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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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NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Performance Risk Model (PRisM) Proof-of-Concept: An Operational Decision Support Tool to Predict Crew Performance in Space from Available Performance Tests

The Crew Health and Performance-Probabilistic Risk Assessment (CHP-PRA) team at NASA Glenn Research Center has developed a range of tools to evaluate astronaut health during spaceflight and to optimize the medical set required for missions. Among these, the Performance Risk Model (PRisM) represents a novel advancement, extending CHP-PRA’s focus beyond medical systems into the domain of human performance. Such tool could be pivotal in optimizing astronaut capabilities during space travel, thereby enhancing overall mission success. PRisM leverages data from well-established performance assessments conducted during previous crewed space missions and Earth analogs to strategically predict outcomes for planned tasks, even when direct performance testing has not been conducted for those specific tasks. To evaluate performance, PRisM references the various metrics outlined in NASA-STD-3001 and employs a methodology to integrate different performance scales. This framework analyzes the contribution of various human system task categories (HSTCs) to task execution and compares these contributions to the HSTCs’ involvement in other known tests. The model further employs a Monte Carlo simulation to sample performance scores from their distribution in operationally relevant tests such as those in Mulavara et al. (2018) and, by leveraging similarities in HSTC involvement, transfers this knowledge to actual mission tasks, such as those outlined in the "Human Exploration of Mars: Preliminary List of Crew Tasks”. The current PRisM proof-of-concept includes analyses of the impact of exercise and specific medications on astronauts’ performance, with provisions to incorporate additional countermeasures as data becomes available. Furthermore, the tool is customizable to include any system necessary to fully encompass the domain of human systems and can be adapted to evaluate performance for any spaceflight activities as requested by operational stakeholders. PRisM has the potential to assist the Human Research Program in exploring the capabilities trade space for optimized crew performance.

performance modeling↗
DOE OSTI2013

Phase-space finite elements in a least-squares solution of the transport equation

The linear Boltzmann transport equation is solved using a least-squares finite element approximation in the space, angular and energy phase-space variables. The method is applied to both neutral particle transport and also to charged particle transport in the presence of an electric field, where the angular and energy derivative terms are handled with the energy/angular finite elements approximation, in a manner analogous to the way the spatial streaming term is handled. For multi-dimensional problems, a novel approach is used for the angular finite elements: mapping the surface of a unit sphere to a two-dimensional planar region and using a meshing tool to generate a mesh. In this manner, much of the spatial finite-elements machinery can be easily adapted to handle the angular variable. The energy variable and the angular variable for one-dimensional problems make use of edge/beam elements, also building upon the spatial finite elements capabilities. The methods described here can make use of either continuous or discontinuous finite elements in space, angle and/or energy, with the use of continuous finite elements resulting in a smaller problem size and the use of discontinuous finite elements resulting in more accurate solutions for certain types of problems. The work described in this paper makes use of continuous finite elements, so that the resulting linear system is symmetric positive definite and can be solved with a highly efficient parallel preconditioned conjugate gradients algorithm. The phase-space finite elements capability has been built into the Sceptre code and applied to several test problems, including a simple one-dimensional problem with an analytic solution available, a two-dimensional problem with an isolated source term, showing how the method essentially eliminates ray effects encountered with discrete ordinates, and a simple one-dimensional charged-particle transport problem in the presence of an electric field. (authors)

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
NASA NTRS2007

Effects of Global Change on U.S. Urban Areas: Vulnerabilities, Impacts, and Adaptation

