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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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The data is reviewed about superconductor-normal-superconductor (SNS) devices, and the conclusion is drawn that there is no conventional proximity effect in the majority of reported high Tc devices. The present experimental and theoretical understanding of SNS junctions is discussed as well as implications for future research.
We performed planar shock recovery experiments on natural pyrrhotite at pressures up to 6.9 GPa. We find that high-field isothermal remanent magnetization in pyrrhotite is demagnetized up to 90% by shock due to preferential removal of low coercivity components of magnetization. Contrary to static experiments, we do not observe complete demagnetization. Post shock permanent changes in magnetic properties include increasing saturation isothermal remanent magnetization, bulk coercivity and lowtemperature memory, and changes in squareness of hysteresis. These changes are consistent with an increase in the volume fraction of single domain grains. The lack of magnetic anomalies over large Martian impact basins is not expected to be solely due to shock demagnetization of the crust. We find that pyrrhotite-bearing rocks and meteorites can retain records of Martian magnetic fields even if shocked to pressures approaching 7 GPa. However, some paleointensity techniques may underestimate this field.
Observations of quasi-periodic oscillations (QPOs) in X-ray binaries hold a key to understanding many aspects of these enigmatic systems. Complex appearance of the Fourier phase lags related to QPOs is one of the most puzzling observational effects in accreting black holes. In this Letter we show that QPO properties, including phase lags, can be explained in a framework of a simple scenario, where the oscillating media provides a feedback on the emerging spectrum. We demonstrate that the QPO waveform is presented by the product of a perturbation and a time delayed response factors, where the response is energy dependent. The essential property of this effect is its non-linear and multiplicative nature. Our multiplicative reverberation model successfully describes the QPO components in energy dependent power spectra as well as the appearance of the phase lags between signal in different energy bands. We apply our model to QPOs observed by Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer in BH candidate XTE J1550-564. We briefly discuss the implications of the observed energy dependence of the QPO reverberation times and amplitudes to the nature of the power law spectral component and its variability.
Additive manufacturing (AM) represents an exciting new approach towards producing metallic aerospace components. The ability to make complex geometries that were impossible to create using conventional manufacturing methods has sparked interest from the aerospace community, including NASA. The use of AM components for crucial and human rated space missions necessitates a full characterization of the differences between AM and more conventional wrought and cast processes. For this study, sixteen different commercially available superalloy 718 powder feedstocks were obtained, built using laser powder bed fusion(L-PBF), and microstructurally and mechanically analyzed. These measurements revealed a wide range of build qualities and microstructures despite all powder lots falling within the 718chemical specification and being processed using the same prescribed build and heat treatment parameters. Statistical analysis found a strong correlation of the amount of carbon in the powder with the final grain size and strength of the heat-treated 718 part. Ultimately, this study highlights the need of a refined superalloy 718 chemical specification for powder lots to be used in AM.
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High performance polymers for potential space applications were evaluated under simulated space environmental conditions. Experimental resins from blends of acetylene terminated materials, poly(arylene ether)s and low color polyimides were exposed to high energy electron and ultraviolet radiation in an attempt to simulate space environmental effects. Thin films, neat resin moldings, and carbon fiber reinforced composites were exposed, and the effect on certain polymer properties were determined. Recent research involving the effects of various radiation exposures on the physical, optical, and mechanical properties of several experimental polymer systems is reviewed.
A systematic study to evaluate the effects of thermomechanical processing on the microstructure and mechanical properties of Nb-1Zr alloy sheet containing 0.06 and 0.1 wt.%C (PWC-11) was conducted and compared to the results of Nb-1Zr. Coarse orthorhombic Nb2C precipitates were present in all the cast, extruded and cold rolled Nb-Zr samples containing C. After high temperature (greater than 0.5 T(sub m)) exposure (with or without applied stress), the Nb2C transforms to very fine and extremely stable FCC (Zr, Nb)C dispersoid, resulting in a highly creep resistant material. Only ZrO2 precipitates were found in Nb-1Zr. The creep strength of the 0.06C and the 0.1C carbide strengthened alloys were much superior to Nb-1Zr. At 1350 K the strength of the 0.06C alloy was about three times that of Nb-1Zr, while the 0.1C alloy had about five times the creep stress capability of Nb-1Zr. The tensile strength, long term creep strength, and stability of the microstructure of the PWC-11 sheet appear to be independent of the number of 1900 K extrusions performed prior to cold rolling. The microhardness of these single, double and triple extnided PWC-11 sheets also were comparable. The tensile strength of PWC-11 and Nb-1Zr at room temperature and 1350 K were comparable.
