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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 883 records · Page 49
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2024

On the Prediction of Aerosol-Cloud Interactions Within a Data-Driven Framework

Aerosol-cloud interactions (ACI) pose the largest uncertainty for climate projection. Among many challenges of understanding ACI, the question of whether ACI can be deterministically predicted has not been explicitly answered. Here we attempt to answer this question by predicting cloud droplet number concentration N c from aerosol number concentration N a and ambient conditions using a data-driven framework. We use aerosol properties, vertical velocity fluctuations, and meteorological states from the ACTIVATE field observations (2020–2022) as predictors to estimate N c . We show that the campaign-wide N c can be successfully predicted using machine learning models despite the strongly nonlinear and multi-scale nature of ACI. However, the observation-trained machine learning model fails to predict N c in individual cases while it successfully predicts N c of randomly selected data points that cover a broad spatiotemporal scale. This suggests that, within a data-driven framework, the N c prediction is uncertain at fine spatiotemporal scales.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2023

De novo design of high-affinity binders of bioactive helical peptides

Many peptide hormones form an α-helix on binding their receptors, and sensitive methods for their detection could contribute to better clinical management of disease. De novo protein design can now generate binders with high affinity and specificity to structured proteins. However, the design of interactions between proteins and short peptides with helical propensity is an unmet challenge. Here we describe parametric generation and deep learning-based methods for designing proteins to address this challenge. We show that by extending RFdiffusion to enable binder design to flexible targets, and to refining input structure models by successive noising and denoising (partial diffusion), picomolar-affinity binders can be generated to helical peptide targets by either refining designs generated with other methods, or completely de novo starting from random noise distributions without any subsequent experimental optimization. The RFdiffusion designs enable the enrichment and subsequent detection of parathyroid hormone and glucagon by mass spectrometry, and the construction of bioluminescence-based protein biosensors. The ability to design binders to conformationally variable targets, and to optimize by partial diffusion both natural and designed proteins, should be broadly useful.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2022

Deconvolving the components of the sign problem

Auxiliary field quantum Monte Carlo simulations of interacting fermions require sampling over a Hubbard-Stratonovich field h introduced to decouple the interactions. The weight for a given configuration involves the products of the determinant of matrices $M_σ(h)$ where σ labels the species, and hence is typically not positive definite. Indeed, the average sign $\langle \mathscr {L} \rangle$ of the determinants goes to zero exponentially with increasing spatial size and decreasing temperature for most Hamiltonians of interest. This statement, however, does not explicitly separate two possible origins for the vanishing of $\langle \mathscr {L} \rangle$. Does $\langle \mathscr {L} \rangle$ → 0 because randomly chosen field configurations have det[M(h)] < 0, or does the sign problem arise because the specific subset of configurations chosen by the weighting function have a greater preponderance of negative values? In the latter case, the process of weighting the configurations with |det[M(h)]| might steer the simulation to a region of configuration space of h where positive and negative determinants are equally likely, even though randomly chosen h would preferentially have determinants with a single dominant sign. Here in this paper, we address the relative importance of these two mechanisms for the vanishing of $\langle \mathscr {L} \rangle$ in quantum simulations.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
NASA NTRS1992

Spectral analysis of unsteady surface pressure on a pusher propeller

A propeller of an advanced turboprop testbed aircraft in pusher configuration is instrumented with 22 miniature blade-mounted transducers (BMTs) at two radii. Upstream pylon wake interaction with the propeller is the source of a one-per-cycle excitation for the blades in flight. The time history of fluctuating pressure signals over 26 flight conditions is statistically analyzed in the frequency domain. The rms amplitude of fluctuating pressure signals measured by suction surface BMTs indicates a very strong presence of the fundamental frequency over most of the upper surface. The pylon wake pressure signature on the propeller trailing edge, i.e., x/c not less than 0.80, shows predominantly random turbulence; hence, the amplitude of the fundamental frequency wave is fairly small. The resurgence of a large amplitude fundamental harmonic with coherent pylon wake signature further downstream, say at 90 percent chord, is unexpected behavior. The appearance of a dominating second propeller shaft order in the spectra of the rms pressure in transonic flight conditions identifies the presence of a two-per-cycle excitation source in the azimuthal direction. This is due to the presence of a shock wave, as evidenced by the pressure-time history plots.

