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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 1,531 records · Page 85
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2017

High Efficiency Nonfullerene Polymer Solar Cells with Thick Active Layer and Large Area

In this work, high‐efficiency nonfullerene polymer solar cells (PSCs) are developed based on a thiazolothiazole‐containing wide bandgap polymer PTZ1 as donor and a planar IDT‐based narrow bandgap small molecule with four side chains (IDIC) as acceptor. Through thermal annealing treatment, a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of up to 11.5% with an open circuit voltage ( V oc ) of 0.92 V, a short‐circuit current density ( J sc ) of 16.4 mA cm −2 , and a fill factor of 76.2% is achieved. Furthermore, the PSCs based on PTZ1:IDIC still exhibit a relatively high PCE of 9.6% with the active layer thickness of 210 nm and a superior PCE of 10.5% with the device area of up to 0.81 cm 2 . These results indicate that PTZ1 is a promising polymer donor material for highly efficient fullerene‐free PSCs and large‐scale devices fabrication.

Guo, Bing↗
DOE OSTI2018

3D Printing of Customized Li‐Ion Batteries with Thick Electrodes

Abstract The growing demand for rechargeable lithium‐ion batteries (LIBs) with higher capacity in customized geometries underscores the need for new battery materials, architectures, and assembly strategies. Here, the design, fabrication, and electrochemical performance of fully 3D printed LIBs composed of thick semisolid electrodes that exhibit high areal capacity are reported. Specifically, semisolid cathode and anode inks, as well as UV curable packaging and separator inks for direct writing of LIBs in arbitrary geometries are created. These fully 3D printed and packaged LIBs, which are encased between two glassy carbon current collectors, deliver an areal capacity of 4.45 mAh cm −2 at a current density of 0.14 mA cm −2 , which is equivalent to 17.3 Ah L −1 . The ability to produce high‐performance LIBs in customized form factors opens new avenues for integrating batteries directly within 3D printed objects.

Wei, Teng‐Sing↗
DOE OSTI2021

Chiral Spin Textures in Amorphous Iron–Germanium Thick Films

Topological solitary fields, such as magnetic and polar skyrmions, are envisioned to revolutionize microelectronics. These configurations have been stabilized in solid-state materials with a global inversion symmetry breaking, which translates in magnetic materials into a vector spin exchange known as the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction (DMI), as well as spin chirality selection and isotropic solitons. This work reports experimental evidence of 3D chiral spin textures, such as helical spins and skyrmions with different chirality and topological charge, stabilized in amorphous Fe-Ge thick films. Overall, these results demonstrate that structurally and chemically disordered materials with a random DMI can resemble inversion symmetry broken systems with similar magnetic properties, moments, and states. Disordered systems are distinguished from systems with global inversion symmetry breaking by their degenerate spin chirality that allows for forming isotropic and anisotropic topological spin textures at remanence, while offering greater flexibility in materials synthesis, voltage, and strain manipulation.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2021

Magnetic Materials: Chiral Spin Textures in Amorphous Iron–Germanium Thick Films (Adv. Mater. 8/2021)

Topological solitary fields, such as magnetic and polar skyrmions, are envisioned to revolutionize microelectronics. These configurations have been stabilized in solid-state materials with a global inversion symmetry breaking, which translates in magnetic materials into a vector spin exchange known as the Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interaction (DMI), as well as spin chirality selection and isotropic solitons. This work reports experimental evidence of 3D chiral spin textures, such as helical spins and skyrmions with different chirality and topological charge, stabilized in amorphous Fe–Ge thick films. These results demonstrate that structurally and chemically disordered materials with a random DMI can resemble inversion symmetry broken systems with similar magnetic properties, moments, and states. In conclusion, disordered systems are distinguished from systems with global inversion symmetry breaking by their degenerate spin chirality that allows for forming isotropic and anisotropic topological spin textures at remanence, while offering greater flexibility in materials synthesis, voltage, and strain manipulation.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2021

