Simulation of the Onset of the Southeast Asian Monsoon During 1997 and 1998: The Impact of Surface Processes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wang, Yansen; Tao, W.-K.; Lau, K.-M.; Wetzel, Peter J.

2003-01-01

The onset of the southeast Asian monsoon during 1997 and 1998 was simulated with a coupled mesoscale atmospheric model (MM5) and a detailed land surface model. The rainfall results from the simulations were compared with observed satellite data fiom the TRMM (Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission) TMI (TRMM Microwave Imager) and GPCP (Global Precipitation Climatology Project). The simulation with the land surface model captured basic signatures of the monsoon onset processes and associated rainfall statistics. The sensitivity tests indicated that land surface processes had a greater impact on the simulated rainfall results than that of a small sea surface temperature change during the onset period. In both the 1997 and 1998 cases, the simulations were significantly improved by including the land surface processes. The results indicated that land surface processes played an important role in modifying the low-level wind field over two major branches of the circulation; the southwest low-level flow over the Indo- China peninsula and the northern cold front intrusion from southern China. The surface sensible and latent heat exchange between the land and atmosphere modified the lowlevel temperature distribution and gradient, and therefore the low-level. The more realistic forcing of the sensible and latent heat from the detailed land surface model improved the monsoon rainfall and associated wind simulation.

Simulation of the Onset of the Southeast Asian Monsoon during 1997 and 1998: The Impact of Surface Processes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wang, Yansen; Tao, W.-K.; Lau, K.-M.; Wetzel, Peter J.

2004-01-01

The onset of the southeast Asian monsoon during 1997 and 1998 was simulated by coupling a mesoscale atmospheric model (MM5) and a detailed, land surface model, PLACE (the Parameterization for Land-Atmosphere-Cloud Exchange). The rainfall results from the simulations were compared with observed satellite data from the TRMM (Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission) TMI (TRMM Microwave Imager) and GPCP (Global Precipitation Climatology Project). The control simulation with the PLACE land surface model and variable sea surface temperature captured the basic signatures of the monsoon onset processes and associated rainfall statistics. Sensitivity tests indicated that simulations were sigmficantly improved by including the PLACE land surface model. The mechanism by which the land surface processes affect the moisture transport and the convection during the onset of the southeast Asian monsoon were analyzed. The results indicated that land surface processes played an important role in modifying the low-level wind field over two major branches of the circulation: the southwest low-level flow over the Indo-china peninsula and the northern, cold frontal intrusion from southern China. The surface sensible and latent heat fluxes modified the low-level temperature distribution and gradient, and therefore the low-level wind due to the thermal wind effect. The more realistic forcing of the sensible and latent heat fluxes from the detailed, land surface model improved the low-level wind simulation apd associated moisture transport and convection.

Simulation of the Onset of the Southeast Asian Monsoon during 1997 and 1998: The Impact of Surface Processes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wang, Yansen; Tao, W.-K.; Lau, K.-M.; Wetzel, Peter J.

2004-01-01

The onset of the southeast Asian monsoon during 1997 and 1998 was simulated by coupling a mesoscale atmospheric model (MM5) and a detailed, land surface model, PLACE (the Parameterization for Land-Atmosphere-Cloud Exchange). The rainfall results from the simulations were compared with observed satellite data from the TRMM (Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission) TMI (TRMM Microwave Imager) and GPCP (Global Precipitation Climatology Project). The control simulation with the PLACE land surface model and variable sea surface temperature captured the basic signatures of the monsoon onset processes and associated rainfall statistics. Sensitivity tests indicated that simulations were significantly improved by including the PLACE land surface model. The mechanism by which the land surface processes affect the moisture transport and the convection during the onset of the southeast Asian monsoon were analyzed. The results indicated that land surface processes played an important role in modifying the low-level wind field over two major branches of the circulation: the southwest low-level flow over the Indo-China peninsula and the northern, cold frontal intrusion from southern China. The surface sensible and latent heat fluxes modified the low-level temperature distribution and merit, and therefore the low-level wind due to the thermal wind effect. The more realistic forcing of the sensible and latent heat fluxes from the detailed, land surface model improved the low-level wind simulation and associated moisture transport and convection.

High-quality observation of surface imperviousness for urban runoff modelling using UAV imagery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tokarczyk, P.; Leitao, J. P.; Rieckermann, J.; Schindler, K.; Blumensaat, F.

2015-10-01

Modelling rainfall-runoff in urban areas is increasingly applied to support flood risk assessment, particularly against the background of a changing climate and an increasing urbanization. These models typically rely on high-quality data for rainfall and surface characteristics of the catchment area as model input. While recent research in urban drainage has been focusing on providing spatially detailed rainfall data, the technological advances in remote sensing that ease the acquisition of detailed land-use information are less prominently discussed within the community. The relevance of such methods increases as in many parts of the globe, accurate land-use information is generally lacking, because detailed image data are often unavailable. Modern unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) allow one to acquire high-resolution images on a local level at comparably lower cost, performing on-demand repetitive measurements and obtaining a degree of detail tailored for the purpose of the study. In this study, we investigate for the first time the possibility of deriving high-resolution imperviousness maps for urban areas from UAV imagery and of using this information as input for urban drainage models. To do so, an automatic processing pipeline with a modern classification method is proposed and evaluated in a state-of-the-art urban drainage modelling exercise. In a real-life case study (Lucerne, Switzerland), we compare imperviousness maps generated using a fixed-wing consumer micro-UAV and standard large-format aerial images acquired by the Swiss national mapping agency (swisstopo). After assessing their overall accuracy, we perform an end-to-end comparison, in which they are used as an input for an urban drainage model. Then, we evaluate the influence which different image data sources and their processing methods have on hydrological and hydraulic model performance. We analyse the surface runoff of the 307 individual subcatchments regarding relevant attributes, such as peak runoff and runoff volume. Finally, we evaluate the model's channel flow prediction performance through a cross-comparison with reference flow measured at the catchment outlet. We show that imperviousness maps generated from UAV images processed with modern classification methods achieve an accuracy comparable to standard, off-the-shelf aerial imagery. In the examined case study, we find that the different imperviousness maps only have a limited influence on predicted surface runoff and pipe flows, when traditional workflows are used. We expect that they will have a substantial influence when more detailed modelling approaches are employed to characterize land use and to predict surface runoff. We conclude that UAV imagery represents a valuable alternative data source for urban drainage model applications due to the possibility of flexibly acquiring up-to-date aerial images at a quality compared with off-the-shelf image products and a competitive price at the same time. We believe that in the future, urban drainage models representing a higher degree of spatial detail will fully benefit from the strengths of UAV imagery.

On the Modeling of Thermal Radiation at the Top Surface of a Vacuum Arc Remelting Ingot

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Delzant, P.-O.; Baqué, B.; Chapelle, P.; Jardy, A.

2018-02-01

Two models have been implemented for calculating the thermal radiation emitted at the ingot top in the VAR process, namely, a crude model that considers only radiative heat transfer between the free surface and electrode tip and a more detailed model that describes all radiative exchanges between the ingot, electrode, and crucible wall using a radiosity method. From the results of the second model, it is found that the radiative heat flux at the ingot top may depend heavily on the arc gap length and the electrode radius, but remains almost unaffected by variations of the electrode height. Both radiation models have been integrated into a CFD numerical code that simulates the growth and solidification of a VAR ingot. The simulation of a Ti-6-4 alloy melt shows that use of the detailed radiation model leads to some significant modification of the simulation results compared with the simple model. This is especially true during the hot-topping phase, where the top radiation plays an increasingly important role compared with the arc energy input. Thus, while the crude model has the advantage of its simplicity, use of the detailed model should be preferred.

On the Modeling of Thermal Radiation at the Top Surface of a Vacuum Arc Remelting Ingot

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Delzant, P.-O.; Baqué, B.; Chapelle, P.; Jardy, A.

2018-06-01

Two models have been implemented for calculating the thermal radiation emitted at the ingot top in the VAR process, namely, a crude model that considers only radiative heat transfer between the free surface and electrode tip and a more detailed model that describes all radiative exchanges between the ingot, electrode, and crucible wall using a radiosity method. From the results of the second model, it is found that the radiative heat flux at the ingot top may depend heavily on the arc gap length and the electrode radius, but remains almost unaffected by variations of the electrode height. Both radiation models have been integrated into a CFD numerical code that simulates the growth and solidification of a VAR ingot. The simulation of a Ti-6-4 alloy melt shows that use of the detailed radiation model leads to some significant modification of the simulation results compared with the simple model. This is especially true during the hot-topping phase, where the top radiation plays an increasingly important role compared with the arc energy input. Thus, while the crude model has the advantage of its simplicity, use of the detailed model should be preferred.

Mars - Hellas Planitia gravity analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sjogren, W. L.; Wimberley, R. N.

1981-01-01

Doppler radio tracking data from Viking Orbiter 1 has provided new detailed observations of gravity variations over Hellas Planitia. Line-of-sight Bouguer gravity definitely indicates that isostatic adjustment has occurred. Two theoretical models were tested to obtain fits to the gravity data. Results for a surface deficit model, and a model with a surface deficit and a mass excess at depth are displayed. The mass-at-depth model produced very marked improvement in the data fit as compared to the surface deficit model. The optimum depth for the mass excess is 130 km.

Detailed Geological Modelling in Urban Areas focused on Structures relevant to the Near Surface Groundwater Flow in the context of Climatic Changes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bach, T.; Pallesen, T. M.; Jensen, N. P.; Mielby, S.; Sandersen, P.; Kristensen, M.

2015-12-01

This case demonstrates a practical example from the city of Odense (DK) where new geological modeling techniques has been developed and used in the software GeoScene3D, to create a detailed voxel model of the anthropogenic layer. The voxel model has been combined with a regional hydrostratigraphic layer model. The case is part of a pilot project partly financed by VTU (Foundation for Development of Technology in the Danish Water Sector) and involves many different datatypes such as borehole information, geophysical data, human related elements (landfill, pipelines, basements, roadbeds etc). In the last few years, there has been increased focus on detailed geological modeling in urban areas. The models serve as important input to hydrological models. This focus is partly due to climate changes as high intensity rainfalls are seen more often than in the past, and water recharge is a topic too. In urban areas, this arises new challenges. There is a need of a high level of detailed geological knowledge for the uppermost zone of the soil, which typically are problematic due to practically limitations, especially when using geological layer models. Furthermore, to accommodate the need of a high detail, all relevant available data has to be used in the modeling process. Human activity has deeply changed the soil layers, e.g. by constructions as roadbeds, buildings with basements, pipelines, landfill etc. These elements can act as barriers or pathways regarding surface near groundwater flow and can attribute to local flooding or mobilization and transport of contaminants etc. A geological voxel model is built by small boxes (a voxel). Each box can contain several parameters, ex. lithology, transmissivity or contaminant concentration. Human related elements can be implemented using tools, which gives the modeler advanced options for making detailed small-scale models. This case demonstrates the workflow and the resulting geological model for the pilot area.

Ubiquitous Creation of Bas-Relief Surfaces with Depth-of-Field Effects Using Smartphones.

PubMed

Sohn, Bong-Soo

2017-03-11

This paper describes a new method to automatically generate digital bas-reliefs with depth-of-field effects from general scenes. Most previous methods for bas-relief generation take input in the form of 3D models. However, obtaining 3D models of real scenes or objects is often difficult, inaccurate, and time-consuming. From this motivation, we developed a method that takes as input a set of photographs that can be quickly and ubiquitously captured by ordinary smartphone cameras. A depth map is computed from the input photographs. The value range of the depth map is compressed and used as a base map representing the overall shape of the bas-relief. However, the resulting base map contains little information on details of the scene. Thus, we construct a detail map using pixel values of the input image to express the details. The base and detail maps are blended to generate a new depth map that reflects both overall depth and scene detail information. This map is selectively blurred to simulate the depth-of-field effects. The final depth map is converted to a bas-relief surface mesh. Experimental results show that our method generates a realistic bas-relief surface of general scenes with no expensive manual processing.

Ubiquitous Creation of Bas-Relief Surfaces with Depth-of-Field Effects Using Smartphones

PubMed Central

Sohn, Bong-Soo

2017-01-01

This paper describes a new method to automatically generate digital bas-reliefs with depth-of-field effects from general scenes. Most previous methods for bas-relief generation take input in the form of 3D models. However, obtaining 3D models of real scenes or objects is often difficult, inaccurate, and time-consuming. From this motivation, we developed a method that takes as input a set of photographs that can be quickly and ubiquitously captured by ordinary smartphone cameras. A depth map is computed from the input photographs. The value range of the depth map is compressed and used as a base map representing the overall shape of the bas-relief. However, the resulting base map contains little information on details of the scene. Thus, we construct a detail map using pixel values of the input image to express the details. The base and detail maps are blended to generate a new depth map that reflects both overall depth and scene detail information. This map is selectively blurred to simulate the depth-of-field effects. The final depth map is converted to a bas-relief surface mesh. Experimental results show that our method generates a realistic bas-relief surface of general scenes with no expensive manual processing. PMID:28287487

Surface properties of ocean fronts

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wolff, P. M.; Hubert, W. E.

1976-01-01

Background information on oceanic fronts is presented and the results of several models which were developed to study the dynamics of oceanic fronts and their effects on various surface properties are described. The details of the four numerical models used in these studies are given in separate appendices which contain all of the physical equations, program documentation and running instructions for the models.

The study of the effects of sea-spray drops on the marine atmospheric boundary layer by direct numerical simulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Druzhinin, O.; Troitskaya, Yu; Zilitinkevich, S.

2018-01-01

The detailed knowledge of turbulent exchange processes occurring in the atmospheric marine boundary layer are of primary importance for their correct parameterization in large-scale prognostic models. These processes are complicated, especially at sufficiently strong wind forcing conditions, by the presence of sea-spray drops which are torn off the crests of sufficiently steep surface waves by the wind gusts. Natural observations indicate that mass fraction of sea-spray drops increases with wind speed and their impact on the dynamics of the air in the vicinity of the sea surface can become quite significant. Field experiments, however, are limited by insufficient accuracy of the acquired data and are in general costly and difficult. Laboratory modeling presents another route to investigate the spray-mediated exchange processes in much more detail as compared to the natural experiments. However, laboratory measurements, contact as well as Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) methods, also suffer from inability to resolve the dynamics of the near-surface air-flow, especially in the surface wave troughs. In this report, we present a first attempt to use Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS) as tool for investigation of the drops-mediated momentum, heat and moisture transfer in a turbulent, droplet-laden air flow over a wavy water surface. DNS is capable of resolving the details of the transfer processes and do not involve any closure assumptions typical of Large-Eddy and Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes (LES and RANS) simulations. Thus DNS provides a basis for improving parameterizations in LES and RANS closure models and further development of large-scale prognostic models. In particular, we discuss numerical results showing the details of the modification of the air flow velocity, temperature and relative humidity fields by multidisperse, evaporating drops. We use Eulerian-Lagrangian approach where the equations for the air-flow fields are solved in a Eulerian frame whereas the drops dymanics equations are solved in a Largangain frame. The effects of air flow and drops on the water surface wave are neglected. A point-force approximation is employed to model the feed-back contributions by the drops to the air momentum, heat and moisture transfer.

Terrain-analysis procedures for modeling radar backscatter

USGS Publications Warehouse

Schaber, Gerald G.; Pike, Richard J.; Berlin, Graydon Lennis

1978-01-01

The collection and analysis of detailed information on the surface of natural terrain are important aspects of radar-backscattering modeling. Radar is especially sensitive to surface-relief changes in the millimeter- to-decimeter scale four conventional K-band (~1-cm wavelength) to L-band (~25-cm wavelength) radar systems. Surface roughness statistics that characterize these changes in detail have been generated by a comprehensive set of seven programmed calculations for radar-backscatter modeling from sets of field measurements. The seven programs are 1) formatting of data in readable form for subsequent topographic analysis program; 2) relief analysis; 3) power spectral analysis; 4) power spectrum plots; 5) slope angle between slope reversals; 6) slope angle against slope interval plots; and 7) base length slope angle and curvature. This complete Fortran IV software package, 'Terrain Analysis', is here presented for the first time. It was originally developed a decade ago for investigations of lunar morphology and surface trafficability for the Apollo Lunar Roving Vehicle.

Utilization of Large Scale Surface Models for Detailed Visibility Analyses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Caha, J.; Kačmařík, M.

2017-11-01

This article demonstrates utilization of large scale surface models with small spatial resolution and high accuracy, acquired from Unmanned Aerial Vehicle scanning, for visibility analyses. The importance of large scale data for visibility analyses on the local scale, where the detail of the surface model is the most defining factor, is described. The focus is not only the classic Boolean visibility, that is usually determined within GIS, but also on so called extended viewsheds that aims to provide more information about visibility. The case study with examples of visibility analyses was performed on river Opava, near the Ostrava city (Czech Republic). The multiple Boolean viewshed analysis and global horizon viewshed were calculated to determine most prominent features and visibility barriers of the surface. Besides that, the extended viewshed showing angle difference above the local horizon, which describes angular height of the target area above the barrier, is shown. The case study proved that large scale models are appropriate data source for visibility analyses on local level. The discussion summarizes possible future applications and further development directions of visibility analyses.

Combining 3d Volume and Mesh Models for Representing Complicated Heritage Buildings

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tsai, F.; Chang, H.; Lin, Y.-W.

2017-08-01

This study developed a simple but effective strategy to combine 3D volume and mesh models for representing complicated heritage buildings and structures. The idea is to seamlessly integrate 3D parametric or polyhedral models and mesh-based digital surfaces to generate a hybrid 3D model that can take advantages of both modeling methods. The proposed hybrid model generation framework is separated into three phases. Firstly, after acquiring or generating 3D point clouds of the target, these 3D points are partitioned into different groups. Secondly, a parametric or polyhedral model of each group is generated based on plane and surface fitting algorithms to represent the basic structure of that region. A "bare-bones" model of the target can subsequently be constructed by connecting all 3D volume element models. In the third phase, the constructed bare-bones model is used as a mask to remove points enclosed by the bare-bones model from the original point clouds. The remaining points are then connected to form 3D surface mesh patches. The boundary points of each surface patch are identified and these boundary points are projected onto the surfaces of the bare-bones model. Finally, new meshes are created to connect the projected points and original mesh boundaries to integrate the mesh surfaces with the 3D volume model. The proposed method was applied to an open-source point cloud data set and point clouds of a local historical structure. Preliminary results indicated that the reconstructed hybrid models using the proposed method can retain both fundamental 3D volume characteristics and accurate geometric appearance with fine details. The reconstructed hybrid models can also be used to represent targets in different levels of detail according to user and system requirements in different applications.

Geometric Modelling of Tree Roots with Different Levels of Detail

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guerrero Iñiguez, J. I.

2017-09-01

This paper presents a geometric approach for modelling tree roots with different Levels of Detail, suitable for analysis of the tree anchoring, potentially occupied underground space, interaction with urban elements and damage produced and taken in the built-in environment. Three types of tree roots are considered to cover several species: tap root, heart shaped root and lateral roots. Shrubs and smaller plants are not considered, however, a similar approach can be considered if the information is available for individual species. The geometrical approach considers the difficulties of modelling the actual roots, which are dynamic and almost opaque to direct observation, proposing generalized versions. For each type of root, different geometric models are considered to capture the overall shape of the root, a simplified block model, and a planar or surface projected version. Lower detail versions are considered as compatibility version for 2D systems while higher detail models are suitable for 3D analysis and visualization. The proposed levels of detail are matched with CityGML Levels of Detail, enabling both analysis and aesthetic views for urban modelling.

Generic Surface-to-Air Missile Model.

DTIC Science & Technology

1979-10-01

describes the Generic Surface-to-Air Missile Model (GENSAM) which evaluates the outcome of an engagement between a surface-to-air missile system and an...DETAILS OF THE GENERIC SAM MODEL 3-1 3.1 Coordinate Transformations 3-1 3.1.1 Coordinate Systems 3-1 3.1.2 Coordinate Transformations 3-4 3.1.3 Functions...Tracking Radars 3-54 3.3.11 Deception Jamming and Tracking Radars 3-55 3.3.12 Jaming and Track Radar Downlinks 3-56 3.3.13 Infrared Surveillance Systems 3

Transport and dispersion of pollutants in surface impoundments: a finite difference model

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Yeh, G.T.

1980-07-01

A surface impoundment model by finite-difference (SIMFD) has been developed. SIMFD computes the flow rate, velocity field, and the concentration distribution of pollutants in surface impoundments with any number of islands located within the region of interest. Theoretical derivations and numerical algorithm are described in detail. Instructions for the application of SIMFD and listings of the FORTRAN IV source program are provided. Two sample problems are given to illustrate the application and validity of the model.

The Use of Indirect Estimates of Soil Moisture to Initialize Coupled Models and its Impact on Short-Term and Seasonal Simulations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lapenta, William M.; Crosson, William; Dembek, Scott; Lakhtakia, Mercedes

1998-01-01

It is well known that soil moisture is a characteristic of the land surface that strongly affects the partitioning of outgoing radiation into sensible and latent heat which significantly impacts both weather and climate. Detailed land surface schemes are now being coupled to mesoscale atmospheric models in order to represent the effect of soil moisture upon atmospheric simulations. However, there is little direct soil moisture data available to initialize these models on regional to continental scales. As a result, a Soil Hydrology Model (SHM) is currently being used to generate an indirect estimate of the soil moisture conditions over the continental United States at a grid resolution of 36 Km on a daily basis since 8 May 1995. The SHM is forced by analyses of atmospheric observations including precipitation and contains detailed information on slope soil and landcover characteristics.The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the utility of initializing a detailed coupled model with the soil moisture data produced by SHM.

Enabling high-quality observations of surface imperviousness for water runoff modelling from unmanned aerial vehicles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tokarczyk, Piotr; Leitao, Joao Paulo; Rieckermann, Jörg; Schindler, Konrad; Blumensaat, Frank

2015-04-01

Modelling rainfall-runoff in urban areas is increasingly applied to support flood risk assessment particularly against the background of a changing climate and an increasing urbanization. These models typically rely on high-quality data for rainfall and surface characteristics of the area. While recent research in urban drainage has been focusing on providing spatially detailed rainfall data, the technological advances in remote sensing that ease the acquisition of detailed land-use information are less prominently discussed within the community. The relevance of such methods increase as in many parts of the globe, accurate land-use information is generally lacking, because detailed image data is unavailable. Modern unmanned air vehicles (UAVs) allow acquiring high-resolution images on a local level at comparably lower cost, performing on-demand repetitive measurements, and obtaining a degree of detail tailored for the purpose of the study. In this study, we investigate for the first time the possibility to derive high-resolution imperviousness maps for urban areas from UAV imagery and to use this information as input for urban drainage models. To do so, an automatic processing pipeline with a modern classification method is tested and applied in a state-of-the-art urban drainage modelling exercise. In a real-life case study in the area of Lucerne, Switzerland, we compare imperviousness maps generated from a consumer micro-UAV and standard large-format aerial images acquired by the Swiss national mapping agency (swisstopo). After assessing their correctness, we perform an end-to-end comparison, in which they are used as an input for an urban drainage model. Then, we evaluate the influence which different image data sources and their processing methods have on hydrological and hydraulic model performance. We analyze the surface runoff of the 307 individual sub-catchments regarding relevant attributes, such as peak runoff and volume. Finally, we evaluate the model's channel flow prediction performance through a cross-comparison with reference flow measured at the catchment outlet. We show that imperviousness maps generated using UAV imagery processed with modern classification methods achieve accuracy comparable with standard, off-the-shelf aerial imagery. In the examined case study, we find that the different imperviousness maps only have a limited influence on modelled surface runoff and pipe flows. We conclude that UAV imagery represents a valuable alternative data source for urban drainage model applications due to the possibility to flexibly acquire up-to-date aerial images at a superior quality and a competitive price. Our analyses furthermore suggest that spatially more detailed urban drainage models can even better benefit from the full detail of UAV imagery.

High-quality observation of surface imperviousness for urban runoff modelling using UAV imagery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tokarczyk, P.; Leitao, J. P.; Rieckermann, J.; Schindler, K.; Blumensaat, F.

2015-01-01

Modelling rainfall-runoff in urban areas is increasingly applied to support flood risk assessment particularly against the background of a changing climate and an increasing urbanization. These models typically rely on high-quality data for rainfall and surface characteristics of the area. While recent research in urban drainage has been focusing on providing spatially detailed rainfall data, the technological advances in remote sensing that ease the acquisition of detailed land-use information are less prominently discussed within the community. The relevance of such methods increase as in many parts of the globe, accurate land-use information is generally lacking, because detailed image data is unavailable. Modern unmanned air vehicles (UAVs) allow acquiring high-resolution images on a local level at comparably lower cost, performing on-demand repetitive measurements, and obtaining a degree of detail tailored for the purpose of the study. In this study, we investigate for the first time the possibility to derive high-resolution imperviousness maps for urban areas from UAV imagery and to use this information as input for urban drainage models. To do so, an automatic processing pipeline with a modern classification method is tested and applied in a state-of-the-art urban drainage modelling exercise. In a real-life case study in the area of Lucerne, Switzerland, we compare imperviousness maps generated from a consumer micro-UAV and standard large-format aerial images acquired by the Swiss national mapping agency (swisstopo). After assessing their correctness, we perform an end-to-end comparison, in which they are used as an input for an urban drainage model. Then, we evaluate the influence which different image data sources and their processing methods have on hydrological and hydraulic model performance. We analyze the surface runoff of the 307 individual subcatchments regarding relevant attributes, such as peak runoff and volume. Finally, we evaluate the model's channel flow prediction performance through a cross-comparison with reference flow measured at the catchment outlet. We show that imperviousness maps generated using UAV imagery processed with modern classification methods achieve accuracy comparable with standard, off-the-shelf aerial imagery. In the examined case study, we find that the different imperviousness maps only have a limited influence on modelled surface runoff and pipe flows. We conclude that UAV imagery represents a valuable alternative data source for urban drainage model applications due to the possibility to flexibly acquire up-to-date aerial images at a superior quality and a competitive price. Our analyses furthermore suggest that spatially more detailed urban drainage models can even better benefit from the full detail of UAV imagery.

Initial stages of benzotriazole adsorption on the Cu(111) surface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Grillo, Federico; Tee, Daniel W.; Francis, Stephen M.; Früchtl, Herbert; Richardson, Neville V.

2013-05-01

Benzotriazole (BTAH) has been used as a copper corrosion inhibitor since the 1950s; however, the molecular level detail of how inhibition occurs remains a matter of debate. The onset of BTAH adsorption on a Cu(111) single crystal was investigated via scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM), vibrational spectroscopy (RAIRS) and supporting DFT modelling. BTAH adsorbs as anionic (BTA-), CuBTA is a minority species, while Cu(BTA)2, the majority of the adsorbed species, form chains, whose sections appear to diffuse in a concerted manner. The copper surface appears to reconstruct in a (2 × 1) fashion.Benzotriazole (BTAH) has been used as a copper corrosion inhibitor since the 1950s; however, the molecular level detail of how inhibition occurs remains a matter of debate. The onset of BTAH adsorption on a Cu(111) single crystal was investigated via scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM), vibrational spectroscopy (RAIRS) and supporting DFT modelling. BTAH adsorbs as anionic (BTA-), CuBTA is a minority species, while Cu(BTA)2, the majority of the adsorbed species, form chains, whose sections appear to diffuse in a concerted manner. The copper surface appears to reconstruct in a (2 × 1) fashion. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available: Calculated IR spectra, RAIRS assignments, modeling details, statistics on diffusion, experimental details, additional STM images, movie low coverage diffusing species. See DOI: 10.1039/c3nr00724c

Detailed pressure distribution measurements obtained on several configurations of an aspect-ratio-7 variable twist wing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Holbrook, G. T.; Dunham, D. M.

1985-01-01

Detailed pressure distribution measurements were made for 11 twist configurations of a unique, multisegmented wing model having an aspect ratio of 7 and a taper ratio of 1. These configurations encompassed span loads ranging from that of an untwisted wing to simple flapped wings both with and without upper-surface spoilers attached. For each of the wing twist configurations, electronic scanning pressure transducers were used to obtain 580 surface pressure measurements over the wing in about 0.1 sec. Integrated pressure distribution measurements compared favorably with force-balance measurements of lift on the model when the model centerbody lift was included. Complete plots and tabulations of the pressure distribution data for each wing twist configuration are provided.

Use of Ocean Remote Sensing Data to Enhance Predictions with a Coupled General Circulation Model

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rienecker, Michele M.

1999-01-01

Surface height, sea surface temperature and surface wind observations from satellites have given a detailed time sequence of the initiation and evolution of the 1997/98 El Nino. The data have beet complementary to the subsurface TAO moored data in their spatial resolution and extent. The impact of satellite observations on seasonal prediction in the tropical Pacific using a coupled ocean-atmosphere general circulation model will be presented.

A Parameterization for Land-Atmosphere-Cloud Exchange (PLACE): Documentation and Testing of a Detailed Process Model of the Partly Cloudy Boundary Layer over Heterogeneous Land.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wetzel, Peter J.; Boone, Aaron

1995-07-01

This paper presents a general description of, and demonstrates the capabilities of, the Parameterization for Land-Atmosphere-Cloud Exchange (PLACE). The PLACE model is a detailed process model of the partly cloudy atmospheric boundary layer and underlying heterogeneous land surfaces. In its development, particular attention has been given to three of the model's subprocesses: the prediction of boundary layer cloud amount, the treatment of surface and soil subgrid heterogeneity, and the liquid water budget. The model includes a three-parameter nonprecipitating cumulus model that feeds back to the surface and boundary layer through radiative effects. Surface heterogeneity in the PLACE model is treated both statistically and by resolving explicit subgrid patches. The model maintains a vertical column of liquid water that is divided into seven reservoirs, from the surface interception store down to bedrock.Five single-day demonstration cases are presented, in which the PLACE model was initialized, run, and compared to field observations from four diverse sites. The model is shown to predict cloud amount well in these while predicting the surface fluxes with similar accuracy. A slight tendency to underpredict boundary layer depth is noted in all cases.Sensitivity tests were also run using anemometer-level forcing provided by the Project for Inter-comparison of Land-surface Parameterization Schemes (PILPS). The purpose is to demonstrate the relative impact of heterogeneity of surface parameters on the predicted annual mean surface fluxes. Significant sensitivity to subgrid variability of certain parameters is demonstrated, particularly to parameters related to soil moisture. A major result is that the PLACE-computed impact of total (homogeneous) deforestation of a rain forest is comparable in magnitude to the effect of imposing heterogeneity of certain surface variables, and is similarly comparable to the overall variance among the other PILPS participant models. Were this result to be bourne out by further analysis, it would suggest that today's average land surface parameterization has little credibility when applied to discriminating the local impacts of any plausible future climate change.

Distributed parameterization of complex terrain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Band, Lawrence E.

1991-03-01

This paper addresses the incorporation of high resolution topography, soils and vegetation information into the simulation of land surface processes in atmospheric circulation models (ACM). Recent work has concentrated on detailed representation of one-dimensional exchange processes, implicitly assuming surface homogeneity over the atmospheric grid cell. Two approaches that could be taken to incorporate heterogeneity are the integration of a surface model over distributed, discrete portions of the landscape, or over a distribution function of the model parameters. However, the computational burden and parameter intensive nature of current land surface models in ACM limits the number of independent model runs and parameterizations that are feasible to accomplish for operational purposes. Therefore, simplications in the representation of the vertical exchange processes may be necessary to incorporate the effects of landscape variability and horizontal divergence of energy and water. The strategy is then to trade off the detail and rigor of point exchange calculations for the ability to repeat those calculations over extensive, complex terrain. It is clear the parameterization process for this approach must be automated such that large spatial databases collected from remotely sensed images, digital terrain models and digital maps can be efficiently summarized and transformed into the appropriate parameter sets. Ideally, the landscape should be partitioned into surface units that maximize between unit variance while minimizing within unit variance, although it is recognized that some level of surface heterogeneity will be retained at all scales. Therefore, the geographic data processing necessary to automate the distributed parameterization should be able to estimate or predict parameter distributional information within each surface unit.

A new MRI land surface model HAL

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hosaka, M.

2011-12-01

A land surface model HAL is newly developed for MRI-ESM1. It is used for the CMIP simulations. HAL consists of three submodels: SiByl (vegetation), SNOWA (snow) and SOILA (soil) in the current version. It also contains a land coupler LCUP which connects some submodels and an atmospheric model. The vegetation submodel SiByl has surface vegetation processes similar to JMA/SiB (Sato et al. 1987, Hirai et al. 2007). SiByl has 2 vegetation layers (canopy and grass) and calculates heat, moisture, and momentum fluxes between the land surface and the atmosphere. The snow submodel SNOWA can have any number of snow layers and the maximum value is set to 8 for the CMIP5 experiments. Temperature, SWE, density, grain size and the aerosol deposition contents of each layer are predicted. The snow properties including the grain size are predicted due to snow metamorphism processes (Niwano et al., 2011), and the snow albedo is diagnosed from the aerosol mixing ratio, the snow properties and the temperature (Aoki et al., 2011). The soil submodel SOILA can also have any number of soil layers, and is composed of 14 soil layers in the CMIP5 experiments. The temperature of each layer is predicted by solving heat conduction equations. The soil moisture is predicted by solving the Darcy equation, in which hydraulic conductivity depends on the soil moisture. The land coupler LCUP is designed to enable the complicated constructions of the submidels. HAL can include some competing submodels (precise and detailed ones, and simpler ones), and they can run at the same simulations. LCUP enables a 2-step model validation, in which we compare the results of the detailed submodels with the in-situ observation directly at the 1st step, and follows the comparison between them and those of the simpler ones at the 2nd step. When the performances of the detailed ones are good, we can improve the simpler ones by using the detailed ones as reference models.

Simulation of the communication system between an AUV group and a surface station

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Burtovaya, D.; Demin, A.; Demeshko, M.; Moiseev, A.; Kudryashova, A.

2017-01-01

An object model for simulation of the communications system of an autonomous underwater vehicles (AUV) group with a surface station is proposed in the paper. Implementation of the model is made on the basis of the software package “Object Distribution Simulation”. All structural relationships and behavior details are described. The application was developed on the basis of the proposed model and is now used for computational experiments on the simulation of the communications system between the autonomous underwater vehicles group and a surface station.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Grenon, Cedric; Lake, Kayll

We generalize the Swiss-cheese cosmologies so as to include nonzero linear momenta of the associated boundary surfaces. The evolution of mass scales in these generalized cosmologies is studied for a variety of models for the background without having to specify any details within the local inhomogeneities. We find that the final effective gravitational mass and size of the evolving inhomogeneities depends on their linear momenta but these properties are essentially unaffected by the details of the background model.

Improved ceramic slip casting technique. [application to aircraft model fabrication

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Buck, Gregory M. (Inventor); Vasquez, Peter (Inventor)

1993-01-01

A primary concern in modern fluid dynamics research is the experimental verification of computational aerothermodynamic codes. This research requires high precision and detail in the test model employed. Ceramic materials are used for these models because of their low heat conductivity and their survivability at high temperatures. To fabricate such models, slip casting techniques were developed to provide net-form, precision casting capability for high-purity ceramic materials in aqueous solutions. In previous slip casting techniques, block, or flask molds made of plaster-of-paris were used to draw liquid from the slip material. Upon setting, parts were removed from the flask mold and cured in a kiln at high temperatures. Casting detail was usually limited with this technique -- detailed parts were frequently damaged upon separation from the flask mold, as the molded parts are extremely delicate in the uncured state, and the flask mold is inflexible. Ceramic surfaces were also marred by 'parting lines' caused by mold separation. This adversely affected the aerodynamic surface quality of the model as well. (Parting lines are invariably necessary on or near the leading edges of wings, nosetips, and fins for mold separation. These areas are also critical for flow boundary layer control.) Parting agents used in the casting process also affected surface quality. These agents eventually soaked into the mold, the model, or flaked off when releasing the case model. Different materials were tried, such as oils, paraffin, and even an algae. The algae released best, but some of it remained on the model and imparted an uneven texture and discoloration on the model surface when cured. According to the present invention, a wax pattern for a shell mold is provided, and an aqueous mixture of a calcium sulfate-bonded investment material is applied as a coating to the wax pattern. The coated wax pattern is then dried, followed by curing to vaporize the wax pattern and leave a shell mold of the calcium sulfate-bonded investment material. The shell mold is cooled to room temperature, and a ceramic slip is poured therein. After a ceramic shell of desired thickness has set up in the shell mold, excess ceramic slip is poured out. While still wet, the shell mold is peeled from the ceramic shell to expose any delicate or detailed parts, after which the ceramic shell is cured to provide a complete, detailed, precision ceramic article without parting lines.

Surface plasmon dispersion analysis in the metal-oxide-metal tunnel diode

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Donohue, J. F.; Wang, E. Y.

1987-01-01

A detailed model of surface plasmon dispersion in the metal-oxide-metal tunnel diode is presented in order to clarify the spectral emission from this diode. The model predicts the location of the spectral peaks and the emission between the peaks by considering the effects of retardation on the surface plasmon. A nonradiative mode is found to play a major role in the transition from the visible to UV peaks in the diode spectra.

Passive Optical Technique to Measure Physical Properties of a Vibrating Surface

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-01-01

it is not necessary to understand the details of a non-Lambertian BRDF to detect surface vibration phenomena, an accurate model incorporating physics...summarize the discussion of BRDF , while a physics-based BRDF model is not necessary to use scattered light as a surface vibration diagnostic, it may...penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information if it does not display a currently valid OMB control number. 1. REPORT DATE 2014 2

Detailed Anatomical and Electrophysiological Models of Human Atria and Torso for the Simulation of Atrial Activation

PubMed Central

Ferrer, Ana; Sebastián, Rafael; Sánchez-Quintana, Damián; Rodríguez, José F.; Godoy, Eduardo J.; Martínez, Laura; Saiz, Javier

2015-01-01

Atrial arrhythmias, and specifically atrial fibrillation (AF), induce rapid and irregular activation patterns that appear on the torso surface as abnormal P-waves in electrocardiograms and body surface potential maps (BSPM). In recent years both P-waves and the BSPM have been used to identify the mechanisms underlying AF, such as localizing ectopic foci or high-frequency rotors. However, the relationship between the activation of the different areas of the atria and the characteristics of the BSPM and P-wave signals are still far from being completely understood. In this work we developed a multi-scale framework, which combines a highly-detailed 3D atrial model and a torso model to study the relationship between atrial activation and surface signals in sinus rhythm. Using this multi scale model, it was revealed that the best places for recording P-waves are the frontal upper right and the frontal and rear left quadrants of the torso. Our results also suggest that only nine regions (of the twenty-one structures in which the atrial surface was divided) make a significant contribution to the BSPM and determine the main P-wave characteristics. PMID:26523732

Interaction of laser pulse with confined plasma during exit surface nanosecond laser damage

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rubenchik, Alexander M.; Feit, Michael D.; Demos, Stavros G.

2013-12-01

Interpretation of spatial and time resolved images of rear surface ns laser damage in dielectrics requires understanding of the dynamic interaction of the incoming laser beam with the confined expanding plasma in the material. The detailed kinetics of the plasma, involving both expansion and retraction, depends on details of reflection and absorption in the hot material. The growth of the hot region is treated using a model previously developed to understand laser peening. The pressure is found to scale as the square root of laser intensity and drops off slowly after energy deposition is complete. For the conditions of our experimental observations in fused silica, our model predicts a pressure of about 9 GPa and a surface expansion velocity of about 1.5 km/sec, in good agreement with experimental observation.

Detailed electromagnetic simulation for the structural color of butterfly wings.

PubMed

Lee, R Todd; Smith, Glenn S

2009-07-20

Many species of butterflies exhibit interesting optical phenomena due to structural color. The physical reason for this color is subwavelength features on the surface of a single scale. The exposed surface of a scale is covered with a ridge structure. The fully three-dimensional, periodic, finite-difference time-domain method is used to create a detailed electromagnetic model of a generic ridge. A novel method for presenting the three-dimensional observed color pattern is developed. Using these tools, the change in color that is a result of varying individual features of the scale is explored. Computational models are developed that are similar to three butterflies: Morpho rhetenor, Troides magellanus, and Ancyluris meliboeus.

Stem mortality in surface fires: Part II, experimental methods for characterizing the thermal response of tree stems to heating by fires

Treesearch

D. M. Jimenez; B. W. Butler; J. Reardon

2003-01-01

Current methods for predicting fire-induced plant mortality in shrubs and trees are largely empirical. These methods are not readily linked to duff burning, soil heating, and surface fire behavior models. In response to the need for a physics-based model of this process, a detailed model for predicting the temperature distribution through a tree stem as a function of...

Morphologic Quality of DSMs Based on Optical and Radar Space Imagery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sefercik, U. G.; Bayik, C.; Karakis, S.; Jacobsen, K.

2011-09-01

Digital Surface Models (DSMs) are representing the visible surface of the earth by the height corresponding to its X-, Y-location and height value Z. The quality of a DSM can be described by the accuracy and the morphologic details. Both depend upon the used input information, the used technique and the roughness of the terrain. The influence of the topographic details to the DSM quality is shown for the test fields Istanbul and Zonguldak. Zonguldak has a rough mountainous character with heights from sea level up to 1640m, while Istanbul is dominated by rolling hills going up to an elevation of 435m. DSMs from SPOT-5, the SRTM C-band height models and ASTER GDEM have been investigated. The DSMs have been verified with height models from large scale aerial photos being more accurate and including morphologic details. It was necessary to determine and respect shifts of the height models caused by datum problems and orientation of the height models. The DSM quality is analyzed depending upon the terrain inclination. The DSM quality differs for both test fields. The morphologic quality depends upon the point spacing of the analyzed DSMs and the terrain characteristics.

Computer Graphics Meets Image Fusion: the Power of Texture Baking to Simultaneously Visualise 3d Surface Features and Colour

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Verhoeven, G. J.

2017-08-01

Since a few years, structure-from-motion and multi-view stereo pipelines have become omnipresent in the cultural heritage domain. The fact that such Image-Based Modelling (IBM) approaches are capable of providing a photo-realistic texture along the threedimensional (3D) digital surface geometry is often considered a unique selling point, certainly for those cases that aim for a visually pleasing result. However, this texture can very often also obscure the underlying geometrical details of the surface, making it very hard to assess the morphological features of the digitised artefact or scene. Instead of constantly switching between the textured and untextured version of the 3D surface model, this paper presents a new method to generate a morphology-enhanced colour texture for the 3D polymesh. The presented approach tries to overcome this switching between objects visualisations by fusing the original colour texture data with a specific depiction of the surface normals. Whether applied to the original 3D surface model or a lowresolution derivative, this newly generated texture does not solely convey the colours in a proper way but also enhances the smalland large-scale spatial and morphological features that are hard or impossible to perceive in the original textured model. In addition, the technique is very useful for low-end 3D viewers, since no additional memory and computing capacity are needed to convey relief details properly. Apart from simple visualisation purposes, the textured 3D models are now also better suited for on-surface interpretative mapping and the generation of line drawings.

Microscopic modeling of gas-surface scattering: II. Application to argon atom adsorption on a platinum (111) surface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Filinov, A.; Bonitz, M.; Loffhagen, D.

2018-06-01

A new combination of first principle molecular dynamics (MD) simulations with a rate equation model presented in the preceding paper (paper I) is applied to analyze in detail the scattering of argon atoms from a platinum (111) surface. The combined model is based on a classification of all atom trajectories according to their energies into trapped, quasi-trapped and scattering states. The number of particles in each of the three classes obeys coupled rate equations. The coefficients in the rate equations are the transition probabilities between these states which are obtained from MD simulations. While these rates are generally time-dependent, after a characteristic time scale t E of several tens of picoseconds they become stationary allowing for a rather simple analysis. Here, we investigate this time scale by analyzing in detail the temporal evolution of the energy distribution functions of the adsorbate atoms. We separately study the energy loss distribution function of the atoms and the distribution function of in-plane and perpendicular energy components. Further, we compute the sticking probability of argon atoms as a function of incident energy, angle and lattice temperature. Our model is important for plasma-surface modeling as it allows to extend accurate simulations to longer time scales.

Ab initio characterization of coupling strength for all types of dangling-bond pairs on the hydrogen-terminated Si(100)-2 × 1 surface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shaterzadeh-Yazdi, Zahra; Sanders, Barry C.; DiLabio, Gino A.

2018-04-01

Recent work has suggested that coupled silicon dangling bonds sharing an excess electron may serve as building blocks for quantum-cellular-automata cells and quantum computing schemes when constructed on hydrogen-terminated silicon surfaces. In this work, we employ ab initio density-functional theory to examine the details associated with the coupling between two dangling bonds sharing one excess electron and arranged in various configurations on models of phosphorous-doped hydrogen-terminated silicon (100) surfaces. Our results show that the coupling strength depends strongly on the relative orientation of the dangling bonds on the surface and on the separation between them. The orientation of dangling bonds is determined by the anisotropy of the silicon (100) surface, so this feature of the surface is a significant contributing factor to variations in the strength of coupling between dangling bonds. The results demonstrate that simple models for approximating tunneling, such as the Wentzel-Kramer-Brillouin method, which do not incorporate the details of surface structure, are incapable of providing reasonable estimates of tunneling rates between dangling bonds. The results provide guidance to efforts related to the development of dangling-bond based computing elements.

FROM FOLDING THEORIES TO FOLDING PROTEINS: A Review and Assessment of Simulation Studies of Protein Folding and Unfolding

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shea, Joan-Emma; Brooks, Charles L., III

2001-10-01

Beginning with simplified lattice and continuum "minimalist" models and progressing to detailed atomic models, simulation studies have augmented and directed development of the modern landscape perspective of protein folding. In this review we discuss aspects of detailed atomic simulation methods applied to studies of protein folding free energy surfaces, using biased-sampling free energy methods and temperature-induced protein unfolding. We review studies from each on systems of particular experimental interest and assess the strengths and weaknesses of each approach in the context of "exact" results for both free energies and kinetics of a minimalist model for a beta-barrel protein. We illustrate in detail how each approach is implemented and discuss analysis methods that have been developed as components of these studies. We describe key insights into the relationship between protein topology and the folding mechanism emerging from folding free energy surface calculations. We further describe the determination of detailed "pathways" and models of folding transition states that have resulted from unfolding studies. Our assessment of the two methods suggests that both can provide, often complementary, details of folding mechanism and thermodynamics, but this success relies on (a) adequate sampling of diverse conformational regions for the biased-sampling free energy approach and (b) many trajectories at multiple temperatures for unfolding studies. Furthermore, we find that temperature-induced unfolding provides representatives of folding trajectories only when the topology and sequence (energy) provide a relatively funneled landscape and "off-pathway" intermediates do not exist.

Using SWAT-MODFLOW to simulate groundwater flow and groundwater-surface water interactions in an intensively irrigated stream-aquifer system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wei, X.; Bailey, R. T.

