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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 1,729 records · Page 96
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2021

Collective optical Thomson scattering in pulsed-power driven high energy density physics experiments (invited)

Optical collective Thomson scattering is used to diagnose magnetized high energy density physics experiments at the Magpie pulsed-power generator at Imperial College London. The system uses an amplified pulse from the 2nd harmonic of a Nd:YAG laser (3 J, 8 ns, 532 nm) to probe a wide diversity of hightemperature plasma objects; with densities in the range of 10 17 -10 19 cm -3 and temperatures between 10 eV and a few keV. The scattered light is collected from 100 μm-scale volumes within the plasmas, which are imaged onto optical fiber arrays. Multiple collection systems observe these volumes from different directions, providing simultaneous probing with different scattering K-vectors (and different associated α-parameters, typically in the range 0.5 – 3) allowing independent measurements of separate velocity components of the bulk plasma flow. The fiber arrays are coupled to an imaging spectrometer with a gated ICCD. The spectrometer is configured to view the ion-acoustic waves (IAWs) of the collective Thomson scattered spectrum. Fits to the spectra with the theoretical spectral density function S(K,ω) yield measurements of the local plasma temperatures and velocities. Fitting is constrained by independent measurements of the electron density from laser interferometry, and the corresponding spectra for different scattering vectors. Furthermore, this TS diagnostic has been successfully implemented on a wide range of experiments, revealing temperature and flow velocity transitions across magnetized shocks, inside rotating plasma jets and imploding wire arrays, as well as providing direct measurements of drift velocities inside a magnetic reconnection current sheet.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
NASA NTRS1976

A mathematical analysis of the theory of interplanetary scintillation in the weak scattering approximation

A simplified analytical technique is presented for modeling the interplanetary scintillation of radio sources of finite angular size with a power-law electron-density-fluctuation power spectrum. The simplification results from the representation of the scintillation spectrum in confluent hypergeometric functions. The approximations presented allow fast numerical evaluation of a spectrum for a weakly scattering but extended medium with less than 10% error over the entire spectrum. Parameters describing anisotropic electron irregularities as well as anisotropic source structure are included, and the dependence of the spectrum normalization on the scales of the medium is derived explicitly. The parametric description of the domains of convergence of the approximate expansions also provides a simple conceptualization of the relative contributions of the scattered radiation along the line of sight to the observed spectrum. This is particularly useful for sources of finite angular size. This technique is applied to previously published observations.

Mitchell, D. G.↗
NASA NTRS1990

On the formation and expansion of H II regions

The evolution of H II regions in spherical clouds with small, constant-density cores and power-law density distributions r exp -w outside the core is described analytically. It is found that there is a critical exponent above which the cloud becomes completely ionized. Its value in the formation phase depends on the initial conditions, but it has a well-defined value w(crit) = 3/2 during the expansion phase. For w less than w(crit), the radius of the H II region grows at a given rate, while neutral mass accumulates in the interphase between the ionization and shock fronts. For w = w(crit), the fronts move together without mass accumulation. Cases with w greater than w(crit) lead to the champagne phase: once the cloud is fully ionized, the expansion becomes supersonic. For self-gravitating disks without magnetic fields, the main features include a new 'variable-size' stage. The initial shape of the H II region has a critical point beyond which the disk becomes completely ionized.

Franco, Jose↗
NASA NTRS1992

Development of a residual acceleration data reduction and dissemination plan

A major obstacle in evaluating the residual acceleration environment in an orbiting space laboratory is the amount of data collected during a given mission: gigabytes of data will be available as SAMS units begin to fly regularly. Investigators taking advantage of the reduced gravity conditions of space should not be overwhelmed by the accelerometer data which describe these conditions. We are therefore developing a data reduction and analysis plan that will allow principal investigators of low-g experiments to create experiment-specific residual acceleration data bases for post-flight analysis. The basic aspects of the plan can also be used to characterize the acceleration environment of earth orbiting laboratories. Our development of the reduction plan is based on the following program of research: the identification of experiment sensitivities by order of magnitude estimates and numerical modelling; evaluation of various signal processing techniques appropriate for the reduction, supplementation, and dissemination of residual acceleration data; and testing and implementation of the plan on existing acceleration data bases. The orientation of the residual acceleration vector with respect to some set of coordinate axes is important for experiments with known directional sensitivity. Orientation information can be obtained from the evaluation of direction cosines. Fourier analysis is commonly used to transform time history data into the frequency domain. Common spectral representations are the amplitude spectrum which gives the average of the components of the time series at each frequency and the power spectral density which indicates the power or energy present in the series per unit frequency interval. The data reduction and analysis scheme developed involves a two tiered structure to: (1) identify experiment characteristics and mission events that can be used to limit the amount of accelerator data an investigator should be interested in; and (2) process the data in a way that will be meaningful to the experiment objectives. A general outline of the plan is given.

