SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “gain”

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.

SourceResearch connectionFrom yearThrough year

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 1,027 records · Page 57

All sources NASA NTRS DOE OSTI

DOE OSTI2025

First Demonstration of Improved Fusion Yield with Increased Compression through Reduced Adiabat in Inertial Confinement Fusion Experiments at the National Ignition Facility

Recent advancements in indirect-drive inertial confinement fusion (ICF) experiments at the National Ignition Facility (NIF) have achieved a significant milestone by demonstrating target gains greater than one, yet future applications necessitate much higher target gains. One approach to achieving improved implosion performance is to pursue increased fuel compression via a lowered implosion adiabat. Experiments have been performed testing a reduced adiabat by introducing small changes to the drive laser pulse shape and the resulting shock timing for an existing implosion design at 1.9 MJ laser drive with near-ignition performance (experiment N210808). Experiments using the updated design demonstrate, for the very first time, increased compression and fusion yield in ICF implosions on the NIF by using a lower fuel adiabat, and increased compression with a reduced adiabat in high-density carbon ablators. Compared to the previously best-performing experiment with a laser energy of 1.9 MJ, these experiments exhibit increases of up to 80% and 14% in nuclear fusion yield and fuel compression, respectively, and with repeatable performance. Further, it is the only implosion design to have achieved a target gain exceeding one with a laser energy of less than 2 MJ. These findings highlight the efficacy of reduced adiabat designs in achieving higher compression and fusion yields, offering a promising pathway for future ICF applications. In conclusion, this Letter not only addresses a long-standing question in ICF but also paves the way for achieving higher target gains with optimized implosion strategies.

Hohenberger, M. [Lawrence Livermore National Labor↗

DOE OSTI2021

Variational Self-Consistent Theory for Beam-Loaded Cavities

A new variational theory is presented for beam loading in microwave cavities. The beam{field interaction is formulated as a dynamical interaction whose stationarity according to Hamilton’s principle will naturally lead to steady-state solutions that indicate how a cavity’s resonant frequency, Q and optimal coupling coefficient will detune as a result of the beam loading. A driven cavity Lagrangian is derived from first principles, including the effects of cavity wall losses, input power and beam interaction. The general formulation is applied to a typical klystron input cavity to predict the appropriate detuning parameters required to maximize the gain (or modulation depth) in the average Lorentz factor boost, (Δ γ). Numerical examples are presented, showing agreement with the general detuning trends previously observed in the literature. The developed formulation carries several advantages for beam-loaded cavity structures. It provides a self-consistent model for the dynamical (nonlinear) beam{field interaction, a procedure for maximizing gain under beam-loading conditions, and a useful set of parameters to guide cavity-shape optimization during the design of beam-loaded systems. Enhanced clarity of the physical picture underlying the problem seems to be gained using this approach, allowing straightforward inclusion or exclusion of different field configurations in the calculation and expressing the final results in terms of measurable quantities. Two field configurations are discussed for the klystron input cavity, using finite magnetic confinement or no confinement at all. Formulating the problem in a language that is directly accessible to the powerful techniques found in Hamiltonian dynamics and canonical transformations may potentially carry an additional advantage in terms of analytical computational gains, under suitable conditions

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗

DOE OSTI2022

Lawson Criterion for Ignition Exceeded in an Inertial Fusion Experiment

For more than half a century, researchers around the world have been engaged in attempts to achieve fusion ignition as a proof of principle of various fusion concepts. Following the Lawson criterion, an ignited plasma is one where the fusion heating power is high enough to overcome all the physical processes that cool the fusion plasma, creating a positive thermodynamic feedback loop with rapidly increasing temperature. In inertially confined fusion, ignition is a state where the fusion plasma can begin “burn propagation” into surrounding cold fuel, enabling the possibility of high energy gain. While “scientific breakeven” (i.e., unity target gain) has not yet been achieved (here target gain is 0.72, 1.37 MJ of fusion for 1.92 MJ of laser energy), this work reports the first controlled fusion experiment, using laser indirect drive, on the National Ignition Facility to produce capsule gain (here 5.8) and reach ignition by nine different formulations of the Lawson criterion.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

