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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 1,513 records · Page 84
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2018

The Effect of Arc Current on Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Hybrid LasTIG Welds of High-Strength Low-Alloy Steels

A hybrid laser-tungsten inert gas (LasTIG) welding system was applied for 3-mm-thick S460MC and S700MC high-strength low-alloy steel sheet butt welding with the aim to reduce the cooling rate compared with laser welding. The effect of the electric current was evaluated. Increasing arc current led to the increase of fused metal and heat-affected-zone (HAZ) dimensions. Fused metal grains were larger whereas the microhardness increase toward the base metal was lower at higher currents in this region. Microhardness peaks corresponding to the coarse-grained HAZ were reduced at higher currents for S460MC but were almost not affected in S700MC. The tensile strength of both the laser weld and LasTIG welds was comparable to the base metal for both alloys.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2018

Modeling of Dual Gate Material Hetero-dielectric Strained PNPN TFET for Improved ON Current

The tunnel field effect transistor (TFET) is considered to be a promising alternative device for future low-power VLSI circuits due to its steep subthreshold slope, low leakage current and its efficient performance at low supply voltage. However, the main challenging issue associated with realizing TFET for wide scale applications is its low ON current. To overcome this, a dual gate material with the concept of dielectric engineering has been incorporated into conventional TFET structure to tune the tunneling width at source–channel interface allowing significant flow of carriers. In addition to this, N+ pocket is implanted at source–channel junction of the proposed structure and the effect of strain is added for exploring the performance of the model in nanoscale regime. All these added features upgrade the device characteristics leading to higher ON current, low leakage and low threshold voltage. The present work derives the surface potential, electric field expression and drain current by solving 2D Poisson’s equation at different boundary conditions. A comparative analysis of proposed model with conventional TFET has been done to establish the superiority of the proposed structure. All analytical results have been compared with the results obtained in SILVACO ATLAS device simulator to establish the accuracy of the derived analytical model.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2018

Investigation of Current Parameters and Size Effects on Mechanical Properties During Pulsed Electrically Assisted Uniaxial Tension in T2 Red Copper Sheets

It has been found that the electrically assisted (EA) forming can alleviate size effects due to the electroplastic effect. Size effects exist in the manufacture of tiny workpieces and severely affect material performances because the grain boundary hardening effect and strong anisotropy of the mechanical properties of the grains will lead to a strong variation in the forming properties of the sheet. In order to investigate the influences of current parameters and size effects on mechanical properties in EA forming, EA uniaxial tension tests with varying grain size and thickness were conducted on T2 red copper sheets. The small temperature rise shows the thermal effect is slight; the flow stress decreases with the increase in pulse frequency, pulse duty ratio and current density; the finer grains still result in higher strength and better plasticity; Moreover, the fluctuations of tensile strength, maximum uniform strain and fracture strain decrease with the increase in the ratio of thickness to grain size (N) at constant current density, which means pulsed current can weaken size effects.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2022

Design, dynamic modeling and wave basin verification of a Hybrid Wave–Current Energy Converter

Massive and high-density Marine and Hydrokinetic (MHK) energy is contained in the ocean, including waves, tidal streams, and ocean currents. Traditional MHK energy converters harvest energy from only a single MHK energy source, which does not fully exploit the energy potential that co-exists in multiple forms of MHK energy in the ocean. This paper presents the design and dynamics of a Hybrid Wave–Current Energy Converter (HWCEC) that can simultaneously convert both wave and current energy to electricity with a single Power Take-off (PTO) through the engagement and disengagement of the three one-way clutches. The critical design parameters are analyzed through modeling and simulation, including the transmission ratios, the electrical impedance, and the turbine-heave plate distance. Water basin tests in a wave–current tank were conducted, which shows the prototyped HWCEC can improve the electric power output by 38%–71% for regular waves and 79% for irregular waves, while providing a 70% reduction of the Peak to Average Ratio (PAR) of power compared to the baseline Wave Energy Converter (WEC). Here we further analyze the occurring percentages of the instant power of both WEC and HWCEC in irregular wave tests, shedding new insight on how HWCEC reduces the PAR.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2025

High-current-density electrosynthesis of formate from captured CO 2 solution by MOF-derived bismuth nanosheets

