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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 865 records · Page 48

Towards a high-performance garnet-based solid-state Li metal battery: A perspective on recent advances

Garnet-based solid-state Li metal batteries have been widely considered one of the most promising next-generation energy storage systems. However, the performance of these batteries is plagued by various limitations caused by the solid-state electrolyte (SSE). The poor wetting of lithium on the garnet surface diminishes the contact between the anode and electrolyte, leading to extremely high anode interfacial resistance. Similarly, the point-to-point contact between the cathode and electrolyte leads to high impedance on the cathode side. Moreover, although the SSE serves a firm barrier separating the anode and cathode, lithium dendrites can still grow through, causing a short circuit. Lastly, the solid/solid interface cannot be well maintained under cycling at high current density and capacity. Recently, remarkable progress has been achieved in garnet electrolyte to resolve these problems towards the aim of a high-performance solid-state Li metal battery. In this perspective, we highlight various recent advances in the field of garnet-based solid-state battery, including improving the anode/electrolyte interface, lithium dendrite detection, reducing cathode impedance, and electrolyte architecture design.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗

Effects of Water Vapor on the Reactivity of Aluminosilicates in Vapor-Phase Propanal Aldol Condensation

Aluminosilicate materials have been extensively studied as efficient aldol catalysts for C-C coupling reactions due to their acidic nature, high surface area, thermal stability, and porous structure. This work investigated the impact of water vapor pressure on the catalytic reactivity of aluminosilicates for the aldol condensation of propanal to 2-methyl-2-pentenal (MP). The catalytic performance of amorphous SiO2-Al2O3 (A-Si-Al) and aluminated MCM-41 (Al-MCM-41) for the vapor-phase aldol condensation of propanal was evaluated at 200 degrees C as a function of vapor-phase water content at atmospheric pressure. Our findings demonstrate that co-feeding low water vapor pressures (1-18 kPa) with propanal enhances the rates of MP production at 200 degrees C on A-Si-Al. Conversely, water vapor pressures of 25 kPa result in a decrease in aldol dimer formation rates. The rate of MP production evaluated on Al-MCM-41 also increased in the presence of 5 kPa water compared to anhydrous conditions. Propylamine temperature-programmed desorption analyses revealed an increase in Bronsted acid site density when both catalysts were exposed to water, which likely accounts for the observed enhancement in aldol condensation reactivity under hydrous conditions. Reversibility testing of the water vapor effect under reaction conditions, combined with X-ray diffraction analysis of fresh, spent, and regenerated catalysts, revealed no structural changes in either aluminosilicate upon exposure to water or reaction conditions. The rates of aldol condensation and the impact of water vapor were highly consistent across both materials, suggesting that zeolite crystallinity has minimal influence on the catalytic performance.

acid catalysts↗

Carbon molecular sieve hollow fiber membranes derived from dip-coated precursor hollow fibers comprising nanoparticles

We report a novel approach to economically fabricate dual-layer composite nanoparticle-containing carbon molecular sieve (CMS) hollow fiber membranes having excellent gas separation performance. The economically favored process comprises dip coating engineered support layer fibers to form a dense skin layer in a CMS precursor. The coated fibers are then pyrolyzed to form a high-performance CMS hollow fiber membrane. The nano-particle containing composite carbon molecular sieve hollow fiber membranes showed very attractive selectivities and productivities. As a result, this work shows how to produce high performance CMS hollow fiber membrane by coating, which exceeds that achieved with the standard sol-gel support stabilization technique.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Heterogenization of polyoxometalates as solid catalysts in aerobic oxidation of glycerol

A series of heterogeneous catalysts based on phosphomolybdic salts with different metals in counter or substituent positions, L n PMo 12 O 40 (L = Al 3+ , Fe 3+ , Cr 3+ , Ti 4+ , Zr 4+ and Zn 2+ , abbreviated as LPMo 12 ) and H x PMo 11 LO 39 (L = Zn 2+ , Cr 3+ , Fe 3+ , Al 3+ , Ti 4+ , for Ti 4+ ; the amount of O is 40, abbreviated as HPMo 11 L), were prepared using a simple calcination treatment and were evaluated in aerobic oxidation of glycerol. After calcination at about 250 °C for 4 h, homogeneous Ln P Mo 12 O 40 ·nH 2 O and H x PMo 11 LO 39 ·mH 2 O became heterogeneous. Their specific surface areas were also enhanced as well as their activity and reusability. Similar to the homogeneous catalysts, AlPMo 12 treated at 400 °C (AlPMo 12 -400) was found to be the most active catalyst in glycerol oxidation to lactic acid, with 96.1% yield and 98.6% conversion at 60 °C for 5 h with 1 MPa of O 2 ; it gave a turnover number (TON; TON = [LA]/[catalyst]) of 2.4 × 10 2 , higher than that of AlPMo 12 -250 treated at 250 °C (TON = 2.0 × 10 2 ). AlPMo 12 behaved as a heterogeneous catalyst in glycerol oxidation and could be reused at least 12 times. AlPMo 12 -400 also performed well in crude glycerol oxidation, affording lactic acid yields as high as 86.8%.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Revealing the effect of interfacial electron transfer in heterostructured Co 9 S 8 @NiFe LDH for enhanced electrocatalytic oxygen evolution