DOE OSTI2023

Reinforcement Learning of Structured Stabilizing Control for Linear Systems With Unknown State Matrix

This paper delves into designing feedback control gains for a continuous-time linear quadratic regulator (LQR) problem that is constrained to certain predefined structure with unknown state matrix. We bring forth the ideas from reinforcement learning (RL) in conjunction with sufficient stability and performance guarantees in order to design these structured gains using the trajectory measurements of states and controls. Here we first formulate a model-based framework using dynamic programming (DP) to embed the structural constraint to the LQR gain computation in the continuous-time setting, and then subsequently, formulate a policy iteration RL algorithm that can alleviate the requirement of known state matrix in conjunction with maintaining the feedback gain structure. The design enables a distributed learning control design which is necessary for many large-scale cyber-physical systems. Theoretical guarantees are provided for stability and convergence of the structured reinforcement learning (SRL) algorithm. We validate our theoretical results with numerical simulations on a multi-agent networked linear time-invariant (LTI) dynamic system.

42 ENGINEERING↗

DOE OSTI2022

Economic evaluation of the Hepatitis C virus elimination program in the country of Georgia, 2015 to 2017

Abstract Background and Aims In 2015, the country of Georgia launched an elimination program aiming to reduce the prevalence of Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection by 90% from 5.4% prevalence (~150 000 people). During the first 2.5 years of the program, 770 832 people were screened, 48 575 were diagnosed with active HCV infection, and 41 483 patients were treated with direct‐acting antiviral (DAA)‐based regimens, with a >95% cure rate. Methods We modelled the incremental cost‐effectiveness ratio (ICER) of HCV screening, diagnosis and treatment between April 2015 and November 2017 compared to no treatment, in terms of cost per quality‐adjusted life year (QALY) gained in 2017 US dollars, with a 3% discount rate over 25 years. We compared the ICER to willingness‐to‐pay (WTP) thresholds of US$4357 (GDP) and US$871 (opportunity cost) per QALY gained. Results The average cost of screening, HCV viremia testing, and treatment per patient treated was $386 to the provider, $225 to the patient and $1042 for generic DAAs. At 3% discount, 0.57 QALYs were gained per patient treated. The ICER from the perspective of the provider including generic DAAs was $2285 per QALY gained, which is cost‐effective at the $4357 WTP threshold, while if patient costs are included, it is just above the threshold at $4398/QALY. All other scenarios examined in sensitivity analyses remain cost‐effective except for assuming a shorter time horizon to the end of 2025 or including the list price DAA cost. Reducing or excluding DAA costs reduced the ICER below the opportunity‐cost WTP threshold. Conclusions The Georgian HCV elimination program provides valuable evidence that national programs for scaling up HCV screening and treatment for achieving HCV elimination can be cost‐effective.

Tskhomelidze, Irina↗

DOE OSTI2024

Comparison of Real-Time Pressure Rail Selection Algorithms for the Hybrid Hydraulic Electric Architecture: Case Study on a Track Loader

Abstract The hybrid hydraulic electric architecture (HHEA) seeks to combine the high power/torque/force density of hydraulics with the efficiency of electric machines. A set of common pressure rails is used to provide a majority of the power and this power is modulated by small electric machines to provide precise control for the operator. The HHEA has been studied in previous work using off-line dynamic programming optimization to determine energy efficient pressure rail selections, but this approach requires drive cycle information apriori. A Lagrange multiplier method has also been investigated where a set of gains (Lagrange multipliers) are optimized off-line with the idea the these gains, once determined, could be used for real-time operation. In this work, three new real-time pressure rail selection algorithms that do not require future drive cycle information are investigated; greedy, torque minimizing, and thresholding. The greedy control is found to only use 1% more energy than the globally optimal dynamic programming solution; but a model of energy loss is required.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