Greenhouse gas emissions present a significant challenge to humanity, and utilizing renewable electricity to convert emitted CO 2 into value-added products offers a promising solution; however, traditional CO 2 capture and regeneration processes remain energy-intensive, restricting the overall system efficiency and decarbonization efficacy. In this study, an advanced direct reduction of captured CO 2 with large current densities for formate electrosynthesis was demonstrated without the need for CO 2 regeneration or compression. The bismuth nanosheet (DRM-BiNS) was synthesized by direct reduction of a Bi-based MOF, representing a new class of catalytic materials with a large surface area and interconnected pores, suitable for the direct reduction of captured CO 2 . By seamlessly combining experimentation and simulation, insights into the structure-parameter-performance relation were acquired in a flow cell setting, including critical membrane-electrode distance, cell orientation, and pumping flow rate. Important flow-cell components, such as catholyte volume, electrode substrate, membrane choice, and ionomer type, were also carefully examined to enhance the cell performance. In sharp contrast to prior studies limited to current densities below 20 mA/cm 2 in bicarbonate-based captured CO 2 solutions, this work demonstrates a remarkable current density of 300 mA/cm 2 with an FE to formate comparable to the case with gas-fed CO 2 reduction. Moreover, the process sustained an FE above 50% at a high current density of 500 mA/cm 2 . The DRM-BiNS catalyst exhibited outstanding selectivity, activity, and stability, significantly outperforming oxide-derived bismuth nanosheets (OD-BiNS) in captured CO 2 reduction. Furthermore, these findings offer critical insights into the development of sustainable and scalable CO 2 utilization technologies.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2025

Grid-responsive hydrogen production: Capital utilization and current density vs. efficiency in variable electricity markets

To achieve low-cost hydrogen production from water electrolyzers, grid tied electrolysis may need to operate dynamically to minimize the cost of supplying energy to the electrolyzer stack and produce hydrogen during low-cost hours and turn off/down during high-cost hours. Operating systems in this way can decrease capital utilization (capacity factor) and electricity costs. This strategy would shift the dominant cost drivers away from electricity (and thus efficiency) to the capital costs of the system, due to the underutilized capital when operating at low-capacity factors. Increasing the operational current density of the system could, in effect, reduce the capital cost of the system while producing hydrogen at a lower efficiency on a per unit energy basis. In the variable electricity cost profiles analyzed in this paper, increasing the current density for liquid alkaline from 0.5 A/cm2 to 1.5 Ac/m2 and proton exchange membrane electrolyzers from 2 A/cm2 to 4 A/cm2 resulted in substantial reductions in the levelized cost of hydrogen. Additionally, as capacity factors and electricity costs decrease, the optimal operating current density of the electrolyzer systems analyzed increases. These findings suggest R&D efforts should focus on increasing the operational current densities, reducing the turn down ratios, and understanding the durability implications of those strategies on low-temperature liquid alkaline and proton exchange membrane electrolyzers.

08 HYDROGEN↗
DOE OSTI2015

Characterizing the Li–Li 7 La 3 Zr 2 O 12 interface stability and kinetics as a function of temperature and current density

The stability and kinetics of the Li–Li 7 La 3 Zr 2 O 12 (LLZO) interface were characterized as a function of temperature and current density. Polycrystalline LLZO was densified using a rapid hot-pressing technique achieving 97 ± 1% relative density, and <10% grain boundary resistance; effectively consisting of an ensemble of single LLZO crystals. It was determined that by heating to 175 °C, the room temperature Li-LLZO interface resistance decreases dramatically from 5822 (as-assembled) to 514 Ω cm 2 ; a > 10-fold decrease. In characterizing the maximum sustainable current density (or critical current density – CCD) of the Li-LLZO interface, several signs of degradation were observed. In DC cycling tests, significant deviation from Ohmic behavior was observed. In post-cycling tests, regions of metallic Li were observed; propagating parallel to the ionic current. For the cells cycled at 30, 70, 100, 130 and 160 °C, the CCD was determined to be 50, 200, 800, 3500, and 20000 μA cm –2 , respectively. As a result, the relationships and phenomena observed in this work can be used to better understand the Li-LLZO interface stability, enabling the use of batteries employing Li metal anodes.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2018

The microstructure and property variations of metals induced by electric current treatment: A review

