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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 1,351 records · Page 75

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NASA NTRS1992

End-to-end planning and scheduling systems technology for space operations

Consideration is given to planning and scheduling operations concepts from an end-to-end perspective, through both mission operations and institutional support functions. An operations concept is proposed which is based on a flexible request language used to state resource requirements and mission constraints to a scheduling system. The language has the potential to evolve into an international standard for exchanging service request information on international space networks. The key benefit of the flexible scheduling request concept is the shift of a significant conflict resolution effort from humans to computers, reducing the time for generating a week's worth of schedules to hours instead of days.

Moe, Karen L.↗

NASA NTRS1995

Development of a miniature actuator/controller system

Development of new products is often hampered or prevented by the cost and resource commitments required by a traditional engineering approach. Schaeffer Magnetics, Inc. identified the potential need for a miniature incremental actuator with an integrated controller but did not want the development to be subject to the obstacles inherent in the traditional approach. In response a new approach - the Pathfinder Engineering Program (PEP) - was developed to streamline new product generation and improve product quality. The actuator/controller system resulting from implementation of this new procedure is an exceptionally compact and self-contained device with many applications.

Stanley, Scott P.↗

NASA NTRS1995

SOFIA: The future of airborne astronomy

For the past 20 years, the 91 cm telescope in NASA's Kuiper Airborne Observatory (KAO) has enabled scientists to observe infrared sources which are obscured by the earth's atmosphere at ground-based sites, and to observe transient astronomical events from anywhere in the world. To augment this capability, the United States and German Space Agencies (NASA and DARA) are collaborating in plans to replace the KAO with a 2.5 meter telescope installed in a Boeing 747 aircraft: SOFIA - The Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy. SOFIA's large aperture, wide wavelength coverage, mobility, accessibility, and sophisticated instruments will permit a broad range of scientific studies, some of which are described here. Its unique features complement the capabilities of other future space missions. In addition, SOFIA has important potential as a stimulus for development of new technology and as a national resource for education of K-12 teachers. If started in 1996, SOFIA will be flying in the year 2000.

Erickson, Edwin F.↗

NASA NTRS2004

Space mission scenario development and performance analysis tool

This paper discusses a new and innovative approach for a rapid spacecraft multi-disciplinary performance analysis using a tool called the Mission Scenario Development Workbench (MSDW). To meet the needs of new classes of space missions, analysis tools with proven models were developed and integrated into a framework to enable rapid trades and analyses between spacecraft designs and operational scenarios during the formulation phase of a mission. Generally speaking, spacecraft resources are highly constrained on deep space missions and this approach makes it possible to maximize the use of existing resources to attain the best possible science return. This approach also has the potential benefit of reducing the risk of costly design changes made later in the design cycle necessary to meet the mission requirements by understanding system design sensitivities early and adding appropriate margins. This paper will describe the approach used by the Mars Science Laboratory Project to accomplish this result.

performance analysis↗

NASA NTRS2007

Probabilistic Reasoning for Robustness in Automated Planning

A general-purpose computer program for planning the actions of a spacecraft or other complex system has been augmented by incorporating a subprogram that reasons about uncertainties in such continuous variables as times taken to perform tasks and amounts of resources to be consumed. This subprogram computes parametric probability distributions for time and resource variables on the basis of user-supplied models of actions and resources that they consume. The current system accepts bounded Gaussian distributions over action duration and resource use. The distributions are then combined during planning to determine the net probability distribution of each resource at any time point. In addition to a full combinatoric approach, several approximations for arriving at these combined distributions are available, including maximum-likelihood and pessimistic algorithms. Each such probability distribution can then be integrated to obtain a probability that execution of the plan under consideration would violate any constraints on the resource. The key idea is to use these probabilities of conflict to score potential plans and drive a search toward planning low-risk actions. An output plan provides a balance between the user s specified averseness to risk and other measures of optimality.