A study has been initiated to determine the effects of elevated-temperature exposure on the room-temperature mechanical properties of titanium honeycomb-core sandwich panels fabricated by brazing or spot diffusion bonding. Only flatwise tensile properties following exposure have been determined to date. Preliminary results indicate very little change in the flatwise tensile strength of sandwich panels fabricated by spot diffusion bonding following exposures of 10,000 hr at 600 and 800 F and 1000 hr at 1000 F. Titanium panels fabricated by using a Ti-Zr-Be braze alloy are susceptible to oxidation at elevated temperature and experience flatwise tensile strength degradation after continuous exposures of 7500 hr at 600 F, 1000 hr at 800 F, and less than 100 hr at 1000 F. It is possible that the exposure life of the brazed panels may be substantially increased if the panel edges are sealed to prevent oxidation of the braze alloy.
We present a systematic study of the effect of Pd-alloying on phase stability, electronic structure, and elastic properties in L1 0 Fe–Ni using density-functional theory. Being from the same group of the periodic table, Pd is the best candidate for chemical alloying. The Fe–Ni/Fe–Pd/Ni–Pd bond-length increases with increasing Pd-concentration, which weakens the hybridization between low lying energy states below Fermi-level. The reduced hybridization decreases the relative thermodynamic stability of L1 0 Fe(Ni 1–x Pd x ) until x = 0.75. Beyond this concentration, the relative stability gets enhanced, which is attributed to a unique change in the lattice distortion (c/a). The elastic properties show a non-monotonous behavior as a function of x, which is again due to a specific change-over in the uniaxial strain. We found that Pd alloying increases the local Fe moment and structural anisotropy of L1 0 FeNi, which are important for applications such as microwave absorption, refrigeration systems, recording devices, imaging and sensors. Here, we believe that the present study for the chemical alloying effect can provide critical insights toward the understanding of electronic-structure and elastic behavior of other technologically important materials.
Multi-principal component transition metal (TM) diborides represent a class of high-entropy ceramics (HECs) that have received considerable interest in recent years owing to their promising properties for extreme environment applications that include thermal/ environmental barriers, hypersonic vehicles, turbine engines, and next-generation nuclear reactors. While the addition of chemical disorder through the random distribution of TM elements on the cation sublattice has offered opportunities to tailor elastic stiffness and hardness, the effects of irradiationinduced structural damage on the physical properties of these complex materials have remained largely unexplored. To this end, changes in the hardness and elastic moduli of a high-entropy TM diboride (Hf0.2Nb0.2Ta0.2Ti0.2Zr0.2)B2 and three of its quaternary subsets following irradiation with 10 MeV gold (Au) ions to fluences of up to 6 × 10^15 Au cm-2 are investigated at the micrometer and sub-micrometer length-scales via the dispersion of laser-generated surface acoustic waves (SAW) and nanoindentation, respectively. The nanoindentation measurements show that the TM diborides exhibit an initial increase in hardness following irradiation with energetic Au ions, with a subsequent decrease in hardness following further irradiation. One quaternary composition, (Hf1/3Ta1/3Ti1/3)B2, exhibits a notable exception to the trend and continues to exhibit an increase in hardness with ion irradiation fluence. Although differences in the absolute values of the effective elastic moduli obtained from the measured SAW dispersion and nanoindentation are observed (and attributed to microstructural variations at the measurement length-scale), both techniques yield similar trends in the form of an initial reduction and subsequent saturation in the elastic modulus with increasing ion irradiation fluence. The quaternary TM diboride (Hf1/3Ta1/3Ti1/3)B2 again exhibits a departure from this trend. The high-entropy TM diboride (Hf0.2Nb0.2Ta0.2Ti0.2Zr0.2)B2 exhibits the greatest recovery in hardness and modulus when irradiated to high ion fluences following initial changes at low fluence, indicating superior resistance to radiation-induced damage over its quaternary counterparts. Opportunities for designing HECs with superior hardness and modulus for enhanced radiation resistance (compared to their single constituent counterparts) by tailoring chemical disorder and bond character in the lattice are discussed.