Farokhi, Saeed↗
NASA NTRS1995

NASA/DOD Aerospace Knowledge Diffusion Research Project. Report 35: The use of computer networks in aerospace engineering

This research used survey research to explore and describe the use of computer networks by aerospace engineers. The study population included 2000 randomly selected U.S. aerospace engineers and scientists who subscribed to Aerospace Engineering. A total of 950 usable questionnaires were received by the cutoff date of July 1994. Study results contribute to existing knowledge about both computer network use and the nature of engineering work and communication. We found that 74 percent of mail survey respondents personally used computer networks. Electronic mail, file transfer, and remote login were the most widely used applications. Networks were used less often than face-to-face interactions in performing work tasks, but about equally with reading and telephone conversations, and more often than mail or fax. Network use was associated with a range of technical, organizational, and personal factors: lack of compatibility across systems, cost, inadequate access and training, and unwillingness to embrace new technologies and modes of work appear to discourage network use. The greatest positive impacts from networking appear to be increases in the amount of accurate and timely information available, better exchange of ideas across organizational boundaries, and enhanced work flexibility, efficiency, and quality. Involvement with classified or proprietary data and type of organizational structure did not distinguish network users from nonusers. The findings can be used by people involved in the design and implementation of networks in engineering communities to inform the development of more effective networking systems, services, and policies.

Bishop, Ann P.↗
DOE OSTI2021

A Machine Learns to Predict the Stability of Highly Diverse Multi-planetary Systems

Machine learning has proven to be an invaluable tool for characterizing the stability of planets in simplified planetary systems. In this work, we investigate the performance of a machine learning classifier on tightlypacked systems containing a rich diversity of planets, from Earths to Jupiters. Using information derived from short numerical simulations about a planet’s early orbital evolution and its relationship with the most massive planets in the system, we train a random forest classifier to predict instability with a > 88 percent accuracy. Our classifier relies on relative planet masses and the standard deviation of eccentricity for much of its predictive power. Most misclassified planets lie along a multi-dimensional boundary between stable and unstable planets, indicating that their early orbital evolution is ambiguous. The major reason for misclassification in this work is timescale: because our classifier uses information from only the first 137 years of simulation data, it is blind to late time interactions that cause or prevent instability. Machine learning methods like those utilized in this work provide powerful tools to complement numerical simulations across a wide range of planetary architectures.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS1975

Microwave power transmission system studies. Volume 2: Introduction, organization, environmental and spaceborne systems analyses

Introduction, organization, analyses, conclusions, and recommendations for each of the spaceborne subsystems are presented. Environmental effects - propagation analyses are presented with appendices covering radio wave diffraction by random ionospheric irregularities, self-focusing plasma instabilities and ohmic heating of the D-region. Analyses of dc to rf conversion subsystems and system considerations for both the amplitron and the klystron are included with appendices for the klystron covering cavity circuit calculations, output power of the solenoid-focused klystron, thermal control system, and confined flow focusing of a relativistic beam. The photovoltaic power source characteristics are discussed as they apply to interfacing with the power distribution flow paths, magnetic field interaction, dc to rf converter protection, power distribution including estimates for the power budget, weights, and costs. Analyses for the transmitting antenna consider the aperture illumination and size, with associated efficiencies and ground power distributions. Analyses of subarray types and dimensions, attitude error, flatness, phase error, subarray layout, frequency tolerance, attenuation, waveguide dimensional tolerances, mechanical including thermal considerations are included. Implications associated with transportation, assembly and packaging, attitude control and alignment are discussed. The phase front control subsystem, including both ground based pilot signal driven adaptive and ground command approaches with their associated phase errors, are analyzed.

Maynard, O. E.↗
NASA NTRS2022

The Dynamic Coupling of Streamers and Pseudostreamers to the Heliosphere

The slow solar wind is generally believed to result from the interaction of open and closed coronal magnetic flux at streamers and pseudostreamers. We use three-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic simulations to determine the detailed structure and dynamics of open-closed interactions that are driven by photospheric convective flows. The photospheric magnetic field model includes a global dipole giving rise to a streamer together with a large parasitic polarity region giving rise to a pseudostreamer that separates a satellite coronal hole from the main polar hole. Our numerical domain extends out to 30Rꙩ and includes an isothermal solar wind, so that the coupling between the corona and heliosphere can be calculated rigorously. This system is driven by imposing a large set of quasi-random surface flows that capture the driving of coronal flux in the vicinity of streamer and pseudostreamer boundaries by the supergranular motions. We describe the resulting structures and dynamics. Interchange reconnection dominates the evolution at both streamer and pseudostreamer boundaries, but the details of the resulting structures are clearly different from one another. Additionally, we calculate in situ signatures of the reconnection and determine the dynamic mapping from the inner heliosphere back to the Sun for a test spacecraft orbit. We discuss the implications of our results for interpreting observations from inner heliospheric missions, such as Parker Solar Probe and Solar Orbiter, and for space weather modeling of the slow solar wind.