DOE OSTI2021

Bandwidth extension and conversion efficiency improvements beyond phase matching limitations using cavity-enhanced OPCPA

The conversion efficiency and phase matching bandwidth of ultrafast optical parametric amplification (OPA) are constrained by the dispersion and nonlinear coefficient of the employed crystal as well as pulse shaping effects. In our work we show that an enhancement cavity resonant with the pump seeded at the full repetition rate of the pump laser can automatically reshape the small-signal gain in optical parametric chirped-pulse amplification (OPCPA) to achieve close-to-optimal operation. This new method termed cavity-enhanced OPCPA or C-OPCPA significantly increases both the gain bandwidth and the conversion efficiency, in addition to boosting gain for high-repetition-rate amplification. The goal in C-OPCPA is to arrive at a condition of impedance matching at all temporal coordinates, such that, in the absence of linear losses, all the incident pump power is dissipated in the nonlinear loss element, i.e., converted to signal and idler. The use of a low finesse enhancement cavity resonant with a low average power (<1W) and a high repetition rate (78MHz) pump source is shown to achieve more than 50% conversion efficiency into signal and idler from the coupled pump in an optical parametric process, whereas an equivalent amount of pump power in a single-pass configuration leads to negligible conversion. Additionally, the gain bandwidth is extended by a factor of 3-4 beyond the phase-matching limit. Our empirical observations are corroborated by a numerical analysis of depletion optimizing the single-pass case, which assesses the underlying impedance matching that is responsible for the observed performance improvements.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗

DOE OSTI2020

Supercritical Reforming of Wet Ethanol for High Efficiency Direct-injection Heavy-duty Compression-ignition Engines

The purpose of the research was to investigate the potential of using a mature bio-fuel in heavy-duty compression ignition engines. By co-optimizing both the fuel characteristics and engine system the potential for a superior outcome was demonstrated. The use of wet bio-ethanol eliminates the majority of the energy intensive distilling and dehydrating fuel production processes, which moves the fuel towards carbon neutral and also lowers the fuel costs. The relatively high water content of the resulting fuel is leveraged in the proposed novel combustion system by incorporating an integrated high efficiency exhaust waste heat recovery system. This results in significantly higher thermal efficiency. In addition the combustion system features low criteria pollutant emissions and the potential to reduce the initial cost of the engine system hardware. Substantial societal benefits are demonstrated through the co-optimization of the fuel and engine system. A computational proof-of-concept study has been performed to demonstrate the potential benefits of a novel wet ethanol heavy-duty compression ignition combustion system featuring integrated exhaust waste heat recovery. A combined in-cylinder closed cycle 3D computational fluid dynamics (CFD) - 1D engine system simulation approach was used. The models were validated to baseline engine data using diesel fuel and then applied to the wet ethanol study. The original concept was to maximize exhaust waste heat recovery through supercritical reforming of the wet ethanol fuel. Phase I simulation results indicated that the optimal solution for maximum engine efficiency gains were realized through maximizing thermo-mechanical recuperation with negligible fuel reformation. The results show the potential to achieve impressive gains in brake thermal efficiency (BTE) over the base diesel engine. The potential to increase BTE up to 20.9% over the base diesel engine was demonstrated, with even larger gains possible through reduced in-cylinder heat transfer losses. The majority of the efficiency gains were realized through integrated high efficiency exhaust waste heat recovery. The concept also has the potential to achieve future ultra-low NO x emissions standards and negligible engine-out soot emissions. The mixing controlled combustion of high temperature wet ethanol features relatively low engine-out NO x emissions without the need for exhaust gas recirculation (EGR). The soot free combustion enabled by the relatively high oxygen content of ethanol also allows for the use of stoichiometric mixing controlled combustion, which is not practical with diesel fuel. When stoichiometric combustion is used a simple passive 3-way catalyst can be used for exhaust emissions after-treatment and near zero tailpipe emissions. The Phase I simulations results have defined the system layout and requirements in preparation for the Phase II experimental proof-of-concept study. The potential applications of the research include most current applications of diesel engines. The Phase I study focused on heavy-duty on-highway class 8 trucks. However, virtually any application that requires highly efficient clean power generation would benefit from the novel engine system proposed. The results indicate substantial fuel cost savings and reduced greenhouse gas emissions with similar or reduced initial system hardware costs compared to modern diesel engine systems.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗

DOE OSTI2020

Investigation of Superluminescent Diodes for Smart Lighting Systems. Final Report

The solid-state lighting ecosystem has evolved very rapidly over the last few years, with significant improvements in the technical performance of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and the commoditization of LED-based lighting fixtures. As the performance of conventional lighting products begins to saturate, there is growing market interest in “Lighting as a Service” applications that will leverage advanced systems to impart new functionalities to lighting and improve energy efficiency, human health, and productivity. These “Smart Lighting” systems will include high-performance light sources, specialized sensors, and dynamic controls to deliver high quality, energy efficient, color tunable lighting with customized spatial light delivery and integrated visible light communication capability. To achieve these capabilities, smart lighting systems will place greater demands on the performance of light sources. Highly efficient sources with additional functionalities compared to conventional LEDs, such as small form factor, large modulation bandwidth, and spatially coherent output beams, will be required. While laser diodes have been proposed as potential sources for smart lighting systems, they also exhibit several properties that pose challenges, such as temporal coherence, extremely high spatial coherence, and ultra-narrow linewidths. To address these issues, we propose an investigation of an alternative device architecture known as a superluminescent diode (SLD). SLDs are similar in form to ridge laser diodes and share many of the same characteristics, such as stimulated emission operation, spatially coherent output, small form factor, and the potential for large modulation bandwidth. However, the operating principle for SLDs is distinct from laser diodes in that SLDs lack a strong cavity feedback mechanism, resulting in spatially coherent but temporally incoherent light output. Thus, SLDs may address the issues with laser diodes for lighting, while simultaneously maintaining some of the desirable characteristics of both laser diodes and LEDs. The objectives of this proposal are to design, grow, and fabricate blue (450 nm) SLDs on polar c-plane and nonpolar m-plane free-standing GaN substrates, and to evaluate their potential as sources in smart lighting systems through basic device characterization and detailed investigations of their efficiency droop and modulation bandwidth. The primary scientific aims of this work are to understand the fundamental role of optical gain in the superluminescent (non-lasing) regime on efficiency droop and modulation bandwidth in III-nitride emitters and to understand the effects of higher optical gain on SLD performance by comparing polar c-plane and nonpolar m-plane SLDs. The University of New Mexico (UNM) will collaborate with Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) and the Center for Integrated Nanotechnologies to design, fabricate, grow, and characterize the SLDs. UNM will perform the design and epitaxial growth, while SNL will focus on the fabrication and device characterization. The novelty of the proposed work includes the first comprehensive theoretical and experimental investigations of efficiency droop and the first investigation of modulation bandwidth in GaN-based emitters operating in the superluminescent regime. Moreover, the comparison of c-plane and m-plane SLDs will enable the first analysis of the effects of higher optical gain on the device performance. The development of high-performance GaN-based SLDs may enable efficiency gains and improved functionality in next-generation smart lighting systems.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

DOE OSTI2021

Pulse Detonation Engine for Advanced Oxy-Combustion of Coal-Based Fuel for Direct Power Extraction Applications