2017-12-01

Agricultural irrigated watersheds in semi-arid regions face challenges such as waterlogging, high soil salinity, reduced crop yield, and leaching of chemical species due to extreme shallow water tables resulting from long-term intensive irrigation. Hydrologic models can be used to evaluate the impact of land management practices on water yields and groundwater-surface water interactions in such regions. In this study, the newly developed SWAT-MODFLOW, a coupled surface/subsurface hydrologic model, is applied to a 950 km2 watershed in the Lower Arkansas River Valley (southeastern Colorado). The model accounts for the influence of canal diversions, irrigation applications, groundwater pumping, and earth canal seepage losses. The model provides a detailed description of surface and subsurface flow processes, thereby enabling detailed description of watershed processes such as runoff, infiltration, in-streamflow, three-dimensional groundwater flow in a heterogeneous aquifer system with sources and sinks (e.g. pumping, seepage to subsurface drains), and spatially-variable surface and groundwater exchange. The model was calibrated and tested against stream discharge from 5 stream gauges in the Arkansas River and its tributaries, groundwater levels from 70 observation wells, and evapotranspiration (ET) data estimated from satellite (ReSET) data during the 1999 to 2007 period. Since the water-use patterns within the study area are typical of many other irrigated river valleys in the United States and elsewhere, this modeling approach is transferable to other regions.

The evolution equation for the flame surface density in turbulent premixed combustion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Trouve, A.; Poinsot, T.

1992-01-01

One central ingredient in flamelet models for turbulent premixed combustion is the flame surface density. This quantity conveys most of the effects of the turbulence on the rate of energy release and is obtained via a modeled transport equation, called the Sigma-equation. Past theoretical work has produced a rigorous approach that leads to an exact, but unclosed, formulation for the turbulent Sigma-equation. In this exact Sigma-equation, it appears that the dynamical properties of the flame surface density are determined by a single parameter, namely the turbulent flame stretch. Unfortunately, the flame surface density and the turbulent flame stretch are not available from experiments and, in the absence of experimental data, little is known on the validity of the closure assumptions used in current flamelet models. Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS) is the obvious, complementary approach to get basic information on these fundamental quantities. Three-dimensional DNS of premixed flames in isotropic turbulent flow is used to estimate the different terms appearing in the Sigma-equation. A new methodology is proposed to provide the source and sink terms for the flame surface density, resolved both temporally and spatially throughout the turbulent flame brush. Using this methodology, the effects of the Lewis number on the rate of production of flame surface area are described in great detail and meaningful comparisons with flamelet models can be performed. The analysis reveals in particular the tendency of the models to overpredict flame surface dissipation as well as their inability to reproduce variations due to thermo-diffusive phenomena. Thanks to the detailed information produced by a DNS-based analysis, this type of comparison not only underscores the shortcomings of current models but also suggests ways to improve them.

Exploratory studies of the cruise performance of upper surface blown configurations: Program analysis and conclusions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Braden, J. A.; Hancock, J. P.; Hackett, J. E.; Lyman, V.

1979-01-01

The experimental data encompassing surface pressure measurements, and wake surveys at static and wind-on conditions are analyzed. Cruise performance trends reflecting nacelle geometric variations, and nozzle operating conditions are presented. Details of the modeling process are included.

Importance of Laser Scanning Resolution in the Process of Recreating the Architectural Details of Historical Buildings

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pawłowicz, Joanna A.

2017-10-01

The TLS method (Terrestrial Laser Scanning) may replace the traditional building survey methods, e.g. those requiring the use measuring tapes or range finders. This technology allows for collecting digital data in the form of a point cloud, which can be used to create a 3D model of a building. In addition, it allows for collecting data with an incredible precision, which translates into the possibility to reproduce all architectural features of a building. This data is applied in reverse engineering to create a 3D model of an object existing in a physical space. This study presents the results of a research carried out using a point cloud to recreate the architectural features of a historical building with the application of reverse engineering. The research was conducted on a two-storey residential building with a basement and an attic. Out of the building’s façade sticks a veranda featuring a complicated, wooden structure. The measurements were taken at the medium and the highest resolution using a ScanStation C10 laser scanner by Leica. The data obtained was processed using specialist software, which allowed for the application of reverse engineering, especially for reproducing the sculpted details of the veranda. Following digitization, all redundant data was removed from the point cloud and the cloud was subjected to modelling. For testing purposes, a selected part of the veranda was modelled by means of two methods: surface matching and Triangulated Irregular Network. Both modelling methods were applied in the case of data collected at medium and the highest resolution. Creating a model based on data obtained at medium resolution, both by means of the surface matching and the TIN method, does not allow for a precise recreation of architectural details. The study presents certain sculpted elements recreated based on the highest resolution data with superimposed TIN juxtaposed against a digital image. The resulting model is very precise. Creating good models requires highly accurate field data. It is important to properly choose the distance between the measuring station and the measured object in order to ensure that the angles of incidence (horizontal and vertical) of the laser beam are as straight as possible. The model created based on medium resolution offers very poor quality of details, i.e. only the bigger, basic elements of each detail are clearly visible, while the smaller ones are blurred. This is why in order to obtain data sufficient to reproduce architectural details laser scanning should be performed at the highest resolution. In addition, modelling by means of the surface matching method should be avoided - a better idea is to use the TIN method. In addition to providing a realistically-looking visualization, the method has one more important advantage - it is 4 times faster than the surface matching method.

A radiative transfer model for sea surface temperature retrieval for the along-track scanning radiometer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

ZáVody, A. M.; Mutlow, C. T.; Llewellyn-Jones, D. T.

1995-01-01

The measurements made by the along-track scanning radiometer are now converted routinely into sea surface temperature (SST). The details of the atmospheric model which had been used for deriving the SST algorithms are given, together with tables of the coefficients in the algorithms for the different SST products. The accuracy of the retrieval under normal conditions and the effect of errors in the model on the retrieved SST are briefly discussed.

New land surface digital elevation model covers the Earth

USGS Publications Warehouse

Gesch, Dean B.; Verdin, Kristine L.; Greenlee, Susan K.

1999-01-01

Land surface elevation around the world is reaching new heights—as far as its description and measurement goes. A new global digital elevation model (DEM) is being cited as a significant improvement in the quality of topographic data available for Earth science studies.Land surface elevation is one of the Earth's most fundamental geophysical properties, but the accuracy and detail with which it has been measured and described globally have been insufficient for many large-area studies. The new model, developed at the U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) EROS Data Center (EDC), has changed all that.

Comparison of microfacet BRDF model to modified Beckmann-Kirchhoff BRDF model for rough and smooth surfaces.

PubMed

Butler, Samuel D; Nauyoks, Stephen E; Marciniak, Michael A

2015-11-02

A popular class of BRDF models is the microfacet models, where geometric optics is assumed. In contrast, more complex physical optics models may more accurately predict the BRDF, but the calculation is more resource intensive. These seemingly disparate approaches are compared in detail for the rough and smooth surface approximations of the modified Beckmann-Kirchhoff BRDF model, assuming Gaussian surface statistics. An approximation relating standard Fresnel reflection with the semi-rough surface polarization term, Q, is presented for unpolarized light. For rough surfaces, the angular dependence of direction cosine space is shown to be identical to the angular dependence in the microfacet distribution function. For polished surfaces, the same comparison shows a breakdown in the microfacet models. Similarities and differences between microfacet BRDF models and the modified Beckmann-Kirchhoff model are identified. The rationale for the original Beckmann-Kirchhoff F(bk)(2) geometric term relative to both microfacet models and generalized Harvey-Shack model is presented. A modification to the geometric F(bk)(2) term in original Beckmann-Kirchhoff BRDF theory is proposed.

Effect of polymer properties and adherend surfaces on adhesion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dwight, D. W.; Wightman, J. P.

1976-01-01

High temperature polymer surface characteristics associated with joint strength were evaluated. Selected samples represented composite adherends, aluminum filler and fiber glass carrier cloth. Detailed analysis of fractured joint surfaces revealed unique characteristics typical of the specific adhesive formulations and test conditions. A fracture mechanism model was developed for correlating macroscopic shear strength and microstructure of fracture surfaces. Applications were made to unpublished data on polyimides and fluoropolymers.

A critical examination of the validity of simplified models for radiant heat transfer analysis.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Toor, J. S.; Viskanta, R.

1972-01-01

Examination of the directional effects of the simplified models by comparing the experimental data with the predictions based on simple and more detailed models for the radiation characteristics of surfaces. Analytical results indicate that the constant property diffuse and specular models do not yield the upper and lower bounds on local radiant heat flux. In general, the constant property specular analysis yields higher values of irradiation than the constant property diffuse analysis. A diffuse surface in the enclosure appears to destroy the effect of specularity of the other surfaces. Semigray and gray analyses predict the irradiation reasonably well provided that the directional properties and the specularity of the surfaces are taken into account. The uniform and nonuniform radiosity diffuse models are in satisfactory agreement with each other.

SurfKin: an ab initio kinetic code for modeling surface reactions.

PubMed

Le, Thong Nguyen-Minh; Liu, Bin; Huynh, Lam K

2014-10-05

In this article, we describe a C/C++ program called SurfKin (Surface Kinetics) to construct microkinetic mechanisms for modeling gas-surface reactions. Thermodynamic properties of reaction species are estimated based on density functional theory calculations and statistical mechanics. Rate constants for elementary steps (including adsorption, desorption, and chemical reactions on surfaces) are calculated using the classical collision theory and transition state theory. Methane decomposition and water-gas shift reaction on Ni(111) surface were chosen as test cases to validate the code implementations. The good agreement with literature data suggests this is a powerful tool to facilitate the analysis of complex reactions on surfaces, and thus it helps to effectively construct detailed microkinetic mechanisms for such surface reactions. SurfKin also opens a possibility for designing nanoscale model catalysts. Copyright © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Characterization of metal additive manufacturing surfaces using synchrotron X-ray CT and micromechanical modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kantzos, C. A.; Cunningham, R. W.; Tari, V.; Rollett, A. D.

2018-05-01

Characterizing complex surface topologies is necessary to understand stress concentrations created by rough surfaces, particularly those made via laser power-bed additive manufacturing (AM). Synchrotron-based X-ray microtomography (μ XCT) of AM surfaces was shown to provide high resolution detail of surface features and near-surface porosity. Using the CT reconstructions to instantiate a micromechanical model indicated that surface notches and near-surface porosity both act as stress concentrators, while adhered powder carried little to no load. Differences in powder size distribution had no direct effect on the relevant surface features, nor on stress concentrations. Conventional measurements of surface roughness, which are highly influenced by adhered powder, are therefore unlikely to contain the information relevant to damage accumulation and crack initiation.

Characterization of metal additive manufacturing surfaces using synchrotron X-ray CT and micromechanical modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kantzos, C. A.; Cunningham, R. W.; Tari, V.; Rollett, A. D.

2017-12-01

Characterizing complex surface topologies is necessary to understand stress concentrations created by rough surfaces, particularly those made via laser power-bed additive manufacturing (AM). Synchrotron-based X-ray microtomography (μ XCT ) of AM surfaces was shown to provide high resolution detail of surface features and near-surface porosity. Using the CT reconstructions to instantiate a micromechanical model indicated that surface notches and near-surface porosity both act as stress concentrators, while adhered powder carried little to no load. Differences in powder size distribution had no direct effect on the relevant surface features, nor on stress concentrations. Conventional measurements of surface roughness, which are highly influenced by adhered powder, are therefore unlikely to contain the information relevant to damage accumulation and crack initiation.

Multi Sensor Data Integration for AN Accurate 3d Model Generation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chhatkuli, S.; Satoh, T.; Tachibana, K.

2015-05-01

The aim of this paper is to introduce a novel technique of data integration between two different data sets, i.e. laser scanned RGB point cloud and oblique imageries derived 3D model, to create a 3D model with more details and better accuracy. In general, aerial imageries are used to create a 3D city model. Aerial imageries produce an overall decent 3D city models and generally suit to generate 3D model of building roof and some non-complex terrain. However, the automatically generated 3D model, from aerial imageries, generally suffers from the lack of accuracy in deriving the 3D model of road under the bridges, details under tree canopy, isolated trees, etc. Moreover, the automatically generated 3D model from aerial imageries also suffers from undulated road surfaces, non-conforming building shapes, loss of minute details like street furniture, etc. in many cases. On the other hand, laser scanned data and images taken from mobile vehicle platform can produce more detailed 3D road model, street furniture model, 3D model of details under bridge, etc. However, laser scanned data and images from mobile vehicle are not suitable to acquire detailed 3D model of tall buildings, roof tops, and so forth. Our proposed approach to integrate multi sensor data compensated each other's weakness and helped to create a very detailed 3D model with better accuracy. Moreover, the additional details like isolated trees, street furniture, etc. which were missing in the original 3D model derived from aerial imageries could also be integrated in the final model automatically. During the process, the noise in the laser scanned data for example people, vehicles etc. on the road were also automatically removed. Hence, even though the two dataset were acquired in different time period the integrated data set or the final 3D model was generally noise free and without unnecessary details.

The use of LiDAR-derived high-resolution DSM and intensity data to support modelling of urban flooding

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aktaruzzaman, Md.; Schmitt, Theo G.

2011-11-01

This paper addresses the issue of a detailed representation of an urban catchment in terms of hydraulic and hydrologic attributes. Modelling of urban flooding requires a detailed knowledge of urban surface characteristics. The advancement in spatial data acquisition technology such as airborne LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) has greatly facilitated the collection of high-resolution topographic information. While the use of the LiDAR-derived Digital Surface Model (DSM) has gained popularity over the last few years as input data for a flood simulation model, the use of LiDAR intensity data has remained largely unexplored in this regard. LiDAR intensity data are acquired along with elevation data during the data collection mission by an aircraft. The practice of using of just aerial images with RGB (Red, Green and Blue) wavebands is often incapable of identifying types of surface under the shadow. On the other hand, LiDAR intensity data can provide surface information independent of sunlight conditions. The focus of this study is the use of intensity data in combination with aerial images to accurately map pervious and impervious urban areas. This study presents an Object-Based Image Analysis (OBIA) framework for detecting urban land cover types, mainly pervious and impervious surfaces in order to improve the rainfall-runoff modelling. Finally, this study shows the application of highresolution DSM and land cover maps to flood simulation software in order to visualize the depth and extent of urban flooding phenomena.

V2.2_i6 L2AS Detailed Release Description November 27, 2002

Atmospheric Science Data Center

2013-03-14

... Increase the valid range of BHR and DHR from 1.0 to 1.05. This affects the scaling factors which are used to unscale the ... for heterogeneous surfaces to give a larger residual if (rho_misr - rho_model) becomes negative. In the land surface retrieval, ...

Estimation of skeletal movement of human locomotion from body surface shapes using dynamic spatial video camera (DSVC) and 4D human model.

PubMed

Saito, Toshikuni; Suzuki, Naoki; Hattori, Asaki; Suzuki, Shigeyuki; Hayashibe, Mitsuhiro; Otake, Yoshito

2006-01-01

We have been developing a DSVC (Dynamic Spatial Video Camera) system to measure and observe human locomotion quantitatively and freely. A 4D (four-dimensional) human model with detailed skeletal structure, joint, muscle, and motor functionality has been built. The purpose of our research was to estimate skeletal movements from body surface shapes using DSVC and the 4D human model. For this purpose, we constructed a body surface model of a subject and resized the standard 4D human model to match with geometrical features of the subject's body surface model. Software that integrates the DSVC system and the 4D human model, and allows dynamic skeletal state analysis from body surface movement data was also developed. We practically applied the developed system in dynamic skeletal state analysis of a lower limb in motion and were able to visualize the motion using geometrically resized standard 4D human model.

An Earth Observation Land Data Assimilation System for Data from Multiple Wavelength Domains: Water and Energy Balance Components

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Quaife, T. L.; Davenport, I. J.; Lines, E.; Styles, J.; Lewis, P.; Gurney, R. J.

2012-12-01

Satellite observations offer a spatially and temporally synoptic data source for constraining models of land surface processes, but exploitation of these data for such purposes has been largely ad-hoc to date. In part this is because traditional land surface models, and hence most land surface data assimilation schemes, have tended to focus on a specific component of the land surface problem; typically either surface fluxes of water and energy or biogeochemical cycles such as carbon and nitrogen. Furthermore the assimilation of satellite data into such models tends to be restricted to a single wavelength domain, for example passive microwave, thermal or optical, depending on the problem at hand. The next generation of land surface schemes, such as the Joint UK Land Environment Simulator (JULES) and the US Community Land Model (CLM) represent a broader range of processes but at the expense of increasing overall model complexity and in some cases reducing the level of detail in specific processes to accommodate this. Typically, the level of physical detail used to represent the interaction of electromagnetic radiation with the surface is not sufficient to enable prediction of intrinsic satellite observations (reflectance, brightness temperature and so on) and consequently these are not assimilated directly into the models. A seemingly attractive alternative is to assimilate high-level products derived from satellite observations but these are often only superficially related to the corresponding variables in land surface models due to conflicting assumptions between the two. This poster describes the water and energy balance modeling components of a project funded by the European Space Agency to develop a data assimilation scheme for the land surface and observation operators to translate between models and the intrinsic observations acquired by satellite missions. The rationale behind the design of the underlying process model is to represent the physics of the water and energy balance in as parsimonious manner as possible, using a force-restore approach, but describing the physics of electromagnetic radiation scattering at the surface sufficiently well that it is possible to assimilate the intrinsic observations made by remote sensing instruments. In this manner the initial configuration of the resulting scheme will be able to make optimal use of available satellite observations at arbitrary wavelengths and geometries. Model complexity can then be built up from this point whilst ensuring consistency with satellite observations.

Local resonances in STM manipulation of chlorobenzene on Si(111)-7×7: performance of different cluster models and density functionals

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Utecht, Manuel; Klamroth, Tillmann

2018-07-01

Hot localised charge carriers on the Si(111)-7×7 surface are modelled by small charged clusters. Such resonances induce non-local desorption, i.e. more than 10 nm away from the injection site, of chlorobenzene in scanning tunnelling microscope experiments. We used such a cluster model to characterise resonance localisation and vibrational activation for positive and negative resonances recently. In this work, we investigate to which extent the model depends on details of the used cluster or quantum chemistry methods and try to identify the smallest possible cluster suitable for a description of the neutral surface and the ion resonances. Furthermore, a detailed analysis for different chemisorption orientations is performed. While some properties, as estimates of the resonance energy or absolute values for atomic changes, show such a dependency, the main findings are very robust with respect to changes in the model and/or the chemisorption geometry.

Accuracy of Implant Position Transfer and Surface Detail Reproduction with Different Impression Materials and Techniques

PubMed Central

Alikhasi, Marzieh; Siadat, Hakimeh; Kharazifard, Mohammad Javad

2015-01-01

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to compare the accuracy of implant position transfer and surface detail reproduction using two impression techniques and materials. Materials and Methods: A metal model with two implants and three grooves of 0.25, 0.50 and 0.75 mm in depth on the flat superior surface of a die was fabricated. Ten regular-body polyether (PE) and 10 regular-body polyvinyl siloxane (PVS) impressions with square and conical transfer copings using open tray and closed tray techniques were made for each group. Impressions were poured with type IV stone, and linear and angular displacements of the replica heads were evaluated using a coordinate measuring machine (CMM). Also, accurate reproduction of the grooves was evaluated by a video measuring machine (VMM). These measurements were compared with the measurements calculated on the reference model that served as control, and the data were analyzed with two-way ANOVA and t-test at P= 0.05. Results: There was less linear displacement for PVS and less angular displacement for PE in closed-tray technique, and less linear displacement for PE in open tray technique (P<0.001). Also, the open tray technique showed less angular displacement with the use of PVS impression material. Detail reproduction accuracy was the same in all the groups (P>0.05). Conclusion: The open tray technique was more accurate using PE, and also both closed tray and open tray techniques had acceptable results with the use of PVS. The choice of impression material and technique made no significant difference in surface detail reproduction. PMID:27252761

Electrostatic propulsion beam divergence effects on spacecraft surfaces, volume 2

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hall, D. F.

1973-01-01

The third phase of a program to develop understanding of and tolerance-level criteria for the deleterious effects of electrostatic rocket exhaust (Cs, Cs(+), Hg, Hg(+)) and materials of rocket construction impinging on typical classes of spacecraft (S/C) surfaces was completed. Models of ion engine effluents and models describing the degradation of S/C surfaces by these effluents are presented. Experimental data from previous phases are summarized and Phase 2 data and analysis are presented in detail. The spacecraft design implications of ion engine contaminants are discussed.

Acoustic scale modelling of factories, part II: 1-50 Cale model investigations of factory sound fields

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hodgson, M. R.; Orlowski, R. J.

1987-03-01

In this second part of a report on factory scale modelling use of a 1:50 scale variable model as a research tool is described. Details of the model are presented. The results of measurements of reverberation time and sound propagation, made in various model configurations, are used to investigate the main factors influencing factory sound fields, and the applicability of the Sabine theory to factories. The parameters investigated are the enclosure geometry (aspect ratio, volume and roof pitch), surface absorption and fittings (density, size, surface area, vertical distribution and specific types). Despite certain limitations and uncertainties resulting, for example, from surprising results associated with surface absorption, models are shown to be effective research tools. The inapplicability of the Sabine theory is confirmed and elucidated.

Transient Catalytic Combustor Model With Detailed Gas and Surface Chemistry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Struk, Peter M.; Dietrich, Daniel L.; Mellish, Benjamin P.; Miller, Fletcher J.; Tien, James S.

2005-01-01

In this work, we numerically investigate the transient combustion of a premixed gas mixture in a narrow, perfectly-insulated, catalytic channel which can represent an interior channel of a catalytic monolith. The model assumes a quasi-steady gas-phase and a transient, thermally thin solid phase. The gas phase is one-dimensional, but it does account for heat and mass transfer in a direction perpendicular to the flow via appropriate heat and mass transfer coefficients. The model neglects axial conduction in both the gas and in the solid. The model includes both detailed gas-phase reactions and catalytic surface reactions. The reactants modeled so far include lean mixtures of dry CO and CO/H2 mixtures, with pure oxygen as the oxidizer. The results include transient computations of light-off and system response to inlet condition variations. In some cases, the model predicts two different steady-state solutions depending on whether the channel is initially hot or cold. Additionally, the model suggests that the catalytic ignition of CO/O2 mixtures is extremely sensitive to small variations of inlet equivalence ratios and parts per million levels of H2.

Structure and Dynamics of Solvated Polymers near a Silica Surface: On the Different Roles Played by Solvent.

PubMed

Perrin, Elsa; Schoen, Martin; Coudert, François-Xavier; Boutin, Anne

2018-04-26

Whereas it is experimentally known that the inclusion of nanoparticles in hydrogels can lead to a mechanical reinforcement, a detailed molecular understanding of the adhesion mechanism is still lacking. Here we use coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the nature of the interface between silica surfaces and solvated polymers. We show how differences in the nature of the polymer and the polymer-solvent interactions can lead to drastically different behavior of the polymer-surface adhesion. Comparing explicit and implicit solvent models, we conclude that this effect cannot be fully described in an implicit solvent. We highlight the crucial role of polymer solvation for the adsorption of the polymer chain on the silica surface, the significant dynamics of polymer chains on the surface, and details of the modifications in the structure solvated polymer close to the interface.

An ab initio cluster study of the chemisorption of atomic cesium and hydrogen on reconstructed surfaces of gallium rich gallium arsenide

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schailey, Ronald

1999-11-01

Chemisorption properties of cesium and hydrogen atoms on the Ga-rich GaAs (100) (2 x 1), (2 x 2), and β(4 x 2) surfaces are investigated using ab initio self-consistent restricted open shell Hartree-Fock (ROHF) total energy calculations with Hay- Wadt effective core potentials. The effects of electron correlation have been included using many-body perturbation theory through second order, with the exception of β(4 x 2) symmetry due to computational limitations. The semiconductor surface is modeled by finite sized hydrogen saturated clusters. The effects of surface relaxation and reconstruction have been investigated in detail. Results are given for the energetics of chemisorption, charge population analysis, HOMO-LUMO gaps, and consequent possibilities of metallization for atomic cesium adsorption. For the chemisorption of atomic hydrogen, the experimentally verified mechanism of surface dimer bond breaking is investigated in detail.

D Model of AL Zubarah Fortress in Qatar - Terrestrial Laser Scanning VS. Dense Image Matching

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kersten, T.; Mechelke, K.; Maziull, L.

2015-02-01

In September 2011 the fortress Al Zubarah, built in 1938 as a typical Arabic fortress and restored in 1987 as a museum, was recorded by the HafenCity University Hamburg using terrestrial laser scanning with the IMAGER 5006h and digital photogrammetry for the Qatar Museum Authority within the framework of the Qatar Islamic Archaeology and Heritage Project. One goal of the object recording was to provide detailed 2D/3D documentation of the fortress. This was used to complete specific detailed restoration work in the recent years. From the registered laser scanning point clouds several cuttings and 2D plans were generated as well as a 3D surface model by triangle meshing. Additionally, point clouds and surface models were automatically generated from digital imagery from a Nikon D70 using the open-source software Bundler/PMVS2, free software VisualSFM, Autodesk Web Service 123D Catch beta, and low-cost software Agisoft PhotoScan. These outputs were compared with the results from terrestrial laser scanning. The point clouds and surface models derived from imagery could not achieve the same quality of geometrical accuracy as laser scanning (i.e. 1-2 cm).

A Huygens Surface Approach to Antenna Implementation in Near-Field Radar Imaging System Simulations

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-08-01

environment. The model consists of an ultra - wideband , forward-looking radar imaging system, equipped with a multi-static antenna array and mounted on a...of the receiving antenna. 2.2 Huygens Surface Implementation Details The NAFDTD code implements the excitation waveform as a short, ultra - wideband ...

Transient atomic behavior and surface kinetics of GaN

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moseley, Michael; Billingsley, Daniel; Henderson, Walter; Trybus, Elaissa; Doolittle, W. Alan

2009-07-01

An in-depth model for the transient behavior of metal atoms adsorbed on the surface of GaN is developed. This model is developed by qualitatively analyzing transient reflection high energy electron diffraction (RHEED) signals, which were recorded for a variety of growth conditions of GaN grown by molecular-beam epitaxy (MBE) using metal-modulated epitaxy (MME). Details such as the initial desorption of a nitrogen adlayer and the formation of the Ga monolayer, bilayer, and droplets are monitored using RHEED and related to Ga flux and shutter cycles. The suggested model increases the understanding of the surface kinetics of GaN, provides an indirect method of monitoring the kinetic evolution of these surfaces, and introduces a novel method of in situ growth rate determination.

Evaluation of parameterization for turbulent fluxes of momentum and heat in stably stratified surface layers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sodemann, H.; Foken, Th.

2003-04-01

General Circulation Models calculate the energy exchange between surface and atmosphere by means of parameterisations for turbulent fluxes of momentum and heat in the surface layer. However, currently implemented parameterisations after Louis (1979) create large discrepancies between predictions and observational data, especially in stably stratified surface layers. This work evaluates a new surface layer parameterisation proposed by Zilitinkevich et al. (2002), which was specifically developed to improve energy flux predictions in stable stratification. The evaluation comprises a detailed study of important surface layer characteristics, a sensitivity study of the parameterisation, and a direct comparison to observational data from Antarctica and predictions by the Louis (1979) parameterisation. The stability structure of the stable surface layer was found to be very complex, and strongly influenced fluxes in the surface layer. The sensitivity study revealed that the new parameterisation depends strongly on the ratio between roughness length and roughness temperature, which were both observed to be very variable parameters. The comparison between predictions and measurements showed good agreement for momentum fluxes, but large discrepancies for heat fluxes. A stability dependent evaluation of selected data showed better agreement for the new parameterisation of Zilitinkevich et al. (2002) than for the Louis (1979) scheme. Nevertheless, this comparison underlines the need for more detailed and physically sound concepts for parameterisations of heat fluxes in stably stratified surface layers. Zilitinkevich, S. S., V. Perov and J. C. King (2002). "Near-surface turbulent fluxes in stable stratification: Calculation techniques for use in General Circulation Models." Q. J. R. Meteorol. Soc. 128(583): 1571--1587. Louis, J. F. (1979). "A Parametric Model of Vertical Eddy Fluxes in the Atmosphere." Bound.-Layer Meteor. 17(2): 187--202.

Heterogeneous structure and surface tension effects on mechanical response in pulmonary acinus: A finite element analysis.

PubMed

Koshiyama, Kenichiro; Nishimoto, Keisuke; Ii, Satoshi; Sera, Toshihiro; Wada, Shigeo

2018-01-20

The pulmonary acinus is a dead-end microstructure that consists of ducts and alveoli. High-resolution micro-CT imaging has recently provided detailed anatomical information of a complete in vivo acinus, but relating its mechanical response with its detailed acinar structure remains challenging. This study aimed to investigate the mechanical response of acinar tissue in a whole acinus for static inflation using computational approaches. We performed finite element analysis of a whole acinus for static inflation. The acinar structure model was generated based on micro-CT images of an intact acinus. A continuum mechanics model of the lung parenchyma was used for acinar tissue material model, and surface tension effects were explicitly included. An anisotropic mechanical field analysis based on a stretch tensor was combined with a curvature-based local structure analysis. The airspace of the acinus exhibited nonspherical deformation as a result of the anisotropic deformation of acinar tissue. A strain hotspot occurred at the ridge-shaped region caused by a rod-like deformation of acinar tissue on the ridge. The local structure becomes bowl-shaped for inflation and, without surface tension effects, the surface of the bowl-shaped region primarily experiences isotropic deformation. Surface tension effects suppressed the increase in airspace volume and inner surface area, while facilitating anisotropic deformation on the alveolar surface. In the lungs, the heterogeneous acinar structure and surface tension induce anisotropic deformation at the acinar and alveolar scales. Further research is needed on structural variation of acini, inter-acini connectivity, or dynamic behavior to understand multiscale lung mechanics. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Predictive model for ice formation on superhydrophobic surfaces.

PubMed

Bahadur, Vaibhav; Mishchenko, Lidiya; Hatton, Benjamin; Taylor, J Ashley; Aizenberg, Joanna; Krupenkin, Tom

2011-12-06

The prevention and control of ice accumulation has important applications in aviation, building construction, and energy conversion devices. One area of active research concerns the use of superhydrophobic surfaces for preventing ice formation. The present work develops a physics-based modeling framework to predict ice formation on cooled superhydrophobic surfaces resulting from the impact of supercooled water droplets. This modeling approach analyzes the multiple phenomena influencing ice formation on superhydrophobic surfaces through the development of submodels describing droplet impact dynamics, heat transfer, and heterogeneous ice nucleation. These models are then integrated together to achieve a comprehensive understanding of ice formation upon impact of liquid droplets at freezing conditions. The accuracy of this model is validated by its successful prediction of the experimental findings that demonstrate that superhydrophobic surfaces can fully prevent the freezing of impacting water droplets down to surface temperatures of as low as -20 to -25 °C. The model can be used to study the influence of surface morphology, surface chemistry, and fluid and thermal properties on dynamic ice formation and identify parameters critical to achieving icephobic surfaces. The framework of the present work is the first detailed modeling tool developed for the design and analysis of surfaces for various ice prevention/reduction strategies. © 2011 American Chemical Society

Simulating pesticide transport in urbanized catchments: a new spatially-distributed dynamic pesticide runoff model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tang, Ting; Seuntjens, Piet; van Griensven, Ann; Bronders, Jan

2016-04-01

Urban areas can significantly contribute to pesticide contamination in surface water. However, pesticide behaviours in urban areas, particularly on hard surfaces, are far less studied than those in agricultural areas. Pesticide application on hard surfaces (e.g. roadsides and walkways) is of particular concern due to the high imperviousness and therefore high pesticide runoff potential. Experimental studies have shown that pesticide behaviours on and interactions with hard surfaces are important factors controlling the pesticide runoff potential, and therefore the magnitude and timing of peak concentrations in surface water. We conceptualized pesticide behaviours on hard surfaces and incorporated the conceptualization into a new pesticide runoff model. The pesticide runoff model was implemented in a catchment hydrological model WetSpa-Python (Water and Energy Transfer between Soil, Plants and Atmosphere, Python version). The conceptualization for pesticide processes on hard surfaces accounts for the differences in pesticide behaviour on different hard surfaces. Four parameters are used to describe the partitioning and wash-off of each pesticide on hard surfaces. We tested the conceptualization using experimental dataset for five pesticides on two types of hard surfaces, namely concrete and asphalt. The conceptualization gave good performance in accounting for the wash-off pattern for the modelled pesticides and surfaces, according to quantitative evaluations using the Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency and percent bias. The resulting pesticide runoff model WetSpa-PST (WetSpa for PeSTicides) can simulate pesticides and their metabolites at the catchment scale. Overall, it includes four groups of pesticide processes, namely pesticide application, pesticide interception by plant foliage, pesticide processes on land surfaces (including partitioning, degradation and wash-off on hard surface; partitioning, dissipation, infiltration and runoff in soil) and pesticide processes in depression storage (including degradation, infiltration and runoff). Processes on hard surfaces employs the conceptualization described in the paragraph above. The WetSpa-PST model can account for various spatial details of the urban features in a catchment, such as asphalt, concrete and roof areas. The distributed feature also allows users to input detailed pesticide application data of both non-point and point origins. Thanks to the Python modelling framework prototype used in the WetSpa-Python model, processes in the WetSpa-PST model can be simulated at different time steps depending on data availability and the characteristic temporal scale of each process. This helps to increase the computational accuracy during heavy rainfall events, especially for the associated fast transport of pesticides into surface water. Overall, the WetSpa-PST model has good potential in predicting effects of management options on pesticide releases from heavily urbanized catchments.

Spin-flip transitions and departure from the Rashba model in the Au(111) surface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ibañez-Azpiroz, Julen; Bergara, Aitor; Sherman, E. Ya.; Eiguren, Asier

2013-09-01

We present a detailed analysis of the spin-flip excitations induced by a periodic time-dependent electric field in the Rashba prototype Au(111) noble metal surface. Our calculations incorporate the full spinor structure of the spin-split surface states and employ a Wannier-based scheme for the spin-flip matrix elements. We find that the spin-flip excitations associated with the surface states exhibit an strong dependence on the electron momentum magnitude, a feature that is absent in the standard Rashba model [E. I. Rashba, Sov. Phys. Solid State 2, 1109 (1960)]. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the maximum of the calculated spin-flip absorption rate is about twice the model prediction. These results show that, although the Rashba model accurately describes the spectrum and spin polarization, it does not fully account for the dynamical properties of the surface states.

Surface and Flow Field Measurements on the FAITH Hill Model

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bell, James H.; Heineck, James T.; Zilliac, Gregory; Mehta, Rabindra D.; Long, Kurtis R.

2012-01-01

A series of experimental tests, using both qualitative and quantitative techniques, were conducted to characterize both surface and off-surface flow characteristics of an axisymmetric, modified-cosine-shaped, wall-mounted hill named "FAITH" (Fundamental Aero Investigates The Hill). Two separate models were employed: a 6" high, 18" base diameter machined aluminum model that was used for wind tunnel tests and a smaller scale (2" high, 6" base diameter) sintered nylon version that was used in the water channel facility. Wind tunnel and water channel tests were conducted at mean test section speeds of 165 fps (Reynolds Number based on height = 500,000) and 0.1 fps (Reynolds Number of 1000), respectively. The ratio of model height to boundary later height was approximately 3 for both tests. Qualitative techniques that were employed to characterize the complex flow included surface oil flow visualization for the wind tunnel tests, and dye injection for the water channel tests. Quantitative techniques that were employed to characterize the flow included Cobra Probe to determine point-wise steady and unsteady 3D velocities, Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) to determine 3D velocities and turbulence statistics along specified planes, Pressure Sensitive Paint (PSP) to determine mean surface pressures, and Fringe Imaging Skin Friction (FISF) to determine surface skin friction (magnitude and direction). This initial report summarizes the experimental set-up, techniques used, data acquired and describes some details of the dataset that is being constructed for use by other researchers, especially the CFD community. Subsequent reports will discuss the data and their interpretation in more detail

A New Scheme for Considering Soil Water-Heat Transport Coupling Based on Community Land Model: Model Description and Preliminary Validation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Chenghai; Yang, Kai

2018-04-01

Land surface models (LSMs) have developed significantly over the past few decades, with the result that most LSMs can generally reproduce the characteristics of the land surface. However, LSMs fail to reproduce some details of soil water and heat transport during seasonal transition periods because they neglect the effects of interactions between water movement and heat transfer in the soil. Such effects are critical for a complete understanding of water-heat transport within a soil thermohydraulic regime. In this study, a fully coupled water-heat transport scheme (FCS) is incorporated into the Community Land Model (version 4.5) to replaces its original isothermal scheme, which is more complete in theory. Observational data from five sites are used to validate the performance of the FCS. The simulation results at both single-point and global scale show that the FCS improved the simulation of soil moisture and temperature. FCS better reproduced the characteristics of drier and colder surface layers in arid regions by considering the diffusion of soil water vapor, which is a nonnegligible process in soil, especially for soil surface layers, while its effects in cold regions are generally inverse. It also accounted for the sensible heat fluxes caused by liquid water flow, which can contribute to heat transfer in both surface and deep layers. The FCS affects the estimation of surface sensible heat (SH) and latent heat (LH) and provides the details of soil heat and water transportation, which benefits to understand the inner physical process of soil water-heat migration.

A stochastic two-scale model for pressure-driven flow between rough surfaces

PubMed Central

Larsson, Roland; Lundström, Staffan; Wall, Peter; Almqvist, Andreas

2016-01-01

Seal surface topography typically consists of global-scale geometric features as well as local-scale roughness details and homogenization-based approaches are, therefore, readily applied. These provide for resolving the global scale (large domain) with a relatively coarse mesh, while resolving the local scale (small domain) in high detail. As the total flow decreases, however, the flow pattern becomes tortuous and this requires a larger local-scale domain to obtain a converged solution. Therefore, a classical homogenization-based approach might not be feasible for simulation of very small flows. In order to study small flows, a model allowing feasibly-sized local domains, for really small flow rates, is developed. Realization was made possible by coupling the two scales with a stochastic element. Results from numerical experiments, show that the present model is in better agreement with the direct deterministic one than the conventional homogenization type of model, both quantitatively in terms of flow rate and qualitatively in reflecting the flow pattern. PMID:27436975

Surface Evolution from Orbital Decay on Phobos

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hurford, Terry; Asphaug, Erik; Spitale, Joseph; Hemingway, Douglas; Rhoden, Alyssa; Henning, Wade; Bills, Bruce; Kattenhorn, Simon; Walker, Matthew

2015-11-01

Phobos, the innermost satellite of Mars, displays an extensive system of grooves that are mostly symmetric about its sub-Mars point. Phobos is steadily spiraling inward due to the tides it raises, and will suffer tidal disruption before colliding with Mars. We calculate the surface stress field of the de-orbiting satellite and show that the first signs of tidal disruption are already present on its surface. Most of Phobos’ prominent grooves have an excellent correlation with computed stress orientations. The model predicts an interior that has very low strength on the tidal evolution timescale, overlain by a ~10-100 m exterior shell that has elastic properties similar to lunar regolith.Shortly after the Viking spacecraft obtained the first geomorphic images of Phobos, it was proposed that stresses from orbital decay cause grooves. But, assuming a homogeneous Phobos, it proved impossible to account for the build-up of failure stress in the exterior regardless of the value assumed for Phobos’ rigidity. Hence, the tidal model languished. Here, we revisit the tidal origin of surface fractures with a more detailed treatment that shows the production of significant stress in a surface layer, with a very strong correlation to the geometry of grooves.Our model results applied to surface observations imply that Phobos has a rubble pile interior that is nearly strengthless. A lunar-like cohesive regolith outer layer overlays the rubble pile interior. This outer layer behaves elastically and can experience significant tidal stress at levels able to drive tensile failure. Fissures can develop as the global body deforms due to increasing tides related to orbital decay. Phobos may have an active and evolving surface; an exciting target for further exploration. The interior predictions of this model can be evaluated by future detailed studies performed by an orbiter or lander.

Nature of adsorption on TiC(111) investigated with density-functional calculations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ruberto, Carlo; Lundqvist, Bengt I.

2007-06-01

Extensive density-functional calculations are performed for chemisorption of atoms in the three first periods (H, B, C, N, O, F, Al, Si, P, S, and Cl) on the polar TiC(111) surface. Calculations are also performed for O on TiC(001), for full O(1×1) monolayer on TiC(111), as well as for bulk TiC and for the clean TiC(111) and (001) surfaces. Detailed results concerning atomic structures, energetics, and electronic structures are presented. For the bulk and the clean surfaces, previous results are confirmed. In addition, detailed results are given on the presence of C-C bonds in the bulk and at the surface, as well as on the presence of a Ti-based surface resonance (TiSR) at the Fermi level and of C-based surface resonances (CSR’s) in the lower part of the surface upper valence band. For the adsorption, adsorption energies Eads and relaxed geometries are presented, showing great variations characterized by pyramid-shaped Eads trends within each period. An extraordinarily strong chemisorption is found for the O atom, 8.8eV /adatom. On the basis of the calculated electronic structures, a concerted-coupling model for the chemisorption is proposed, in which two different types of adatom-substrate interactions work together to provide the obtained strong chemisorption: (i) adatom-TiSR and (ii) adatom-CSR’s. This model is used to successfully describe the essential features of the calculated Eads trends. The fundamental nature of this model, based on the Newns-Anderson model, should make it apt for general application to transition-metal carbides and nitrides and for predictive purposes in technological applications, such as cutting-tool multilayer coatings and MAX phases.

Wireless Channel Characterization in the 5 GHz Microwave Landing System Extension Band for Airport Surface Areas

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Matolak, David W.

2007-01-01

In this project final report, entitled "Wireless Channel Characterization in the 5 GHz Microwave Landing System Extension Band for Airport Surface Areas," we provide a detailed description and model representation for the wireless channel in the airport surface environment in this band. In this executive summary, we review report contents, describe the achieved objectives and major findings, and highlight significant conclusions and recommendations.

Verification of Methods for Assessing the Sustainability of Monitored Natural Attenuation (MNA)

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-01-01

surface CVOC chlorinated volatile organic compound DCE cis-1,2-Dichloroethylene DNAPL dense non-aqueous phase liquid DO dissolved oxygen DOC...considered detailed representations of aquifer heterogeneity, DNAPL distributions, and interfacial surface area. Thus, the upscaled SZD function considers...the effects of decreases in interfacial surface area with time as NAPL mass depletes, but not in an explicit manner. Likewise, the upscaled model is

Passive Optical Detection of a Vibrating Surface

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-01-01

modulation from any given surface? Clearly a detailed mathematical model of light scattering (i.e., BRDF ) is needed, so that we may take the partial...reflectance distribution function ( BRDF ): “The BRDF is a derivative, a distri- bution function, relating the irradiance incident from one given...direction to its contribution to the reflected radiance in another direction.” In other words, the BRDF is a multidimensional surface: the relevant variables

Derivation of Ground Surface and Vegetation in a Coastal Florida Wetland with Airborne Laser Technology

USGS Publications Warehouse

Raabe, Ellen A.; Harris, Melanie S.; Shrestha, Ramesh L.; Carter, William E.

2008-01-01

The geomorphology and vegetation of marsh-dominated coastal lowlands were mapped from airborne laser data points collected on the Gulf Coast of Florida near Cedar Key. Surface models were developed using low- and high-point filters to separate ground-surface and vegetation-canopy intercepts. In a non-automated process, the landscape was partitioned into functional landscape units to manage the modeling of key landscape features in discrete processing steps. The final digital ground surface-elevation model offers a faithful representation of topographic relief beneath canopies of tidal marsh and coastal forest. Bare-earth models approximate field-surveyed heights by + 0.17 m in the open marsh and + 0.22 m under thick marsh or forest canopy. The laser-derived digital surface models effectively delineate surface features of relatively inaccessible coastal habitats with a geographic coverage and vertical detail previously unavailable. Coastal topographic details include tidal-creek tributaries, levees, modest topographic undulations in the intertidal zone, karst features, silviculture, and relict sand dunes under coastal-forest canopy. A combination of laser-derived ground-surface and canopy-height models and intensity values provided additional mapping capabilities to differentiate between tidal-marsh zones and forest types such as mesic flatwood, hydric hammock, and oak scrub. Additional derived products include fine-scale shoreline and topographic profiles. The derived products demonstrate the capability to identify areas of concern to resource managers and unique components of the coastal system from laser altimetry. Because the very nature of a wetland system presents difficulties for access and data collection, airborne coverage from remote sensors has become an accepted alternative for monitoring wetland regions. Data acquisition with airborne laser represents a viable option for mapping coastal topography and for evaluating habitats and coastal change on marsh-dominated coasts. Such datasets can be instrumental in effective coastal-resource management.

Geoid undulations and gravity anomalies over the Aral Sea, the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea from a combined GEOS-3/SEASAT/GEOSAT altimeter data set

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Au, Andrew Y.; Brown, Richard D.; Welker, Jean E.

1991-01-01

Satellite-based altimetric data taken by GOES-3, SEASAT, and GEOSAT over the Aral Sea, the Black Sea, and the Caspian Sea are analyzed and a least squares collocation technique is used to predict the geoid undulations on a 0.25x0.25 deg. grid and to transform these geoid undulations to free air gravity anomalies. Rapp's 180x180 geopotential model is used as the reference surface for the collocation procedure. The result of geoid to gravity transformation is, however, sensitive to the information content of the reference geopotential model used. For example, considerable detailed surface gravity data were incorporated into the reference model over the Black Sea, resulting in a reference model with significant information content at short wavelengths. Thus, estimation of short wavelength gravity anomalies from gridded geoid heights is generally reliable over regions such as the Black Sea, using the conventional collocation technique with local empirical covariance functions. Over regions such as the Caspian Sea, where detailed surface data are generally not incorporated into the reference model, unconventional techniques are needed to obtain reliable gravity anomalies. Based on the predicted gravity anomalies over these inland seas, speculative tectonic structures are identified and geophysical processes are inferred.

Using remotely-sensed multispectral imagery to build age models for alluvial fan surfaces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

D'Arcy, Mitch; Mason, Philippa J.; Roda Boluda, Duna C.; Whittaker, Alexander C.; Lewis, James

2016-04-01

Accurate exposure age models are essential for much geomorphological field research, and generally depend on laboratory analyses such as radiocarbon, cosmogenic nuclide, or luminescence techniques. These approaches continue to revolutionise geomorphology, however they cannot be deployed remotely or in situ in the field. Therefore other methods are still needed for producing preliminary age models, performing relative dating of surfaces, or selecting sampling sites for the laboratory analyses above. With the widespread availability of detailed multispectral imagery, a promising approach is to use remotely-sensed data to discriminate surfaces with different ages. Here, we use new Landsat 8 Operational Land Imager (OLI) multispectral imagery to characterise the reflectance of 35 alluvial fan surfaces in the semi-arid Owens Valley, California. Alluvial fans are useful landforms to date, as they are widely used to study the effects of tectonics, climate and sediment transport processes on source-to-sink sedimentation. Our target fan surfaces have all been mapped in detail in the field, and have well-constrained exposure ages ranging from modern to ~ 125 ka measured using a high density of 10Be cosmogenic nuclide samples. Despite all having similar granitic compositions, the spectral properties of these surfaces vary systematically with their exposure ages. Older surfaces demonstrate a predictable shift in reflectance across the visible and short-wave infrared spectrum. Simple calculations, such as the brightness ratios of different wavelengths, generate sensitive power law relationships with exposure age that depend on post-depositional alteration processes affecting these surfaces. We investigate what these processes might be in this dryland location, and evaluate the potential for using remotely-sensed multispectral imagery for developing surface age models. The ability to remotely sense relative exposure ages has useful implications for preliminary mapping, selecting sampling sites for laboratory-based exposure age techniques, and correlating existing age constraints to un-sampled surfaces.