The effects of alloy chemistry and particulate morphology on consolidation behavior and consolidated product properties in rapid solidification processed, powder-metallurgical Al-3Li-1.5Cu-1Mg-0.5Co-0.2Zr and Al-4.4Cu-1.5Mg-Fe-Ni-0.2Zr extrusions and forgings were studied. Microstructures and mechanical properties of both alloys are largely unaffected by particulate production method (vacuum atomization, ultrasonic atomization, or twin-roller quenching) and by particulate solidification rates between 1000 and 100,000 K/s. Consolidation processing by canning, cold compaction, degassing, and hot extrusion is sufficient to yield mechanical properties in the non-Li-containing alloy extrusions which are similar to those of 7075-Al, but ductilities and fracture toughnesses are inferior owing to poor interparticle bonding caused by lack of a vacuum-hot-pressing step during consolidation. Mechanical properties of extrusions are superior to those of forgings owing to the stronger textures produced by the more severe hot working during extrusion. The effects on mechanical properties of dispersoid size and volume fraction, substructural refinement, solid solution strengthening by Mg, and precipitate size and distribution are elucidated for both alloy types.
A detailed experimental study was conducted to establish the structure-property relationships between elevated temperature aging and fiber-matrix bonding, Mode 2 interlaminar fracture toughness, and failure modes of carbon fiber/PMR-15 composites. The fiber-matrix adhesion was varied by using carbon fibers with different surface treatments. Short beam shear tests were used to quantify the interfacial shear strength afforded by the use of the different fiber surface treatments. The results of the short beam shear tests showed that, for times up to 1000 hr, the aging process caused no changes in the bulk of the three composite materials that would degrade the shear properties of the material. Comparisons between the interlaminar shear strengths (ILSS) measured by the short beam shear tests and the GIIC test results, as measured by the ENF test, indicated that the differences in the surface treatments significantly affected the fracture properties while the effect of the aging process was probably limited to changes at the starter crack tip. The fracture properties changed due to a shift in the fracture from an interfacial failure to a failure within the matrix when the fiber was changed from AU-4 to AS-4 or AS-4G. There appears to be an effect of the fiber/matrix bonding on the thermo-oxidative stability of the composites that were tested. The low bonding afforded by the AU 1 fiber resulted in weight losses about twice those experienced by the AS 1 reinforced composites, the ones with the best TOS.
A detailed experimental study was conducted to establish the structure-property relationships between elevated temperature aging and (I) fiber-matrix bonding, (2) Mode II interlaminar fracture toughness, and (3) failure modes of carbon fiber/PMR-15 composites. The fiber-matrix adhesion was varied by using carbon fibers with different surface treatments. Short beam shear tests were used to quantify the interfacial shear strength afforded by the use of the different fiber surface treatments. The results of the short beam shear tests definitely showed that, for aging times up to 1000 hr, the aging process caused no observable changes in the bulk of the three composite materials that---would degrade the shear properties of the material. Comparisons between the interlaminar shear strength (ILSS) measured by the short beam shear tests and the GII c test results, as measured by the ENF test, indicated that the differences in the surface treatments significantly affected the fracture properties while the effect of the aging process was probably limited to changes at the starter crack tip. The fracture properties changed due to a shift in the fracture from an interfacial failure to a failure within the matrix when the fiber was changed from AU-4 to AS-4 or AS-4G. There appears to be an effect of the fiber/matrix bonding on the thermo-oxidative stability of the composites that were tested. The low bonding afforded by the AU-4 fiber resulted in weight losses about twice those experienced by the AS-4 reinforced composites, the ones with the best TOS.
