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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 1,045 records · Page 58
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2021

Resistance to fracture in the glassy solid electrolyte Lipon

We report on the mechanical behavior of a solid Li-ion conductor, lithium phosphorous oxynitride (Lipon), for solid-state batteries. In particular, the purpose of this investigation was to quantify the resistance to cracking (fracture toughness) of this material by nanoindentation. We observed surprising ductility and the ability to recover in Lipon. We were unsuccessful in inducing cracks in Lipon and observed accommodation of stress via pile-up and densification rather than by cracking at various strain rates. Simulations demonstrate that both deformation and densification depend on the alkali content. Densification appears to be recoverable at room temperature. We discuss the findings in comparison with nanoindentation-induced cracking in other inorganic solid electrolyte materials and provide possible explanations for high resistance of Lipon to Li filament propagation.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2021

Elastic interaction-induced anisotropic growth of dislocation loop arrays

The elastic interactions and reactions of dislocations lead to the formation of complex dislocation substructures, which is critical to the strain hardening and fatigue failure. Phase field dislocation dynamics simulations are conducted as a first step to understand the elastic interactions between dislocation loops. When the interloop spacing is small, the elastic interactions with neighboring loops become strong, rendering the edge segments strongly pinned, while allowing for the screw segments to propagate more easily. The interactions are found to result in an anisotropic stress distribution around the dislocation loops, leading to the formation of arrays of long, straight edge dislocations that could act as barriers to subsequent slip. Furthermore, the effect of initial loop size and applied strain rate on the elastic interaction-induced anisotropic pinning effect is investigated and discussed. Furthermore, the results are important for coarse-graining dislocation substructures formation into continuum level models of deformation in crystalline solids.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2026

The 10 September 2025 M w 4.1 Earthquake in Northeastern Utah, United States: An Archetypal Continental Mantle Event

The 10 September 2025 M w 4.1 earthquake in northeastern Utah, United States, had a focal depth 68 km beneath sea level, which is ∼20–25 km greater than estimates of local crustal thickness, making it a rare example of a continental mantle earthquake (CME). The focal depth is well resolved from arrival-time inversion (nearest station ∼13 km away) and moment tensor inversion of regional waveforms. Similar to other CMEs in the Intermountain West, there were no obvious aftershocks or foreshocks, and the waveforms were enriched in high-frequency energy. Spectral modeling gives a stress drop of ∼80 MPa and a radiation efficiency of ∼0.08, albeit with large uncertainties. The high stress drop and low radiation efficiency are consistent with a dissipative source process such as thermal runaway. Also similar to previous Intermountain West CMEs, the event occurred along the boundary of the Archean Wyoming craton, where pressure–temperature conditions favor ductile deformation. We hypothesize that edge-driven or regional-scale mantle convection produces increased strain rates near the craton boundary that make either conventional brittle failure or thermal runaway feasible at relatively high pressure–temperature conditions. High conductivity inferred around the edge of the craton may suggest that fluids also contribute to CME occurrence.

Koper, Keith D. [Univ. of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT↗
DOE OSTI2019

Complete Status Report Documenting the Processing, Microstructure and High-Temperature Mechanical Properties of the Nanostructured Ferritic Alloy OFRAC

This report provides a summary of the new nanostructured ferritic alloy, OFRAC (Oak Ridge Fast Reactor Advanced Fuel Cladding), that was developed for the advanced sodium fast reactor fuel cladding and core internals. The composition of OFRAC, which is Fe-12Cr-1Mo-03.Ti-0.3Nb + 0.3Y2O3 (wt. %), was chosen to achieve high temperature strength as well as high temperature creep performance and swelling resistance requirements that past structural materials such as austenitic stainless steels and ferritic/martensitic steels, i.e. HT-9, are not suitable as SFR cladding materials. The mechanical alloying procedures were described for producing OFRAC and the detailed characterization studies revealed uniformly distributed, high concentration of Y-Ti-O enriched oxide particles, or nanoclusters. The Nb addition that was intended to sequester interstitial C and N that are commonly introduced as contamination during ball milling of powder was found to be very effective in forming coarse size Nb carbonitrides along with excess Ti that removes these interstitial elements from the bcc-Fe matrix of OFRAC. The tensile tests on the OFRAC in the extruded condition showed excellent balance in strength and ductility from room temperature to 800°C. Both the microstructure and tensile properties were not significantly degraded after annealing the extruded OFRAC samples for 8 h at 1050°C and 1150°C. The latter temperature is ~76% of the melting point of OFRAC. These results demonstrated the stability of the microstructure and tensile properties to extremely high temperatures. The thermal creep resistance at elevated temperatures and stresses was investigated using strain rate jump testing. The results showed that OFRAC possessed high stress exponents at high stresses and temperatures of 550°C, 600°C, 700ºC and 800°C. This thermal dependence of minimum creep rate indicates that OFRAC will show quite low creep rates at higher temperatures and stresses compared to HT-9 and stainless steels. These significant improvements indicate that the NFA OFRAC alloy is a compelling and viable choice for sodium fast reactor fuel cladding.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2019

