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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 757 records · Page 42
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2023

Enabling site-specific well leakage risk estimation during geologic carbon sequestration using a modular deep-learning-based wellbore leakage model

Geologic carbon sequestration (GCS) is a promising technology for mitigating net carbon emissions and growing climate concern by storing CO 2 in reservoirs. Oil and gas brownfields are an attractive option for CO 2 storage, but these sites have many historical wellbores from petroleum production and can be a potential leakage pathway for CO 2 or formation brine. Therefore, risk management of GCS operations requires an assessment of potential well leakage. Due to the high uncertainty of the system, stochastic approaches are ideal for quantifying the range of risk behaviors, but they must be computationally efficient in the face of complex physics. Here, we develop a new physics-centric deep learning wellbore model to predict the leakage of CO 2 and brine through leaky wellbores. Multi-physics numerical simulations were used to generate data sets, and physics-informed features were introduced. Neural networks were optimized with an automated searching algorithm. Feature analysis quantifies the impact of each feature on model prediction and confirms the role of physics-inspired parameters. The model shows high predictive performance across a wide range of geologic and injection conditions and well attributes. In conclusion, a case study illustrates how the model is applied to assess well leakage in GCS operations.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2022

Experimental and kinetic modeling study of the low- temperature and high-pressure combustion chemistry of straight chain pentanol isomers: 1-, 2- and 3-Pentanol

Pentanols have received significant attention as a potential alternative fuel or fuel additive owing to their high energy densities and low vapor pressure. The development of robust chemical kinetic models for alternative fuels which can provide accurate and efficient predictions of combustion performance across a wide range of engine relevant conditions is important in developing cleaner, more efficient combustors. Although the high temperature oxidation kinetics of pentanol isomers has been researched considerably, their low temperature combustion chemistry needs further investigation. While previously proposed low temperature mechanisms for 1-pentanol based on analogy and rate rules need further refinement, the low temperature oxidation kinetics of 2-pentanol and 3-pentanol has not been studied previously by any means, experimentally or theoretically. A newly developed kinetic mechanism is presented in this work for the three straight chain pentanol isomers: 1-, 2- and 3-pentanol. Low temperature kinetics is based on a recent study by Lockwood et al., 2022 [20] involving theoretical calculations at the CCSD(T)/cc-pV∞Z level of theory for the oxidation pathways involving alcohol peroxy radicals. Rate of production analyses performed in this study highlight the importance of the newly added pressure-dependent reactions of the α-alcohol peroxy radical forming an RO 2 adduct. While the α-alcohol fuel radical reacts with O 2 to directly decompose via a chemically activated pathway at low pressures, the formation of the RO 2 adduct is favored at high pressures. Furthermore, the detailed model is comprehensively validated against new ignition experiments at low temperature and high pressure, together with the wide range of data available in the literature. Both qualitative and quantitative predictions of the experimental data using the proposed kinetic model are satisfactory for all three pentanol isomers studied here.

1-pentanol↗
NASA NTRS1979

Prediction of aerodynamic characteristics for slender bodies alone and with lifting surfaces to high angles of attack

A method is presented for computing normal force and pitching moment coefficients for slender bodies of circular and noncircular cross section alone and with lifting surfaces. A semiempirical term representing viscous-separation crossflow is added to a term representing potential-theory crossflow. For bodies of revolution, computed aerodynamic characteristics agree with measured results for investigated free-stream Mach numbers from 0.6 to 2.9 and for angles of attack from 0 deg to 180 deg. For bodies of elliptic cross section, measured results are predicted well over the investigated Mach number range from 0.6 to 2.0 and the angle range from 0 deg to 60 deg. For all bodies the predictions are best at supersonic Mach numbers. For body-wing and body-wing-tail configurations, measured normal force coefficients and centers are predicted at the upper test Mach number of 2.0. As the Mach number is decreased to 0.6, the agreement for the normal-force coefficients rapidly deteriorates. When model flow-separation and vortex patterns are asymmetric, undesirable side forces are usually measured on the models at subsonic Mach numbers and zero sideslip angle. Generally, the side-force coefficients decrease or vanish with: increase in Mach number, decrease in nose fineness ratio, nose blunting, and flattening of body cross section.