Human settlements, both large and small, are where the vast majority of people on the Earth live. Expansion of cities both in population and areal extent, is a relentless process that will accelerate in the 21st century. As a consequence of urban growth both in the United States and around the globe, it is important to develop an understanding of how urbanization will affect the local and regional environment. Of equal importance, however, is the assessment of how cities will be impacted by the looming prospects of global climate change and climate variability. The potential impacts of climate change and variability has recently been annunciated by the IPCC's "Climate Change 2007" report. Moreover, the U.S. Climate Change Science Program (CCSP) is preparing a series of "Synthesis and Assessment Products" (SAPs) reports to support informed discussion and decision making regarding climate change and variability by policy matters, resource managers, stakeholders, the media, and the general public. We are authors on a SAP describing the effects of global climate change on human settlements. This paper will present the elements of our SAP report that relate to what vulnerabilities and impacts will occur, what adaptation responses may take place, and what possible effects on settlement patterns and characteristics will potentially arise, on human settlements in the U.S. as a result of climate change and climate variability. We will also present some recommendations about what should be done to further research on how climate change and variability will impact human settlements in the U.S., as well as how to engage government officials, policy and decision makers, and the general public in understanding the implications of climate change and variability on the local and regional levels. Additionally, we wish to explore how technology such as remote sensing data coupled with modeling, can be employed as synthesis tools for deriving insight across a spectrum of impacts (e.g. public health, urban planning for mitigation strategies) on how cities can cope and adapt to climate change and variability. This latter point parallels the concepts and ideas presented in the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, Decadal Survey report on "Earth Science Applications from Space: National Imperatives for the Next Decade and Beyond" wherein the analysis of the impacts of climate change and variability, human health, and land use change are listed as key areas for development of future Earth observing remote sensing systems.

Quattrochi, Dale A.↗
NASA NTRS2008

Effects of Global Change on U.S. Urban Areas: Vulnerabilities, Impacts, and Adaptation

This slide presentation reviews some of the effects that global change has on urban areas in the United States and how the growth of urban areas will affect the environment. It presents the elements of our Synthesis and Assessment Report (SAP) report that relate to what vulnerabilities and impacts will occur, what adaptation responses may take place, and what possible effects on settlement patterns and characteristics will potentially arise, on human settlements in the U.S. as a result of climate change and climate variability. We will also present some recommendations about what should be done to further research on how climate change and variability will impact human settlements in the U.S., as well as how to engage government officials, policy and decision makers, and the general public in understanding the implications of climate change and variability on the local and regional levels. Additionally, we wish to explore how technology such as remote sensing data coupled with modeling, can be employed as synthesis tools for deriving insight across a spectrum of impacts (e.g. public health, urban planning for mitigation strategies) on how cities can cope and adapt to climate change and variability. This latter point parallels the concepts and ideas presented in the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, Decadal Survey report on "Earth Science Applications from Space: National Imperatives for the Next Decade and Beyond" wherein the analysis of the impacts of climate change and variability, human health, and land use change are listed as key areas for development of future Earth observing remote sensing systems.

Quattrochi, Dale A.↗
NASA NTRS2003

Chemically defined medium and Caenorhabditis elegans

BACKGROUND: C. elegans has been established as a powerful genetic system. Use of a chemically defined medium (C. elegans Maintenance Medium (CeMM)) now allows standardization and systematic manipulation of the nutrients that animals receive. Liquid cultivation allows automated culturing and experimentation and should be of use in large-scale growth and screening of animals. RESULTS: We find that CeMM is versatile and culturing is simple. CeMM can be used in a solid or liquid state, it can be stored unused for at least a year, unattended actively growing cultures may be maintained longer than with standard techniques, and standard C. elegans protocols work well with animals grown in defined medium. We also find that there are caveats to using defined medium. Animals in defined medium grow more slowly than on standard medium, appear to display adaptation to the defined medium, and display altered growth rates as they change the composition of the defined medium. CONCLUSIONS: As was suggested with the introduction of C. elegans as a potential genetic system, use of defined medium with C. elegans should prove a powerful tool.

Culture Media/chemistry↗
DOE OSTI2024

Improving streamflow predictions across CONUS by integrating advanced machine learning models and diverse data

Accurate streamflow prediction is crucial to understand climate impacts on water resources and develop effective adaption strategies. A global long short-term memory (LSTM) model, using data from multiple basins, can enhance streamflow prediction, yet acquiring detailed basin attributes remains a challenge. To overcome this, we introduce the Geo-vision transformer (ViT)-LSTM model, a novel approach that enriches LSTM predictions by integrating basin attributes derived from remote sensing with a ViT architecture. Applied to 531 basins across the Contiguous United States, our method demonstrated superior prediction accuracy in both temporal and spatiotemporal extrapolation scenarios. Geo-ViT-LSTM marks a significant advancement in land surface modeling, providing a more comprehensive and effective tool for better understanding the environment responses to climate change.