Sierra/SolidMechanics 4.54 User's Guide: Addendum for Shock Capabilities.

This is an addendum to the Sierra/SolidMechanics 4.54 User's Guide that documents additional capabilities available only in alternate versions of the Sierra/SolidMechanics (Sierra/SM) code. These alternate versions are enhanced to provide capabilities that are regulated under the U.S. Department of State's International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) export control rules. The ITAR regulated codes are only distributed to entities that comply with the ITAR export control requirements. The ITAR enhancements to Sierra/SM include material models with an energy-dependent pressure response (appropriate for very large deformations and strain rates) and capabilities for blast modeling. This document is an addendum only; the standard Sierra/SolidMechanics 4.54 User's Guide should be referenced for most general descriptions of code capability and use.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2019

Shortening the Design and Certification Cycle for Additively Manufactured Materials by Improved Mesoscale Simulations and Validation Experiments: Fiscal Year 2019 Status Report.

This report outlines the fiscal year (FY) 2019 status of an ongoing multi-year effort to develop a general, microstructurally-aware, continuum-level model for representing the dynamic response of material with complex microstructures. This work has focused on accurately representing the response of both conventionally wrought processed and additively manufactured (AM) 304L stainless steel (SS) as a test case. Additive manufacturing, or 3D printing, is an emerging technology capable of enabling shortened design and certification cycles for stockpile components through rapid prototyping. However, there is not an understanding of how the complex and unique microstructures of AM materials affect their mechanical response at high strain rates. To achieve our project goal, an upscaling technique was developed to bridge the gap between the microstructural and continuum scales to represent AM microstructures on a Finite Element (FE) mesh. This process involves the simulations of the additive process using the Sandia developed kinetic Monte Carlo (KMC) code SPPARKS. These SPPARKS microstructures are characterized using clustering algorithms from machine learning and used to populate the quadrature points of a FE mesh. Additionally, a spall kinetic model (SKM) was developed to more accurately represent the dynamic failure of AM materials. Validation experiments were performed using both pulsed power machines and projectile launchers. These experiments have provided equation of state (EOS) and flow strength measurements of both wrought and AM 304L SS to above Mbar pressures. In some experiments, multi-point interferometry was used to quantify the variation is observed material response of the AM 304L SS. Analysis of these experiments is ongoing, but preliminary comparisons of our upscaling technique and SKM to experimental data were performed as a validation exercise. Moving forward, this project will advance and further validate our computational framework, using advanced theory and additional high-fidelity experiments.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2019

Mechanochemical Genesis of Prebiotics (18-LW-36) (Final Report)

In this project we explored the athermal condensation of simple amino acids towards the formation of peptides under high-pressure conditions. Our main aim was to address the provocative question that science continues explore: “Does life exists beyond Earth?”. We followed a combined experimental and theoretical investigation of simple amino acids under static high pressure and also under simultaneous application of high pressure and plastic shear. Surprisingly, we find that the ambient crystal structure of a-glycine has an extensive pressure resilience and stability up to at least 50 GPa. In the case glycylglycine (the simplest polypeptide) an isosymmetric phase transition was observed at ~7GPa. In the framework of this project a novel QMD approach was developed aiming to simulate the response of organic, molecules (with focus on glycine) under the simultaneous application of high pressure and plastic shear (V-RDAC). The V-RDAC simulations predict that glycine readily reacts when subject to high strain rate shearing under applied compressive loads greater than 7 GPa.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2020

Pre-Ionization Controlled Laser Plasma Formation for Ignition Applications (Final Scientific/Technical Report)