Pressure gain combustion and magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) systems have the potential to provide a step increase in the efficiency of combined-cycle power plants. Specific advantages include a net pressure increase to the system instead of a pressure drop, the high temperature of the detonation waves can increase the efficiency of power extraction compared to other processes, significant thermal energy can be released in a compact region, and the high velocities of the flow increase extraction of electrical power. In summary, a pressure gain combustor coupled with a MHD has the potential to be transformative. Despite the potential advantages, relatively little research has been conducted considering coupled pressure gain combustion systems with MHD systems. With this background and motivation, the overall goal of this effort was to advance the knowledge, technology, and computational tools associated with coupled detonation and MHD systems. A joint experimental and computational approach was used while seeking to accomplish the goals of this work. Specifically, two pulse detonation engines were developed and used for the experiments to produce detonations. Detonation speeds were measured for a variety of flow and fuel conditions (e.g., methane, propane, with coal particles). Preliminary electrical conductivity measurements were collected. An extensive amount of research was performed to identify sensitivities of detonation behaviors to the presence of combustion products. Computationally, a twofold approach was used in this work. First, a solver was developed for solving the governing equations for a reactive flow with coupled detonation and ionization chemistry. The solver was applied to study the impacts of seed material ionization on detonation. Second, a conservation element-solution element (CE-SE) based numerical solver for detonation studies with a reduced reaction mechanism for oxy-methane combustion was developed and verified on standard test cases. Key findings and contributions from this work are as follows. A system was developed for injecting powderized coal, or other seeding material, into a pulse-detonation system. The influence of a combustion product (i.e., CO 2 ) on detonation behavior was identified. Knowledge gained from this work is applicable to devices such as rotating detonation engines, where combustion products mix with fresh reactants. A system for measuring the electrical conductivity of the exhaust from a pulse-detonation engine was developed. The open-source solver, Clawpack, was extended to solve the reactive Euler equations for simulating detonations. A coupled combustion and ionization chemistry was developed in a single chemical kinetic model for methane oxidation. This model can be used to solve coupled MHD and detonation simulations. It was found that parasitic interactions from ionization chemistry with the magnetic field can reduce the detonation velocity by up to 8%, with a potential impact on power extraction of 15%. It is recommended that interactions between the detonation front and MHD field be considered. Higher gas temperatures and velocities were achieved owing to oxy-fuel detonations. Use of radical dissociation reactions in the reduced reaction mechanism, was found to be critical in predicting detonation temperature and velocity accurately.

01 COAL, LIGNITE, AND PEAT↗

DOE OSTI2022

Results of Oklo Diffusion Couple Experiments

Through the Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear (GAIN) initiative, the U.S. Department of Energy funded a GAIN Nuclear Energy Voucher to perform out-of-pile experiments related to the fuel design for Oklo Inc., headquartered in Santa Clara, CA. GAIN’s goal is to accelerate the innovation and application of advanced nuclear technologies, and voucher recipients do not receive direct financial awards but are provided access to national laboratory capabilities at no cost. This report documents the results of diffusion couple experiments performed as part of the GAIN-funded project for Oklo. This work addresses the specific problem of filling the gap in understanding of the fuel-cladding chemical interaction (FCCI) that result from the past focus on a particular fuel design. These knowledge and mechanistic modeling gaps make it difficult to extrapolate from prior fuel performance data to advance an economically competitive fuel design. Specifically, the current state-of-the-art fuel performance modeling cannot separate the entangled effects of temperature ranges, burnups, materials, and geometries.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

NASA NTRS1972

Adaptive stochastic control for a class of linear systems.

The problem considered in this paper deals with the control of linear discrete-time stochastic systems with unknown (possibly time-varying and random) gain parameters. The philosophy of control is based on the use of an open-loop feedback optimal (OLFO) control using a quadratic index of performance. It is shown that the OLFO system consists of (1) an identifier that estimates the system state variables and gain parameters and (2) a controller described by an 'adaptive' gain and correction term. Several qualitative properties and asymptotic properties of the OLFO adaptive system are discussed. Simulation results dealing with the control of stable and unstable third-order plants are presented. The key quantitative result is the precise variation of the control system adaptive gains as a function of the future expected uncertainty of the parameters; thus, in this problem the ordinary 'separation theorem' does not hold.