Tayal, Kshitij↗
DOE OSTI2016

CRISPR interference as a titratable, trans-acting regulatory tool for metabolic engineering in the cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7002

Trans-acting regulators provide novel opportunities to study essential genes and regulate metabolic pathways. In this paper, we have adapted the clustered regularly interspersed palindromic repeats (CRISPR) system from Streptococcus pyogenes to repress genes in trans in the cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7002 (hereafter PCC 7002). With this approach, termed CRISPR interference (CRISPRi), transcription of a specific target sequence is repressed by a catalytically inactive Cas9 protein recruited to the target DNA by base-pair interactions with a single guide RNA that is complementary to the target sequence. We adapted this system for PCC 7002 and achieved conditional and titratable repression of a heterologous reporter gene, yellow fluorescent protein. Next, we demonstrated the utility of finely tuning native gene expression by downregulating the abundance of phycobillisomes. In addition, we created a conditional auxotroph by repressing synthesis of the carboxysome, an essential component of the carbon concentrating mechanism cyanobacteria use to fix atmospheric CO 2 . Lastly, we demonstrated a novel strategy for increasing central carbon flux by conditionally downregulating a key node in nitrogen assimilation. The resulting cells produced 2-fold more lactate than a baseline engineered cell line, representing the highest photosynthetically generated productivity to date. This work is the first example of titratable repression in cyanobacteria using CRISPRi, enabling dynamic regulation of essential processes and manipulation of flux through central carbon metabolism. Finally, this tool facilitates the study of essential genes of unknown function and enables groundbreaking metabolic engineering capability, by providing a straightforward approach to redirect metabolism and carbon flux in the production of high-value chemicals.

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

Propagule Pressure in Microbial Introductions

The use of potentially beneficial microorganisms in agriculture (microbial inoculants) has rapidly accelerated in recent years. For microbial inoculants to be effective as agricultural tools, these organisms must be able to survive and persist in novel environments while not destabilizing the resident community or spilling over into adjacent natural ecosystems. Here, we adapt a macroecological propagule pressure model to a microbial scale and present an experimental approach for testing the role of propagule pressure in microbial inoculant introductions. We experimentally determined the risk-release relationship for an IAA-expressing Pseudomonas simiae inoculant in a model monocot system. We then used this relationship to simulate establishment outcomes under a range of application frequencies (propagule number) and inoculant concentrations (propagule size). Our simulations show that repeated inoculant applications may increase establishment, even when increased inoculant concentration does not alter establishment probabilities. The dataset filed here includes the experimemtal datafile, and a RMarkdown file that includes all the code used in in both the modeling and anaylsis.

agriculture↗
DOE OSTI2022

A Combined Computer Vision and Deep Learning Approach for Rapid Drone-Based Optical Characterization of Parabolic Troughs

Optical accuracy is a primary driver of parabolic trough concentrating solar power (CSP) plant performance, but can be damaged by wind loads, gravity, error during installation, and regular plant operation. Collecting and analyzing optical measurements over an entire operating parabolic trough plant is difficult, given the large scale of typical installations. Distant Observer, a software tool developed at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, uses images of the absorber tube reflected in the collector mirror to measure both surface slope in the parabolic mirror and offset of the absorber tube from the ideal focal point. This technology has been adapted for fast data collection using low-cost commercial drones, but until recently still required substantial human labor to process large amounts of data. A new method leveraging advanced deep learning and computer vision tools can drastically reduce the time required to process images. This new method addresses the primary analysis bottleneck, identifying featureless, reflective mirror corner points to a high degree of accuracy. Recent work has shown promising results using computer vision methods. The combined deep learning and computer vision approach presented here proved highly effective and has the potential to further automate data collection and analysis, making the tool more robust. The method presented in this paper automatically identified 74.3% of mirror corners within 2 pixels of their manually marked counterparts and 91.9% within 3 pixels. This level of accuracy is sufficient for practical Distant Observer analysis within a target uncertainty. A commercial drone collected video of over 100 parabolic trough modules at an operating CSP plant to demonstrate the deep learning and computer vision method's usefulness in processing large amounts of data. These troughs were successfully analyzed using Distant Observer, paired with the new deep learning and computer vision algorithm, and can provide plant operators and trough designers with valuable insight about plant performance, operating strategies, and plant-wide optical error trends.