Thickness and Spin Dependence of Raman Modes in Magnetic Layered Fe 3 GeTe 2

2D layered Fe 3 GeTe 2 has attracted increasing attention due to its high magnetic ordering temperature and novel physical properties. Lattice dynamics is a fundamental property of Fe 3 GeTe 2 , and its relationships with the number of layers and interlayer spin ordering have not yet been explored in depth. Here, by first-principles density functional theory calculations, the phonon vibrations and Raman intensities of Fe 3 GeTe 2 are systematically studied from the bulk to monolayer structures. Furthermore, the spin-phonon coupling effect is investigated by considering different interlayer magnetic orderings: ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic. It is found that the frequencies of Raman modes in Fe 3 GeTe 2 exhibit considerable dependence on the layer number and spin ordering. In this work, the results not only reveal the notable spin-phonon interactions in Fe 3 GeTe 2 , but also demonstrate that Raman modes can be utilized for characterizing the sample thickness and interlayer spin ordering in this 2D magnet.

2D magnets↗
DOE OSTI2013

Improving Structural Order for a High-Performance Diketopyrrolopyrrole-Based Polymer Solar Cell with a Thick Active Layer

A series of low-bandgap polymers based on thienyl benzodithiophene (BDTT) and furan-substituted diketopyrrolopyrrole (FDPP) units with different side chains are presented. By replacing the branched ethylhexyl group on the FDPP unit with linear side chains, the structural order and carrier mobility of the modified polymers are enhanced accordingly. The power conversion efficiencies (PCE) of single-junction devices based on polymers of this series are improved from approximate to 5% to approximate to 7%. More importantly, devices made from the modified polymers show excellent photovoltaic performance with a thick active layer of up to 360 nm, a very promising characteristic for the industrial implementation of polymer solar cell devices.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2016

Pseudocapacitive Charge Storage in Thick Composite MoS 2 Nanocrystal-Based Electrodes

A synthesis methodology is demonstrated to produce MoS 2 nanoparticles with an expanded atomic lamellar structure that are ideal for Faradaic–based capacitive charge storage. While much of the work on MoS 2 focuses on the high capacity conversion reaction, that process is prone to poor reversibility. The pseudocapacitive intercalation–based charge storage reaction of MoS 2 is investigated, which is extremely fast and highly reversible. A major challenge in the field of pseudocapacitive–based energy storage is the development of thick electrodes from nanostructured materials that can sustain the fast inherent kinetics of the active nanocrystalline material. Here a composite electrode comprised of a poly(acrylic acid) binder, carbon fibers, and carbon black additives is utilized. Here, these electrodes deliver a specific capacity of 90 mAh g –1 in less than 20 s and can be cycled 3000 times while retaining over 80% of the original capacity. Quantitative kinetic analysis indicates that over 80% of the charge storage in these MoS 2 nanocrystals is pseudocapacitive. Asymmetric full cell devices utilizing a MoS 2 nanocrystal–based electrode and an activated carbon electrode achieve a maximum power density of 5.3 kW kg –1 (with 6 Wh kg –1 energy density) and a maximum energy density of 37 Wh kg –1 (with 74 W kg –1 power density).

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2019

Iridium-Based Cubic Nanocages with 1.1-nm-Thick Walls: A Highly Efficient and Durable Electrocatalyst for Water Oxidation in an Acidic Medium

We report a highly active and durable water oxidation electrocatalyst based on cubic nanocages with a composition of Ir 44 Pd 10 , together with well-defined {100} facets and porous walls of roughly 1.1 nm in thickness. Such nanocages substantially outperform all the water oxidation electrocatalysts reported in literature, with an overpotential of only 226 mV for reaching 10 mA·cm -2 geo at a loading of Ir as low as 12.5 μg Ir cm -2 on the electrode in acidic media. When benchmarked against a commercial Ir/C electrocatalyst at 250 mV of overpotential, such a nanocage-based catalyst not only shows enhancements (18.1- and 26.2-fold, respectively) in terms of mass (1.99 A·mg -1 Ir ) and specific (3.93 mA·cm -2 Ir ) activities, but also greatly enhanced durability. The enhancements can be attributed to a combination of multiple merits, including a high utilization efficiency of Ir atoms and an open structure beneficial to the electrochemical oxidation of Ir to the active form of IrO x .

