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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 1,441 records · Page 80
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1992

Influence of engineered interfaces on residual stresses and mechanical response in metal matrix composites

Because of the inherent coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) mismatch between fiber and matrix within metal and intermetallic matrix composite systems, high residual stresses can develop under various thermal loading conditions. These conditions include cooling from processing temperature to room temperature as well as subsequent thermal cycling. As a result of these stresses, within certain composite systems, radial, circumferential, and/or longitudinal cracks have been observed to form at the fiber matrix interface region. A number of potential solutions for reducing this thermally induced residual stress field have been proposed recently. Examples of some potential solutions are high CTE fibers, fiber preheating, thermal anneal treatments, and an engineered interface. Here the focus is on designing an interface (by using a compensating/compliant layer concept) to reduce or eliminate the thermal residual stress field and, therefore, the initiation and propagation of cracks developed during thermal loading. Furthermore, the impact of the engineered interface on the composite's mechanical response when subjected to isothermal mechanical load histories is examined.

Arnold, Steven M.↗
NASA NTRS1973

Laser holographic nondestructive testing of the NASA X-248 rocket motor

A program to apply holography for nondestructive testing of the X-248 rocket motor was undertaken. The objective was to establish the capability of holography in detecting known unbonding between liner and propellant. Holography was performed employing stressing techniques: (1) acoustical, (2) thermal, (3) radiative, and (4) static loading. Radiative stressing was successful in locating a large area of liner/propellant unbond. The results were correlated with destructive testing. Theoretical analysis provided an understanding of motor case holography in conjunction with radiative stressing.

Harris, W. J.↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Selecting an Encapsulant for an Aerospace Superconducting Machine

Achieving larger benefits from electrified propulsion in single aisle aircraft (the largest commercial aircraft market segment) necessitates that a significant fraction of their 20 MW or greater propulsion system be electrified. These aircraft would require up to 10-20 of today’s state-of-the art machines, which have been demonstrated up to 2.5 MW for aerospace use, and could benefit further from 5 MW+ designs. However, when conventionally cooled, high power density machines still produce a significant amount of waste heat, translating into heavy thermal management and detracting from system benefits. Highly efficient fully superconducting electric machines (or those with a cryogenically cooled, high purity copper or aluminum stator) are a possible solution but have multiple barriers to overcome. One such barrier is the durability of superconducting windings. Superconductors are typically brittle, and encapsulants used to hold windings in place are a significant source of stress due to mismatches in coefficient of thermally induced contraction between ambient and operational temperatures (20 to 77 K). Lack of compliance between the materials at operational temperatures also adds significant stress. These encapsulants also form a thermal barrier that can be detrimental to cooling the superconductors. This work describes an initial study of commercially available encapsulants as it relates to superconducting machine applications, along with initial modeling of thermal stress in superconducting windings for a superconducting or cryogenically cooled stator in a 5 MW electric machine.

encapsulant↗
DOE OSTI2022

Effects of edge-seal design on the mechanical and thermal performance of vacuum-insulated glazing

Although vacuum-insulated glazing (VIG) has been proposed as a promising solution towards developing energy-efficient buildings, VIGs have not become popular in the market due to several technical challenges including the complexity of the fabrication process. In particular, the edge-seal is a key component that significantly affects the thermal insulation and mechanical performance, and the development of edge-seal with adequate thermal insulation, mechanical strength, and reasonable processing cost is essential to overcome such technical issues in VIG. For this purpose, effects of edge-seal design parameters on the VIG performance should be identified. In this research, we analyzed the edge-seal for thermal transport as well as structural stresses to study the effects, and then identified and evaluated the material mixes for the edge-seal requirements. Here, the finite element simulations showed the significance of VIG corner calculation on overall thermal transmittance and the importance of seal conductivity below 1 W/m.K. The experiments with the flexible seals with different ratios of fine glass powder demonstrated that the measured shear strength values for the seal with less than 30% glass powder were more than 10 times larger than the calculated shear stress values. Based on these simulation and experimental results, a flexible sealant was developed using a proprietary mix of ceramic materials that meets the requirements of the designed VIG edge-seal, including structural as well as thermal stress resistance and a low conductivity. Moreover, the sealant is self-curing under atmospheric conditions, and thus it does not require costly inline process of laser curing or oven baking.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
NASA NTRS1975

Measurement of residual strains in boron-epoxy and glass-epoxy laminates

Embedded-strain-gage techniques were developed and used for measuring strains in composite angle-ply laminates during curing and thermal cycling. The specimens were 2.54 by 22.9 cm eight-ply boron-epoxy and S-glass-epoxy laminates. Unidirectional specimens were used for control purposes. Strain readings were corrected for the purely thermal output of the gages obtained from an instrument quartz reference specimen. The strains measured during the cooling part of the curing cycle were in agreement with those recorded during subsequent thermal cycling, indicating that residual stresses induced during curing are primarily caused by differential thermal expansions of the various plies. Restraint strains were computed for the 0-deg and 45-deg plies of the angle-ply laminates tested, and the residual stresses obtained using the anisotropic constitutive relations and taking into account the temperature dependence of stiffnesses and strains.