computer vision↗
NASA NTRS2006

On Certain Theoretical Developments Underlying the Hilbert-Huang Transform

One of the main traditional tools used in scientific and engineering data spectral analysis is the Fourier Integral Transform and its high performance digital equivalent - the Fast Fourier Transform (FFT). Both carry strong a-priori assumptions about the source data, such as being linear and stationary, and of satisfying the Dirichlet conditions. A recent development at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), known as the Hilbert-Huang Transform (HHT), proposes a novel approach to the solution for the nonlinear class of spectral analysis problems. Using a-posteriori data processing based on the Empirical Mode Decomposition (EMD) sifting process (algorithm), followed by the normalized Hilbert Transform of the decomposed data, the HHT allows spectral analysis of nonlinear and nonstationary data. The EMD sifting process results in a non-constrained decomposition of a source real-value data vector into a finite set of Intrinsic Mode Functions (IMF). These functions form a nearly orthogonal derived from the data (adaptive) basis. The IMFs can be further analyzed for spectrum content by using the classical Hilbert Transform. A new engineering spectral analysis tool using HHT has been developed at NASA GSFC, the HHT Data Processing System (HHT-DPS). As the HHT-DPS has been successfully used and commercialized, new applications pose additional questions about the theoretical basis behind the HHT and EMD algorithms. Why is the fastest changing component of a composite signal being sifted out first in the EMD sifting process? Why does the EMD sifting process seemingly converge and why does it converge rapidly? Does an IMF have a distinctive structure? Why are the IMFs nearly orthogonal? We address these questions and develop the initial theoretical background for the HHT. This will contribute to the development of new HHT processing options, such as real-time and 2-D processing using Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) computational resources,

Kizhner, Semion↗
DOE OSTI2026

Three pairs of fungal Trametes strains isolated from distinct geographic origins show conserved genomic features and adaptive response to plant biomass

The genomes of white-rot fungi hold extended repertoires of enzymes active on virtually all the chemical bonds that intertwine lignocellulose polymers, and several Trametes species have been identified as powerful tools for biorefinery or bioremediation. However, only few studies have addressed the intra-species polymorphism one would expect from fungal strains collected in contrasted environments. We compared the genome sequence of pairs of strains collected in different geographic areas, for each of three fungal species. Using an updated list of the predicted functions for fungal ligno- and cellulolytic enzymes (CAZymes), we observed a high conservation of the gene repertoires among the six strains. We compared the adaptative response of the fungi grown on crystalline cellulose, wheat straw, aspen or pine sawdust by transcriptomics and secretomics. The gene regulation profiles were determined by the species and the substrates, rather than the strain. The secretomes did not show marked differences in the sets of secreted CAZymes after 3 day-growth on the substrates. We identified five transcription factor genes and two sesquiterpenoid synthesis genes induced during growth on lignocellulose. Wider studies using larger sets of strains will be necessary to evaluate the genericity of our findings, and to assess the phenotype diversity one could expect from geographic diversity as compared to taxonomic diversity in Trametes fungi.

Drula, E. [French National Research Institute for ↗
DOE OSTI2025

SA-GAT-SR: self-adaptable graph attention networks with symbolic regression for high-fidelity material property prediction

Recent advances in machine learning have demonstrated an enormous utility of deep learning approaches, particularly Graph Neural Networks (GNNs) for materials science. These methods have emerged as powerful tools for high-throughput prediction of material properties, offering a compelling enhancement and alternative to traditional first-principles calculations. While the community has predominantly focused on developing increasingly complex and universal models to enhance predictive accuracy, such approaches often lack physical interpretability and insights into materials behavior. Here, we introduce a novel computational paradigm—Self-Adaptable Graph Attention Networks integrated with Symbolic Regression (SA-GAT-SR)—that synergistically combines the predictive capability of GNNs with the interpretative power of symbolic regression. Our framework employs a self-adaptable encoding algorithm that automatically identifies and adjust attention weights so as to screen critical features from an expansive 180-dimensional feature space while maintaining O(n) computational scaling. The integrated SR module subsequently distills these features into compact analytical expressions that explicitly reveal quantum-mechanically meaningful relationships, achieving 23 × acceleration compared to conventional SR implementations that heavily rely on first-principle calculations-derived features as input. This work suggests a new framework in computational materials science, bridging the gap between predictive accuracy and physical interpretability, offering valuable physical insights into material behavior.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
NASA NTRS2016