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2021

Maximizing the Catalytic Performance of Pd@Au x Pd 1- x Nanocubes in H 2 O 2 Production by Reducing Shell Thickness to Increase Compositional Stability

We report a simple route based upon seed-mediated growth to the synthesis of Pd@Au x Pd 1-x (0.8≤x≤1) core–shell nanocubes. Benefiting from the well-defined {100} facets and an optimal Au/Pd ratio for the surface, the nanocubes bearing a shell made of Au 0.95 Pd 0.05 work as an efficient electrocatalyst toward H 2 O 2 production, with high selectivity of 93–100 % in the low-overpotential region of 0.4–0.7 V. When the Au 0.95 Pd 0.05 alloy is confined to a shell of only three atomic layers in thickness, the electrocatalyst is able to maintain its surface structure and elemental composition, endowing continuous and stable production of H2O2 during oxygen reduction at a high rate of 1.62 mol g( Pd+Au ) -1 h -1 . This work demonstrates a versatile route to the rational development of active and durable electrocatalysts based upon alloy nanocrystals.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2018

Estimating active layer thickness and volumetric water content from ground penetrating radar measurements in Barrow, Alaska

Ground penetrating radar (GPR) has emerged as an effective tool for estimating active layer thickness (ALT) and volumetric water content (VWC) within the active layer. In August 2013, we conducted a series of GPR and probing surveys using a 500 MHz antenna and metallic probe around Barrow, Alaska. Here, we collected about 15 km of GPR data and 1.5 km of probing data. We describe the GPR data processing workflow from raw GPR data to the estimated ALT and VWC. We then include the corresponding uncertainties for each measured and estimated parameter. The estimated average GPR-derived ALT was 41 cm, with a standard deviation of 9 cm. The average probed ALT was 40 cm, with a standard deviation of 12 cm. The average GPR-derived VWC was 0.65, with a standard deviation of 0.14.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2019

Response surface modeling of CO 2 dynamic storage efficiency factor in high permeability thick sandstones

In order to utilize as much of the pore space for CO 2 storage in high permeability thick saline aquifers, it is vital to investigate the interactions of injected CO 2 with formation brine and rock. In order to quantify the displacement process, we investigate the dynamic storage efficiency factor (DSEF) for saline aquifers where pressure increase is minimal during the injection phase. Dimensionless numbers are derived from basic governing equations, constitutive equations, initial and boundary conditions using the inspection analysis. Then using the Hammersley sequence sampling, 178 numerical experiments are designed, and a compositional reservoir simulator is used to perform these simulations. In the next step, response surface regression analysis is used to establish a relationship between DSEF obtained from the numerical simulations and the corresponding dimensionless numbers. The simulation results show that for the studied conditions the underground dynamics is mostly influenced by the gravity number, followed by effective aspect ratio and dip numbers. The results from the response surface regression analysis are used to develop a correlation, which can be used to estimate the dynamic CO 2 storage capacity of relevant zones. This study provides quantitative measures for the different competing mechanisms involved in underground displacement of fluids in CO 2 geological storage, which can serve as a useful tool during planning phase of storage projects.