Daniel, I. M.↗
NASA NTRS1974

Factors affecting the thermal shock resistance of several hafnia based composites containing graphite or tungsten

The thermal shock resistance of hafnia based composites containing graphite powder or tungsten fibers was investigated in terms of material properties which include thermal expansion, thermal conductivity, compressive fracture stress, modulus of elasticity, and phase stability in terms of the processing parameters of hot pressing pressure and/or density, degree of stabilization of the hafnia, and composition. All other parameters were held constant or assumed constant. The thermal shock resistance was directly proportional to the compressive fracture stress to modulus of elasticity ratio and was not affected appreciably by the small thermal expansion or thermal conductivity changes. This ratio was found to vary strongly with the composition and density such that the composites containing graphite had relatively poor thermal shock resistance, while the composites containing tungsten had superior thermal shock resistance.

Lineback, L. D.↗
DOE OSTI2023

GRAPHITE–MOLTEN SALT CONSIDERATIONS FOR COMPONENTS IN NUCLEAR APPLICATIONS

The new High Temperature Reactor (HTR) designs being considered for future Gen IV nuclear reactor deployment include designs utilizing molten salt as the primary coolant. These molten-salt cooled, graphite core designs pose new material compatibility challenges that are not considered within the gas-cooled HTR designs that have been previously built and operated. While the Molten Salt Reactor Experiment (MSRE) demonstrated that the molten salt can be considered chemically inert to graphite the novel physical and thermal interactions that the molten salt poses may be just as impactful as the chemical reactivity. Specifically, molten salt intrusion into the open pore structure of nuclear graphite grades can provide additional internal stresses within the microstructure exacerbating the stress buildup from irradiation induced dimensional change. Additionally, designs using a molten salt containing liquid fuel could provide “hot spots” within graphite structural components causing local thermal stresses. Abrasion and erosion concerns are magnified with molten salt due to the extremely high density of the salts (some have higher densities than the structural graphite components). Finally, the graphite-graphite and fuel pebble-graphite tribological behavior are distinctly difference within the molten salt from the inert gas environments and must be investigated. These topics and others are currently under investigation within the DOE Advanced Reactor Technologies (ART) graphite program and will be discussed in depth.

Gallego, Nidia↗
NASA NTRS1987

Thermal expansion mismatch and plasticity in thermal barrier coating

The basic objective of this investigation is the quantitative determination of stress states in a model thermal barrier coating (TBC) as it cools in the air to 600 C from an assumed stress-free state at 700 C. This model is intended to represent a thin plasma-sprayed zirconia-yttria ceramic layer with a nickel chromium-aluminum-yttrium bond coat on a cylindrical substrate made of nickel-based superalloys typically found in gas turbines.

Chang, George C.↗
DOE OSTI2022

Multiphysics Analyses of the Bottom Components of the 3D Printed Transformational Challenge Reactor

This research presents multi-physics analyses on the bottom components of the Transformational Challenge Reactor (TCR) facility. These components include the bottom axial reflector and the steel exit cone. The bottom axial reflector is made of pure silicon carbide elements hosting helium cooling channels These elements are 3D printed and therefore can host any arbitrary shape of the helium cooling channels. The design of the bottom reflector considers the neutronics and thermo-fluid dynamics performances as well as the manufacturing process optimization. More precisely, the best design of the bottom reflector reduces neutron leakage by avoiding straight cylindrical helium channels that facilitate neutron leakage, minimizes the helium flow pressure drop, and reduces the number of 3D printed silicon carbide pieces. The exit cone steel structure collects the hot helium from the bottom fuel assemblies and channels the cold helium to the top of the fuel assemblies. The steel simultaneous contact with hot and cold helium flows sets a large thermal gradient. Different designs of the exit cone are proposed to reduce the steel equivalent stress from the helium thermal load. The multi-physics analyses have been performed using Ansys Fluent, Ansys Mechanical, STAR-CCM+, and Serpent computer programs.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2022

The effect of stress on the migration of He gas bubbles under a thermal gradient in Fe by phase-field modeling

Here a phase-field model is parameterized to study the effect of elastic stresses on the migration of He gas bubbles in Fe under a temperature gradient. Stresses caused by the gas bubble pressure and residual stress in the Fe matrix are considered. The dependence of He bubble migration velocity on the magnitude of the residual stress, average temperature, temperature gradient, and bubble size is measured. In agreement with a theoretical model based on surface diffusion, simulation results demonstrate that He bubbles move towards the high temperature region with velocities in Fe that are orders of magnitude faster than previously reported in UO 2 . It is found that local stresses in the matrix caused by the He bubble have negligible effect on the bubble migration process; however, residual stresses in the Fe matrix, potentially caused by processing or irradiation, can modestly modify bubble kinetics through pressure dependence of the He diffusion coefficients. Compressive residual stress decreases diffusion coefficients for bulk and surface diffusion mechanisms, thus reducing the migration velocity of the gas bubble. In contrast, tensile residual stress increases the diffusion coefficients, resulting in an increase in the gas bubble migration velocity. This pressure dependence is also consistent with a theoretical model. This phase field model lays the foundation for analysis of bubble coalescence-induced fracture in He bubble-containing steels.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
NASA NTRS2013