Serious Gaming for Test & Evaluation of Clean-Slate (Ab Initio) National Airspace System (NAS) Designs

Incremental approaches to air transportation system development inherit current architectural constraints, which, in turn, place hard bounds on system capacity, efficiency of performance, and complexity. To enable airspace operations of the future, a clean-slate (ab initio) airspace design(s) must be considered. This ab initio National Airspace System (NAS) must be capable of accommodating increased traffic density, a broader diversity of aircraft, and on-demand mobility. System and subsystem designs should scale to accommodate the inevitable demand for airspace services that include large numbers of autonomous Unmanned Aerial Vehicles and a paradigm shift in general aviation (e.g., personal air vehicles) in addition to more traditional aerial vehicles such as commercial jetliners and weather balloons. The complex and adaptive nature of ab initio designs for the future NAS requires new approaches to validation, adding a significant physical experimentation component to analytical and simulation tools. In addition to software modeling and simulation, the ability to exercise system solutions in a flight environment will be an essential aspect of validation. The NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) Autonomy Incubator seeks to develop a flight simulation infrastructure for ab initio modeling and simulation that assumes no specific NAS architecture and models vehicle-to-vehicle behavior to examine interactions and emergent behaviors among hundreds of intelligent aerial agents exhibiting collaborative, cooperative, coordinative, selfish, and malicious behaviors. The air transportation system of the future will be a complex adaptive system (CAS) characterized by complex and sometimes unpredictable (or unpredicted) behaviors that result from temporal and spatial interactions among large numbers of participants. A CAS not only evolves with a changing environment and adapts to it, it is closely coupled to all systems that constitute the environment. Thus, the ecosystem that contains the system and other systems evolves with the CAS as well. The effects of the emerging adaptation and co-evolution are difficult to capture with only combined mathematical and computational experimentation. Therefore, an ab initio flight simulation environment must accommodate individual vehicles, groups of self-organizing vehicles, and large-scale infrastructure behavior. Inspired by Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games (MMORPG) and Serious Gaming, the proposed ab initio simulation environment is similar to online gaming environments in which player participants interact with each other, affect their environment, and expect the simulation to persist and change regardless of any individual player's active participation.

Allen, B. Danette↗
DOE OSTI2017

Cluster decomposition of full configuration interaction wave functions: A tool for chemical interpretation of systems with strong correlation

Approximate full configuration interaction (FCI) calculations have recently become tractable for systems of unforeseen size, thanks to stochastic and adaptive approximations to the exponentially scaling FCI problem. The result of an FCI calculation is a weighted set of electronic configurations, which can also be expressed in terms of excitations from a reference configuration. The excitation amplitudes contain information on the complexity of the electronic wave function, but this information is contaminated by contributions from disconnected excitations, i.e., those excitations that are just products of independent lower-level excitations. The unwanted contributions can be removed via a cluster decomposition procedure, making it possible to examine the importance of connected excitations in complicated multireference molecules which are outside the reach of conventional algorithms. We present an implementation of the cluster decomposition analysis and apply it to both true FCI wave functions, as well as wave functions generated from the adaptive sampling CI algorithm. Furthermore, the cluster decomposition is useful for interpreting calculations in chemical studies, as a diagnostic for the convergence of various excitation manifolds, as well as as a guidepost for polynomially scaling electronic structure models. Applications are presented for (i) the double dissociation of water, (ii) the carbon dimer, (iii) the π space of polyacenes, and (iv) the chromium dimer. While the cluster amplitudes exhibit rapid decay with an increasing rank for the first three systems, even connected octuple excitations still appear important in Cr 2 , suggesting that spin-restricted single-reference coupled-cluster approaches may not be tractable for some problems in transition metal chemistry.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2026