This report consists of three grand funded papers. Abstracts for each follow. 1) In this work, we present experimental and modeling studies of air pre-ionization using ultraviolet (UV) laser pulses and its effect on laser breakdown of an overlapped near-infrared (NIR) pulse. Experimental studies are conducted with a 266 nm beam (fourth harmonic of Nd:YAG) for UV pre-ionization and an overlapped 1064 nm NIR beam (fundamental of Nd:YAG), both having pulse duration of 10 ns. Results show that the UV beam produces a pre-ionized volume which assists in breakdown of the NIR beam, leading to reduction in NIR breakdown threshold by factor of >2. Numerical modeling is performed to examine the ionization and breakdown of both beams. The modeled breakdown threshold of the NIR, including assist by pre-ionization, is in reasonable agreement with the experimental results. 2) The present contribution compares the energy absorption, optical emission, temperature, and fluid dynamics of ultraviolet (UV) λ = 266 nm and near infrared (NIR) λ = 1064 nm nanosecond laser induced plasmas in ambient air. For UV pulses at the conditions studied, energy absorption by the plasmas increases relatively gradually with laser pulse energy starting at delivered energy of E~8 mJ. Corresponding measurements of plasma luminosity show that the absorption of UV radiation does not necessarily result in visible plasma emission. For the NIR induced plasmas, the energy absorption profile is far more abrupt and begins at ~55 mJ. In contrast with UV, the absorption of NIR radiation is always accompanied by intense optical emission. The temperatures of both types of plasma have been measured with Rayleigh scattering thermometry (at times after the Thomson signal sufficiently diminishes). The UV plasmas can attain a wider range of temperatures, including lower temperatures, depending on the pulse energy (e.g., T ~400–2000K for E ~7–35 mJ at Δt = 10 μs after the pulse) while the NIR plasmas show only hotter temperatures (e.g., T ~ 12 000 K for E = 75 mJ at Δt = 10 μs after the pulse) as is consistent with the literature. Differences in the fluid dynamics for UV versus NIR pulses are shown with Schlieren imaging. In this work, the contrast in the UV and NIR plasma threshold behavior is attributed to differing roles of avalanche ionization and multiphoton ionization as is also illustrated by a simple numerical model. 3) The present contribution examines the impact of plasma dynamics and plasma-driven fluid dynamics on the flame growth of laser ignited mixtures and shows that a new dual-pulse scheme can be used to control the kernel formation process in ways that extend the lean ignition limit. We perform a comparative study between (conventional) single-pulse laser ignition (λ = 1064 nm) and a novel dual-pulse method based on combining an ultraviolet (UV) pre-ionization pulse (λ = 266 nm) with an overlapped near-infrared (NIR) energy addition pulse (λ = 1064 nm). We employ OH* chemiluminescence to visualize the evolution of the early flame kernel. For single-pulse laser ignition at lean conditions, the flame kernel separates through third lobe detachment, corresponding to high strain rates that extinguish the flame. In this work, we investigate the capabilities of the dual-pulse to control the plasma-driven fluid dynamics by adjusting the axial offset of the two focal points. In particular, we find there exists a beam waist offset whereby the resulting vorticity suppresses formation of the third lobe, consequently reducing flame stretch. With this approach, we demonstrate that the dual-pulse method enables reduced flame speeds (at early times), an extended lean limit, increased combustion efficiency, and decreased laser energy requirements.

Mechanical engineering↗
DOE OSTI2020

Sierra/SolidMechanics 4.56 User's Guide: Addendum for Shock Capabilities

This is an addendum to the Sierra/SolidMechanics 4.56 User's Guide that documents additional capabilities available only in alternate versions of the Sierra/SolidMechanics (Sierra/SM) code. These alternate versions are enhanced to provide capabilities that are regulated under the U.S. Department of State's International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) export control rules. The ITAR regulated codes are only distributed to entities that comply with the ITAR export control requirements. The ITAR enhancements to Sierra/SM include material models with an energy-dependent pressure response (appropriate for very large deformations and strain rates) and capabilities for blast modeling. This document is an addendum only; the standard Sierra/SolidMechanics 4.56 User's Guide should be referenced for most general descriptions of code capability and use.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
DOE OSTI2020

Understanding Microstructural Effects on Dynamic Performance Towards the Development of Shock Metamaterials