Rogers, Melissa J. B.↗
DOE OSTI2022

A fiber-coupled dispersion interferometer for density measurements of pulsed power transmission line electron sheaths on Sandia’s Z machine

A fiber-coupled Dispersion Interferometer (DI) is being developed to measure the electron density of plasmas formed in power flow regions, such as magnetically insulated transmission lines, on Sandia National Laboratories (SNL’s) Z machine [D. B. Sinars et al., Phys. Plasmas 27, 070501 (2020)]. The diagnostic operates using a fiber-coupled 1550 nm CW laser with frequency-doubling to 775 nm. The DI is expected to be capable of line-average density measurements between ∼1013 and 1019 cm−2. Initial testing has been performed on a well-characterized RF lab plasma [A. G. Lynn et al., Rev. Sci. Instrum. 80, 103501 (2009)] at the University of New Mexico to quantify the density resolution lower limits of the DI. Initial testing of the DI has demonstrated line-average electron density measurements within 9% of results acquired via a 94 GHz mm wave interferometer for line densities of ∼1 × 1014 cm−2, despite significant differences in probe beam geometries. The instrument will next be utilized for measurements on a ∼1 MA-scale pulsed power driver {MYKONOS [N. Bennett et al., Phys. Rev. Accel. Beams 22, 120401 (2019)] at SNL} before finally being deployed on SNL’s Z machine. The close electrode spacing (mm scale) on Z requires probe beam sizes of ∼1 mm, which can only be obtained with visible or near infrared optical systems, as opposed to longer wavelength mm wave systems that would normally be chosen for this range of density.

Hines, N. R. (ORCID:0000000315316465)↗
NASA NTRS1997

Spectral Analysis of Vector Magnetic Field Profiles

We investigate the power spectra and cross spectra derived from the three components of the vector magnetic field measured on a straight horizontal path above a statistically stationary source. All of these spectra, which can be estimated from the recorded time series, are related to a single two-dimensional power spectral density via integrals that run in the across-track direction in the wavenumber domain. Thus the measured spectra must obey a number of strong constraints: for example, the sum of the two power spectral densities of the two horizontal field components equals the power spectral density of the vertical component at every wavenumber and the phase spectrum between the vertical and along-track components is always pi/2. These constraints provide powerful checks on the quality of the measured data; if they are violated, measurement or environmental noise should be suspected. The noise due to errors of orientation has a clear characteristic; both the power and phase spectra of the components differ from those of crustal signals, which makes orientation noise easy to detect and to quantify. The spectra of the crustal signals can be inverted to obtain information about the cross-track structure of the field. We illustrate these ideas using a high-altitude Project Magnet profile flown in the southeastern Pacific Ocean.

Parker, Robert L.↗
NASA NTRS1972

An evaluation of random analysis methods for the determination of panel damping

An analysis is made of steady-state and non-steady-state methods for the measurement of panel damping. Particular emphasis is placed on the use of random process techniques in conjunction with digital data reduction methods. The steady-state methods considered use the response power spectral density, response autocorrelation, excitation-response crosspower spectral density, or single-sided Fourier transform (SSFT) of the response autocorrelation function. Non-steady-state methods are associated mainly with the use of rapid frequency sweep excitation. Problems associated with the practical application of each method are evaluated with specific reference to the case of a panel exposed to a turbulent airflow, and two methods, the power spectral density and the single-sided Fourier transform methods, are selected as being the most suitable. These two methods are demonstrated experimentally, and it is shown that the power spectral density method is satisfactory under most conditions, provided that appropriate corrections are applied to account for filter bandwidth and background noise errors. Thus, the response power spectral density method is recommended for the measurement of the damping of panels exposed to a moving airflow.