Adapted Cell Design for the Operando X‑Ray Absorption Study of a Structurally Evolving Cu Nanoparticle Ensemble during the CO2 Electroconversion to Multicarbon Products

An improved understanding of the materials that will sustain the future of energy production, storage, and delivery calls for better characterization tools. Operando characterization methods have thus become essential for investigating electrocatalytic materials. Without their resulting insights, the study of highly performing catalysts post-mortem cannot viably facilitate the further development of functional catalysts. Herein, we present an operando electrochemical cell designed for hard X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) and specifically adapted to the study of an electrocatalytically active Cu nanoparticle ensemble. So far, this nanocatalyst has proven to pose quite a challenge to characterize due to its unique structural dynamics. Adopting a design comparable to the H-cell employed for all activity testing, we report the satisfactory translation of the active site formation into an XAS-compatible cell. The simultaneous collection of CO2-derived products during XAS characterization enabled the operando characterization of this CO2-reducing active structure. We report a Cu–Cu coordination number of the first scattering path higher than suggested in our previous studies, highlighting the importance of monitoring metastable nanoelectrocatalysts in operando. This study illustrates important caveats for the electrocatalysis community when considering the application of operando XAS. Our results highlight that the sample size, homogeneity, and stability determine how to interpret the measured signal. Considering these parameters carefully, the operando EXAFS results confirm the exceptional undercoordinated character of the Cu nanoparticle ensemble during CO2 reduction to C2+ products.

Louisia, Sheena↗
DOE OSTI2019

The Applications of Intumescent Technologies in Support of D and D Activities across the DOE Complex - 19599

The development of intumescent technologies to be used as both an excellent means of fire protection and resiliency and as a radioactive fixative, would most definitely benefit the safety of the general public and also the environment. The remediation and safe disposal of radioactive waste is of great important to both national security and the public health, as we carry the responsibility to not develop new ways of mitigating these hazards but also to lay the groundwork for future generations. The overall goal of this research is to enhance the fire resiliency and protection of fixatives and nuclear facilities in support of D and D activities. Specific objectives include: 1) identify and evaluate commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) intumescent technologies, 2) conduct baseline fire testing of intumescent technologies, 3) develop a set of international standards to meet operational and safety requirements for D and D Technologies. In order to evaluate the above proposed research objectives, the following hypotheses have been postulated. - Select, test, and evaluate the suitability of certain 'near fit' ASTM flammability standards. - Baseline and down-select a set of existing COTS intumescent technologies (coatings and foams) to support D and D problem sets. - Determine feasibility of application methods for use inside a radioactive glovebox and hot cells for D and D purposes. - Develop international testing protocols for adapting the use of intumescent technologies to address needs of the D and D process. The proposed research will primarily take place at FIU-ARC. ARC and SRNL have conducted extensive coordination with the Savannah River Site's (SRS) 235-F PuFF facility personnel to facilitate planning in order to expedite the research and development (R and D) related to this effort. An initial set of documents associated with the specific facility hot cells, including schematics, assessment of the manipulator arms, anticipated particulate sizes of the Pu-238 contamination, an approved tooling list, etc., were formally reviewed and approved for release by the site to ARC. Utilizing these as a foundation, pre-planning for further adaptation of the intumescent technologies and the application during a full-scale cold demo at a hot cell testbed at ARC. One of the primary objectives is the testing and evaluation of the resistance of radiological shielding foams to thermal stressors. This objective was accomplished by conducting a flammability test and incremental temperature test. The goal of the flammability test is to conduct analytical tests to provide a classification for the foams as outlined below in accordance with IEC 60695-11-10. This test method is uniformly accepted throughout the industry as being critical indicators that quantifiably establish the flammability characteristics of plastics. It should be noted that polyurethane is not classified as a plastic, however, they do share similar properties deeming this a near fit test. IEC 60695-11-10:2013 specifies small-scale laboratory test procedures intended to compare the burning behavior of different materials when vertically or horizontally oriented test bar specimens are exposed to a small flame ignition source. Two test methods are described. Method A is a horizontal burning test and is intended to determine the linear burning rate of materials under specific test conditions. Method B is a vertical burning test and is intended to determine whether materials self-extinguish under specific test conditions. The purpose of the incremental temperature testing is to evaluate mass loss and dimensional changes that occurs to the radiological shielding foams when exposed to high temperatures in a muffle furnace. High temperatures often cause materials to undergo physical changes such as swelling or expanding. This is caused by the increase in kinetic energy and atomic and molecular movement.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
NASA NTRS2024

