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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 73 records · Page 4
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2011

Energy enhancement of quasi-monoenergetic proton bunches using a slice-cone target

A slice-cone target is proposed for the generation of quasi-monoenergetic proton bunches. In this new target structure, two symmetrical solid slices are adjoined obliquely to the tip of a hollow cone. Two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations show that a large number of hot electrons are pulled out from the solid slices and accelerated forward by direct laser acceleration. Compared with the hollow cone target, a stronger electrostatic field at the rear surface of the slice-cone tip is set up by the hot electrons from the cone and the slices. As a result, the energy of the quasi-monoenergetic proton bunch produced through the target-normal sheath acceleration mechanism can be improved by 75%. It shows that the proton energy scales proportional to the square root of the laser intensity. For the incident laser with the focused intensity about 5 x 10{sup 20 }W/cm{sup 2}, one can obtain proton bunches with central energy 165 MeV and energy spread 13%.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
NASA NTRS1977

A comparison between N2/+/ 4278-A emission and electron flux in the auroral zone

Visual airglow and low-energy electron experiment data from the Atmosphere Explorer D satellite are used to measure variations in N2(+) density and mixing in the nighttime auroral zone. The intensity of the 4278-A N2(+) emission, proportional to energy flux deposited in N2 by energetic electrons, is determined by a method which corrects for ground reflection affecting the satellite data. Calculations related to electron energy flux are found to show a slight variance from the theoretical predictions of Rees and Luckey (1974). Evidence for high-energy proton precipitation on the southern edge of the aurora and for the presence of parallel electric fields in the altitude range 150 to 800 km is also discussed.

Kasting, J. F.↗
DOE OSTI2011

Parallel application-level behavioral attributes for performance and energy management of high-performance computing systems

Run time variability of parallel applications continues to present significant challenges to their performance and energy efficiency in high-performance computing (HPC) systems. When run times are extended and unpredictable, application developers perceive this as a degradation of system (or subsystem) performance. Extended run times directly contribute to proportionally higher energy consumption, potentially negating efforts by applications, or the HPC system, to optimize energy consumption using low-level control techniques, such as dynamic voltage and frequency scaling (DVFS). Therefore, successful systemic management of application run time performance can result in less wasted energy, or even energy savings. We have been studying run time variability in terms of communication time, from the perspective of the application, focusing on the interconnection network. More recently, our focus has shifted to developing a more complete understanding of the effects of HPC subsystem interactions on parallel applications. In this context, the set of executing applications on the HPC system is treated as a subsystem, along with more traditional subsystems like the communication subsystem, storage subsystem, etc. To gain insight into the run time variability problem, our earlier work developed a framework to emulate parallel applications (PACE) that stresses the communication subsystem. Evaluation of run time sensitivity to network performance of real applications is performed with a tool called PARSE, which uses PACE. In this paper, we propose a model defining application-level behavioral attributes, that collectively describes how applications behave in terms of their run time performance, as functions of their process distribution on the system (spacial locality), and subsystem interactions (communication subsystem degradation). These subsystem interactions are produced when multiple applications execute concurrently on the same HPC system. We also revisit our evaluation framework and tools to demonstrate the flexibility of our application characterization techniques, and the ease with which attributes can be quantified. The validity of the model is demonstrated using our tools with several parallel benchmarks and application fragments. Results suggest that it is possible to articulate application-level behavioral attributes as a tuple of numeric values that describe course-grained performance behavior.

Computer Science↗
NASA NTRS1979

Quantitative energy extraction measurements in a photoionization-stabilized self-sustained XeF laser

Detailed time-correlated gain, fluorescence, and laser energy measurements were used to obtain quantitative data on energy extraction efficiencies for a photoionization-stabilized self-sustained XeF laser. A current pulse of 25 ns full width at half-maximum produced an 80-cu-cm XeF plasma in NF3:Xe:He gas mixtures with a maximum output energy of 80 mJ. The results show that the maximum small-signal gain and the maximum specific output energy is proportional to the NF3 content of the gas mixture. This suggests that there is an optimum fractional utilization of the NF3 molecules in the discharge. Under high-gain conditions, 30-40% of the energy stored in XeF(asterisk) can be extracted in a gain-switched pulse. The output energy represents less than 1% of the input energy.