Jorgensen, L. H.↗
NASA NTRS1980

A new assessment of chamber pressure oscillations in the shuttle SRB

Oscillatory data from three static firings of the shuttle SRB are analyzed. The data from these and four additional motors were pooled and predictions made for the maximum amplitude and range of frequency to be expected in future motor firings. The predictions form the basis for various studies by other groups of the shuttle's response to vibration generated by the SRB's.

Mathes, H. B.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Hypersonic Shock/Boundary-Layer Interaction Database

Turbulence modeling is generally recognized as the major problem obstructing further advances in computational fluid dynamics (CFD). A closed solution of the governing Navier-Stokes equations for turbulent flows of practical consequence is still far beyond grasp. At the same time, the simplified models of turbulence which are used to achieve closure of the Navier-Stokes equations are known to be rigorously incorrect. While these models serve a definite purpose, they are inadequate for the general prediction of hypersonic viscous/inviscid interactions, mixing problems, chemical nonequilibria, and a range of other phenomena which must be predicted in order to design a hypersonic vehicle computationally. Due to the complexity of turbulence, useful new turbulence models are synthesized only when great expertise is brought to bear and considerable intellectual energy is expended. Although this process is fundamentally theoretical, crucial guidance may be gained from carefully-executed basic experiments. Following the birth of a new model, its testing and validation once again demand comparisons with data of unimpeachable quality. This report concerns these issues which arise from the experimental aspects of hypersonic modeling and represents the results of the first phase of an effort to develop compressible turbulence models.

Settles, G. S.↗
NASA NTRS1997

Parametric Investigation of a High-Lift Airfoil at High Reynolds Numbers

A new two-dimensional, three-element, advanced high-lift research airfoil has been tested in the NASA Langley Research Center s Low-Turbulence Pressure Tunnel at a chord Reynolds number up to 1.6 x 107. The components of this high-lift airfoil have been designed using a incompressible computational code (INS2D). The design was to provide high maximum-lift values while maintaining attached flow on the single-segment flap at landing conditions. The performance of the new NASA research airfoil is compared to a similar reference high-lift airfoil. On the new high-lift airfoil the effects of Reynolds number on slat and flap rigging have been studied experimentally, as well as the Mach number effects. The performance trend of the high-lift design is comparable to that predicted by INS2D over much of the angle-of-attack range. However, the code did not accurately predict the airfoil performance or the configuration-based trends near maximum lift where the compressibility effect could play a major role.

Lin, John C.↗
DOE OSTI2025

Next generation Arctic vegetation maps: Aboveground plant biomass and woody dominance mapped at 30 m resolution across the tundra biome

The Arctic is warming faster than anywhere else on Earth, placing tundra ecosystems at the forefront of global climate change. Plant biomass is a fundamental ecosystem attribute that is sensitive to changes in climate, closely tied to ecological function, and crucial for constraining ecosystem carbon dynamics. However, the amount, functional composition, and distribution of plant biomass are only coarsely quantified across the Arctic. Therefore, we developed the first moderate resolution (30 m) maps of live aboveground plant biomass (g m −2 ) and woody plant dominance (%) for the Arctic tundra biome, including the mountainous Oro Arctic. We modeled biomass for the year 2020 using a new synthesis dataset of field biomass harvest measurements, Landsat satellite seasonal synthetic composites, ancillary geospatial data, and machine learning models. Additionally, we quantified pixel-wise uncertainty in biomass predictions using Monte Carlo simulations and validated the models using a robust, spatially blocked and nested cross-validation procedure. Observed plant and woody plant biomass values ranged from 0 to ∼6000 g m −2 (mean ≈ 350 g m −2 ), while predicted values ranged from 0 to ∼4000 g m −2 (mean ≈ 275 g m −2 ), resulting in model validation root-mean-squared-error (RMSE) ≈ 400 g m −2 and R 2 ≈ 0.6. Our maps not only capture large-scale patterns of plant biomass and woody plant dominance across the Arctic that are linked to climatic variation (e.g., thawing degree days), but also illustrate how fine-scale patterns are shaped by local surface hydrology, topography, and past disturbance. By providing data on plant biomass across Arctic tundra ecosystems at the highest resolution to date, our maps can significantly advance research and inform decision-making on topics ranging from Arctic vegetation monitoring and wildlife conservation to carbon accounting and land surface modeling.