Heterointerface engineering is a desirable way to rationally design efficient and low-cost electrocatalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER). Herein, urchin-like Co 9 S 8 @NiFe layered double hydroxide (Co 9 S 8 @NiFe LDH) heterostructured hollow spheres are assembled from Co 9 S 8 hollow spheres as the core and porous NiFe LDH nanowires as the shell. The heterostructured hollow spheres show a small overpotential of 220 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm -2 , a low Tafel slope of 52.0 mV dec -1 , and robust stability, which is better than that of commercial IrO 2 and most reported non-precious electrocatalysts. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations show that the synergetic effect at the interface could improve the electrical conductivity of Co 9 S 8 @NiFe LDH, induce electron transfer from NiFe LDH to Co 9 S 8 , and lower the energy barriers of intermediates for the OER, leading to enhanced electrocatalytic activity. Meanwhile, the urchin-like hollow structure with nanopores and super-hydrophilicity can provide desired structural stability, facilitate ion penetration and release bubbles, improving the accessibility of active sites and thereby boosting OER catalytic performance. This work provides a viable route to develop high performance electrocatalysts for the OER.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Immersive Particle Advection: Through the Scales of Renewable Energy: Preprint

We describe the benefits of immersive flow analysis for three large-scale computational science studies in the field of renewable energy. The studies encompass a range of scales, spanning from the large atmospheric scale of a wind farm to the human scale of an electric vehicle cabin down to the microscopic scale of battery material science. In these studies, users explored the flow patterns and dynamics through immersive particle advection. The integration of high-performance computing with immersive analysis provided a deeper understanding of these systems, helping develop more effective solutions for a sustainable energy future.

computational fluid dynamics↗

Influence of Binder Coverage on Interfacial Chemistry of Thin Film LiNi 0.6 Mn 0.2 Co 0.2 O 2 Cathodes

In this work, we explore the influence of binder coverage and chemistry on the interfacial properties of the textured Ni-rich cathode LiNi 0.6 Mn 0.2 Co 0.2 O 2 . We find that the formation of the cathode/electrolyte interphase (CEI) composition varies significantly for cathodes coated with either poly(vinylene fluoride) (PVDF), carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), or lithium polyacrylate (LiPAA) after cycling to high upper cutoff voltages (4.5 V vs Li/Li). The PVDF-coated samples had a thinner CEI and twice the relative concentration of LiF and Li 2 CO 3 to Li x PO y F z species in the CEI compared to the uncoated sample. This correlated with significantly lower interfacial impedance (285 vs ~1700 Ohm-cm 2 ) and improved capacity retention between cycles of the PVDF-coated samples compared to the other binder compositions and the uncoated sample. CMC-coated samples performed worst, with a CEI comprised of greater amounts of Li x PO y F z . In addition, we find the choice of binder results in the selective protection or promotion of electrolyte reactions at the (104) surface of the 622 cathode. This suggests that the choice of binder can impact the surface chemistry and performance of high voltage cathodes and supports an avenue for interest in multifunctional binders for stabilizing the CEI.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Analysis of TATB by HPLC-DAD (V.1.4)

The following procedure describes the method for determining the purity of 1,3,5-triamino 2,4,6-trinitrobenzene (TATB) samples using a High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) system fitted with a Diode Array Detector (DAD). This procedure is also applicable for the detection of some impurities present in TATB.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Design and performance evaluation of small, two- and four-stage depressed collectors for a 4.8 to 9.6 GHz high-performance traveling wave tube

A program to improve the efficiency of traveling wave tubes (TWT's) for use in electronic countermeasure (ECM) systems by applying multistage depressed collector (MDC) and spent beam refocusing techniques is studied. Three dimensional electron trajectories are computed through-out the slow wave structure of the TWT, the spent beam refocuser, and the depressed collector. Both TWT and MDC performances are analytically evaluated.

