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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 1,261 records · Page 70
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1984

Analysis of a 10 megawatt space-based solar-pumped neodymium laser system

A ten megawatt solar-pumped continuous liquid laser system for space applications is examined. It is found that a single inflatable mirror of 434 m diameter used in conjunction with a conical secondary concentrator is sufficient to side pump a liquid neodymium lasant in an annular tube of 6 m length and 1 m outer and 0.8 m inner diameter. About one fourth of intercepted radiation converging on the laser tube is absorbed and one fifth of this radiation is effective in populating the upper levels. The liquid lasant is flowed through the annular laser cavity at 1.9 m/s and is cooled via a heat exchanger and a large radiator surface comparable in size to the concentrating mirror. The power density of incident light within the lasant of approximately 68 watt/cu cm required for cw operation is exceeded in the present annular configuration. Total system weight corresponds to 20,500 kg and is thus capable of being transported to near Earth orbit by a single shuttle flight.

Kurweg, U. H.↗
DOE OSTI2026

TDCOSMO XXIII. Measurement of the Hubble constant from the doubly lensed quasar HE 1104−1805

Time-delay cosmography leverages strongly lensed quasars to measure the Universe’s current expansion rate, H 0 , independently from other methods. The latest TDCOSMO milestone measurement primarily used quadruply lensed quasars for their mass profile constraints. However, doubly lensed quasars, being more abundant and offering precise time delays, could expand the sample by a factor of 5, significantly advancing towards a 1% precision measurement of H 0 . We present the first TDCOSMO analysis of a doubly imaged source, HE 1104−1805, including the measurement of the four necessary ingredients. First, by combining 17 years of data from the SMARTS, Euler, and WFI telescopes, we measured a time delay of 176.3 +11.4 −10.3 days. Second, using MUSE data, we extracted stellar velocity dispersion measurements in three radial bins with 5% to 13% precision. Third, employing F160W HST imaging for lens modelling and marginalising over various modelling choices, we measured the Fermat potential difference between the images. Fourth, using wide-field imaging, we measured the convergence added by objects not included in the lens modelling. By combining these four ingredients, we measured the time delay distance and the angular diameter distance to the deflector, favouring a power-law mass model over a baryonic and dark matter composite model. The measurement was performed blindly to prevent experimenter bias and resulted in a Hubble constant of H 0 = +5.8 −5.0 × λ int km s −1 Mpc −1 , where λ int is the internal mass sheet degeneracy parameter. This is in agreement with the TDCOSMO-2025 milestone and its precision for λ int = 1 is comparable to that obtained with the best-observed quadruply lensed quasars (4–6%). This work is a stepping stone towards a precise measurement of H 0 using a large sample of doubly lensed quasars, supplementing the current sample. The next TDCOSMO milestone paper will include this system in its hierarchical analysis, constraining λ int and H 0 jointly with multiple lenses.

cosmological parameters↗
DOE OSTI2026

Dark Energy Survey year 6 results: Magnification modeling and its impact on galaxy clustering and galaxy-galaxy lensing cosmology

Gravitational lensing magnification alters the observed spatial distribution of galaxies and must be accounted for to prevent biases in cosmological probes of the large-scale structure. We investigate its effects on the Dark Energy Survey Year 6 galaxy clustering and galaxy-galaxy lensing analyses using the fiducial lens (position tracer) sample M ag L im++. Magnification bias is parameterized by a coefficient that describes the response of the number of selected objects per unlensed area element to a change in the lensing convergence. We quantify this coefficient using the BALROG synthetic source injection catalog to account for the complexity of the selection function, and compare these results with simplified estimates. The resulting values of the magnification coefficients for each redshift bin are [3.16 ± 0.08, 2.76 ± 0.21, 4.09 ± 0.15, 4.42 ± 0.16, 4.90 ± 0.29, 4.83 ± 0.25]. Relative to Year 3, this analysis provides more precise and accurate magnification bias estimates through a larger BALROG area and reweighting to better match the data properties. Here, the cosmological results are robust when tested against various magnification parameter prior choices and also when adding cross-clustering between lens redshift bins. Neglecting magnification, however, introduces significant systematic shifts: relative to the fiducial analysis with Gaussian priors centered on the BALROG -derived estimates, we observe shifts of 1.37σ in S 8 and -0.84σ in Ω m (with cosmic shear included: -0.61σ in S 8 and -0.71σ in Ω m ), in agreement with findings from simulated data, demonstrating that magnification must be modeled to avoid biases. Freeing the magnification bias in lens bin 2 leads to unphysical negative values, further justifying its exclusion from the fiducial Year 6 analysis.