Climate change↗
DOE OSTI2026

Polarization observables 𝑇 and 𝐹 in the 𝛾⁢𝑝→𝜋 0 ⁢𝑝 reaction at CLAS

Pion photoproduction in the $\vec{γ}$$\vec{p}$ → π 0 p reaction has been measured in the FROzen Spin Target (FROST) experiment at the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility. In this experiment, circularly polarized photons with energies up to 3.082 GeV impinged on a transversely polarized frozen-spin target. Final-state protons were detected in the Continuous Electron Beam Accelerator Facility (CEBAF) Large Acceptance Spectrometer. The polarization observables T and F have been extracted for W from 1445 to 2525 MeV, of which the energy range is much broader, and the precision is better than the existing measurements in higher W ranges. The data generally agree with predictions of present partial-wave analyses but also show marked differences for higher W ranges. By incorporating the present data into the databases, the Scattering Analysis Interactive Data (SAID) fits have been improved with relatively small χ 2 and significant changes in the parameters of the (1910)1/2 + and N(2190)7/2 − have been found with the JüBo model.

particle production↗
NASA NTRS1984

Rotary balance data for a typical single-engine general aviation design for an angle-of-attack range of 20 to 90 deg. 3: Influence of control deflection on predicted model D spin modes

The influence of control deflections on the rotational flow aerodynamics and on predicted spin modes is discussed for a 1/6-scale general aviation airplane model. The model was tested for various control settings at both zero and ten degree sideslip angles. Data were measured, using a rotary balance, over an angle-of-attack range of 30 deg to 90 deg, and for clockwise and counter-clockwise rotations covering an omegab/2V range of 0 to 0.5.

Ralston, J. N.↗
NASA NTRS2019

CASPEr: an Approach to Characterize the Performance of Onboard Airplane Energy State and Automation Mode Prediction Functions

The Commercial Aviation Safety Team (CAST) has identified a set of safety enhancements to mitigate the risks of loss of control in-flight (LOCI) accidents and incidents involving commercial transport airplanes. In support of this, NASA has been developing technologies intended to enhance flight crew awareness of airplane systems, attitude, and energy state. This report describes preliminary ideas for a methodology to assess the goodness of onboard airplane energy state and automation mode prediction functions. The methodology is intended to contribute to the goal of moving these prediction technologies to the readiness level required for transition to industry and reduce the technology certification risks. In addition, this report describes a simulation-based approach named CASPEr (Characterization of Airplane State Prediction Error) to characterize the performance of these predictive functions over a wide range of operational conditions. The first exploratory version of this approach is described. The bulk of the report documents the initial results of tests to characterize the performance of an airplane trajectory prediction function. Future reports will give additional performance characterization results for this function and a complete description of the proposed methodology to assess such functions.

Torres-Pomales, Wilfredo↗
NASA NTRS2025

Simulations of Large-Scale Zero Boiloff, Densification, and Solidification of Hydrogen

An Integrated Refrigeration and Storage (IRAS) experimental system called the Ground Operations and Demonstration Unit for Liquid Hydrogen (GODU-LH2) demonstrated the ability store cryogens in a zero boiloff (ZBO) process, and to densify liquid hydrogen by reducing the temperature and pressure down to the triple point resulting in solidification. The incompressible Navier-Stokes was utilized to simulate ZBO, densification, and solidification of liquid hydrogen (LH2) in the IRAS tank. The simulations were performed using a commercially available Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) pressure-based mass and momentum flow model and an enthalpy-porosity energy model. Results demonstrated the simulation’s ability to predict time-dependent flow and temperature fields and solid-liquid phase locations for hydrogen during ZBO, densification, and solidification. The simulations showed good agreement with experimental data, with errors within acceptable ranges for temperature and pressure predictions, provided detailed insights into natural convection and solid-liquid phase change dynamics. These findings are critical for the design of future cryogenic fluid management systems.