V. Aslanyan↗
DOE OSTI2020

Phosphonium-Based Polyzwitterions: Influence of Ionic Structure and Association on Mechanical Properties

This manuscript describes a synthetic strategy and structure–property investigation of unprecedented phosphonium-based zwitterionic homopolymers (polyzwitterions) and random copolymers (zwitterionomers). Free radical polymerization of 4-(diphenylphosphino)styrene (DPPS) provided neutral polymers containing reactive triarylphosphines. Quantitative postpolymerization alkylation of these pendant functionalities generated a library of polymers containing various concentrations of neutral phosphines, phosphonium ions, and phosphonium sulfobetaine zwitterions. The zwitterionic homo- and copolymers exhibited significantly higher glass transition temperatures (T g ) and enhanced mechanical reinforcement in comparison to neutral and phosphonium analogues. These changes in T g and mechanical properties were attributed to nanoscale morphological domains, which formed due to electrostatic interactions between zwitterionic groups, as revealed by X-ray scattering and broadband dielectric spectroscopy (BDS). BDS revealed increased static dielectric constants (>25) for the phosphonium zwitterionomers compared to ionomeric or neutral analogues. These high static dielectric constants for the solvent-free polyzwitterions supported their stronger polarization response in comparison with polymers containing neutral phosphines and phosphonium ions, and these interactions accounted for morphological differences and enhanced mechanical behavior. This work describes a versatile strategy for modulating electrostatic interactions with tunable mechanical properties for an unprecedented family of zwitterionic polymers.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
NASA NTRS1991

Simulation of probabilistic wind loads and building analysis

Probabilistic wind loads likely to occur on a structure during its design life are predicted. Described here is a suitable multifactor interactive equation (MFIE) model and its use in the Composite Load Spectra (CLS) computer program to simulate the wind pressure cumulative distribution functions on four sides of a building. The simulated probabilistic wind pressure load was applied to a building frame, and cumulative distribution functions of sway displacements and reliability against overturning were obtained using NESSUS (Numerical Evaluation of Stochastic Structure Under Stress), a stochastic finite element computer code. The geometry of the building and the properties of building members were also considered as random in the NESSUS analysis. The uncertainties of wind pressure, building geometry, and member section property were qualified in terms of their respective sensitivities on the structural response.

Shah, Ashwin R.↗
NASA NTRS2004

Preparations for Global Precipitation Measurement(GPM)Ground Validation

The Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) program is an international partnership led by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). GPM will improve climate, weather, and hydro-meterorological forecasts through more frequent and more accurate measurement of precipitation across the globe. This paper describes the concept and the preparations for Ground Validation within the GPM program. Ground Validation (GV) plays a critical role in the program by investigating and quantitatively assessing the errors within the satellite retrievals. These quantitative estimates of retrieval errors will assist the scientific community by bounding the errors within their research products. The two fundamental requirements of the GPM Ground Validation program are: (1) error characterization of the precipitation retrievals and (2) continual improvement of the satellite retrieval algorithms. These two driving requirements determine the measurements, instrumentation, and location for ground observations. This paper describes GV plans for estimating the systematic and random components of retrieval error and for characterizing the spatial and temporal structure of the error. This paper describes the GPM program for algorithm improvement in which error models are developed and experimentally explored to uncover the physical causes of errors within the retrievals. GPM will ensure that information gained through Ground Validation is applied to future improvements in the spaceborne retrieval algorithms. This paper discusses the potential locations for validation measurement and research, the anticipated contributions of GPM's international partners, and the interaction of Ground Validation with other GPM program elements.