Ramins, P.↗

Modeling the Cosmological Lyman-𝛼 Forest at the Field Level

The distribution of absorption lines in the spectra of distant quasars, called the Lyman-𝛼 (Ly-𝛼) forest, is a unique probe of cosmology and the intergalactic medium at high redshifts and small scales. The statistical power of ongoing redshift surveys demands precise theoretical tools to model the Ly-𝛼 forest. We address this challenge by developing an analytic, perturbative forward model to predict the Ly-𝛼 forest at the field level for a given set of cosmological initial conditions. Our model shows a remarkable performance when compared with the Sherwood hydrodynamic simulations: it reproduces the Ly-𝛼 forest flux power spectrum, its cross-correlation with dark matter halos, and the one-point probability distribution function of both fields at the percent level down to scales of a few Mpc. Our work provides crucial tools that bridge analytic modeling on large scales with simulations on small scales, enabling field-level inference from Ly-𝛼 forest data and simulation-based priors for cosmological analyses. Furthermore, this is especially timely for realizing the full scientific potential of the Ly-𝛼 forest measurements by the dark energy spectroscopic instrument.

Cosmological parameters↗

Water-Rock Interactions in Outer Solar System Bodies: Evidence from the Coordinated Analysis of Interplanetary Dust

NASA has an ongoing program of collecting interplanetary dust particles (IDPs) in the stratosphere using high altitude research aircraft. The collected IDPs are derived from asteroids and comets and here we report studies of a subset of hydrated IDPs rich in carbonaceous matter that are proposed to have a cometary origin. Our studies are aimed at understanding the evolution of oxygen reservoirs in the Solar System and their interaction with cometary minerals and organic matter. The small size (<20 μm) and fragility of these IDPs present a number of analytical challenges. We have pioneered techniques for performing chemical, mineralogical, isotopic, and spectroscopic measurements on the same sample in a carefully coordinated sequence. Coordinated analyses of nanogram-size samples is made possible by several delicate sample preparation techniques. To avoid organic contamination, we embed IDPs in elemental sulfur and use ultramicrotomy to partly section the particles (the first few micrometers). Multiple thin sections (50-70 nm thick) are placed on different substrates depending on the analysis technique. We use a JEOL 2500SE scanning, transmission electron microscope (STEM) to determine the mineralogy, microstructure, and elemental compositions of constituent minerals in the thin sections through a combination of high resolution imaging, electron diffraction, quantitative energy-dispersive x-ray mapping, and electron energy-loss spectroscopy. Following the STEM analyses, we use a NanoSIMS 50L for high spatial resolution isotopic measurements of H, C, N, and O to search for presolar grains and to understand the origin of the indigenous organic matter. The isotopic analyses are performed on the same sections analyzed in the STEM in order to correlate isotopic properties with the elemental and mineralogical data. We reserve other thin sections for non-destructive analyses utilizing synchrotron-based techniques including Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) micro-spectroscopy and X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) analyses, especially for functional group analysis of organic matter in the particles. The remainder of the IDP is extracted from the sulfur bead that was used for microtomy and is pressed into Au foil for quantitative analysis (including light elements) using a JEOL 8530F field emission electron probe microanalyzer (EPMA). After the EPMA measurements, high precision oxygen isotopic analyses are obtained using Cameca IMS1270/1290 instruments at UCLA. The hydrated IDPs in this study are dominated by saponitic clays, with minor magnetite, carbonate and abundant organic matter. The remarkable oxygen isotopic compositions, high carbon contents, and the abundance of isotopically anomalous organic matter, together suggest that the high carbon, hydrated IDPs are derived from primitive sources not yet represented in meteorite collections such as outer main belt P- and D-type asteroids or comets.

Keller, Lindsay P.↗

The ground station high-power traveling-wave tube

The M4040 is a 2-kw CW traveling-wave tube developed specifically for communications applications. It was used as the power amplifier in the Project Telstar ground transmitter. Analytic methods employed in the design of the electron gun, the beam collector, the RF circuit and the output match are presented. Typical performance characteristics and drawings of the tube subassemblies serve to describe the electrical and physical features of the M4040 traveling-wave tube. Methods used to inhibit oscillation and the effects of ion drainage and collector depression on tube performance are also discussed.

TRAVELING WAVE TUBE↗

Analysis and identification of subsynchronous vibration for a high pressure parallel flow centrifugal compressor

The summary of a complete analytical design evaluation of an existing parallel flow compressor is presented and a field vibration problem that manifested itself as a subsynchronous vibration that tracked at approximately 2/3 of compressor speed is reviewed. The comparison of predicted and observed peak response speeds, frequency spectrum content, and the performance of the bearing-seal systems are presented as the events of the field problem are reviewed. Conclusions and recommendations are made as to the degree of accuracy of the analytical techniques used to evaluate the compressor design.

