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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 829 records · Page 46
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2008

Gravity Scaling of a Power Reactor Water Shield

Water based reactor shielding is being considered as an affordable option for use on initial lunar surface power systems. Heat dissipation in the shield from nuclear sources must be rejected by an auxiliary thermal hydraulic cooling system. The mechanism for transferring heat through the shield is natural convection between the core surface and an array of thermosyphon radiator elements. Natural convection in a 100 kWt lunar surface reactor shield design has been previously evaluated at lower power levels (Pearson, 2007). The current baseline assumes that 5.5 kW are dissipated in the water shield, the preponderance on the core surface, but with some volumetric heating in the naturally circulating water as well. This power is rejected by a radiator located above the shield with a surface temperature of 370 K. A similarity analysis on a water-based reactor shield is presented examining the effect of gravity on free convection between a radiation shield inner vessel and a radiation shield outer vessel boundaries. Two approaches established similarity: 1) direct scaling of Rayleigh number equates gravity-surface heat flux products, 2) temperature difference between the wall and thermal boundary layer held constant on Earth and the Moon. Nussult number for natural convection (laminar and turbulent) is assumed of form Nu = CRa(sup n). These combined results estimate similarity conditions under Earth and Lunar gravities. The influence of reduced gravity on the performance of thermosyphon heat pipes is also examined.

Reid, Robert S.↗
NASA NTRS1978

Corrosion inhibitors for solar heating and cooling systems

Inhibitors which appeared promising in previous tests and additional inhibitors including several proprietary products were evaluated. Evaluation of the inhibitors was based on corrosion protection afforded an aluminum-mild steel-copper-stainless steel assembly in a hot corrosive water. Of the inhibitors tested two were found to be effective and show promise for protecting multimetallic solar heating systems.

Humphries, T. S.↗
NASA NTRS1975

Application of solar energy; Proceedings of the First Southeastern Conference, Huntsville, Ala., March 24-26, 1975

Topics related to architectural and institutional considerations are discussed along with studies of components and subsystems. Subjects in the area of system design and analysis are also explored. Residential and commercial applications are considered, taking into account hot-water usage in a typical single-family residence, solar heating and cooling of mobile homes, aspects of design and performance in the case of a solar heating system using a reflective pyramid optical condenser, solar heating in a Boston school, a performance analysis of solar service hot water systems, comparative performance analyses of three solar heated and cooled buildings, and the use of solar energy in a soybeam processing operation. Applications related to power generation are also examined, giving attention to solar thermal electric power systems and photovoltaic research. Individual items are announced in this issue.

Wu, S. T.↗
NASA NTRS1977

Portable linear-focused solar thermal energy collecting system

A solar heat collection system is provided by utilizing a line-focusing device that is effectively a cylindrically curved concentrator within a protected environment formed by a transparent inflatable casing. A target, such as a fluid or gas carrying conduit is positioned within or near the casing containing the concentrator, at the line focus of the concentrator. The casing can be inflated at the site of use by a low pressure air supply to form a unitary light weight structure. The collector, including casing, concentrator and target, is readily transportable and can be used either at ground level or on rooftops. The inflatable concentrator can be replaced with a rigid metal or other concentrator while maintaining the novel advantages of the whole solar heat collection system.

Miller, C. G.↗
DOE OSTI2022

INITIAL EXPLORATION OF A NOVEL TRANSIENT ARREST SYSTEM INVOLVING FUEL HEATING

A preliminary analysis on a novel accident response system to diminish the severity of supercritical transients was conducted. The novel accident response system, called the instant shock arrest system, involves using electricity to heat the nuclear fuel at the onset of a large accidental reactivity insertion. This system is specifically designed for reactors with metallic fuel, such that the fuel is capable of conducting electricity, and being resistively heated. A reactor dynamics model of the advanced test reactor was created using the point kinetics equations and a linear reactivity feedback model to simulate how the system would effect the maximum fuel temperatures experienced during the transient. Transients with the instant shock arrest system were compare to those without it. It was found that the instant shock arrest system initially heated the fuel more than the unaffected transient but the negative reactivity inserted from such heating was enough to lower the maximum fuel temperature experienced during the transient. After simulating six different accident scenarios with reactivity insertions ranging from 0.5 \$ to 1.3 \$, it was found that the an optimal system response could reduce peak fuel temperatures during the transient by 3.5\% to 5\%. Furthermore, discussion was given on how the optimal system response could be obtained using relatively simple numerical optimization algorithms due to the smoothness of the optimization problem.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Initial exploration of a novel transient arrest system involving fuel heating