Lee, C. M.↗
DOE OSTI2021

Thermal decoupling of deuterium and tritium during the ICF shock-convergence phase

We report that a series of thin glass-shell shock-driven DT gas-filled capsule implosions was conducted at the OMEGA laser facility. These experiments generate conditions relevant to the central plasma during the shock-convergence phase of ablatively driven inertial confinement fusion (ICF) implosions. The spectral temperatures inferred from the DTn and DDn spectra are most consistent with a two-ion-temperature plasma, where the initial apparent temperature ratio, $\frac{T_T}{T_P}$, is 1.5. This is an experimental confirmation of the long-standing conjecture that plasma shocks couple energy directly proportional to the species mass in multi-ion plasmas. The apparent temperature ratio trend with equilibration time matches expected thermal equilibration described by hydrodynamic theory. This indicates that deuterium and tritium ions have different energy distributions for the time period surrounding shock convergence in ignition-relevant ICF implosions.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
NASA NTRS1983

Nuclear cascades in Saturn's rings - Cosmic ray albedo neutron decay and origins of trapped protons in the inner magnetosphere

The nearly equatorial trajectory of the Pioneer 11 spacecraft through Saturn's high energy proton radiation belts and under the main A-B-C rings provided a unique opportunity to study the radial dependence of the greater than 30 MeV proton intensities in the belts in terms of models for secondary nucleon production by cosmic ray interactions in the rings, in situ proton injection in the radiation belts by neutron beta decay, magnetospheric diffusion, and absorption by planetary rings and satellites. Maximum trapped proton intensities measured by Pioneer 11 in the radiation belts are compared with calculated intensities and found consistent with trapping times of roughly 40 years and a radial diffusion coefficient of about 10 to the -15th L to the 9th R sub s squared/s. Differential energy spectra proportional to E to the -2 estimated from integral measurements of trapped photons with E greater than 100 MeV are consistent with the beta decay model, but an inferred turndown of the spectra toward lower energies and reported integral proton anisotropies of a specified form both indicate the need for more realistic calculations of the neutron source from the rings and the radiation belt loss processes.

Cooper, J. F.↗
DOE OSTI2022

Data-Driven Chance-Constrained Design of Voltage Droop Control for Distribution Networks: Preprint

This paper addresses the design of local control methods for voltage control in distribution networks with high level of distributed energy resources (DERs). The designed control methods adapt the active and reactive power output of distributed energy resources proportional to the deviation of the local measured voltage magnitudes from a reference voltage, which is referred to as droop control. Thus, the design focuses on determining the droop characteristics which satisfy network-wide voltage magnitude constraints. The uncertainty and variability of DERs renders the design of optimal droop controls very challenging. Hence, this paper proposes chance constraints to limit the risk from intermittent DERs, by designing droop control coefficients that guarantee the satisfaction of network operational constraints with a specific probability. In addition, the proposed approach relies entirely on historical data rather than assuming knowledge of the probability distributions that characterize the uncertainty of DERs. The efficacy of the proposed method is demonstrated on a 37-bus distribution feeder.

chance-constrained optimization↗
DOE OSTI2023

Codoping method for modifying the scintillation and optical properties of garnet-type scintillators

A method of tailoring the properties of garnet-type scintillators to meet the particular needs of different applications is described. More particularly, codoping scintillators, such as Gd 3 Ga 3 Al 2 O 12 , Gd 3 Ga 2 Al 3 O 12 , or other rare earth gallium aluminum garnets, with different ions can modify the scintillation light yield, decay time, rise time, energy resolution, proportionality, and/or sensitivity to light exposure. Also provided are the codoped garnet-type scintillators themselves, radiation detectors and related devices comprising the codoped garnet-type scintillators, and methods of using the radiation detectors to detect gamma rays, X-rays, cosmic rays, and particles having an energy of 1 keV or greater.