An Adjoint-Based Analysis of the Sampling Footprints of Tall Tower, Aircraft and Potential Future Lidar Observations of CO2

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Andrews, Arlyn; Kawa, Randy; Zhu, Zhengxin; Burris, John; Abshire, Jim

2004-01-01

A detailed mechanistic understanding of the sources and sinks of CO2 will be required to reliably predict future CO2 levels and climate. A commonly used technique for deriving information about CO2 exchange with surface reservoirs is to solve an 'inverse problem', where CO2 observations are used with an atmospheric transport model to find the optimal distribution of sources and sinks. Synthesis inversion methods are powerful tools for addressing this question, but the results are disturbingly sensitive to the details of the calculation. Studies done using different atmospheric transport models and combinations of surface station data have produced substantially different distributions of surface fluxes. Adjoint methods are now being developed that will more effectively incorporate diverse datasets in estimates of surface fluxes of CO2. In an adjoint framework, it will be possible to combine CO2 concentration data from longterm surface and aircraft monitoring stations with data from intensive field campaigns and with proposed future satellite observations. We have recently developed an adjoint for the GSFC 3-D Parameterized Chemistry and Transport Model (PCTM). Here, we will present results from a PCTM Adjoint study comparing the sampling footprints of tall tower, aircraft and potential future lidar observations of CO2. The vertical resolution and extent of the profiles and the observation frequency will be considered for several sites in North America.

Multiscale Model of Swarming Bacteria

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alber, Mark

2011-03-01

Many bacteria can rapidly traverse surfaces from which they are extracting nutrient for growth. They generate flat, spreading colonies, called swarms because they resemble swarms of insects. In the beginning of the talk, swarms of the M. xanthus will be described in detail. Individual M. xanthus cells are elongated; they always move in the direction of their long axis; and they are in constant motion, repeatedly touching each other. As a cell glides, the slime capsule of a cell interacts with the bare agar surface, non-oriented slime which arises from the surface contact with the slime capsule, or oriented slime trails. Remarkably, cells regularly reverse their gliding directions. In this talk a detailed cell- and behavior-based computational model of M. xanthus swarming will be used to demonstrate that reversals of gliding direction and cell bending are essential for swarming and that specific reversal frequencies result in optimal swarming rate of the whole population. This suggests that the circuit regulating reversals evolved to its current sensitivity under selection for growth achieved by swarming.

A combined Eulerian-volume of fraction-Lagrangian method for atomization simulation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Seung, S. P.; Chen, C. P.; Ziebarth, John P.

1994-01-01

The tracking of free surfaces between liquid and gas phases and analysis of the interfacial phenomena between the two during the atomization and breakup process of a liquid fuel jet is modeled. Numerical modeling of liquid-jet atomization requires the resolution of different conservation equations. Detailed formulation and validation are presented for the confined dam broken problem, the water surface problem, the single droplet problem, a jet breakup problem, and the liquid column instability problem.

Parallel kinetic Monte Carlo simulation framework incorporating accurate models of adsorbate lateral interactions

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Nielsen, Jens; D’Avezac, Mayeul; Hetherington, James

2013-12-14

Ab initio kinetic Monte Carlo (KMC) simulations have been successfully applied for over two decades to elucidate the underlying physico-chemical phenomena on the surfaces of heterogeneous catalysts. These simulations necessitate detailed knowledge of the kinetics of elementary reactions constituting the reaction mechanism, and the energetics of the species participating in the chemistry. The information about the energetics is encoded in the formation energies of gas and surface-bound species, and the lateral interactions between adsorbates on the catalytic surface, which can be modeled at different levels of detail. The majority of previous works accounted for only pairwise-additive first nearest-neighbor interactions. Moremore » recently, cluster-expansion Hamiltonians incorporating long-range interactions and many-body terms have been used for detailed estimations of catalytic rate [C. Wu, D. J. Schmidt, C. Wolverton, and W. F. Schneider, J. Catal. 286, 88 (2012)]. In view of the increasing interest in accurate predictions of catalytic performance, there is a need for general-purpose KMC approaches incorporating detailed cluster expansion models for the adlayer energetics. We have addressed this need by building on the previously introduced graph-theoretical KMC framework, and we have developed Zacros, a FORTRAN2003 KMC package for simulating catalytic chemistries. To tackle the high computational cost in the presence of long-range interactions we introduce parallelization with OpenMP. We further benchmark our framework by simulating a KMC analogue of the NO oxidation system established by Schneider and co-workers [J. Catal. 286, 88 (2012)]. We show that taking into account only first nearest-neighbor interactions may lead to large errors in the prediction of the catalytic rate, whereas for accurate estimates thereof, one needs to include long-range terms in the cluster expansion.« less

The Martian paleoclimate and enhanced atmospheric carbon dioxide

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cess, R. D.; Owen, T.; Ramanathan, V.

1980-01-01

Current evidence indicates that the Martian surface is abundant with water presently in the form of ice, while the atmosphere was at one time more massive with a past surface pressure of as much as 1 atm of CO2. In an attempt to understand the Martian paleoclimate, a past CO2-H2O greenhouse was modeled and global temperatures which are consistent with an earlier presence of liquid surface water are found in agreement with the extensive evidence for past fluvial erosion. An important aspect of the CO2-H2O greenhouse model is the detailed inclusion of CO2 hot bands. For a surface pressure of 1 atm of CO2, the present greenhouse model predicts a global mean surface temperature of 294 K, but if the hot bands are excluded, a surface temperature of only 250 K is achieved.

Self-Shadowing of a Spacecraft in the Computation of Surface Forces. An Example in Planetary Geodesy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Balmino, G.; Marty, J. C.

2018-03-01

We describe in details the algorithms used in modelling the self-shadowing between spacecraft components, which appears when computing the surface forces as precisely as possible and especially when moving parts are involved. This becomes necessary in planetary geodesy inverse problems using more and more precise orbital information to derive fundamental parameters of geophysical interest. Examples are given with two Mars orbiters, which show significant improvement on drag and solar radiation pressure model multiplying factors, a prerequisite for improving in turn the determination of other global models.

Developments in convective heat transfer models featuring seamless and selected detail surfaces, employing electroless plating

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stalmach, C. J., Jr.

1975-01-01

Several model/instrument concepts employing electroless metallic skin were considered for improvement of surface condition, accuracy, and cost of contoured-geometry convective heat transfer models. A plated semi-infinite slab approach was chosen for development and evaluation in a hypersonic wind tunnel. The plated slab model consists of an epoxy casting containing fine constantan wires accurately placed at specified surface locations. An electroless alloy was deposited on the plastic surface that provides a hard, uniformly thick, seamless skin. The chosen alloy forms a high-output thermocouple junction with each exposed constantan wire, providing means of determining heat transfer during tunnel testing of the model. A selective electroless plating procedure was used to deposit scaled heatshield tiles on the lower surface of a 0.0175-scale shuttle orbiter model. Twenty-five percent of the tiles were randomly selected and plated to a height of 0.001-inch. The purpose was to assess the heating effects of surface roughness simulating misalignment of tiles that may occur during manufacture of the spacecraft.

The topographic development and areal parametric characterization of a stratified surface polished by mass finishing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Walton, Karl; Blunt, Liam; Fleming, Leigh

2015-09-01

Mass finishing is amongst the most widely used finishing processes in modern manufacturing, in applications from deburring to edge radiusing and polishing. Processing objectives are varied, ranging from the cosmetic to the functionally critical. One such critical application is the hydraulically smooth polishing of aero engine component gas-washed surfaces. In this, and many other applications the drive to improve process control and finish tolerance is ever present. Considering its widespread use mass finishing has seen limited research activity, particularly with respect to surface characterization. The objectives of the current paper are to; characterise the mass finished stratified surface and its development process using areal surface parameters, provide guidance on the optimal parameters and sampling method to characterise this surface type for a given application, and detail the spatial variation in surface topography due to coupon edge shadowing. Blasted and peened square plate coupons in titanium alloy are wet (vibro) mass finished iteratively with increasing duration. Measurement fields are precisely relocated between iterations by fixturing and an image superimposition alignment technique. Surface topography development is detailed with ‘log of process duration’ plots of the ‘areal parameters for scale-limited stratified functional surfaces’, (the Sk family). Characteristic features of the Smr2 plot are seen to map out the processing of peak, core and dale regions in turn. These surface process regions also become apparent in the ‘log of process duration’ plot for Sq, where lower core and dale regions are well modelled by logarithmic functions. Surface finish (Ra or Sa) with mass finishing duration is currently predicted with an exponential model. This model is shown to be limited for the current surface type at a critical range of surface finishes. Statistical analysis provides a group of areal parameters including; Vvc, Sq, and Sdq, showing optimal discrimination for a specific range of surface finish outcomes. As a consequence of edge shadowing surface segregation is suggested for characterization purposes.

Geomorphological analysis of boulders and polygons on Martian periglacial patterned ground terrains

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Orloff, Travis C.

Images from the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment Camera onboard the Mars Reconnaisance Orbiter show the surface in higher detail than previously capable. I look at a landscape on Mars called permafrost patterned ground which covers ˜10 million square kilometers of the surface at high latitudes (>50°). Using the new high resolution images available we objectively characterize permafrost patterned ground terrains as an alternative to observational surveys which while detailed suffer from subjective bias. I take two dimensional Fourier transforms of individual images of Martian permafrost patterned ground to find the scale most representative of the terrain. This scale acts as a proxy for the size of the polygons themselves. Then I look at the distribution of spectral scales in the northern hemisphere between 50-70° and find correlations to previous studies and with the extent of ground ice in the surface. The high resolution images also show boulders clustering with respect to the underlying pattern. I make the first detailed observations of these clustered boulders and use crater counting to place constraints on the time it takes for boulders to cluster. Finally, I present a potential mechanism for the process that clusters the boulders that takes the specifics of the Martian environment to account. Boulders lying on the surface get trapped in seasonal CO2 frost while ice in the near surface contracts in the winter. The CO2 frost sublimates in spring/summer allowing the boulders to move when the near surface ice expands in summer. Repeated iterations lead to boulders that cluster in the polygon edges. Using a thermal model of the subsurface with Mars conditions and an elastic model of a polygon I show boulders could move as much as ˜0.1mm per year in the present day.

General Model for Multicomponent Ablation Thermochemistry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Milos, Frank S.; Marschall, Jochen; Rasky, Daniel J. (Technical Monitor)

1994-01-01

A previous paper (AIAA 94-2042) presented equations and numerical procedures for modeling the thermochemical ablation and pyrolysis of thermal protection materials which contain multiple surface species. This work describes modifications and enhancements to the Multicomponent Ablation Thermochemistry (MAT) theory and code for application to the general case which includes surface area constraints, rate limited surface reactions, and non-thermochemical mass loss (failure). Detailed results and comparisons with data are presented for the Shuttle Orbiter reinforced carbon-carbon oxidation protection system which contains a mixture of sodium silicate (Na2SiO3), silica (SiO2), silicon carbide (SiC), and carbon (C).

An electronic system for measuring thermophysical properties of wind tunnel models

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Corwin, R. R.; Kramer, J. S.

1975-01-01

An electronic system is described which measures the surface temperature of a small portion of the surface of the model or sample at high speeds using an infrared radiometer. This data is processed along with heating rate data from the reference heat gauge in a small computer and prints out the desired thermophysical properties, time, surface temperature, and reference heat rate. This system allows fast and accurate property measurements over thirty temperature increments. The technique, the details of the apparatus, the procedure for making these measurements, and the results of some preliminary tests are presented.

Implementation of a diffusion convection surface evolution model in WallDYN

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schmid, K.

2013-07-01

In thermonuclear fusion experiments with multiple plasma facing materials the formation of mixed materials is inevitable. The formation of these mixed material layers is a dynamic process driven the tight interaction between transport in the plasma scrape off layer and erosion/(re-) deposition at the surface. To track this global material erosion/deposition balance and the resulting formation of mixed material layers the WallDYN code has been developed which couples surface processes and plasma transport. The current surface model in WallDYN cannot fully handle the growth of layers nor does it include diffusion. However at elevated temperatures diffusion is a key process in the formation of mixed materials. To remedy this shortcoming a new surface model has been developed which, for the first time, describes both layer growth/recession and diffusion in a single continuous diffusion/convection equation. The paper will detail the derivation of the new surface model and compare it to TRIDYN calculations.

Aerodynamic study of different cyclist positions: CFD analysis and full-scale wind-tunnel tests.

PubMed

Defraeye, Thijs; Blocken, Bert; Koninckx, Erwin; Hespel, Peter; Carmeliet, Jan

2010-05-07

Three different cyclist positions were evaluated with Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) and wind-tunnel experiments were used to provide reliable data to evaluate the accuracy of the CFD simulations. Specific features of this study are: (1) both steady Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) and unsteady flow modelling, with more advanced turbulence modelling techniques (Large-Eddy Simulation - LES), were evaluated; (2) the boundary layer on the cyclist's surface was resolved entirely with low-Reynolds number modelling, instead of modelling it with wall functions; (3) apart from drag measurements, also surface pressure measurements on the cyclist's body were performed in the wind-tunnel experiment, which provided the basis for a more detailed evaluation of the predicted flow field by CFD. The results show that the simulated and measured drag areas differed about 11% (RANS) and 7% (LES), which is considered to be a close agreement in CFD studies. A fair agreement with wind-tunnel data was obtained for the predicted surface pressures, especially with LES. Despite the higher accuracy of LES, its much higher computational cost could make RANS more attractive for practical use in some situations. CFD is found to be a valuable tool to evaluate the drag of different cyclist positions and to investigate the influence of small adjustments in the cyclist's position. A strong advantage of CFD is that detailed flow field information is obtained, which cannot easily be obtained from wind-tunnel tests. This detailed information allows more insight in the causes of the drag force and provides better guidance for position improvements. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Holistic versus monomeric strategies for hydrological modelling of human-modified hydrosystems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nalbantis, I.; Efstratiadis, A.; Rozos, E.; Kopsiafti, M.; Koutsoyiannis, D.

2011-03-01

The modelling of human-modified basins that are inadequately measured constitutes a challenge for hydrological science. Often, models for such systems are detailed and hydraulics-based for only one part of the system while for other parts oversimplified models or rough assumptions are used. This is typically a bottom-up approach, which seeks to exploit knowledge of hydrological processes at the micro-scale at some components of the system. Also, it is a monomeric approach in two ways: first, essential interactions among system components may be poorly represented or even omitted; second, differences in the level of detail of process representation can lead to uncontrolled errors. Additionally, the calibration procedure merely accounts for the reproduction of the observed responses using typical fitting criteria. The paper aims to raise some critical issues, regarding the entire modelling approach for such hydrosystems. For this, two alternative modelling strategies are examined that reflect two modelling approaches or philosophies: a dominant bottom-up approach, which is also monomeric and, very often, based on output information, and a top-down and holistic approach based on generalized information. Critical options are examined, which codify the differences between the two strategies: the representation of surface, groundwater and water management processes, the schematization and parameterization concepts and the parameter estimation methodology. The first strategy is based on stand-alone models for surface and groundwater processes and for water management, which are employed sequentially. For each model, a different (detailed or coarse) parameterization is used, which is dictated by the hydrosystem schematization. The second strategy involves model integration for all processes, parsimonious parameterization and hybrid manual-automatic parameter optimization based on multiple objectives. A test case is examined in a hydrosystem in Greece with high complexities, such as extended surface-groundwater interactions, ill-defined boundaries, sinks to the sea and anthropogenic intervention with unmeasured abstractions both from surface water and aquifers. Criteria for comparison are the physical consistency of parameters, the reproduction of runoff hydrographs at multiple sites within the studied basin, the likelihood of uncontrolled model outputs, the required amount of computational effort and the performance within a stochastic simulation setting. Our work allows for investigating the deterioration of model performance in cases where no balanced attention is paid to all components of human-modified hydrosystems and the related information. Also, sources of errors are identified and their combined effect are evaluated.

Modelling of Surfaces. Part 1: Monatomic Metallic Surfaces Using Equivalent Crystal Theory

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bozzolo, Guillermo; Ferrante, John; Rodriguez, Agustin M.

1994-01-01

We present a detailed description of equivalent crystal theory focusing on its application to the study of surface structure. While the emphasis is in the structure of the algorithm and its computational aspects, we also present a comprehensive discussion on the calculation of surface energies of metallic systems with equivalent crystal theory and other approaches. Our results are compared to experiment and other semiempirical as well as first-principles calculations for a variety of fcc and bcc metals.

Comparison of internal wave properties calculated by Boussinesq equations with/without rigid-lid assumption

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, C. M.

2017-12-01

Wave properties predicted by the rigid-lid and the free-surface Boussinesq equations for a two-fluid system are theoretically calculated and compared in this study. Boussinesq model is generally applied to numerically simulate surface waves in coastal regions to provide credible information for disaster prevention and breaker design. As for internal waves, Liu et al. (2008) and Liu (2016) respectively derived a free-surface model and a rigid-lid Boussinesq models for a two-fluid system. The former and the latter models respectively contain four and three key variables which may result in different results and efficiency while simulating. Therefore, present study shows the results theoretically measured by these two models to provide more detailed observation and useful information for motions of internal waves.

Computer Simulation of the Forces Acting on a Submerged Polystyrene Probe as it Approaches the Succinonitrile Melt-Solid Interface

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bune, Andris V.; Kaukler, William; Whitaker, Ann (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

A Modeling approach to simulate both mesoscale and microscopic forces acting in a typical AFM experiment is presented. A mesoscale level interaction between the cantilever tip and the sample surface is primarily described by the balance of attractive Van der Waals and repulsive forces. Ultimately, the goal is to measure the forces between a particle and the crystal-melt interface. Two modes of AFM operation are considered in this paper - a stationary and a "tapping" one. The continuous mechanics approach to model tip-surface interaction is presented. At microscopic levels, tip contamination and details of tip-surface interaction are modeled using a molecular dynamics approach for the case of polystyrene - succinonitrile contact. Integration of the mesoscale model with a molecular dynamic model is discussed.

Seismic Wave Amplification in Las Vegas: Site Characterization Measurements and Response Models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Louie, J. N.; Anderson, J. G.; Luke, B.; Snelson, C.; Taylor, W.; Rodgers, A.; McCallen, D.; Tkalcic, H.; Wagoner, J.

2004-12-01

As part of a multidisciplinary effort to understand seismic wave amplification in Las Vegas Valley, we conducted geotechnical and seismic refraction field studies, geologic and lithologic interpretation, and geophysical model building. Frequency-dependent amplifications (site response) and peak ground motions strongly correlate with site conditions as characterized by the models. The models include basin depths and velocities, which also correlate against ground motions. Preliminary geologic models were constructed from detailed geologic and fault mapping, logs of over 500 wells penetrating greater than 200 m depth, gravity-inversion results from the USGS, and USDA soil maps. Valley-wide refraction studies we conducted in 2002 and 2003 were inverted for constraints on basin geometry, and deep basin and basement P velocities with some 3-d control to depths of 5 km. Surface-wave studies during 2002-2004 characterized more than 75 sites within the Valley for shear velocity to depths exceeding 100 m, including all the legacy sites where nuclear-blast ground motions were recorded. The SASW and refraction-microtremor surface-surveying techniques proved to provide complementary, and coordinating Rayleigh dispersion-curve data at a dozen sites. Borehole geotechnical studies at a half-dozen sites confirmed the shear-velocity profiles that we derived from surface-wave studies. We then correlated all the geotechnical data against a detailed stratigraphic model, derived from drilling logs, to create a Valley-wide model for shallow site conditions. This well-log-based model predicts site measurements better than do models based solely on geologic or soil mapping.

Simulation on a car interior aerodynamic noise control based on statistical energy analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Xin; Wang, Dengfeng; Ma, Zhengdong

2012-09-01

How to simulate interior aerodynamic noise accurately is an important question of a car interior noise reduction. The unsteady aerodynamic pressure on body surfaces is proved to be the key effect factor of car interior aerodynamic noise control in high frequency on high speed. In this paper, a detail statistical energy analysis (SEA) model is built. And the vibra-acoustic power inputs are loaded on the model for the valid result of car interior noise analysis. The model is the solid foundation for further optimization on car interior noise control. After the most sensitive subsystems for the power contribution to car interior noise are pointed by SEA comprehensive analysis, the sound pressure level of car interior aerodynamic noise can be reduced by improving their sound and damping characteristics. The further vehicle testing results show that it is available to improve the interior acoustic performance by using detailed SEA model, which comprised by more than 80 subsystems, with the unsteady aerodynamic pressure calculation on body surfaces and the materials improvement of sound/damping properties. It is able to acquire more than 2 dB reduction on the central frequency in the spectrum over 800 Hz. The proposed optimization method can be looked as a reference of car interior aerodynamic noise control by the detail SEA model integrated unsteady computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and sensitivity analysis of acoustic contribution.

Impact of surface ozone interactions on indoor air chemistry: A modeling study.

PubMed

Kruza, M; Lewis, A C; Morrison, G C; Carslaw, N

2017-09-01

An INdoor air Detailed Chemical Model was developed to investigate the impact of ozone reactions with indoor surfaces (including occupants), on indoor air chemistry in simulated apartments subject to ambient air pollution. The results are consistent with experimental studies showing that approximately 80% of ozone indoors is lost through deposition to surfaces. The human body removes ozone most effectively from indoor air per square meter of surface, but the most significant surfaces for C 6 -C 10 aldehyde formation are soft furniture and painted walls owing to their large internal surfaces. Mixing ratios of between 8 and 11 ppb of C 6 -C 10 aldehydes are predicted to form in apartments in various locations in summer, the highest values are when ozone concentrations are enhanced outdoors. The most important aldehyde formed indoors is predicted to be nonanal (5-7 ppb), driven by oxidation-derived emissions from painted walls. In addition, ozone-derived emissions from human skin were estimated for a small bedroom at nighttime with concentrations of nonanal, decanal, and 4-oxopentanal predicted to be 0.5, 0.7, and 0.7 ppb, respectively. A detailed chemical analysis shows that ozone-derived surface aldehyde emissions from materials and people change chemical processing indoors, through enhanced formation of nitrated organic compounds and decreased levels of oxidants. © 2017 The Authors. Indoor Air Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Predicting silicon pore optics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vacanti, Giuseppe; Barriére, Nicolas; Bavdaz, Marcos; Chatbi, Abdelhakim; Collon, Maximilien; Dekker, Danielle; Girou, David; Günther, Ramses; van der Hoeven, Roy; Landgraf, Boris; Sforzini, Jessica; Vervest, Mark; Wille, Eric

2017-09-01

Continuing improvement of Silicon Pore Optics (SPO) calls for regular extension and validation of the tools used to model and predict their X-ray performance. In this paper we present an updated geometrical model for the SPO optics and describe how we make use of the surface metrology collected during each of the SPO manufacturing runs. The new geometrical model affords the user a finer degree of control on the mechanical details of the SPO stacks, while a standard interface has been developed to make use of any type of metrology that can return changes in the local surface normal of the reflecting surfaces. Comparisons between the predicted and actual performance of samples optics will be shown and discussed.

Operational and theoretical temperature considerations in a Penning surface plasma source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Faircloth, D. C.; Lawrie, S. R.; Pereira Da Costa, H.; Dudnikov, V.

2015-04-01

A fully detailed 3D thermal model of the ISIS Penning surface plasma source is developed in ANSYS. The proportion of discharge power applied to the anode and cathode is varied until the simulation matches the operational temperature observations. The range of possible thermal contact resistances are modelled, which gives an estimation that between 67% and 85% of the discharge power goes to the cathode. Transient models show the electrode surface temperature rise during the discharge pulse for a range of duty cycles. The implications of these measurements are discussed and a mechanism for governing cesium coverage proposed. The requirements for the design of a high current long pulse source are stated.

Turbulence spectra in the noise source regions of the flow around complex surfaces

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Olsen, W. A.; Boldman, D. R.

1983-01-01

The complex turbulent flow around three complex surfaces was measured in detail with a hot wire. The measured data include extensive spatial surveys of the mean velocity and turbulence intensity and measurements of the turbulence spectra and scale length at many locations. The publication of the turbulence data is completed by reporting a summary of the turbulence spectra that were measured within the noise source locations of the flow. The results suggest some useful simplifications in modeling the very complex turbulent flow around complex surfaces for aeroacoustic predictive models. The turbulence spectra also show that noise data from scale models of moderate size can be accurately scaled up to full size.

Uncertainty in urban flood damage assessment due to urban drainage modelling and depth-damage curve estimation.

PubMed

Freni, G; La Loggia, G; Notaro, V

2010-01-01

Due to the increased occurrence of flooding events in urban areas, many procedures for flood damage quantification have been defined in recent decades. The lack of large databases in most cases is overcome by combining the output of urban drainage models and damage curves linking flooding to expected damage. The application of advanced hydraulic models as diagnostic, design and decision-making support tools has become a standard practice in hydraulic research and application. Flooding damage functions are usually evaluated by a priori estimation of potential damage (based on the value of exposed goods) or by interpolating real damage data (recorded during historical flooding events). Hydraulic models have undergone continuous advancements, pushed forward by increasing computer capacity. The details of the flooding propagation process on the surface and the details of the interconnections between underground and surface drainage systems have been studied extensively in recent years, resulting in progressively more reliable models. The same level of was advancement has not been reached with regard to damage curves, for which improvements are highly connected to data availability; this remains the main bottleneck in the expected flooding damage estimation. Such functions are usually affected by significant uncertainty intrinsically related to the collected data and to the simplified structure of the adopted functional relationships. The present paper aimed to evaluate this uncertainty by comparing the intrinsic uncertainty connected to the construction of the damage-depth function to the hydraulic model uncertainty. In this way, the paper sought to evaluate the role of hydraulic model detail level in the wider context of flood damage estimation. This paper demonstrated that the use of detailed hydraulic models might not be justified because of the higher computational cost and the significant uncertainty in damage estimation curves. This uncertainty occurs mainly because a large part of the total uncertainty is dependent on depth-damage curves. Improving the estimation of these curves may provide better results in term of uncertainty reduction than the adoption of detailed hydraulic models.

Computer Simulation of the Forces Acting on the Polystyrene Probe Submerged into the Succinonitrile Near Phase Transition

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bune, Andris V.; Kaukler, William F.; Whitaker, Ann F. (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

Modeling approach to simulate both mesoscale and microscopic forces acting in a typical AFM experiment is presented. At mesoscale level interaction between the cantilever tip and the sample surface is primarily described by the balance of attractive Van der Waals and repulsive forces. The model of cantilever oscillations is applicable to both non-contact and "tapping" AFM. This model can be farther enhanced to describe nanoparticle manipulation by cantilever. At microscopic level tip contamination and details of tip-surface interaction can be simulated using molecular dynamics approach. Integration of mesoscale model with molecular dynamic model is discussed.

Integration of ground-based laser scanner and aerial digital photogrammetry for topographic modelling of Vesuvio volcano

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pesci, Arianna; Fabris, Massimo; Conforti, Dario; Loddo, Fabiana; Baldi, Paolo; Anzidei, Marco

2007-05-01

This work deals with the integration of different surveying methodologies for the definition of very accurate Digital Terrain Models (DTM) and/or Digital Surface Models (DSM): in particular, the aerial digital photogrammetry and the terrestrial laser scanning were used to survey the Vesuvio volcano, allowing the total coverage of the internal cone and surroundings (the whole surveyed area was about 3 km × 3 km). The possibility to reach a very high precision, especially from the laser scanner data set, allowed a detailed description of the morphology of the volcano. The comparisons of models obtained in repeated surveys allow a detailed map of residuals providing a data set that can be used for detailed studies of the morphological evolution. Moreover, the reflectivity information, highly correlated to materials properties, allows for the measurement and quantification of some morphological variations in areas where structural discontinuities and displacements are present.

Improved simulation of river water and groundwater exchange in an alluvial plain using the SWAT model

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Hydrological interaction between surface and subsurface water systems has a significant impact on water quality, ecosystems and biogeochemistry cycling of both systems. Distributed models have been developed to simulate this function, but they require detailed spatial inputs and extensive computati...

The Role of Hierarchy in Response Surface Modeling of Wind Tunnel Data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

DeLoach, Richard

2010-01-01

This paper is intended as a tutorial introduction to certain aspects of response surface modeling, for the experimentalist who has started to explore these methods as a means of improving productivity and quality in wind tunnel testing and other aerospace applications. A brief review of the productivity advantages of response surface modeling in aerospace research is followed by a description of the advantages of a common coding scheme that scales and centers independent variables. The benefits of model term reduction are reviewed. A constraint on model term reduction with coded factors is described in some detail, which requires such models to be well-formulated, or hierarchical. Examples illustrate the consequences of ignoring this constraint. The implication for automated regression model reduction procedures is discussed, and some opinions formed from the author s experience are offered on coding, model reduction, and hierarchy.

Protein adsorption at charged surfaces: the role of electrostatic interactions and interfacial charge regulation.

PubMed

Hartvig, Rune A; van de Weert, Marco; Østergaard, Jesper; Jorgensen, Lene; Jensen, Henrik

2011-03-15

The understanding of protein adsorption at charged surfaces is important for a wide range of scientific disciplines including surface engineering, separation sciences and pharmaceutical sciences. Compared to chemical entities having a permanent charge, the adsorption of small ampholytes and proteins is more complicated as the pH near a charged surface can be significantly different from the value in bulk solution. In this work, we have developed a phenomenological adsorption model which takes into account the combined role of interfacial ion distribution, interfacial charge regulation of amino acids in the proximity of the surface, electroneutrality, and mass balance. The model is straightforward to apply to a given set of experimental conditions as most model parameters are obtained from bulk properties and therefore easy to estimate or are directly measurable. The model provides a detailed understanding of the importance of surface charge on adsorption and in particular of how changes in surface charge, concentration, and surface area may affect adsorption behavior. The model is successfully used to explain the experimental adsorption behavior of the two model proteins lysozyme and α-lactalbumin. It is demonstrated that it is possible to predict the pH and surface charge dependent adsorption behavior from experimental or theoretical estimates of a preferred orientation of a protein at a solid charged interface.

Crustal deformation, the earthquake cycle, and models of viscoelastic flow in the asthenosphere

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cohen, S. C.; Kramer, M. J.

1983-01-01

The crustal deformation patterns associated with the earthquake cycle can depend strongly on the rheological properties of subcrustal material. Substantial deviations from the simple patterns for a uniformly elastic earth are expected when viscoelastic flow of subcrustal material is considered. The detailed description of the deformation pattern and in particular the surface displacements, displacement rates, strains, and strain rates depend on the structure and geometry of the material near the seismogenic zone. The origin of some of these differences are resolved by analyzing several different linear viscoelastic models with a common finite element computational technique. The models involve strike-slip faulting and include a thin channel asthenosphere model, a model with a varying thickness lithosphere, and a model with a viscoelastic inclusion below the brittle slip plane. The calculations reveal that the surface deformation pattern is most sensitive to the rheology of the material that lies below the slip plane in a volume whose extent is a few times the fault depth. If this material is viscoelastic, the surface deformation pattern resembles that of an elastic layer lying over a viscoelastic half-space. When the thickness or breath of the viscoelastic material is less than a few times the fault depth, then the surface deformation pattern is altered and geodetic measurements are potentially useful for studying the details of subsurface geometry and structure. Distinguishing among the various models is best accomplished by making geodetic measurements not only near the fault but out to distances equal to several times the fault depth. This is where the model differences are greatest; these differences will be most readily detected shortly after an earthquake when viscoelastic effects are most pronounced.

On the use of tower-flux measurements to assess the performance of global ecosystem models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

El Maayar, M.; Kucharik, C.

2003-04-01

Global ecosystem models are important tools for the study of biospheric processes and their responses to environmental changes. Such models typically translate knowledge, gained from local observations, into estimates of regional or even global outcomes of ecosystem processes. A typical test of ecosystem models consists of comparing their output against tower-flux measurements of land surface-atmosphere exchange of heat and mass. To perform such tests, models are typically run using detailed information on soil properties (texture, carbon content,...) and vegetation structure observed at the experimental site (e.g., vegetation height, vegetation phenology, leaf photosynthetic characteristics,...). In global simulations, however, earth's vegetation is typically represented by a limited number of plant functional types (PFT; group of plant species that have similar physiological and ecological characteristics). For each PFT (e.g., temperate broadleaf trees, boreal conifer evergreen trees,...), which can cover a very large area, a set of typical physiological and physical parameters are assigned. Thus, a legitimate question arises: How does the performance of a global ecosystem model run using detailed site-specific parameters compare with the performance of a less detailed global version where generic parameters are attributed to a group of vegetation species forming a PFT? To answer this question, we used a multiyear dataset, measured at two forest sites with contrasting environments, to compare seasonal and interannual variability of surface-atmosphere exchange of water and carbon predicted by the Integrated BIosphere Simulator-Dynamic Global Vegetation Model. Two types of simulations were, thus, performed: a) Detailed runs: observed vegetation characteristics (leaf area index, vegetation height,...) and soil carbon content, in addition to climate and soil type, are specified for model run; and b) Generic runs: when only observed climates and soil types at the measurement sites are used to run the model. The generic runs were performed for the number of years equal to the current age of the forests, initialized with no vegetation and a soil carbon density equal to zero.

Fibronectin module FN(III)9 adsorption at contrasting solid model surfaces studied by atomistic molecular dynamics.

PubMed

Kubiak-Ossowska, Karina; Mulheran, Paul A; Nowak, Wieslaw

2014-08-21

The mechanism of human fibronectin adhesion synergy region (known as integrin binding region) in repeat 9 (FN(III)9) domain adsorption at pH 7 onto various and contrasting model surfaces has been studied using atomistic molecular dynamics simulations. We use an ionic model to mimic mica surface charge density but without a long-range electric field above the surface, a silica model with a long-range electric field similar to that found experimentally, and an Au {111} model with no partial charges or electric field. A detailed description of the adsorption processes and the contrasts between the various model surfaces is provided. In the case of our model silica surface with a long-range electrostatic field, the adsorption is rapid and primarily driven by electrostatics. Because it is negatively charged (-1e), FN(III)9 readily adsorbs to a positively charged surface. However, due to its partial charge distribution, FN(III)9 can also adsorb to the negatively charged mica model because of the absence of a long-range repulsive electric field. The protein dipole moment dictates its contrasting orientation at these surfaces, and the anchoring residues have opposite charges to the surface. Adsorption on the model Au {111} surface is possible, but less specific, and various protein regions might be involved in the interactions with the surface. Despite strongly influencing the protein mobility, adsorption at these model surfaces does not require wholesale FN(III)9 conformational changes, which suggests that the biological activity of the adsorbed protein might be preserved.

Surface Adsorption in Nonpolarizable Atomic Models.

PubMed

Whitmer, Jonathan K; Joshi, Abhijeet A; Carlton, Rebecca J; Abbott, Nicholas L; de Pablo, Juan J

2014-12-09

Many ionic solutions exhibit species-dependent properties, including surface tension and the salting-out of proteins. These effects may be loosely quantified in terms of the Hofmeister series, first identified in the context of protein solubility. Here, our interest is to develop atomistic models capable of capturing Hofmeister effects rigorously. Importantly, we aim to capture this dependence in computationally cheap "hard" ionic models, which do not exhibit dynamic polarization. To do this, we have performed an investigation detailing the effects of the water model on these properties. Though incredibly important, the role of water models in simulation of ionic solutions and biological systems is essentially unexplored. We quantify this via the ion-dependent surface attraction of the halide series (Cl, Br, I) and, in so doing, determine the relative importance of various hypothesized contributions to ionic surface free energies. Importantly, we demonstrate surface adsorption can result in hard ionic models combined with a thermodynamically accurate representation of the water molecule (TIP4Q). The effect observed in simulations of iodide is commensurate with previous calculations of the surface potential of mean force in rigid molecular dynamics and polarizable density-functional models. Our calculations are direct simulation evidence of the subtle but sensitive role of water thermodynamics in atomistic simulations.

Structural history of Maxwell Montes, Venus: Implications for Venusian mountain belt formation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Keep, Myra; Hansen, Vicki L.

1994-12-01

Models for Venusian mountain belt formation are important for understanding planetary geodynamic mechanisms. A range of data sets at various scales must be considered in geodynamic modelling. Long wavelength data, such as gravity and geoid to topography ratios, need constraints from smaller-scale observations of the surface. Pre-Magellan images of the Venusian surface were not of high enough resolution to observe details of surface deformation. High-resolution Magellan images of Maxwell Montes and the other deformation belts allow us to determine the nature of surface deformation. With these images we can begin to understand the constraints that surface deformation places on planetary dynamic models. Maxwell Montes and three other deformation belts (Akna, Freyja, and Danu montes) surround the highland plateau Lakshmi Planum in Venus' northern hemisphere. Maxwell, the highest of these belts, stands 11 km above mean planetary radius. We present a detailed structural and kinematic study of Maxwell Montes. Key observations include (1) dominant structure fabrics are broadly distributed and show little change in spacing relative to elevation changes of several kilometers; (2) the spacing, wavelength and inferred amplitude of mapped structures are small; (3) interpreted extensional structures occur only in areas of steep slope, with no extension at the highest topographic levels; and (4) deformation terminates abruptly at the base of steep slopes. One implications of these observations is that topography is independent of thin-skinned, broadly distributed, Maxwell deformation. Maxwell is apparently stable, with no observed extensional collapse. We propose a 'deformation-from-below' model for Maxwell, in which the crust deforms passively over structurally imbricated and thickened lower crust. This model may have implications for the other deformation belts.

Flow prediction over a transport multi-element high-lift system and comparison with flight measurements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vijgen, P. M. H. W.; Hardin, J. D.; Yip, L. P.

1992-01-01

Accurate prediction of surface-pressure distributions, merging boundary-layers, and separated-flow regions over multi-element high-lift airfoils is required to design advanced high-lift systems for efficient subsonic transport aircraft. The availability of detailed measurements of pressure distributions and both averaged and time-dependent boundary-layer flow parameters at flight Reynolds numbers is critical to evaluate computational methods and to model the turbulence structure for closure of the flow equations. Several detailed wind-tunnel measurements at subscale Reynolds numbers were conducted to obtain detailed flow information including the Reynolds-stress component. As part of a subsonic-transport high-lift research program, flight experiments are conducted using the NASA-Langley B737-100 research aircraft to obtain detailed flow characteristics for support of computational and wind-tunnel efforts. Planned flight measurements include pressure distributions at several spanwise locations, boundary-layer transition and separation locations, surface skin friction, as well as boundary-layer profiles and Reynolds stresses in adverse pressure-gradient flow.

Dynamic model of target charging by short laser pulse interactions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Poyé, A.; Dubois, J.-L.; Lubrano-Lavaderci, F.; D'Humières, E.; Bardon, M.; Hulin, S.; Bailly-Grandvaux, M.; Ribolzi, J.; Raffestin, D.; Santos, J. J.; Nicolaï, Ph.; Tikhonchuk, V.

2015-10-01

A model providing an accurate estimate of the charge accumulation on the surface of a metallic target irradiated by a high-intensity laser pulse of fs-ps duration is proposed. The model is confirmed by detailed comparisons with specially designed experiments. Such a model is useful for understanding the electromagnetic pulse emission and the quasistatic magnetic field generation in laser-plasma interaction experiments.

Potential Technologies for Assessing Risk Associated with a Mesoscale Forecast

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-10-01

American GFS models, and informally applied on the Weather Research and Forecasting ( WRF ) model. The current CI equation is as follows...Reen B, Penc R. Investigating surface bias errors in the Weather Research and Forecasting ( WRF ) model using a Geographic Information System (GIS). J...Forecast model ( WRF -ARW) with extensions that might include finer terrain resolutions and more detailed representations of the underlying atmospheric

Dynamic model of target charging by short laser pulse interactions.

PubMed

Poyé, A; Dubois, J-L; Lubrano-Lavaderci, F; D'Humières, E; Bardon, M; Hulin, S; Bailly-Grandvaux, M; Ribolzi, J; Raffestin, D; Santos, J J; Nicolaï, Ph; Tikhonchuk, V

2015-10-01

A model providing an accurate estimate of the charge accumulation on the surface of a metallic target irradiated by a high-intensity laser pulse of fs-ps duration is proposed. The model is confirmed by detailed comparisons with specially designed experiments. Such a model is useful for understanding the electromagnetic pulse emission and the quasistatic magnetic field generation in laser-plasma interaction experiments.

RAYSAW: a log sawing simulator for 3D laser-scanned hardwood logs

Treesearch

R. Edward Thomas

2013-01-01

Laser scanning of hardwood logs provides detailed high-resolution imagery of log surfaces. Characteristics such as sweep, taper, and crook, as well as most surface defects, are visible to the eye in the scan data. In addition, models have been developed that predict interior knot size and position based on external defect information. Computerized processing of...

Preliminary experiments on surface flow visualization in the cryogenic wind tunnel by use of condensing or freezing gases

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Goodyer, M. J.

1988-01-01

Cryogenic wind tunnel users must have available surface flow visualization techniques to satisfy a variety of needs. While the ideal from an aerodynamic stand would be non-intrusive, until an economical technique is developed there will be occasions when the user will be prepared to resort to an intrusive method. One such method is proposed, followed by preliminary evaluation experiments carried out in environments representative of the cryogenic nitrogen tunnel. The technique uses substances which are gases at normal temperature and pressure but liquid or solid at cryogenic temperatures. These are deposited on the model in localized regions, the patterns of the deposits and their subsequent melting or evaporation revealing details of the surface flow. The gases were chosen because of the likelihood that they will not permanently contaminate the model or tunnel. Twenty-four gases were identified as possibly suitable and four of these were tested from which it was concluded that surface flow direction can be shown by the method. Other flow details might also be detectable. The cryogenic wind tunnel used was insulated on the outside and did not show signs of contamination.

Joint surface modeling with thin-plate splines.

PubMed

Boyd, S K; Ronsky, J L; Lichti, D D; Salkauskas, K; Chapman, M A; Salkauskas, D

1999-10-01

Mathematical joint surface models based on experimentally determined data points can be used to investigate joint characteristics such as curvature, congruency, cartilage thickness, joint contact areas, as well as to provide geometric information well suited for finite element analysis. Commonly, surface modeling methods are based on B-splines, which involve tensor products. These methods have had success; however, they are limited due to the complex organizational aspect of working with surface patches, and modeling unordered, scattered experimental data points. An alternative method for mathematical joint surface modeling is presented based on the thin-plate spline (TPS). It has the advantage that it does not involve surface patches, and can model scattered data points without experimental data preparation. An analytical surface was developed and modeled with the TPS to quantify its interpolating and smoothing characteristics. Some limitations of the TPS include discontinuity of curvature at exactly the experimental surface data points, and numerical problems dealing with data sets in excess of 2000 points. However, suggestions for overcoming these limitations are presented. Testing the TPS with real experimental data, the patellofemoral joint of a cat was measured with multistation digital photogrammetry and modeled using the TPS to determine cartilage thicknesses and surface curvature. The cartilage thickness distribution ranged between 100 to 550 microns on the patella, and 100 to 300 microns on the femur. It was found that the TPS was an effective tool for modeling joint surfaces because no preparation of the experimental data points was necessary, and the resulting unique function representing the entire surface does not involve surface patches. A detailed algorithm is presented for implementation of the TPS.

Voltage-dependent cluster expansion for electrified solid-liquid interfaces: Application to the electrochemical deposition of transition metals

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weitzner, Stephen E.; Dabo, Ismaila

2017-11-01

The detailed atomistic modeling of electrochemically deposited metal monolayers is challenging due to the complex structure of the metal-solution interface and the critical effects of surface electrification during electrode polarization. Accurate models of interfacial electrochemical equilibria are further challenged by the need to include entropic effects to obtain accurate surface chemical potentials. We present an embedded quantum-continuum model of the interfacial environment that addresses each of these challenges and study the underpotential deposition of silver on the gold (100) surface. We leverage these results to parametrize a cluster expansion of the electrified interface and show through grand canonical Monte Carlo calculations the crucial need to account for variations in the interfacial dipole when modeling electrodeposited metals under finite-temperature electrochemical conditions.

Direct Push supported geotechnical and hydrogeological characterisation of an active sinkhole area

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tippelt, Thomas; Vienken, Thomas; Kirsch, Reinhard; Dietrich, Peter; Werban, Ulrike

2017-04-01

Sinkholes represent a natural geologic hazard in areas where soluble layers are present in the subsurface. A detailed knowledge of the composition of the subsurface and its hydrogeological and geotechnical properties is essential for the understanding of sinkhole formation and propagation. This serves as base for risk evaluation and the development of an early warning system. However, site models often depend on data from drillings and surface geophysical surveys that in many cases cannot resolve the spatial distribution of relevant hydrogeological and geotechnical parameters sufficiently. Therefore, an active sinkhole area in Münsterdorf, Northern Germany, was investigated in detail using Direct Push technology, a minimally invasive sounding method. The obtained vertical high-resolution profiles of geotechnical and hydrogeological characteristics, in combination with Direct Push based sampling and surface geophysical measurements lead to a strong improvement of the geologic site model. The conceptual site model regarding sinkhole formation and propagation will then be tested based on the gathered data and, if necessary, adapted accordingly.

MR image denoising method for brain surface 3D modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, De-xin; Liu, Peng-jie; Zhang, De-gan

2014-11-01

Three-dimensional (3D) modeling of medical images is a critical part of surgical simulation. In this paper, we focus on the magnetic resonance (MR) images denoising for brain modeling reconstruction, and exploit a practical solution. We attempt to remove the noise existing in the MR imaging signal and preserve the image characteristics. A wavelet-based adaptive curve shrinkage function is presented in spherical coordinates system. The comparative experiments show that the denoising method can preserve better image details and enhance the coefficients of contours. Using these denoised images, the brain 3D visualization is given through surface triangle mesh model, which demonstrates the effectiveness of the proposed method.

Numerical modeling of runback water on ice protected aircraft surfaces

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Al-Khalil, Kamel M.; Keith, Theo G., Jr.; Dewitt, Kenneth J.

1992-01-01

A numerical simulation for 'running wet' aircraft anti-icing systems is developed. The model includes breakup of the water film, which exists in regions of direct impingement, into individual rivulets. The wetness factor distribution resulting from the film breakup and the rivulet configuration on the surface are predicted in the numerical solution procedure. The solid wall is modeled as a multilayer structure and the anti-icing system used is of the thermal type utilizing hot air and/or electrical heating elements embedded with the layers. Details of the calculation procedure and the methods used are presented.

Large Terrain Modeling and Visualization for Planets

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Myint, Steven; Jain, Abhinandan; Cameron, Jonathan; Lim, Christopher

2011-01-01

Physics-based simulations are actively used in the design, testing, and operations phases of surface and near-surface planetary space missions. One of the challenges in realtime simulations is the ability to handle large multi-resolution terrain data sets within models as well as for visualization. In this paper, we describe special techniques that we have developed for visualization, paging, and data storage for dealing with these large data sets. The visualization technique uses a real-time GPU-based continuous level-of-detail technique that delivers multiple frames a second performance even for planetary scale terrain model sizes.

An experimental and numerical investigation of shock-wave induced turbulent boundary-layer separation at hypersonic speeds

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Marvin, J. G.; Horstman, C. C.; Rubesin, M. W.; Coakley, T. J.; Kussoy, M. I.

