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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 991 records · Page 55

High Energy Density Aqueous Flow Battery Utilizing Extremely Stable, Branching-Induced High-Solubility Anthraquinone near Neutral pH

An anthraquinone featuring a chiral carboxylate-capped methyl-branched side chain with an ether linkage, 2,2'-((9,10-dioxo-9,10-dihydroanthracene-2,6-diyl)bis(oxy))dipropionic acid (2,6-D2PEAQ), was synthesized and evaluated for use in aqueous redox flow batteries. It was found to have an extraordinary solubility of 2 M (4 M electrons), corresponding to a theoretical volumetric capacity of 107.2 Ah/L for the negative electrolyte, which is 10 times that of its unbranched counterpart. The 2,6-D2PEAQ molecule demonstrated stability against thermal 2 decomposition and was extremely stable under cell cycling conditions. Here, a capacity fade rate of 0.02% day over 14 days was demonstrated in a 1.1 M 2,6-D2PEAQ nearly capacity-balanced cell when paired with a ferro-/ferricyanide posolyte at pH 7. Compared to other aqueous redoxactive organic molecules, its demonstrated fade rate is lower than that of any molecule with a demonstrated volumetric capacity of ≥55 Ah/L, and its volumetric capacity is greater than that of any molecule with a demonstrated fade rate of ≤0.5%/day.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗

Origins of Acid-Gas Stability Behavior in Zeolitic Imidazolate Frameworks: The Unique High Stability of ZIF-71

Zeolitic imidazolate frameworks (ZIFs) are promising materials for industrial process separations, but recent literature reports have highlighted their vulnerability to acid gases (e.g., SO 2 , CO 2 , NO 2 , H 2 S), often present in practical applications. While previous work has documented the widely varying stability behavior of many ZIFs under varying (humid and dry) acid gas environments, efforts to explain or correlate these experimental observations via empirical descriptors have not succeeded. A key observation is that ZIF-71 (RHO topology) is an extraordinarily stable ZIF material, retaining both structure and porosity under prolonged humid SO 2 exposure whereas many other well-known ZIFs with different linkers and topologies (such as ZIF-8) were shown to degrade. Through a combination of hybrid quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics (QM/MM) based methods and statistical mechanical models, we successfully explain this important experimental observation via atomistic investigations of the reaction mechanism. Our holistic approach reveals an ~9 times lower average defect formation rate in ZIF-71 RHO compared to ZIF-8 SOD, leading to the conclusion that the observed experimental stability of this material rises from kinetic effects. Moreover, our analysis reveals that differing stability of the two materials is determined by the distributions of acid gas molecules, which is difficult to capture using empirical descriptors. Furthermore, our results suggest wider applicability of the present approach, toward identifying tuned functional groups and topologies that move the acid gas distributions away from more reactive sites and thus allow enhanced kinetic stability.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Synthesis and Stability of an Eight‐Coordinated Fe 3 O 4 High‐Pressure Phase: Implications for the Mantle Structure of Super‐Earths

Abstract Super‐Earths ranging up to 10 Earth masses (M E ) with Earth‐like density are common among the observed exoplanets thus far, but their measured masses and radii do not uniquely elucidate their internal structure. Exploring the phase transitions in the Mg‐silicates that define the mantle‐structure of super‐Earths is critical to characterizing their interiors, yet the relevant terapascal conditions are experimentally challenging for direct structural analysis. Here we investigated the crystal chemistry of Fe 3 O 4 as a low‐pressure analog to Mg 2 SiO 4 between 45–115 GPa and up to 3000 K using powder and single crystal X‐ray diffraction in the laser‐heated diamond anvil cell. Between 60–115 GPa and above 2000 K, Fe 3 O 4 adopts an 8‐fold coordinated Th 3 P 4 ‐type structure ( I ‐43d, Z = 4) with disordered Fe 2+ and Fe 3+ into one metal site. This Fe‐oxide phase is isostructural with that predicted for Mg 2 SiO 4 above 500 GPa in super‐Earth mantles and suggests that Mg 2 SiO 4 can incorporate both ferric and ferrous iron at these conditions. The pressure‐volume behavior observed in this 8‐fold coordinated Fe 3 O 4 indicates a maximum 4% density increase across the 6‐ to 8‐fold coordination transition in the analog Mg‐silicate. Reassessment of the FeO—Fe 3 O 4 fugacity buffer considering the Fe 3 O 4 phase relationships identified in this study reveals that increasing pressure and temperature to 120 GPa and 3000 K in Earth and planetary mantles drives iron toward oxidation.

Zurkowski, C. C.↗

Mesoscale Convective Systems Represented in High Resolution E3SMv2 and Impact of New Cloud and Convection Parameterizations

Mesoscale convective systems (MCSs) play an important role in modulating the global hydrological cycle, general circulation, and radiative energy budget. In this study, we evaluate MCS simulations in the second version of U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Energy Exascale Earth System Model (E3SMv2). E3SMv2 atmosphere model (EAMv2) is run at the uniform 0.25? horizontal resolution. We track MCSs consistently in the model and observations using the PyFLEXTRKR algorithm, which defines MCS based on both cloud-top brightness temperature (Tb) and surface precipitation. Results from using Tb only to define MCS, commonly used in previous studies, are also discussed. Furthermore, sensitivity experiments are performed to examine the impact of new cloud and convection parameterizations developed for EAMv3 on simulated MCSs. Our results show that EAMv2 simulated MCS precipitation is largely underestimated in the tropics and contiguous United States. This is mainly attributed to the underestimated precipitation intensity in EAMv2. In contrast, the simulated MCS frequency becomes more comparable to observations if MCSs are defined only based on cloud-top Tb. The Tb-based MCS tracking method, however, includes many cloud systems with very weak precipitation which conflicts with the MCS definition. This result illustrates the importance of accounting for precipitation in evaluating simulated MCSs. We also find that the new physics parameterizations help increase the relative contribution of convective precipitation to total precipitation in the tropics, but the simulated MCS properties are generally not improved. This suggests that simulating MCSs will remain a challenge for the next version of E3SM.

Zhang, Meng↗

Designing electrolytes with high solubility of sulfides/disulfides for high-energy-density and low-cost K-Na/S batteries

Alkaline metal sulfur (AMS) batteries offer a promising solution for grid-level energy storage due to their low cost and long cycle life. However, the formation of solid compounds such as M 2 S 2 and M 2 S (M = Na, K) during cycling limits their performance. Here we unveil intermediate-temperature K-Na/S batteries utilizing advanced electrolytes that dissolve all polysulfides and sulfides (K 2 S x , x = 1–8), significantly enhancing reaction kinetics, specific capacity, and energy density. These batteries achieve near-theoretical capacity (1655 mAh g -1 sulfur) at 75 °C with a 1 M sulfur concentration. At a 4 M sulfur concentration, they deliver 830 mAh g -1 at 2 mA cm -2 , retaining 71% capacity after 1000 cycles. This new K-Na/S battery with specific energy of 150-250 Wh kg -1 only employs earth-abundant elements, making it attractive for long-duration energy storage.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