Bhat, W. V.↗
DOE OSTI2020

Design of 1500V/200kW 99.6% Efficiency Dual Active Bridge Converters Based on 1700V SiC Power MOSFET Module

High efficiency, high density and galvanically isolated power converters are attractive for medium voltage high power applications. This paper presents a 1.5kV/200kW bidirectional Dual Active Bridge (DAB) converter using a newly developed 1.7kV SiC MOSFET module. The intended application is megawatt scale solid state transformer (SST) and 1500V PV inverter application using modular architecture. One novel model to estimate the turn-off loss using snubber capacitors is proposed and experimentally verified. An optimized PCB-based busbar design is introduced to reduce the voltage overshoot across the SiC device, making the design suitable for 1.5kVdc applications. The mechanism of how the optimized PCB-based busbar can reduce the voltage overshoot is quantitatively interpreted and experimentally verified. The DAB converter achieved an efficiency of 98.85% at 200kW and a maximum of 99.53% at 60kW. The maximum efficiency for series-resonant mode is 99.6% at 85kW and 99.3% at 200kW. The power density is 26W/inch3 (1.6MW/m3) which is much higher than traditional industry products.

Xu, Wei↗
NASA NTRS1974

The response of rotating machinery to external random vibration

A high-speed turbogenerator employing gas-lubricated hydrodynamic journal and thrust bearings was subjected to external random vibrations for the purpose of assessing bearing performance in a dynamic environment. The pivoted-pad type journal bearings and the step-sector thrust bearing supported a turbine-driven rotor weighing approximately twenty-one pounds at a nominal operating speed of 36,000 rpm. The response amplitudes of both the rigid-supported and flexible-supported bearing pads, the gimballed thrust bearing, and the rotor relative to the machine casing were measured with capacitance type displacement probes. Random vibrations were applied by means of a large electrodynamic shaker at input levels ranging between 0.5 g (rms) and 1.5 g (rms). Vibrations were applied both along and perpendicular to the rotor axis. Response measurements were analyzed for amplitude distribution and power spectral density. Experimental results compare well with calculations of amplitude power spectral density made for the case where the vibrations were applied along the rotor axis. In this case, the rotor-bearing system was treated as a linear, three-mass model.

Tessarzik, J. M.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Hydrodynamic instabilities in supernova remnants - Self-similar driven waves

An initial study aimed at elucidating the multidimensional aspects of the hydrodynamic instabilities in supernova remnants is presented. Self-similar solutions are found to exist for the interaction of a steep power-law density profile expanding into a relatively flat stationary power-law density profile. Consideration of the pressure and entropy profiles in the shocked 1D flows shows that the flows are subject to convective instability, by a local criterion. The growth rate for the instability becomes very large near the contact discontinuity between the two shocked regions. A linear analysis of the complete self-similar solutions shows that the solutions are unstable above a critical wavenumber and that the growth rate is greatest at the position of the contact discontinuity. The X-ray image of the remnant of SN 1572 (Tycho) shows emission from clumps of supernova ejecta, which is good evidence for instabilities in this remnant.

Chevalier, Roger A.↗
NASA NTRS2007

Self-consistent Model of Magnetospheric Electric Field, RC and EMIC Waves

Electromagnetic ion cyclotron (EMIC) waves are an important magnetospheric emission, which is excited near the magnetic equator with frequencies below the proton gyro-frequency. The source of bee energy for wave growth is provided by temperature anisotropy of ring current (RC) ions, which develops naturally during inward convection from the plasma sheet These waves strongly affect the dynamic s of resonant RC ions, thermal electrons and ions, and the outer radiation belt relativistic electrons, leading to non-adiabatic particle heating and/or pitch-angle scattering and loss to the atmosphere. The rate of ion and electron scattering/heating is strongly controlled by the Wave power spectral and spatial distributions, but unfortunately, the currently available observational information regarding EMIC wave power spectral density is poor. So combinations of reliable data and theoretical models should be utilized in order to obtain the power spectral density of EMIC waves over the entire magnetosphere throughout the different storm phases. In this study, we present the simulation results, which are based on two coupled RC models that our group has developed. The first model deals with the large-scale magnetosphere-ionosphere electrodynamic coupling, and provides a self-consistent description of RC ions/electrons and the magnetospheric electric field. The second model is based on a coupled system of two kinetic equations, one equation describes the RC ion dynamics and another equation describes the power spectral density evolution of EMIC waves, and self-consistently treats a micro-scale electrodynamic coupling of RC and EMIC waves. So far, these two models have been applied independently. However, the large-scale magnetosphere-ionosphere electrodynamics controls the convective patterns of both the RC ions and plasmasphere altering conditions for EMIC wave-particle interaction. In turn, the wave induced RC precipitation Changes the local field-aligned current distributions and the ionospheric conductances, which are crucial for a large-scale electrodynamics. The initial results from this new self-consistent model of the magnetospheric electric field, RC and EMIC waves will be shown in this presentation.