Tyagi, Mohit↗
NASA NTRS1980

Urban solar photovoltaics potential: An inventory and modelling study applied to the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles

Procedures for analyzing the potential of solar photovoltaic collectors to meet energy requirements in a metropolitan region are described and a modeling effort is applied to the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles. The procedure involves a series of steps designed to produce maps and tabulations revealing the amount of rooftop area available for establishing solar collectors and the proportion of energy requirement that could be potentially supplied by solar photovoltaics within each of the 533 mainline feeder service areas in the study area. For the sixty five square mile study area, the results showed that, with half the available flat and south facing roofs used and assuming the availability of energy storage, 52.7 percent of the actual kWh energy requirements could have been met in 1978 using photovoltaic collectors. Hourly, daily, weekly, and monthly fluctuations in potential supply and actual loads and recommendations of avenues for further research are discussed. Some further potential applications of the modeling technique are suggested.

Angelici, G. L.↗
DOE OSTI2015

Intercostal high intensity focused ultrasound for liver ablation: The influence of beam shaping on sonication efficacy and near-field risks

Purpose: One of the major issues in high intensity focused ultrasound ablation of abdominal lesions is obstruction of the ultrasound beam by the thoracic cage. Beam shaping strategies have been shown by several authors to increase focal point intensity while limiting rib exposure. However, as rib obstruction leaves only part of the aperture available for energy transmission, conserving total emitted acoustic power, the intensity in the near-field tissues inherently increases after beam shaping. Despite of effective rib sparing, those tissues are therefore subjected to increased risk of thermal damage. In this study, for a number of clinically representative intercostal sonication geometries, modeling clinically available hardware, the effect of beam shaping on both the exposure of the ribs and near-field to acoustic energy was evaluated and the implications for the volumetric ablation rate were addressed. Methods: A relationship between rib temperature rise and acoustic energy density was established by means of in vivo MR thermometry and simulations of the incident acoustic energy for the corresponding anatomies. This relationship was used for interpretation of rib exposure in subsequent numerical simulations in which rib spacing, focal point placement, and the focal point trajectory were varied. The time required to heat a targeted region to 65 °C was determined without and with the application of beam shaping. The required sonication time was used to calculate the acoustic energy density at the fat–muscle interface and at the surface of the ribs. At the fat–muscle interface, exposure was compared to available literature data and rib exposure was interpreted based on the earlier obtained relation between measured temperature rise and simulated acoustic energy density. To estimate the volumetric ablation rate, the cool-down time between periods of energy exposure was estimated using a time-averaged power limit of 100 kJ/h. Results: At the level of the ribs, the temperature rise–energy density proportionality constant was estimated to be 6.0–7.6 °C/(J/mm{sup 2}). Beam shaping by the geometric shadow method typically reduces the acoustic intensity a factor of 2, considering the 1 cm{sup 2} with the highest exposure. For a 4 mm diameter circular sonication trajectory, the near-field energy limit of 2.5 J/mm{sup 2} was exceeded for all considered geometries. The estimated rib temperature was in all but one (sonication 50 mm behind the ribs, with 15 mm rib spacing and a 4 mm diameter circular sonication trajectory) of the considered scenarios within acceptable limits. For those sonication scenarios where a single sonication is considered safe both in terms of near-field as well as rib heating, volumetric ablation rates in the order of 1 ml/h are estimated. Conclusions: Intercostal sonication is associated with an increased risk of near-field overheating. This risk is strongly dependent on the considered rib spacing, the placement of the focus behind the ribs, and the selected sonication trajectory. For the hardware under simulation, obstruction by the thoracic cage renders ablations of clinically relevant volumes within a practical time-frame unfeasible in a large part of the liver. Improvements maybe expected from transducer designs with a larger active surface and/or nonlinear sonication strategies.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2019