Cosmological parameters↗
DOE OSTI2024

Integration of 5G and Time Sensitive Networks in Fossil Energy Generation Systems: A Case Study

Precise timing and data transmission within stringent time constraints are critical for numerous applications, such as robotics, virtual and augmented reality, industrial automation, energy and medical business, and various other sectors. Time-sensitive networks (TSN) and fifth-generation wireless communications (5G) are crucial for industrial communications, enabling convergent communication for various services using a common network core. Applications that are time-sensitive and require deterministic communications with low latency fall into this category, such as generation plant systems. This paper presents a simulated model of 5G-TSN for a fossil power plant based on the wired network parameters implemented in situ. Metrics analysis, comparison and future work are presented. © 2024 IEEE.

01 COAL, LIGNITE, AND PEAT↗
DOE OSTI2022

System identity and transformation in petroleum jurisdictions: A multi-method approach for the North Slope Borough, Alaska

Capturing the multidimensionality of a bounded social-environmental system (SES) presents a range of challenges to interdisciplinary researchers due to the need to integrate divergent scientific paradigms, scalar data, and social theories. Contemporary Arctic circumpolar SESs studied under conditions of rapid and unprecedented climatic, ecological, economic, and sociopolitical change, defy any singular established methodological approach that aims to schematize and interpret the system for decision-making purposes. As a small interdisciplinary team working within a large Arctic SES modeling effort, we have found that developing systems models to support resilience in the Arctic requires an understanding of system dynamics that is attentive to holistic indicators of change, measured both quantitatively and qualitatively. Using the Alaska North Slope Borough as a case study, we apply three convergent frameworks to capture significant dimensions of the system for improved problem definition in confronting the challenges of Arctic climate change. We describe contemporary “oil and gas” social-ecological system components and dynamics, the historical processes and transformations that fundamentally altered the system, and the scientific projections for the most likely catalysts of future change. This analysis results in a typology for defining subnational Arctic hydrocarbon SESs. We conclude that the future of oil and gas development as a policy pathway in different locations experiencing rapid climate change can be evaluated when difficult-to-quantify variables are included.

Lovecraft, Amy Lauren↗
DOE OSTI2020

Atmospheric teleconnection processes linking winter air stagnation and haze extremes in China with regional Arctic sea ice decline

Abstract. Recent studies suggested significant impacts of boreal cryosphere changes on wintertime air stagnation and haze pollution extremes in China. However, the underlying mechanisms of such a teleconnection relationship remains unclear. Here we use the Whole Atmosphere Community Climate Model (WACCM) to investigate dynamic processes leading to atmospheric circulation and air stagnation responses to Arctic sea ice changes. We conduct four climate sensitivity experiments by perturbing sea ice concentrations (SIC) and corresponding sea surface temperature (SST) in autumn and early winter over the whole Arctic and three subregions in the climate model. The results indicate distinct responses in circulation patterns and regional ventilation to the region-specific Arctic changes, with the largest increase of both the probability (by 132 %) and the intensity (by 30 %) of monthly air stagnation extremes being found in the experiment driven by SIC and SST changes over the Pacific sector of the Arctic (the East Siberian and Chukchi seas). The increased air stagnation extremes are mainly driven by an amplified planetary-scale atmospheric teleconnection pattern that resembles the negative phase of the Eurasian (EU) pattern. Dynamical diagnostics suggest that convergence of transient eddy forcing in the vicinity of Scandinavia in winter is largely responsible for the amplification of the teleconnection pattern. Transient eddy vorticity fluxes dominate the transient eddy forcing and produce a barotropic anticyclonic anomaly near Scandinavia and wave train propagation across Eurasia to the downstream regions in East Asia. The piecewise potential vorticity inversion analysis reveals that this long-range atmospheric teleconnection of Arctic origin takes place primarily via the middle and upper troposphere. The anomalous ridge over East Asia in the middle and upper troposphere worsens regional ventilation conditions by weakening monsoon northwesterlies and enhancing temperature inversions near the surface, leading to more and stronger air stagnation and pollution extremes over eastern China in winter. Ensemble projections based on state-of-the-art climate models in the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6) corroborate this teleconnection relationship between high-latitude environmental changes and midlatitude weather extremes, though the tendency and magnitude vary considerably among each participating model.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2022