Schaffer, Steven↗

NASA NTRS2010

Statistical and Probabilistic Extensions to Ground Operations' Discrete Event Simulation Modeling

NASA's human exploration initiatives will invest in technologies, public/private partnerships, and infrastructure, paving the way for the expansion of human civilization into the solar system and beyond. As it is has been for the past half century, the Kennedy Space Center will be the embarkation point for humankind's journey into the cosmos. Functioning as a next generation space launch complex, Kennedy's launch pads, integration facilities, processing areas, launch and recovery ranges will bustle with the activities of the world's space transportation providers. In developing this complex, KSC teams work through the potential operational scenarios: conducting trade studies, planning and budgeting for expensive and limited resources, and simulating alternative operational schemes. Numerous tools, among them discrete event simulation (DES), were matured during the Constellation Program to conduct such analyses with the purpose of optimizing the launch complex for maximum efficiency, safety, and flexibility while minimizing life cycle costs. Discrete event simulation is a computer-based modeling technique for complex and dynamic systems where the state of the system changes at discrete points in time and whose inputs may include random variables. DES is used to assess timelines and throughput, and to support operability studies and contingency analyses. It is applicable to any space launch campaign and informs decision-makers of the effects of varying numbers of expensive resources and the impact of off nominal scenarios on measures of performance. In order to develop representative DES models, methods were adopted, exploited, or created to extend traditional uses of DES. The Delphi method was adopted and utilized for task duration estimation. DES software was exploited for probabilistic event variation. A roll-up process was used, which was developed to reuse models and model elements in other less - detailed models. The DES team continues to innovate and expand DES capabilities to address KSC's planning needs.

Trocine, Linda↗

NASA NTRS2012

Space Weather Monitoring for ISS Space Environments Engineering and Crew Auroral Observations

Today s presentation describes how real time space weather data is used by the International Space Station (ISS) space environments team to obtain data on auroral charging of the ISS vehicle and support ISS crew efforts to obtain auroral images from orbit. Topics covered include: Floating Potential Measurement Unit (FPMU), . Auroral charging of ISS, . Real ]time space weather monitoring resources, . Examples of ISS auroral charging captured from space weather events, . ISS crew observations of aurora.

Minow, Joseph↗

NASA NTRS2013

Asteroid Retrieval Mission Concept - Trailblazing Our Future in Space and Helping to Protect Us from Earth Impactors

The Asteroid Retrieval Mission (ARM) is a robotic mission concept with the goal of returning a small (~7 m diameter) near-Earth asteroid (NEA), or part of a large NEA, to a safe, stable orbit in cislunar space using a 50 kW-class solar electric propulsion (SEP) robotic spacecraft (~40 kW available to the electric propulsion system) and currently available technologies. The mass of the asteroidal material returned from this mission is anticipated to be up to 1,000 metric tons, depending on the orbit of the target NEA and the thrust-to-weight and control authority of the SEP spacecraft. Even larger masses could be returned in the future as technological capability and operational experience improve. The use of high-power solar electric propulsion is the key enabling technology for this mission concept, and is beneficial or enabling for a variety of space missions and architectures where high-efficiency, low-thrust transfers are applicable. Many of the ARM operations and technologies could also be applicable to, or help inform, planetary defense efforts. These include the operational approaches and systems associated with the NEA approach, rendezvous, and station-keeping mission phases utilizing a low-thrust, high-power SEP spacecraft, along with interacting with, capturing, maneuvering, and processing the massive amounts of material associated with this mission. Additionally, the processed materials themselves (e.g., high-specific impulse chemical propellants) could potentially be used for planetary defense efforts. Finally, a ubiquitous asteroid retrieval and resource extraction infrastructure could provide the foundation of an on call planetary defense system, where a SEP fleet capable of propelling large masses could deliver payloads to deflect or disrupt a confirmed impactor in an efficient and timely manner.

