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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 109 records · Page 6
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2021

New Insights on Plasmin Long Term Stability and the Mechanism of Its Activity Inhibition Analyzed by Quartz Crystal Microbalance

We used the research quartz crystal microbalance (RQCM) to monitor regulatory effects of plasmin and trypsin in the presence of their inhibitor α2-antiplasmin. The gold surface of quartz crystals was modified with a β-casein layer that served as a substrate for protease digestion. The addition of plasmin or trypsin as well as their mixtures with α2-antiplasmin resulted in an increase of resonant frequency, f, and in a decrease of motional resistance, Rm, depending on the molar ratio of protease: antiplasmin. At equimolar concentrations of protease and α2-antiplasmin (5 nM:5 nM) full inhibition of protease activity took place. Monitoring of plasmin activity on an hourly and daily basis revealed a prominent effect of autolysis and decrease of plasmin activity in freshly activated samples. The degree of inhibition as well as plasmin half-life (t1/2 = 2.48 ± 0.28 days) connected with its degradation was determined.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Understanding the Impacts of Deep Space Environment on Crop Production

NASA’s goal of developing sustainable habitats to support long duration, deep space missions requires advanced science, technology, and engineering. Understanding the integrated, long-term effects of deep space environments on biological systems is needed. Sustainable habitats require the production of food and oxygen on site.

Bruce M Link↗
DOE OSTI2024

Predator mass mortality events restructure food webs through trophic decoupling

Predators have a key role in structuring ecosystems. However, predator loss is accelerating globally, and predator mass-mortality events (MMEs)—rapid large-scale die-offs—are now emblematic of the Anthropocene epoch. Owing to their rare and unpredictable nature, we lack an understanding of how MMEs immediately impact ecosystems. Past predator-removal studies may be insufficient to understand the ecological consequences of MMEs because, in nature, dead predators decompose in situ and generate a resource pulse, which could alter ensuing ecosystem dynamics by temporarily enhancing productivity. Here we experimentally induce MMEs in tritrophic, freshwater lake food webs and report ecological dynamics that are distinct from predator losses or resource pulses alone, but that can be predicted from theory. MMEs led to the proliferation of diverse consumer and producer communities resulting from weakened top-down predator control and stronger bottom-up effects through predator decomposition. In contrast to predator removals alone, enhanced primary production after MMEs dampened the consumer community response. As a consequence, MMEs generated biomass dynamics that were most similar to those of undisturbed systems, indicating that they may be cryptic disturbances in nature. These biomass dynamics led to trophic decoupling, whereby the indirect beneficial effects of predators on primary producers are lost and later materialize as direct bottom-up effects that stimulate primary production amid intensified herbivory. Furthermore, these results reveal ecological signatures of MMEs and demonstrate the feasibility of forecasting novel ecological dynamics arising with intensifying global change.

Food webs↗
NASA NTRS2002

Illuminating Cell Biology

NASA's Ames Research Center awarded Ciencia, Inc., a Small Business Innovation Research contract to develop the Cell Fluorescence Analysis System (CFAS) to address the size, mass, and power constraints of using fluorescence spectroscopy in the International Space Station's Life Science Research Facility. The system will play an important role in studying biological specimen's long-term adaptation to microgravity. Commercial applications for the technology include diverse markets such as food safety, in situ environmental monitoring, online process analysis, genomics and DNA chips, and non-invasive diagnostics. Ciencia has already sold the system to the private sector for biosensor applications.

Source record↗
DOE OSTI2023

The need for an integrated multi-OMICs approach in microbiome science in the food system

Microbiome science as an interdisciplinary research field has evolved rapidly over the past two decades, becoming a popular topic not only in the scientific community and among the general public, but also in the food industry due to the growing demand for microbiome-based technologies that provide added-value solutions. Microbiome research has expanded in the context of food systems, strongly driven by methodological advances in different -omics fields that leverage our understanding of microbial diversity and function. However, managing and integrating different complex -omics layers are still challenging. Within the Coordinated Support Action MicrobiomeSupport (https://www.microbiomesupport.eu/), a project supported by the European Commission, the workshop “Metagenomics, Metaproteomics and Metabolomics: the need for data integration in microbiome research” gathered 70 participants from different microbiome research fields relevant to food systems, to discuss challenges in microbiome research and to promote a switch from microbiome-based descriptive studies to functional studies, elucidating the biology and interactive roles of microbiomes in food systems. A combination of technologies is proposed. This will reduce the biases resulting from each individual technology and result in a more comprehensive view of the biological system as a whole. Although combinations of different datasets are still rare, advanced bioinformatics tools and artificial intelligence approaches can contribute to understanding, prediction, and management of the microbiome, thereby providing the basis for the improvement of food quality and safety.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2020