With the recent advances in additive manufacturing (AM), long-range periodic lattice assemblies are being developed for vibration and shock mitigation components in aerospace and military applications with unique geometric and topological structures. There has been extensive work in understanding the static properties associated with varying topology of these lattice architectures, but there is almost no understanding of microstructural affects in such structures under high-strain rate dynamic loading conditions. Here we report the shock behavior of lattices with varying intrinsic grain structures achieved by post process annealing. High resolution 316L stainless steel lattices were 3D printed by a laser-powder bed fusion machine and characterized by computed tomography. Subsequent annealing resulted in stress-relieved and recrystallized lattices. Overall the lattices had strong cubic texture aligning with the x-, y- and z-directions of the build with a preference outside the build direction (z). The recrystallized sample had more equiaxed polygonal grains and a layer of BCC ferrite at the surface of the structure approximately 1 grain thick. Upon dynamic compression the as-deposited lattice showed steady compaction behavior while the heat-treated lattices exhibit negative velocity behavior indicative of failure. We attribute this to the stiffer BCC ferrite in the annealed lattices becoming damaged and fragmenting during compression.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2020

Mechanical Testing of FeCrAl Tubing

The axial tensile properties of C26M tube were successful measured at Los Alamos National Laboratory. Test were conducted at a constant strain rate of 10 -3 s -1 and three different temperatures (22, 300, and 600°C). As typically expected, an increase in the testing temperature lead to a decrease in both the yield stress (YS), from 710 to 273 MPa, and ultimate tensile strength (UTS), from 730 to 290 MPa. The ultimate tensile strength was observed almost immediately post-yielding for all test conditions, and thus the uniform elongation was limited to 1.2-1.6%. The total elongation of the 600°C specimens was notably higher (~47%) than both the 22 and 300°C specimens, which exhibited a similar response (~10%).

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2019

Failure Formulations in Modular Plasticity Models

Computational prediction of ductile failure remains a challenging and important problem as demonstrated by the recent Sandia Fracture Challenges. In addition to emphasizing the complexity of such problems, the variety of solution strategies also highlighted the number of possible approaches to this problem. A common engineering approach for such efforts is to use a failure model in conjunction with element deletion. In the second Sandia Fracture Challenge, for instance, nine of the fourteen teams used some form of element deletion. For such schemes, a critical decision pertains to the selection of the appropriate failure model; of which many may be found in the literature (see the review of Corona and Reedlunn). The variety may also be observed in the aforementioned second Sandia Fracture Challenge in which at least eight different failure criteria are listed for the nine element deletion based approaches. The selection of the appropriate failure model is a difficult challenge depending on the material being considered and such criteria can variously depend on stress state (i.e. triaxiality, Lode angle) and loading conditions (i.e. strain rate, temperature). Separate implementations of each criteria with different plasticity models can be a repetitive and cumbersome process which may limit available models for an engineering analyst. To mitigate this issue, an effort was pursued to flexibly implement failure models in which different failure models could be specified and utilized within the same elastic-plastic constitutive routine by simply changing the input syntax. Similarly, the same models are implemented across a suite of elastic-plastic formulations enabling consistent definitions. As will be discussed later, a specific "modular failure" model is also implemented which allows for the selection or specification of different dependencies depending on the current need. At this stage, this effort is limited to defining failure models; progression/damage evolution in the constitutive model is not treated and left to future efforts.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2020

Connecting Dynamic Strain Aging to Deformation Processing in Magnesium-Calcium-Based Alloys

Fuel consumption can be improved by reducing car weight with substitution of aluminum and steel parts with magnesium (Mg). Magnesium formability at room temperature is limited due to strong basal texture generated prior processing. Shear band nucleation, observed under conditions in which dynamic strain aging (DSA), have been attributed to be responsible for texture weakening in dilute Mg – Rare Earths (RE) alloys. A low–cost substitution of RE is calcium (Ca) with similar atomic size. It is hypothesized that deformation of Mg – Ca alloys under DSA conditions improves Mg formability. In this study, Mg–Ca and Mg–Ca–Zn alloys were characterized using optical microscopy, XRD, and SEM/EDS. Compression testing was performed between 200 and 300C at different strain rates to observe DSA behavior. This work was performed under DOE Award Number DE-EE0007756.