Mazanek, Daniel D.↗

NASA NTRS2016

Extreme Mapping: Looking for Water on the Moon

There are many challenges when exploring extreme environments. Gathering accurate data to build maps about places that you cannot go is incredibly complex. NASA supports scientists by remotely operating robotic rovers to explore uncharted territories. One potential upcoming mission is to look for water near a lunar pole (the Resource Prospector mission). Learn about the technical hurdles and research steps that NASA takes before the mission. NASA practices on Earth with Mission Analogs which simulate the proposed mission. This includes going to lunar-type landscapes, building field networks, testing out rovers, instruments and operational procedures. NASA sets up remote science back rooms just as there are for actual missions. NASA develops custom Ground Data Systems software to support scientific mission planning and monitoring over variable time delays, and separate commanding software and infrastructure to operate the rovers.

MOON↗

NASA NTRS2018

Lunar Sample Return Entry Systems Analysis

The Lunar Prospector and Clementine missions have revealed deposits of water-ice located at the South Pole-Aitken Basin of the lunar surface. Due to the scarce amount of previous successful sample return missions and the recent discovery of water-ice, the National Research Council (NRC) Decadal Survey recommended prioritizing the development of a Lunar Sample Return Mission Architecture. The NRC Decadal survey ranked the return of cryogenic samples that could potentially aid in current scientific investigations and identify sites for in-situ resource utilization to support future exploration missions. This study aims to identify the key technical challenges and operational constraints involved in returning cryogenic samples in pristine condition. A detailed classification of defined ground rules and assumptions, justification of mission events and high level functional requirements reinforces the proposed concept of operations. In support of the drafted architecture, a comprehensive analysis on design and environmental constraints are documented for the Earth return vehicle, sample container and thermal protection entry system. The design and thermal analysis is comprised of quantitative dimensions for mass and volume, flight performance parameters and thermal system performance limitations. Further refinement of the high level functional requirements is imperative for determining the optimal approach for returning cryopreserved lunar samples.

Lunar Sample Return↗

NASA NTRS2023

The NASA Astrobiology Program’s Professional Advancement Workshop Series: Next Steps

Introduction: In the modern-day competitive job search, it is not enough for a candidate to have an excellent academic resume. Candidates must also present themselves well in various styles of interviews, have managerial skills, and be capable of engaging in complex interpersonal relationships and team building. The NASA Astrobiology Program’s Professional Advancement Workshop Series (PAWS) addresses the need for professional skills development that is not traditionally taught in graduate programs. PAWS is designed to supplement academic teachings by providing a space where early career scientists can learn new skills to help them explore, interview for, and be hired in the jobs and careers they want. This is especially true for jobs that are outside of the traditional academic “pipeline” (the path of student to postdoc to tenure-track professor). PAWS embraces the braided river model of career development [1], which emphasizes flexibility as a scientist’s needs change throughout their life. PAWS also presents an opportunity for other early career scientists to meet and network with each other outside of conferences and other formal events. This is especially important as the world emerges from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Finally, PAWS creates an informative space full of resources available to everyone, which lowers institutional barriers regarding knowledge of opportunities and potentially provides mentorship to those in need. Both items are identified as supportive of a more diverse and inclusive future workforce [2–4]. PAWS began in August 2021 and was originally intended to last until the Astrobiology Science Conference in May 2022. The NASA Astrobiology Program initially sponsored PAWS, allowing the PAWS Leadership to bring in expert speakers from outside of NASA. These external speakers exposed the event attendees to new techniques and perspectives. PAWS has been able to continue beyond May 2022 because of many people volunteering their time for panels and a good balance between panels and expert-led workshops. Here, we share how PAWS works, what the results have been so far, and the future plans for PAWS.

Worshop↗

DOE OSTI2022

Aligning Electric Vehicle Customer Charging with Grid Needs

This talk to the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) focuses on "Aligning Electric Vehicle Customer Charging with Grid Needs" to highlight the opportunities associated with managed electric vehicle charging and its value for consumers and the power system. Electric vehicles (EVs) are experiencing a rapid rise in popularity and adoption, and growing EV adoption offers an opportunity to increase electricity demand. With expected widespread EV adoption, supporting charging will require investments in generation, transmission, and distribution systems. Uncoordinated charging of EVs will lead to increased system peak load, possibly exceeding the maximum power that can be supported by distribution systems and generally increasing power system stress. However, vehicles are underutilized assets parked ~96% of the time: managed EV charging can satisfy mobility needs while also supporting the grid. EVs are not a burden for the grid, but a resource: The demand-side flexibility provided by managed EV charging offers significant potential benefits for the grid over multiple timescales and applications., especially for high-renewable systems. Managed charging can support power system planning and operations during normal and extreme conditions, benefitting EV owners and other electricity consumers. Managed charging is shown to consistently provide hundreds of dollars in cost savings per EV each year.

ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗

DOE OSTI2023

Portable Programming Model Exploration for LArTPC Simulation in a Heterogeneous Computing Environment: OpenMP vs. SYCL

The evolution of the computing landscape has resulted in the proliferation of diverse hardware architectures, with different flavors of GPUs and other compute accelerators becoming more widely available. To facilitate the efficient use of these architectures in a heterogeneous computing environment, several programming models are available to enable portability and performance across different computing systems, such as Kokkos, SYCL, OpenMP and others. As part of the High Energy Physics Center for Computational Excellence (HEP-CCE) project, we investigate if and how these different programming models may be suitable for experimental HEP workflows through a few representative use cases. One of such use cases is the Liquid Argon Time Projection Chamber (LArTPC) simulation which is essential for LArTPC detector design, validation and data analysis. Following up on our previous investigations of using Kokkos to port LArTPC simulation in the Wire-Cell Toolkit (WCT) to GPUs, we have explored OpenMP and SYCL as potential portable programming models for WCT, with the goal to make diverse computing resources accessible to the LArTPC simulations. In this work, we describe how we utilize relevant features of OpenMP and SYCL for the LArTPC simulation module in WCT. We also show performance benchmark results on multi-core CPUs, NVIDIA and AMD GPUs for both the OpenMP and the SYCL implementations. Comparisons with different compilers will also be given where appropriate.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2023

Quantum-centric Supercomputing for Materials Science: A Perspective on Challenges and Future Directions

Computational models are an essential tool for the design, characterization, and discovery of novel materials. Hard computational tasks in materials science stretch the limits of existing high-performance supercomputing centers, consuming much of their simulation, analysis, and data resources. Quantum computing, on the other hand, is an emerging technology with the potential to accelerate many of the computational tasks needed for materials science. In order to do that, the quantum technology must interact with conventional high-performance computing in several ways: approximate results validation, identification of hard problems, and synergies in quantum-centric supercomputing. In this paper, we provide a perspective on how quantum-centric supercomputing can help address critical computational problems in materials science, the challenges to face in order to solve representative use cases, and new suggested directions.

Alexeev, Yuri↗

DOE OSTI2023

New Tool Evaluates the Financial Viability of Pumped Storage Hydropower

The rapidly evolving electricity system with increasing variable renewable energy (VRE) resources provides both opportunities and challenges for the power sector. With the significant ramps and intermittency associated with VRE resources, the requirements and need for additional flexible resources increase. Pumped storage hydropower (PSH) provides flexibility to the electricity grid to replace fossil fuel plants, which are responsible for 25% of U.S. emissions. PSH projects support various aspects of power system operations, including flexibility, ramping capability, energy, ancillary service, black start, and others. The significant potential of hydropower requires understanding the different value drivers to the electricity system specific to the location of a project and then optimizing the plant for the different system values. Thus, determining the value of PSH projects and their many services and contributions to the electricity system can be a challenge for potential developers, system owners, regulators, policy makers, and consultants.