Workshop on the Role of Design Assurance in System-Wide Safety’s Safety Demonstrator Series

This report summarizes a three-hour hybrid in-person/online workshop on June 7, 2024 on the topic of design assurance and the Safety Demonstrator Series (SDS), which was held at NASA Ames Research Center. The SDS provides an operational demonstration of, and recommendations for, requirements and standards necessary to monitor, assess, and mitigate risks to assure safety in disaster-oriented operations. Over sixty NASA personnel participated in the workshop. Four main topics were discussed: (1) assurance needs for the Safety Demonstrator Series, (2) assurance and the In-Time Aviation Safety Management System (IASMS), (3) in-time assurance: existing efforts and future opportunities, and (4) demonstrating assurance tools in the Safety Demonstrators. Key takeaways are as follows: 1. Design assurance tools can be used to assure an In-Time Aviation Safety Management System, the systems that comprise it, and other systems or missions. Assurance must consider both systems and components and include the interactions between elements in both a systems/aircraft context and a systems-of-systems/airspace context. 2. Design-time assurance activities can support the identification of monitors needed for operational assurance activities (i.e., the “monitor” function in the monitor-assess-mitigate paradigm at the heart of the IASMS concept). 3. A major opportunity for design-time assurance tools to contribute to the IASMS concept is to support rapid re-validation of systems. This will be particularly important for (1) supporting novel operations in the IASMS, where operational data may disprove design-time assumptions (motivating re-analysis of system safety) and (2) adapting technologies (e.g., AI/ML for autonomous operations) to new operational domains, where there may be new or different safety considerations not included in the initial scope of operations. 4. There are several design assurance tools under development in the System-Wide Safety project that can support assurance of Services, Functions, and Capabilities (SFCs) in the Safety Demonstrators. Transitioning these tools from one-off research projects into a functioning part of IASMS assurance will require closer integration between these tools. 5. It is not clear whether the role of design assurance tools is primarily as a part of IASMS architecture or as an external check on IASMS. The workshop consisted of four discussion topics initiated via four lightning talks by System-Wide Safety researchers. Discussions utilized Mural to engage both in-person and online participants in the hybrid format. Polls and surveys were also utilized to gather participant input. The workshop closed with a reflection activity for participants, as well as new ideas for collaboration and coordination of ongoing System-Wide Safety research.

design assurance↗
DOE OSTI2020

Performance study of a novel dew point evaporative cooler in the climate of central Europe using building simulation tools

This paper presents the performance research of a hybrid air conditioning system (System II) equipped with novel dew point evaporative cooler (DPIEC) for a retail building located in temperate climatic conditions. The new cooler has a dedicated, adaptable structure that maximizes its performance in the climate conditions of central Europe. The unit can operate as a typical regenerative air cooler when outdoor air is drier than indoor air, it can operate as a counter-flow heat recovery unit when indoor conditions are more dry than outdoor and it can operate as a combination of both arrangements. The year-round, hourly-stepped building energy simulations were carried-out using a prognostic tool of energy consumption. The novel dew point evaporative cooler application potential was established using the black-box model based on regression equations was established based on experimental tests on a prototype of novel DPIEC. The hybrid system operation was compared to the typical air handling unit equipped with a standard energy wheel for heat recovery (System I). Presented research shows that DPIEC can cover about 95% of total cooling loads while the energy wheel covers only 9% of total cooling load. System II allows us to save 65% of seasonal electricity consumption comparing to System I. It comes from the fact that during most of the cooling season DPIEC is in operation and it covers most of the cooling loads without the need to switch the chilled water system.

Air conditioning↗