Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “k mean”

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 757 records · Page 42
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1984

An evaluation of factors affecting the flow quality in wind tunnels

Tests were conducted in a number of NASA wind tunnels to measure disturbance levels and spectra in their respective settling chambers, test sections, and diffusers to determine the sources of these disturbances. Results indicate that properly designed and located second minimum in transonic tunnels prevent fluctuation originating at struts and in diffusers from propagating upstream into the test section. The installation in or upstream of the settling chamber of carefully selected screens, honeycomb, and acoustic baffles could further reduce test section turbulence levels and scales without significant pressure losses. The performance of these modifications is strongly influenced by tunnel geometry and their influence on the mean flow around the circuit.

Owen, F. K.↗
NASA NTRS1984

The detection of the 5577.3 A forbidden line of O I in comets

The spectral synthesis of C2 Swan band sequence Delta V = -1 indicates the intensity of the forbidden green oxygen line of 5577.3 A to be about 3 to 5 percent of the 6300 A line. Therefore, it appears that the green line should be observable in high-resolution spectra of a bright comet. Festou and Feldman suggest red/green greater than or equal to 10 means a water parent origin.

Krishna Swamy, K. S.↗
NASA NTRS1988

A computational strategy for making complicated structural problems simple

An effective computational strategy is presented for the analysis of large and complex structures. The strategy is based on generating the response of the complex structure using large perturbations from that of a lower-order (simpler) model associated with a simpler structure (or a simpler mathematical/discrete model of the original structure). The three key elements of the strategy are: (a) mixed (or primitive variable) formulation with the fundamental unknowns consisting of generalized displacements and stress parameters; (2) operator splitting, or a reduction method to relate the arrays and degrees of freedom of the original complex structure ot those of the simpler system; and (3) efficient iterative process for the generation of the response of the complex structure starting from that of the simpler system. The effectiveness of the proposed strategy is demonstrated by means of two numerical examples.

Noor, Ahmed K.↗
NASA NTRS1989

Buckling and postbuckling analyses of laminated anisotropic structures

A review is given of recent advances in two aspects of the numerical simulation of the buckling and postbuckling responses of composite structures. The first aspect is exploiting non-traditional symmetries exhibited by composite structures; and strategies for reducing the size of the model and the cost of the buckling and postbuckling analyses in the presence of symmetry-breaking conditions (e.g., asymmetry of the material, geometry, and/or loading). The second aspect pertains to the prediction of onset of local delamination in the postbuckling range and accurate determination of transverse shear stresses in the structure. The accuracy and effectiveness of the strategies developed are demonstrated by means of a numerical example.

Noor, Ahmed K.↗
NASA NTRS1989

A new partitioning strategy for efficient re-analysis of large structural systems

A computational procedure is presented for the reanalysis of large unsymmetric structural systems. The procedure is based on a novel partitioning strategy in which the responses of both the original and modified structures are approximated by symmetric and antisymmetric response vectors, each obtained by using only a fraction of the degrees of freedom of the discrete model of the structure. The procedure is applied to linear static analysis of framed structures. Design modifications consisted of removing members, resulting in topologically unsymmetric structures. The efficient application of the procedure on sequential computers as well as on multiprocessor computers is discussed, and its effectiveness is demonstrated by means of two numerical examples.

Noor, Ahmed K.↗
NASA NTRS1990

Sensitivity analysis of a wing aeroelastic response

The present shape-sensitivity analysis of wing aeroelastic response proceeds from aeroelastic response sensitivities obtained on the basis of the aerodynamic performance valid for high aspect ratio wings in subsonic, subcritical flow. Attention is given to the shape sensitivity of various static aeroelastic responses; the formulation is general, and assumes that, for a given shape and elastic deformation, the aerodynamic analysis will furnish the distribution of the pressure and the pressure sensitivity derivatives with respect to the shape parameters of interest. Wing displacements are obtained by means of an iterative scheme.

Kapania, Rakesh K.↗
NASA NTRS1997

NSCAT Observation of Spring Thaw in Alaskan Boreal Forest

The focus of this effort is the assessment of spaceborne scatteromter observations for monitoring landscape freeze/thaw transitions in the boreal forest thereby providing a means for estimating growing season duration.