13 HYDRO ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2026

Design trade-offs for residential retail tariffs and virtual power plants

Retail rate design and virtual power plants (VPPs) have the potential to shift customer electricity demand and provide economic benefits to utility customers. As the adoption of distributed energy resources (DERs) and flexible loads increases, retail tariff and program design can impact Bonbright's rate design principles including affordability, fairness, and economic efficiency. We model the effects of residential retail rates and VPP programs on power system costs in Massachusetts under a potential future system with high renewable energy and DER adoption. We model interactions among retail rate design, demand flexibility, and utility costs and identify trade-offs across different rate designs and VPP programs. We estimate that time-of-use (TOU) rates and VPP programs designed to avoid critical peak rates can lower overall system costs by 3.5 %-4.8 %. These lower costs translate to lower electricity bills for 62 %-91 % of customers, depending on the scenario. Although TOU rates with a critical peak VPP program can benefit all customer segments and are economically efficient, a VPP program with flat rates leads to the lowest overall bills for customers. We find that customers with loads that align with peak demand and who participate in critical peak VPP programs can underpay for their contribution to utility costs and shift costs to other customers. While our assumptions about mandatory TOU and/or critical peak pricing likely impact the magnitude of the results, the results highlight the trade-offs of these tariffs and programs and the importance of tariff and program design as demand becomes more flexible and responsive.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

DOE OSTI2023

Projecting Future Energy Production from Operating Wind Farms in North America. Part II: Statistical Downscaling

Abstract Capacity factors (CFs) derived from daily expected power at 22 operating wind farms in different regions of North America are used as predictands to train statistical downscaling algorithms using output from ERA5. The statistical downscaling models are then used to make CF projections for a suite of CMIP6 Earth System Models (ESMs). Downscaling is performed using a hybrid statistical approach that employs synoptic types derived using k -means clustering applied to sea level pressure fields with variance corrections applied as a function of the pressure gradient intensity. ESMs exhibit marked variability in terms of the skill with which the frequency of synoptic types and pressure gradients are reproduced relative to ERA5, and that differential skill is used to infer differential credibility in the associated CF projections. Projections of median annual mean CF [P50(CF)] in each 20-yr period from 1980 to 2099 show evidence of declines at most wind farms except in parts of the southern Great Plains, although the magnitude of the changes is strongly dependent on the ESM. For example, P50(CF) in 2080–99 deviate from those in 1980–99 by from −3.1 to +0.2 percentage points in the Northeast. The largest-magnitude declines in P50(CF) ranging from −3.9 to −2 percentage points are projected for the southern West Coast. CF trends exhibit marked seasonality and are strongly linked to changes in the relative intensity of future synoptic patterns, with much less impact from shifts in the occurrence of synoptic types over time. Internal climate modes continue to play a significant role in inducing interannual variability in wind power production, even under high radiative forcing scenarios. Significance Statement We describe how future climate changes may affect wind resources and wind power generation. Near-term changes in projected wind power electricity generation potential at operating wind farms over North America are small, but by the end of the current century electricity production is projected to decrease in many areas but may increase in parts of the southern Great Plains. The amount of change in projected wind power production is a strong function of the Earth system model that is downscaled and also depends on the continued presence of internally forced climate variability. An additional dependence on the amount of greenhouse gas–induced global warming indicates the transition of the energy sector to low-carbon sources may assist in maintaining the abundant U.S. wind resource.

Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences↗

DOE OSTI2025

Assessing the Economic Value of Underground Thermal Storage for Hybrid Geothermal Power

Solutions are needed to address resource adequacy in the electric power system for highly decarbonized systems. The storage duration, the length of time a storage device can provide continuous output at its rated capacity, must be sufficient to receive full credit toward resource adequacy. Longer peaks and high fractions of variable renewable generation have increased the required duration to potentially seasonal durations. Underground Thermal Energy Storage (UTES) can be adapted to a hybrid storage power plant or heating and cooling applications to satisfy the need for long-duration storage. In this study, we use the Renewable Energy Deployment System (ReEDS) capacity expansion model to evaluate the increase in value for an enhanced geothermal system (EGS) resources by adding UTES. In modeled scenarios, using geothermal without storage as a baseline we compare the increase in economic value for plants with a range of storage characteristics. The added value of a hybrid storage plant changes depending on assumptions including the length of storage duration, efficiency, and ability to charge storage from the grid during periods of low energy prices. Relating proposed characteristics for geothermal UTES hybrids to the modeled economic value provides insight into economically viable costs for developing UTES as well as what combination of technology characteristics and future energy and policy assumptions drive significant value increases.

capacity expansion model↗