02 PETROLEUM↗
DOE OSTI2020

Changes in water vapor adsorption and water film thickness in clayey materials as a function of relative humidity

Abstract Soil water, with adsorbed water being an important component, plays an important role in fluid flow and chemical movement in the unsaturated zone. The adsorbed water consists of water film and interlayer water, and its content is related to the relative humidity (RH). This study theoretically and experimentally focuses on the variation in adsorbed water content in clayey materials as the RH changes. Based on a slit‐pore model, three types of water (water film, interlayer water, and capillary water) could be present in the water vapor adsorption process. The variation of water film is obtained from the analysis of interfacial forces, and then the total water content can be quantitatively subdivided into these three types of water for different RH values. The slit‐pore adsorption model was used with experimental measurements (water vapor adsorption and N 2 physisorption) to quantify the amounts and interrelationships of these three different types of water to six clayey materials, namely three clay minerals (kaolinite, montmorillonite, and illite–smectite mixed layer) and three clay‐rich sediments from the Jianghan Plain in China. The main results are that (a) the volumes of water vapor adsorption are much greater than those of N 2 adsorption except for kaolinite; (b) interlayer water largely dominates the growth of total water content in montmorillonite and results in a concentration of 0.090 ml g −1 at 95% RH; and (c) the minimum thickness of water film is calculated to be 0.23 nm, and the maximum value is one‐third of the pore width by considering the interfacial forces.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2019

Thick branes in extra dimensions and suppressed dark couplings

The nature of dark matter (DM) and how it may interact with the various fields of the Standard Model (SM) remains a mystery. In this paper we show that the interaction between new light dark matter mediators and the SM particles can be naturally suppressed if one employs a single, flat extra dimension (ED). In this setup, the SM fields are localized in a finite width ‘fat’ brane, similar to models of Universal Extra Dimensions (UED), while DM, in turn, is confined to a thin brane at the opposite end of the ED interval. Including brane localized kinetic terms on the fat brane for the mediator fields, the resulting coupling between the SM and these light mediators can be several orders of magnitude smaller than the corresponding ones between the mediators and DM which we assume to be a typical gauge coupling. We investigate the implications of this scenario for both vector (i.e, dark photon, DP) and scalar mediator fields in the 5-D bulk. In this setup kinetic mixing, which is usually employed to suppress light mediator couplings, is not required. Here we assume that the SM particles couple to the DP via their B - L charges while the DP couples to the DM via a dark charge. Both the vector DP couplings and the corresponding Higgs portal couplings with the SM are shown to be natural small in magnitude with a size dependent on ratio of the 5-D compactification radius, R -1 ~ 0.1-1 GeV, and the SM brane thickness, L -1 ~ 2-10 TeV, a range chosen to avoid LHC and other experimental constraints. In this framework one can obtain the observed value of the DM relic abundance for a wide range of parameter choices, while the constrains due to direct DM detection and the invisible width of the Higgs do not impose significant challenges to the model. Finally, this mechanism can lead to distinct signatures in both present and upcoming experiments as it combines some common features of UED and DP models in a single ED setup.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2018

Characterization of Thick Tungsten Coating on Cu Alloy Substrate Prepared by Electrodeposition

The W coating with the thickness over 1 mm was obtained by pulse electrodeposition on large CuCrZr alloy in a Na{sub 2}WO{sub 4}–WO{sub 3} molten salt. The composition of this system keeps unchanged with the duration of electrodeposition. The coating’s structure, morphology and contents were investigated by XRD, XPS and SEM. The electrodepostion tungsten coating was compact and without void. The residual stress in surface of W coating was calculated to be a compressive stress with the value of 225 MPa. The W coating comprised an inner tooth-like layer and an outer columnar layer. The bonding strength between W coating and CuCrZr susbtrate was near 60 MPa; the thermal conductivity parallel to the crystal growth direction was measured to be 150.86 W m{sup −1} K{sup −1}.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2022

The Effect of APS-HVOF Bond Coating Thickness Ratio on TBC Furnace Cycle Lifetime