Spring thaw Alaskan boreal forest NSCAT temperatur↗
NASA NTRS2005

SABER Observations of the OH Meinel Airglow Variability Near the Mesopause

The Sounding of the Atmosphere using Broadband Emission Radiometry (SABER) instrument, one of four on board the TIMED satellite, observes the OH Meinel emission at 2.0 m that peaks near the mesopause. The emission results from reactions between members of the oxygen and hydrogen chemical families that can be significantly affected by mesopause dynamics. In this study we compare SABER measurements of OH Meinel emission rates and temperatures with predictions from a 3-dimensional chemical dynamical model. In general, the model is capable of reproducing both the observed diurnal and seasonal OH Meinel emission variability. The results indicate that the diurnal tide has a large effect on the overall magnitude and temporal variation of the emission in low latitudes. This tidal variability is so dominant that the seasonal cycle in the nighttime emission depends very strongly on the local time of the analysis. At higher latitudes, the emission has an annual cycle that is due mainly to transport of oxygen by the seasonally reversing mean circulation.

Marsh, Daniel R.↗
DOE OSTI2022

Real-space visualization of short-range antiferromagnetic correlations in a magnetically enhanced thermoelectric

Short-range magnetic correlations can significantly increase the thermopower of magnetic semiconductors, representing a noteworthy development in the decades-long effort to develop high-performance thermoelectric materials. Here, we reveal the nature of the thermopower-enhancing magnetic correlations in the antiferromagnetic semiconductor MnTe. Using magnetic pair distribution function analysis of neutron scattering data, we obtain a detailed, real-space view of robust, nanometer-scale, antiferromagnetic correlations that persist into the paramagnetic phase above the Neel temperature $T_N$ = 307 K. In this work, the magnetic correlation length in the paramagnetic state is significantly longer along the crystallographic c axis than within the ab plane, pointing to anisotropic magnetic interactions. Ab initio calculations of the spin-spin correlations using density functional theory in the disordered local moment approach reproduce this result with quantitative accuracy. These findings constitute the first real-space picture of short-range spin correlations in a magnetically enhanced thermoelectric and inform future efforts to optimize thermoelectric performance by magnetic means.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2021

Interfacial thermal transport in spin caloritronic material systems

Interfaces often govern the thermal performance of nanoscale devices and nanostructured materials. As a result, accurate knowledge of thermal interface conductance is necessary to model the temperature response of nanoscale devices or nanostructured materials to heating. Here, we report the thermal boundary conductance between metals and insulators that are commonly used in spin-caloritronic experiments. We use time-domain thermoreflectance to measure the interface conductance between metals such as Au, Pt, Ta, Cu, and Al with garnet and oxide substrates, e.g., NiO, yttrium iron garnet (YIG), thulium iron garnet (TmIG), Cr 2 O 3 , and sapphire. We find that, at room temperature, the interface conductance in these types of material systems range from 50 to 300 MW m –2 K –1 . Furthermore, we also measure the interface conductance between Pt and YIG at temperatures between 80 and 350 K. At room temperature, the interface conductance of Pt/YIG is 170 MW m –2 K –1 and the Kapitza length is ~40 nm. A Kapitza length of 40 nm means that, in the presence of a steady-state heat current, the temperature drop at the Pt/YIG interface is equal to the temperature drop across a 40-nm-thick layer of YIG. At 80 K, the interface conductance of Pt/YIG is 60 MW m –2 K –1 , corresponding to a Kapitza length of ~300 nm.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2020

Convenient analytical formula for cluster mean diameter and diameter dispersion after nucleation burst

Here, we propose an alternative method of estimating the mean diameter and dispersion of clusters of particles, formed in a cooling gas, right after the nucleation stage. Using a moment model developed by Friedlander [S. K. Friedlander, Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci. 404, 354 (1983)], we derive an analytic relationship for both cluster mean diameter and diameter dispersion as a function of two of the characteristic times of the system: the cooling time and the primary constituents collision time. These formulas can be used to predict diameter and dispersion variation with process parameters, such as the initial primary constituents' concentration or cooling rate. It is also possible to use them as an input to the coagulation stage, without the need to compute complex cluster generation during the nucleation burst. We compared our results with a nodal code (NGDE) and got excellent agreement.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
NASA NTRS2014

Local ISM 3D Distribution and Soft X-ray Background Inferences for Nearby Hot Gas