In situ determination of effects of ultraviolet radiation, solar wind protons, and temperature on thermophysical properties of solar cell filters and other spacecraft materials
It is well known that etch pits are formed on carbon surfaces during their consumption in reactive gas environments such as during ablation of carbon-based thermal protection system (TPS) materials. These pits start out from atomic defects on the carbon surface, grow in size and then ultimately lead to the complete removal of the solid carbon material. However, the effect of such etch pits on the material properties of carbon ablators such as FiberForm are poorly understood, as the maximum size of pits are on the order of microns in size, which makes them hard to observe experimentally. Hence, we have developed a module within the Porous Microstructure Analysis code PuMA that can generate etch pits on an arbitrary material surface, with a prescribed distribution of pit size and density. We use this newly developed module to calculate material properties of FiberForm, which is the base material for one of the most commonly used TPS materials - Phenolic Impregnated Carbon Ablator (PICA). The detailed microstructure of FiberForm in PuMA will either be generated synthetically or obtained from X-ray microtomography. Our simulations show that material properties such as the thermal conductivity and tortuosity decrease with increasing degree of pitting. This will be helpful to more accurately predict the degradation of carbon-based TPS during ablation, and furthermore may allow us to identify previously unknown TPS failure modes due to pitting.
A wide variety of studies on the potential effects of broadened-specification fuels on future aircraft engines and fuel systems are summarized. The compositions and characteristics of aircraft fuels that may be derived from current and future crude-oil sources are described, and the most critical properties that may effect aircraft engines and fuel systems are identified and discussed. The problems that are most likely to be encountered because of changes in selected fuel properties are explored; and the related effects on engine performance, component durability and maintenance, and aircraft fuel-system performance are examined. The ability of current technology to accept possible future fuel specification changes is assessed and selected technological advances that can reduce the severity of the potential problems are illustrated.
The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) was developed by NASA and launched onboard the Terra spacecraft on December 18,1999 and Aqua spacecraft on May 4, 2002. It achieved its final orbit and began Earth observations on February 24, 2000 for Terra and June 24, 2002 for Aqua. A comprehensive set of remote sensing algorithms for cloud masking and the retrieval of cloud physical and optical properties has been developed by members of the MODIS atmosphere science team. The archived products from these algorithms have applications in climate change studies, climate modeling, numerical weather prediction, as well as fundamental atmospheric research. In addition to an extensive cloud mask, products include cloud-top properties (temperature, pressure, effective emissivity), cloud thermodynamic phase, cloud optical and microphysical parameters (optical thickness, effective particle radius, water path), as well as derived statistics. We will describe the various cloud properties being analyzed on a global basis from both Terra and Aqua. These include the latitudinal distribution of cloud optical and radiative properties of both liquid water and ice clouds, as well as joint histograms of cloud optical thickness and effective radius for selected geographical locations around the world.
The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) was developed by NASA and launched onboard the Terra spacecraft on December 18, 1999 and Aqua spacecraft on May 4, 2002. It achieved its final orbit and began Earth observations on February 24, 2000 for Terra and June 24, 2002 for Aqua. A comprehensive set of remote sensing algorithms for cloud masking and the retrieval of cloud physical and optical properties has been developed by members of the MODIS atmosphere science team. The archived products from these algorithms have applications in climate change studies, climate modeling, numerical weather prediction, as well as fundamental atmospheric research. In addition to an extensive cloud mask, products include cloud-top properties (temperature, pressure, effective emissivity), cloud thermodynamic phase, cloud optical and microphysical parameters (optical thickness, effective particle radius, water path), as well as derived statistics. We will describe the various cloud properties being analyzed on a global basis from both Terra and Aqua. These include the latitudinal distribution of cloud optical and radiative properties of both liquid water and ice clouds, as well as joint histograms of cloud optical thickness and effective radius for selected geographical locations around the world.