In this work, combinations of NiCoCrAlY APS and high-velocity oxygen fuel (HVOF) bond coatings were deposited on alloy 247 disk substrates with APS yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) top coatings to assess the benefit of air plasma sprayed (APS) ‘flash’ bond coatings. Using 1-h cycles at 1100 °C in air with 10% H 2 O and HVOF-only and APS-only bond coatings as a baseline, it was found that APS flash coatings extended the average coating lifetime by 16% to 35% with the thicker flash coating performing best. Principal component analysis and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) compositional mapping on coatings characterized after 0, 100, 300 and 500 cycles and after failure showed that the Al in the bond coatings was depleted due to both oxidation and back diffusion into the substrate. The APS-only bond coating had significant oxidation throughout the bond coating and was so depleted in Al, that Al diffused from the substrate to the coating. Residual stress maps of the thermally-grown alumina scale were obtained every 100 cycles using photo-stimulated luminescence piezospectroscopy (PLPS) revealing that the Thick Flash coating had the slowest rate of damage accumulation in the oxide scale.

alumina scale↗
DOE OSTI2018

Isotope- and Thickness-Dependent Friction of Water Layers Intercalated Between Graphene and Mica

The lubricating properties of water have been discussed extensively for millennia. Water films can exhibit wearless high friction in the form of cold ice, or act as lubricants in skating and skiing when a liquid. At the fundamental level, friction is the result of a balance between the rate of energy generation by phonon excitation during sliding and drainage of the energy from the interface by coupling with bulk atoms. Using atomic force microscopy, we found that when H 2 O intercalates between graphene and mica, it increases the friction between the tip and the substrate, dependent on the thickness of the water and graphene layers, while the magnitude of the increase in friction was reduced by D 2 O intercalation. With the help of first-principles density functional theory calculations, we explain this unexpected behavior by the increased spectral range of the vibration modes of graphene caused by water, and by better overlap of the graphene vibration modes with mica phonons, which favors more efficient energy dissipation. Finally, the larger increase in friction with H 2 O versus D 2 O shows that the high-frequency vibration modes of the water molecules play a very important role in the transfer of the vibrational energy of the graphene to the phonon bath of the substrate.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2022

Impact of Gold Thickness on Interfacial Evolution and Subsequent Embrittlement of Tin–Lead Solder Joints

Although gold remains a preferred surface finish for components used in high-reliability electronics, rapid developments in this area have left a gap in the fundamental understanding of solder joint gold (Au) embrittlement. Furthermore, as electronic designs scale down in size, the effect of Au content is not well understood on increasingly smaller solder interconnections. As a result, previous findings may have limited applicability. The current study focused on addressing these gaps by investigating the interfacial microstructure that evolves in 63Sn-37Pb solder joints as a function of Au layer thickness. Those findings were correlated to the mechanical performance of the solder joints. Increasing the initial Au concentration decreased the mechanical strength of a joint, but only to a limited degree. Kirkendall voids were the primary contributor to low-strength joints, while brittle fracture within the intermetallic compounds (IMC) layers is less of a factor. The Au embrittlement mechanism appears to be self-limiting, but only once mechanical integrity is degraded. Sufficient void evolution prevents continued diffusion from the remaining Au.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2018

Effect of Overaging on Fatigue Crack Propagation and Stress Corrosion Cracking Behaviors of an Al-Zn-Mg-Cu Alloy Thick Plate

The fatigue property as well as stress corrosion cracking (SCC) resistance of an Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloy thick plate in peak-aged and overaged tempers (T7351 and T7651) is systematically investigated by fatigue crack propagation (FCP) test and slow strain rate test (SSRT). Microstructural characterization is examined by transmission electron microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Results reveal that the T7351 alloy has lower strength but higher electrical conductivity as compared to T7651 alloy. The FCP resistance of T7351 alloy is superior to that of the T7651 alloy due to the coarser precipitates in the highly overaged alloy in which the strain localization is reduced by promoting homogeneous slip. In addition, the SSRT test suggests a higher SCC resistance in T7351 alloy. The enhanced SCC resistance is found to depend on grain boundary precipitate characteristics and crack propagation resistance of the alloys.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