Three-dimensional (3D) interstellar medium (ISM) maps can be used to locate not only interstellar (IS) clouds, but also IS bubbles between the clouds that are blown by stellar winds and supernovae, and are filled by hot gas. To demonstrate this, and to derive a clearer picture of the local ISM, we compare our recent 3D IS dust distribution maps to the ROSAT diffuse Xray background maps after removal of heliospheric emission. In the Galactic plane, there is a good correspondence between the locations and extents of the mapped nearby cavities and the soft (0.25 keV) background emission distribution, showing that most of these nearby cavities contribute to this soft X-ray emission. Assuming a constant dust to gas ratio and homogeneous 106 K hot gas filling the cavities, we modeled in a simple way the 0.25 keV surface brightness along the Galactic plane as seen from the Sun, taking into account the absorption by the mapped clouds. The data-model comparison favors the existence of hot gas in the solar neighborhood, the so-called Local Bubble (LB). The inferred mean pressure in the local cavities is found to be approx.9,400/cu cm K, in agreement with previous studies, providing a validation test for the method. On the other hand, the model overestimates the emission from the huge cavities located in the third quadrant. Using CaII absorption data, we show that the dust to CaII ratio is very small in those regions, implying the presence of a large quantity of lower temperature (non-X-ray emitting) ionized gas and as a consequence a reduction of the volume filled by hot gas, explaining at least part of the discrepancy. In the meridian plane, the two main brightness enhancements coincide well with the LB's most elongated parts and chimneys connecting the LB to the halo, but no particular nearby cavity is found towards the enhancement in the direction of the bright North Polar Spur (NPS) at high latitude. We searched in the 3D maps for the source regions of the higher energy (0.75 keV) enhancements in the fourth and first quadrants. Tunnels and cavities are found to coincide with the main bright areas, however no tunnel nor cavity is found to match the low-latitude b > or approx. 8deg, brightest part of the NPS. In addition, the comparison between the 3D maps and published spectral data favors a NPS central source region location beyond 230 pc, i.e. at larger distance than usually considered. Those examples illustrate the potential use of more detailed 3D distributions of the nearby ISM for the interpretation of the diffuse soft X-ray background.

Xray Emission↗
DOE OSTI2022

Multiparticle-hole excitations in nuclei near N = Z = 20: $^{41}$K

This experimental study of high-spin structure near the N = Z = 20 region focuses on 41 K and also reports three newly observed γ transitions in 41 Ca from the same reaction. High-spin states were populated using the 26 Mg( 18 O, p2nγ) 41 K and 26 Mg( 18 O, 3nγ) 41 Ca reactions at a beam energy of 50 MeV at the Florida State University John D. Fox Superconducting Linear Accelerator Laboratory, employing the FSU high-purity germanium detector array. The level scheme of 41 K was extended to 12325 keV, possibly up to J π = 25/2 − or 27/2 + , by means of 25 new γ-ray transitions, and that of 41 Ca to 9916 keV. Linear polarization and angular-distribution measurements were used to provide spin and parity information for several states in the 41 K decay scheme. The results are compared with spsdpf cross-shell shell-model calculations using the FSU interaction. Configurations involving zero or one nucleon promoted from the sd to the fp shell reproduce the energies of many known states reasonably well, while multi-particle excitations reveal a more complex interplay of single-particle motion, collective pairing, and deformation, posing an interesting challenge for future theoretical work.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2025

Turbulence-Resolving Simulations of Hurricane Laura (2020): Insights Into Extreme Winds and Eyewall Turbulence

Extreme weather events pose significant risks to coastal and offshore energy infrastructure. In this work, we investigate the structure of mean winds and turbulence near the surface ( z < 300 m) that occurred during Hurricane Laura in 2020 on the US Gulf Coast. To this end, we perform turbulence-resolving simulations (..delta..x = 33.33 m) that encompass the entire eyewall of Hurricane Laura by introducing a novel method that we will refer to as Moving-Mesoscale to Static-LES Integrated Coupling (MOSAIC). The simulation results are validated against surface, boundary-layer, and mid-tropospheric observations. Our analysis of the extreme wind conditions near the surface indicates that the mean wind and turbulence profiles vary greatly at and near the eyewall, resulting in extreme values of mean wind speed (U > 50 m * s-1) and turbulence kinetic energy (k ~ 50 m2 * s-2) at altitudes above 50 m . To investigate in detail the nature of turbulence within the eyewall of the storm, we conduct higher-resolution simulations (..delta..x = 11.11 m) of a portion of the hurricane. We provide a comprehensive statistical description of turbulence in the eyewall region, highlighting the need to employ ..delta..x ~ 10 m grid spacing to capture the integral length-scales near the surface, second- and higher-order central moments (i.e., skewness and kurtosis), and spectral coherence in the flow accurately. These numerical simulations provide the most detailed description of mean winds and turbulent conditions within the eyewall of a historical tropical cyclone to date, illustrating how high-resolution simulations can enhance limited turbulence measurements in hurricanes and giving insight into the extreme conditions threatening offshore and coastal infrastructure.