Heat treatment has been widely applied for manipulating the microstructure and properties of metals with thermal energy. The thermal energy triggers the atomic diffusion accompanied by dislocation movement and results in the subsequent property variations in metals. One of the attractive efforts in the past decades is the development of a direct treatment of metals with electric current stressing as an alternative method for conventional heat treatment. Electric current treatment provides thermal energy from Joule heat (thermal effect) and kinetic energy from electron momentum (athermal effect). This article reviewed the practices of electric current treatment, microstructure-property variations and the physical metallurgy involved in a variety of metals. Both thermal and athermal effects have been well recognized in the literatures. An appropriate manipulation of the electric current treatment enables the control of both effects and thus the microstructure and properties of metals.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2022

Contrast Mechanisms in Secondary Electron e-Beam-Induced Current (SEEBIC) Imaging

Abstract Over the last few years, a new mode for imaging in the scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM) has gained attention as it permits the direct visualization of sample conductivity and electrical connectivity. When the electron beam (e-beam) is focused on the sample in the STEM, secondary electrons (SEs) are generated. If the sample is conductive and electrically connected to an amplifier, the SE current can be measured as a function of the e-beam position. This scenario is similar to the better-known scanning electron microscopy-based technique, electron beam-induced current imaging, except that the signal in the STEM is generated by the emission of SEs, hence the name secondary electron e-beam-induced current (SEEBIC), and in this case, the current flows in the opposite direction. Here, we provide a brief review of recent work in this area, examine the various contrast generation mechanisms associated with SEEBIC, and illustrate its use for the characterization of graphene nanoribbon devices.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
DOE OSTI2015

Superior Current Carrying Capacity of Boron Nitride Encapsulated Carbon Nanotubes with Zero-Dimensional Contacts

We report fabrication and characterization of hexagonal boron nitride (hBN)-encapsulated carbon nanotube (CNT) field effect transistors, which are coupled to electrical leads via zero-dimensional contacts. Device quality is attested by the ohmic contacts and observation of Coulomb blockade with a single periodicity in small bandgap semiconducing nanotubes. Surprisingly, hBN-encapsulated CNT devices demonstrate significantly enhanced current carrying capacity; a single-walled CNT can sustain >180 μA current or, equivalently, a current density of ~2 × 10 10 A/cm 2 , which is a factor of 6–7 higher than devices supported on SiO 2 substrates. Such dramatic enhancement of current carrying capacity arises from the high thermal conductivity of hBN and lower hBN-CNT interfacial thermal resistance and has implications for carbon electronic applications.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2024

Can a Coating Mitigate Molten Na Dendrite Growth in NaSICON Under High Current Density?

Alkali metals are among the most desirable negative electrodes for long duration energy storage due to their extremely high capacities. Currently, only high-temperature (>250 °C) batteries have successfully used alkali electrodes in commercial applications, due to limitations imposed by solid electrolytes, such as low conductivity at moderate temperatures and susceptibility to dendrites. Toward enabling the next generation of grid-scale, long duration batteries, we aim to develop molten sodium (Na) systems that operate with commercially attractive performance metrics including high current density (>100 mA cm –2 ), low temperature (<200 °C), and long discharge times (>12 h). In this work, we focus on the performance of NaSICON solid electrolytes in sodium symmetric cells at 110 °C. Specifically, we use a tin (Sn) coating on NaSICON to reduce interfacial resistance by a factor of 10, enabling molten Na symmetric cell operation with “discharge” durations up to 23 h at 100 mA cm –2 and 110 °C. Unidirectional galvanostatic testing shows a 70% overpotential reduction, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) highlights the reduction in interfacial resistance due to the Sn coating. Detailed scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) show that Sn-coated NaSICON enables current densities of up to 500 mA cm –2 at 110 °C by suppressing dendrite formation at the plating interface (Mode I). In conclusion, this analysis also provides a mechanistic understanding of dendrite formation at current densities up to 1000 mA cm –2 , highlighting the importance of effective coatings that will enable advanced battery technologies for long-term energy storage.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
DOE OSTI2024

Influence of the Dielectric Constant on the Ionic Current Rectification of Bipolar Nanopores