Atmospheric river representation in the Energy Exascale Earth System Model (E3SM) version 1.0

Abstract. The Energy Exascale Earth System Model (E3SM) project is an ongoing, state-of-the-science Earth system modeling, simulation, and prediction project developed by the US Department of Energy (DOE). With an emphasis on supporting the DOE's energy mission, understanding and quantifying how well the model simulates water cycle processes is of particular importance. Here, we evaluate E3SM version 1.0 (v1.0) for its ability to represent atmospheric rivers (ARs), which play significant roles in water vapor transport and precipitation. The characteristics and precipitation associated with global ARs in E3SM at standard resolution (1∘ × 1∘) are compared to the Modern-Era Retrospective analysis for Research and Applications, version 2 (MERRA2). Global patterns of AR frequencies in E3SM show high degrees of correlation (≥0.97) with MERRA2 and low mean absolute errors (MAEs; <1 %) annually, seasonally, and across different ensemble members. However, some large-scale condition biases exist, leading to AR biases – most significant of which are the double intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ), a stronger and/or equatorward-shifted subtropical jet during boreal and austral winters, and enhanced Northern Hemisphere westerlies during summer. By comparing atmosphere-only and fully coupled simulations, we attribute the sources of the biases to the atmospheric component or to a coupling response. Using relationships revealed in Dong et al. (2021), we provide evidence showing the stronger North Pacific jet in winter and the enhanced Northern Hemisphere westerlies during summer, associated with E3SM's double ITCZ and related weaker Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC), respectively, which are significant sources of the AR biases found in the coupled simulations.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS1982

Finite-difference solution of the compressible stability eigenvalue problem

A compressible stability analysis computer code is developed. The code uses a matrix finite difference method for local eigenvalue solution when a good guess for the eigenvalue is available and is significantly more computationally efficient than the commonly used initial value approach. The local eigenvalue search procedure also results in eigenfunctions and, at little extra work, group velocities. A globally convergent eigenvalue procedure is also developed which may be used when no guess for the eigenvalue is available. The global problem is formulated in such a way that no unstable spurious modes appear so that the method is suitable for use in a black box stability code. Sample stability calculations are presented for the boundary layer profiles of a Laminar Flow Control (LFC) swept wing.

Malik, M. R.↗
NASA NTRS1983

Finite element computational fluid mechanics

Finite element analysis as applied to the broad spectrum of computational fluid mechanics is analyzed. The finite element solution methodology is derived, developed, and applied directly to the differential equation systems governing classes of problems in fluid mechanics. The heat conduction equation is used to reveal the essence and elegance of finite element theory, including higher order accuracy and convergence. The algorithm is extended to the pervasive nonlinearity of the Navier-Stokes equations. A specific fluid mechanics problem class is analyzed with an even mix of theory and applications, including turbulence closure and the solution of turbulent flows.

Baker, A. J.↗
NASA NTRS1986

Ageostrophic motions in the stratosphere from satellite observations

Geopotential height fields, based on high vertical resolution radiometer measurements, have been used to infer the circulation in the stratosphere from 100 to 1 mb, in the Northern Hemisphere, on a daily basis during February and March of 1979. Initial calculations were based on geostrophy in the traditional way. In addition to demonstrating the benefits of high vertical resolution, these calculations show that for the disturbed conditions present at this time, many of the terms in the momentum equation which were neglected would have made nonnegligible contributions to the balance of terms. In particular, the convergence of meridional wave flux can affect the zonally averaged meridional component of the momentum budget. Ageostrophic terms can affect the zonally varying part of the momentum budgets as well, although an accurate assessment of their importance is complicated by nonlinear proceses. These and other results suggest that studies using diagnostically derived winds should include a scale analysis of the momentum budget to verify that the approximations used are valid. Revised estimates have been made of both the zonally averaged and zonally varying components of the wind that include important ageostrophic contributions.