A preliminary analysis on a novel accident response system to diminish the severity of super- critical transients was conducted. The novel accident response system, called the instant shock arrest system, involves using electricity to heat the nuclear fuel at the onset of a large accidental reactivity insertion. This system is specifically designed for reactors with metallic fuel, such that the fuel is capable of conducting electricity, and being resistively heated. A reactor dynamics model of the advanced test reactor was created using the point kinetics equations and a linear reactivity feedback model to simulate how the system would effect the maximum fuel temperatures experienced during the transient. Transients with the instant shock arrest system were compared to those without it. It was found that the instant shock arrest system initially heated the fuel more than the unaffected transient but the negative reactivity inserted from such heating was enough to lower the maximum fuel temperature experienced during the transient. After simulating six different accident scenarios with reactivity insertions ranging from 0.5 to 1.3 dollar, it was found that an optimal system response could reduce peak fuel temperatures during the transient by 3.5% to 5%. Furthermore, discussion was given on how the optimal system response could be obtained using relatively simple numerical optimization algorithms due to the smoothness of the optimization problem. (authors)

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2013

Universality and quantization of the power-to-heat ratio in nanogranular systems

We study heating and dissipation effects in granular nanosystems in the regime of weak coupling between the grains. We focus on the cotunneling regime and solve the heat-dissipation problem in an array of grains exactly. We show that the power to heat ratio has a universal quantized value, which is geometrically protected: It depends only on the number of grains.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2026

Design and performance assessment of a dual-mode latent thermal storage integrated heat pump across multiple climate zones

The electrification of space cooling and heating systems risks overloading the existing electrical grid during peak hours. Heat pumps integrated with thermal energy storage (HP-TES) offer a promising solution by shifting peak loads to off-peak hours, reducing grid strains. This work presents the design and assessment of a dual-mode HP-TES that uses a single 22°C phase-change material (PCM) as a heat source or sink in heating and cooling modes, respectively. Performance assessment was conducted using Modelica-based transient models, and full-year simulations were conducted across eight US climate zones using typical weather data. Two HP-TES performance metrics: peak energy reduction and recharge energy increases, were defined by comparing HP-TES energy consumption with base HP peak consumptions. Annual heating demand reductions (40–65%) exceeded cooling demand reductions (15–20%) due to the elimination of peak-hour backup heating. Cooling mode recharge energy requirements (0–10%) were reduced in locations with lower summer nighttime temperatures, while heating recharge requirements were lower than the high base-peak energy demand from backup heating. Simplified rapid methods that were 10 7 times faster than annual simulations were developed to predict seasonal cooling and heating energy reductions, and recharge energy requirements, with maximum deviations of ±2.5% and ±3.5% points. These methods enabled rapid parametric studies that identified optimal location-specific PCM temperatures between 22°C and 27°C, highlighting the need to consider both discharge and recharge energy requirements to achieve sustainable, energy-efficient peak load shifting across various climate zones.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
DOE OSTI2021

Toroidal plasma acceleration due to NBI fast ion losses in LTX- β

The recent Lithium Tokamak Experiment-Beta (LTX- β ) upgrade includes the addition of neutral beam injection (NBI) in the same direction as the plasma current (co- I P ) and a new toroidal Mirnov array for MHD characterization. In initial NBI experiments, a spontaneously rotating n = 1 MHD mode is seen to accelerate during NBI in the counter-beam direction, accompanied by a rise in electron density consistent with the beam-injected inventory but without a clear increase in plasma pressure. Together with analytic and numerical modeling of beam optics and fast ion confinement, these observations indicate the prompt loss of all or nearly all beam ions. However, the same modeling also suggests that planned upgrades to the Ohmic heating system should provide the fast ion confinement necessary for beam heating and core fueling. Here, a simple analytic model relates the momentum confinement time τ Φ to the observed evolution of mode rotation due to the combination of NBI momentum coupling, fast ion loss $\vec{J}\times\vec{B}$, and anomalous viscous torques, yielding τ Φ values consistent with past measurements of electron energy confinement time τ E,e .