1975-01-01

An experiment designed to test and guide computations of the interaction of an impinging shock wave with a turbulent boundary layer is described. Detailed mean flow-field and surface data are presented for two shock strengths which resulted in attached and separated flows, respectively. Numerical computations, employing the complete time-averaged Navier-Stokes equations along with algebraic eddy-viscosity and turbulent Prandtl number models to describe shear stress and heat flux, are used to illustrate the dependence of the computations on the particulars of the turbulence models. Models appropriate for zero-pressure-gradient flows predicted the overall features of the flow fields, but were deficient in predicting many of the details of the interaction regions. Improvements to the turbulence model parameters were sought through a combination of detailed data analysis and computer simulations which tested the sensitivity of the solutions to model parameter changes. Computer simulations using these improvements are presented and discussed.

Kinetics and mechanism of soot formation in hydrocarbon combustion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Frenklach, Michael

1990-01-01

The focus of this work was on kinetic modeling. The specific objectives were: detailed modeling of soot formation in premixed flames, elucidation of the effects of fuel structure on the pathway to soot, and the development of a numerical technique for accurate modeling of soot particle coagulation and surface growth. Those tasks were successfully completed and are briefly summarized.

Fabrication of 0.0075-Scale Orbiter Phosphor Thermography Test Models for Shuttle RTF Aeroheating Studies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Buck, Gregory M.; Powers, Michael A.; Griffith, Mark S.; Hopins, John W.; Veneris, Pete H.; Kuykendoll, Kathryn

2006-01-01

This report details the techniques and fidelity associated with aeroheating models constructed in support of the return-to-flight boundary layer transition (BLT) activity for STS-114. This report provides technical descriptions of the methods, materials, and equipment used, as well as the surface quality results obtained with the cast ceramic phosphor thermography models.

Actuator and aerodynamic modeling for high-angle-of-attack aeroservoelasticity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Brenner, Martin J.

1993-01-01

Accurate prediction of airframe/actuation coupling is required by the imposing demands of modern flight control systems. In particular, for agility enhancement at high angle of attack and low dynamic pressure, structural integration characteristics such as hinge moments, effective actuator stiffness, and airframe/control surface damping can have a significant effect on stability predictions. Actuator responses are customarily represented with low-order transfer functions matched to actuator test data, and control surface stiffness is often modeled as a linear spring. The inclusion of the physical properties of actuation and its installation on the airframe is therefore addressed in this paper using detailed actuator models which consider the physical, electrical, and mechanical elements of actuation. The aeroservoelastic analysis procedure is described in which the actuators are modeled as detailed high-order transfer functions and as approximate low-order transfer functions. The impacts of unsteady aerodynamic modeling on aeroservoelastic stability are also investigated in this paper by varying the order of approximation, or number of aerodynamic lag states, in the analysis. Test data from a thrust-vectoring configuration of an F/A-18 aircraft are compared to predictions to determine the effects on accuracy as a function of modeling complexity.

Actuator and aerodynamic modeling for high-angle-of-attack aeroservoelasticity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Brenner, Martin J.

1993-01-01

Accurate prediction of airframe/actuation coupling is required by the imposing demands of modern flight control systems. In particular, for agility enhancement at high angle of attack and low dynamic pressure, structural integration characteristics such as hinge moments, effective actuator stiffness, and airframe/control surface damping can have a significant effect on stability predictions. Actuator responses are customarily represented with low-order transfer functions matched to actuator test data, and control surface stiffness is often modeled as a linear spring. The inclusion of the physical properties of actuation and its installation on the airframe is therefore addressed using detailed actuator models which consider the physical, electrical, and mechanical elements of actuation. The aeroservoelastic analysis procedure is described in which the actuators are modeled as detailed high-order transfer functions and as approximate low-order transfer functions. The impacts of unsteady aerodynamic modeling on aeroservoelastic stability are also investigated by varying the order of approximation, or number of aerodynamic lag states, in the analysis. Test data from a thrust-vectoring configuration of an F/A-l8 aircraft are compared to predictions to determine the effects on accuracy as a function of modeling complexity.

ARIMA representation for daily solar irradiance and surface air temperature time series

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kärner, Olavi

2009-06-01

Autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) models are used to compare long-range temporal variability of the total solar irradiance (TSI) at the top of the atmosphere (TOA) and surface air temperature series. The comparison shows that one and the same type of the model is applicable to represent the TSI and air temperature series. In terms of the model type surface air temperature imitates closely that for the TSI. This may mean that currently no other forcing to the climate system is capable to change the random walk type variability established by the varying activity of the rotating Sun. The result should inspire more detailed examination of the dependence of various climate series on short-range fluctuations of TSI.

Estimation of surface temperature in remote pollution measurement experiments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gupta, S. K.; Tiwari, S. N.

1978-01-01

A simple algorithm has been developed for estimating the actual surface temperature by applying corrections to the effective brightness temperature measured by radiometers mounted on remote sensing platforms. Corrections to effective brightness temperature are computed using an accurate radiative transfer model for the 'basic atmosphere' and several modifications of this caused by deviations of the various atmospheric and surface parameters from their base model values. Model calculations are employed to establish simple analytical relations between the deviations of these parameters and the additional temperature corrections required to compensate for them. Effects of simultaneous variation of two parameters are also examined. Use of these analytical relations instead of detailed radiative transfer calculations for routine data analysis results in a severalfold reduction in computation costs.

A Novel Method for Modeling Neumann and Robin Boundary Conditions in Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ryan, Emily M.; Tartakovsky, Alexandre M.; Amon, Cristina

2010-08-26

In this paper we present an improved method for handling Neumann or Robin boundary conditions in smoothed particle hydrodynamics. The Neumann and Robin boundary conditions are common to many physical problems (such as heat/mass transfer), and can prove challenging to model in volumetric modeling techniques such as smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH). A new SPH method for diffusion type equations subject to Neumann or Robin boundary conditions is proposed. The new method is based on the continuum surface force model [1] and allows an efficient implementation of the Neumann and Robin boundary conditions in the SPH method for geometrically complex boundaries.more » The paper discusses the details of the method and the criteria needed to apply the model. The model is used to simulate diffusion and surface reactions and its accuracy is demonstrated through test cases for boundary conditions describing different surface reactions.« less

An efficient Monte Carlo algorithm for the fast equilibration and atomistic simulation of alkanethiol self-assembled monolayers on a Au(111) substrate.

PubMed

Alexiadis, Orestis; Daoulas, Kostas Ch; Mavrantzas, Vlasis G

2008-01-31

A new Monte Carlo algorithm is presented for the simulation of atomistically detailed alkanethiol self-assembled monolayers (R-SH) on a Au(111) surface. Built on a set of simpler but also more complex (sometimes nonphysical) moves, the new algorithm is capable of efficiently driving all alkanethiol molecules to the Au(111) surface, thereby leading to full surface coverage, irrespective of the initial setup of the system. This circumvents a significant limitation of previous methods in which the simulations typically started from optimally packed structures on the substrate close to thermal equilibrium. Further, by considering an extended ensemble of configurations each one of which corresponds to a different value of the sulfur-sulfur repulsive core potential, sigmass, and by allowing for configurations to swap between systems characterized by different sigmass values, the new algorithm can adequately simulate model R-SH/Au(111) systems for values of sigmass ranging from 4.25 A corresponding to the Hautman-Klein molecular model (J. Chem. Phys. 1989, 91, 4994; 1990, 93, 7483) to 4.97 A corresponding to the Siepmann-McDonald model (Langmuir 1993, 9, 2351), and practically any chain length. Detailed results are presented quantifying the efficiency and robustness of the new method. Representative simulation data for the dependence of the structural and conformational properties of the formed monolayer on the details of the employed molecular model are reported and discussed; an investigation of the variation of molecular organization and ordering on the Au(111) substrate for three CH3-(CH2)n-SH/Au(111) systems with n=9, 15, and 21 is also included.

The virtual dissecting room: Creating highly detailed anatomy models for educational purposes.

PubMed

Zilverschoon, Marijn; Vincken, Koen L; Bleys, Ronald L A W

2017-01-01

Virtual 3D models are powerful tools for teaching anatomy. At the present day, there are a lot of different digital anatomy models, most of these commercial applications are based on a 3D model of a human body reconstructed from images with a 1mm intervals. The use of even smaller intervals may result in more details and more realistic appearances of 3D anatomy models. The aim of this study was to create a realistic and highly detailed 3D model of the hand and wrist based on small interval cross-sectional images, suitable for undergraduate and postgraduate teaching purposes with the possibility to perform a virtual dissection in an educational application. In 115 transverse cross-sections from a human hand and wrist, segmentation was done by manually delineating 90 different structures. With the use of Amira the segments were imported and a surface model/polygon model was created, followed by smoothening of the surfaces in Mudbox. In 3D Coat software the smoothed polygon models were automatically retopologied into a quadrilaterals formation and a UV map was added. In Mudbox, the textures from 90 structures were depicted in a realistic way by using photos from real tissue and afterwards height maps, gloss and specular maps were created to add more level of detail and realistic lightning on every structure. Unity was used to build a new software program that would support all the extra map features together with a preferred user interface. A 3D hand model has been created, containing 100 structures (90 at start and 10 extra structures added along the way). The model can be used interactively by changing the transparency, manipulating single or grouped structures and thereby simulating a virtual dissection. This model can be used for a variety of teaching purposes, ranging from undergraduate medical students to residents of hand surgery. Studying the hand and wrist anatomy using this model is cost-effective and not hampered by the limited access to real dissecting facilities. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Problems in Catalytic Oxidation of Hydrocarbons and Detailed Simulation of Combustion Processes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xin, Yuxuan

This dissertation research consists of two parts, with Part I on the kinetics of catalytic oxidation of hydrocarbons and Part II on aspects on the detailed simulation of combustion processes. In Part I, the catalytic oxidation of C1--C3 hydrocarbons, namely methane, ethane, propane and ethylene, was investigated for lean hydrocarbon-air mixtures over an unsupported Pd-based catalyst, from 600 to 800 K and under atmospheric pressure. In Chapter 2, the experimental facility of wire microcalorimetry and simulation configuration were described in details. In Chapter 3 and 4, the oxidation rate of C1--C 3 hydrocarbons is demonstrated to be determined by the dissociative adsorption of hydrocarbons. A detailed surface kinetics model is proposed with deriving the rate coefficient of hydrocarbon dissociative adsorption from the wire microcalorimetry data. In Part II, four fundamental studies were conducted through detailed combustion simulations. In Chapter 5, self-accelerating hydrogen-air flames are studied via two-dimensional detailed numerical simulation (DNS). The increase in the global flame velocity is shown to be caused by the increase of flame surface area, and the fractal structure of the flame front is demonstrated by the box-counting method. In Chapter 6, skeletal reaction models for butane combustion are derived by using directed relation graph (DRG) and DRG-aided sensitivity analysis (DRGASA), and uncertainty minimization by polynomial chaos expansion (MUM-PCE) mothodes. The dependence of model uncertainty is subjected to the completeness of the model. In Chapter 7, a systematic strategy is proposed to reduce the cost of the multicomponent diffusion model by accurately accounting for the species whose diffusivity is important to the global responses of the combustion systems, and approximating those of less importance by the mixture-averaged model. The reduced model is validated in an n-heptane mechanism with 88 species. In Chapter 8, the influence of Soret diffusion on the n-heptane/air flames is investigated numerically. In the unstretched flames, Soret diffusion primarily affects the chemical kinetics embedded in the flame structure and the net effect is small; while in the stretched flames, its impact is mainly through those of n-heptane and the secondary fuel, H2, in modifying the flame temperature, with substantial effects.

Transient Numerical Modeling of Catalytic Channels

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Struk, Peter M.; Dietrich, Daniel L.; Miller, Fletcher J.; T'ien, James S.

2007-01-01

This paper presents a transient model of catalytic combustion suitable for isolated channels and monolith reactors. The model is a lumped two-phase (gas and solid) model where the gas phase is quasi-steady relative to the transient solid. Axial diffusion is neglected in the gas phase; lateral diffusion, however, is accounted for using transfer coefficients. The solid phase includes axial heat conduction and external heat loss due to convection and radiation. The combustion process utilizes detailed gas and surface reaction models. The gas-phase model becomes a system of stiff ordinary differential equations while the solid phase reduces, after discretization, into a system of stiff ordinary differential-algebraic equations. The time evolution of the system came from alternating integrations of the quasi-steady gas and transient solid. This work outlines the numerical model and presents some sensitivity studies on important parameters including internal transfer coefficients, catalytic surface site density, and external heat-loss (if applicable). The model is compared to two experiments using CO fuel: (1) steady-state conversion through an isothermal platinum (Pt) tube and (2) transient propagation of a catalytic reaction inside a small Pt tube. The model requires internal mass-transfer resistance to match the experiments at lower residence times. Under mass-transport limited conditions, the model reasonably predicted exit conversion using global mass-transfer coefficients. Near light-off, the model results did not match the experiment precisely even after adjustment of mass-transfer coefficients. Agreement improved for the first case after adjusting the surface kinetics such that the net rate of CO adsorption increased compared to O2. The CO / O2 surface mechanism came from a sub-set of reactions in a popular CH4 / O2 mechanism. For the second case, predictions improved for lean conditions with increased external heat loss or adjustment of the kinetics as in the first case. Finally, the results show that different initial surface-species distribution leads to different steady-states under certain conditions. These results demonstrate the utility of a lumped two-phase model of a transient catalytic combustor with detailed chemistry.

Hole-to-surface resistivity measurements.

USGS Publications Warehouse

Daniels, J.J.

1983-01-01

Hole-to-surface resistivity measurements over a layered volcanic tuff sequence illustrate procedures for gathering, reducing, and interpreting hole-to-surface resistivity data. The magnitude and direction of the total surface electric field resulting from a buried current source is calculated from orthogonal potential difference measurements for a grid of closely spaced stations. A contour map of these data provides a detailed map of the distribution of the electric field away from the drill hole. Resistivity anomalies can be enhanced by calculating the difference between apparent resistivities calculated from the total surface electric field and apparent resistivities for a layered earth model.-from Author

A new class of actuator surface models for wind turbines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Xiaolei; Sotiropoulos, Fotis

2018-05-01

Actuator line model has been widely employed in wind turbine simulations. However, the standard actuator line model does not include a model for the turbine nacelle which can significantly impact turbine wake characteristics as shown in the literature. Another disadvantage of the standard actuator line model is that more geometrical features of turbine blades cannot be resolved on a finer mesh. To alleviate these disadvantages of the standard model, we develop a new class of actuator surface models for turbine blades and nacelle to take into account more geometrical details of turbine blades and include the effect of turbine nacelle. In the actuator surface model for blade, the aerodynamic forces calculated using the blade element method are distributed from the surface formed by the foil chords at different radial locations. In the actuator surface model for nacelle, the forces are distributed from the actual nacelle surface with the normal force component computed in the same way as in the direct forcing immersed boundary method and the tangential force component computed using a friction coefficient and a reference velocity of the incoming flow. The actuator surface model for nacelle is evaluated by simulating the flow over periodically placed nacelles. Both the actuator surface simulation and the wall-resolved large-eddy simulation are carried out. The comparison shows that the actuator surface model is able to give acceptable results especially at far wake locations on a very coarse mesh. It is noted that although this model is employed for the turbine nacelle in this work, it is also applicable to other bluff bodies. The capability of the actuator surface model in predicting turbine wakes is assessed by simulating the flow over the MEXICO (Model experiments in Controlled Conditions) turbine and a hydrokinetic turbine.

Developments in remote sensing technology enable more detailed urban flood risk analysis.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Denniss, A.; Tewkesbury, A.

2009-04-01

Spaceborne remote sensors have been allowing us to build up a profile of planet earth for many years. With each new satellite launched we see the capabilities improve: new bands of data, higher resolution imagery, the ability to derive better elevation information. The combination of this geospatial data to create land cover and usage maps, all help inform catastrophe modelling systems. From Landsat 30m resolution to 2.44m QuickBird multispectral imagery; from 1m radar data collected by TerraSAR-X which enables rapid tracking of the rise and fall of a flood event, and will shortly have a twin satellite launched enabling elevation data creation; we are spoilt for choice in available data. However, just what is cost effective? It is always a question of choosing the appropriate level of input data detail for modelling, depending on the value of the risk. In the summer of 2007, the cost of the flooding in the UK was approximately £3bn and affected over 58,000 homes and businesses. When it comes to flood risk, we have traditionally considered rising river levels and surge tides, but with climate change and variations in our own construction behaviour, there are other factors to be taken into account. During those summer 2007 events, the Environment Agency suggested that around 70% of the properties damaged were the result of pluvial flooding, where high localised rainfall events overload localised drainage infrastructure, causing widespread flooding of properties and infrastructure. To create a risk model that is able to simulate such an event requires much more accurate source data than can be provided from satellite or radar. As these flood events cause considerable damage within relatively small, complex urban environments, therefore new high resolution remote sensing techniques have to be applied to better model these events. Detailed terrain data of England and Wales, plus cities in Scotland, have been produced by combining terrain measurements from the latest digital airborne sensors, both optical and lidar, to produce the input layer for surface water flood modelling. A national flood map product has been created. The new product utilises sophisticated modelling techniques, perfected over many years, which harness graphical processing power. This product will prove particularly valuable for risk assessment decision support within insurance/reinsurance, property/environmental, utilities, risk management and government agencies. However, it is not just the ground elevation that determines the behaviour of surface water. By combining height information (surface and terrain) with high resolution aerial photography and colour infrared imagery, a high definition land cover mapping dataset (LandBase) is being produced, which provides a precise measure of sealed versus non sealed surface. This will allows even more sophisticated modelling of flood scenarios. Thus, the value of airborne survey data can be demonstrated by flood risk analysis down to individual addresses in urban areas. However for some risks, an even more detailed survey may be justified. In order to achieve this, Infoterra is testing new 360˚ mobile lidar technology. Collecting lidar data from a moving vehicle allows each street to be mapped in very high detail, allowing precise information about the location, size and shape of features such as kerbstones, gullies, road camber and building threshold level to be captured quickly and accurately. These data can then be used to model the problem of overland flood risk at the scale of individual properties. Whilst at present it might be impractical to undertake such detailed modelling for all properties, these techniques can certainly be used to improve the flood risk analysis of key locations. This paper will demonstrate how these new high resolution remote sensing techniques can be combined to provide a new resolution of detail to aid urban flood modelling.

Benefits of explicit urban parameterization in regional climate modeling to study climate and city interactions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Daniel, M.; Lemonsu, Aude; Déqué, M.; Somot, S.; Alias, A.; Masson, V.

2018-06-01

Most climate models do not explicitly model urban areas and at best describe them as rock covers. Nonetheless, the very high resolutions reached now by the regional climate models may justify and require a more realistic parameterization of surface exchanges between urban canopy and atmosphere. To quantify the potential impact of urbanization on the regional climate, and evaluate the benefits of a detailed urban canopy model compared with a simpler approach, a sensitivity study was carried out over France at a 12-km horizontal resolution with the ALADIN-Climate regional model for 1980-2009 time period. Different descriptions of land use and urban modeling were compared, corresponding to an explicit modeling of cities with the urban canopy model TEB, a conventional and simpler approach representing urban areas as rocks, and a vegetated experiment for which cities are replaced by natural covers. A general evaluation of ALADIN-Climate was first done, that showed an overestimation of the incoming solar radiation but satisfying results in terms of precipitation and near-surface temperatures. The sensitivity analysis then highlighted that urban areas had a significant impact on modeled near-surface temperature. A further analysis on a few large French cities indicated that over the 30 years of simulation they all induced a warming effect both at daytime and nighttime with values up to + 1.5 °C for the city of Paris. The urban model also led to a regional warming extending beyond the urban areas boundaries. Finally, the comparison to temperature observations available for Paris area highlighted that the detailed urban canopy model improved the modeling of the urban heat island compared with a simpler approach.

3D Simulations of Convection: From the Sun Toward Evolved Stars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Höfner, Susanne

2018-04-01

Basic physical considerations and detailed numerical simulations predict a dramatic increase in the sizes of convection cells during late phases of stellar evolution. The recent progress in high-angular-resolution techniques has made it possible to observe surface structures on several nearby giants and supergiants for a wide range of wavelengths. Such observations provide much-needed checkpoints for convection theory, in addition to the detailed comparisons of models and observations for the sun. In this talk I will give an overview of current 3D convection models for different types of stars and discuss related observable phenomena.

The Martian surface radiation environment - a comparison of models and MSL/RAD measurements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Matthiä, Daniel; Ehresmann, Bent; Lohf, Henning; Köhler, Jan; Zeitlin, Cary; Appel, Jan; Sato, Tatsuhiko; Slaba, Tony; Martin, Cesar; Berger, Thomas; Boehm, Eckart; Boettcher, Stephan; Brinza, David E.; Burmeister, Soenke; Guo, Jingnan; Hassler, Donald M.; Posner, Arik; Rafkin, Scot C. R.; Reitz, Günther; Wilson, John W.; Wimmer-Schweingruber, Robert F.

2016-03-01

Context: The Radiation Assessment Detector (RAD) on the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) has been measuring the radiation environment on the surface of Mars since August 6th 2012. MSL-RAD is the first instrument to provide detailed information about charged and neutral particle spectra and dose rates on the Martian surface, and one of the primary objectives of the RAD investigation is to help improve and validate current radiation transport models. Aims: Applying different numerical transport models with boundary conditions derived from the MSL-RAD environment the goal of this work was to both provide predictions for the particle spectra and the radiation exposure on the Martian surface complementing the RAD sensitive range and, at the same time, validate the results with the experimental data, where applicable. Such validated models can be used to predict dose rates for future manned missions as well as for performing shield optimization studies. Methods: Several particle transport models (GEANT4, PHITS, HZETRN/OLTARIS) were used to predict the particle flux and the corresponding radiation environment caused by galactic cosmic radiation on Mars. From the calculated particle spectra the dose rates on the surface are estimated. Results: Calculations of particle spectra and dose rates induced by galactic cosmic radiation on the Martian surface are presented. Although good agreement is found in many cases for the different transport codes, GEANT4, PHITS, and HZETRN/OLTARIS, some models still show large, sometimes order of magnitude discrepancies in certain particle spectra. We have found that RAD data is helping to make better choices of input parameters and physical models. Elements of these validated models can be applied to more detailed studies on how the radiation environment is influenced by solar modulation, Martian atmosphere and soil, and changes due to the Martian seasonal pressure cycle. By extending the range of the calculated particle spectra with respect to the experimental data additional information about the radiation environment is gained, and the contribution of different particle species to the dose is estimated.

Heat Transfer and Flow on the First Stage Blade Tip of a Power Generation Gas Turbine. Part 1; Experimental Results

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bunker, Ronald S.; Bailey, Jeremy C.; Ameri, Ali A.

1999-01-01

A combined computational and experimental study has been performed to investigate the detailed distribution of convective heat transfer coefficients on the first stage blade tip surface for a geometry typical of large power generation turbines(>100MW). This paper is concerned with the design and execution of the experimental portion of the study. A stationary blade cascade experiment has been run consisting of three airfoils, the center airfoil having a variable tip gap clearance. The airfoil models the aerodynamic tip section of a high pressure turbine blade with inlet Mach number of 0.30, exit Mach number of 0.75, pressure ratio of 1.45, exit Reynolds number based on axial chord of 2.57 x 10(exp 6), and total turning of about 110 degrees. A hue detection based liquid crystal method is used to obtain the detailed heat transfer coefficient distribution on the blade tip surface for flat, smooth tip surfaces with both sharp and rounded edges. The cascade inlet turbulence intensity level took on values of either 5% or 9%. The cascade also models the casing recess in the shroud surface ahead of the blade. Experimental results are shown for the pressure distribution measurements on the airfoil near the tip gap, on the blade tip surface, and on the opposite shroud surface. Tip surface heat transfer coefficient distributions are shown for sharp-edge and rounded-edge tip geometries at each of the inlet turbulence intensity levels.

USB environment measurements based on full-scale static engine ground tests. [Upper Surface Blowing for YC-14

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sussman, M. B.; Harkonen, D. L.; Reed, J. B.

1976-01-01

Flow turning parameters, static pressures, surface temperatures, surface fluctuating pressures and acceleration levels were measured in the environment of a full-scale upper surface blowing (USB) propulsive-lift test configuration. The test components included a flightworthy CF6-50D engine, nacelle and USB flap assembly utilized in conjunction with ground verification testing of the USAF YC-14 Advanced Medium STOL Transport propulsion system. Results, based on a preliminary analysis of the data, generally show reasonable agreement with predicted levels based on model data. However, additional detailed analysis is required to confirm the preliminary evaluation, to help delineate certain discrepancies with model data and to establish a basis for future flight test comparisons.

Relevance of detail in basal topography for basal slipperiness inversions: a case study on Pine Island Glacier, Antarctica

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kyrke-Smith, Teresa M.; Gudmundsson, G. Hilmar; Farrell, Patrick E.

2018-04-01

Given high-resolution satellite-derived surface elevation and velocity data, ice-sheet models generally estimate mechanical basal boundary conditions using surface-to-bed inversion methods. In this work, we address the sensitivity of results from inversion methods to the accuracy of the bed elevation data on Pine Island Glacier. We show that misfit between observations and model output is reduced when high-resolution bed topography is used in the inverse model. By looking at results with a range of detail included in the bed elevation, we consider the separation of basal drag due to the bed topography (form drag) and that due to inherent bed properties (skin drag). The mean value of basal shear stress is reduced when more detailed topography is included in the model. This suggests that without a fully resolved bed a significant amount of the basal shear stress recovered from inversion methods may be due to the unresolved bed topography. However, the spatial structure of the retrieved fields is robust as the bed accuracy is varied; the fields are instead sensitive to the degree of regularisation applied to the inversion. While the implications for the future temporal evolution of PIG are not quantified here directly, our work raises the possibility that skin drag may be overestimated in the current generation of numerical ice-sheet models of this area. These shortcomings could be overcome by inverting simultaneously for both bed topography and basal slipperiness.

Improvement of the model for surface process of tritium release from lithium oxide

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yamaki, Daiju; Iwamoto, Akira; Jitsukawa, Shiro

2000-12-01

Among the various tritium transport processes in lithium ceramics, the importance and the detailed mechanism of surface reactions remain to be elucidated. The dynamic adsorption and desorption model for tritium desorption from lithium ceramics, especially Li 2O was constructed. From the experimental results, it was considered that both H 2 and H 2O are dissociatively adsorbed on Li 2O and generate OH - on the surface. In the first model developed in 1994, it was assumed that either the dissociative adsorption of H 2 or H 2O on Li 2O generates two OH - on the surface. However, recent calculation results show that the generation of one OH - and one H - is more stable than that of two OH -s by the dissociative adsorption of H 2. Therefore, assumption of H 2 adsorption and desorption in the first model is improved and the tritium release behavior from Li 2O surface is evaluated again by using the improved model. The tritium residence time on the Li 2O surface is calculated using the improved model, and the results are compared with the experimental results. The calculation results using the improved model agree well with the experimental results than those using the first model.

Euro-Maps 3D- A Transnational, High-Resolution Digital Surface Model For Europe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Uttenthaler, A.; Barner, F.; Hass, T.; Makiola, J.; d'Angelo, P.; Reinartz, P.; Carl, S.; Steiner, K.

2013-12-01

Euro-Maps 3D is a homogeneous 5 m spaced digital surface model (DSM) semi-automatically derived by Euromap from 2.5 m in-flight stereo data provided by the Indian IRS-P5 Cartosat-1 satellite. This new and innovative product has been developed in close co- operation with the Remote Sensing Technology Institute (IMF) of the German Aerospace Center (DLR) and is being jointly exploited. The very detailed and accurate representation of the surface is achieved by using a sophisticated and well adapted algorithm implemented on the basis of the Semi-Global Matching approach. In addition, the final product includes detailed flanking information consisting of several pixel-based quality and traceability layers also including an ortho layer. The product is believed to provide maximum accuracy and transparency. The DSM product meets and exceeds HRE80 qualification standards. The DSM product will be made available transnational in a homogeneous quality for most parts of Europe, North Africa and Turkey by Euromap step-by-step. Other areas around the world are processed on demand.

Survey mirrors and lenses and their required surface accuracy. Volume 1. Technical report. Final report for September 15, 1978-December 1, 1979

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Beesing, M. E.; Buchholz, R. L.; Evans, R. A.

1980-01-01

An investigation of the optical performance of a variety of concentrating solar collectors is reported. The study addresses two important issues: the accuracy of reflective or refractive surfaces required to achieve specified performance goals, and the effect of environmental exposure on the performance concentrators. To assess the importance of surface accuracy on optical performance, 11 tracking and nontracking concentrator designs were selected for detailed evaluation. Mathematical models were developed for each design and incorporated into a Monte Carlo ray trace computer program to carry out detailed calculations. Results for the 11 concentrators are presented in graphic form. The models andmore » computer program are provided along with a user's manual. A survey data base was established on the effect of environmental exposure on the optical degradation of mirrors and lenses. Information on environmental and maintenance effects was found to be insufficient to permit specific recommendations for operating and maintenance procedures, but the available information is compiled and reported and does contain procedures that other workers have found useful.« less

Detailed Physical Modeling Reveals the Magnetar Nature of a Transient Anomalous X-ray Pulsar

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Guever, T.; Oezel, F.; Goegues, E.; Kouveliotou, C.

2007-01-01

Anomalous X-ray Pulsars (AXPs) belong to a class of neutron stars believed to harbor the strongest magnetic fields in the universe, as indicated by their energetic bursts and their rapid spindowns. However, a direct measurement of their surface field strengths has not been made to date. It is also not known whether AXP outbursts result from changes in the neutron star magnetic field or crust properties. Here we report the first, spectroscopic measurement of the surface magnetic field strength of an AXP, XTE J1810-197, and solidify its magnetar nature. The field strength obtained from detailed spectral analysis and modeling is remarkably close to the value inferred from the rate of spindown of this source and remains nearly constant during numerous observations spanning over two orders of magnitude in source flux. The surface temperature, on the other hand, declines steadily and dramatically following the 2003 outburst of this source. Our findings demonstrate that heating occurs in the upper neutron star crust during an outburst and sheds light on the transient behaviour of AXPs.

Status of surface-water modeling in the U.S. Geological Survey

USGS Publications Warehouse

Jennings, Marshall E.; Yotsukura, Nobuhiro

1979-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey is active in the development and use of models for the analysis of various types of surface-water problems. Types of problems for which models have been, or are being developed, include categories such as the following: (1)specialized hydraulics, (2)flow routing in streams, estuaries, lakes, and reservoirs, (3) sedimentation, (4) transport of physical, chemical, and biological constituents, (5) surface exchange of heat and mass, (6) coupled stream-aquifer flow systems, (7) physical hydrology for rainfall-runoff relations, stream-system simulations, channel geometry, and water quality, (8) statistical hydrology for synthetic streamflows, floods, droughts, storage, and water quality, (9) management and operation problems, and (10) miscellaneous hydrologic problems. Following a brief review of activities prior to 1970, the current status of surface-water modeling is given as being in a developmental, verification, operational, or continued improvement phase. A list of recently published selected references, provides useful details on the characteristics of models.

Polarimetric Doppler spectrum of backscattered echoes from nonlinear sea surface damped by natural slicks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Pengju; Guo, Lixin

2016-11-01

Based on the Lombardini et al. model that can predict the hydrodynamic damping of rough sea surfaces in the presence of monomolecular slicks and the "choppy wave" model (CWM) that can describe the nonlinear interactions between ocean waves, the modeling of time-varying nonlinear sea surfaces damped by natural or organic sea slicks is presented in this paper. The polarimetric scattering model of second-order small-slope approximation (SSA-II) with tapered wave incidence is utilized for evaluating co- and cross-polarized backscattered echoes from clean and contaminated CWM nonlinear sea surfaces. The influence of natural sea slicks on Doppler shift and spectral bandwidth of radar sea echoes is investigated in detail by comparing the polarimetric Doppler spectra of contaminated sea surfaces with those of clean sea surfaces. A narrowing of Doppler spectra in the presence of oil slicks is observed for both co- and cross-polarization, which is qualitatively consistent with wave-tank measurements. Simulation results also show that the Doppler shifts in slicks can increase or decrease, depending on incidence angles and polarizations.

Improving Numerical Weather Predictions of Summertime Precipitation Over the Southeastern U.S. Through a High-Resolution Initialization of the Surface State

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Case, Jonathan L.; Kumar, Sujay V.; Krikishen, Jayanthi; Jedlovec, Gary J.

2011-01-01

It is hypothesized that high-resolution, accurate representations of surface properties such as soil moisture and sea surface temperature are necessary to improve simulations of summertime pulse-type convective precipitation in high resolution models. This paper presents model verification results of a case study period from June-August 2008 over the Southeastern U.S. using the Weather Research and Forecasting numerical weather prediction model. Experimental simulations initialized with high-resolution land surface fields from the NASA Land Information System (LIS) and sea surface temperature (SST) derived from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) are compared to a set of control simulations initialized with interpolated fields from the National Centers for Environmental Prediction 12-km North American Mesoscale model. The LIS land surface and MODIS SSTs provide a more detailed surface initialization at a resolution comparable to the 4-km model grid spacing. Soil moisture from the LIS spin-up run is shown to respond better to the extreme rainfall of Tropical Storm Fay in August 2008 over the Florida peninsula. The LIS has slightly lower errors and higher anomaly correlations in the top soil layer, but exhibits a stronger dry bias in the root zone. The model sensitivity to the alternative surface initial conditions is examined for a sample case, showing that the LIS/MODIS data substantially impact surface and boundary layer properties.

Importance of tread inertia and damping on the tyre/road contact stiffness

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Winroth, J.; Andersson, P. B. U.; Kropp, W.

2014-10-01

Predicting tyre/road interaction processes like roughness excitation, stick-slip, stick-snap, wear and traction requires detailed information about the road surface, the tyre dynamics and the local deformation of the tread at the interface. Aspects of inertia and damping when the tread is locally deformed are often neglected in many existing tyre/road interaction models. The objective of this paper is to study how the dynamic features of the tread affect contact forces and contact stiffness during local deformation. This is done by simulating the detailed contact between an elastic layer and a rough road surface using a previously developed numerical time domain contact model. Road roughness on length scales smaller than the discretisation scale is included by the addition of nonlinear contact springs between each pair of contact elements. The dynamic case, with an elastic layer impulse response extending in time, is compared with the case where the corresponding quasi-static response is used. Results highlight the difficulty of estimating a constant contact stiffness as it increases during the indentation process between the elastic layer and the rough road surface. The stiffness-indentation relation additionally depends on how rapidly the contact develops; a faster process gives a stiffer contact. Material properties like loss factor and density also alter the contact development. This work implies that dynamic properties of the local tread deformation may be of importance when simulating contact details during normal tyre/road interaction conditions. There are however indications that the significant effect of damping could approximately be included as an increased stiffness in a quasi-static tread model.

View generated database

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Downward, James G.

1992-01-01

This document represents the final report for the View Generated Database (VGD) project, NAS7-1066. It documents the work done on the project up to the point at which all project work was terminated due to lack of project funds. The VGD was to provide the capability to accurately represent any real-world object or scene as a computer model. Such models include both an accurate spatial/geometric representation of surfaces of the object or scene, as well as any surface detail present on the object. Applications of such models are numerous, including acquisition and maintenance of work models for tele-autonomous systems, generation of accurate 3-D geometric/photometric models for various 3-D vision systems, and graphical models for realistic rendering of 3-D scenes via computer graphics.

[Hybrid 3-D rendering of the thorax and surface-based virtual bronchoscopy in surgical and interventional therapy control].

PubMed

Seemann, M D; Gebicke, K; Luboldt, W; Albes, J M; Vollmar, J; Schäfer, J F; Beinert, T; Englmeier, K H; Bitzer, M; Claussen, C D

2001-07-01

The aim of this study was to demonstrate the possibilities of a hybrid rendering method, the combination of a color-coded surface and volume rendering method, with the feasibility of performing surface-based virtual endoscopy with different representation models in the operative and interventional therapy control of the chest. In 6 consecutive patients with partial lung resection (n = 2) and lung transplantation (n = 4) a thin-section spiral computed tomography of the chest was performed. The tracheobronchial system and the introduced metallic stents were visualized using a color-coded surface rendering method. The remaining thoracic structures were visualized using a volume rendering method. For virtual bronchoscopy, the tracheobronchial system was visualized using a triangle surface model, a shaded-surface model and a transparent shaded-surface model. The hybrid 3D visualization uses the advantages of both the color-coded surface and volume rendering methods and facilitates a clear representation of the tracheobronchial system and the complex topographical relationship of morphological and pathological changes without loss of diagnostic information. Performing virtual bronchoscopy with the transparent shaded-surface model facilitates a reasonable to optimal, simultaneous visualization and assessment of the surface structure of the tracheobronchial system and the surrounding mediastinal structures and lesions. Hybrid rendering relieve the morphological assessment of anatomical and pathological changes without the need for time-consuming detailed analysis and presentation of source images. Performing virtual bronchoscopy with a transparent shaded-surface model offers a promising alternative to flexible fiberoptic bronchoscopy.

Atomistic Method Applied to Computational Modeling of Surface Alloys

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bozzolo, Guillermo H.; Abel, Phillip B.

2000-01-01

The formation of surface alloys is a growing research field that, in terms of the surface structure of multicomponent systems, defines the frontier both for experimental and theoretical techniques. Because of the impact that the formation of surface alloys has on surface properties, researchers need reliable methods to predict new surface alloys and to help interpret unknown structures. The structure of surface alloys and when, and even if, they form are largely unpredictable from the known properties of the participating elements. No unified theory or model to date can infer surface alloy structures from the constituents properties or their bulk alloy characteristics. In spite of these severe limitations, a growing catalogue of such systems has been developed during the last decade, and only recently are global theories being advanced to fully understand the phenomenon. None of the methods used in other areas of surface science can properly model even the already known cases. Aware of these limitations, the Computational Materials Group at the NASA Glenn Research Center at Lewis Field has developed a useful, computationally economical, and physically sound methodology to enable the systematic study of surface alloy formation in metals. This tool has been tested successfully on several known systems for which hard experimental evidence exists and has been used to predict ternary surface alloy formation (results to be published: Garces, J.E.; Bozzolo, G.; and Mosca, H.: Atomistic Modeling of Pd/Cu(100) Surface Alloy Formation. Surf. Sci., 2000 (in press); Mosca, H.; Garces J.E.; and Bozzolo, G.: Surface Ternary Alloys of (Cu,Au)/Ni(110). (Accepted for publication in Surf. Sci., 2000.); and Garces, J.E.; Bozzolo, G.; Mosca, H.; and Abel, P.: A New Approach for Atomistic Modeling of Pd/Cu(110) Surface Alloy Formation. (Submitted to Appl. Surf. Sci.)). Ternary alloy formation is a field yet to be fully explored experimentally. The computational tool, which is based on the BFS (Bozzolo, Ferrante, and Smith) method for the calculation of the energetics, consists of a small number of simple PCbased computer codes that deal with the different aspects of surface alloy formation. Two analysis modes are available within this package. The first mode provides an atom-by-atom description of real and virtual stages 1. during the process of surface alloying, based on the construction of catalogues of configurations where each configuration describes one possible atomic distribution. BFS analysis of this catalogue provides information on accessible states, possible ordering patterns, and details of island formation or film growth. More importantly, it provides insight into the evolution of the system. Software developed by the Computational Materials Group allows for the study of an arbitrary number of elements forming surface alloys, including an arbitrary number of surface atomic layers. The second mode involves large-scale temperature-dependent computer 2. simulations that use the BFS method for the energetics and provide information on the dynamic processes during surface alloying. These simulations require the implementation of Monte-Carlo-based codes with high efficiency within current workstation environments. This methodology capitalizes on the advantages of the BFS method: there are no restrictions on the number or type of elements or on the type of crystallographic structure considered. This removes any restrictions in the definition of the configuration catalogues used in the analytical calculations, thus allowing for the study of arbitrary ordering patterns, ultimately leading to the actual surface alloy structure. Moreover, the Monte Carlo numerical technique used for the large-scale simulations allows for a detailed visualization of the simulated process, the main advantage of this type of analysis being the ability to understand the underlying features that drive these processes. Because of the simplicity of the BFS method for e energetics used in these calculations, a detailed atom-by-atom analysis can be performed at any point in the simulation, providing necessary insight on the details of the process. The main objective of this research program is to develop a tool to guide experimenters in understanding and interpreting often unexpected results in alloy formation experiments. By reducing the computational effort without losing physical accuracy, we expect that powerful simulation tools will be developed in the immediate future, which will allow material scientists to easily visualize and analyze processes at a level not achievable experimentally.

Microscopic modeling of gas-surface scattering. I. A combined molecular dynamics-rate equation approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Filinov, A.; Bonitz, M.; Loffhagen, D.

2018-06-01

A combination of first principle molecular dynamics (MD) simulations with a rate equation model (MD-RE approach) is presented to study the trapping and the scattering of rare gas atoms from metal surfaces. The temporal evolution of the atom fractions that are either adsorbed or scattered into the continuum is investigated in detail. We demonstrate that for this description one has to consider trapped, quasi-trapped and scattering states, and present an energetic definition of these states. The rate equations contain the transition probabilities between the states. We demonstrate how these rate equations can be derived from kinetic theory. Moreover, we present a rigorous way to determine the transition probabilities from a microscopic analysis of the particle trajectories generated by MD simulations. Once the system reaches quasi-equilibrium, the rates converge to stationary values, and the subsequent thermal adsorption/desorption dynamics is completely described by the rate equations without the need to perform further time-consuming MD simulations. As a proof of concept of our approach, MD simulations for argon atoms interacting with a platinum (111) surface are presented. A detailed deterministic trajectory analysis is performed, and the transition rates are constructed. The dependence of the rates on the incidence conditions and the lattice temperature is analyzed. Based on this example, we analyze the time scale of the gas-surface system to approach the quasi-stationary state. The MD-RE model has great relevance for the plasma-surface modeling as it makes an extension of accurate simulations to long, experimentally relevant time scales possible. Its application to the computation of atomic sticking probabilities is given in the second part (paper II).

Predictive simulation of bidirectional Glenn shunt using a hybrid blood vessel model.

PubMed

Li, Hao; Leow, Wee Kheng; Chiu, Ing-Sh

2009-01-01

This paper proposes a method for performing predictive simulation of cardiac surgery. It applies a hybrid approach to model the deformation of blood vessels. The hybrid blood vessel model consists of a reference Cosserat rod and a surface mesh. The reference Cosserat rod models the blood vessel's global bending, stretching, twisting and shearing in a physically correct manner, and the surface mesh models the surface details of the blood vessel. In this way, the deformation of blood vessels can be computed efficiently and accurately. Our predictive simulation system can produce complex surgical results given a small amount of user inputs. It allows the surgeon to easily explore various surgical options and evaluate them. Tests of the system using bidirectional Glenn shunt (BDG) as an application example show that the results produc by the system are similar to real surgical results.

A Model Based Deconvolution Approach for Creating Surface Composition Maps of Irregularly Shaped Bodies from Limited Orbiting Nuclear Spectrometer Measurements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dallmann, N. A.; Carlsten, B. E.; Stonehill, L. C.

2017-12-01

Orbiting nuclear spectrometers have contributed significantly to our understanding of the composition of solar system bodies. Gamma rays and neutrons are produced within the surfaces of bodies by impacting galactic cosmic rays (GCR) and by intrinsic radionuclide decay. Measuring the flux and energy spectrum of these products at one point in an orbit elucidates the elemental content of the area in view. Deconvolution of measurements from many spatially registered orbit points can produce detailed maps of elemental abundances. In applying these well-established techniques to small and irregularly shaped bodies like Phobos, one encounters unique challenges beyond those of a large spheroid. Polar mapping orbits are not possible for Phobos and quasistatic orbits will realize only modest inclinations unavoidably limiting surface coverage and creating North-South ambiguities in deconvolution. The irregular shape causes self-shadowing both of the body to the spectrometer but also of the body to the incoming GCR. The view angle to the surface normal as well as the distance between the surface and the spectrometer is highly irregular. These characteristics can be synthesized into a complicated and continuously changing measurement system point spread function. We have begun to explore different model-based, statistically rigorous, iterative deconvolution methods to produce elemental abundance maps for a proposed future investigation of Phobos. By incorporating the satellite orbit, the existing high accuracy shape-models of Phobos, and the spectrometer response function, a detailed and accurate system model can be constructed. Many aspects of this model formation are particularly well suited to modern graphics processing techniques and parallel processing. We will present the current status and preliminary visualizations of the Phobos measurement system model. We will also discuss different deconvolution strategies and their relative merit in statistical rigor, stability, achievable resolution, and exploitation of the irregular shape to partially resolve ambiguities. The general applicability of these new approaches to existing data sets from Mars, Mercury, and Lunar investigations will be noted.

Ab Initio Surface Phase Diagrams for Coadsorption of Aromatics and Hydrogen on the Pt(111) Surface

DOE PAGES

Ferguson, Glen Allen; Vorotnikov, Vassili; Wunder, Nicholas; ...

2016-11-02

Supported metal catalysts are commonly used for the hydrogenation and deoxygenation of biomass-derived aromatic compounds in catalytic fast pyrolysis. To date, the substrate-adsorbate interactions under reaction conditions crucial to these processes remain poorly understood, yet understanding this is critical to constructing detailed mechanistic models of the reactions important to catalytic fast pyrolysis. Density functional theory (DFT) has been used in identifying mechanistic details, but many of these works assume surface models that are not representative of realistic conditions, for example, under which the surface is covered with some concentration of hydrogen and aromatic compounds. In this study, we investigate hydrogen-guaiacolmore » coadsorption on Pt(111) using van der Waals-corrected DFT and ab initio thermodynamics over a range of temperatures and pressures relevant to bio-oil upgrading. We find that relative coverage of hydrogen and guaiacol is strongly dependent on the temperature and pressure of the system. Under conditions relevant to ex situ catalytic fast pyrolysis (CFP; 620-730 K, 1-10 bar), guaiacol and hydrogen chemisorb to the surface with a submonolayer hydrogen (~0.44 ML H), while under conditions relevant to hydrotreating (470-580 K, 10-200 bar), the surface exhibits a full-monolayer hydrogen coverage with guaiacol physisorbed to the surface. These results correlate with experimentally observed selectivities, which show ring saturation to methoxycyclohexanol at hydrotreating conditions and deoxygenation to phenol at CFP-relevant conditions. Additionally, the vibrational energy of the adsorbates on the surface significantly contributes to surface energy at higher coverage. Ignoring this contribution results in not only quantitatively, but also qualitatively incorrect interpretation of coadsorption, shifting the phase boundaries by more than 200 K and ~10-20 bar and predicting no guaiacol adsorption under CFP and hydrotreating conditions. We discuss the implications of this work in the context of modeling hydrogenation and deoxygenation reactions on Pt(111), and we find that only the models representative of equilibrium surface coverage can capture the hydrogenation kinetics correctly. Lastly, as a major outcome of this work, we introduce a freely available web-based tool, dubbed the Surface Phase Explorer (SPE), which allows researchers to conveniently determine surface composition for any one- or two-component system at thermodynamic equilibrium over a wide range of temperatures and pressures on any crystalline surface using standard DFT output.« less

Supersonic molecular beam experiments on surface chemical reactions.