Computational Fluid Dynamics↗
DOE OSTI2025

Open data sets for assessing photovoltaic system reliability

Photovoltaic (PV) systems have become a cornerstone of renewable energy strategies, particularly due to the significant reduction in solar power costs over the past decade. However, the long-term reliability of PV installations presents a persistent challenge, requiring the development of advanced monitoring and predictive maintenance strategies. A wide range of data types is used to evaluate the health of PV systems, including environmental conditions, electrical performance, and inspection imagery. These data enable methodologies such as machine learning (ML) models for lifetime prediction and computer vision techniques for defect detection. However, the acquisition of high-quality and comprehensive data is difficult, particularly in terms of long-term consistency and data variety. Publicly available data sets serve as valuable resources for addressing these challenges, but they often suffer from fragmentation and are difficult to access. This paper presents a comprehensive review of existing open-source data sets related to PV degradation, analyzing their features, functionalities, and potential applications. We categorize these data sets based on the specific aspects of PV system information they cover, such as environmental conditions, operational monitoring, image inspection and module materials, and propose relevant tools and ML models for processing them. In addition, we propose practices for future data collection and usage, while also discussing potential directions in data-driven research. Our aim is to enhance data utilization and publication among researchers and industry professionals, promoting a deeper understanding of the role of data in enhancing the performance and durability of PV systems.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2024

Extreme Metastability of Diamond and its Transformation to the BC8 Post-Diamond Phase of Carbon

Diamond possesses exceptional physical properties due to its remarkably strong carbon–carbon bonding, leading to significant resilience to structural transformations at very high pressures and temperatures. Despite several experimental attempts, synthesis and recovery of the theoretically predicted post-diamond BC8 phase remains elusive. Through quantum-accurate multimillion atom molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, we have uncovered the extreme metastability of diamond at very high pressures, significantly exceeding its range of thermodynamic stability. We predict the post-diamond BC8 phase to be experimentally accessible only within a narrow high pressure–temperature region of the carbon phase diagram. The diamond to BC8 transformation proceeds through premelting followed by BC8 nucleation and growth in the metastable carbon liquid. Here we propose a double-shock compression pathway for BC8 synthesis, which is currently being explored in experiments at the National Ignition Facility.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2026

Long-Range Fit: A Software Package for the Representation and Study of Long-Range Molecular Interactions

Describing intermolecular forces is fundamental to modeling and predicting the behavior of molecular systems. In particular, long-range molecular interactions─with electrostatic, induction, and dispersion as the main components─play a critical role, especially for low-temperature and low-density regimes. Long-range interactions are often described through perturbation theory, representing the electronic charge distribution via a multipolar series of the moments and polarizability tensors corresponding to each molecule. However, while the theory is well established, obtaining the resulting analytical expressions (and their practical implementation) constitutes a highly complex and system-dependent task. To address this challenge, we developed long-range-fit (LRF), an interactive and user-friendly software package designed to automate the generation and fitting of long-range interaction terms for arbitrary molecules in nondegenerate (ground or excited) electronic states. We have derived and implemented all terms up to 15th order, without approximations, via a spherical tensor representation, with symmetry adaptation to all molecular point-group symmetries. The resulting potential energy surface is compatible with most representations of the close interaction region.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
NASA NTRS1984

Swirl, confinement and nozzle effects on confined turbulent flow

Predictions of swirl, confinement and nozzle effects on confined turbulent flow are exhibited and compared with five-hole pitot-probe time-mean velocity measurements. Two sets of computations are given, one using the standard k-epsilon turbulence model and the other using a C sub mu formulation model deduced from recent six-orientation single-wire hot-wire measurements. Results confirm that the accuracy of the latter model is superior. To highlight the effects of confinement and exit nozzle area on this flow, three expansion ratios and two contraction ratios are used. Predictions are given for a full range of swirl strengths using measured inlet conditions for axial, radial and swirl velocity profiles. The predicted velocity profiles illustrate the large-scale effects of inlet swirl on flowfields. It appears that a strong contraction nozzle has a pronounced effect, on swirl flow cases, with discouragement of central recirculation zones, and forward flow in highly swirled vortex core regions. The expansion ratio value has large-scale effects on the size and location of the recirculation zones.