Manuel, Michele↗
DOE OSTI2021

Material Models and Credibility for System Level Abnormal Mechanical ModSim Applications

The purpose of this document is to provide evidence for assessing the adequacy of parameterized material models for a collection of materials used in a finite element analyses setting. “Adequacy” is relative to the intended use of the material in particular analyses. The intended application of the material models covered within this document is for system level abnormal mechanical solid mechanics analyses. Generally, material model parameterizations should be valid from temperatures of approximately -50 to 70° C, across a range of strain rates, and (depending on details of the parts involved) large deformations. Each material covered in this document is presented in its own chapter with a common format across materials. Model assumptions, limitations, existing validation results, readiness for use with uncertainty quantification, general usage guidance, and failure considerations are all provided along with specific parameterization inputs suitable for the finite element analysis code Sierra/Solid Mechanics.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2021

Sierra/SolidMechanics 5.0 User's Guide Addendum for Shock Capabilities

This is an addendum to the Sierra/SolidMechanics 5.0 User’s Guide that documents additional capabilities available only in alternate versions of the Sierra/SolidMechanics (Sierra/SM) code. These alternate versions are enhanced to provide capabilities that are regulated under the U.S. Department of State’s International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) export control rules. The ITAR regulated codes are only distributed to entities that comply with the ITAR export control requirements. The ITAR enhancements to Sierra/SM include material models with an energy-dependent pressure response (appropriate for very large deformations and strain rates) and capabilities for blast modeling. This document is an addendum only; the standard Sierra/SolidMechanics 5.0 User’s Guide should be referenced for most general descriptions of code capability and use.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
DOE OSTI2021

Systems Engineering Approach for Design and Implementation of a Gas Breech for Actinide Experiments at the JASPER Facility

The Joint Actinide Shock Physics Experimental Research (JASPER) Facility is located approximately 65 miles north of Las Vegas, Nevada at the Nevada National Security Site (NNSS). The primary mission is to conduct shock physics research on actinide materials in support of NNSA’s Stockpile Stewardship Program. JASPER experiment uses a two-stage light gas gun to accelerate projectiles into targets at velocities up to 8 km/s (17,000 mph). The first stage uses an ignited propellent to drive a piston to compress gas in the pump tube. At the second stage, the gas compression exceeds a specified pressure and a rupture valve at the end of the pump tube opens. This launches a projectile to impact the target. The target is housed inside the target assembly and the debris field is contained inside the primary target chamber (PTC). The PTC is placed inside the secondary confinement chamber (SCC) as an added protection against possible contamination. These major components are illustrated in Figure 1.JASPER is capable of generating and measuring data on the properties of radioactive chemical elements at high shock pressures, temperatures, and strain rates approximating the conditions in nuclear weapons by using a two-stage gas gun. The data is used to determine material equations-of-state and validate computer models of material response. The work advances predictive capability, thus ensuring confidence in the nuclear stockpile.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2021

An Accelerated Creep Testing (ACT) Program for Advanced Creep Resistant Alloys for High Temperature Fossil Energy (FE) Applications (Final Report)

The research objective of this study is to develop an accelerated creep testing (ACT) program for advanced creep resistant alloys for high temperature FE applications. This research produced a new ACT for metallic materials based on Time-Temperature-Stress Superposition (TTSSP). In TTSSP, there exists a fundamental relationship between creep resistance, time, temperature, and stress that can be manipulated to reduce test durations. In our study, the stepped isostress method was employed where step increases of load during creep testing accelerated the time-to-rupture. Well-posed constitutive models including sin-hyperbolic and Wilshire-Cano-Stewart where calibrated using the SSM data and employed to predict the conventional creep response of the material. In our best experiments, <100-hour tests on lnconel 718 at 750 deg C produced over a 64x acceleration of data when compared to conventional data from Japan's National Institute of Materials Science. The ACTs enable the rapid screening of candidate materials, where a small test matrix of short duration tests can be employed to determine the creep resistance (minimum-creep-strain-rate, stress-rupture, and creep deformation) of a material across decades.

20 FOSSIL-FUELED POWER PLANTS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Sierra/SolidMechanics 4.58 User's Guide Addendum for Shock Capabilities

This is an addendum to the Sierra/SolidMechanics 4.58 User's Guide that documents additional capabilities available only in alternate versions of the Sierra/SolidMechanics (Sierra/SM) code. These alternate versions are enhanced to provide capabilities that are regulated under the U.S. Department of State's International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) export control rules. The ITAR regulated codes are only distributed to entities that comply with the ITAR export control requirements. The ITAR enhancements to Sierra/SM include material models with an energy-dependent pressure response (appropriate for very large deformations and strain rates) and capabilities for blast modeling. This document is an addendum only; the standard Sierra/SolidMechanics 4.58 User's Guide should be referenced for most general descriptions of code capability and use.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