Bidwell, S. W.↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Variational Coupled Loads Analysis using the Hybrid Parametric Variation Method

Time-domain coupled loads analysis (CLA)is used to determine the response of a launch vehicle and payload system to transient forces, such as liftoff, engine ignitions and shutdowns, jettison events, and atmospheric flight loads, such as buffet. CLA, using Hurty/Craig-Bampton (HCB)component models, is the accepted method for the establishment of design-level loads for launch systems. However, uncertainty in the component models flows into uncertainty in predicted system results. Uncertainty in the structural responses during launch is a significant concern because small variations in launch vehicle and payload mode shapes and their interactions can result in significant variations in system loads. Uncertainty quantification (UQ)is used to determine statistical bounds on prediction accuracy based on model uncertainty. In this paper uncertainty is treated at the HCB component-model level. In an effort to account for model uncertainties and statistically bound their effect on CLA predictions, this work combines CLA with UQ in a process termed variational coupled loads analysis (VCLA). The modeling of uncertainty using a parametric approach, in which input parameters are represented by random variables, is common, but its major drawback is the resulting uncertainty is limited to the form of the nominal model. Uncertainty in model form is one of the biggest contributors to uncertainty in complex built-up structures. Model-form uncertainty can be represented using a nonparametric approach based on random matrix theory (RMT). In this work, UQ is performed using the hybrid parametric variation (HPV)method, which combines parametric with nonparametric uncertainty at the HCB component model level. The HPV method requires the selection of dispersion values for the HCB fixed-interface (FI)eigenvalues, and the HCB mass and stiffness matrices. The dispersions are based upon component test-analysis modal correlation results. During VCLA, random component models are assembled into an ensemble of random systems using a Monte Carlo (MC)approach. CLA is applied to each of the ensemble members to produce an ensemble of system-level responses for statistical analysis. The proposed methodology is demonstrated through its application to a buffet loads analysis of NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS)during the transonic regime fifty seconds after liftoff. Core stage (CS)section shears and moments are recovered, and statistics are computed.

Uncertainty Quantification↗
NASA NTRS1984

Solar reflection from interacting and shadowing cloud elements

An attempt is made to relate the reflection from a broken cloud field to that from a plane parallel cloud of the same optical properties by using Monte Carlo simulations for a very simple model of an array of regularly spaced, infinitely long bar clouds. Reflection from the array is represented by an effective cloud fraction, and it is shown that for many cases this may be obtained by treating the cloud elements to be noninteracting azimuthally symmetric reflectors. The effective cloud fraction is a function of solar zenith angle, the aspect ratio of the individual cloud elements, and the normal or zenith cloud fraction of the array. Model computations for reflection from an array of randomly distributed identical cylinders are also presented as an example of a possible application of this technique.

HARSHVARDHAN↗
DOE OSTI2019

Alloying effects on low-energy recoil events in concentrated solid-solution alloys

Alloying elements at low-concentrations into pure metals is usually adopted to improve their mechanical properties and irradiation performance. Recently developed single-phase concentrated solid-solution alloys (CSAs) comprised of two or more elements, all at high concentrations, have demonstrated good radiation resistance. CSAs are characterized by their extreme disordered states that arise from the random arrangement of different elements and accompanied random local lattice distortions. In this work, we investigate low-energy recoil events in Ni 0.5 X 0.5 (X = Fe and Co) CSAs and Ni 0.8 X 0.2 (X = Fe, Co, Cr, and Pd) CSAs using ab initio molecular dynamics simulations to understand the effects of different disorder on defect production in CSAs. The threshold displacement energies are determined along three high-symmetric directions by randomly choosing independent primary knock-on atoms in each direction. As expected, the threshold energies in Ni and its CSAs are anisotropic, with the highest values found in the [111] direction. The calculated threshold energies of Fe in NiFe are smaller than those in NiCo and Ni, especially along the [111] direction. An inspection of the atomic trajectories inside the collision cascade reveals that the effect of chemical disorder outweighs the site-to-site lattice distortions in determining the threshold energies. Especially, different interaction properties between elements due to their different electronic structures are responsible for the observed different threshold energies. Finally, the local environment dependence of threshold energies suggests that local elemental arrangement can be used to understand and predict threshold energies in disordered alloys.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2024

Development of a coarse-grained molecular dynamics model for poly(dimethyl- co -diphenyl)siloxane