PubMed

Okada, Michio

2014-10-01

The interaction of a molecule and a surface is important in various fields, and in particular in complex systems like biomaterials and their related chemistry. However, the detailed understanding of the elementary steps in the surface chemistry, for example, stereodynamics, is still insufficient even for simple model systems. In this Personal Account, I review our recent studies of chemical reactions on single-crystalline Cu and Si surfaces induced by hyperthermal oxygen molecular beams and by oriented molecular beams, respectively. Studies of oxide formation on Cu induced by hyperthermal molecular beams demonstrate a significant role of the translational energy of the incident molecules. The use of hyperthermal molecular beams enables us to open up new chemical reaction paths specific for the hyperthermal energy region, and to develop new methods for the fabrication of thin films. On the other hand, oriented molecular beams also demonstrate the possibility of understanding surface chemical reactions in detail by varying the orientation of the incident molecules. The steric effects found on Si surfaces hint at new ways of material fabrication on Si surfaces. Controlling the initial conditions of incoming molecules is a powerful tool for finely monitoring the elementary step of the surface chemical reactions and creating new materials on surfaces. Copyright © 2014 The Chemical Society of Japan and Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Simplified versus geometrically accurate models of forefoot anatomy to predict plantar pressures: A finite element study.

PubMed

Telfer, Scott; Erdemir, Ahmet; Woodburn, James; Cavanagh, Peter R

2016-01-25

Integration of patient-specific biomechanical measurements into the design of therapeutic footwear has been shown to improve clinical outcomes in patients with diabetic foot disease. The addition of numerical simulations intended to optimise intervention design may help to build on these advances, however at present the time and labour required to generate and run personalised models of foot anatomy restrict their routine clinical utility. In this study we developed second-generation personalised simple finite element (FE) models of the forefoot with varying geometric fidelities. Plantar pressure predictions from barefoot, shod, and shod with insole simulations using simplified models were compared to those obtained from CT-based FE models incorporating more detailed representations of bone and tissue geometry. A simplified model including representations of metatarsals based on simple geometric shapes, embedded within a contoured soft tissue block with outer geometry acquired from a 3D surface scan was found to provide pressure predictions closest to the more complex model, with mean differences of 13.3kPa (SD 13.4), 12.52kPa (SD 11.9) and 9.6kPa (SD 9.3) for barefoot, shod, and insole conditions respectively. The simplified model design could be produced in <1h compared to >3h in the case of the more detailed model, and solved on average 24% faster. FE models of the forefoot based on simplified geometric representations of the metatarsal bones and soft tissue surface geometry from 3D surface scans may potentially provide a simulation approach with improved clinical utility, however further validity testing around a range of therapeutic footwear types is required. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Mesoscale Numerical Investigations of Air Traffic Emissions over the North Atlantic during SONEX Flight 8: A Case Study

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bieberbach, George, Jr.; Fuelberg, Henry E.; Thompson, Anne M.; Schmitt, Alf; Hannan, John R.; Gregory, G. L.; Kondo, Yutaka; Knabb, Richard D.; Sachse, G. W.; Talbot, R. W.

1999-01-01

Chemical data from flight 8 of NASA's Subsonic Assessment (SASS) Ozone and Nitrogen Oxide Experiment (SONEX) exhibited signatures consistent with aircraft emissions, stratospheric air, and surface-based pollution. These signatures are examined in detail, focussing on the broad aircraft emission signatures that are several hundred kilometers in length. A mesoscale meteorological model provides high resolution wind data that are used to calculate backward trajectories arriving at locations along the flight track. These trajectories are compared to aircraft locations in the North Atlantic Flight Corridor over a 27-33 hour period. Time series of flight level NO and the number of trajectory/aircraft encounters within the NAFC show excellent agreement. Trajectories arriving within the stratospheric and surface-based pollution regions are found to experience very few aircraft encounters. Conversely, there are many trajectory/aircraft encounters within the two chemical signatures corresponding to aircraft emissions. Even many detailed fluctuations of NO within the two aircraft signature regions correspond to similar fluctuations in aircraft encountered during the previous 27-33 hours. Results indicate that high resolution meteorological modeling, when coupled with detailed aircraft location data, is useful for understanding chemical signatures from aircraft emissions at scales of several hundred kilometers.

Shape-driven 3D segmentation using spherical wavelets.

PubMed

Nain, Delphine; Haker, Steven; Bobick, Aaron; Tannenbaum, Allen

2006-01-01

This paper presents a novel active surface segmentation algorithm using a multiscale shape representation and prior. We define a parametric model of a surface using spherical wavelet functions and learn a prior probability distribution over the wavelet coefficients to model shape variations at different scales and spatial locations in a training set. Based on this representation, we derive a parametric active surface evolution using the multiscale prior coefficients as parameters for our optimization procedure to naturally include the prior in the segmentation framework. Additionally, the optimization method can be applied in a coarse-to-fine manner. We apply our algorithm to the segmentation of brain caudate nucleus, of interest in the study of schizophrenia. Our validation shows our algorithm is computationally efficient and outperforms the Active Shape Model algorithm by capturing finer shape details.

Modelling interstellar physics and chemistry: implications for surface and solid-state processes.

PubMed

Williams, David; Viti, Serena

2013-07-13

We discuss several types of regions in the interstellar medium of the Milky Way and other galaxies in which the chemistry appears to be influenced or dominated by surface and solid-state processes occurring on or in interstellar dust grains. For some of these processes, for example, the formation of H₂ molecules, detailed experimental and theoretical approaches have provided excellent fundamental data for incorporation into astrochemical models. In other cases, there is an astrochemical requirement for much more laboratory and computational study, and we highlight these needs in our description. Nevertheless, in spite of the limitations of the data, it is possible to infer from astrochemical modelling that surface and solid-state processes play a crucial role in astronomical chemistry from early epochs of the Universe up to the present day.

USB environment measurements based on full-scale static engine ground tests

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sussman, M. B.; Harkonen, D. L.; Reed, J. B.

1976-01-01

Flow turning parameters, static pressures, surface temperatures, surface fluctuating pressures and acceleration levels were measured in the environment of a full-scale upper surface blowing (USB) propulsive lift test configuration. The test components included a flightworthy CF6-50D engine, nacelle, and USB flap assembly utilized in conjunction with ground verification testing of the USAF YC-14 Advanced Medium STOL Transport propulsion system. Results, based on a preliminary analysis of the data, generally show reasonable agreement with predicted levels based on model data. However, additional detailed analysis is required to confirm the preliminary evaluation, to help delineate certain discrepancies with model data, and to establish a basis for future flight test comparisons.

Extension of surface data by use of meteorological satellites

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Giddings, L. E.

1976-01-01

Ways of using meteorological satellite data to extend surface data are summarized. Temperature models are prepared from infrared data from ITOS/NOAA, NIMBUS, SMS/GOES, or future LANDSAT satellites. Using temperatures for surface meteorological stations as anchors, an adjustment is made to temperature values for each pixel in the model. The result is an image with an estimated temperature for each pixel. This provides an economical way of producing detailed temperature information for data-sparse areas, such as are found in underdeveloped countries. Related uses of these satellite data are also given, including the use of computer prepared cloud-free composites to extend climatic zones, and their use in discrimination of reflectivity-thermal regime zones.

The remarkable ability of turbulence model equations to describe transition

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wilcox, David C.

1992-01-01

This paper demonstrates how well the k-omega turbulence model describes the nonlinear growth of flow instabilities from laminar flow into the turbulent flow regime. Viscous modifications are proposed for the k-omega model that yield close agreement with measurements and with Direct Numerical Simulation results for channel and pipe flow. These modifications permit prediction of subtle sublayer details such as maximum dissipation at the surface, k approximately y(exp 2) as y approaches 0, and the sharp peak value of k near the surface. With two transition specific closure coefficients, the model equations accurately predict transition for an incompressible flat-plate boundary layer. The analysis also shows why the k-epsilon model is so difficult to use for predicting transition.

A hydrologic network supporting spatially referenced regression modeling in the Chesapeake Bay watershed

USGS Publications Warehouse

Brakebill, J.W.; Preston, S.D.

2003-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey has developed a methodology for statistically relating nutrient sources and land-surface characteristics to nutrient loads of streams. The methodology is referred to as SPAtially Referenced Regressions On Watershed attributes (SPARROW), and relates measured stream nutrient loads to nutrient sources using nonlinear statistical regression models. A spatially detailed digital hydrologic network of stream reaches, stream-reach characteristics such as mean streamflow, water velocity, reach length, and travel time, and their associated watersheds supports the regression models. This network serves as the primary framework for spatially referencing potential nutrient source information such as atmospheric deposition, septic systems, point-sources, land use, land cover, and agricultural sources and land-surface characteristics such as land use, land cover, average-annual precipitation and temperature, slope, and soil permeability. In the Chesapeake Bay watershed that covers parts of Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York, Virginia, West Virginia, and Washington D.C., SPARROW was used to generate models estimating loads of total nitrogen and total phosphorus representing 1987 and 1992 land-surface conditions. The 1987 models used a hydrologic network derived from an enhanced version of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's digital River Reach File, and course resolution Digital Elevation Models (DEMs). A new hydrologic network was created to support the 1992 models by generating stream reaches representing surface-water pathways defined by flow direction and flow accumulation algorithms from higher resolution DEMs. On a reach-by-reach basis, stream reach characteristics essential to the modeling were transferred to the newly generated pathways or reaches from the enhanced River Reach File used to support the 1987 models. To complete the new network, watersheds for each reach were generated using the direction of surface-water flow derived from the DEMs. This network improves upon existing digital stream data by increasing the level of spatial detail and providing consistency between the reach locations and topography. The hydrologic network also aids in illustrating the spatial patterns of predicted nutrient loads and sources contributed locally to each stream, and the percentages of nutrient load that reach Chesapeake Bay.

Toward a Comprehensive Carbon Budget for North America: Potential Applications of Adjoint Methods with Diverse Datasets

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Andrews, A.

2002-01-01

A detailed mechanistic understanding of the sources and sinks of CO2 will be required to reliably predict future COS levels and climate. A commonly used technique for deriving information about CO2 exchange with surface reservoirs is to solve an "inverse problem," where CO2 observations are used with an atmospheric transport model to find the optimal distribution of sources and sinks. Synthesis inversion methods are powerful tools for addressing this question, but the results are disturbingly sensitive to the details of the calculation. Studies done using different atmospheric transport models and combinations of surface station data have produced substantially different distributions of surface fluxes. Adjoint methods are now being developed that will more effectively incorporate diverse datasets in estimates of surface fluxes of CO2. In an adjoint framework, it will be possible to combine CO2 concentration data from long-term surface monitoring stations with data from intensive field campaigns and with proposed future satellite observations. A major advantage of the adjoint approach is that meteorological and surface data, as well as data for other atmospheric constituents and pollutants can be efficiently included in addition to observations of CO2 mixing ratios. This presentation will provide an overview of potentially useful datasets for carbon cycle research in general with an emphasis on planning for the North American Carbon Project. Areas of overlap with ongoing and proposed work on air quality/air pollution issues will be highlighted.

The Consequences of Surface Confinement on Free Radical Chemistry

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Birtt, P.F.; Buchanan, A.C., III

1999-08-22

Mass transport limitations impact the thermochemical processing of fossil and renewable energy resources, which involves the breakdown of cross-linked, macromolecular networks. To Investigate the molecular level details of the consequences of molecular confinement on high temperature (275-500°C) free-radical reaction pathways, we have been examining the pyrolysis of model compounds attached to the surface of non-porous silica nanoparticles through a thermally robust Si-O-C aryl, tetha. Pyrolysis of silica-immobilized diphenylalkanes and related ethers have been studied in detail and compared with the corresponding behavior in fluid phases. The diffusional constraints can lead to reduced rates of radical termination on the surface, andmore » enhancement of neophyl-like rearrangements, cyclization-dehydrogenation pathways, and ipso- aromatic substitutions. Furthermore, studies of two-component surfaces have revealed the importance of a radical relay mechanism involving rapid serial hydrogen transfer steps resulting from the molecular pre-organization on the low fractal dimension silica surface. Key findings are reviewed in this paper, and the implications of these results for fuel processing are described.« less

An investigation of crown fuel bulk density effects on the dynamics of crown fire initiation in shrublands

Treesearch

Watcharapong Tachajapong; Jesse Lozano; Shankar Mahalingam; Xiangyang Zhou; David R. Weise

2008-01-01

Crown fire initiation is studied by using a simple experimental and detailed physical modeling based on Large Eddy Simulation (LES). Experiments conducted thus far reveal that crown fuel ignition via surface fire occurs when the crown base is within the continuous flame region and does not occur when the crown base is located in the hot plume gas region of the surface...

Generalized interactions using virtual tools within the spring framework: cutting

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Montgomery, Kevin; Bruyns, Cynthia D.

2002-01-01

We present schemes for real-time generalized mesh cutting. Starting with the a basic example, we describe the details of implementing cutting on single and multiple surface objects as well as hybrid and volumetric meshes using virtual tools with single and multiple cutting surfaces. These methods have been implemented in a robust surgical simulation environment allowing us to model procedures ranging from animal dissection to cleft lip correction.

Pressure and Temperature Sensitive Paint Field System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sprinkle, Danny R.; Obara, Clifford J.; Amer, Tahani R.; Faulcon, Nettie D.; Carmine, Michael T.; Burkett, Cecil G.; Pritchard, Daniel W.; Oglesby, Donald M.

2004-01-01

This report documents the Pressure and Temperature Sensitive Paint Field System that is used to provide global surface pressure and temperature measurements on models tested in Langley wind tunnels. The system was developed and is maintained by Global Surface Measurements Team personnel of the Data Acquisition and Information Management Branch in the Research Facilities Services Competency. Descriptions of the system hardware and software are presented and operational procedures are detailed.

Quantitative modeling of the accuracy in registering preoperative patient-specific anatomic models into left atrial cardiac ablation procedures

PubMed Central

Rettmann, Maryam E.; Holmes, David R.; Kwartowitz, David M.; Gunawan, Mia; Johnson, Susan B.; Camp, Jon J.; Cameron, Bruce M.; Dalegrave, Charles; Kolasa, Mark W.; Packer, Douglas L.; Robb, Richard A.

2014-01-01

Purpose: In cardiac ablation therapy, accurate anatomic guidance is necessary to create effective tissue lesions for elimination of left atrial fibrillation. While fluoroscopy, ultrasound, and electroanatomic maps are important guidance tools, they lack information regarding detailed patient anatomy which can be obtained from high resolution imaging techniques. For this reason, there has been significant effort in incorporating detailed, patient-specific models generated from preoperative imaging datasets into the procedure. Both clinical and animal studies have investigated registration and targeting accuracy when using preoperative models; however, the effect of various error sources on registration accuracy has not been quantitatively evaluated. Methods: Data from phantom, canine, and patient studies are used to model and evaluate registration accuracy. In the phantom studies, data are collected using a magnetically tracked catheter on a static phantom model. Monte Carlo simulation studies were run to evaluate both baseline errors as well as the effect of different sources of error that would be present in a dynamic in vivo setting. Error is simulated by varying the variance parameters on the landmark fiducial, physical target, and surface point locations in the phantom simulation studies. In vivo validation studies were undertaken in six canines in which metal clips were placed in the left atrium to serve as ground truth points. A small clinical evaluation was completed in three patients. Landmark-based and combined landmark and surface-based registration algorithms were evaluated in all studies. In the phantom and canine studies, both target registration error and point-to-surface error are used to assess accuracy. In the patient studies, no ground truth is available and registration accuracy is quantified using point-to-surface error only. Results: The phantom simulation studies demonstrated that combined landmark and surface-based registration improved landmark-only registration provided the noise in the surface points is not excessively high. Increased variability on the landmark fiducials resulted in increased registration errors; however, refinement of the initial landmark registration by the surface-based algorithm can compensate for small initial misalignments. The surface-based registration algorithm is quite robust to noise on the surface points and continues to improve landmark registration even at high levels of noise on the surface points. Both the canine and patient studies also demonstrate that combined landmark and surface registration has lower errors than landmark registration alone. Conclusions: In this work, we describe a model for evaluating the impact of noise variability on the input parameters of a registration algorithm in the context of cardiac ablation therapy. The model can be used to predict both registration error as well as assess which inputs have the largest effect on registration accuracy. PMID:24506630

Quantitative modeling of the accuracy in registering preoperative patient-specific anatomic models into left atrial cardiac ablation procedures

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Rettmann, Maryam E., E-mail: rettmann.maryam@mayo.edu; Holmes, David R.; Camp, Jon J.

2014-02-15

Purpose: In cardiac ablation therapy, accurate anatomic guidance is necessary to create effective tissue lesions for elimination of left atrial fibrillation. While fluoroscopy, ultrasound, and electroanatomic maps are important guidance tools, they lack information regarding detailed patient anatomy which can be obtained from high resolution imaging techniques. For this reason, there has been significant effort in incorporating detailed, patient-specific models generated from preoperative imaging datasets into the procedure. Both clinical and animal studies have investigated registration and targeting accuracy when using preoperative models; however, the effect of various error sources on registration accuracy has not been quantitatively evaluated. Methods: Datamore » from phantom, canine, and patient studies are used to model and evaluate registration accuracy. In the phantom studies, data are collected using a magnetically tracked catheter on a static phantom model. Monte Carlo simulation studies were run to evaluate both baseline errors as well as the effect of different sources of error that would be present in a dynamicin vivo setting. Error is simulated by varying the variance parameters on the landmark fiducial, physical target, and surface point locations in the phantom simulation studies. In vivo validation studies were undertaken in six canines in which metal clips were placed in the left atrium to serve as ground truth points. A small clinical evaluation was completed in three patients. Landmark-based and combined landmark and surface-based registration algorithms were evaluated in all studies. In the phantom and canine studies, both target registration error and point-to-surface error are used to assess accuracy. In the patient studies, no ground truth is available and registration accuracy is quantified using point-to-surface error only. Results: The phantom simulation studies demonstrated that combined landmark and surface-based registration improved landmark-only registration provided the noise in the surface points is not excessively high. Increased variability on the landmark fiducials resulted in increased registration errors; however, refinement of the initial landmark registration by the surface-based algorithm can compensate for small initial misalignments. The surface-based registration algorithm is quite robust to noise on the surface points and continues to improve landmark registration even at high levels of noise on the surface points. Both the canine and patient studies also demonstrate that combined landmark and surface registration has lower errors than landmark registration alone. Conclusions: In this work, we describe a model for evaluating the impact of noise variability on the input parameters of a registration algorithm in the context of cardiac ablation therapy. The model can be used to predict both registration error as well as assess which inputs have the largest effect on registration accuracy.« less

Extended Graph-Based Models for Enhanced Similarity Search in Cavbase.

PubMed

Krotzky, Timo; Fober, Thomas; Hüllermeier, Eyke; Klebe, Gerhard

2014-01-01

To calculate similarities between molecular structures, measures based on the maximum common subgraph are frequently applied. For the comparison of protein binding sites, these measures are not fully appropriate since graphs representing binding sites on a detailed atomic level tend to get very large. In combination with an NP-hard problem, a large graph leads to a computationally demanding task. Therefore, for the comparison of binding sites, a less detailed coarse graph model is used building upon so-called pseudocenters. Consistently, a loss of structural data is caused since many atoms are discarded and no information about the shape of the binding site is considered. This is usually resolved by performing subsequent calculations based on additional information. These steps are usually quite expensive, making the whole approach very slow. The main drawback of a graph-based model solely based on pseudocenters, however, is the loss of information about the shape of the protein surface. In this study, we propose a novel and efficient modeling formalism that does not increase the size of the graph model compared to the original approach, but leads to graphs containing considerably more information assigned to the nodes. More specifically, additional descriptors considering surface characteristics are extracted from the local surface and attributed to the pseudocenters stored in Cavbase. These properties are evaluated as additional node labels, which lead to a gain of information and allow for much faster but still very accurate comparisons between different structures.

Comparisons Between Model Predictions and Spectral Measurements of Charged and Neutral Particles on the Martian Surface

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kim, Myung-Hee Y.; Cucinotta, Francis A.; Zeitlin, Cary; Hassler, Donald M.; Ehresmann, Bent; Rafkin, Scot C. R.; Wimmer-Schweingruber, Robert F.; Boettcher, Stephan; Boehm, Eckart; Guo, Jingnan;

Experimental evidence and structural modeling of nonstoichiometric (010) surfaces coexisting in hydroxyapatite nano-crystals.

PubMed

Ospina, C A; Terra, J; Ramirez, A J; Farina, M; Ellis, D E; Rossi, A M

2012-01-01

High-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) and ab initio quantum-mechanical calculations of electronic structure were combined to investigate the structure of the hydroxyapatite (HA) (010) surface, which plays an important role in HA interactions with biological media. HA was synthesized by in vitro precipitation at 37°C. HRTEM images revealed thin elongated rod nanoparticles with preferential growth along the [001] direction and terminations parallel to the (010) plane. The focal series reconstruction (FSR) technique was applied to develop an atomic-scale structural model of the high-resolution images. The HRTEM simulations identified the coexistence of two structurally distinct terminations for (010) surfaces: a rather flat Ca(II)-terminated surface and a zig-zag structure with open OH channels. Density functional theory (DFT) was applied in a periodic slab plane-wave pseudopotential approach to refine details of atomic coordination and bond lengths of Ca(I) and Ca(II) sites in hydrated HA (010) surfaces, starting from the HRTEM model. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

CO adsorption on the “29” Cu xO/Cu(111) surface: An integrated DFT, STM, and TPD study

DOE PAGES

Hensley, Alyssa J. R.; Therrien, Andrew J.; Zhang, Renqin; ...

2016-10-04

The elucidation of an accurate atomistic model of surface structures is crucial for the design and understanding of effective catalysts, a process requiring a close collaboration between experimental observations and theoretical models. Any developed surface theoretical model must agree with experimental results for the surface when both clean and adsorbate covered. Here, we present a detailed study of the adsorption of CO on the “29” Cu xO/ Cu(111) surface, which is important in the understanding of ubiquitous Cubased catalysis. This study uses scanning tunneling microscopy, temperatureprogrammed desorption, and density functional theory to analyze CO adsorption on the “29” Cu xO/Cu(111)more » surface. From the experimental scanning tunneling microscopy images, CO was found to form six different ordered structures on the “29” Cu xO/Cu(111) surface depending on the surface CO coverage. By modeling the adsorption of CO on our atomistic model of the “29” Cu xO/Cu(111) surface at different coverages, we were able to match the experimentally observed CO ordered structures to specific combinations of sites on the “29” Cu xO/Cu(111) surface. Lastly, the high degree of agreement seen here between experiment and theory for the adsorption of CO on the “29” Cu xO/Cu(111) surface at various CO coverages provides further support that our atomistic model of the “29” Cu xO/Cu(111) surface is experimentally accurate.« less

LDEF microenvironments, observed and predicted

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bourassa, R. J.; Pippin, H. G.; Gillis, J. R.

1993-04-01

A computer model for prediction of atomic oxygen exposure of spacecraft in low earth orbit, referred to as the primary atomic oxygen model, was originally described at the First Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) Post-Retrieval Symposium. The primary atomic oxygen model accounts for variations in orbit parameters, the condition of the atmosphere, and for the orientation of exposed surfaces relative to the direction of spacecraft motion. The use of the primary atomic oxygen model to define average atomic oxygen exposure conditions for a spacecraft is discussed and a second microenvironments computer model is described that accounts for shadowing and scattering of atomic oxygen by complex surface protrusions and indentations. Comparisons of observed and predicted erosion of fluorinated ethylene propylene (FEP) thermal control blankets using the models are presented. Experimental and theoretical results are in excellent agreement. Work is in progress to expand modeling capability to include ultraviolet radiation exposure and to obtain more detailed information on reflecting and scattering characteristics of material surfaces.

LDEF microenvironments, observed and predicted

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bourassa, R. J.; Pippin, H. G.; Gillis, J. R.

1993-01-01

A computer model for prediction of atomic oxygen exposure of spacecraft in low earth orbit, referred to as the primary atomic oxygen model, was originally described at the First Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) Post-Retrieval Symposium. The primary atomic oxygen model accounts for variations in orbit parameters, the condition of the atmosphere, and for the orientation of exposed surfaces relative to the direction of spacecraft motion. The use of the primary atomic oxygen model to define average atomic oxygen exposure conditions for a spacecraft is discussed and a second microenvironments computer model is described that accounts for shadowing and scattering of atomic oxygen by complex surface protrusions and indentations. Comparisons of observed and predicted erosion of fluorinated ethylene propylene (FEP) thermal control blankets using the models are presented. Experimental and theoretical results are in excellent agreement. Work is in progress to expand modeling capability to include ultraviolet radiation exposure and to obtain more detailed information on reflecting and scattering characteristics of material surfaces.

Structural history of Maxwell Montes, Venus: Implications for Venusian mountain belt formation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Keep, Myra; Hansen, Vicki L.

1994-12-01

Models for Venusian mountain belt formation are important for understanding planetary geodynamic mechanisms. A range of data sets at various scales must be considered in geodynamic modelling. Long wavelength data, such as gravity and geoid to topography ratios, need constraints from smaller-scale observations of the surface. Pre-Magellan images of the Venusian surface were not of high enough resolution to observe details of surface deformation. High-resolution Magellan images of Maxwell Montes and the other deformation belts allow us to determine the nature of surfce deformation. With these images we can begin to understand the constraints that surface deformation places on planetary dynamic models. Maxwell Montes and three other deformation belts (Akna, Freyja, and Danu montes) surround the highland plateau Lakshmi Planum in Venus, northern hemisphere. Maxwell, the highest of these belts, stands 11 km above mean planetary radius. We present a detailed structural and kinematic study of Maxwell Montes. Key observations include (1) dominant structural fabrics are broadly distributed and show little change in spacing relative to elevation changes of several kilometers; (2) the spacing, wavelength, and inferred amplitude of mapped structures are small, (3) interpreted extensional structures occur only in areas of steep slope, with no extension at the highest topographic levels; and (4) deformation terminates abruptly at the base of steep slopes. One implication of these observations is that topography is independent of thin-skinned, broadly distributed, Maxwell deformation. Maxwell is apparently stable, with no observed extensional collapse. We propose a ``deformation-from-below'' model for Maxwell, in which the crust deforms passively over structurally imbricated and thickened lower crust. This model may have implications for the other deformation belts.

Brittle strength of basaltic rock masses with applications to Venus

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schultz, R. A.

1993-06-01

Spacecraft images of surfaces with known or suspected basaltic composition on Venus (as well as on moon and Mars) indicate that these rocks have been deformed in the brittle regime to form faults and perhaps joints, in addition to folding and more distributed types of deformation. This paper presents results of detailed examinations and interpretations of Venus surface materials which show that the strengths of basaltic rocks on planetary surfaces and in the shallow subsurface are significantly different from strength values commonly used in tectonic modeling studies which assume properties of either intact rock samples or single planar shear surface.

First-principles study of the infrared spectra of the ice Ih (0001) surface

DOE PAGES

Pham, T. Anh; Huang, P.; Schwegler, E.; ...

2012-08-22

Here, we present a study of the infrared (IR) spectra of the (0001) deuterated ice surface based on first-principles molecular dynamics simulations. The computed spectra show a good agreement with available experimental IR measurements. We identified the bonding configurations associated with specific features in the spectra, allowing us to provide a detailed interpretation of IR signals. We computed the spectra of several proton ordered and disordered models of the (0001) surface of ice, and we found that IR spectra do not appear to be a sensitive probe of the microscopic arrangement of protons at ice surfaces.

Evaluation of Finite-Rate Gas/Surface Interaction Models for a Carbon Based Ablator

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chen, Yih-Kanq; Goekcen, Tahir

2015-01-01

Two sets of finite-rate gas-surface interaction model between air and the carbon surface are studied. The first set is an engineering model with one-way chemical reactions, and the second set is a more detailed model with two-way chemical reactions. These two proposed models intend to cover the carbon surface ablation conditions including the low temperature rate-controlled oxidation, the mid-temperature diffusion-controlled oxidation, and the high temperature sublimation. The prediction of carbon surface recession is achieved by coupling a material thermal response code and a Navier-Stokes flow code. The material thermal response code used in this study is the Two-dimensional Implicit Thermal-response and Ablation Program, which predicts charring material thermal response and shape change on hypersonic space vehicles. The flow code solves the reacting full Navier-Stokes equations using Data Parallel Line Relaxation method. Recession analyses of stagnation tests conducted in NASA Ames Research Center arc-jet facilities with heat fluxes ranging from 45 to 1100 wcm2 are performed and compared with data for model validation. The ablating material used in these arc-jet tests is Phenolic Impregnated Carbon Ablator. Additionally, computational predictions of surface recession and shape change are in good agreement with measurement for arc-jet conditions of Small Probe Reentry Investigation for Thermal Protection System Engineering.

Surface excitations in electron spectroscopy. Part I: dielectric formalism and Monte Carlo algorithm

PubMed Central

Salvat-Pujol, F; Werner, W S M

2013-01-01

The theory describing energy losses of charged non-relativistic projectiles crossing a planar interface is derived on the basis of the Maxwell equations, outlining the physical assumptions of the model in great detail. The employed approach is very general in that various common models for surface excitations (such as the specular reflection model) can be obtained by an appropriate choice of parameter values. The dynamics of charged projectiles near surfaces is examined by calculations of the induced surface charge and the depth- and direction-dependent differential inelastic inverse mean free path (DIIMFP) and stopping power. The effect of several simplifications frequently encountered in the literature is investigated: differences of up to 100% are found in heights, widths, and positions of peaks in the DIIMFP. The presented model is implemented in a Monte Carlo algorithm for the simulation of the electron transport relevant for surface electron spectroscopy. Simulated reflection electron energy loss spectra are in good agreement with experiment on an absolute scale. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. PMID:23794766

Development of a Multicenter Density Functional Tight Binding Model for Plutonium Surface Hydriding.

PubMed

Goldman, Nir; Aradi, Bálint; Lindsey, Rebecca K; Fried, Laurence E

2018-05-08

We detail the creation of a multicenter density functional tight binding (DFTB) model for hydrogen on δ-plutonium, using a framework of new Slater-Koster interaction parameters and a repulsive energy based on the Chebyshev Interaction Model for Efficient Simulation (ChIMES), where two- and three-center atomic interactions are represented by linear combinations of Chebyshev polynomials. We find that our DFTB/ChIMES model yields a total electron density of states for bulk δ-Pu that compares well to that from Density Functional Theory, as well as to a grid of energy calculations representing approximate H 2 dissociation paths on the δ-Pu (100) surface. We then perform molecular dynamics simulations and minimum energy pathway calculations to determine the energetics of surface dissociation and subsurface diffusion on the (100) and (111) surfaces. Our approach allows for the efficient creation of multicenter repulsive energies with a relatively small investment in initial DFT calculations. Our efforts are particularly pertinent to studies that rely on quantum calculations for interpretation and validation, such as experimental determination of chemical reactivity both on surfaces and in condensed phases.

Temporal Subtraction of Digital Breast Tomosynthesis Images for Improved Mass Detection

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-11-01

imaging using two distinct methods7-15: mathematically based models defined by geometric primitives and voxelized models derived from real human...trees to complete them. We also plan to add further detail by defining the Cooper’s ligaments using geometrical NURBS surfaces. Realistic...generated model for the coronary arterial tree based on multislice CT and morphometric data," Medical Imaging 2006: Physics of Medical Imaging 6142

Capsule modeling of high foot implosion experiments on the National Ignition Facility

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Clark, D. S.; Kritcher, A. L.; Milovich, J. L.

This study summarizes the results of detailed, capsule-only simulations of a set of high foot implosion experiments conducted on the National Ignition Facility (NIF). These experiments span a range of ablator thicknesses, laser powers, and laser energies, and modeling these experiments as a set is important to assess whether the simulation model can reproduce the trends seen experimentally as the implosion parameters were varied. Two-dimensional (2D) simulations have been run including a number of effects—both nominal and off-nominal—such as hohlraum radiation asymmetries, surface roughness, the capsule support tent, and hot electron pre-heat. Selected three-dimensional simulations have also been run tomore » assess the validity of the 2D axisymmetric approximation. As a composite, these simulations represent the current state of understanding of NIF high foot implosion performance using the best and most detailed computational model available. While the most detailed simulations show approximate agreement with the experimental data, it is evident that the model remains incomplete and further refinements are needed. Nevertheless, avenues for improved performance are clearly indicated.« less

Capsule modeling of high foot implosion experiments on the National Ignition Facility

DOE PAGES

Clark, D. S.; Kritcher, A. L.; Milovich, J. L.; ...

2017-03-21

This study summarizes the results of detailed, capsule-only simulations of a set of high foot implosion experiments conducted on the National Ignition Facility (NIF). These experiments span a range of ablator thicknesses, laser powers, and laser energies, and modeling these experiments as a set is important to assess whether the simulation model can reproduce the trends seen experimentally as the implosion parameters were varied. Two-dimensional (2D) simulations have been run including a number of effects—both nominal and off-nominal—such as hohlraum radiation asymmetries, surface roughness, the capsule support tent, and hot electron pre-heat. Selected three-dimensional simulations have also been run tomore » assess the validity of the 2D axisymmetric approximation. As a composite, these simulations represent the current state of understanding of NIF high foot implosion performance using the best and most detailed computational model available. While the most detailed simulations show approximate agreement with the experimental data, it is evident that the model remains incomplete and further refinements are needed. Nevertheless, avenues for improved performance are clearly indicated.« less

Rough surface adhesion in the presence of capillary condensation

DOE PAGES

DelRio, Frank W.; Dunn, Martin L.; Phinney, Leslie M.; ...

2007-04-17

Capillary condensation of water can have a significant effect on rough surface adhesion. Here, to explore this phenomenon between micromachined surfaces, the authors perform microcantilever experiments as a function of surface roughness and relative humidity (RH). Below a threshold RH, the adhesion is mainly due to van der Waals forces across extensive noncontacting areas. Above the threshold RH, the adhesion jumps due to capillary condensation and increases towards the upper limit of Γ=144mJ/m 2. Lastly, a detailed model based on the measured surface topography qualitatively agrees with the experimental data only when the topographic correlations between the upper and lowermore » surfaces are considered.« less

A method for increase abrasive wear resistance parts by obtaining on methods casting on gasifying models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sedukhin, V. V.; Anikeev, A. N.; Chumanov, I. V.

2017-11-01

Method optimizes hardening working layer parts’, working in high-abrasive conditions looks in this work: bland refractory particles WC and TiC in respect of 70/30 wt. % prepared by beforehand is applied on polystyrene model in casting’ mould. After metal poured in mould, withstand for crystallization, and then a study is carried out. Study macro- and microstructure received samples allows to say that thickness and structure received hardened layer depends on duration interactions blend harder carbides and liquid metal. Different character interactions various dispersed particles and matrix metal observed under the same conditions. Tests abrasive wear resistance received materials of method calculating residual masses was conducted in laboratory’ conditions. Results research wear resistance showed about that method obtaining harder coating of blend carbide tungsten and carbide titanium by means of drawing on surface foam polystyrene model before moulding, allows receive details with surface has wear resistance in 2.5 times higher, than details of analogy steel uncoated. Wherein energy costs necessary for transformation units mass’ substances in powder at obtained harder layer in 2.06 times higher, than materials uncoated.

V2.1.4 L2AS Detailed Release Description September 27, 2001

Atmospheric Science Data Center

2013-03-14

... 27, 2001 Algorithm Changes Change method of selecting radiance pixels to use in aerosol retrieval over ... het. surface retrieval algorithm over areas of 100% dark water. Modify algorithm for selecting a default aerosol model to use in ...

Solving bi-level optimization problems in engineering design using kriging models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xia, Yi; Liu, Xiaojie; Du, Gang

2018-05-01

Stackelberg game-theoretic approaches are applied extensively in engineering design to handle distributed collaboration decisions. Bi-level genetic algorithms (BLGAs) and response surfaces have been used to solve the corresponding bi-level programming models. However, the computational costs for BLGAs often increase rapidly with the complexity of lower-level programs, and optimal solution functions sometimes cannot be approximated by response surfaces. This article proposes a new method, namely the optimal solution function approximation by kriging model (OSFAKM), in which kriging models are used to approximate the optimal solution functions. A detailed example demonstrates that OSFAKM can obtain better solutions than BLGAs and response surface-based methods, and at the same time reduce the workload of computation remarkably. Five benchmark problems and a case study of the optimal design of a thin-walled pressure vessel are also presented to illustrate the feasibility and potential of the proposed method for bi-level optimization in engineering design.

Development of an improved model for runback water on aircraft surfaces

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Al-Khalil, Kamel M.; Keith, Theo G., Jr.; De Witt, Kenneth J.

1992-01-01

A computer simulation for 'running wet' and evaporative aircraft anti-icing systems is developed. The model is based on the analysis of the liquid water film which forms in the regions of direct impingement and, then, breaks up near the impingement limits into rivulets. The wetness factor distribution resulting from the film breakup and the rivulet configuration on the surface are predicted using a stability analysis theory and the laws of mass energy conservation. The solid structure is modeled as a multiple layer wall. The anti-icing system modeled is of the thermal type utilizing hot air and/or electrical heating elements embedded within the wall layers. Experimental observations revealing some of the basic physics of the water flow on the surface are presented. Detailed qualitative documentation of the tests are given. Several numerical examples are considered, and the effect of some of the involved parameters on the system performance are investigated.

The calculation and publication of a grid of line-blanketed model stellar atmospheres

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Avrett, E. H.

1972-01-01

The luminosity, mass, and elemental abundances, as well as other properties of each star are studied in order to locate them in an evolutionary pattern. A method for determining the flux, gravity, and abundances at the stellar surface is the construction of theoretical stellar atmospheric models that predict the observed energy distribution and detailed stellar spectrum.

Melt Flow before Crystal Seeding in Cz Si Growth with Transversal MF

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Iizuka, Masaya; Mukaiyama, Yuji; Demina, S. E.; Kalaev, V. V.

2017-06-01

Industrial Cz growth of Si crystal of 300 mm and higher diameter usually requires DC magnetic fields (MFs) to suppress turbulence in the melt. We present 3D unsteady analysis of melt turbulent convection in an industrial Cz system coupled with the effect of the transversal MF for different argon gas flow rates for the stage before crystal seeding. We have performed detailed 2D axisymmetric modeling of global heat transfer in the whole Cz furnace. Radiative heat fluxes obtained in 2D modeling have been used in detailed 3D steady and unsteady modeling of crystallization zone. LES method is applied as a predictive approach for modeling of turbulent flow of silicon melt. We have obtained flow structure and temperature distribution in the melt, which were different from previously reported data. We have observed a well-fixed dark spike which includes low temperature melt area on the melt free surface in MF cases. These results indicates that MF and argon flow rate conditions are important to achieve stable positioning of the dark spike on the melt free surface for optimized crystal seeding without uncontrollable meltdown and single crystal structure loss.

Development of the 15 meter diameter hoop column antenna

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1986-01-01

The building of a deployable 15-meter engineering model of the 100 meter antenna based on the point-design of an earlier task of this contract, complete with an RF-capable surface is described. The 15 meter diameter was selected so that the model could be tested in existing manufacturing, near-field RF, thermal vacuum, and structural dynamics facilities. The antenna was designed with four offset paraboloidal reflector surfaces with a focal length of 366.85 in and a primary surface accuracy goal of .069 in rms. Surface adjustment capability was provided by manually resetting the length of 96 surface control cords which emanated from the lower column extremity. A detailed description of the 15-meter Hoop/Column Antenna, major subassemblies, and a history of its fabrication, assembly, deployment testing, and verification measurements are given. The deviation for one aperture surface (except the outboard extremity) was measured after adjustments in follow-on tests at the Martin Marietta Near-field Facility to be .061 in; thus the primary surface goal was achieved.

Energy conservation of the scattering from one-dimensional random rough surfaces in the high-frequency limit.

PubMed

Pinel, Nicolas; Bourlier, Christophe; Saillard, Joseph

2005-08-01

Energy conservation of the scattering from one-dimensional strongly rough dielectric surfaces is investigated using the Kirchhoff approximation with single reflection and by taking the shadowing phenomenon into account, both in reflection and transmission. In addition, because no shadowing function in transmission exists in the literature, this function is presented here in detail. The model is reduced to the high-frequency limit (or geometric optics). The energy conservation criterion is investigated versus the incidence angle, the permittivity of the lower medium, and the surface rms slope.

Surface Water and Flood Extent Mapping, Monitoring, and Modeling Products and Services for the SERVIR Regions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, Eric

2016-01-01

SERVIR is a joint NASA - US Agency for International Development (USAID) project to improve environmental decision-making using Earth observations and geospatial technologies. A common need identified among SERVIR regions has been improved information for disaster risk reduction and in specific surface water and flood extent mapping, monitoring and forecasting. Of the 70 SERVIR products (active, complete, and in development), 4 are related to surface water and flood extent mapping, monitoring or forecasting. Visit http://www.servircatalog.net for more product details.

The algorithmic details of polynomials application in the problems of heat and mass transfer control on the hypersonic aircraft permeable surfaces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bilchenko, G. G.; Bilchenko, N. G.

2018-03-01

The hypersonic aircraft permeable surfaces heat and mass transfer effective control mathematical modeling problems are considered. The analysis of the control (the blowing) constructive and gasdynamical restrictions is carried out for the porous and perforated surfaces. The functions classes allowing realize the controls taking into account the arising types of restrictions are suggested. Estimates of the computational complexity of the W. G. Horner scheme application in the case of using the C. Hermite interpolation polynomial are given.

An extended soft-cube model for the thermal accommodation of gas atoms on solid surfaces

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Burke, J. R.; Hollenbach, D. J.

1980-01-01

A numerical soft cube model was developed for calculating thermal accommodation coefficients alpha and trapping fractions f sub t for the interaction of gases incident upon solid surfaces. A semiempirical correction factor c which allows the calculation of alpha and f sub t when the collision times are long compared to the surface oscillator period were introduced. The processes of trapping, evaporation, and detailed balancing were discussed. The numerical method was designed to treat economically and with moderate (+ or - 20 percent) accuracy the dependence of alpha and f sub t on finite and different surface and gas temperatures for a large number of gas/surface combinations. Comparison was made with experiments of rare gases on tungsten and on alkalis, as well as one astrophysical case of H2 on graphite. The dependence of alpha on the soft cube dimensionless parameters is presented graphically.

Detailed real-time infrared radiation simulation applied to the sea surface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Xuemin; Wu, Limin; Long, Liang; Zhang, Lisha

2018-01-01

In this paper, the infrared radiation characteristics of sea background have been studied. First, MODTRAN4.0 was used to calculate the transmittance of mid-infrared and far-infrared, and the solar spectral irradiance, the atmospheric and sea surface radiation. Secondly, according to the JONSWAP sea spectrum model, the different sea conditions grid model based on gravity wave theory was generated. The spectral scattering of the sun and the atmospheric background radiation was studied. The total infrared radiation of the sea surface was calculated. Finally, the infrared radiation of a piece of sea surface was mapped to each pixel of the detector, and the infrared radiation is simulated. The conclusion is that solar radiance has a great influence on the infrared radiance. When the detector angle is close to the sun's height angle, there will be bright spots on the sea surface.

Impacts of Realistic Urban Heating, Part I: Spatial Variability of Mean Flow, Turbulent Exchange and Pollutant Dispersion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nazarian, Negin; Martilli, Alberto; Kleissl, Jan

2018-03-01

As urbanization progresses, more realistic methods are required to analyze the urban microclimate. However, given the complexity and computational cost of numerical models, the effects of realistic representations should be evaluated to identify the level of detail required for an accurate analysis. We consider the realistic representation of surface heating in an idealized three-dimensional urban configuration, and evaluate the spatial variability of flow statistics (mean flow and turbulent fluxes) in urban streets. Large-eddy simulations coupled with an urban energy balance model are employed, and the heating distribution of urban surfaces is parametrized using sets of horizontal and vertical Richardson numbers, characterizing thermal stratification and heating orientation with respect to the wind direction. For all studied conditions, the thermal field is strongly affected by the orientation of heating with respect to the airflow. The modification of airflow by the horizontal heating is also pronounced for strongly unstable conditions. The formation of the canyon vortices is affected by the three-dimensional heating distribution in both spanwise and streamwise street canyons, such that the secondary vortex is seen adjacent to the windward wall. For the dispersion field, however, the overall heating of urban surfaces, and more importantly, the vertical temperature gradient, dominate the distribution of concentration and the removal of pollutants from the building canyon. Accordingly, the spatial variability of concentration is not significantly affected by the detailed heating distribution. The analysis is extended to assess the effects of three-dimensional surface heating on turbulent transfer. Quadrant analysis reveals that the differential heating also affects the dominance of ejection and sweep events and the efficiency of turbulent transfer (exuberance) within the street canyon and at the roof level, while the vertical variation of these parameters is less dependent on the detailed heating of urban facets.

On the relationship between the greenhouse effect, atmospheric photochemistry, and species distribution

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Callis, L. B.; Boughner, R. E.; Natarajan, M.

1983-01-01

The coupling that exists between infrared opacity changes and tropospheric (and to a lesser extent stratospheric) chemistry is explored in considerable detail, and the effects arising from various perturbations are examined. The studies are carried out with a fully coupled one-dimensional radiative-convective-photochemical model (RCP) that extends from the surface to 53.5 km and has the capability of calculating surface temperature changes due to both chemical and radiative perturbations. The model encompasses contemporary atmospheric chemistry and photochemistry involving the O(x), HO(x), NO(x), and Cl(x) species.

3D Computer Models of T- x- y Diagrams, Forming the Fe-Ni-Co-FeS-NiS-CoS Subsystem

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lutsyk, V. I.; Vorob'eva, V. P.

2017-12-01

3D computer models of Fe-Ni-Co, Fe-Ni-FeS-NiS, Fe-Co-FeS-CoS, Ni-Co-NiS-CoS T- x- y diagrams have been designed. The geometric structure (35 surfaces, two-phase surface of the reaction type change, 17 phase regions) of the Fe-Ni-FeS-NiS T- x- y diagram is investigated in detail. The liquidus hypersurfaces prediction of the Fe-Ni-Co-FeS-NiS-CoS subsystem is represented.

Surface Snow Density of East Antarctica Derived from In-Situ Observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tian, Y.; Zhang, S.; Du, W.; Chen, J.; Xie, H.; Tong, X.; Li, R.

2018-04-01

Models based on physical principles or semi-empirical parameterizations have used to compute the firn density, which is essential for the study of surface processes in the Antarctic ice sheet. However, parameterization of surface snow density is often challenged by the description of detailed local characterization. In this study we propose to generate a surface density map for East Antarctica from all the filed observations that are available. Considering that the observations are non-uniformly distributed around East Antarctica, obtained by different methods, and temporally inhomogeneous, the field observations are used to establish an initial density map with a grid size of 30 × 30 km2 in which the observations are averaged at a temporal scale of five years. We then construct an observation matrix with its columns as the map grids and rows as the temporal scale. If a site has an unknown density value for a period, we will set it to 0 in the matrix. In order to construct the main spatial and temple information of surface snow density matrix we adopt Empirical Orthogonal Function (EOF) method to decompose the observation matrix and only take first several lower-order modes, because these modes already contain most information of the observation matrix. However, there are a lot of zeros in the matrix and we solve it by using matrix completion algorithm, and then we derive the time series of surface snow density at each observation site. Finally, we can obtain the surface snow density by multiplying the modes interpolated by kriging with the corresponding amplitude of the modes. Comparative analysis have done between our surface snow density map and model results. The above details will be introduced in the paper.

Computational fluid dynamics analysis of cyclist aerodynamics: performance of different turbulence-modelling and boundary-layer modelling approaches.