Plant science decadal vision 2020–2030: Reimagining the potential of plants for a healthy and sustainable future

Abstract Plants, and the biological systems around them, are key to the future health of the planet and its inhabitants. The Plant Science Decadal Vision 2020–2030 frames our ability to perform vital and far‐reaching research in plant systems sciences, essential to how we value participants and apply emerging technologies. We outline a comprehensive vision for addressing some of our most pressing global problems through discovery, practical applications, and education. The Decadal Vision was developed by the participants at the Plant Summit 2019, a community event organized by the Plant Science Research Network. The Decadal Vision describes a holistic vision for the next decade of plant science that blends recommendations for research, people, and technology. Going beyond discoveries and applications, we, the plant science community, must implement bold, innovative changes to research cultures and training paradigms in this era of automation, virtualization, and the looming shadow of climate change. Our vision and hopes for the next decade are encapsulated in the phrase reimagining the potential of plants for a healthy and sustainable future. The Decadal Vision recognizes the vital intersection of human and scientific elements and demands an integrated implementation of strategies for research (Goals 1–4), people (Goals 5 and 6), and technology (Goals 7 and 8). This report is intended to help inspire and guide the research community, scientific societies, federal funding agencies, private philanthropies, corporations, educators, entrepreneurs, and early career researchers over the next 10 years. The research encompass experimental and computational approaches to understanding and predicting ecosystem behavior; novel production systems for food, feed, and fiber with greater crop diversity, efficiency, productivity, and resilience that improve ecosystem health; approaches to realize the potential for advances in nutrition, discovery and engineering of plant‐based medicines, and "green infrastructure." Launching the Transparent Plant will use experimental and computational approaches to break down the phytobiome into a "parts store" that supports tinkering and supports query, prediction, and rapid‐response problem solving. Equity, diversity, and inclusion are indispensable cornerstones of realizing our vision. We make recommendations around funding and systems that support customized professional development. Plant systems are frequently taken for granted therefore we make recommendations to improve plant awareness and community science programs to increase understanding of scientific research. We prioritize emerging technologies, focusing on non‐invasive imaging, sensors, and plug‐and‐play portable lab technologies, coupled with enabling computational advances. Plant systems science will benefit from data management and future advances in automation, machine learning, natural language processing, and artificial intelligence‐assisted data integration, pattern identification, and decision making. Implementation of this vision will transform plant systems science and ripple outwards through society and across the globe. Beyond deepening our biological understanding, we envision entirely new applications. We further anticipate a wave of diversification of plant systems practitioners while stimulating community engagement, underpinning increasing entrepreneurship. This surge of engagement and knowledge will help satisfy and stoke people's natural curiosity about the future, and their desire to prepare for it, as they seek fuller information about food, health, climate and ecological systems.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2025

Unveiling the drivers contributing to global wheat yield shocks through quantile regression

Sudden reductions in crop yield (i.e., yield shocks) severely disrupt the food supply, intensify food insecurity, depress farmers' welfare, and worsen a country's economic conditions. Here, we study the spatiotemporal patterns of wheat yield shocks, quantified by the lower quantiles of yield fluctuations, in 86 countries over 30 years. Furthermore, we assess the relationships between shocks and their key ecological and socioeconomic drivers using quantile regression based on statistical (linear quantile mixed model) and machine learning (quantile random forest) models. Using a panel dataset that captures spatiotemporal patterns of yield shocks and possible drivers in 86 countries, we find that the severity of yield shocks has been increasing globally since 1997. Moreover, our cross-validation exercise shows that quantile random forest outperforms the linear quantile regression model. Despite this performance difference, both models consistently reveal that the severity of shocks is associated with higher weather stress, nitrogen fertilizer application rate, and gross domestic product (GDP) per capita (a typical indicator for economic and technological advancement in a country). While the unexpected negative association between more severe wheat yield shocks and higher fertilizer application rate and GDP per capita does not imply a direct causal effect, they indicate that the advancement in wheat production has been primarily on achieving higher yields and less on lowering the possibility and magnitude of sharp yield reductions. Hence, in the context of growing extreme weather stress, there is a critical need to enhance the technology and management practices that mitigate yield shocks to improve the resilience of the world food systems.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2021

Omics-Driven Biotechnology for Industrial Applications

Biomanufacturing is a key component of biotechnology that uses biological systems to produce bioproducts of commercial relevance, which are of great interest to the energy, material, pharmaceutical, food, and agriculture industries. Biotechnology-based approaches, such as synthetic biology and metabolic engineering are heavily reliant on “omics” driven systems biology to characterize and understand metabolic networks. Knowledge gained from systems biology experiments aid the development of synthetic biology tools and the advancement of metabolic engineering studies toward establishing robust industrial biomanufacturing platforms. In this review, we discuss recent advances in “omics” technologies, compare the pros and cons of the different “omics” technologies, and discuss the necessary requirements for carrying out multi-omics experiments. We highlight the influence of “omics” technologies on the production of biofuels and bioproducts by metabolic engineering. Finally, we discuss the application of “omics” technologies to agricultural and food biotechnology, and review the impact of “omics” on current COVID-19 research.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS2003