In this paper, we investigate how the dielectric constant, ϵ, of an electrolyte solvent influences the current rectification characteristics of bipolar nanopores. It is well recognized that bipolar nanopores with two oppositely charged regions rectify current when exposed to an alternating electric potential difference. Here, we consider dilute electrolytes with NaCl only and with a mixture of NaCl and charged nanoparticles. These systems are studied using two levels of description, all-atom explicit water molecular dynamics (MD) simulations and coarse-grained implicit solvent MD simulations. The charge density and electric potential profiles and current-voltage relationship predicted by the implicit solvent simulations with ϵ = 11.3 show good agreement with the predictions from the explicit water simulations. Under nonequilibrium conditions, the predictions of the implicit solvent simulations with a dielectric constant closer to the one of bulk water are significantly different from the predictions obtained with the explicit water model. Further, these findings are closely aligned with experimental data on the dielectric constant of water when confined to nanometric spaces, which suggests that ϵ decreases significantly compared to its value in the bulk. Moreover, the largest electric current rectification is observed in systems containing nanoparticles when ϵ = 78.8. Using enhanced sampling, we have shown that this larger rectification arises from the presence of a significantly deeper minimum in the free energy of the system with a larger ϵ, and when a negative voltage bias is applied. Since implicit solvent models and mean-field continuum theories are often used to design Janus membranes based on bipolar nanopores, this work highlights the importance of properly accounting for the effects of confinement on the dielectric constant of the electrolyte solvent. The results presented here indicate that the dielectric constant in implicit solvent simulations may be used as an adjustable parameter to approximately account for the effects of nanometric confinement on aqueous electrolyte solvents.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2020

The Effects of Field Line Curvature (FLC) Scattering on Ring Current Dynamics and Isotropic Boundary

Abstract In the ring current dynamics, various loss mechanisms contribute to the ring current decay, including losses to the upper atmosphere through particle precipitation. This study implements the field line curvature (FLC) scattering mechanism in a kinetic ring current model and investigates its role in precipitating ions into the ionosphere during the 17 March 2013 storm. Simulation results indicate that (1) the FLC scattering process exerts on energetic ions on the nightside where the magnetospheric configuration is more stretching. It is more effective on heavy ions (e.g., O + ). These ion losses thereafter lead to a faster recovery of the ring current. (2) The FLC‐associated ion precipitation mainly occurs in the outer region (L > 5 for protons and L > 4.5 for oxygen ions) on the nightside. The O + precipitation takes places in a wider region than protons although its intensity is much lower. Comparisons with POES observations suggest that more proton precipitation is needed in the inner region. This is probably caused by the less stretched configuration in the simulation that prevents more precipitation. It may also imply that other loss process is required in the model such as wave‐particle interactions. (3) The storm time precipitating proton flux of tens of keV due to the FLC scattering sometimes becomes comparable to that of electrons on the nightside, although electrons usually dominate the ionospheric energy deposition from the midnight eastward toward the dayside. (4) The FLC scattering process seems to be capable of explaining the formation of isotropic boundary in the ionosphere during the investigated event.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2011

Boost of plasma current with active magnetic field shaping coils in rotamak discharges

A set of magnetic shaping coils is installed on the Prairie View (PV) rotamak for the study of active plasma shape control in the regimes with and without toroidal field (TF). In the spherical tokamak regime (with TF), plasma current I{sub p} can be boosted by 200% when all five shaping coils (connected in series) are energized. The enhancement of current drive efficiency is mainly attributed to the radial compression and the substantially axial extension of the plasma column; this in turn improves the impedance matching and thus increases antenna input power. In the field-reversed configuration (without TF), plasma current can be boosted by 100% when one middle coil is used; the appearance of radial shift mode limits the achievable value of I{sub p}. The experiments clearly demonstrate that the plasma shape control plays a role in effectively driving plasma current in rotamaks.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2011

Investigation of lower hybrid wave coupling and current drive experiments at different configurations in experimental advanced superconducting tokamak