Elson, L. S.↗
NASA NTRS1986

Rapid evolution of a jet streak circulation in a pre-convective environment

An analysis of the April 10, 1979 Red River Valley severe weather outbreak, using a three-hourly rawinsonde network, indicates that the preconvection environment is influenced by upper-level and lower-level tropospheric jet streaks (ULJs and LLJs) that act to destabilize the atmosphere, and contribute to low-level heat and moisture transports and convergence that act to initiate the storm system. Transformation of an indirect circulation noted within the exit region of the ULJ at 1200 and 1500 GMT is observed within a six-hour period. Dramatic changes are found in the jet streak circulations over a short period of time as the system deviates from that approximated by the geostrophic momentum approximation, and these deviations suggest that adjustments asssociated with ULJs in this case could not be resolved using a simplified two-dimensional approach.

Kocin, P. J.↗
NASA NTRS1993

Experimental investigation of nozzle/plume aerodynamics at hypersonic speeds

Work continued on the improvement of 16-Inch Shock Tunnel. This comprised studies of ways of improving driver gas ignition, an improved driver gas mixing system, an axial translation system for the driver tube, improved diaphragm materials (carbon steel vs. stainless steel), a copper liner for the part of the driven tube near the nozzle, the use of a buffer gas between the driver and driven gases, the use of N2O in the driven tube, the use of a converging driven tube, operation of the facility as a non-reflected shock tunnel and expansion tube, operation with heated hydrogen or helium driver gas, the use of detonations in the driver and the construction of an enlarged test section. Maintenance and developmental work continued on the scramjet combustor continued. New software which greatly speeds up data analysis has been written and brought on line. In particular, software which provides very rapid generation of model surface heat flux profiles has been brought on line. A considerable amount of theoretical work was performed in connection with upgrading the 16 Inch Shock Tunnel Facility. A one-dimensional Godunov code for very high velocities and any equation of state is intended to add viscous effects in studying the operation of the Shock Tunnel and also of two-stage light gas guns.

Bogdanoff, David W.↗
NASA NTRS1976

Modal analysis and dynamic stresses for acoustically excited Shuttle insulation tiles

The thermal protection system of the Space Shuttle consists of thousands of separate insulation tiles, of varying thicknesses, bonded to the orbiter's surface through a soft strain-isolation pad which is bonded, in turn, to the vehicle's stiffened metallic skin. A modal procedure for obtaining the acoustically induced RMS stress in these comparatively thick tiles is described. The modes employed are generated by a previously developed iterative procedure which converges rapidly for the combined system of tiles and primary structure considered. Each tile is idealized by several hundred three-dimensional finite elements and all tiles on a given panel interact dynamically. Acoustic response results from the present analyses are presented. Comparisons with other analytical results and measured modal data for a typical Shuttle panel, both with and without tiles, are made, and the agreement is good.

Ojalvo, I. U.↗
NASA NTRS1989

A mesoscale analysis of the pre-storm environment on the 17 June 1986 COHMEX day

The study presented utilized special mesoscale Cooperative Huntsville Meteorological Experiment (COHMEX) data to understand the evolution of the preconvective environment on June 17, 1986. Using the special mesoscale COHMEX data, several mechanisms for triggering the convection are investigated. Afternoon heating probably was a major factor as observed noontime temperatures were near the sounding-derived convection temperatures. The special surface network revealed a quasi-stationary area of convergence not aligned with the front that may be associated with the orography of the area. This study demonstrates that rapid, small scale atmospheric variations preceded convective development on June 17, 1986.

Fuelberg, Henry E.↗
DOE OSTI2025

The HTR-Proteus Benchmark: Analysis and Use as a Verification and Validation Case

This presentation outlines the evaluation and application of the HTR-Proteus benchmark as a verification and validation (V&V) case for advanced reactor modeling tools. The work supports the U.S. Department of Energy’s HALEU Availability Program (HAP) and the joint DOE/NRC DNCSH project, which aims to reduce criticality safety uncertainties in commercial-scale HALEU fuel cycle and transportation systems. The HTR-Proteus experiments, conducted at the Paul Scherrer Institute, provide high-fidelity data for TRISO-fueled, graphite-moderated pebble bed reactors with high neutron leakage—conditions relevant to HALEU transport scenarios. This study focuses on Cores 4.2 and 4.3 of the HTR-Proteus benchmark, analyzing key sources of uncertainty including pebble packing, TRISO particle positioning, and core height. Using Project Chrono for realistic pebble geometries and Serpent, SHIFT, and MCNP for neutronics simulations, the study quantifies the impact of these uncertainties on the effective multiplication factor (keff). Results show that a sample size of 110 pebble configurations is sufficient to converge keff, with ±30 pcm uncertainty due to packing randomness. TRISO positioning and core height variations also significantly influence keff, highlighting the importance of detailed modeling in V&V efforts. The benchmark serves as a valuable test case for validating the Griffin reactor physics code and improving confidence in HALEU system simulations.