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2023

Analysis of Carbon Capture Retrofits for Cement Plants

The objective of this study is to provide an estimate of the cost to capture CO 2 in retrofit applications at cement plants. The cement plant configurations considered in this study include natural gas and solid fuel (coal and coke) cases, and both wet- and dry kiln-fed plant designs, however the base cement plants in this study were not evaluated other than characterization of their kiln off-gas stream and high-level quantification of heat integration potential at the existing plant. In each case, the base cement plant produces 1.5 M tonnes per year of finished cement, assuming 91.4 percent clinker content. This analysis includes a 10 percent retrofit cost increase for process integration and low grade heat recovery, when compared to the analogous non-heat integration case. Heat integration is considered as a potential offset to capture system heating demands (i.e., as a percentage reduction). Recovery and reuse of excess heat from the base cement plant can provide economic benefits—primarily by reducing the need to purchase supplemental natural gas for CO 2 solvent regeneration—but any process improvement must be great enough to overcome the cost increases (i.e., capital and O&M) necessary to realize those benefits. With heat integration potential of 10 percent and 30 percent, that benefit wasn’t significant enough to offset the increase in capital and operating costs, and a cost of capture increase was observed based on the assumptions in this report. Benefits of heat integration potential may be realized when natural gas prices are higher, as demonstrated in the sensitivity to natural gas price where crossover points exist between heat integration cases and their respective non-heat integration cases. Four of the base cases were further evaluated to explore the cost implications of deeper levels of gas pre-treatment to remove oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and oxides of sulfur (SOx) from the kiln off-gas stream prior to CO 2 capture, purification, and compression. The results of these additional case analyses showed a 7.4–18.8 percent increase in cost of capture over the respective base case (i.e., analogous cases without SOx/NOx removal).

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2024

Unlocking the Path to Decarbonized Building Thermal Systems: Strategies for Designers and Contractors: Preprint

The design and construction community plays a pivotal role in facilitating the transition to decarbonized thermal systems that maintain human comfort while reducing building emissions. Through the U.S. Department of Energy Better Buildings initiative's Design and Construction Allies, a cohort of leading architecture, engineering, and construction firms have identified top ranked barriers that designers and contractors face when implementing solutions for building owners. These barriers to decarbonizing thermal - especially heating - systems include equipment availability; electrical capacity constraints; space allocations; complex system configurations; and lack of experience in designing, installing, and maintaining heat pumps. These impediments significantly amplify the risk and financial burden associated with the adoption of decarbonized solutions. The barriers also decrease the likelihood that designers, contractors, and owners will adopt decarbonization strategies without clear plans and guidance on how to implement these solutions, mitigate risk, and overcome the identified barriers. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory, the Design and Construction Allies, and the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers have developed "how to" thermal decarbonization guidance based on best practices. The subjects covered range from the role of energy efficiency in facilitating decarbonized heating solutions to strategies for decarbonizing new and existing heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning systems. The focus is on overcoming barriers so that energy-efficient, electrified buildings - both new and retrofit - become the industry standard. This paper outlines 1) the method used to collect and organize this guidance, 2) industry barriers to decarbonization, and 3) decarbonization techniques that have broad market applicability.

building heating↗
NASA NTRS1977

Corrosion inhibitors for solar heating and cooling systems

Problems dealing with corrosion and corrosion protection of solar heating and cooling systems are discussed. A test program was conducted to find suitable and effective corrosion inhibitors for systems employing either water or antifreeze solutions for heat transfer and storage. Aluminum-mild-steel-copper-stainless steel assemblies in electrical contact were used to simulate a multimetallic system which is the type most likely to be employed. Several inhibitors show promise for this application.