17 WIND ENERGY↗
NASA NTRS1994

The accuracy of temperature distributions used to derive the net transport for a zonally averaged model

Comparisons of satellite-derived temperatures with correlative temperatures indicate that the LIMS temperatures are accurate and contain more of the needed vertical resolution for calculating a residual mean circulation for transporting tracer-like species. Generally, the LIMS temperatures are accurate to at least 2 K. Other satellite data sets are comprised of temperatures with coarser vertical resolution, leading to biases that occur with an error pattern that is characteristic of their resolution. Their biases exceed 2 K at some altitudes. Retrievals of species using an infrared limb emission technique are sensitive to any temperature bias. Generally, the IMS comparisons with other data sets for ozone and water vapor are good to better than 20 percent; this represents an independent confirmation of the quality of LIMS and temperatures. Zonal mean comparisons between LIMS and SAMS temperatures also indicate agreement to better than 2 K from about 7 to 2hPa. Therefore, we are confident that SAMS N2O and CH4 are relatively free of temperature bias in that region. These factors support the generally good agreement in G90 between model N2O transported using a LIMS-derived RMC and the N2O contours from SAMS.

Remsberg, Ellis E.↗
NASA NTRS2008

The Structure and Dynamics of Titan's Middle Atmosphere

Titan's middle atmosphere is characterized by cyclostrophic winds and strong seasonal modulation. Cassini CIRS observations, obtained in northern winter, indicate that the stratosphere near l mbar is warmest at low latitudes, with the South Pole a few degrees colder and the North Pole approximately 20 K colder. Associated with the cold northern temperatures are strong circumpolar winds with speeds as high as 190 m/s. Within this vortex, the mixing ratios of several organic gases are enhanced relative to those at low latitudes. Comparison with Voyager thermal infrared measurements, obtained 25 years ago in northern spring, suggests that the enhancement currently observed will increase as the winter progresses. The stratopause height, increases from 0.1 mbar near the equator to 0.01 mbar near the North Pole, where it is the warmest part of the atmosphere, greater than 200 K. This implies subsidence at the pole, which is consistent with the enhanced organics observed. Condensate features, several still not identified, are also apparent in the infrared spectra at high northern latitudes. In many ways, the winter vortex observed on Titan, with cyclostrophic winds, resembles the polar winter vortices on the Earth, where the mean winds are geostrophic.

Flasar, F. M.↗
DOE OSTI2023

Thickness-Dependent Cross-Plane Thermal Conductivity Measurements of Exfoliated Hexagonal Boron Nitride

Submicrometer-thick layers of hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) exhibit high in-plane thermal conductivity and useful optical properties, and serve as dielectric encapsulation layers with low electrostatic inhomogeneity for graphene devices. Despite the promising applications of hBN as a heat spreader, the thickness dependence of its cross-plane thermal conductivity is not known, and the cross-plane phonon mean free paths (MFPs) have not been measured. We measure the cross-plane thermal conductivity of hBN flakes exfoliated from bulk crystals. We find that submicrometer thick flakes exhibit thermal conductivities up to 8.1 ± 0.5 W m –1 K –1 at 295 K, which exceeds previously reported bulk values by more than 60%. Surprisingly, the average phonon mean free path is found to be several hundred nanometers at room temperature, a factor of 5 larger than previous predictions. When planar twist interfaces are introduced into the crystal by mechanically stacking multiple thin flakes, the cross-plane thermal conductivity of the stack is found to be a factor of 7 below that of individual flakes with similar total thickness, thus providing strong evidence that phonon scattering at twist boundaries limits the maximum phonon MFPs. These results have important implications for hBN integration in nanoelectronics and improve our understanding of thermal transport in twodimensional materials.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