Using a 2 MW 2.45 GHz lower hybrid wave (LHW) system installed in experimental advanced superconducting tokamak, we have systematically carried out LHW-plasma coupling and lower hybrid current drive experiments in both divertor (double null and lower single null) and limiter plasma configuration with plasma current (I{sub p}) {approx} 250 kA and central line averaged density (n{sub e}) {approx} 1.0-1.3 x 10{sup 19} m{sup -3} recently. Results show that the reflection coefficient (RC) first is flat up to some distance between plasma and LHW grill, and then increases with the distance. Studies indicate that with the same plasma parameters, the best coupling is obtained in the limiter case (with plasma leaning on the inner wall), followed by the lower single null, and the one with the worst coupling is the double null configuration, explained by different magnetic connection length. The RCs in the different poloidal rows show that they have different coupling characteristics, possibly due to local magnetic connection length. Current drive efficiency has been investigated by a least squares fit with N{sub //}{sup peak}=2.1, where N{sub //}{sup peak} is the peak value of parallel refractive index of the launched wave. Results show that there is no obvious difference in the current drive efficiency between double null and lower single null cases, whereas the efficiency is somewhat small in the limiter configuration. This is in agreement with the ray tracing/Fokker-Planck code simulation by LUKE/C3PO and can be interpreted by the power spectrum up-shift factor in different plasma configurations. A transformer recharge is realized with {approx}0.8 MW LHW power and the energy conversion efficiency from LHW to poloidal field energy is about 2%.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2011

Eigenmodes of quasi-static magnetic islands in current sheet

As observation have shown, magnetic islands often appear before and/or after the onset of magnetic reconnections in the current sheets, and they also appear in the current sheets in the solar corona, Earth's magnetotail, and Earth's magnetopause. Thus, the existence of magnetic islands can affect the initial conditions in magnetic reconnection. In this paper, we propose a model of quasi-static magnetic island eigenmodes in the current sheet. This model analytically describes the magnetic field structures in the quasi-static case, which will provide a possible approach to reconstructing the magnetic structures in the current sheet via observation data. This model is self-consistent in the kinetic theory. Also, the distribution function of charged particles in the magnetic island can be calculated.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2012

Measurement of plasma current dependent changes in impurity transport and comparison with nonlinear gyrokinetic simulation

Measured impurity transport coefficients are found to demonstrate a strong dependence on plasma current in the core of Alcator C-Mod. These measurements are compared directly with linear and nonlinear gyrokinetic simulation in an attempt to both qualitatively and quantitatively reproduce the measured impurity transport. Discharges constituting a scan of plasma current from 0.6 to 1.2 MA were performed during the 2010 run campaign. The impurity transport from these discharges was determined using a novel set of spectroscopic diagnostics available on Alcator C-Mod. This diagnostic suite allowed for the effective constraint of impurity transport coefficient profiles inside of r/a = 0.6. A decrease in the measured impurity diffusivity and inward convection is found with increased plasma current. Global, nonlinear gyrokinetic simulations were performed using the GYRO code [J. Candy and R. E. Waltz, J Comput. Phys. 186, 545 (2003)] for all discharges in the experimental scan and are found to reproduce the experimental trends, while demonstrating good quantitative agreement with measurement. A more comprehensive quantitative comparison was performed on the 0.8 MA discharge of the current scan which demonstrates that simultaneous agreement between experiment and simulation in both the impurity particle transport and ion heat transport channels is attainable within experimental uncertainties.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2012

Relativistic current collection by a cylindrical Langmuir probe

The current I to a cylindrical Langmuir probe with a bias {Phi}{sub p} satisfying {beta}{identical_to}e{Phi}{sub p}/m{sub e}c{sup 2}{approx}O(1) is discussed. The probe is considered at rest in an unmagnetized plasma composed of electrons and ions with temperatures kT{sub e}{approx}kT{sub i} Much-Less-Than m{sub e}c{sup 2}. For small enough radius, the probe collects the relativistic orbital-motion-limited (OML) current I{sub OML}, which is shown to be larger than the non-relativistic result; the OML current is proportional to {beta}{sup 1/2} and {beta}{sup 3/2} in the limits {beta} Much-Less-Than 1 and {beta} Much-Greater-Than 1, respectively. Unlike the non-relativistic case, the electron density can exceed the unperturbed density value. An asymptotic theory allowed to compute the maximum radius of the probe to collect OML current, the sheath radius for probe radius well below maximum and how the ratio I/I{sub OML} drops below unity when the maximum radius is exceeded. A numerical algorithm that solves the Vlasov-Poisson system was implemented and density and potential profiles presented. The results and their implications in a possible mission to Jupiter with electrodynamic bare tethers are discussed.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