Creep and Environmental Durability of EBC/CMCs Under Imposed Thermal Gradient Conditions

Interest in SiC fiber-reinforced SiC ceramic matrix composite (CMC) environmental barrier coating (EBC) systems for use in high temperature structural applications has prompted the need for characterization of material strength and creep performance under complex aerospace turbine engine environments. Stress-rupture tests have been performed on SiC/SiC composites systems, with varying fiber types and coating schemes to demonstrate material behavior under isothermal conditions. Further testing was conducted under exposure to thermal stress gradients to determine the effect on creep resistance and material durability. In order to understand the associated damage mechanisms, emphasis is placed on experimental techniques as well as implementation of non-destructive evaluation; including electrical resistivity monitoring. The influence of environmental and loading conditions on life-limiting material properties is shown.

Appleby, Matthew↗
DOE OSTI2022

Combined Normal and Disruption, Electromagnetic Transient, Thermal, and Structural Analysis of COMPASS Upgrade

We report that COMPASS Upgrade is a replacement for the COMPASS device at the Institute of Plasma Physics (IPP) of the Czech Academy of Sciences. It is a cryogenic copper machine with a major radius of 0.89 m, with 5 T at the plasma centerline and 2-MA plasma current. It is intended to develop ITER relevant plasma densities and high power fluxes in the divertor region. The entire vacuum vessel is planned to reach 500 °C. The COMPASS-U TF coil is a bitter plate-like design with radial conductor plates that extend the width of the TF inner leg. Currents redistribute radially based on resistive and inductive effects. This necessitates an electromagnetic (EM) transient analysis of the coil current distribution. For copper coils like COMPASS Upgrade, the solution must be coupled with a thermal solution to properly include the temperature-dependent resistive effects. The EM transient solution includes the TF magnetic loads, and a stress pass on the results produces in-plane loads. The EM solution chosen requires inclusion of all the conducting and nonconducting regions surrounding the TF coil. With the TF current distribution solved, the addition of the poloidal coils and resulting background fields allows the determination of the out-of-plane loads. Integration of the Joule heating produced from the EM solution produces temperature distributions throughout the shot, which can be read in to a structural pass to include thermal stresses in the evaluation. This is true of both TF and PF temperature prediction with appropriate packing fractions. Currents in the PF coils, with computed background fields, produce Lorentz loads. Time transients of the PF currents produce startup eddy currents in the structures included in the model; inclusion of the vessel and other passive structures allows these to be included in a stress pass. The EM transient solution includes all the elements needed for a disruption analysis with prescribed motions and quench of the plasma. From a model originally intended to simulate current diffusion in the TF coil, the analysis can be refined to be used to predict the performance of most of the components of the tokamak or provide boundary conditions for more detailed submodels. In this article, the use of the current diffusion model for bounding assessments of the COMPASS Upgrade TF, PF, vessel, external structure, and disruption analyses will be presented.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
NASA NTRS1991

The dynamical evolution of the protosolar nebula

Evolutionary models for protostellar nebulae are calculated under the hypothesis that the only source for the turbulent viscosity is thermal convection. The viscous stress is approximated by an 'alpha' model, and the constant alpha is calculated in terms of the properties of turbulent thermal convection. A relatively sensitive dependence of the Rosseland mean opacity on temperature is needed for the vertical temperature gradient of the nebula to become convectively unstable. However, this requires that the vertical optical depth in the nebula is relatively sensitive to the total surface density, and as the disk is depleted of matter by protostellar accretion, the Rosseland mean optical depth drops and the disk must become convectively unstable. This limits the amount of mass that the nebula can accretionally process before the convective turbulence ceases. The resulting disk evolutionary properties are calculated and comparisons with the solar system are made.

Ruden, Steven P.↗
DOE OSTI2023

Tunable negative coefficient thermal expansion materials and composites

The present disclosure is directed to variable composition ceramics. Zr (2−x) Hf (x) WP 2 O 12 and Hf 2 WP 2 O 12 exhibit large negative thermal expansion that is linear over a large temperature range up to at least 900° C., These new ceramic material particles may be mixed with polymers to make a composite suitable for use in backsheets for photovoltaic modules or in other applications. The thermal expansion coefficient of the composite can be tailored to match that of the solar cell in order to reduce stress resulting from daily thermal cycling.

Gordon, Margaret Ellen↗