Array biosensor for detection of toxins

The array biosensor is capable of detecting multiple targets rapidly and simultaneously on the surface of a single waveguide. Sandwich and competitive fluoroimmunoassays have been developed to detect high and low molecular weight toxins, respectively, in complex samples. Recognition molecules (usually antibodies) were first immobilized in specific locations on the waveguide and the resultant patterned array was used to interrogate up to 12 different samples for the presence of multiple different analytes. Upon binding of a fluorescent analyte or fluorescent immunocomplex, the pattern of fluorescent spots was detected using a CCD camera. Automated image analysis was used to determine a mean fluorescence value for each assay spot and to subtract the local background signal. The location of the spot and its mean fluorescence value were used to determine the toxin identity and concentration. Toxins were measured in clinical fluids, environmental samples and foods, with minimal sample preparation. Results are shown for rapid analyses of staphylococcal enterotoxin B, ricin, cholera toxin, botulinum toxoids, trinitrotoluene, and the mycotoxin fumonisin. Toxins were detected at levels as low as 0.5 ng mL(-1).

Review↗
NASA NTRS2001

Fresh Veggies from Space

Professor Marc Anderson of the University of Wisconsin-Madison developed a technology for use in plant-growth experiments aboard the Space Shuttle. Anderson's research and WCSAR's technology were funded by NASA and resulted in a joint technology licensed to KES Science and Technology, Inc. This transfer of space-age technology resulted in the creation of a new plant-saving product, an ethylene scrubber for plant growth chambers. This innovation presents commercial benefits for the food industry in the form of a new device, named Bio-KES. Bio-KES removes ethylene and helps to prevent spoilage. Ethylene accounts for up to 10 percent of produce losses and 5 percent of flower losses. Using Bio-KES in storage rooms and displays will increase the shelf life of perishable foods by more than one week, drastically reducing the costs associated with discarded rotten foods and flowers. The savings could potentially be passed on to consumers. For NASA, the device means that astronauts can conduct commercial agricultural research in space. Eventually, it may also help to grow food in space and keep it fresh longer. This could lead to less packaged food being taken aboard missions since it could be cultivated in an ethylene-free environment.

Source record↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Overview of a NASA Centennial Challenges Prize Competition to Address Crew Nutritional Needs for Long-Duration Space Exploration Missions

Historically, competitions and prizes such as those executed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Centennial Challenges (CC) program have created broader avenues through which to spur innovation from unlikely sources. In 2005, Congress amended the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 to authorize NASA to create challenges through which prizes could be awarded to United States citizens or entities that succeeded in meeting challenge objectives. Over the past 15 years, the CC program has initiated more than 20 challenges in a variety of technology areas, including: propulsion, robotics, communications and navigation, human health, science instrumentation, nanotech, materials/structures and aerodynamics. This paper provides the background, status and ongoing plans by NASA’s CC program in developing a Deep Space Food Challenge (formerly the Lunar Nutrition Challenge) as one approach to fulfilling Space Policy Directive 1 (To the Moon, then Mars”).

Centennial Challenges↗
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

The levelized cost of exergy: a technoeconomic framework for energy system comparison

While the levelized costs of electricity and heat have been quantified before, these two metrics cannot be directly compared, due to the different exergy content of heat and work. To address this, we develop a levelized cost of exergy (LCOEx) framework that enables direct comparisons between energy sources and processes. We find that moderate- and high-grade heat have an LCOEx that is comparable to electricity (5–10 ¢ per kWh ex ), while low-grade heat sources have much higher LCOEx values (>50 ¢ per kWh ex ). The LCOEx of a system's output is affected by (i) the LCOEx of the system input, (ii) the CAPEX of the system, and (iii) the exergetic efficiency of the system. We use our framework to identify which processes are already achieved with relatively high cost effectiveness (production of fuels, hydrogen, and ammonia) and which have room for improvement (dehumidification, food production).

08 HYDROGEN↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Water and Disasters Tools and Development Across the SERVIR Program and Lessons-Learned Within the Hindukush Himalayan Region

The NASA-USAID SERVIR program works in partnership with leading regional organizations around the globe to help developing countries use information provided by earth observing satellites and geospatial technologies. The SERVIR Applied Sciences Team (AST) is assembled on a 3-year rotating cycle to partner with these regional organizations on the joint development and implementation of tools and techniques that can be used operationally in each region. The Portfolio of AST projects address regional priorities in four thematic service areas: Land Cover, Land Use Change & Ecosystems; Water and water-related Disasters; Weather & Climate and Food Security & Agriculture. An important goal of AST is knowledge sharing across the different regional entities to share tools and technologies for the improvement of all. This talk will focus on the Water and Disasters service area and review how tools developed in the Hindu Kush Himalayan region in partnership with the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) have evolved over the AST cycles. We will provide examples of stakeholder engagement both at ICIMOD and across the regional partners they support. We will also share recent examples and lessons learned with users from other SERVIR regions.