Abujelala, M. T.↗
DOE OSTI2026

Effect of soot concentration on radiative transport in a 2 m JP-8 pool fire

Hubbard et al. (2024) investigated conjugate heat transfer in a 7.9 m JP-8 pool fire, utilizing both heavily sooting and non-sooting fuel models. Their findings indicated that all models produced pool radiative heat fluxes within the measurement uncertainty for large-scale outdoor experiments. This study aims to further investigate the influence of soot concentration on radiative transport. To this end, Large Eddy Simulations (LES) of a 2 m diameter JP-8 pool fire were conducted, employing four turbulent combustion chemistry models: the Eddy Dissipation Concept (EDC) and three variants of flamelet model. Additionally, three variations of the one-equation subgrid scale turbulence kinetic energy model, and multiple mesh resolutions were utilized. The primary validation metrics were pool radiative heat flux and plume radiative fraction, with simulation data compared to experimental results published by Blanchat et al. (2010). The EDC model produced high soot concentrations near the pool surface, resulting in a significant shielding effect. In contrast, the flamelet combustion model has different kinetic limiters for soot production, leading to soot formation higher in the flame, where it can be more readily oxidized. Flamelet models incorporating both acetylene and benzene contributions to soot growth demonstrated better agreement with experimental data. To assess the sensitivity of pool radiative heat flux to soot mass concentration, we used a one-dimensional approximation over a wide range of soot concentrations and compared it to three-dimensional solutions obtained using Discrete Ordinates. Furthermore, this analysis illustrates the impacts of soot shielding and Turbulence Radiation Interactions (TRI), with TRI emission enhancement factors predicted to be in the range of 3–5 near the edges of the plume.

Computational fluid dynamics↗
DOE OSTI2024

A transient site balance model for atomic layer etching

We present a transient site balance model of plasma-assisted atomic layer etching of silicon (Si) with alternating exposure to chlorine gas (Cl 2 ) and argon ions (Ar + ). Molecular dynamics (MD) simulation results are used to provide parameters for the model. The model couples the dynamics of a top monolayer surface region ('top layer') and a perfectly mixed subsurface region ('mixed layer'). The differential equations describing the rates of change of the Cl coverage in the two layers are transient mass balances. Model predictions include Cl coverages and rates of etching of various species from the surface as a function of Cl 2 or Ar + fluence. The simplified phenomenological model reproduces the MD simulation results well over a range of conditions. Comparing model predictions directly to experimental optical emission spectroscopy data, as reported in a previous paper, provides further evidence of the accuracy of the model.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
NASA NTRS1990

Micromechanics analysis of space simulated thermal deformations and stresses in continuous fiber reinforced composites

Space simulated thermally induced deformations and stresses in continuous fiber reinforced composites were investigated with a micromechanics analysis. The investigation focused on two primary areas. First, available explicit expressions for predicting the effective coefficients of thermal expansion (CTEs) for a composite were compared with each other, and with a finite element (FE) analysis, developed specifically for this study. Analytical comparisons were made for a wide range of fiber/matrix systems, and predicted values were compared with experimental data. The second area of investigation focused on the determination of thermally induced stress fields in the individual constituents. Stresses predicted from the FE analysis were compared to those predicted from a closed-form solution to the composite cylinder (CC) model, for two carbon fiber/epoxy composites. A global-local formulation, combining laminated plate theory and FE analysis, was used to determine the stresses in multidirectional laminates. Thermally induced damage initiation predictions were also made.

Bowles, David E.↗