Agglomeration of Solid Inclusions in Molten Steel

Agglomeration of alumina inclusions in the molten steel is investigated through the free energy analysis of the cavitation between inclusions. The mechanism of agglomeration, the activation state, the stable state, the equilibrium state, and the critical separation for the cavitation are discussed. The equilibrium energy is proportional to the square of the inclusion radius, E{sub Eq} = 0.710R{sub P}{sup 2}, while the critical separation is directly proportional to the inclusion radius, d{sub C} = 0.146R{sub P}. Agglomerates of micron inclusions are hardly broken up by the turbulence in steelmaking practice.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2016

KINETIC SIMULATIONS OF THE LOWEST-ORDER UNSTABLE MODE OF RELATIVISTIC MAGNETOSTATIC EQUILIBRIA

We present the results of particle-in-cell numerical pair plasma simulations of relativistic two-dimensional magnetostatic equilibria known as the “Arnold–Beltrami–Childress” fields. In particular, we focus on the lowest-order unstable configuration consisting of two minima and two maxima of the magnetic vector potential. Breaking of the initial symmetry leads to exponential growth of the electric energy and to the formation of two current layers, which is consistent with the picture of “X-point collapse” first described by Syrovatskii. Magnetic reconnection within the layers heats a fraction of particles to very high energies. After the saturation of the linear instability, the current layers are disrupted and the system evolves chaotically, diffusing the particle energies in a stochastic second-order Fermi process, leading to the formation of power-law energy distributions. The power-law slopes harden with the increasing mean magnetization, but they are significantly softer than those produced in simulations initiated from Harris-type layers. The maximum particle energy is proportional to the mean magnetization, which is attributed partly to the increase of the effective electric field and partly to the increase of the acceleration timescale. We describe in detail the evolving structure of the dynamical current layers and report on the conservation of magnetic helicity. These results can be applied to highly magnetized astrophysical environments, where ideal plasma instabilities trigger rapid magnetic dissipation with efficient particle acceleration and flares of high-energy radiation.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS2017

Acoustic Effects in Classical Nucleation Theory

The effect of sound wave oscillations on the rate of nucleation in a parent phase can be calculated by expanding the free energy of formation of a nucleus of the second phase in powers of the acoustic pressure. Since the period of sound wave oscillation is much shorter than the time scale for nucleation, the acoustic effect can be calculated as a time average of the free energy of formation of the nucleus. The leading non-zero term in the time average of the free energy is proportional to the square of the acoustic pressure. The Young-Laplace equation for the surface tension of the nucleus can be used to link the time average of the square of the pressure in the parent phase to its time average in the nucleus of the second phase. Due to the surface tension, the pressure in the nuclear phase is higher than the pressure in the parent phase. The effect is to lower the free energy of formation of the nucleus and increase the rate of nucleation.

Baird, J. K.↗
NASA NTRS1979

Load proportional safety brake

This brake is a self-energizing mechanical friction brake and is intended for use in a rotary drive system. It incorporates a torque sensor which cuts power to the power unit on any overload condition. The brake is capable of driving against an opposing load or driving, paying-out, an aiding load in either direction of rotation. The brake also acts as a no-back device when torque is applied to the output shaft. The advantages of using this type of device are: (1) low frictional drag when driving; (2) smooth paying-out of an aiding load with no runaway danger; (3) energy absorption proportional to load; (4) no-back activates within a few degrees of output shaft rotation and resets automatically; and (5) built-in overload protection.