PubMed

Defraeye, Thijs; Blocken, Bert; Koninckx, Erwin; Hespel, Peter; Carmeliet, Jan

2010-08-26

This study aims at assessing the accuracy of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) for applications in sports aerodynamics, for example for drag predictions of swimmers, cyclists or skiers, by evaluating the applied numerical modelling techniques by means of detailed validation experiments. In this study, a wind-tunnel experiment on a scale model of a cyclist (scale 1:2) is presented. Apart from three-component forces and moments, also high-resolution surface pressure measurements on the scale model's surface, i.e. at 115 locations, are performed to provide detailed information on the flow field. These data are used to compare the performance of different turbulence-modelling techniques, such as steady Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS), with several k-epsilon and k-omega turbulence models, and unsteady large-eddy simulation (LES), and also boundary-layer modelling techniques, namely wall functions and low-Reynolds number modelling (LRNM). The commercial CFD code Fluent 6.3 is used for the simulations. The RANS shear-stress transport (SST) k-omega model shows the best overall performance, followed by the more computationally expensive LES. Furthermore, LRNM is clearly preferred over wall functions to model the boundary layer. This study showed that there are more accurate alternatives for evaluating flow around bluff bodies with CFD than the standard k-epsilon model combined with wall functions, which is often used in CFD studies in sports. 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Heat transfer to an unconfined ceiling from an impinging buoyant diffusion flame

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weng, W. G.; Hasemi, Y.

2006-05-01

Impinging flames are used in fire safety research, industrial heating and melting, and aerospace applications. Multiple modes of heat transfer, such as natural convection, forced convection and thermal radiation, etc. are commonly important in those processes. However, the detailed heat transfer mechanisms are not well understood. In this paper, a model is developed to calculate the thermal response of an unconfined nonburning ceiling from an impinging buoyant diffusion flame. This model uses an algorithm for conduction into the ceiling material. It takes account of heat transfer due to radiation from the fire source to the ceiling surface, and due to reradiation from the ceiling surface to other items. Using experimental data, the convective heat transfer coefficient at lower surface is deduced from this model. In addition, the predicted heat fluxes are compared with the existing experimental data, and the comparison results validate the presented model. It is indicated that this model can be used to predict radial-dependent surface temperature histories under a variety of different realistic levels of fire energy generation rates and fire-to-ceiling separation distance.

Interaction of cadmium with phosphate on goethite

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Venema, P.; Hiemstra, T.; Riemsdijk, W.H. van

1997-08-01

Interactions between different ions are of importance in understanding chemical processes in natural systems. In this study simultaneous adsorption of phosphate and cadmium on goethite is studied in detail. The charge distribution (CD)-multisite complexation (MUSIC) model has been successful in describing extended data sets of cadmium adsorption and phosphate adsorption on goethite. In this study, the parameters of this model for these two data sets were combined to describe a new data set of simultaneous adsorption of cadmium and phosphate on goethite. Attention is focused on the surface speciation of cadmium. With the extra information that can be obtained frommore » the interaction experiments, the cadmium adsorption model is refined. For a perfect description of the data, the singly coordinated surface groups at the 110 face of goethite were assumed to form both monodentate and bidentate surface species with cadmium. The CD-MUSIC model is able to describe data sets of both simultaneous and single adsorption of cadmium and phosphate with the same parameters. The model calculations confirmed the idea that only singly coordinated surface groups are reactive for specific ion binding.« less

A Particle-In-Cell Gun Code for Surface-Converter H- Ion Source Modeling

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chacon-Golcher, Edwin; Bowers, Kevin J.

2007-08-10

We present the current status of a particle-in-cell with Monte Carlo collisions (PIC-MCC) gun code under development at Los Alamos for the study of surface-converter H- ion sources. The program preserves a first-principles approach to a significant extent and simulates the production processes without ad hoc models within the plasma region. Some of its features include: solution of arbitrary electrostatic and magnetostatic fields in an axisymmetric (r,z) geometry to describe the self-consistent time evolution of a plasma; simulation of a multi-species (e-,H+,H{sub 2}{sup +},H{sub 3}{sup +},H-) plasma discharge from a neutral hydrogen gas and filament-originated seed electrons; full 2-dimensional (r,z)more » 3-velocity (vr,vz,v{phi}) dynamics for all species with exact conservation of the canonical angular momentum p{phi}; detailed collision physics between charged particles and neutrals and the ability to represent multiple smooth (not stair-stepped) electrodes of arbitrary shape and voltage whose surfaces may be secondary-particle emitters (H- and e-). The status of this development is discussed in terms of its physics content and current implementation details.« less

Using Selective Drainage Methods to Extract Continuous Surface Flow from 1-Meter Lidar-Derived Digital Elevation Data

USGS Publications Warehouse

Poppenga, Sandra K.; Worstell, Bruce B.; Stoker, Jason M.; Greenlee, Susan K.

2010-01-01

Digital elevation data commonly are used to extract surface flow features. One source for high-resolution elevation data is light detection and ranging (lidar). Lidar can capture a vast amount of topographic detail because of its fine-scale ability to digitally capture the surface of the earth. Because elevation is a key factor in extracting surface flow features, high-resolution lidar-derived digital elevation models (DEMs) provide the detail needed to consistently integrate hydrography with elevation, land cover, structures, and other geospatial features. The U.S. Geological Survey has developed selective drainage methods to extract continuous surface flow from high-resolution lidar-derived digital elevation data. The lidar-derived continuous surface flow network contains valuable information for water resource management involving flood hazard mapping, flood inundation, and coastal erosion. DEMs used in hydrologic applications typically are processed to remove depressions by filling them. High-resolution DEMs derived from lidar can capture much more detail of the land surface than courser elevation data. Therefore, high-resolution DEMs contain more depressions because of obstructions such as roads, railroads, and other elevated structures. The filling of these depressions can significantly affect the DEM-derived surface flow routing and terrain characteristics in an adverse way. In this report, selective draining methods that modify the elevation surface to drain a depression through an obstruction are presented. If such obstructions are not removed from the elevation data, the filling of depressions to create continuous surface flow can cause the flow to spill over an obstruction in the wrong location. Using this modified elevation surface improves the quality of derived surface flow and retains more of the true surface characteristics by correcting large filled depressions. A reliable flow surface is necessary for deriving a consistently connected drainage network, which is important in understanding surface water movement and developing applications for surface water runoff, flood inundation, and erosion. Improved methods are needed to extract continuous surface flow features from high-resolution elevation data based on lidar.

Unfolding Leonardo DA Vinci's Globe (ad 1504) to Reveal its Historical World Map

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Verhoeven, G. J.; Missinne, S. J.

2017-08-01

This paper reports in detail on the image-based modelling and unwrapping approach used to create a two-dimensional projected map of an astonishing ostrich egg globe from AD 1504. This miniature egg globe is not only the oldest extant engraved globe, but it is also the oldest post-Columbian globe of the world and the first ever to depict Newfoundland and many other territories. The intention of digitally recording the surface geometry and colour of this unique artefact was to portray the original layout of the world map used by the Florentine Renaissance artist to make this globe. In addition, it was expected to substantiate iconographical details, which are hard to study at its scale of 1:80,000,000. The ostrich egg globe is the prototype of the Lenox Globe kept at the New York Public Library. The latter is very beneficial to examine how the egg globe looked like before being glued together at its equator. On the other hand, unfolding the map engraved in the ostrich egg halves enables a more detailed study of the remarkable details visible on both globes, since the engravings on the quasi-white egg surface are much easier to discern than those of the highly reflective red copper Lenox Globe. Finally, a detailed study of the unwrapped 3D surface is essential to learn more about the world vision of its creator and the incredible efforts that went into making this globe. Thanks to some particular pictographic details as well as the way in which the engravings are applied (by a left-handed person), the globe artist can be identified as Leonardo da Vinci.

Validation and Sensitivity Analysis of a New Atmosphere-Soil-Vegetation Model.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nagai, Haruyasu

2002-02-01

This paper describes details, validation, and sensitivity analysis of a new atmosphere-soil-vegetation model. The model consists of one-dimensional multilayer submodels for atmosphere, soil, and vegetation and radiation schemes for the transmission of solar and longwave radiations in canopy. The atmosphere submodel solves prognostic equations for horizontal wind components, potential temperature, specific humidity, fog water, and turbulence statistics by using a second-order closure model. The soil submodel calculates the transport of heat, liquid water, and water vapor. The vegetation submodel evaluates the heat and water budget on leaf surface and the downward liquid water flux. The model performance was tested by using measured data of the Cooperative Atmosphere-Surface Exchange Study (CASES). Calculated ground surface fluxes were mainly compared with observations at a winter wheat field, concerning the diurnal variation and change in 32 days of the first CASES field program in 1997, CASES-97. The measured surface fluxes did not satisfy the energy balance, so sensible and latent heat fluxes obtained by the eddy correlation method were corrected. By using options of the solar radiation scheme, which addresses the effect of the direct solar radiation component, calculated albedo agreed well with the observations. Some sensitivity analyses were also done for model settings. Model calculations of surface fluxes and surface temperature were in good agreement with measurements as a whole.

Virtual mission stage I: Implications of a spaceborne surface water mission

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Clark, E. A.; Alsdorf, D. E.; Bates, P.; Wilson, M. D.; Lettenmaier, D. P.

2004-12-01

The interannual and interseasonal variability of the land surface water cycle depend on the distribution of surface water in lakes, wetlands, reservoirs, and river systems; however, measurements of hydrologic variables are sparsely distributed, even in industrialized nations. Moreover, the spatial extent and storage variations of lakes, reservoirs, and wetlands are poorly known. We are developing a virtual mission to demonstrate the feasibility of observing surface water extent and variations from a spaceborne platform. In the first stage of the virtual mission, on which we report here, surface water area and fluxes are emulated using simulation modeling over three continental scale river basins, including the Ohio River, the Amazon River and an Arctic river. The Variable Infiltration Capacity (VIC) macroscale hydrologic model is used to simulate evapotranspiration, soil moisture, snow accumulation and ablation, and runoff and streamflow over each basin at one-eighth degree resolution. The runoff from this model is routed using a linear transfer model to provide input to a much more detailed flow hydraulics model. The flow hydraulics model then routes runoff through various channel and floodplain morphologies at a 250 m spatial and 20 second temporal resolution over a 100 km by 500 km domain. This information is used to evaluate trade-offs between spatial and temporal resolutions of a hypothetical high resolution spaceborne altimeter by synthetically sampling the resultant model-predicted water surface elevations.

Computation of Static Shapes and Voltages for Micromachined Deformable Mirrors with Nonlinear Electrostatic Actuators

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wang, P. K. C.; Hadaegh, F. Y.

1996-01-01

In modeling micromachined deformable mirrors with electrostatic actuators whose gap spacings are of the same order of magnitude as those of the surface deformations, it is necessary to use nonlinear models for the actuators. In this paper, we consider micromachined deformable mirrors modeled by a membrane or plate equation with nonlinear electrostatic actuator characteristics. Numerical methods for computing the mirror deformation due to given actuator voltages and the actuator voltages required for producing the desired deformations at the actuator locations are presented. The application of the proposed methods to circular deformable mirrors whose surfaces are modeled by elastic membranes is discussed in detail. Numerical results are obtained for a typical circular micromachined mirror with electrostatic actuators.

Shape-Driven 3D Segmentation Using Spherical Wavelets

PubMed Central

Nain, Delphine; Haker, Steven; Bobick, Aaron; Tannenbaum, Allen

2013-01-01

This paper presents a novel active surface segmentation algorithm using a multiscale shape representation and prior. We define a parametric model of a surface using spherical wavelet functions and learn a prior probability distribution over the wavelet coefficients to model shape variations at different scales and spatial locations in a training set. Based on this representation, we derive a parametric active surface evolution using the multiscale prior coefficients as parameters for our optimization procedure to naturally include the prior in the segmentation framework. Additionally, the optimization method can be applied in a coarse-to-fine manner. We apply our algorithm to the segmentation of brain caudate nucleus, of interest in the study of schizophrenia. Our validation shows our algorithm is computationally efficient and outperforms the Active Shape Model algorithm by capturing finer shape details. PMID:17354875

Alloy Design Workbench-Surface Modeling Package Developed

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Abel, Phillip B.; Noebe, Ronald D.; Bozzolo, Guillermo H.; Good, Brian S.; Daugherty, Elaine S.

2003-01-01

NASA Glenn Research Center's Computational Materials Group has integrated a graphical user interface with in-house-developed surface modeling capabilities, with the goal of using computationally efficient atomistic simulations to aid the development of advanced aerospace materials, through the modeling of alloy surfaces, surface alloys, and segregation. The software is also ideal for modeling nanomaterials, since surface and interfacial effects can dominate material behavior and properties at this level. Through the combination of an accurate atomistic surface modeling methodology and an efficient computational engine, it is now possible to directly model these types of surface phenomenon and metallic nanostructures without a supercomputer. Fulfilling a High Operating Temperature Propulsion Components (HOTPC) project level-I milestone, a graphical user interface was created for a suite of quantum approximate atomistic materials modeling Fortran programs developed at Glenn. The resulting "Alloy Design Workbench-Surface Modeling Package" (ADW-SMP) is the combination of proven quantum approximate Bozzolo-Ferrante-Smith (BFS) algorithms (refs. 1 and 2) with a productivity-enhancing graphical front end. Written in the portable, platform independent Java programming language, the graphical user interface calls on extensively tested Fortran programs running in the background for the detailed computational tasks. Designed to run on desktop computers, the package has been deployed on PC, Mac, and SGI computer systems. The graphical user interface integrates two modes of computational materials exploration. One mode uses Monte Carlo simulations to determine lowest energy equilibrium configurations. The second approach is an interactive "what if" comparison of atomic configuration energies, designed to provide real-time insight into the underlying drivers of alloying processes.

A model of the ground surface temperature for micrometeorological analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leaf, Julian S.; Erell, Evyatar

2017-07-01

Micrometeorological models at various scales require ground surface temperature, which may not always be measured in sufficient spatial or temporal detail. There is thus a need for a model that can calculate the surface temperature using only widely available weather data, thermal properties of the ground, and surface properties. The vegetated/permeable surface energy balance (VP-SEB) model introduced here requires no a priori knowledge of soil temperature or moisture at any depth. It combines a two-layer characterization of the soil column following the heat conservation law with a sinusoidal function to estimate deep soil temperature, and a simplified procedure for calculating moisture content. A physically based solution is used for each of the energy balance components allowing VP-SEB to be highly portable. VP-SEB was tested using field data measuring bare loess desert soil in dry weather and following rain events. Modeled hourly surface temperature correlated well with the measured data (r 2 = 0.95 for a whole year), with a root-mean-square error of 2.77 K. The model was used to generate input for a pedestrian thermal comfort study using the Index of Thermal Stress (ITS). The simulation shows that the thermal stress on a pedestrian standing in the sun on a fully paved surface, which may be over 500 W on a warm summer day, may be as much as 100 W lower on a grass surface exposed to the same meteorological conditions.

Understand rotating isothermal collapses yet

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tohline, J.E.

1985-01-01

A scalar virial equation is used to describe the dynamic properties of equilibrium gas clouds, taking into account the relative effects of surface pressure, rotation, self gravity and internal isothermal pressure. Details concerning the internal structure of the clouds are ignored in order to obtain a globalized analytical expression. The obtained solution to the equation is found to agree with the surface-pressure-dominated model of Stahler (1983), and the rotation-dominated model of Hayashi, Narita, and Miyama (1982). On the basis of the analytical expression of virial equilibrium in the clouds, some of the limiting properties of isothermal clouds are described, andmore » a realistic starting model for cloud collapse is proposed. 18 references.« less

Modeling of a ring rosen-type piezoelectric transformer by Hamilton's principle.

PubMed

Nadal, Clément; Pigache, Francois; Erhart, Jiří

2015-04-01

This paper deals with the analytical modeling of a ring Rosen-type piezoelectric transformer. The developed model is based on a Hamiltonian approach, enabling to obtain main parameters and performance evaluation for the first radial vibratory modes. Methodology is detailed, and final results, both the input admittance and the electric potential distribution on the surface of the secondary part, are compared with numerical and experimental ones for discussion and validation.

Multipath modeling for aeronautical communications.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Painter, J. H.; Gupta, S. C.; Wilson, L. R.

1973-01-01

One of the fundamental technical problems in aeronautical digital communications is that of multipath propagation between aircraft and ground terminal. This paper examines in detail a model of the received multipath signal that is useful for application of modern detection and estimation theories. The model treats arbitrary modulation and covers the selective and nonselective cases. The necessarily nonstationary statistics of the received signal are determined from the link geometry and the surface roughness parameters via a Kirchhoff solution.

Comparison of the effect of different medicaments on surface reproduction of two commercially available Polyvinyl Siloxane impression materials - An Invitro Study

PubMed Central

Singh, Rina; Singh, Jagjit; Singh, Ramanpreet; Nanda, Sonia

2013-01-01

Objective:To determine the effect of different retraction cord medicaments on surface detail reproduction of polyvinyl siloxane impression materials and compare this effect on any two brands of commercially available polyvinyl siloxane impression materials. Material and methods: Four stainless steel dies were made according to ADA specification no.19. Three dies were treated with aluminium chloride (5%), ferric sulphate (13.3%) and epinephrine (0.1%) while the fourth one was left untreated to serve as control. Two impression materials (Dentsply and 3M ESPE) were used. Results: All the three medicaments adversely affected the surface detail reproduction of both the brands of the polyvinyl siloxane impression materials. These effects were statistically significant as compared to untreated control. The impressions of 3M ESPE brand have shown better surface detail reproduction as compared to Dentsply impression material. Conclusion: Surface detail reproduction of the polyvinyl siloxane impression materials is adversely affected by the retraction cord medicaments. The presence of moisture or any traces of the medicaments should be removed from the tooth surface to provide a dry field for the correct reproduction of the surface detail of these materials. Key words:Polyvinyl Siloxane, retraction cord medicaments, surface detail reproduction. PMID:24455069

Electrolyte solutions at curved electrodes. II. Microscopic approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reindl, Andreas; Bier, Markus; Dietrich, S.

2017-04-01

Density functional theory is used to describe electrolyte solutions in contact with electrodes of planar or spherical shape. For the electrolyte solutions, we consider the so-called civilized model, in which all species present are treated on equal footing. This allows us to discuss the features of the electric double layer in terms of the differential capacitance. The model provides insight into the microscopic structure of the electric double layer, which goes beyond the mesoscopic approach studied in Paper I. This enables us to judge the relevance of microscopic details, such as the radii of the particles forming the electrolyte solutions or the dipolar character of the solvent particles, and to compare the predictions of various models. Similar to Paper I, a general behavior is observed for small radii of the electrode in that in this limit the results become independent of the surface charge density and of the particle radii. However, for large electrode radii, non-trivial behaviors are observed. Especially the particle radii and the surface charge density strongly influence the capacitance. From the comparison with the Poisson-Boltzmann approach, it becomes apparent that the shape of the electrode determines whether the microscopic details of the full civilized model have to be taken into account or whether already simpler models yield acceptable predictions.

Electrolyte solutions at curved electrodes. II. Microscopic approach.

PubMed

Reindl, Andreas; Bier, Markus; Dietrich, S

2017-04-21

Density functional theory is used to describe electrolyte solutions in contact with electrodes of planar or spherical shape. For the electrolyte solutions, we consider the so-called civilized model, in which all species present are treated on equal footing. This allows us to discuss the features of the electric double layer in terms of the differential capacitance. The model provides insight into the microscopic structure of the electric double layer, which goes beyond the mesoscopic approach studied in Paper I. This enables us to judge the relevance of microscopic details, such as the radii of the particles forming the electrolyte solutions or the dipolar character of the solvent particles, and to compare the predictions of various models. Similar to Paper I, a general behavior is observed for small radii of the electrode in that in this limit the results become independent of the surface charge density and of the particle radii. However, for large electrode radii, non-trivial behaviors are observed. Especially the particle radii and the surface charge density strongly influence the capacitance. From the comparison with the Poisson-Boltzmann approach, it becomes apparent that the shape of the electrode determines whether the microscopic details of the full civilized model have to be taken into account or whether already simpler models yield acceptable predictions.

Detailed geoid computations for GEOS-C altimeter experiment areas. [gravimetric geoid for Atlantic and northeast Pacific Ocean areas

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Marsh, J. G.; Vincent, S.

1973-01-01

The GEOS-C spacecraft is scheduled to carry onboard a radar altimeter for the purpose of measuring the geoid undulations in oceanic areas. An independently derived geoid map will provide a valuable complement to these experiments. A detailed gravimetric geoid is presented for the Atlantic and northeast Pacific Ocean areas based upon a combination of the Goddard Space Flight Center GEM-6 earth model and surface 1 deg x 1 deg gravity data. As part of this work a number of satellite derived gravity models were evaluated to establish the model which best represented the long wave length features of the geoid in the above mentioned area. Comparisons of the detailed geoid with the astrogeodetic data provided by the National Ocean Survey and dynamically derived tracking station heights indicate that the accuracy of this combined geoid is on the order of 2 meters or better where data was dense and 5 to 7 meters where data was less dense.

An investigation of current and future satellite and in-situ data for the remote sensing of the land surface energy balance

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Diak, George R.

1994-01-01

This final report from the University of Wisconsin-Madison Cooperative Institute for Meteorological Satellite Studies (CIMSS) summarizes a research program designed to improve our knowledge of the water and energy balance of the land surface through the application of remote sensing and in-situ data sources. The remote sensing data source investigations to be detailed involve surface radiometric ('skin') temperatures and also high-spectral-resolution infrared radiance data from atmospheric sounding instruments projected to be available at the end of the decade, which have shown promising results for evaluating the land-surface water and energy budget. The in-situ data types to be discussed are measurements of the temporal changes of the height of the planetary boundary layer and measurements of air temperature within the planetary boundary layer. Physical models of the land surface, planetary boundary layer and free atmosphere have been used as important tools to interpret the in-situ and remote sensing signals of the surface energy balance. A prototype 'optimal' system for combining multiple data sources into a three-dimensional estimate of the surface energy balance was developed and first results from this system will be detailed. Potential new sources of data for this system and suggested continuation research will also be discussed.

A mathematical framework for modelling cambial surface evolution using a level set method

PubMed Central

Sellier, Damien; Plank, Michael J.; Harrington, Jonathan J.

2011-01-01

Background and Aims During their lifetime, tree stems take a series of successive nested shapes. Individual tree growth models traditionally focus on apical growth and architecture. However, cambial growth, which is distributed over a surface layer wrapping the whole organism, equally contributes to plant form and function. This study aims at providing a framework to simulate how organism shape evolves as a result of a secondary growth process that occurs at the cellular scale. Methods The development of the vascular cambium is modelled as an expanding surface using the level set method. The surface consists of multiple compartments following distinct expansion rules. Growth behaviour can be formulated as a mathematical function of surface state variables and independent variables to describe biological processes. Key Results The model was coupled to an architectural model and to a forest stand model to simulate cambium dynamics and wood formation at the scale of the organism. The model is able to simulate competition between cambia, surface irregularities and local features. Predicting the shapes associated with arbitrarily complex growth functions does not add complexity to the numerical method itself. Conclusions Despite their slenderness, it is sometimes useful to conceive of trees as expanding surfaces. The proposed mathematical framework provides a way to integrate through time and space the biological and physical mechanisms underlying cambium activity. It can be used either to test growth hypotheses or to generate detailed maps of wood internal structure. PMID:21470972

An Unified Multiscale Framework for Planar, Surface, and Curve Skeletonization.

PubMed

Jalba, Andrei C; Sobiecki, Andre; Telea, Alexandru C

2016-01-01

Computing skeletons of 2D shapes, and medial surface and curve skeletons of 3D shapes, is a challenging task. In particular, there is no unified framework that detects all types of skeletons using a single model, and also produces a multiscale representation which allows to progressively simplify, or regularize, all skeleton types. In this paper, we present such a framework. We model skeleton detection and regularization by a conservative mass transport process from a shape's boundary to its surface skeleton, next to its curve skeleton, and finally to the shape center. The resulting density field can be thresholded to obtain a multiscale representation of progressively simplified surface, or curve, skeletons. We detail a numerical implementation of our framework which is demonstrably stable and has high computational efficiency. We demonstrate our framework on several complex 2D and 3D shapes.

A novel representation of groundwater dynamics in large-scale land surface modelling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rahman, Mostaquimur; Rosolem, Rafael; Kollet, Stefan

2017-04-01

Land surface processes are connected to groundwater dynamics via shallow soil moisture. For example, groundwater affects evapotranspiration (by influencing the variability of soil moisture) and runoff generation mechanisms. However, contemporary Land Surface Models (LSM) generally consider isolated soil columns and free drainage lower boundary condition for simulating hydrology. This is mainly due to the fact that incorporating detailed groundwater dynamics in LSMs usually requires considerable computing resources, especially for large-scale applications (e.g., continental to global). Yet, these simplifications undermine the potential effect of groundwater dynamics on land surface mass and energy fluxes. In this study, we present a novel approach of representing high-resolution groundwater dynamics in LSMs that is computationally efficient for large-scale applications. This new parameterization is incorporated in the Joint UK Land Environment Simulator (JULES) and tested at the continental-scale.

Project JOVE. [microgravity experiments and applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lyell, M. J.

1994-01-01

The goal of this project is to investigate new areas of research pertaining to free surface-interface fluids mechanics and/or microgravity which have potential commercial applications. This paper presents an introduction to ferrohydrodynamics (FHD), and discusses some applications. Also, computational methods for solving free surface flow problems are presented in detail. Both have diverse applications in industry and in microgravity fluids applications. Three different modeling schemes for FHD flows are addressed and the governing equations, including Maxwell's equations, are introduced. In the area of computational modeling of free surface flows, both Eulerian and Lagrangian schemes are discussed. The state of the art in computational methods applied to free surface flows is elucidated. In particular, adaptive grids and re-zoning methods are discussed. Additional research results are addressed and copies of the publications produced under the JOVE Project are included.

Coupled basin-scale water resource models for arid and semiarid regions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Winter, C.; Springer, E.; Costigan, K.; Fasel, P.; Mniewski, S.; Zyvoloski, G.

2003-04-01

Managers of semi-arid and arid water resources must allocate increasingly variable surface sources and limited groundwater resources to growing demands. This challenge is leading to a new generation of detailed computational models that link multiple interacting sources and demands. We will discuss a new computational model of arid region hydrology that we are parameterizing for the upper Rio Grande Basin of the United States. The model consists of linked components for the atmosphere (the Regional Atmospheric Modeling System, RAMS), surface hydrology (the Los Alamos Distributed Hydrologic System, LADHS), and groundwater (the Finite Element Heat and Mass code, FEHM), and the couplings between them. The model runs under the Parallel Application WorkSpace software developed at Los Alamos for applications running on large distributed memory computers. RAMS simulates regional meteorology coupled to global climate data on the one hand and land surface hydrology on the other. LADHS generates runoff by infiltration or saturation excess mechanisms, as well as interception, evapotranspiration, and snow accumulation and melt. FEHM simulates variably saturated flow and heat transport in three dimensions. A key issue is to increase the components’ spatial and temporal resolution to account for changes in topography and other rapidly changing variables that affect results such as soil moisture distribution or groundwater recharge. Thus, RAMS’ smallest grid is 5 km on a side, LADHS uses 100 m spacing, while FEHM concentrates processing on key volumes by means of an unstructured grid. Couplings within our model are based on new scaling methods that link groundwater-groundwater systems and streams to aquifers and we are developing evapotranspiration methods based on detailed calculations of latent heat and vegetative cover. Simulations of precipitation and soil moisture for the 1992-93 El Nino year will be used to demonstrate the approach and suggest further needs.

The Plumbing of Land Surface Models: Is Poor Performance a Result of Methodology or Data Quality?

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Haughton, Ned; Abramowitz, Gab; Pitman, Andy J.; Or, Dani; Best, Martin J.; Johnson, Helen R.; Balsamo, Gianpaolo; Boone, Aaron; Cuntz, Matthais; Decharme, Bertrand;

Forensic analysis of rockfall scars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Vilder, Saskia J.; Rosser, Nick J.; Brain, Matthew J.

2017-10-01

We characterise and analyse the detachment (scar) surfaces of rockfalls to understand the mechanisms that underpin their failure. Rockfall scars are variously weathered and comprised of both discontinuity release surfaces and surfaces indicative of fracturing through zones of previously intact rock, known as rock bridges. The presence of rock bridges and pre-existing discontinuities is challenging to quantify due to the difficulty in determining discontinuity persistence below the surface of a rock slope. Rock bridges form an important control in holding blocks onto rockslopes, with their frequency, extent and location commonly modelled from the surface exposure of daylighting discontinuities. We explore an alternative approach to assessing their role, by characterising failure scars. We analyse a database of multiple rockfall scar surfaces detailing the areal extent, shape, and location of broken rock bridges and weathered surfaces. Terrestrial laser scanning and gigapixel imagery were combined to record the detailed texture and surface morphology. From this, scar surfaces were mapped via automated classification based on RGB pixel values. Our analysis of the resulting data from scars on the North Yorkshire coast (UK) indicates a wide variation in both weathering and rock bridge properties, controlled by lithology and associated rock mass structure. Importantly, the proportion of rock bridges in a rockfall failure surface does not increase with failure size. Rather larger failures display fracturing through multiple rock bridges, and in contrast smaller failures fracture occurs only through a single critical rock bridge. This holds implications for how failure mechanisms change with rockfall size and shape. Additionally, the location of rock bridges with respect to the geometry of an incipient rockfall is shown to determine failure mode. Weathering can occur both along discontinuity surfaces and previously broken rock bridges, indicating the sequential stages of progressively detaching rockfall. Our findings have wider implications for hazard assessment where rock slope stability is dependent on the nature of rock bridges, how this is accounted for in slope stability modelling, and the implications of rock bridges on long-term rock slope evolution.

Topography of the 81/P Wild 2 Nucleus Derived from Stardust Stereoimages

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kirk, R. L.; Duxbury, T. C.; Horz, F.; Brownlee, D. E.; Newburn, R. L.; Tsou, P.

2005-01-01

On 2 January, 2004, the Stardust spacecraft flew by the nucleus of comet 81P/Wild 2 with a closest approach distance of approx. 240 km. During the encounter, the Stardust Optical Navigation Camera (ONC) obtained 72 images of the nucleus with exposure times alternating between 10 ms (near-optimal for most of the nucleus surface) and 100 ms (used for navigation, and revealing additional details in the coma and dark portions of the surface. Phase angles varied from 72 deg. to near zero to 103 deg. during the encounter, allowing the entire sunlit portion of the surface to be imaged. As many as 20 of the images near closest approach are of sufficiently high resolution to be used in mapping the nucleus surface; of these, two pairs of short-exposure images were used to create the nucleus shape model and derived products reported here. The best image resolution obtained was approx. 14 m/pixel, resulting in approx. 300 pixels across the nucleus. The Stardust Wild 2 dataset is therefore markedly superior from a stereomapping perspective to the Deep Space 1 MICAS images of comet Borrelly. The key subset of the latter (3 images) covered only about a quarter of the surface at phase angles approx. 50 - 60 and less than 50 x 160 pixels across the nucleus, yet it sufficed for groups at the USGS and DLR to produce digital elevation models (DEMs) and study the morphology and photometry of the nucleus in detail.

Comparison of 3d Reconstruction Services and Terrestrial Laser Scanning for Cultural Heritage Documentation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rasztovits, S.; Dorninger, P.

2013-07-01

Terrestrial Laser Scanning (TLS) is an established method to reconstruct the geometrical surface of given objects. Current systems allow for fast and efficient determination of 3D models with high accuracy and richness in detail. Alternatively, 3D reconstruction services are using images to reconstruct the surface of an object. While the instrumental expenses for laser scanning systems are high, upcoming free software services as well as open source software packages enable the generation of 3D models using digital consumer cameras. In addition, processing TLS data still requires an experienced user while recent web-services operate completely automatically. An indisputable advantage of image based 3D modeling is its implicit capability for model texturing. However, the achievable accuracy and resolution of the 3D models is lower than those of laser scanning data. Within this contribution, we investigate the results of automated web-services for image based 3D model generation with respect to a TLS reference model. For this, a copper sculpture was acquired using a laser scanner and using image series of different digital cameras. Two different webservices, namely Arc3D and AutoDesk 123D Catch were used to process the image data. The geometric accuracy was compared for the entire model and for some highly structured details. The results are presented and interpreted based on difference models. Finally, an economical comparison of the generation of the models is given considering the interactive and processing time costs.

Air Quality Forecasts Using the NASA GEOS Model

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Keller, Christoph A.; Knowland, K. Emma; Nielsen, Jon E.; Orbe, Clara; Ott, Lesley; Pawson, Steven; Saunders, Emily; Duncan, Bryan; Follette-Cook, Melanie; Liu, Junhua;

A fast mass spring model solver for high-resolution elastic objects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zheng, Mianlun; Yuan, Zhiyong; Zhu, Weixu; Zhang, Guian

2017-03-01

Real-time simulation of elastic objects is of great importance for computer graphics and virtual reality applications. The fast mass spring model solver can achieve visually realistic simulation in an efficient way. Unfortunately, this method suffers from resolution limitations and lack of mechanical realism for a surface geometry model, which greatly restricts its application. To tackle these problems, in this paper we propose a fast mass spring model solver for high-resolution elastic objects. First, we project the complex surface geometry model into a set of uniform grid cells as cages through *cages mean value coordinate method to reflect its internal structure and mechanics properties. Then, we replace the original Cholesky decomposition method in the fast mass spring model solver with a conjugate gradient method, which can make the fast mass spring model solver more efficient for detailed surface geometry models. Finally, we propose a graphics processing unit accelerated parallel algorithm for the conjugate gradient method. Experimental results show that our method can realize efficient deformation simulation of 3D elastic objects with visual reality and physical fidelity, which has a great potential for applications in computer animation.

Comparison of Martian Surface Radiation Predictions to the Measurements of Mars Science Laboratory Radiation Assessment Detector (MSL/RAD)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kim, Myung-Hee Y.; Cucinotta, Francis A.; Zeitlin, Cary; Hassler, Donald M.; Ehresmann, Bent; Rafkin, Scot C. R.; Wimmer-Schweingruber, Robert F; Boettcher, Stephan; Boehm, Eckart; Guo, Jingnan;

Modeling quantum yield, emittance, and surface roughness effects from metallic photocathodes

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Dimitrov, D. A.; Bell, G. I.; Smedley, J.

Here, detailed measurements of momentum distributions of emitted electrons have allowed the investigation of the thermal limit of the transverse emittance from metal photocathodes. Furthermore, recent developments in material design and growth have resulted in photocathodes that can deliver high quantum efficiency and are sufficiently robust to use in high electric field gradient photoinjectors and free electron lasers. The growth process usually produces photoemissive material layers with rough surface profiles that lead to transverse accelerating fields and possible work function variations, resulting in emittance growth. To better understand the effects of temperature, density of states, and surface roughness on themore » properties of emitted electrons, we have developed realistic three-dimensional models for photocathode materials with grated surface structures. They include general modeling of electron excitation due to photon absorption, charge transport, and emission from flat and rough metallic surfaces. The models also include image charge and field enhancement effects. We report results from simulations with flat and rough surfaces to investigate how electron scattering, controlled roughness, work function variation, and field enhancement affect emission properties. Comparison of simulation results with measurements of the quantum yield and transverse emittance from flat Sb emission surfaces shows the importance of including efficient modeling of photon absorption, temperature effects, and the material density of states to achieve agreement with the experimental data.« less

Modeling quantum yield, emittance, and surface roughness effects from metallic photocathodes

DOE PAGES

Dimitrov, D. A.; Bell, G. I.; Smedley, J.; ...

2017-10-26

Here, detailed measurements of momentum distributions of emitted electrons have allowed the investigation of the thermal limit of the transverse emittance from metal photocathodes. Furthermore, recent developments in material design and growth have resulted in photocathodes that can deliver high quantum efficiency and are sufficiently robust to use in high electric field gradient photoinjectors and free electron lasers. The growth process usually produces photoemissive material layers with rough surface profiles that lead to transverse accelerating fields and possible work function variations, resulting in emittance growth. To better understand the effects of temperature, density of states, and surface roughness on themore » properties of emitted electrons, we have developed realistic three-dimensional models for photocathode materials with grated surface structures. They include general modeling of electron excitation due to photon absorption, charge transport, and emission from flat and rough metallic surfaces. The models also include image charge and field enhancement effects. We report results from simulations with flat and rough surfaces to investigate how electron scattering, controlled roughness, work function variation, and field enhancement affect emission properties. Comparison of simulation results with measurements of the quantum yield and transverse emittance from flat Sb emission surfaces shows the importance of including efficient modeling of photon absorption, temperature effects, and the material density of states to achieve agreement with the experimental data.« less

The acid-base titration of montmorillonite

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bourg, I. C.; Sposito, G.; Bourg, A. C.

2003-12-01

Proton binding to clay minerals plays an important role in the chemical reactivity of soils (e.g., acidification, retention of nutrients or pollutants). If should also affect the performance of clay barriers for waste disposal. The surface acidity of clay minerals is commonly modelled empirically by assuming generic amphoteric surface sites (>SOH) on a flat surface, with fitted site densities and acidity constant. Current advances in experimental methods (notably spectroscopy) are rapidly improving our understanding of the structure and reactivity of the surface of clay minerals (arrangement of the particles, nature of the reactive surface sites, adsorption mechanisms). These developments are motivated by the difficulty of modelling the surface chemistry of mineral surfaces at the macro-scale (e.g., adsorption or titration) without a detailed (molecular-scale) picture of the mechanisms, and should be progressively incorporated into surface complexation models. In this view, we have combined recent estimates of montmorillonite surface properties (surface site density and structure, edge surface area, surface electrostatic potential) with surface site acidities obtained from the titration of alpha-Al2O3 and SiO2, and a novel method of accounting for the unknown initial net proton surface charge of the solid. The model predictions were compared to experimental titrations of SWy-1 montmorillonite and purified MX-80 bentonite in 0.1-0.5 mol/L NaClO4 and 0.005-0.5 mol/L NaNO3 background electrolytes, respectively. Most of the experimental data were appropriately described by the model after we adjusted a single parameter (silanol sites on the surface of montmorillonite were made to be slightly more acidic than those of silica). At low ionic strength and acidic pH the model underestimated the buffering capacity of the montmorillonite, perhaps due to clay swelling or to the interlayer adsorption of dissolved aluminum. The agreement between our model and the experimental data illustrates the complementarity of molecular and macro-scale descriptions of the clay reactivity.

The derivation of an anisotropic velocity model from a combined surface and borehole seismic survey in crystalline environment at the COSC-1 borehole, central Sweden

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simon, H.; Buske, S.; Krauß, F.; Giese, R.; Hedin, P.; Juhlin, C.

2017-09-01

The Scandinavian Caledonides provide a well-preserved example of a Palaeozoic continent-continent collision, where surface geology in combination with geophysical data provides information about the geometry of parts of the Caledonian structure. The project COSC (Collisional Orogeny in the Scandinavian Caledonides) investigates the structure and physical conditions of the orogen units and the underlying basement with two approximately 2.5 km deep cored boreholes in western Jämtland, central Sweden. In 2014, the COSC-1 borehole was successfully drilled through a thick section of the Seve Nappe Complex. This tectonostratigraphic unit, mainly consisting of gneisses, belongs to the so-called Middle Allochthons and has been ductilely deformed and transported during the collisional orogeny. After the drilling, a major seismic survey was conducted in and around the COSC-1 borehole with the aim to recover findings on the structure around the borehole from core analysis and downhole logging. The survey comprised both seismic reflection and transmission experiments, and included zero-offset and multiazimuthal walkaway Vertical Seismic Profile (VSP) measurements, three long offset surface lines centred on the borehole, and a limited 3-D seismic survey. In this study, the data from the multiazimuthal walkaway VSP and the surface lines were used to derive detailed velocity models around the COSC-1 borehole by inverting the first-arrival traveltimes. The comparison of velocities from these tomography results with a velocity function calculated directly from the zero-offset VSP revealed clear differences in velocities for horizontally and vertically travelling waves. Therefore, an anisotropic VTI (transversely isotropic with vertical axis of symmetry) model was found that explains first-arrival traveltimes from both the surface and borehole seismic data. The model is described by a vertical P-wave velocity function derived from zero-offset VSP and the Thomsen parameters ε = 0.03 and δ = 0.3, estimated by laboratory studies and the analysis of the surface seismic and walkaway VSP data. This resulting anisotropic model provides the basis for further detailed geological and geophysical investigations in the direct vicinity of the borehole.

An aircraft model for the AIAA controls design challenge

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Brumbaugh, Randal W.

1991-01-01

A generic, state-of-the-art, high-performance aircraft model, including detailed, full-envelope, nonlinear aerodynamics, and full-envelope thrust and first-order engine response data is described. While this model was primarily developed Controls Design Challenge, the availability of such a model provides a common focus for research in aeronautical control theory and methodology. An implementation of this model using the FORTRAN computer language, associated routines furnished with the aircraft model, and techniques for interfacing these routines to external procedures is also described. Figures showing vehicle geometry, surfaces, and sign conventions are included.

Can dust emission mechanisms be determined from field measurements?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klose, Martina; Webb, Nicholas; Gill, Thomas E.; Van Pelt, Scott; Okin, Gregory

2017-04-01

Field observations are needed to develop and test theories on dust emission for use in dust modeling systems. The dust emission mechanism (aerodynamic entrainment, saltation bombardment, aggregate disintegration) as well as the amount and particle-size distribution of emitted dust may vary under sediment supply- and transport-limited conditions. This variability, which is caused by heterogeneity of the surface and the atmosphere, cannot be fully captured in either field measurements or models. However, uncertainty in dust emission modeling can be reduced through more detailed observational data on the dust emission mechanism itself. To date, most measurements do not provide enough information to allow for a determination of the mechanisms leading to dust emission and often focus on a small variety of soil and atmospheric settings. Additionally, data sets are often not directly comparable due to different measurement setups. As a consequence, the calibration of dust emission schemes has so far relied on a selective set of observations, which leads to an idealization of the emission process in models and thus affects dust budget estimates. Here, we will present results of a study which aims to decipher the dust emission mechanism from field measurements as an input for future model development. Detailed field measurements are conducted, which allow for a comparison of dust emission for different surface and atmospheric conditions. Measurements include monitoring of the surface, loose erodible material, transported sediment, and meteorological data, and are conducted in different environmental settings in the southwestern United States. Based on the field measurements, a method is developed to differentiate between the different dust emission mechanisms.

Modeling of Transmittance Degradation Caused by Optical Surface Contamination by Atomic Oxygen Reaction with Adsorbed Silicones

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Snyder, Aaron; Banks, Bruce; Miller, Sharon; Stueber, Thomas; Sechkar, Edward

2001-01-01

A numerical procedure is presented to calculate transmittance degradation caused by contaminant films on spacecraft surfaces produced through the interaction of orbital atomic oxygen (AO) with volatile silicones and hydrocarbons from spacecraft components. In the model, contaminant accretion is dependent on the adsorption of species, depletion reactions due to gas-surface collisions, desorption, and surface reactions between AO and silicone producing SiO(x), (where x is near 2). A detailed description of the procedure used to calculate the constituents of the contaminant layer is presented, including the equations that govern the evolution of fractional coverage by specie type. As an illustrative example of film growth, calculation results using a prototype code that calculates the evolution of surface coverage by specie type is presented and discussed. An example of the transmittance degradation caused by surface interaction of AO with deposited contaminant is presented for the case of exponentially decaying contaminant flux. These examples are performed using hypothetical values for the process parameters.

FY07 LDRD Final Report A Fracture Mechanics and Tribology Approach to Understanding Subsurface Damage on Fused Silica during Grinding and Polishing

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Suratwala, T I; Miller, P E; Menapace, J A

The objective of this work is to develop a solid scientific understanding of the creation and characteristics of surface fractures formed during the grinding and polishing of brittle materials, specifically glass. In this study, we have experimentally characterized the morphology, number density, and depth distribution of various surface cracks as a function of various grinding and polishing processes (blanchard, fixed abrasive grinding, loose abrasive, pitch polishing and pad polishing). Also, the effects of load, abrasive particle (size, distribution, foreign particles, geometry, velocity), and lap material (pitch, pad) were examined. The resulting data were evaluated in terms of indentation fracture mechanicsmore » and tribological interactions (science of interacting surfaces) leading to several models to explain crack distribution behavior of ground surfaces and to explain the characteristics of scratches formed during polishing. This project has greatly advanced the scientific knowledge of microscopic mechanical damage occurring during grinding and polishing and has been of general interest. This knowledge-base has also enabled the design and optimization of surface finishing processes to create optical surfaces with far superior laser damage resistance. There are five major areas of scientific progress as a result of this LDRD. They are listed in Figure 1 and described briefly in this summary below. The details of this work are summarized through a number of published manuscripts which are included this LDRD Final Report. In the first area of grinding, we developed a technique to quantitatively and statistically measure the depth distribution of surface fractures (i.e., subsurface damage) in fused silica as function of various grinding processes using mixtures of various abrasive particles size distributions. The observed crack distributions were explained using a model that extended known, single brittle indentation models to an ensemble of loaded, sliding particles. The model illustrates the importance of the particle size distribution of the abrasive and its influence on the resulting crack distribution. The results of these studies are summarized in references 1-7. In the second area of polishing, we conducted a series of experiments showing the influence of rogue particles (i.e., particles in the polishing slurry that are larger than base particles) on the creation of scratches on polished surfaces. Scratches can be thought of a as a specific type of sub-surface damage. The characteristics (width, length, type of fractures, concentration) were explained in terms of the rogue particle size, the rogue particle material, and the viscoelastic properties of the lap. The results of these studies are summarized in references 6-7. In the third area of etching, we conducted experiments aimed at understanding the effect of HF:NH{sub 4}F acid etching on surface fractures on fused silica. Etching can be used as a method: (a) to expose sub-surface mechanical damage, (b) to study the morphology of specific mechanical damage occurring by indentation, and (c) to convert a ground surface containing a high concentration of sub-surface mechanical damage into surface roughness. Supporting models have been developed to describe in detail the effect of etching on the morphology and evolution of surface cracks. The results of these studies are summarized in references 8-9. In the fourth area of scratch forensics or scratch fractography, a set of new scratch forensic rule-of-thumbs were developed in order to aid the optical fabricator and process engineer to interpret the cause of scratches and digs on surfaces. The details of how these rules were developed are described in each of the references included in this summary (1-9). Figure 2 provides as a summary of some of the more commonly used rules-of-thumbs that have been developed in this study. In the fifth and final area of laser damage, we demonstrated that the removal of such surface fractures from the surface during optical fabrication can dramatically improve the laser damage.« less

A Three-Dimensional Solution of Flows over Wings with Leading-Edge Vortex Separation. Part 1: Engineering Document

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Brune, G. W.; Weber, J. A.; Johnson, F. T.; Lu, P.; Rubbert, P. E.

1975-01-01

A method of predicting forces, moments, and detailed surface pressures on thin, sharp-edged wings with leading-edge vortex separation in incompressible flow is presented. The method employs an inviscid flow model in which the wing and the rolled-up vortex sheets are represented by piecewise, continuous quadratic doublet sheet distributions. The Kutta condition is imposed on all wing edges. Computed results are compared with experimental data and with the predictions of the leading-edge suction analogy for a selected number of wing planforms over a wide range of angle of attack. These comparisons show the method to be very promising, capable of producing not only force predictions, but also accurate predictions of detailed surface pressure distributions, loads, and moments.