Gamayunov, K. V.↗
NASA NTRS1980

Synoptic observations of Jupiter's radio emissions: Average Statistical properties observed by Voyager

Observations of Jupiter's low frequency radio emissions collected over one month intervals before and after each Voyager encounter were analyzed. Compilations of occurrence probability, average power flux density and average sense of circular polarization are presented as a function of central meridian longitude, phase of Io, and frequency. The results are compared with ground based observations. The necessary geometrical conditions are preferred polarization sense for Io-related decametric emission observed by Voyager from above both the dayside and nightside hemispheres are found to be essentially the same as are observed in Earth based studies. On the other hand, there is a clear local time dependence in the Io-independent decametric emission. Io appears to have an influence on average flux density of the emission down to below 2 MHz. The average power flux density spectrum of Jupiter's emission has a broad peak near 9MHz. Integration of the average spectrum over all frequencies gives a total radiated power for an isotropic source of 4 x 10 to the 11th power W.

Alexander, J. K.↗
NASA NTRS1975

Computed lateral rate and acceleration power spectral response of conventional and STOL airplanes to atmospheric turbulence

Power-spectral-density calculations were made of the lateral responses to atmospheric turbulence for several conventional and short take-off and landing (STOL) airplanes. The turbulence was modeled as three orthogonal velocity components, which were uncorrelated, and each was represented with a one-dimensional power spectrum. Power spectral densities were computed for displacements, rates, and accelerations in roll, yaw, and sideslip. In addition, the power spectral density of the transverse acceleration was computed. Evaluation of ride quality based on a specific ride quality criterion was also made. The results show that the STOL airplanes generally had larger values for the rate and acceleration power spectra (and, consequently, larger corresponding root-mean-square values) than the conventional airplanes. The ride quality criterion gave poorer ratings to the STOL airplanes than to the conventional airplanes.

Lichtenstein, J. H.↗
DOE OSTI2024

Heterogeneous Integration Technologies for High-temperature, High-density, Low-profile Power Modules of Wide Bandgap Devices in Electric Drive Applications (Final Technical Report)

The goal of this project is to develop packaging technologies for making high-temperature, high-density, and low-profile wide-bandgap (WBG) power electronics modules for electric drives. These modules are aimed at enabling the DOE’s University Consortium to reach its 2025 inverter targets of ≥ 100 kW/L and ≤ 2.7 $/kW. The specific objectives are to: design and fabricate SiC half-bridge power modules with double-sided cooling and parasitic inductances < 5 nH, heat flux density > 400 W/cm 2 , and working junction temperature of 200 o C; design, fabricate, and deliver a gate driver with double-sided cooled modules for the construction of a 100 kW/L inverter at Oak Ridge National Lab; and design and prototype intelligent gate drivers with integrated current sensor and a low-profile DC-DC power supply with air-core transformer for testing power modules at 200 o C junction temperature. We followed an iterative technical approach of design, simulation, fabrication, and testing of various versions of modules, current sensors, and power supply. The state-of-the-art silicon carbide devices rated at 1.2 kV and 149 A were packaged by sintered-silver bonding on an aluminum nitride direct-bond-copper substrate for high thermal conductivity, high working temperature, and high joint reliability. Porous silver posts were used to interconnect the device’s source pads to the other direct-bond-copper substrate for low mechanical stresses, ease of manufacturing, and double-sided cooling. A current sensor based on package parasitic inductance was developed to measure switching current. A dynamic feedback scheme was developed to compensate the effect of parasitic resistance and temperature variation. A constant-current class-E dc-dc converter with air-core transformer was developed. Air-core transformer was used due to the unavailability of magnetic core at high temperatures. Gate driver and power supply were integrated with the double-side cooled, high temperature SiC power modules for testing the modules at 200 o C junction temperature. Double-pulse and continuous testing of the integrated technologies validated the design and fabrication of the three component technologies. Throughout the project, we overcame the challenge for design verification caused by low prototyping yield, which then helped train the graduate students, the future workforce, to learn the engineering know-how for low-cost manufacturing of reliable products. Below is a summary of the major accomplishments of this project: development of a prototyping process for fabricating double-side cooled (1200 V, 149 A) SiC phase-leg modules capable of working to 200 o C Tj; simulation and experimental verification of the improvement of thermo-mechanical reliability of the double-side cooled SiC phase-leg module by using rigid encapsulant; design and experimental validation of a current sensor based on package parasitic inductance and a compensation solution for eliminating the effect of parasitic resistance; design and experimental validation of a low-profile power supply with six-output air-core transformer for gate driver; functional demonstration of a SiC phase-leg module integrated with its gate driver, current sensor, and an air-core power supply at 200 o C Tj in a double-pulse switching test setup and Buck converter continuous test setup; successful completion of six PhD and two MS students who are or will work at Apple Inc., Tesla Inc., Wolfspeed Inc., Microchip Inc., Monolithic Power Systems Inc., and LG Magna Inc.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
NASA NTRS1973