73 - NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Flash x-ray radiography analysis of detonation wave propagation in additive-manufactured high explosives

Recent research has demonstrated that additive manufacturing (AM) can be used to produce directionally sensitive high explosives (HEs), but detonation wave propagation in AM HEs with variable internal structure has not been studied. In this work, samples were printed using a 73 wt. % octahydro-1,3,5,7-tetranitro-1,3,5,7-tetrazocine-based HE ink. Flash x-ray radiography imaging was used to observe density changes in two imaging planes of each sample during detonation, and high-speed imaging was used to calculate the detonation velocity at the HE surface. The detonation front initially appears to fail in internal channel regions of the HE, but late reactions occurred in two samples, which increased the material bulk density by 2.8%, possibly due to shock convergence phenomena. The calculated detonation wave pressure similarly increased, but the accuracy of the results is uncertain because of the deviation of the low bulk density printed samples from the cast charge principal isentrope. Here, this work demonstrates that structure can be effectively utilized to guide detonation wave propagation through HE charges.

3D printing↗
DOE OSTI2023

Behavior and properties of helium cavities in ductile-phase-toughened tungsten irradiated with He + ions at an elevated temperature

Ductile-phase toughened tungsten (DPT W) composites have demonstrated a great potential for plasma-facing components in fusion power systems. These materials can retain the outstanding thermomechanical properties of W while significantly enhancing the fracture toughness. The DPT W composite in this study consists of W particles (88 wt.%) embedded in a ductile NiFeW (12 wt.%) solution matrix. Irradiation of the composite was performed with 90 keV He + ions to 1.0 × 10 17 He + /cm 2 at 973 K. The He cavities formed in both W and NiFeW phases are examined using convergent-beam scanning transmission electron microscopy (CB-STEM) at an atomic-level resolution. Full-range depth profiles of the He cavity diameters and number densities are analyzed. The results show that the average cavity diameter in NiFeW is ~2.7 times that in W, while the number density is an order of magnitude lower. A quantitative analysis of the He density and pressure in the cavities is also achieved using STEM electron energy loss spectroscopy (STEM-EELS) mapping. The He atoms in the cavities in NiFeW are found to be under-pressurized, while those in similar-sized cavities in W are not detectable. Further, the He energy-loss shift exhibits a linear relationship with the He density in cavities in NiFeW, with the slope comparable to that for martensitic steel.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2025

On the discretization error of the discrete generalized quantum master equation

The transfer tensor method (TTM) [Cerrillo and Cao, Phys. Rev. Lett. 112 , 110401 (2014)] can be considered a discrete-time formulation of the Nakajima–Zwanzig quantum master equation (NZ-QME) for modeling non-Markovian quantum dynamics. A recent paper [Makri, J. Chem. Theory Comput. 21 , 5037 (2025)] raised concerns regarding the consistency of the TTM discretization, particularly a spurious term at the initial time t = 0. Here, this work presents a detailed analysis of the discretization structure of the TTM, clarifying the origin of the initial-time correction and establishing a consistent relationship between the TTM discrete-time memory kernel K N and the continuous-time NZ-QME kernel $\mathscr{K}$( N Δ t ). This relationship is validated numerically using the spin-boson model, demonstrating convergence of reconstructed memory kernels and accurate dynamical evolution as Δ t → 0. While the TTM provides a consistent discretization, we note that alternative schemes are also viable, such as the midpoint derivative/midpoint integral scheme proposed in Makri’s work. The relative performance of various schemes for either computing accurate $\mathscr{K}$( N Δ t ) from exact dynamics or obtaining accurate dynamics from exact $\mathscr{K}$( N Δ t ) warrants further investigation.

Density-matrix↗