Ensemble formulation of surface fluxes and improvement in evapotranspiration and cloud parameterizations in a GCM. [General Circulation Model

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sud, Y. C.; Smith, W. E.

1984-01-01

The influence of some modifications to the parameters of the current general circulation model (GCM) is investigated. The aim of the modifications was to eliminate strong occasional bursts of oscillations in planetary boundary layer (PBL) fluxes. Smoothly varying bulk aerodynamic friction and heat transport coefficients were found by ensemble averaging of the PBL fluxes in the current GCM. A comparison was performed of the simulations of the modified model and the unmodified model. The comparison showed that the surface fluxes and cloudiness in the modified model simulations were much more accurate. The planetary albedo in the model was also realistic. Weaknesses persisted in the models positioning of the Inter-tropical convergence zone (ICTZ) and in the temperature estimates for polar regions. A second simulation of the model following reparametrization of the cloud data showed improved results and these are described in detail.

Laboratory and 3-D distinct element analysis of the failure mechanism of a slope under external surcharge

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, N.; Cheng, Y. M.

2015-01-01

Landslide is a major disaster resulting in considerable loss of human lives and property damages in hilly terrain in Hong Kong, China and many other countries. The factor of safety and the critical slip surface for slope stabilization are the main considerations for slope stability analysis in the past, while the detailed post-failure conditions of the slopes have not been considered in sufficient detail. There is however increasing interest in the consequences after the initiation of failure that includes the development and propagation of the failure surfaces, the amount of failed mass and runoff and the affected region. To assess the development of slope failure in more detail and to consider the potential danger of slopes after failure has initiated, the slope stability problem under external surcharge is analyzed by the distinct element method (DEM) and a laboratory model test in the present research. A more refined study about the development of failure, microcosmic failure mechanisms and the post-failure mechanisms of slopes will be carried out. The numerical modeling method and the various findings from the present work can provide an alternate method of analysis of slope failure, which can give additional information not available from the classical methods of analysis.

Laboratory and 3-D-distinct element analysis of failure mechanism of slope under external surcharge

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, N.; Cheng, Y. M.

2014-09-01

Landslide is a major disaster resulting in considerable loss of human lives and property damages in hilly terrain in Hong Kong, China and many other countries. The factor of safety and the critical slip surface for slope stabilization are the main considerations for slope stability analysis in the past, while the detailed post-failure conditions of the slopes have not been considered in sufficient details. There are however increasing interest on the consequences after the initiation of failure which includes the development and propagation of the failure surfaces, the amount of failed mass and runoff and the affected region. To assess the development of slope failure in more details and to consider the potential danger of slopes after failure has initiated, the slope stability problem under external surcharge is analyzed by the distinct element method (DEM) and laboratory model test in the present research. A more refined study about the development of failure, microcosmic failure mechanism and the post-failure mechanism of slope will be carried out. The numerical modeling method and the various findings from the present work can provide an alternate method of analysis of slope failure which can give additional information not available from the classical methods of analysis.

Modeling viscoelasticity through spring–dashpot models in intermittent-contact atomic force microscopy

PubMed Central

López-Guerra, Enrique A

2014-01-01

Summary We examine different approaches to model viscoelasticity within atomic force microscopy (AFM) simulation. Our study ranges from very simple linear spring–dashpot models to more sophisticated nonlinear systems that are able to reproduce fundamental properties of viscoelastic surfaces, including creep, stress relaxation and the presence of multiple relaxation times. Some of the models examined have been previously used in AFM simulation, but their applicability to different situations has not yet been examined in detail. The behavior of each model is analyzed here in terms of force–distance curves, dissipated energy and any inherent unphysical artifacts. We focus in this paper on single-eigenmode tip–sample impacts, but the models and results can also be useful in the context of multifrequency AFM, in which the tip trajectories are very complex and there is a wider range of sample deformation frequencies (descriptions of tip–sample model behaviors in the context of multifrequency AFM require detailed studies and are beyond the scope of this work). PMID:25551043

Semantic 3d City Model to Raster Generalisation for Water Run-Off Modelling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Verbree, E.; de Vries, M.; Gorte, B.; Oude Elberink, S.; Karimlou, G.

2013-09-01

Water run-off modelling applied within urban areas requires an appropriate detailed surface model represented by a raster height grid. Accurate simulations at this scale level have to take into account small but important water barriers and flow channels given by the large-scale map definitions of buildings, street infrastructure, and other terrain objects. Thus, these 3D features have to be rasterised such that each cell represents the height of the object class as good as possible given the cell size limitations. Small grid cells will result in realistic run-off modelling but with unacceptable computation times; larger grid cells with averaged height values will result in less realistic run-off modelling but fast computation times. This paper introduces a height grid generalisation approach in which the surface characteristics that most influence the water run-off flow are preserved. The first step is to create a detailed surface model (1:1.000), combining high-density laser data with a detailed topographic base map. The topographic map objects are triangulated to a set of TIN-objects by taking into account the semantics of the different map object classes. These TIN objects are then rasterised to two grids with a 0.5m cell-spacing: one grid for the object class labels and the other for the TIN-interpolated height values. The next step is to generalise both raster grids to a lower resolution using a procedure that considers the class label of each cell and that of its neighbours. The results of this approach are tested and validated by water run-off model runs for different cellspaced height grids at a pilot area in Amersfoort (the Netherlands). Two national datasets were used in this study: the large scale Topographic Base map (BGT, map scale 1:1.000), and the National height model of the Netherlands AHN2 (10 points per square meter on average). Comparison between the original AHN2 height grid and the semantically enriched and then generalised height grids shows that water barriers are better preserved with the new method. This research confirms the idea that topographical information, mainly the boundary locations and object classes, can enrich the height grid for this hydrological application.

Reliability of equivalent sphere model in blood-forming organ dose estimation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shinn, Judy L.; Wilson, John W.; Nealy, John E.

1990-01-01

The radiation dose equivalents to blood-forming organs (BFO's) of the astronauts at the Martian surface due to major solar flare events are calculated using the detailed body geometry of Langley and Billings. The solar flare spectra of February 1956, November 1960, and August 1972 events are employed instead of the idealized Webber form. The detailed geometry results are compared with those based on the 5-cm sphere model which was used often in the past to approximate BFO dose or dose equivalent. Larger discrepancies are found for the later two events possibly due to the lower numbers of highly penetrating protons. It is concluded that the 5-cm sphere model is not suitable for quantitative use in connection with future NASA deep-space, long-duration mission shield design studies.

Approaches to Validation of Models for Low Gravity Fluid Behavior

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chato, David J.; Marchetta, Jeffery; Hochstein, John I.; Kassemi, Mohammad

2005-01-01

This paper details the author experiences with the validation of computer models to predict low gravity fluid behavior. It reviews the literature of low gravity fluid behavior as a starting point for developing a baseline set of test cases. It examines authors attempts to validate their models against these cases and the issues they encountered. The main issues seem to be that: Most of the data is described by empirical correlation rather than fundamental relation; Detailed measurements of the flow field have not been made; Free surface shapes are observed but through thick plastic cylinders, and therefore subject to a great deal of optical distortion; and Heat transfer process time constants are on the order of minutes to days but the zero-gravity time available has been only seconds.

VOLATILE LOSS AND CLASSIFICATION OF KUIPER BELT OBJECTS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Johnson, R. E.; Schmidt, C.; Oza, A.

Observations indicate that some of the largest Kuiper Belt Objects (KBOs) have retained volatiles in the gas phase (e.g., Pluto), while others have surface volatiles that might support a seasonal atmosphere (e.g., Eris). Since the presence of an atmosphere can affect their reflectance spectra and thermal balance, Schaller and Brown examined the role of volatile escape driven by solar heating of the surface. Guided by recent simulations, we estimate the loss of primordial N{sub 2} for several large KBOs, accounting for escape driven by UV/EUV heating of the upper atmosphere as well as by solar heating of the surface. Formore » the latter we present new simulations and for the former we scale recent detailed simulations of escape from Pluto using the energy limited escape model validated recently by molecular kinetic simulations. Unlike what has been assumed to date, we show that unless the N{sub 2} atmosphere is thin (<∼10{sup 18} N{sub 2} cm{sup −2}) and/or the radius small (<∼200–300 km), escape is primarily driven by the UV/EUV radiation absorbed in the upper atmosphere. This affects the discussion of the relationship between atmospheric loss and the observed surface properties for a number of the KBOs examined. Our long-term goal is to connect detailed atmospheric loss simulations with a model for volatile transport for individual KBOs.« less

Mathematical Investigation of Fluid Flow, Mass Transfer, and Slag-steel Interfacial Behavior in Gas-stirred Ladles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cao, Qing; Nastac, Laurentiu

2018-06-01

In this study, the Euler-Euler and Euler-Lagrange modeling approaches were applied to simulate the multiphase flow in the water model and gas-stirred ladle systems. Detailed comparisons of the computational and experimental results were performed to establish which approach is more accurate for predicting the gas-liquid multiphase flow phenomena. It was demonstrated that the Euler-Lagrange approach is more accurate than the Euler-Euler approach. The Euler-Lagrange approach was applied to study the effects of the free surface setup, injected bubble size, gas flow rate, and slag layer thickness on the slag-steel interaction and mass transfer behavior. Detailed discussions on the flat/non-flat free surface assumption were provided. Significant inaccuracies in the prediction of the surface fluid flow characteristics were found when the flat free surface was assumed. The variations in the main controlling parameters (bubble size, gas flow rate, and slag layer thickness) and their potential impact on the multiphase fluid flow and mass transfer characteristics (turbulent intensity, mass transfer rate, slag-steel interfacial area, flow patterns, etc.,) in gas-stirred ladles were quantitatively determined to ensure the proper increase in the ladle refining efficiency. It was revealed that by injecting finer bubbles as well as by properly increasing the gas flow rate and the slag layer thickness, the ladle refining efficiency can be enhanced significantly.

Numerical simulation of two-dimensional flow over a heated carbon surface with coupled heterogeneous and homogeneous reactions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Johnson, Ryan Federick; Chelliah, Harsha Kumar

2017-01-01

For a range of flow and chemical timescales, numerical simulations of two-dimensional laminar flow over a reacting carbon surface were performed to understand further the complex coupling between heterogeneous and homogeneous reactions. An open-source computational package (OpenFOAM®) was used with previously developed lumped heterogeneous reaction models for carbon surfaces and a detailed homogeneous reaction model for CO oxidation. The influence of finite-rate chemical kinetics was explored by varying the surface temperatures from 1800 to 2600 K, while flow residence time effects were explored by varying the free-stream velocity up to 50 m/s. The reacting boundary layer structure dependence on the residence time was analysed by extracting the ratio of chemical source and species diffusion terms. The important contributions of radical species reactions on overall carbon removal rate, which is often neglected in multi-dimensional simulations, are highlighted. The results provide a framework for future development and validation of lumped heterogeneous reaction models based on multi-dimensional reacting flow configurations.

Accurate 3d Scanning of Damaged Ancient Greek Inscriptions for Revealing Weathered Letters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Papadaki, A. I.; Agrafiotis, P.; Georgopoulos, A.; Prignitz, S.

2015-02-01

In this paper two non-invasive non-destructive alternative techniques to the traditional and invasive technique of squeezes are presented alongside with specialized developed processing methods, aiming to help the epigraphists to reveal and analyse weathered letters in ancient Greek inscriptions carved in masonry or marble. The resulting 3D model would serve as a detailed basis for the epigraphists to try to decipher the inscription. The data were collected by using a Structured Light scanner. The creation of the final accurate three dimensional model is a complicated procedure requiring large computation cost and human effort. It includes the collection of geometric data in limited space and time, the creation of the surface, the noise filtering and the merging of individual surfaces. The use of structured light scanners is time consuming and requires costly hardware and software. Therefore an alternative methodology for collecting 3D data of the inscriptions was also implemented for reasons of comparison. Hence, image sequences from varying distances were collected using a calibrated DSLR camera aiming to reconstruct the 3D scene through SfM techniques in order to evaluate the efficiency and the level of precision and detail of the obtained reconstructed inscriptions. Problems in the acquisition processes as well as difficulties in the alignment step and mesh optimization are also encountered. A meta-processing framework is proposed and analysed. Finally, the results of processing and analysis and the different 3D models are critically inspected and then evaluated by a specialist in terms of accuracy, quality and detail of the model and the capability of revealing damaged and "hidden" letters.

Modeling the Effects of Nanopatterned Surfaces on Wetting States of Droplets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xiao, Ke; Zhao, Yanping; Ouyang, Gang; Li, Xinlei

2017-04-01

An analytic thermodynamic model has been established to quantitatively investigate the wetting states of droplets on nanopatterned surfaces. Based on the calculations for the free energies of droplets with the Wenzel state and the Cassie-Baxter state, it is found that the size and shape of nanostructured surfaces play crucial roles in wetting states. In detail, for nanohole-patterned surfaces, the deep and thin nanoholes lead to the Cassie-Baxter state, and contrarily, the shallow and thick nanoholes result in the Wenzel state. However, the droplets have the Wenzel state on the patterned surfaces with small height and radii nanopillars and have the Cassie-Baxter state when the height and radii of nanopillars are large. Furthermore, the intuitive phase diagrams of the wetting states of the droplet in the space of surface geometrical parameters are obtained. The theoretical results are in good agreement with the experimental observations and reveal physical mechanisms involved in the effects of nanopatterned surfaces on wetting states, which implies that these studies may provide useful guidance to the conscious design of patterned surfaces to control the wetting states of droplets.

Remote sensing, geographical information systems, and spatial modeling for analyzing public transit services

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Changshan

Public transit service is a promising transportation mode because of its potential to address urban sustainability. Current ridership of public transit, however, is very low in most urban regions, particularly those in the United States. This woeful transit ridership can be attributed to many factors, among which poor service quality is key. Given this, there is a need for transit planning and analysis to improve service quality. Traditionally, spatially aggregate data are utilized in transit analysis and planning. Examples include data associated with the census, zip codes, states, etc. Few studies, however, address the influences of spatially aggregate data on transit planning results. In this research, previous studies in transit planning that use spatially aggregate data are reviewed. Next, problems associated with the utilization of aggregate data, the so-called modifiable areal unit problem (MAUP), are detailed and the need for fine resolution data to support public transit planning is argued. Fine resolution data is generated using intelligent interpolation techniques with the help of remote sensing imagery. In particular, impervious surface fraction, an important socio-economic indicator, is estimated through a fully constrained linear spectral mixture model using Landsat Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) data within the metropolitan area of Columbus, Ohio in the United States. Four endmembers, low albedo, high albedo, vegetation, and soil are selected to model heterogeneous urban land cover. Impervious surface fraction is estimated by analyzing low and high albedo endmembers. With the derived impervious surface fraction, three spatial interpolation methods, spatial regression, dasymetric mapping, and cokriging, are developed to interpolate detailed population density. Results suggest that cokriging applied to impervious surface is a better alternative for estimating fine resolution population density. With the derived fine resolution data, a multiple route maximal covering/shortest path (MRMCSP) model is proposed to address the tradeoff between public transit service quality and access coverage in an established bus-based transit system. Results show that it is possible to improve current transit service quality by eliminating redundant or underutilized service stops. This research illustrates that fine resolution data can be efficiently generated to support urban planning, management and analysis. Further, this detailed data may necessitate the development of new spatial optimization models for use in analysis.

Development and Performance Evaluation of Image-Based Robotic Waxing System for Detailing Automobiles

PubMed Central

Hsu, Bing-Cheng

2018-01-01

Waxing is an important aspect of automobile detailing, aimed at protecting the finish of the car and preventing rust. At present, this delicate work is conducted manually due to the need for iterative adjustments to achieve acceptable quality. This paper presents a robotic waxing system in which surface images are used to evaluate the quality of the finish. An RGB-D camera is used to build a point cloud that details the sheet metal components to enable path planning for a robot manipulator. The robot is equipped with a multi-axis force sensor to measure and control the forces involved in the application and buffing of wax. Images of sheet metal components that were waxed by experienced car detailers were analyzed using image processing algorithms. A Gaussian distribution function and its parameterized values were obtained from the images for use as a performance criterion in evaluating the quality of surfaces prepared by the robotic waxing system. Waxing force and dwell time were optimized using a mathematical model based on the image-based criterion used to measure waxing performance. Experimental results demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed robotic waxing system and image-based performance evaluation scheme. PMID:29757940

Development and Performance Evaluation of Image-Based Robotic Waxing System for Detailing Automobiles.

PubMed

Lin, Chi-Ying; Hsu, Bing-Cheng

2018-05-14

Waxing is an important aspect of automobile detailing, aimed at protecting the finish of the car and preventing rust. At present, this delicate work is conducted manually due to the need for iterative adjustments to achieve acceptable quality. This paper presents a robotic waxing system in which surface images are used to evaluate the quality of the finish. An RGB-D camera is used to build a point cloud that details the sheet metal components to enable path planning for a robot manipulator. The robot is equipped with a multi-axis force sensor to measure and control the forces involved in the application and buffing of wax. Images of sheet metal components that were waxed by experienced car detailers were analyzed using image processing algorithms. A Gaussian distribution function and its parameterized values were obtained from the images for use as a performance criterion in evaluating the quality of surfaces prepared by the robotic waxing system. Waxing force and dwell time were optimized using a mathematical model based on the image-based criterion used to measure waxing performance. Experimental results demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed robotic waxing system and image-based performance evaluation scheme.

Assessment of surface roughness by use of soft x-ray scattering

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Meng, Yan-li; Wang, Yong-gang; Chen, Shu-yan; Chen, Bo

2009-08-01

A soft x-ray reflectometer with laser produced plasma source has been designed, which can work from wavelength 8nm to 30 nm and has high performance. Using the soft x-ray reflectometer above, the scattering light distribution of silicon and zerodur mirrors which have super-smooth surfaces could be measured at different incidence angle and different wavelength. The measurement when the incidence angle is 2 degree and the wavelength is 11nm has been given in this paper. A surface scattering theory of soft x-ray grazing incidence optics based on linear system theory and an inverse scattering mathematical model is introduced. The vector scattering theory of soft x-ray scattering also is stated in detail. The scattering data are analyzed by both the methods above respectively to give information about the surface profiles. On the other hand, both the two samples are measured by WYKO surface profiler, and the surface roughness of the silicon and zerodur mirror is 1.3 nm and 1.5nm respectively. The calculated results are in quantitative agreement with those measured by WYKO surface profiler, which indicates that soft x-ray scattering is a very useful tool for the evaluation of highly polished surfaces. But there still some difference among the results of different theory and WYKO, and the possible reasons of such difference have been discussed in detail.

Model of Nanostructuring Burnishing by a Spherical Indenter Taking into Consideration Plastic Deformations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lyashenko, Ya. A.; Popov, V. L.

2018-01-01

A dynamic model of the nanostructuring burnishing of a surface of metallic details taking into consideration plastic deformations has been suggested. To describe the plasticity, the ideology of dimension reduction method supplemented with the plasticity criterion is used. The model considers the action of the normal burnishing force and the tangential friction force. The effect of the coefficient of friction and the periodical oscillation of the burnishing force on the burnishing kinetics are investigated.

A visiting scientist program in atmospheric sciences for the Goddard Space Flight Center

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Davis, M. H.

1989-01-01

A visiting scientist program was conducted in the atmospheric sciences and related areas at the Goddard Laboratory for Atmospheres. Research was performed in mathematical analysis as applied to computer modeling of the atmospheres; development of atmospheric modeling programs; analysis of remotely sensed atmospheric, surface, and oceanic data and its incorporation into atmospheric models; development of advanced remote sensing instrumentation; and related research areas. The specific research efforts are detailed by tasks.

Simulations of molecular self-assembled monolayers on surfaces: packing structures, formation processes and functions tuned by intermolecular and interfacial interactions.

PubMed

Wen, Jin; Li, Wei; Chen, Shuang; Ma, Jing

2016-08-17

Surfaces modified with a functional molecular monolayer are essential for the fabrication of nano-scale electronics or machines with novel physical, chemical, and/or biological properties. Theoretical simulation based on advanced quantum chemical and classical models is at present a necessary tool in the development, design, and understanding of the interfacial nanostructure. The nanoscale surface morphology, growth processes, and functions are controlled by not only the electronic structures (molecular energy levels, dipole moments, polarizabilities, and optical properties) of building units but also the subtle balance between intermolecular and interfacial interactions. The switchable surfaces are also constructed by introducing stimuli-responsive units like azobenzene derivatives. To bridge the gap between experiments and theoretical models, opportunities and challenges for future development of modelling of ferroelectricity, entropy, and chemical reactions of surface-supported monolayers are also addressed. Theoretical simulations will allow us to obtain important and detailed information about the structure and dynamics of monolayer modified interfaces, which will guide the rational design and optimization of dynamic interfaces to meet challenges of controlling optical, electrical, and biological functions.

The Urban Food-Water Nexus: Modeling Water Footprints of Urban Agriculture using CityCrop

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tooke, T. R.; Lathuilliere, M. J.; Coops, N. C.; Johnson, M. S.

2014-12-01

Urban agriculture provides a potential contribution towards more sustainable food production and mitigating some of the human impacts that accompany volatility in regional and global food supply. When considering the capacity of urban landscapes to produce food products, the impact of urban water demand required for food production in cities is often neglected. Urban agricultural studies also tend to be undertaken at broad spatial scales, overlooking the heterogeneity of urban form that exerts an extreme influence on the urban energy balance. As a result, urban planning and management practitioners require, but often do not have, spatially explicit and detailed information to support informed urban agricultural policy, especially as it relates to potential conflicts with sustainability goals targeting water-use. In this research we introduce a new model, CityCrop, a hybrid evapotranspiration-plant growth model that incorporates detailed digital representations of the urban surface and biophysical impacts of the built environment and urban trees to account for the daily variations in net surface radiation. The model enables very fine-scale (sub-meter) estimates of water footprints of potential urban agricultural production. Results of the model are demonstrated for an area in the City of Vancouver, Canada and compared to aspatial model estimates, demonstrating the unique considerations and sensitivities for current and future water footprints of urban agriculture and the implications for urban water planning and policy.

Method to Rapidly Collect Thousands of Velocity Observations to Validate Million-Element 2D Hydrodynamic Models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barker, J. R.; Pasternack, G. B.; Bratovich, P.; Massa, D.; Reedy, G.; Johnson, T.

2010-12-01

Two-dimensional (depth-averaged) hydrodynamic models have existed for decades and are used to study a variety of hydrogeomorphic processes as well as to design river rehabilitation projects. Rapid computer and coding advances are revolutionizing the size and detail of 2D models. Meanwhile, advances in topo mapping and environmental informatics are providing the data inputs to drive large, detailed simulations. Million-element computational meshes are in hand. With simulations of this size and detail, the primary challenge has shifted to finding rapid and inexpensive means for testing model predictions against observations. Standard methods for collecting velocity data include boat-mounted ADCP and point-based sensors on boats or wading rods. These methods are labor intensive and often limited to a narrow flow range. Also, they generate small datasets at a few cross-sections, which is inadequate to characterize the statistical structure of the relation between predictions and observations. Drawing on the long-standing oceanographic method of using drogues to track water currents, previous studies have demonstrated the potential of small dGPS units to obtain surface velocity in rivers. However, dGPS is too inaccurate to test 2D models. Also, there is financial risk in losing drogues in rough currents. In this study, an RTK GPS unit was mounted onto a manned whitewater kayak. The boater positioned himself into the current and used floating debris to maintain a speed and heading consistent with the ambient surface flow field. RTK GPS measurements were taken ever 5 sec. From these positions, a 2D velocity vector was obtained. The method was tested over ~20 km of the lower Yuba River in California in flows ranging from 500-5000 cfs, yielding 5816 observations. To compare velocity magnitude against the 2D model-predicted depth-averaged value, kayak-based surface values were scaled down by an optimized constant (0.72), which had no negative effect on regression analysis. The r2 value for speed was 0.78 by this method, compared with 0.57 based on 199 points from traditional measurements. The r2 value for velocity direction was 0.77. Although it is not ideal to rely on observed surface velocity to evaluate depth-average velocity predictions, all available velocity-measurement methods have a suite of assumptions and complications. Using this method, the availability of 10-100x more data was so beneficial that the outcome was among the highest model performance outcomes reported in the literature.

An efficient computational method for characterizing the effects of random surface errors on the average power pattern of reflectors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rahmat-Samii, Y.

1983-01-01

Based on the works of Ruze (1966) and Vu (1969), a novel mathematical model has been developed to determine efficiently the average power pattern degradations caused by random surface errors. In this model, both nonuniform root mean square (rms) surface errors and nonuniform illumination functions are employed. In addition, the model incorporates the dependence on F/D in the construction of the solution. The mathematical foundation of the model rests on the assumption that in each prescribed annular region of the antenna, the geometrical rms surface value is known. It is shown that closed-form expressions can then be derived, which result in a very efficient computational method for the average power pattern. Detailed parametric studies are performed with these expressions to determine the effects of different random errors and illumination tapers on parameters such as gain loss and sidelobe levels. The results clearly demonstrate that as sidelobe levels decrease, their dependence on the surface rms/wavelength becomes much stronger and, for a specified tolerance level, a considerably smaller rms/wavelength is required to maintain the low sidelobes within the required bounds.

Selection of Worst-Case Pesticide Leaching Scenarios for Pesticide Registration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vereecken, H.; Tiktak, A.; Boesten, J.; Vanderborght, J.

2010-12-01

The use of pesticides, fertilizers and manure in intensive agriculture may have a negative impact on the quality of ground- and surface water resources. Legislative action has been undertaken in many countries to protect surface and groundwater resources from contamination by surface applied agrochemicals. Of particular concern are pesticides. The registration procedure plays an important role in the regulation of pesticide use in the European Union. In order to register a certain pesticide use, the notifier needs to prove that the use does not entail a risk of groundwater contamination. Therefore, leaching concentrations of the pesticide need to be assessed using model simulations for so called worst-case scenarios. In the current procedure, a worst-case scenario represents a parameterized pesticide fate model for a certain soil and a certain time series of weather conditions that tries to represent all relevant processes such as transient water flow, root water uptake, pesticide transport, sorption, decay and volatilisation as accurate as possible. Since this model has been parameterized for only one soil and weather time series, it is uncertain whether it represents a worst-case condition for a certain pesticide use. We discuss an alternative approach that uses a simpler model that requires less detailed information about the soil and weather conditions but still represents the effect of soil and climate on pesticide leaching using information that is available for the entire European Union. A comparison between the two approaches demonstrates that the higher precision that the detailed model provides for the prediction of pesticide leaching at a certain site is counteracted by its smaller accuracy to represent a worst case condition. The simpler model predicts leaching concentrations less precise at a certain site but has a complete coverage of the area so that it selects a worst-case condition more accurately.

High resolution modelling of extreme precipitation events in urban areas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Siemerink, Martijn; Volp, Nicolette; Schuurmans, Wytze; Deckers, Dave

2015-04-01

The present day society needs to adjust to the effects of climate change. More extreme weather conditions are expected, which can lead to longer periods of drought, but also to more extreme precipitation events. Urban water systems are not designed for such extreme events. Most sewer systems are not able to drain the excessive storm water, causing urban flooding. This leads to high economic damage. In order to take appropriate measures against extreme urban storms, detailed knowledge about the behaviour of the urban water system above and below the streets is required. To investigate the behaviour of urban water systems during extreme precipitation events new assessment tools are necessary. These tools should provide a detailed and integral description of the flow in the full domain of overland runoff, sewer flow, surface water flow and groundwater flow. We developed a new assessment tool, called 3Di, which provides detailed insight in the urban water system. This tool is based on a new numerical methodology that can accurately deal with the interaction between overland runoff, sewer flow and surface water flow. A one-dimensional model for the sewer system and open channel flow is fully coupled to a two-dimensional depth-averaged model that simulates the overland flow. The tool uses a subgrid-based approach in order to take high resolution information of the sewer system and of the terrain into account [1, 2]. The combination of using the high resolution information and the subgrid based approach results in an accurate and efficient modelling tool. It is now possible to simulate entire urban water systems using extreme high resolution (0.5m x 0.5m) terrain data in combination with a detailed sewer and surface water network representation. The new tool has been tested in several Dutch cities, such as Rotterdam, Amsterdam and The Hague. We will present the results of an extreme precipitation event in the city of Schiedam (The Netherlands). This city deals with significant soil consolidation and the low-lying areas are prone to urban flooding. The simulation results are compared with measurements in the sewer network. References [1] Guus S. Stelling G.S., 2012. Quadtree flood simulations with subgrid digital elevation models. Water Management 165 (WM1):1329-1354. [2] Vincenzo Cassuli and Guus S. Stelling, 2013. A semi-implicit numerical model for urban drainage systems. International Journal for Numerical Methods in Fluids. Vol. 73:600-614. DOI: 10.1002/fld.3817

A Simple Close Range Photogrammetry Technique to Assess Soil Erosion in the Field

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Evaluating the performance of a soil erosion prediction model depends on the ability to accurately measure the gain or loss of sediment in an area. Recent development in acquiring detailed surface elevation data (DEM) makes it feasible to assess soil erosion and deposition spatially. Digital photogr...

Wireless Channel Characterization: Modeling the 5 GHz Microwave Landing System Extension Band for Future Airport Surface Communications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Matolak, D. W.; Apaza, Rafael; Foore, Lawrence R.

2006-01-01

We describe a recently completed wideband wireless channel characterization project for the 5 GHz Microwave Landing System (MLS) extension band, for airport surface areas. This work included mobile measurements at large and small airports, and fixed point-to-point measurements. Mobile measurements were made via transmission from the air traffic control tower (ATCT), or from an airport field site (AFS), to a receiving ground vehicle on the airport surface. The point-to-point measurements were between ATCT and AFSs. Detailed statistical channel models were developed from all these measurements. Measured quantities include propagation path loss and power delay profiles, from which we obtain delay spreads, frequency domain correlation (coherence bandwidths), fading amplitude statistics, and channel parameter correlations. In this paper we review the project motivation, measurement coordination, and illustrate measurement results. Example channel modeling results for several propagation conditions are also provided, highlighting new findings.

NASA geometry data exchange specification for computational fluid dynamics (NASA IGES)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Blake, Matthew W.; Kerr, Patricia A.; Thorp, Scott A.; Jou, Jin J.

1994-01-01

This document specifies a subset of an existing product data exchange specification that is widely used in industry and government. The existing document is called the Initial Graphics Exchange Specification. This document, a subset of IGES, is intended for engineers analyzing product performance using tools such as computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software. This document specifies how to define mathematically and exchange the geometric model of an object. The geometry is represented utilizing nonuniform rational B-splines (NURBS) curves and surfaces. Only surface models are represented; no solid model representation is included. This specification does not include most of the other types of product information available in IGES (e.g., no material properties or surface finish properties) and does not provide all the specific file format details of IGES. The data exchange protocol specified in this document is fully conforming to the American National Standard (ANSI) IGES 5.2.

Modeling of Diamond Field-Emitter-Arrays for high brightness photocathode applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kwan, Thomas; Huang, Chengkun; Piryatinski, Andrei; Lewellen, John; Nichols, Kimberly; Choi, Bo; Pavlenko, Vitaly; Shchegolkov, Dmitry; Nguyen, Dinh; Andrews, Heather; Simakov, Evgenya

2017-10-01

We propose to employ Diamond Field-Emitter-Arrays (DFEAs) as high-current-density ultra-low-emittance photocathodes for compact laser-driven dielectric accelerators capable of generating ultra-high brightness electron beams for advanced applications. We develop a semi-classical Monte-Carlo photoemission model for DFEAs that includes carriers' transport to the emitter surface and tunneling through the surface under external fields. The model accounts for the electronic structure size quantization affecting the transport and tunneling process within the sharp diamond tips. We compare this first principle model with other field emission models, such as the Child-Langmuir and Murphy-Good models. By further including effects of carrier photoexcitation, we perform simulations of the DFEAs' photoemission quantum yield and the emitted electron beam. Details of the theoretical model and validation against preliminary experimental data will be presented. Work ssupported by LDRD program at LANL.

5D Modelling: An Efficient Approach for Creating Spatiotemporal Predictive 3D Maps of Large-Scale Cultural Resources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Doulamis, A.; Doulamis, N.; Ioannidis, C.; Chrysouli, C.; Grammalidis, N.; Dimitropoulos, K.; Potsiou, C.; Stathopoulou, E.-K.; Ioannides, M.

2015-08-01

Outdoor large-scale cultural sites are mostly sensitive to environmental, natural and human made factors, implying an imminent need for a spatio-temporal assessment to identify regions of potential cultural interest (material degradation, structuring, conservation). On the other hand, in Cultural Heritage research quite different actors are involved (archaeologists, curators, conservators, simple users) each of diverse needs. All these statements advocate that a 5D modelling (3D geometry plus time plus levels of details) is ideally required for preservation and assessment of outdoor large scale cultural sites, which is currently implemented as a simple aggregation of 3D digital models at different time and levels of details. The main bottleneck of such an approach is its complexity, making 5D modelling impossible to be validated in real life conditions. In this paper, a cost effective and affordable framework for 5D modelling is proposed based on a spatial-temporal dependent aggregation of 3D digital models, by incorporating a predictive assessment procedure to indicate which regions (surfaces) of an object should be reconstructed at higher levels of details at next time instances and which at lower ones. In this way, dynamic change history maps are created, indicating spatial probabilities of regions needed further 3D modelling at forthcoming instances. Using these maps, predictive assessment can be made, that is, to localize surfaces within the objects where a high accuracy reconstruction process needs to be activated at the forthcoming time instances. The proposed 5D Digital Cultural Heritage Model (5D-DCHM) is implemented using open interoperable standards based on the CityGML framework, which also allows the description of additional semantic metadata information. Visualization aspects are also supported to allow easy manipulation, interaction and representation of the 5D-DCHM geometry and the respective semantic information. The open source 3DCityDB incorporating a PostgreSQL geo-database is used to manage and manipulate 3D data and their semantics.

On the Problem of Filtration to an Imperfect Gallery in a Pressureless Bed

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bereslavskii, É. N.; Dudina, L. M.

2018-01-01

The problem of plane steady-state filtration in a pressureless bed to an imperfect gallery in the presence of evaporation from the flow free surface is considered. To study such type of flow, a mixed boundary-value problem of the theory of analytical functions is formulated and solved with application of the Polubarinova-Kochina method. Based on the model suggested, an algorithm for computing the discharge of the gallery and the ordinate of free surface emergence to the impermeable screen is developed. A detailed hydrodynamic analysis of the influence of all physical parameters of the model on the desired filtration characteristics is given.

Hydraulic analysis of the Schoharie Creek bridge

USGS Publications Warehouse

Froehlich, David C.; Trent, Roy E.

1989-01-01

Ten people died on April 5, 1987 as a result of the collapse of two spans of a New York State Thruway bridge into the floodwaters of Schoharie Creek. The cause of the bridge failure was determined to be scour of bed material from under the foundations of piers supporting the bridge. To evaluate the hydraulic conditions that produced the scour, a two-dimensional finite element surface-water flow model was constructed. The model was used to obtain a detailed description of water-surface elevations and depth-averaged velocities within a reach that extends from about 4000 ft downstream of the bridge to about 6000 ft upstream of the bridge.

Scheduler Design Criteria: Requirements and Considerations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lee, Hanbong

2016-01-01

This presentation covers fundamental requirements and considerations for developing schedulers in airport operations. We first introduce performance and functional requirements for airport surface schedulers. Among various optimization problems in airport operations, we focus on airport surface scheduling problem, including runway and taxiway operations. We then describe a basic methodology for airport surface scheduling such as node-link network model and scheduling algorithms previously developed. Next, we explain how to design a mathematical formulation in more details, which consists of objectives, decision variables, and constraints. Lastly, we review other considerations, including optimization tools, computational performance, and performance metrics for evaluation.

Nomarski differential interference contrast microscopy for surface slope measurements: an examination of techniques

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hartman, J.S.; Gordon, R.L.; Lessor, D.L.

1981-08-01

Alternate measurement and data analysis procedures are discussed and compared for the application of reflective Nomarski differential interference contrast microscopy for the determination of surface slopes. The discussion includes the interpretation of a previously reported iterative procedure using the results of a detailed optical model and the presentation of a new procedure based on measured image intensity extrema. Surface slope determinations from these procedures are presented and compared with results from a previously reported curve fit analysis of image intensity data. The accuracy and advantages of the different procedures are discussed.

Models and observations of foam coverage and bubble content in the surf zone

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kirby, J. T.; Shi, F.; Holman, R. A.

2010-12-01

Optical and acoustical observations and communications are hampered in the nearshore by the presence of bubbles and foam generated by breaking waves. Bubble clouds in the water column provide a highly variable (both spatially and temporally) obstacle to direct acoustic and optical paths. Persistent foam riding on the water surface creates a primary occlusion of optical penetration into the water column. In an effort to better understand and predict the level of bubble and foam content in the surfzone, we have been pursuing the development of a detailed phase resolved model of fluid and gaseous components of the water column, using a Navier-Stokes/VOF formulation extended to include a multiphase description of polydisperse bubble populations. This sort of modeling provides a detailed description of large scale turbulent structures and associated bubble transport mechanisms under breaking wave crests. The modeling technique is too computationally intensive, however, to provide a wider-scale description of large surfzone regions. In order to approach the larger scale problem, we are developing a model for spatial and temporal distribution of foam and bubbles within the framework of a Boussinesq model. The basic numerical framework for the code is described by Shi et al (2010, this conference). Bubble effects are incorporated both in the mass and momentum balances for weakly dispersive, fully nonlinear waves, with spatial and temporal bubble distributions parameterized based on the VOF modeling and measurements and tied to the computed rate of dissipation of energy during breaking. A model of a foam layer on the water surface is specified using a shallow water formulation. Foam mass conservation includes source and sink terms representing outgassing of the water column, direct foam generation due to surface agitation, and erosion due to bubble bursting. The foam layer motion in the plane of the water surface arises due to a balance of drag forces due to wind and water column motion. Preliminary steps to calibrate and verify the resulting models will be taken based on results to be collected during the Surf Zone Optics experiment at Duck, NC in September 2010. Initial efforts will focus on an examination of breaking wave patterns and persistent foam distributions, using ARGUS imagery.

Validation of the Land-Surface Energy Budget and Planetary Boundary Layer for Several Intensive field Experiments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bosilovich, Michael G.; Schubert, Siegfried; Molod, Andrea; Houser, Paul R.

1999-01-01

Land-surface processes in a data assimilation system influence the lower troposphere and must be properly represented. With the recent incorporation of the Mosaic Land-surface Model (LSM) into the GEOS Data Assimilation System (DAS), the detailed land-surface processes require strict validation. While global data sources can identify large-scale systematic biases at the monthly timescale, the diurnal cycle is difficult to validate. Moreover, global data sets rarely include variables such as evaporation, sensible heat and soil water. Intensive field experiments, on the other hand, can provide high temporal resolution energy budget and vertical profile data for sufficiently long periods, without global coverage. Here, we evaluate the GEOS DAS against several intensive field experiments. The field experiments are First ISLSCP Field Experiment (FIFE, Kansas, summer 1987), Cabauw (as used in PILPS, Netherlands, summer 1987), Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM, Southern Great Plains, winter and summer 1998) and the Surface Heat Budget of the Arctic Ocean (SHEBA, Arctic ice sheet, winter and summer 1998). The sites provide complete surface energy budget data for periods of at least one year, and some periods of vertical profiles. This comparison provides a detailed validation of the Mosaic LSM within the GEOS DAS for a variety of climatologic and geographic conditions.

The effects of diffusion in hot subdwarf progenitors from the common envelope channel

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Byrne, Conor M.; Jeffery, C. Simon; Tout, Christopher A.; Hu, Haili

2018-04-01

Diffusion of elements in the atmosphere and envelope of a star can drastically alter its surface composition, leading to extreme chemical peculiarities. We consider the case of hot subdwarfs, where surface helium abundances range from practically zero to almost 100 percent. Since hot subdwarfs can form via a number of different evolution channels, a key question concerns how the formation mechanism is connected to the present surface chemistry. A sequence of extreme horizontal branch star models was generated by producing post-common envelope stars from red giants. Evolution was computed with MESA from envelope ejection up to core-helium ignition. Surface abundances were calculated at the zero-age horizontal branch for models with and without diffusion. A number of simulations also included radiative levitation. The goal was to study surface chemistry during evolution from cool giant to hot subdwarf and determine when the characteristic subdwarf surface is established. Only stars leaving the giant branch close to core-helium ignition become hydrogen-rich subdwarfs at the zero-age horizontal branch. Diffusion, including radiative levitation, depletes the initial surface helium in all cases. All subdwarf models rapidly become more depleted than observations allow. Surface abundances of other elements follow observed trends in general, but not in detail. Additional physics is required.

Electronic field emission models beyond the Fowler-Nordheim one

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lepetit, Bruno

2017-12-01

We propose several quantum mechanical models to describe electronic field emission from first principles. These models allow us to correlate quantitatively the electronic emission current with the electrode surface details at the atomic scale. They all rely on electronic potential energy surfaces obtained from three dimensional density functional theory calculations. They differ by the various quantum mechanical methods (exact or perturbative, time dependent or time independent), which are used to describe tunneling through the electronic potential energy barrier. Comparison of these models between them and with the standard Fowler-Nordheim one in the context of one dimensional tunneling allows us to assess the impact on the accuracy of the computed current of the approximations made in each model. Among these methods, the time dependent perturbative one provides a well-balanced trade-off between accuracy and computational cost.

Predicting infant cortical surface development using a 4D varifold-based learning framework and local topography-based shape morphing.

PubMed

Rekik, Islem; Li, Gang; Lin, Weili; Shen, Dinggang

2016-02-01

Longitudinal neuroimaging analysis methods have remarkably advanced our understanding of early postnatal brain development. However, learning predictive models to trace forth the evolution trajectories of both normal and abnormal cortical shapes remains broadly absent. To fill this critical gap, we pioneered the first prediction model for longitudinal developing cortical surfaces in infants using a spatiotemporal current-based learning framework solely from the baseline cortical surface. In this paper, we detail this prediction model and even further improve its performance by introducing two key variants. First, we use the varifold metric to overcome the limitations of the current metric for surface registration that was used in our preliminary study. We also extend the conventional varifold-based surface registration model for pairwise registration to a spatiotemporal surface regression model. Second, we propose a morphing process of the baseline surface using its topographic attributes such as normal direction and principal curvature sign. Specifically, our method learns from longitudinal data both the geometric (vertices positions) and dynamic (temporal evolution trajectories) features of the infant cortical surface, comprising a training stage and a prediction stage. In the training stage, we use the proposed varifold-based shape regression model to estimate geodesic cortical shape evolution trajectories for each training subject. We then build an empirical mean spatiotemporal surface atlas. In the prediction stage, given an infant, we select the best learnt features from training subjects to simultaneously predict the cortical surface shapes at all later timepoints, based on similarity metrics between this baseline surface and the learnt baseline population average surface atlas. We used a leave-one-out cross validation method to predict the inner cortical surface shape at 3, 6, 9 and 12 months of age from the baseline cortical surface shape at birth. Our method attained a higher prediction accuracy and better captured the spatiotemporal dynamic change of the highly folded cortical surface than the previous proposed prediction method. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The X-ray surface brightness distribution and spectral properties of six early-type galaxies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Trinchieri, G.; Fabbiano, G.; Canizares, C. R.

1986-01-01

Detailed analysis is presented of the Einstein X-ray observations of six early-type galaxies. The results show that effective cooling is probably present in these systems, at least in the innermost regions. Interaction with the surrounding medium has a major effect on the X-ray surface brightness distribution at large radii, at least for galaxies in clusters. The data do not warrant the general assumptions of isothermality and gravitational hydrostatic equilibrium at large radii. Comparison of the X-ray surface brightness profiles with model predictions indicate that 1/r-squared halos with masses of the order of 10 times the stellar masses are required to match the data. The physical model of White and Chevalier (1984) for steady cooling flows in a King law potential with no heavy halo gives a surface brightness distribution that resembles the data if supernovae heating is present.

ERS-1 and Seasat scatterometer measurements of ocean winds: Model functions and the directional distribution of short waves

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Freilich, Michael H.; Dunbar, R. Scott

1993-01-01

Calculation of accurate vector winds from scatterometers requires knowledge of the relationship between backscatter cross-section and the geophysical variable of interest. As the detailed dynamics of wind generation of centimetric waves and radar-sea surface scattering at moderate incidence angles are not well known, empirical scatterometer model functions relating backscatter to winds must be developed. Less well appreciated is the fact that, given an accurate model function and some knowledge of the dominant scattering mechanisms, significant information on the amplitudes and directional distributions of centimetric roughness elements on the sea surface can be inferred. accurate scatterometer model functions can thus be used to investigate wind generation of short waves under realistic conditions. The present investigation involves developing an empirical model function for the C-band (5.3 GHz) ERS-1 scatterometer and comparing Ku-band model functions with the C-band model to infer information on the two-dimensional spectrum of centimetric roughness elements in the ocean. The C-band model function development is based on collocations of global backscatter measurements with operational surface analyses produced by meteorological agencies. Strengths and limitations of the method are discussed, and the resulting model function is validated in part through comparison with the actual distributions of backscatter cross-section triplets. Details of the directional modulation as well as the wind speed sensitivity at C-band are investigated. Analysis of persistent outliers in the data is used to infer the magnitudes of non-wind effects (such as atmospheric stratification, swell, etc.). The ERS-1 C-band instrument and the Seasat Ku-band (14.6 GHz) scatterometer both imaged waves of approximately 3.4 cm wavelength assuming that Bragg scattering is the dominant mechanism. Comparisons of the C-band and Ku-band model functions are used both to test the validity of the postulated Bragg mechanism and to investigate the directional distribution of the imaged waves under a variety of conditions where Bragg scatter is dominant.

Using Growth and Arrest of Richtmyer-Meshkov Instabilities and Lagrangian Simulations to Study High-Rate Material Strength

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prime, Michael; Vaughan, Diane; Preston, Dean; Oro, David; Buttler, William

2013-06-01

Rayleigh-Taylor instabilities have been widely used to study the deviatoric (flow) strength of solids at high strain rates. More recently, experiments applying a supported shock through mating surfaces (Atwood number = 1) with geometrical perturbations have been proposed for studying strength at strain rates up to 107/sec using Richtmyer-Meshkov (RM) instabilities. Buttler et al. [J. Fluid Mech., 2012] recently reported experimental results for RM instability growth but with an unsupported shock applied by high explosives and the geometrical perturbations on the opposite free surface (Atwood number = -1). This novel configuration allowed detailed experimental observation of the instability growth and arrest. We present results and detailed interpretation from numerical simulations of the Buttler experiments on copper. Highly-resolved, two-dimensional simulations were performed using a Lagrangian hydrocode and the Preston-Tonks-Wallace (PTW) strength model. The model predictions show good agreement with the data in spite of the PTW model being calibrated on lower strain rate data. The numerical simulations are used to 1) examine various assumptions previously made in an analytical model, 2) to estimate the sensitivity of such experiments to material strength and 3) to explore the possibility of extracting meaningful strength information in the face of complicated spatial and temporal variations of stress, pressure, and temperature during the experiments.