Cacciola, M. J.↗
DOE OSTI2013

FEEDBACK FROM HIGH-MASS X-RAY BINARIES ON THE HIGH-REDSHIFT INTERGALACTIC MEDIUM: MODEL SPECTRA

Massive stars at redshifts z {approx}> 6 are predicted to have played a pivotal role in cosmological reionization as luminous sources of ultraviolet (UV) photons. However, the remnants of these massive stars could be equally important as X-ray-luminous (L{sub X} {approx} 10{sup 38} erg s{sup -1}) high-mass X-ray binaries (HMXBs). Because the absorption cross section of neutral hydrogen decreases sharply with photon energy ({sigma}{proportional_to}E {sup -3}), X-rays can escape more freely than UV photons from the star-forming regions in which they are produced, allowing HMXBs to make a potentially significant contribution to the ionizing X-ray background during reionization. In this paper, we explore the ionizing power of HMXBs at redshifts z {approx}> 6 using a Monte Carlo model for a coeval stellar population of main-sequence stars and HMXBs. Using the archetypal Galactic HMXB Cygnus X-1 as our template, we propose a composite HMXB spectral energy distribution consisting of blackbody and power-law components, whose contributions depend on the accretion state of the system. We determine the time-dependent ionizing power of a combined population of UV-luminous stars and X-ray-luminous HMXBs and deduce fitting formulae for the boost in the population's ionizing power arising from HMXBs; these fits allow for simple implementation of HMXB feedback in numerical simulations. Based on this analysis, we estimate the contribution of high-redshift HMXBs to the present-day soft X-ray background, and we show that it is a factor of {approx}100-1000 smaller than the observed limit. Finally, we discuss the implications of our results for the role of HMXBs in reionization and in high-redshift galaxy formation.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

THE GENERAL RELATIVISTIC EQUATIONS OF RADIATION HYDRODYNAMICS IN THE VISCOUS LIMIT

We present an analysis of the general relativistic Boltzmann equation for radiation, appropriate to the case where particles and photons interact through Thomson scattering, and derive the radiation energy-momentum tensor in the diffusion limit with viscous terms included. Contrary to relativistic generalizations of the viscous stress tensor that appear in the literature, we find that the stress tensor should contain a correction to the comoving energy density proportional to the divergence of the four-velocity, as well as a finite bulk viscosity. These modifications are consistent with the framework of radiation hydrodynamics in the limit of large optical depth, and do not depend on thermodynamic arguments such as the assignment of a temperature to the zeroth-order photon distribution. We perform a perturbation analysis on our equations and demonstrate that as long as the wave numbers do not probe scales smaller than the mean free path of the radiation, the viscosity contributes only decaying, i.e., stable, corrections to the dispersion relations. The astrophysical applications of our equations, including jets launched from super-Eddington tidal disruption events and those from collapsars, are discussed and will be considered further in future papers.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS1978

The application of a drift multiwire proportional counter to the imaging of low energy X-rays

A 75 mm x 75 mm multiwire proportional counter (MWPC) with a 1 micron polypropylene window has been built to map low energy X-rays. The MWPC is constructed with a large drift region which allows us to use the center-of-gravity technique to improve the counter's efficiency and position resolution. Using 330 torr of propane as the gas fill and an anode plane composed of 20 micron diameter Au-plated tungsten wire spaced 1 mm apart, a position resolution of better than 240 microns (FWHM) in two orthogonal directions at an X-ray energy of 0.94 keV has been achieved.

Ku, W. H.-M.↗
DOE OSTI2011

Elementary excitations in homogeneous superfluid neutron star matter: Role of the proton component

The thermal evolution of neutron stars depends on the elementary excitations affecting the stellar matter. In particular, the low-energy excitations, whose energy is proportional to the transferred momentum, can play a major role in the emission and propagation of neutrinos. In this paper, we focus on the density modes associated with the proton component in the homogeneous matter of the outer core of neutron stars (at density between one and three times the nuclear saturation density, where the baryonic constituents are expected to be neutrons and protons). In this region, it is predicted that the protons are superconducting. We study the respective roles of the proton pairing and Coulomb interaction in determining the properties of the modes associated with the proton component. This study is performed in the framework of the random phase approximation, generalized in order to describe the response of a superfluid system. The formalism we use ensures that the generalized Ward's identities are satisfied. An important conclusion of this work is the presence of a pseudo-Goldstone mode associated with the superconducting protons in neutron-star matter. Indeed, the Goldstone mode, which characterizes a pure superfluid, is suppressed in usual superconductors because of the long-range Coulomb interaction, which allows a plasmon mode. However, for the proton component of stellar matter, the Coulomb field is screened by the electrons and a pseudo-Goldstone mode occurs, with a velocity increased by the Coulomb interaction.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