Kirk, R. G.↗

Cluster dynamics simulation of xenon diffusion during irradiation in UO 2

Diffusion of fission gas in UO 2 nuclear fuel impacts several important performance metrics, such as fission gas release, swelling, and thermal conductivity. Current empirical models of fission gas release have significant uncertainty, some of which derives from the bulk diffusion rate and its dependence on, for example, fuel chemistry and irradiation. In this work, we have applied the previously-developed Free Energy Cluster Dynamics (FECD) methodology in the code Centipede to calculate xenon cluster concentrations in UO 2 under intrinsic (high temperature) and irradiation-enhanced (intermediate temperature) conditions in order to develop a model of the xenon diffusion coefficient based on the atomic scale mechanisms responsible for transport. While the diffusion mechanism for xenon in UO 2 is adequately described by the Xe + U 2 O vacancy cluster for intrinsic conditions, a similar process is not capable of capturing measured in-pile fission gas diffusivity at intermediate temperatures. Therefore, a different diffusion mechanism must dominate under this regime. Using calculated atomistic data, we have shown that irradiation-enhanced diffusion at intermediate temperatures occurs via the larger Xe + U 4 O y vacancy clusters, which have lower migration barriers and increase in concentration by several orders of magnitude compared to intrinsic conditions. This mechanism is enabled by the increased uranium vacancy concentration under irradiation due to Frenkel pair production. In addition, the fast migration of uranium interstitials with two attached oxygen interstitials lowers the total uranium interstitial concentration through reactions with sinks. This allows the extended defects, such as Xe + U 4 O y vacancy clusters, to maintain high concentrations by limiting annihilation with attached vacancies. Furthermore, predictions using the Xe + U 4 O y diffusion mechanism are in good agreement with experiment, albeit with some differences in the Arrhenius slope, which we believe may be related to either experimental or model parameter uncertainty. Lastly, an analytical expression suitable for application in fuel performance simulations was derived to capture the predictions of the Centipede simulations.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

Scaling SQL to the Supercomputer for Interactive Analysis of Simulation Data

AI and simulation workloads consume and generate large amounts of data that need to be searched, transformed and merged with other data. With the goal of treating data as a first-class citizen inside a traditionally compute-centric HPC environment, we explore how the use of accelerators and high-speed interconnects can speed up tasks which otherwise constitute bottlenecks in computational discovery workflows. BlazingSQL is SQL engine that runs natively on NVIDIA GPUs and supports internode communication for fast analytics on terabyte-scale tabular data sets. We show how a fast interconnect improves query performance if leveraged through the Unified Communication X (UCX) middleware. We envision that future computing platforms will integrate accelerated database query capabilities for immediate and interactive analysis of large simulation data.

Glaser, Jens↗

Evaluation of chromatographic resins for high efficacy separation of radium from chemical analogues

The separation of Radium (Ra) from interfering chemical analogues is of major importance for both the accurate measurement of Ra-226 in environmental samples and the preparation of radium targets destined for medical isotope production. The adsorption behavior of Ra, Barium (Ba), and Strontium (Sr) was investigated on multiple crown-ether-based proprietary extraction chromatographic resins developed by TrisKem Int. Among these, the TK101 resin, characterized by a novel room-temperature ionic liquid (RTIL) dual extractant–solvent system, demonstrated enhanced affinity and selectivity, particularly at low acid concentrations, achieving a D w of 3477 ± 73 for Ra in 0.04 M HNO₃, whereas the maximum Ra D w obtained with the traditional Sr resin in 8 M HNO 3 was only 12.33 ± 0.4. In 0.04 M HNO 3 , a Ra distribution ratio (D w ) of 776 was achieved within 1 min, indicating rapid uptake kinetics. The adsorption capacities were estimated at 19.6 ± 0.1 mg/g for Ba and 12.0 ± 0.2 mg/g for Sr. However, competing alkali metals significantly reduced alkaline earth metal uptake, indicating that the TK101 resin is best suited for radium purification following a preconcentration step to minimize matrix effects in high salinity samples. Dynamic column studies confirmed the strong chromatographic performance of the TK101 resin, with no significant Ba or Sr breakthrough in the Ra fraction and a Ra recovery of 87 ± 2.8%. These results demonstrate the potential of the TK101 resin for selective radium separation in analytical and radiochemical applications.

and nuclear chemistry↗