Humphries, T. S.↗
NASA NTRS1996

Thermal Excitation System for Shearography (TESS)

One of the most convenient and effective methods of stressing a part or structure for shearographic evaluation is thermal excitation. This technique involves heating the part, often convectively with a heat gun, and then monitoring with a shearography device the deformation during cooling. For a composite specimen, unbonds, delaminations, inclusions, or matrix cracking will deform during cooling differently than other more structurally sound regions and thus will appear as anomalies in the deformation field. However, one of the difficulties that cause this inspection to be dependent on the operator experience is the conventional heating process. Fanning the part with a heat gun by hand introduces a wide range of variability from person to person and from one inspection to the next. The goal of this research effort was to conduct research in the methods of thermal excitation for shearography inspection. A computerized heating system was developed for inspection of 0.61 m (24 in.) square panels. The Thermal Excitation System for Shearography (TESS) provides radiant heating with continuous digital measurement of the surface temperature profile to ensure repeatability. The TESS device functions as an accessory to any electronic shearography device.

Lansing, Matthew D.↗
DOE OSTI2018

Performance response of packed-bed thermal storage to cycle duration perturbations

Packed-bed thermal stores are integral components in numerous bulk electricity storage systems and may also be integrated into renewable generation and process heat systems. In such applications, the store may undergo charging and discharging periods of irregular durations. Previous work has typically concentrated on the initial charging cycles, or on steady-state cyclic operation. Understanding the impact of unpredictable charging periods on the storage behavior is necessary to improve design and operation. Here in this paper, the influence of the cycle duration (or 'partial-charge' cycles) on the performance of such thermal stores is investigated. The response to perturbations is explained and provides a framework for understanding the response to realistic load cycles.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
NASA NTRS1998

A Report from the Thermal Science Research Center (TSRC)

A vertical flow loop was designed and assembled to determine the local (circumferential and axial) and mean wall temperature distributions for single-phase and two-phase (subcooled and saturated) downward flow in both uniformly-heated and single-side heated vertical channels. Freon-11 was used as the working fluid in order to directly relate and compare the results with a previous experimental campaign which employed this same working fluid. For a given steady-state experiment, the following parameters were held constant: (1) exit pressure, (2) inlet temperature, and (3) mass velocity. For a given configuration of the 2.2 m long cylindrical channel test section, which had a 1.2 m long heated section, the applied heat rate was varied from zero through successive quasi-steady states to a level which corresponded to localized film boiling in the test section. The measurements showed that the boiling curve changes significantly at higher mass velocities with respect to both the circumferential and axial directions. The slope of the boiling curve changes in a non-monotonic fashion with respect to the circumferential directions. The slope of the boiling curve changes in a non-monotonic fashion with respect to the circumferential direction. The measurements point to the existence of a dry-out phenomenon occurring at multiple levels of the applied heat for the single-side heated channel. In comparing the heat transfer for horizontal channel flow with a vertically downward flow, the results show that significantly lower heat transfer occurs in the horizontal flow. However, this trend reverses as both the Reynolds number and the applied heat rate increase. Both the Liu-Winterton and Shah correlations were compared with the experimental data. The Shah correlation predicted the uniformly heated tube data better. When a thermal hydraulic diameter approach was used for the single-side heated case, the data at upstream locations for Z/L less than 0.5 was bounded above by the Liu-Winterton correlation and below by the Shah correlation. At Z/L = 0.5, the Shah correlation bounded the data; and for Z/L greater than 0.5, both correlations overpredicted the data with the Shah correlation being closest to the data. The present results indicate that additional correlational development is needed. In addressing some of the advanced space thermal management objectives concerning accommodating high heat fluxes in non-uniformly heated systems, a large battery of experiments 88 have been completed where local two-dimensional wall temperature variations were measured for both single-phase and two-phase flow in a single-side heated circular tube. As noted above, the results show significant axial and circumferential variations. Accurately accounting for such variations can result in optimized future advanced space, enhanced (high heat flux) thermal management systems.

Boyd, Ronald D.↗