AAM Ecosystem Working Groups Overview For UAM Noise Working Group
Advanced Air Mobility is the safe, sustainable, affordable, and accessible aviation for transformational local and intraregional missions.
Urban Air Mobility↗
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Results for “sustainable mobility”
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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Pathways to a Sustainable Aviation Ecosystem: Sustainable Aviation for Developing Economies
In the face of climate change, developing countries are innovating to rapidly lower emissions and enable resilient, secure, and just energy transitions. Transportation accounts for roughly one- fifth of global carbon dioxide emissions, making mobility a key focus area for the international community, and is also critical in supporting social equity and human well-being. At the intersection of economic development, mobility, and clean energy, sustainable aviation systems can help simultaneously deliver key climate and clean energy goals to support advanced and decarbonized energy systems.
aircraft↗
2024 Sustainable Aviation Energy Conference: 5 Key Messages From the Airport Enabling Efforts Workshop
At the 2024 Sustainable Aviation Energy Conference, more than 100 aviation leaders gathered in Dallas, Texas, to discuss collaboration and research needed to clear the path to widespread adoption of sustainable aviation technologies. During open workshops, participants from state and federal agencies; airports; aircraft and engine manufacturers; liquid fuel producers; and other stakeholder groups brainstormed the biggest barriers and opportunities for realizing a sustainable aviation ecosystem. This fact sheets presents five key messages and discussion points that emerged during a workshop on airport enabling efforts.
advanced air mobility↗
2024 Sustainable Aviation Energy Conference: 5 Key Messages From the Accelerating Aerospace Technology Deployment Workshop
At the 2024 Sustainable Aviation Energy Conference, more than 100 aviation leaders gathered in Dallas, Texas, to discuss collaboration and research needed to clear the path to widespread adoption of sustainable aviation technologies. During open workshops, participants from state and federal agencies; airports; aircraft and engine manufacturers; liquid fuel producers; and other stakeholder groups brainstormed the biggest barriers and opportunities for realizing a sustainable aviation ecosystem. This fact sheets presents five key messages and discussion points that emerged during a workshop on accelerating aerospace technology deployment.
advanced air mobility↗
2024 Sustainable Aviation Energy Conference: 5 Key Messages From the Alternative Fueling (Energy) Infrastructure Workshop
At the 2024 Sustainable Aviation Energy Conference, more than 100 aviation leaders gathered in Dallas, Texas, to discuss collaboration and research needed to clear the path to widespread adoption of sustainable aviation technologies. During open workshops, participants from state and federal agencies; airports; aircraft and engine manufacturers; liquid fuel producers; and other stakeholder groups brainstormed the biggest barriers and opportunities for realizing a sustainable aviation ecosystem. This fact sheets presents five key messages and discussion points that emerged during a workshop on alternative fueling (energy) infrastructure.
advanced air mobility↗
Vehicle and Mobility Technologies 2024 Annual Impact Report
Research and development at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory supports the U.S. Department of Energy's Vehicle Technologies Office in advancing efficient and sustainable transportation technologies that will improve energy efficiency, fuel economy, and mobility energy productivity, and will enable America to achieve a resilient, secure, clean, and affordable transportation future.
ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS,ENERGY PLANNING, POLIC↗
Migration Theory in Climate Mobility Research
The purpose of this article is to explore how migration theory is invoked in empirical studies of climate-related migration, and to provide suggestions for engagement with theory in the emerging field of climate mobility. Theory is critical for understanding processes we observe in social-ecological systems because it points to a specific locus of attention for research, shapes research questions, guides quantitative model development, influences what researchers find, and ultimately informs policies and programs. Research into climate mobility has grown out of early studies on environmental migration, and has often developed in isolation from broader theoretical developments in the migration research community. As such, there is a risk that the work may be inadequately informed by the rich corpus of theory that has contributed to our understanding of who migrates; why they migrate; the types of mobility they employ; what sustains migration streams; and why they choose certain destinations over others. On the other hand, there are ways in which climate and broader environment migration research is enriching the conceptual frameworks being employed to understand migration, particularly forced migration. This paper draws on a review of 75 empirical studies and modeling efforts conducted by researchers from a diversity of disciplines, covering various regions, and using a variety of data sources and methods to assess how they used theory in their research. The goal is to suggest ways forward for engagement with migration theory in this large and growing research domain.