Lori A Schultz↗
NASA NTRS2024

Enhancing Global Food Security: Opportunities for the American Meteorological Society

Food security is a key pillar of environmental security yet remains one of the world’s greatest challenges. Its obverse, food insecurity, negatively impacts health and well-being, drives mass migration, and undermines national security and global sustainable development. Ensuring food security is a delicate balance of myriad concerns within the atmospheric and Earth sciences, agronomy and agriculture engineering, social sciences, economics, monitoring, and policymaking. A Food Security Presidential Session at the American Meteorological Society’s (AMS) 2022 Annual Meeting brought together experts across disciplines to tackle issues at the nexus of weather, climate, and food security. The starkest takeaway was the realization that, despite its importance and clear roles for the atmospheric and climate sciences, food security has not been a focus for the AMS community. The aim of this paper is to build on the perspectives shared by this expert panel and to identify overlapping issues and key points of intersection between the food-security community and AMS. We examine 1) the interactions between weather, climate, and the food system and how they influence food security; 2) the time and spatial scales of food security decision support that match weather and climate phenomena; 3) the role of both providers and users of information as well as decision-makers in improving research to operations for food security; and 4) the opportunities for the AMS community to address food security. We conclude that, moving forward, the AMS community is well-positioned to scale up its engagement across the global food system to address existing scientific needs and technology gaps to improve global food security.

Food security↗
NASA NTRS1992

Testing a Mars science outpost in the Antarctic dry valleys

Field research conducted in the Antarctic has been providing insights about the nature of Mars in the science disciplines of exobiology and geology. Located in the McMurdo Dry Valleys of southern Victoria Land (160 deg and 164 deg E longitude and 76 deg 30 min and 78 deg 30 min S latitude), research outposts are inhabited by teams of 4-6 scientists. It is proposed that the design of these outposts be expanded to enable meaningful tests of many of the systems that will be needed for the successful conduct of exploration activities on Mars. Although there are some important differences between the environment in the Antarctic dry valleys and on Mars, the many similarities and particularly the field science activities, make the dry valleys a useful terrestrial analog to conditions on Mars. Three areas have been identified for testing at a small science outpost in the dry valleys: (1) studying human factors and physiology in an isolated environment; (2) testing emerging technologies (e.g. innovative power management systems, advanced life support facilities including partial bioregenerative life support systems for water recycling and food growth, telerobotics, etc.); and (3) conducting basic scientific research that will enhance understanding of Mars while contributing to the planning for human exploration. It is suggested that an important early result of a Mars habitat program will be the experience gained by interfacing humans and their supporting technology in a remote and stressful environment.

Andersen, D. T.↗
DOE OSTI2022

Artificial Intelligence for Accelerating Nuclear Applications, Science, and Technology

Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) methods have had significant impacts in science and technology in recent years. These methods for generating models from datasets or logic-based algorithms that emulate aspects of human performance can similarly accelerate the fields of nuclear applications, science, and technology toward the IAEA goals of contributing to peace, health, and prosperity. In order to accomplish advances with AI in general and ML in particular across these fields, IAEA can play a significant role by establishing, hosting and curating centralised resources, including databases, adhering to FAIR (findable, accessible, interoperable and reusable) principles and Open Science best practices, providing stewardship of data sharing, supporting training efforts and development of relevant workforces, as well as enabling connections among the scientific, technology, mathematics, AI and ethics communities. Many areas can benefit from the use of AI in the realm of nuclear applications. In human health, these areas include clinical research, epidemiology, nutrition, medical imaging, radiotherapy and education of health professionals. AI-based tools are also being used to facilitate different clinical tasks in imaging, computer-assisted diagnosis in mammography and lung cancer screening programmes, and dose prediction in nuclear medicine procedures. ML methods in particular may also increase the efficiency and accuracy of the analysis of computerised tomography and dual-energy absorptiometry scans for body composition and bone analysis. The application of AI methods to nuclear and related technologies in food and agriculture can lead to significant advances and improved efficiency in the optimisation of agricultural production, food product development, management of supply chains, food safety and food authenticity control. In the water and environmental sector, AI can help inform policies to mitigate the world’s water problems. The application of AI techniques to hydrology and environmental sciences is expected to improve patterns identification and enable model predictions under a changing climate.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