Tse, E.↗

NASA NTRS1973

Lp-stability (1 less than or equal to p less than or equal to infinity) of multivariable nonlinear time-varying feedback systems that are open-loop unstable

A class of multivariable, nonlinear time-varying feedback systems with an unstable convolution subsystem as feedforward and a time-varying nonlinear gain as feedback was considered. The impulse response of the convolution subsystem is the sum of a finite number of increasing exponentials multiplied by nonnegative powers of the time t, a term that is absolutely integrable and an infinite series of delayed impulses. The main result is a theorem. It essentially states that if the unstable convolution subsystem can be stabilized by a constant feedback gain F and if incremental gain of the difference between the nonlinear gain function and F is sufficiently small, then the nonlinear system is L(p)-stable for any p between one and infinity. Furthermore, the solutions of the nonlinear system depend continuously on the inputs in any L(p)-norm. The fixed point theorem is crucial in deriving the above theorem.

Callier, F. M.↗

NASA NTRS1974

Path diversity for reception of satellite signals

The improved system performance resulting from the use of path diversity on earth-space satellite links operating above 10 GHz is discussed. Diversity gain is defined, and it is noted that the optimum diversity gain may be determined quite simply from the knowledge of a simple terminal fade distribution only. This approach may be extended to an arbitrary number of diversity terminals. The available diversity gain data are compared and shown to be consistent. These data, resulting from measurements in Ohio and New Jersey, indicate that diversity gain becomes relatively independent of separation distance for separations greater than approximately 8 km.

Hodge, D. B.↗

NASA NTRS1974

Feasibility study of a step scanned omnidirectional communications antenna for an international magnetospheric explorer spacecraft

The results of this study has indicated that omnidirectional antennas requiring directive gains steered off broadside are limited by the feed system efficiencies. The directive gain can be increased to offset the feed losses, but this approach leads quickly to diminishing returns. While gains of 4.8 db appear feasible, a system gain of 3.0 db is considered practical. These results apply to antenna configurations limited in packaging volume to 10 cm diameter by 61 cm length.

Herskind, R. E.↗

NASA NTRS1975

Effect of external disturbances and data rate on the response of an automatic landing system capable of curved trajectories

The effects of steady wind, turbulence, data sample rate, and control-actuator natural frequency on the response of a possible automatic landing system were investigated in a nonstatistical study. The results indicate that the system, which interfaces with the microwave landing system, functions well in winds and turbulence as long as the guidance law contains proper compensation for wind. The system response was satisfactory down to five data samples per second, which makes the system compatible with the microwave landing system. No adverse effects were observed when actuator natural frequency was lowered. For limiting cases, those cases where the roll angle goes to zero just as the airplane touches down, the basic method for computing the turn-algorithm gains proved unsatisfactory and unacceptable landings resulted. Revised computation methods gave turn-algorithm gains that resulted in acceptable landings. The gains provided by the new method also improved the touchdown conditions for acceptable landings over those obtained when the gains were determined by the old method.

Sherman, W. L.↗

NASA NTRS1976

An adaptive learning control system for aircraft

A learning control system is developed which blends the gain scheduling and adaptive control into a single learning system that has the advantages of both. An important feature of the developed learning control system is its capability to adjust the gain schedule in a prescribed manner to account for changing aircraft operating characteristics. Furthermore, if tests performed by the criteria of the learning system preclude any possible change in the gain schedule, then the overall system becomes an ordinary gain scheduling system. Examples are discussed.

Mekel, R.↗

NASA NTRS1977

Monopulse receiver

A time division multiplexing and a quadraphase combining dual channel system were analyzed, designed, and tested. Analyses performed include the following: (1) boresight error as a function of the error channel bandwidth; (2) error channel interference with the sum channel functions; (3) threshold performance; and (4) error channel crosstalk, linearity, and drift as a function of signal level, Doppler, and environment. Test results indicate that the time division multiplexing system meets the design goals of the program. However, careful selection and alignment of all gain controlled amplifiers are required along with temperature compensation of the angle channel gain. The quadraphase system crosstalk performance is comparatively poor (-15 dB) with respect to the -30 dB requirements and this consequently affects gain tracking performance. Gain tracking was found to be + or - 20 percent rather than the + or - 5 percent specification. Data for the two systems is compared and recommendations are presented.

Source record↗