migration theory↗
Impacts of Regional Air Mobility and Electrified Aircraft on Local Grid Infrastructure and Airport Electricity Demand
The goal of this work is to analyze the electrical infrastructure that may be necessary to serve electrified aviation at a subset of airports where potential electrified flight demand has been provided. Additionally, this work will estimate the amount of onsite distributed energy resources (i.e., solar photovoltaics and battery energy storage systems) that could be used to serve EA in cost effective scenarios.
24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗
Regional Air Mobility: Leveraging Our National Investments to Energize the American Travel Experience
America is home to over 5,000 airports available for public use, yet only 30 of these airports serve over 70% of all travelers.01 Despite this vast network of airports, the majority are underutilized due to air transportation services that have trended towards consolidation by putting more people into fewer, larger aircraft on well-traveled routes. Also, these bigger jet-propelled aircraft can only take off from and land on longer airstrips. Regional Air Mobility (RAM) will fundamentally change how we travel by bringing the convenience, speed, and safety of air travel to all Americans, regardless of their proximity to a travel hub or urban center. We advocate RAM technology investment as complementary to and an accelerator for Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) and other initiatives that aspire to transform the airspace. Through targeted advanced technology investments, such as aircraft automation, enhanced operational models, more efficient aircraft and propulsion systems, and expanded airport renewable energy generation, many of which are already underway, RAM will increase the safety, accessibility, and affordability of regional travel while building on the extensive and underutilized federal, state, and local investment in our nation’s local airports.
Regional Air Mobility↗
Sky for All: Ushering in a New Era of Aviation
Today’s aviation system will be unable to keep pace with increasing market demand for new operations that capitalize on advancements in autonomy and other emerging technologies. Paradigm shifts are necessary to maintain U.S. leadership in the global aviation market, enhance the sustainability of operations, increase mobility, and provide publicly beneficial services. The Sky for All Vision provides an R&D framework that will support national strategic planning for a holistic airspace ecosystem to usher in a new era of aviation. NASA is in a unique position to tackle the most difficult R&D challenges and to convene the aerospace community towards a common vision.
Jeanne Yu↗
An On-Demand Electric Transit Case Study of New Rochelle, New York
This work explores the extent to which an on-demand mobility service utilizing lightweight electric vehicles (EVs) provides community and sustainability benefits in New Rochelle, New York. Travel and survey data from September 2019 through 2023 are used to describe the system and estimate impacts on travelers. The system was found to be used more by women (nearly 60%) and younger demographics (>65% under the age of 42), with peak use in the middle of the day and a grocery store as a top origin and destination. The service is utilized primarily for short trips (86% under 2 miles), and the small, right-sized EVs have carbon dioxide emissions associated with charging the fleet that are roughly one-quarter of the fleet emissions of conventional hybrid vans and nearly 50 times less than a fleet of diesel buses. Mapping current socio-spatial dynamics of travel demand can inform equity performance, as well as assist future planning and service area development and possible extensions to similar smaller, lower-density environments that are nearby and connected to major metropolitan areas. The findings in this case study suggest on-demand electric transit may be a significant and growing space for advancing clean and highly valued public mobility services. Sustainable public transport interventions that consider right-sized, electric, on-demand vehicles can help achieve improved accessibility and reduce energy use and greenhouse gas emissions. This work was presented at the Transportation Research Board (TRB) 2025 Annual Meeting on January 7, 2025.
ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS,ENERGY PLANNING, POLIC↗
A Multi-Dimensional Benefit Assessment of Automated Mobility Platforms (AMP) for Large Facilities
Automated Mobility Platform (AMP) is a general term for intelligently managed passenger mobility systems that leverage automation and electrification to improve system performance and sustainability through the integration of real-time data streams with advanced decision-making processes tailored for use in large facilities. Using airports as an example, the rapid growth in air travel demand has led to facility expansions and congested terminals, which directly impacts equity (e.g., increased challenges for passengers with reduced mobility [PRMs]) and sustainability - both of which are important metrics often neglected during the engineering design process. Therefore, to evaluate systems and inform critical decisions more effectively, a holistic evaluation framework is proposed that includes equity, sustainability, and infrastructure perspectives - referred to as a multidimensional benefit assessment. More specifically, the following analysis focuses on: (1) mobility, with emphasis on travel time and accessibility within an airport, contrasting existing systems with the proposed AMP system; (2) equity analysis, specifically to the PRM community, but with an eye to the whole of society; (3) energy consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with intra-airport mobility, comparing and contrasting modes as well as impacts on overall airport operations efficiency; and (4) fundamental changes in building design enabled by AMPs for larger and more flexible, functional, and energy-efficient structures.
ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗
Green solvent-processable poly(3-hexylthiophene) derivative maintains high hole mobility in diodes
The development of environmentally sustainable fabrication methods for organic solar cells (OSCs) is critical to enable their large-scale adoption. Conventional solution-processed OSCs often rely on halogenated, toxic solvents that pose health and environmental risks, limiting their scalability. This is because π-conjugated polymers tend to have a low solubility in non-halogenated solvents. A common strategy to enhance solubility in alternative solvents is through the incorporation of polar solubilizing groups, often on every repeat unit of at least one monomer. However, too many polar side chains tend to disrupt favorable morphology and decrease charge transport properties. In this study, we demonstrate that a minimal degree of side chain functionalization can improve green solvent processability while preserving electrical performance. We tested this hypothesis using our previously reported random copolymer derivative of poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) where ∼10 mol% of the side chains are 6-pentanoatehexyl side chains. We find that this low-level functionalization significantly broadens the solvents that can be used to process P3HT to less toxic solvents such as o-xylene and anisole. Furthermore, the copolymer processed from greener solvents showed high hole mobilities (∼10⁻ 3 cm 2 /Vs by the Space-Charge Limiting Current method in diodes), comparable to P3HT films cast from toxic chloroform. These findings suggest that minimal side-chain modification is a viable strategy for expanding green solvent compatibility while preserving electrical performance, paving the way toward more sustainable organic semiconductor designs.
36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
Sex differences in body composition and serum metabolome responses to sustained, physical training suggest enhanced fat oxidation in women compared with men
Women preferentially mobilize fat stores compared with men in response to sustained, physically demanding military training, as evidenced by increased lipid metabolites and enhanced fat oxidation, which may be beneficial for mitigating loss of lean mass and lower body power.
Cell Biology↗
Mobility Energy Productivity and Equity: E-Bike Impacts for Low-Income Essential Workers in Denver
New mobility technologies such as electrified and shared mobility, combined with polices and incentive programs, are emerging to help address sustainability and equity issues in transportation planning. However, it can be difficult to understand the impacts of novel mobility trends and emerging modes on energy-efficient access. This is owing to a lack of (1) open-source tools enabling rapid data collection, and (2) open-source metrics that consider multimodal, multiactivity access and mobility within the contexts of sustainability and equity. Here, this paper addresses the topic of improving evaluation of transportation modes and incentive programs by integrating an open-source platform for tracking human travel data—the Open Platform for Agile Trip Heuristics (OpenPATH)—with a mobility metric that quantifies the efficiency of a region’s transportation system: Mobility Energy Productivity (MEP). Integration is demonstrated in the context of pilot programs in Colorado, where low-income essential workers were provided with electric bikes (e-bikes). OpenPATH-informed MEP calculations showed that several locations in downtown Denver provided comparable time-, cost-, and energy-efficient access to opportunities using e-bikes compared with driving. Additionally, providing e-bikes to low-income essential workers was found to be meaningful, as they utilized e-bikes the most to commute, despite driving still being their most utilized mode and the mode with highest MEP scores in Denver. We show how data collected from open-source tools coupled with robust metrics such as MEP can help evaluate the impacts of emerging mobility options. This could support developing policies to incentivize novel modes to achieve greater levels of sustainable, equitable, and efficient access.