Polydimethylsiloxane is an important polymeric material with a wide range of applications. However, environmental effects like low temperature can induce crystallization in this material with resulting changes in its structural and dynamic properties. The incorporation of phenyl-siloxane components, e.g., as in a poly(dimethyl-co-diphenyl)siloxane random copolymer, is known to suppress such crystallization. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations can be a powerful tool to understand such effects in atomistic detail. Unfortunately, all-atomistic molecular dynamics (AAMD) is limited in both spatial dimensions and simulation times it can probe. Here, to overcome such constraints and to extend to more useful length- and time-scales, we systematically develop a coarse-grained molecular dynamics (CGMD) model for the poly(dimethyl-co-diphenyl)siloxane system with bonded and non-bonded interactions determined from all-atomistic simulations by the iterative Boltzmann inversion (IBI) method. Additionally, we propose a lever rule that can be useful to generate non-bonded potentials for such systems without reference to the all-atomistic ground truth. Our model captures the structural and dynamic properties of the copolymer material with quantitative accuracy and is useful to study long-time dynamics of highly-entangled systems, sequence-dependent properties, phase behaviour, etc.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2019

X-Ray Stereo Digital Image Correlation

Digital Image Correlation (DIC) is a well-established, non-contact diagnostic technique used to measure shape, displacement and strain of a solid specimen subjected to loading or deformation. Yet, measurements using standard DIC can have significant errors or be completely infeasible in challenging experiments, such as explosive, combustion, or fluid-structure interaction applications, where beam-steering due to index of refraction variation biases measurements or where the sample is engulfed in flames or soot. To address these challenges, we propose using X-ray imaging instead of visible light imaging for stereo-DIC, since refraction of X-rays is negligible in many situations, and X-rays can penetrate occluding material. Two techniques of creating an appropriate pattern for X-ray DIC are presented, both based on adding a dense material in a random speckle pattern on top of a less-dense specimen. A standard dot-calibration target is adapted for X-ray imaging, allowing the common bundle-adjustment calibration process in commercial stereo-DIC software to be used. High-quality X-ray images with sufficient signal-to-noise ratios for DIC are obtained for aluminum specimens with thickness up to 22.2 mm, with a speckle pattern thickness of only 80 μm of tantalum. The accuracy and precision of X-ray DIC measurements are verified through simultaneous optical and X-ray stereo-DIC measurements during rigid in-plane and out-of-plane translations, where errors in the X-ray DIC displacements were approximately 2–10 μm for applied displacements up to 20 mm. Finally, a vast reduction in measurement error—5–20 times reduction of displacement error and 2–3 times reduction of strain error—is demonstrated, by comparing X-ray and optical DIC when a hot plate induced a heterogeneous index of refraction field in the air between the specimen and the imaging systems. Subsequently, these findings show the feasibility of using X-ray-based stereo-DIC for non-contact measurements in exacting experimental conditions, where optical DIC cannot be used.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
NASA NTRS1980

Human comfort response to random motions with a dominant pitching motion

The effects of random pitching velocities on passenger ride comfort response were examined on the NASA Langley Visual Motion Simulator. The effects of power spectral density shape and frequency ranges from 0 to 2 Hz were studied. The subjective rating data and the physical motion data obtained are presented. No attempt at interpretation or detailed analysis of the data is made. Motions in all degrees of freedom existed as well as the intended pitching motion, because of the characteristics of the simulator. These unwanted motions may have introduced some interactive effects on passenger responses which should be considered in any analysis of the data.

Stone, R. W., Jr.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Probabilistic evaluation of uncertainties and risks in aerospace components

This paper summarizes a methodology developed at NASA Lewis Research Center which computationally simulates the structural, material, and load uncertainties associated with Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) components. The methodology was applied to evaluate the scatter in static, buckling, dynamic, fatigue, and damage behavior of the SSME turbo pump blade. Also calculated are the probability densities of typical critical blade responses, such as effective stress, natural frequency, damage initiation, most probable damage path, etc. Risk assessments were performed for different failure modes, and the effect of material degradation on the fatigue and damage behaviors of a blade were calculated using a multi-factor interaction equation. Failure probabilities for different fatigue cycles were computed and the uncertainties associated with damage initiation and damage propagation due to different load cycle were quantified. Evaluations on the effects of mistuned blades on a rotor were made; uncertainties in the excitation frequency were found to significantly amplify the blade responses of a mistuned rotor. The effects of the number of blades on a rotor were studied. The autocorrelation function of displacements and the probability density function of the first passage time for deterministic and random barriers for structures subjected to random processes also were computed. A brief discussion was included on the future direction of probabilistic structural analysis.

Shah, A. R.↗