM) hiss mechanism. APIM hiss (with a frequency close to the lower hybrid resonance frequency) is a loss-cone, flute instability arising from proton velocity space anisotropies. The energy driving the waves comes from the free energy of the 'inverted population' of the proton loss-cone distribution. The APIM hiss mechanism predicts the bandwidth, center frequency, source location, and wave normal angle of some types of plasmaspheric hiss. APIM hiss is suggested as a possible additional loss mechanism for ring current protons.

Parady, B. K.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Evaluation of the damages caused by lightning current flowing through bearings

A laboratory for lightning current tests was set up allowing the generation of the lightning currents foreseen by the Standards. Lightning tests are carried out on different objects, aircraft materials and components, evaluating the direct and indirect effects of lightning. Recently a research was carried out to evaluate the effects of the lightning current flow through bearings with special reference to wind power generator applications. For this purpose, lightning currents of different amplitude were applied to bearings in different test conditions and the damages caused by the lightning current flow were analyzed. The influence of the load acting on the bearing, the presence of lubricant and the bearing rotation were studied.

Celi, O.↗