29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
Comparison Study of Machine Learning Techniques to Predict Flight Energy Consumption for Advanced Air Mobility
This paper addresses the need to predict the flight energy consumption of aerial vehicles in the presence of wind using machine learning techniques. The presented work is critical to achieving sustainable and efficient operations for Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) and to evaluating the readiness of the ground-supporting energy infrastructure, e.g., electric grid and AAM portals. The flight energy consumption is described using the "energy per meter" (EPM) metric. We present a comparison study of influential machine learning techniques in predicting EPM using real-world flight test data. We presented new results of using the Decision Tree, Random Forest, and linear regression techniques, along with our previous results using the Recurrent Neural Network and Feed Forward Neural Network techniques. The comparison results show that the Linear Regression method outperforms other methods on the basis of the Mean Squared Error and error variance.
Machine Learning↗
Energy-Efficient Maneuvering of Connected and Automated Vehicles (CAVs) with Situational Awareness at Intersections (Final Progress Report)
The increased development of Connected and Automated Vehicle (CAV) systems, currently used for safety and driver convenience, presents new opportunities to improve the energy efficiency of vehicles. Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) achieved a 20% energy consumption reduction in a 2017 Toyota Prius Prime plug-in hybrid by using connectivity (V2V, V2I, V2X) as part of the Next Generation Energy Technologies for Connected and Automated on-Road Vehicles (NEXTCAR) program. The energy consumption gains were achieved by a combination of vehicle dynamics and powertrain control algorithms with a focus on SAE L1 and L2 automated vehicles where a human is still responsible for safe operation. SwRI is now involved in NEXTCAR-II, focusing on energy-efficient control tech for SAE Level 4/5 automated vehicles, aiming for a 30% energy reduction compared to stock hybrids. The rise of Mobility as a Service (MaaS) is driving investments in L4 and L5 automated vehicles. A study by the University of Michigan shows these vehicles might increase energy use and emissions by 3-20%. Technology similar to NEXTCAR can enhance energy efficiency in highly automated vehicles, leveraging improved sensing and actuation capabilities. While the NEXTCAR programs targeted energy efficiency improvements for a single vehicle, this program adopts a more expansive approach. It places its focus on understanding and testing the cumulative effects within a region or corridor, aiming to assess how a subset of vehicles equipped with NEXTCAR-style technologies influence the overall energy consumption of all vehicles traveling within that area. Additionally, the program explores infrastructure-based mobility solutions to optimize efficiency, and seeks to understand and quantify public perception and likelihood of technology adoption.
32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
Structure and migration of heavily irradiated grain boundaries and dislocations in Ni in the athermal limit
The microstructural evolution at and near preexisting grain boundaries (GBs) and dislocations in materials under high radiation doses is still poorly understood. In this work, we use the creation relaxation algorithm (CRA) developed for atomistic modeling of high-dose irradiation in bulk materials to probe the athermal limit of saturation of GB and dislocation core regions under irradiation in fcc Ni. We find that, upon continuously subjecting a single dislocation or GB to Frenkel pair creation in the athermal limit, a local steady-state disordered defect structure is reached with excess properties that fluctuate around constant values. Case studies are given for a straight screw dislocation which elongates into a helix under irradiation and several types of low- and high-angle GBs, which exhibit coupled responses such as absorption of extrinsic dislocations, roughening, and migration. A positive correlation is found between the initial GB energy and the local steady-state GB energy under irradiation across a wide variety of GB types. Metastable GB structures with similar density in the defect core region but different initial configurations are found to converge to the same limiting structure under CRA. The mechanical responses of pristine and irradiated dislocations and GB structures are compared under an applied shear stress. Irradiated screw and edge dislocations are found to exhibit a hardening response, migrating at larger flow stresses than their pristine counterparts. Mobile GBs are found to exhibit softening or hardening responses depending on GB character. Although some GBs recover their initial pristine structures upon migration outside of the radiation zone, many GBs sustain different flow stresses corresponding to altered mobile core structures.
36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