Measurements of surface-pressure fluctuations on the XB-70 airplane at local Mach numbers up to 2.45

Measurements of surface-pressure fluctuations were made at two locations on the XB-70 airplane for nine flight-test conditions encompassing a local Mach number range from 0.35 to 2.45. These measurements are presented in the form of estimated power spectral densities, coherence functions, and narrow-band-convection velocities. The estimated power spectral densities compared favorably with wind-tunnel data obtained by other experimenters. The coherence function and convection velocity data supported conclusions by other experimenters that low-frequency surface-pressure fluctuations consist of small-scale turbulence components with low convection velocity.

Lewis, T. L.↗
DOE OSTI2024

Enabling Ultra-Compact, Lightweight, Efficient, and Reliable 6.6 kW On-Board Bi-Directional Electric Vehicle Charger with Advanced Topology and Control

The research explored new topologies, control methods, mechanical integration, and thermal management methods for electric vehicle (EV) on-board chargers. The team investigated capacitor-based power conversion, leveraging the high energy densities inherent to capacitive energy storage compared to inductive methods. The proposed topologies simultaneously enabled high power density and high efficiency of the design. The proposed architecture was demonstrated in a 6.6 kW bi-directional charger prototype. The research pursued several directions to improve system performance. Innovative topologies were studied for both the main power conversion stage as well as the single-phase twice-line-frequency energy buffer. To ensure robust and efficient operation, new control methods were developed to integrate these two subsystems. To achieve high power density in the full system solution, the mechanical structure of the charger is highly optimized to maximally fill the converter box volume. In parallel with the mechanical design effort, the converter was packaged with high-performance cooling methods which removed heat from key areas of power dissipation in the converter. The thermal management system was optimized to minimize its weight and volume, ultimately motivating the design of a custom additively manufactured cold-plate. The full system achieves a peak power of 7 kW with less than 0.3% total harmonic distortion (THD) and greater than 0.994 power factor in power factor correction (PFC) operation, corresponding to a total box-volume power density of 47.9 kW/L and gravimetric power density of 24.6 W/g. The system achieves a peak efficiency of 98.9%, with 97.9% efficiency at maximum power.

33 ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗
NASA NTRS1994

Thin shell formation in radiative shocks. 1: Supernova remnants in low-density media

This paper explores the onset of thin-shell formation in interstellar shocks associated with supernova explosions. We outline a simple but useful scheme that indicates the time at which thin shell formation begins for supernova remnants (SNRs) evolving in a range of interstellar environments, extending the previous analytical models to arbitrary power-law density media. The result depends on the gas cooling properties and the shock velocity and radius. This is then applied to the specific case of SNRs in low-density media. The procedure for defining the time for the onset of shell formation, t(sub sf), equates the value of the adiabat, kappa = p/rho(exp gamma), to zero using the known time dependence of the shock radius and velocity. For the case of a power-law density ambient medium of the form rho(r) = Br(exp -omega), it is found that shell formation can be prevented when the ambient density drops faster than a critical rate. For a cooling function of the form Lambda = Lambda(sub 0) tau(exp beta), with beta = -0.5 (appropriate for line cooling), shell formation never occurs for omega greater than or equal to 9/5. The shell formation time is then computed for spherical shocks in a power-law density medium. For omega = 0, the onset of shell formation is found to be at t(sub sf) approx. equal to 2.87 x 10(exp 4) E51(exp 3/14) n(sub 0 exp -4.7) yr, which agrees well with previous estimates derived by other means. We compare the analytical shell formation time with the results of detailed numerical models for omega = 0 and three different ambient densities and find good agreement. The extension of the criterion for the onset of thin shell formation using the ratio of cooling to swept-up column density is also described. This method provides a useful approximation for cases when the exact solution is not known.

Franco, Jose↗