Structure formation and surface chemistry of ionic liquids on model electrode surfaces—Model studies for the electrode | electrolyte interface in Li-ion batteries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Buchner, Florian; Uhl, Benedikt; Forster-Tonigold, Katrin; Bansmann, Joachim; Groß, Axel; Behm, R. Jürgen

2018-05-01

Ionic liquids (ILs) are considered as attractive electrolyte solvents in modern battery concepts such as Li-ion batteries. Here we present a comprehensive review of the results of previous model studies on the interaction of the battery relevant IL 1-butyl-1-methylpyrrolidinium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide ([BMP]+[TFSI]-) with a series of structurally and chemically well-defined model electrode surfaces, which are increasingly complex and relevant for battery applications [Ag(111), Au(111), Cu(111), pristine and lithiated highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG), and rutile TiO2(110)]. Combining surface science techniques such as high resolution scanning tunneling microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy for characterizing surface structure and chemical composition in deposited (sub-)monolayer adlayers with dispersion corrected density functional theory based calculations, this work aims at a molecular scale understanding of the fundamental processes at the electrode | electrolyte interface, which are crucial for the development of the so-called solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) layer in batteries. Performed under idealized conditions, in an ultrahigh vacuum environment, these model studies provide detailed insights on the structure formation in the adlayer, the substrate-adsorbate and adsorbate-adsorbate interactions responsible for this, and the tendency for chemically induced decomposition of the IL. To mimic the situation in an electrolyte, we also investigated the interaction of adsorbed IL (sub-)monolayers with coadsorbed lithium. Even at 80 K, postdeposited Li is found to react with the IL, leading to decomposition products such as LiF, Li3N, Li2S, LixSOy, and Li2O. In the absence of a [BMP]+[TFSI]- adlayer, it tends to adsorb, dissolve, or intercalate into the substrate (metals, HOPG) or to react with the substrate (TiO2) above a critical temperature, forming LiOx and Ti3+ species in the latter case. Finally, the formation of stable decomposition products was found to sensitively change the equilibrium between surface Li and Li+ intercalated in the bulk, leading to a deintercalation from lithiated HOPG in the presence of an adsorbed IL adlayer at >230 K. Overall, these results provide detailed insights into the surface chemistry at the solid | electrolyte interface and the initial stages of SEI formation at electrode surfaces in the absence of an applied potential, which is essential for the further improvement of future Li-ion batteries.

Estimation of Nanodiamond Surface Charge Density from Zeta Potential and Molecular Dynamics Simulations.

PubMed

Ge, Zhenpeng; Wang, Yi

2017-04-20

Molecular dynamics simulations of nanoparticles (NPs) are increasingly used to study their interactions with various biological macromolecules. Such simulations generally require detailed knowledge of the surface composition of the NP under investigation. Even for some well-characterized nanoparticles, however, this knowledge is not always available. An example is nanodiamond, a nanoscale diamond particle with surface dominated by oxygen-containing functional groups. In this work, we explore using the harmonic restraint method developed by Venable et al., to estimate the surface charge density (σ) of nanodiamonds. Based on the Gouy-Chapman theory, we convert the experimentally determined zeta potential of a nanodiamond to an effective charge density (σ eff ), and then use the latter to estimate σ via molecular dynamics simulations. Through scanning a series of nanodiamond models, we show that the above method provides a straightforward protocol to determine the surface charge density of relatively large (> ∼100 nm) NPs. Overall, our results suggest that despite certain limitation, the above protocol can be readily employed to guide the model construction for MD simulations, which is particularly useful when only limited experimental information on the NP surface composition is available to a modeler.

Spontaneous formation of non-uniform double helices for elastic rods under torsion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Hongyuan; Zhao, Shumin; Xia, Minggang; He, Siyu; Yang, Qifan; Yan, Yuming; Zhao, Hanqiao

2017-02-01

The spontaneous formation of double helices for filaments under torsion is common and significant. For example, the research on the supercoiling of DNA is helpful for understanding the replication and transcription of DNA. Similar double helices can appear in carbon nanotube yarns, cables, telephone wires and so forth. We noticed that non-uniform double helices can be produced due to the surface friction induced by the self-contact. Therefore an ideal model was presented to investigate the formation of double helices for elastic rods under torque. A general equilibrium condition which is valid for both the smooth surface and the rough surface situations is derived by using the variational method. By adding further constraints, the smooth and rough surface situations are investigated in detail respectively. Additionally, the model showed that the specific process of how to twist and slack the rod can determine the surface friction and hence influence the configuration of the double helix formed by rods with rough surfaces. Based on this principle, a method of manufacturing double helices with designed configurations was proposed and demonstrated. Finally, experiments were performed to verify the model and the results agreed well with the theory.

Forcing of global ocean ice models using an atmospheric boundary layer model: assessing consequences for the simulation of the AMOC

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abel, R.; Boning, C. W.

2016-02-01

Current practice in ocean-only model simulations is to force the ocean with a prescribed atmospheric state using bulk formulations. This practice provides a strong thermal restoring to the surface ocean with a typical time-scale of one month. In the real ocean a positive feedback (salinity advection) and a negative feedback (temperature advection) are associated with the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC). The surface branch of the AMOC transports warm and salty (relative to the mean conditions) to the subpolar North Atlantic and mix with the near-surface waters. A strong AMOC would therefore warm the subpolar North Atlantic, decrease deep water formation and also reduce AMOC strength (negative feedback). This negative feedback is diminished due to the surface forcing formulation and makes the system excessively sensitive to details in the freshwater fluxes . Instead, additional and unrealistic Sea Surface Salinity (SSS) restoring is applied. There have been several suggestions during the last 20 years for at least partially alleviating the problem. This includes some simplified model of the atmospheric mixed layer (AML) (CheapAML; Deremble et al., 2013) with prescribed winds which allows some feedback of SST anomalies on the near-surface air temperature and humidity needed to calculate the turbulent surface fluxes. We show that if the turbulent heat fluxes are modelled by the simple AML model net-fluxes get more realistic. Commonly ocean models experience an AMOC slowdown if SSS restoring is turned off. In the new system (ORCA05 with turbulent fluxes from CheapAML) this slowdown can be eliminated.

Nanoscale effects in the characterization of viscoelastic materials with atomic force microscopy: coupling of a quasi-three-dimensional standard linear solid model with in-plane surface interactions.

PubMed

Solares, Santiago D

2016-01-01

Significant progress has been accomplished in the development of experimental contact-mode and dynamic-mode atomic force microscopy (AFM) methods designed to measure surface material properties. However, current methods are based on one-dimensional (1D) descriptions of the tip-sample interaction forces, thus neglecting the intricacies involved in the material behavior of complex samples (such as soft viscoelastic materials) as well as the differences in material response between the surface and the bulk. In order to begin to address this gap, a computational study is presented where the sample is simulated using an enhanced version of a recently introduced model that treats the surface as a collection of standard-linear-solid viscoelastic elements. The enhanced model introduces in-plane surface elastic forces that can be approximately related to a two-dimensional (2D) Young's modulus. Relevant cases are discussed for single- and multifrequency intermittent-contact AFM imaging, with focus on the calculated surface indentation profiles and tip-sample interaction force curves, as well as their implications with regards to experimental interpretation. A variety of phenomena are examined in detail, which highlight the need for further development of more physically accurate sample models that are specifically designed for AFM simulation. A multifrequency AFM simulation tool based on the above sample model is provided as supporting information.

Exploratory studies of the cruise performance of upper surface blown configuration: Experimental program, high-speed force tests

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Braden, J. A.; Hancock, J. P.; Burdges, K. P.; Hackett, J. E.

1979-01-01

The work to develop a wing-nacelle arrangement to accommodate a wide range of upper surface blown configuration is reported. Pertinent model and installation details are described. Data of the effects of a wide range of nozzle geometric variations are presented. Nozzle aspect ratio, boattail angle, and chordwise position are among the parameters investigated. Straight and swept wing configurations were tested across a range of nozzle pressure ratios, lift coefficients, and Mach numbers.

A review of micro-contact physics for microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) metal contact switches

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Toler, Benjamin F.; Coutu, Ronald A., Jr.; McBride, John W.

2013-10-01

Innovations in relevant micro-contact areas are highlighted, these include, design, contact resistance modeling, contact materials, performance and reliability. For each area the basic theory and relevant innovations are explored. A brief comparison of actuation methods is provided to show why electrostatic actuation is most commonly used by radio frequency microelectromechanical systems designers. An examination of the important characteristics of the contact interface such as modeling and material choice is discussed. Micro-contact resistance models based on plastic, elastic-plastic and elastic deformations are reviewed. Much of the modeling for metal contact micro-switches centers around contact area and surface roughness. Surface roughness and its effect on contact area is stressed when considering micro-contact resistance modeling. Finite element models and various approaches for describing surface roughness are compared. Different contact materials to include gold, gold alloys, carbon nanotubes, composite gold-carbon nanotubes, ruthenium, ruthenium oxide, as well as tungsten have been shown to enhance contact performance and reliability with distinct trade offs for each. Finally, a review of physical and electrical failure modes witnessed by researchers are detailed and examined.

Surface drift prediction in the Adriatic Sea using hyper-ensemble statistics on atmospheric, ocean and wave models: Uncertainties and probability distribution areas

USGS Publications Warehouse

Rixen, M.; Ferreira-Coelho, E.; Signell, R.

2008-01-01

Despite numerous and regular improvements in underlying models, surface drift prediction in the ocean remains a challenging task because of our yet limited understanding of all processes involved. Hence, deterministic approaches to the problem are often limited by empirical assumptions on underlying physics. Multi-model hyper-ensemble forecasts, which exploit the power of an optimal local combination of available information including ocean, atmospheric and wave models, may show superior forecasting skills when compared to individual models because they allow for local correction and/or bias removal. In this work, we explore in greater detail the potential and limitations of the hyper-ensemble method in the Adriatic Sea, using a comprehensive surface drifter database. The performance of the hyper-ensembles and the individual models are discussed by analyzing associated uncertainties and probability distribution maps. Results suggest that the stochastic method may reduce position errors significantly for 12 to 72??h forecasts and hence compete with pure deterministic approaches. ?? 2007 NATO Undersea Research Centre (NURC).

Model based rib-cage unfolding for trauma CT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

von Berg, Jens; Klinder, Tobias; Lorenz, Cristian

2018-03-01

A CT rib-cage unfolding method is proposed that does not require to determine rib centerlines but determines the visceral cavity surface by model base segmentation. Image intensities are sampled across this surface that is flattened using a model based 3D thin-plate-spline registration. An average rib centerline model projected onto this surface serves as a reference system for registration. The flattening registration is designed so that ribs similar to the centerline model are mapped onto parallel lines preserving their relative length. Ribs deviating from this model appear deviating from straight parallel ribs in the unfolded view, accordingly. As the mapping is continuous also the details in intercostal space and those adjacent to the ribs are rendered well. The most beneficial application area is Trauma CT where a fast detection of rib fractures is a crucial task. Specifically in trauma, automatic rib centerline detection may not be guaranteed due to fractures and dislocations. The application by visual assessment on the large public LIDC data base of lung CT proved general feasibility of this early work.

Removal of bio-aerosols by water flow on surfaces in health-care settings

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yu, Han; Li, Yuguo

2016-11-01

Hand hygiene is one of the most important and efficient measures to prevent infections, however the compliance with hand hygiene remains poor especially for health-care workers. To improve this situation, the mechanisms of hand cleansing need to be explored and a detailed study on the adhesion interactions for bio-aerosols on hand surfaces and the process during particles removal by flow is significant for more efficient methods to decrease infections. The first part of presentation will focus on modelling adhesion interactions between particles, like bacteria and virus, and hand surfaces with roughness in water environment. The model presented is based on the DLVO and its extended theories. The removal process comes next, which will put forward a new model to describe the removal of particles by water flow. In this model, molecular dynamics is combined with particle motion and the results by the model will be compared with experiment results and existed models (RnR, Rock & Roll). Finally, possible improvement of the study and future design of experiments will be discussed.

Development of a Detailed Surface Chemistry Framework in DSMC

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Swaminathan-Gopalan, K.; Borner, A.; Stephani, K. A.

2017-01-01

Many of the current direct simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) codes still employ only simple surface catalysis models. These include only basic mechanisms such as dissociation, recombination, and exchange reactions, without any provision for adsorption and finite rate kinetics. Incorporating finite rate chemistry at the surface is increasingly becoming a necessity for various applications such as high speed re-entry flows over thermal protection systems (TPS), micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS), surface catalysis, etc. In the recent years, relatively few works have examined finite-rate surface reaction modeling using the DSMC method.In this work, a generalized finite-rate surface chemistry framework incorporating a comprehensive list of reaction mechanisms is developed and implemented into the DSMC solver SPARTA. The various mechanisms include adsorption, desorption, Langmuir-Hinshelwood (LH), Eley-Rideal (ER), Collision Induced (CI), condensation, sublimation, etc. The approach is to stochastically model the various competing reactions occurring on a set of active sites. Both gas-surface (e.g., ER, CI) and pure-surface (e.g., LH, desorption) reaction mechanisms are incorporated. The reaction mechanisms could also be catalytic or surface altering based on the participation of the bulk-phase species (e.g., bulk carbon atoms). Marschall and MacLean developed a general formulation in which multiple phases and surface sites are used and we adopt a similar convention in the current work. Microscopic parameters of reaction probabilities (for gas-surface reactions) and frequencies (for pure-surface reactions) that are require for DSMC are computed from the surface properties and macroscopic parameters such as rate constants, sticking coefficients, etc. The energy and angular distributions of the products are decided based on the reaction type and input parameters. Thus, the user has the capability to model various surface reactions via user-specified reaction rate constants, surface properties and parameters.

Technology of Strengthening Steel Details by Surfacing Composite Coatings

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Burov, V. G.; Bataev, A. A.; Rakhimyanov, Kh M.; Mul, D. O.

2016-04-01

The article considers the problem of forming wear resistant meal ceramic coatings on steel surfaces using the results of our own investigations and the analysis of achievements made in the country and abroad. Increasing the wear resistance of surface layers of steel details is achieved by surfacing composite coatings with carbides or borides of metals as disperse particles in the strengthening phase. The use of surfacing on wearing machine details and mechanisms has a history of more than 100 years. But still engineering investigations in this field are being conducted up to now. The use of heating sources which provide a high density of power allows ensuring temperature and time conditions of surfacing under which composites with peculiar service and functional properties are formed. High concentration of energy in the zone of melt, which is created from powder mixtures and the hardened surface layer, allows producing the transition zone between the main material and surfaced coating. Surfacing by the electron beam directed from vacuum to the atmosphere is of considerable technological advantages. They give the possibility of strengthening surface layers of large-sized details by surfacing powder mixtures without their preliminary compacting. A modified layer of the main metal with ceramic particles distributed in it is created as a result of heating surfaced powders and the detail surface layer by the electron beam. Technology of surfacing allows using powders of refractory metals and graphite in the composition of powder mixtures. They interact with one another and form the particles of the hardening phase of the composition coating. The chemical composition of the main and surfaced materials is considered to be the main factor which determines the character of metallurgical processes in local zones of melt as well as the structure and properties of surfaced composition.

Interaction of Convective Organization and Monsoon Precipitation, Atmosphere, Surface and Sea (INCOMPASS)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Turner, A. G.; Bhat, G. S.; Evans, J. G.; Madan, R.; Marsham, J. H.; Martin, G.; Mitra, A. K.; Mrudula, G.; Parker, D. J.; Pattnaik, S.; Rajagopal, E. N.; Taylor, C.; Tripathi, S. N.

2016-12-01

INCOMPASS will build on a field and aircraft measurement campaign from the 2016 monsoon onset to better understand and predict monsoon rainfall. The monsoon supplies the majority of water in South Asia, however modelling and forecasting the monsoon from days to the season ahead is limited by large model errors that develop quickly. Likely problems lie in physical parametrizations such as convection, the boundary layer and land surface. At the same time, lack of detailed observations prevents more thorough understanding of monsoon circulation and its interaction with the land surface; a process governed by boundary layer and convective cloud dynamics. From May to July 2016, INCOMPASS used a modified BAe-146 jet aircraft operated by the UK Facility for Airborne Atmospheric Measurements (FAAM), for the first project of this scale in India. The India and UK team flew around 100 hours of science sorties from bases in northern and southern India. Flights from Lucknow in the northern plains took measurements to the west and southeast to allow sampling of the complete contrast from dry desert air to the humid environment over the north Bay of Bengal. These routes were repeated in the pre-monsoon and monsoon phases, measuring contrasting surface and boundary layer structures. In addition, flights from the southern base in Bengaluru measured contrasts from the Arabian Sea, across the intense rains of the Western Ghats mountains, over the rain shadow in southeast India and over the southern Bay of Bengal. Flight planning was performed with the aid of forecasts from a new UK Met Office 4km limited area model. INCOMPASS also installed a network of surface flux towers, as well as operating a cloud-base ceilometer and performing intensive radiosonde launches from a supersite in Kanpur. This presentation will outline preliminary results from the field campaign including new observations of the surface, boundary layer structure and atmospheric profiles together with detailed information on the timing of monsoon rain. We also outline our future plans for nested modelling of specific case studies of the 2016 monsoon, at resolutions at of 4km, 2km and 1km with explicit convection, as well as test development of a new 100m model over India. Observations will also be combined with further work using the Joint UK Land Environment Simulator (JULES) model.

Dislocation nucleation facilitated by atomic segregation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zou, Lianfeng; Yang, Chaoming; Lei, Yinkai; Zakharov, Dmitri; Wiezorek, Jörg M. K.; Su, Dong; Yin, Qiyue; Li, Jonathan; Liu, Zhenyu; Stach, Eric A.; Yang, Judith C.; Qi, Liang; Wang, Guofeng; Zhou, Guangwen

2018-01-01

Surface segregation--the enrichment of one element at the surface, relative to the bulk--is ubiquitous to multi-component materials. Using the example of a Cu-Au solid solution, we demonstrate that compositional variations induced by surface segregation are accompanied by misfit strain and the formation of dislocations in the subsurface region via a surface diffusion and trapping process. The resulting chemically ordered surface regions acts as an effective barrier that inhibits subsequent dislocation annihilation at free surfaces. Using dynamic, atomic-scale resolution electron microscopy observations and theory modelling, we show that the dislocations are highly active, and we delineate the specific atomic-scale mechanisms associated with their nucleation, glide, climb, and annihilation at elevated temperatures. These observations provide mechanistic detail of how dislocations nucleate and migrate at heterointerfaces in dissimilar-material systems.

PENGEOM-A general-purpose geometry package for Monte Carlo simulation of radiation transport in material systems defined by quadric surfaces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Almansa, Julio; Salvat-Pujol, Francesc; Díaz-Londoño, Gloria; Carnicer, Artur; Lallena, Antonio M.; Salvat, Francesc

2016-02-01

The Fortran subroutine package PENGEOM provides a complete set of tools to handle quadric geometries in Monte Carlo simulations of radiation transport. The material structure where radiation propagates is assumed to consist of homogeneous bodies limited by quadric surfaces. The PENGEOM subroutines (a subset of the PENELOPE code) track particles through the material structure, independently of the details of the physics models adopted to describe the interactions. Although these subroutines are designed for detailed simulations of photon and electron transport, where all individual interactions are simulated sequentially, they can also be used in mixed (class II) schemes for simulating the transport of high-energy charged particles, where the effect of soft interactions is described by the random-hinge method. The definition of the geometry and the details of the tracking algorithm are tailored to optimize simulation speed. The use of fuzzy quadric surfaces minimizes the impact of round-off errors. The provided software includes a Java graphical user interface for editing and debugging the geometry definition file and for visualizing the material structure. Images of the structure are generated by using the tracking subroutines and, hence, they describe the geometry actually passed to the simulation code.

Quantifying the Uncertainty in Estimates of Surface Atmosphere Fluxes by Evaluation of SEBS and SCOPE Models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Timmermans, J.; van der Tol, C.; Verhoef, A.; Wang, L.; van Helvoirt, M.; Verhoef, W.; Su, Z.

2009-11-01

An earth observation based evapotranspiration (ET) product is essential to achieving the GEWEX CEOP science objectives and to achieve the GEOSS water resources societal benefit areas. Conventional techniques that employ point measurements to estimate the components of the energy balance are only representative for local scales and cannot be extended to large areas because of the heterogeneity of the land surface and the dynamic nature of heat transfer processes.The objective of this research is to quantify the uncertainties of evapotranspiration estimates by the Surface Energy Balance System (SEBS) algorithm through validation against the detailed Soil Canopy Observation, Photochemistry and Energy fluxes process (SCOPE) model with site optimized parameters. This SCOPE model takes both radiative processes and biochemical processes into account; it combines the SAIL radiative transfer model with the energy balance at leaf level to simulate the interaction between surface and atmosphere. In this paper the validation results are presented for a semi long term dataset in Reading on 2002.The comparison between the two models showed a high correlation over the complete growth of maize capturing the daily variation to good extent. The absolute values of the SEBS model are however much lower compared to those of the SCOPE model. This is due to the fact the SEBS model uses a surface resistance parameterization that is unable to account of high vegetation. An update of the SEBS model will resolve this problem.

VIRTIS on Venus Express: retrieval of real surface emissivity on global scales

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arnold, Gabriele E.; Kappel, David; Haus, Rainer; Telléz Pedroza, Laura; Piccioni, Giuseppe; Drossart, Pierre

2015-09-01

The extraction of surface emissivity data provides the data base for surface composition analyses and enables to evaluate Venus' geology. The Visible and InfraRed Thermal Imaging Spectrometer (VIRTIS) aboard ESA's Venus Express mission measured, inter alia, the nightside thermal emission of Venus in the near infrared atmospheric windows between 1.0 and 1.2 μm. These data can be used to determine information about surface properties on global scales. This requires a sophisticated approach to understand and consider the effects and interferences of different atmospheric and surface parameters influencing the retrieved values. In the present work, results of a new technique for retrieval of the 1.0 - 1.2 μm - surface emissivity are summarized. It includes a Multi-Window Retrieval Technique, a Multi-Spectrum Retrieval technique (MSR), and a detailed reliability analysis. The MWT bases on a detailed radiative transfer model making simultaneous use of information from different atmospheric windows of an individual spectrum. MSR regularizes the retrieval by incorporating available a priori mean values, standard deviations as well as spatial-temporal correlations of parameters to be retrieved. The capability of this method is shown for a selected surface target area. Implications for geologic investigations are discussed. Based on these results, the work draws conclusions for future Venus surface composition analyses on global scales using spectral remote sensing techniques. In that context, requirements for observational scenarios and instrumental performances are investigated, and recommendations are derived to optimize spectral measurements for Venus' surface studies.

SMERGE: A multi-decadal root-zone soil moisture product for CONUS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crow, W. T.; Dong, J.; Tobin, K. J.; Torres, R.

2017-12-01

Multi-decadal root-zone soil moisture products are of value for a range of water resource and climate applications. The NASA-funded root-zone soil moisture merging project (SMERGE) seeks to develop such products through the optimal merging of land surface model predictions with surface soil moisture retrievals acquired from multi-sensor remote sensing products. This presentation will describe the creation and validation of a daily, multi-decadal (1979-2015), vertically-integrated (both surface to 40 cm and surface to 100 cm), 0.125-degree root-zone product over the contiguous United States (CONUS). The modeling backbone of the system is based on hourly root-zone soil moisture simulations generated by the Noah model (v3.2) operating within the North American Land Data Assimilation System (NLDAS-2). Remotely-sensed surface soil moisture retrievals are taken from the multi-sensor European Space Agency Climate Change Initiative soil moisture data set (ESA CCI SM). In particular, the talk will detail: 1) the exponential smoothing approach used to convert surface ESA CCI SM retrievals into root-zone soil moisture estimates, 2) the averaging technique applied to merge (temporally-sporadic) remotely-sensed with (continuous) NLDAS-2 land surface model estimates of root-zone soil moisture into the unified SMERGE product, and 3) the validation of the SMERGE product using long-term, ground-based soil moisture datasets available within CONUS.

High resolution extremity CT for biomechanics modeling

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ashby, A.E.; Brand, H.; Hollerbach, K.

1995-09-23

With the advent of ever more powerful computing and finite element analysis (FEA) capabilities, the bone and joint geometry detail available from either commercial surface definitions or from medical CT scans is inadequate. For dynamic FEA modeling of joints, precise articular contours are necessary to get appropriate contact definition. In this project, a fresh cadaver extremity was suspended in parafin in a lucite cylinder and then scanned with an industrial CT system to generate a high resolution data set for use in biomechanics modeling.

Finite Element Analysis of Surface Residual Stress in Functionally Gradient Cemented Carbide Tool

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Su, Chuangnan; Liu, Deshun; Tang, Siwen; Li, Pengnan; Qiu, Xinyi

2018-03-01

A component distribution model is proposed for three-component functionally gradient cemented carbide (FGCC) based on electron probe microanalysis results obtained for gradient layer thickness, microstructure, and elemental distribution. The residual surface stress of FGCC-T5 tools occurring during the fabrication process is analyzed using an ANSYS-implemented finite element method (FEM) and X-ray diffraction. A comparison of the experimental and calculated values verifies the feasibility of using FEM to analyze the residual surface stress in FGCC-T5 tools. The effects of the distribution index, geometrical shape, substrate thickness, gradient layer thickness, and position of the cobalt-rich layer on residual surface stress are studied in detail.

Use of thermal inertia determined by HCMM to predict nocturnal cold prone areas in Florida

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Allen, L. H., Jr. (Principal Investigator); Chen, E.; Martsolf, J. D.; Jones, P. H.

1981-01-01

The HCMM transparency scenes for the available winter of 1978-1979 were evaluated; scenes were identified on processed magnetic tapes; other remote sensing information was identified; and a soil heat flux model with variable-depth thermal profile was developed. The Image 100 system was used to compare HCMM and GOES transparent images of surface thermal patterns. Excellent correspondence of patterns was found, with HCMM giving the greater resolution. One image shows details of thermal patterns in Florida that are attributable to difference in near surface water contents. The wide range of surface temperatures attributable to surface thermal inertia that exist in the relatively flat Florida topography is demonstrated.

X-ray Reflectivity Characterization of Ion Distribution at Biomimetic Membrane Surfaces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krüger, Peter; Pittler, Jens; Vaknin, David; Lösche, Mathias

2003-03-01

Ions at cell membrane surfaces may control the function and conformation of nearby biomolecules, thus playing an important role in inter- and intracellular transport as well as in biorecognition processes. Moreover, charge patterns at membrane surfaces may direct the growth of inorganic crystals in biomineralization. Langmuir monolayers are widely employed as model systems for studying charge distribution and growth processes at the organic/inorganic interface. We present a novel x-ray reflectivity technique that provides detailed information on ion distribution at biomembrane surfaces by using monochromatic x-rays at various energies at and away from the ion x-ray absorption edges. As a model, the interaction of Ba^2+ with DMPA^- (dimyristoyl phosphatidic acid) monolayers at the aqueous surface was studied. We find an unexpectedly large concentration of the cations near the interface where they form a Stern layer of bound ions. These studies have been complemented with conventional x-ray reflectivity measurements and extended to other anionic lipid species (DMPS, DMPG) and cations (Ca^2+).

Fluid-structure interaction of turbulent boundary layer over a compliant surface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anantharamu, Sreevatsa; Mahesh, Krishnan

2016-11-01

Turbulent flows induce unsteady loads on surfaces in contact with them, which affect material stresses, surface vibrations and far-field acoustics. We are developing a numerical methodology to study the coupled interaction of a turbulent boundary layer with the underlying surface. The surface is modeled as a linear elastic solid, while the fluid follows the spatially filtered incompressible Navier-Stokes equations. An incompressible Large Eddy Simulation finite volume flow approach based on the algorithm of Mahesh et al. is used in the fluid domain. The discrete kinetic energy conserving property of the method ensures robustness at high Reynolds number. The linear elastic model in the solid domain is integrated in space using finite element method and in time using the Newmark time integration method. The fluid and solid domain solvers are coupled using both weak and strong coupling methods. Details of the algorithm, validation, and relevant results will be presented. This work is supported by NSWCCD, ONR.

Biomass-derived oxygenate reforming on Pt(111): A demonstration of surface science using D-glucose and its model surrogate glycolaldehyde

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McManus, Jesse R.; Yu, Weiting; Salciccioli, Michael; Vlachos, Dionisios G.; Chen, Jingguang G.; Vohs, John M.

2012-12-01

Molecules derived from cellulosic biomass, such as glucose, represent an important renewable feedstock for the production of hydrogen and hydrocarbon-based fuels and chemicals. Development of efficient catalysts for their reformation into useful products is needed; however, this requires a detailed understanding of their adsorption and reaction on catalytically active transition metal surfaces. In this paper we demonstrate that the standard surface science techniques routinely used to characterize the reaction of small molecules on metals are also amenable for use in studying the adsorption and reaction of complex biomass-derivatives on single crystal metal surfaces. In particular, Temperature Programmed Desorption (TPD) and High Resolution Electron Energy Loss Spectroscopy (HREELS) combined with Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations were used to elucidate the adsorption configuration of D-glucose and glycolaldehye on Pt(111). Both molecules were found to adsorb in an η1 aldehyde configuration partially validating the use of simple, functionally-equivalent model compounds for surface studies of cellulosic oxygenates.

An eFTD-VP framework for efficiently generating patient-specific anatomically detailed facial soft tissue FE mesh for craniomaxillofacial surgery simulation

PubMed Central

Zhang, Xiaoyan; Kim, Daeseung; Shen, Shunyao; Yuan, Peng; Liu, Siting; Tang, Zhen; Zhang, Guangming; Zhou, Xiaobo; Gateno, Jaime

2017-01-01

Accurate surgical planning and prediction of craniomaxillofacial surgery outcome requires simulation of soft tissue changes following osteotomy. This can only be achieved by using an anatomically detailed facial soft tissue model. The current state-of-the-art of model generation is not appropriate to clinical applications due to the time-intensive nature of manual segmentation and volumetric mesh generation. The conventional patient-specific finite element (FE) mesh generation methods are to deform a template FE mesh to match the shape of a patient based on registration. However, these methods commonly produce element distortion. Additionally, the mesh density for patients depends on that of the template model. It could not be adjusted to conduct mesh density sensitivity analysis. In this study, we propose a new framework of patient-specific facial soft tissue FE mesh generation. The goal of the developed method is to efficiently generate a high-quality patient-specific hexahedral FE mesh with adjustable mesh density while preserving the accuracy in anatomical structure correspondence. Our FE mesh is generated by eFace template deformation followed by volumetric parametrization. First, the patient-specific anatomically detailed facial soft tissue model (including skin, mucosa, and muscles) is generated by deforming an eFace template model. The adaptation of the eFace template model is achieved by using a hybrid landmark-based morphing and dense surface fitting approach followed by a thin-plate spline interpolation. Then, high-quality hexahedral mesh is constructed by using volumetric parameterization. The user can control the resolution of hexahedron mesh to best reflect clinicians’ need. Our approach was validated using 30 patient models and 4 visible human datasets. The generated patient-specific FE mesh showed high surface matching accuracy, element quality, and internal structure matching accuracy. They can be directly and effectively used for clinical simulation of facial soft tissue change. PMID:29027022

An eFTD-VP framework for efficiently generating patient-specific anatomically detailed facial soft tissue FE mesh for craniomaxillofacial surgery simulation.

PubMed

Zhang, Xiaoyan; Kim, Daeseung; Shen, Shunyao; Yuan, Peng; Liu, Siting; Tang, Zhen; Zhang, Guangming; Zhou, Xiaobo; Gateno, Jaime; Liebschner, Michael A K; Xia, James J

2018-04-01

Accurate surgical planning and prediction of craniomaxillofacial surgery outcome requires simulation of soft tissue changes following osteotomy. This can only be achieved by using an anatomically detailed facial soft tissue model. The current state-of-the-art of model generation is not appropriate to clinical applications due to the time-intensive nature of manual segmentation and volumetric mesh generation. The conventional patient-specific finite element (FE) mesh generation methods are to deform a template FE mesh to match the shape of a patient based on registration. However, these methods commonly produce element distortion. Additionally, the mesh density for patients depends on that of the template model. It could not be adjusted to conduct mesh density sensitivity analysis. In this study, we propose a new framework of patient-specific facial soft tissue FE mesh generation. The goal of the developed method is to efficiently generate a high-quality patient-specific hexahedral FE mesh with adjustable mesh density while preserving the accuracy in anatomical structure correspondence. Our FE mesh is generated by eFace template deformation followed by volumetric parametrization. First, the patient-specific anatomically detailed facial soft tissue model (including skin, mucosa, and muscles) is generated by deforming an eFace template model. The adaptation of the eFace template model is achieved by using a hybrid landmark-based morphing and dense surface fitting approach followed by a thin-plate spline interpolation. Then, high-quality hexahedral mesh is constructed by using volumetric parameterization. The user can control the resolution of hexahedron mesh to best reflect clinicians' need. Our approach was validated using 30 patient models and 4 visible human datasets. The generated patient-specific FE mesh showed high surface matching accuracy, element quality, and internal structure matching accuracy. They can be directly and effectively used for clinical simulation of facial soft tissue change.

Methane dissociative chemisorption and detailed balance on Pt(111): Dynamical constraints and the modest influence of tunneling

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Donald, S. B.; Navin, J. K.; Harrison, I., E-mail: harrison@virginia.edu

A dynamically biased (d-) precursor mediated microcanonical trapping (PMMT) model of the activated dissociative chemisorption of methane on Pt(111) is applied to a wide range of dissociative sticking experiments, and, by detailed balance, to the methane product state distributions from the thermal associative desorption of adsorbed hydrogen with coadsorbed methyl radicals. Tunneling pathways were incorporated into the d-PMMT model to better replicate the translational energy distribution of the desorbing methane product from the laser induced thermal reaction of coadsorbed hydrogen and methyl radicals occurring near T{sub s} = 395 K. Although tunneling is predicted to be inconsequential to the thermalmore » dissociative chemisorption of CH{sub 4} on Pt(111) at the high temperatures of catalytic interest, once the temperature drops to 395 K the tunneling fraction of the reactive thermal flux reaches 15%, and as temperatures drop below 275 K the tunneling fraction exceeds 50%. The d-PMMT model parameters of (E{sub 0} = 58.9 kJ/mol, s = 2, η{sub v} = 0.40) describe the apparent threshold energy for CH{sub 4}/Pt(111) dissociative chemisorption, the number of surface oscillators involved in the precursor complex, and the efficacy of molecular vibrational energy to promote reaction, relative to translational energy directed along the surface normal. Molecular translations parallel to the surface and rotations are treated as spectator degrees of freedom. Transition state vibrational frequencies are derived from generalized gradient approximation-density functional theory electronic structure calculations. The d-PMMT model replicates the diverse range of experimental data available with good fidelity, including some new effusive molecular beam and ambient gas dissociative sticking measurements. Nevertheless, there are some indications that closer agreement between theory and experiments could be achieved if a surface efficacy less than one was introduced into the modeling as an additional dynamical constraint.« less

Development and evaluation of an ammonia bidirectional flux parameterization for air quality models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pleim, Jonathan E.; Bash, Jesse O.; Walker, John T.; Cooter, Ellen J.

2013-05-01

is an important contributor to particulate matter in the atmosphere and can significantly impact terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Surface exchange between the atmosphere and biosphere is a key part of the ammonia cycle. New modeling techniques are being developed for use in air quality models that replace current ammonia emissions from fertilized crops and ammonia dry deposition with a bidirectional surface flux model including linkage to a detailed biogeochemical and farm management model. Recent field studies involving surface flux measurements over crops that predominate in North America have been crucial for extending earlier bidirectional flux models toward more realistic treatment of NH3 fluxes for croplands. Comparisons of the ammonia bidirection flux algorithm to both lightly fertilized soybeans and heavily fertilized corn demonstrate that the model can capture the magnitude and dynamics of observed ammonia fluxes, both net deposition and evasion, over a range of conditions with overall biases on the order of the uncertainty of the measurements. However, successful application to the field experiment in heavily fertilized corn required substantial modification of the model to include new parameterizations for in-soil diffusion resistance, ground quasi-laminar boundary layer resistance, and revised cuticular resistance that is dependent on in-canopy NH3 concentration and RH at the leaf surface. This new bidirectional flux algorithm has been incorporated in an air quality modeling system, which also includes an implementation of a soil nitrification model.

Long-term safety assessment of trench-type surface repository at Chernobyl, Ukraine - computer model and comparison with results from simplified models

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Haverkamp, B.; Krone, J.; Shybetskyi, I.

2013-07-01

The Radioactive Waste Disposal Facility (RWDF) Buryakovka was constructed in 1986 as part of the intervention measures after the accident at Chernobyl NPP (ChNPP). Today, the surface repository for solid low and intermediate level waste (LILW) is still being operated but its maximum capacity is nearly reached. Long-existing plans for increasing the capacity of the facility shall be implemented in the framework of the European Commission INSC Programme (Instrument for Nuclear Safety Co-operation). Within the first phase of this project, DBE Technology GmbH prepared a safety analysis report of the facility in its current state (SAR) and a preliminary safetymore » analysis report (PSAR) for a future extended facility based on the planned enlargement. In addition to a detailed mathematical model, also simplified models have been developed to verify results of the former one and enhance confidence in the results. Comparison of the results show that - depending on the boundary conditions - simplifications like modeling the multi trench repository as one generic trench might have very limited influence on the overall results compared to the general uncertainties associated with respective long-term calculations. In addition to their value in regard to verification of more complex models which is important to increase confidence in the overall results, such simplified models can also offer the possibility to carry out time consuming calculations like probabilistic calculations or detailed sensitivity analysis in an economic manner. (authors)« less

File Specification for the 7-km GEOS-5 Nature Run, Ganymed Release Non-Hydrostatic 7-km Global Mesoscale Simulation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

da Silva, Arlindo M.; Putman, William; Nattala, J.

2014-01-01

This document describes the gridded output files produced by a two-year global, non-hydrostatic mesoscale simulation for the period 2005-2006 produced with the non-hydrostatic version of GEOS-5 Atmospheric Global Climate Model (AGCM). In addition to standard meteorological parameters (wind, temperature, moisture, surface pressure), this simulation includes 15 aerosol tracers (dust, sea-salt, sulfate, black and organic carbon), O3, CO and CO2. This model simulation is driven by prescribed sea-surface temperature and sea-ice, daily volcanic and biomass burning emissions, as well as high-resolution inventories of anthropogenic sources. A description of the GEOS-5 model configuration used for this simulation can be found in Putman et al. (2014). The simulation is performed at a horizontal resolution of 7 km using a cubed-sphere horizontal grid with 72 vertical levels, extending up to to 0.01 hPa (approximately 80 km). For user convenience, all data products are generated on two logically rectangular longitude-latitude grids: a full-resolution 0.0625 deg grid that approximately matches the native cubed-sphere resolution, and another 0.5 deg reduced-resolution grid. The majority of the full-resolution data products are instantaneous with some fields being time-averaged. The reduced-resolution datasets are mostly time-averaged, with some fields being instantaneous. Hourly data intervals are used for the reduced-resolution datasets, while 30-minute intervals are used for the full-resolution products. All full-resolution output is on the model's native 72-layer hybrid sigma-pressure vertical grid, while the reduced-resolution output is given on native vertical levels and on 48 pressure surfaces extending up to 0.02 hPa. Section 4 presents additional details on horizontal and vertical grids. Information of the model surface representation can be found in Appendix B. The GEOS-5 product is organized into file collections that are described in detail in Appendix C. Additional details about variables listed in this file specification can be found in a separate document, the GEOS-5 File Specification Variable Definition Glossary. Documentation about the current access methods for products described in this document can be found on the GEOS-5 Nature Run portal: http://gmao.gsfc.nasa.gov/projects/G5NR. Information on the scientific quality of this simulation will appear in a forthcoming NASA Technical Report Series on Global Modeling and Data Assimilation to be available from http://gmao.gsfc.nasa.gov/pubs/tm/.

A Seamless, High-Resolution, Coastal Digital Elevation Model (DEM) for Southern California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Barnard, Patrick L.; Hoover, Daniel

2010-01-01

A seamless, 3-meter digital elevation model (DEM) was constructed for the entire Southern California coastal zone, extending 473 km from Point Conception to the Mexican border. The goal was to integrate the most recent, high-resolution datasets available (for example, Light Detection and Ranging (Lidar) topography, multibeam and single beam sonar bathymetry, and Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (IfSAR) topography) into a continuous surface from at least the 20-m isobath to the 20-m elevation contour. This dataset was produced to provide critical boundary conditions (bathymetry and topography) for a modeling effort designed to predict the impacts of severe winter storms on the Southern California coast (Barnard and others, 2009). The hazards model, run in real-time or with prescribed scenarios, incorporates atmospheric information (wind and pressure fields) with a suite of state-of-the-art physical process models (tide, surge, and wave) to enable detailed prediction of water levels, run-up, wave heights, and currents. Research-grade predictions of coastal flooding, inundation, erosion, and cliff failure are also included. The DEM was constructed to define the general shape of nearshore, beach and cliff surfaces as accurately as possible, with less emphasis on the detailed variations in elevation inland of the coast and on bathymetry inside harbors. As a result this DEM should not be used for navigation purposes.

A lattice Boltzmann simulation of coalescence-induced droplet jumping on superhydrophobic surfaces with randomly distributed structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Li-Zhi; Yuan, Wu-Zhi

2018-04-01

The motion of coalescence-induced condensate droplets on superhydrophobic surface (SHS) has attracted increasing attention in energy-related applications. Previous researches were focused on regularly rough surfaces. Here a new approach, a mesoscale lattice Boltzmann method (LBM), is proposed and used to model the dynamic behavior of coalescence-induced droplet jumping on SHS with randomly distributed rough structures. A Fast Fourier Transformation (FFT) method is used to generate non-Gaussian randomly distributed rough surfaces with the skewness (Sk), kurtosis (K) and root mean square (Rq) obtained from real surfaces. Three typical spreading states of coalesced droplets are observed through LBM modeling on various rough surfaces, which are found to significantly influence the jumping ability of coalesced droplet. The coalesced droplets spreading in Cassie state or in composite state will jump off the rough surfaces, while the ones spreading in Wenzel state would eventually remain on the rough surfaces. It is demonstrated that the rough surfaces with smaller Sks, larger Rqs and a K at 3.0 are beneficial to coalescence-induced droplet jumping. The new approach gives more detailed insights into the design of SHS.

The construction, fouling and enzymatic cleaning of a textile dye surface.

PubMed

Onaizi, Sagheer A; He, Lizhong; Middelberg, Anton P J

2010-11-01

The enzymatic cleaning of a rubisco protein stain bound onto Surface Plasmon Resonance (SPR) biosensor chips having a dye-bound upper layer is investigated. This novel method allowed, for the first time, a detailed kinetic study of rubisco cleanability (defined as fraction of adsorbed protein removed from a surface) from dyed surfaces (mimicking fabrics) at different enzyme concentrations. Analysis of kinetic data using an established mathematical model able to decouple enzyme transfer and reaction processes [Onaizi, He, Middelberg, Chem. Eng. Sci. 64 (2008) 3868] revealed a striking effect of dyeing on enzymatic cleaning performance. Specifically, the absolute rate constants for enzyme transfer to and from a dye-bound rubisco stain were significantly higher than reported previously for un-dyed surfaces. These increased transfer rates resulted in higher surface cleanability. Higher enzyme mobility (i.e., higher enzyme adsorption and desorption rates) at the liquid-dye interface was observed, consistent with previous suggestions that enzyme surface mobility is likely correlated with overall enzyme cleaning performance. Our results show that reaction engineering models of enzymatic action at surfaces may provide insight able to guide the design of better stain-resistant surfaces, and may also guide efforts to improve cleaning formulations. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Air Quality Forecasts Using the NASA GEOS Model: A Unified Tool from Local to Global Scales

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Knowland, E. Emma; Keller, Christoph; Nielsen, J. Eric; Orbe, Clara; Ott, Lesley; Pawson, Steven; Saunders, Emily; Duncan, Bryan; Cook, Melanie; Liu, Junhua;

Evaluation of WRF PBL parameterization schemes against direct observations during a dry event over the Ganges valley

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sathyanadh, Anusha; Prabha, Thara V.; Balaji, B.; Resmi, E. A.; Karipot, Anandakumar

2017-09-01

Accurate representations of the planetary boundary layer (PBL) are important in all weather forecast systems, especially in simulations of turbulence, wind and air quality in the lower atmosphere. In the present study, detailed observations from the Cloud Aerosol Interaction and Precipitation Enhancement Experiment - Integrated Ground based Observational Campaign (CAIPEEX-IGOC) 2014 comprising of the complete surface energy budget and detailed boundary layer observations are used to validate Advanced Research Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model simulations over a diverse terrain over the Ganges valley region, Uttar Pradesh, India. A drying event in June 2014 associated with a heat wave is selected for validation.Six local and nonlocal PBL schemes from WRF at 1 km resolution are compared with hourly observations during the diurnal cycle. Near-surface observations of weather parameters, radiation components and eddy covariance fluxes from micrometeorological tower, and profiles of variables from microwave radiometer, and radiosonde observations are used for model evaluations. Models produce a warmer, drier surface layer with higher wind speed, sensible heat flux and temperature than observations. Layered boundary layer dynamics, including the residual layer structure as illustrated in the observations over the Ganges valley are missed in the model, which lead to deeper mixed layers and excessive drying.Although it is difficult to identify any single scheme as the best, the qualitative and quantitative analyses for the entire study period and overall reproducibility of the observations indicate that the MYNN2 simulations describe lower errors and more realistic simulation of spatio-temporal variations in the boundary layer height.

Magnetic Doppler imaging of Ap stars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Silvester, J.; Wade, G. A.; Kochukhov, O.; Landstreet, J. D.; Bagnulo, S.

2008-04-01

Historically, the magnetic field geometries of the chemically peculiar Ap stars were modelled in the context of a simple dipole field. However, with the acquisition of increasingly sophisticated diagnostic data, it has become clear that the large-scale field topologies exhibit important departures from this simple model. Recently, new high-resolution circular and linear polarisation spectroscopy has even hinted at the presence of strong, small-scale field structures, which were completely unexpected based on earlier modelling. This project investigates the detailed structure of these strong fossil magnetic fields, in particular the large-scale field geometry, as well as small scale magnetic structures, by mapping the magnetic and chemical surface structure of a selected sample of Ap stars. These maps will be used to investigate the relationship between the local field vector and local surface chemistry, looking for the influence the field may have on the various chemical transport mechanisms (i.e., diffusion, convection and mass loss). This will lead to better constraints on the origin and evolution, as well as refining the magnetic field model for Ap stars. Mapping will be performed using high resolution and signal-to-noise ratio time-series of spectra in both circular and linear polarisation obtained using the new-generation ESPaDOnS (CFHT, Mauna Kea, Hawaii) and NARVAL spectropolarimeters (Pic du Midi Observatory). With these data we will perform tomographic inversion of Doppler-broadened Stokes IQUV Zeeman profiles of a large variety of spectral lines using the INVERS10 magnetic Doppler imaging code, simultaneously recovering the detailed surface maps of the vector magnetic field and chemical abundances.

Integration of LIDAR Data Into a Municipal GIS to Study Solar Radiation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Africani, P.; Bitelli, G.; Lambertini, A.; Minghetti, A.; Paselli, E.

2013-04-01

Identifying the right roofs to install solar panels inside a urban area is crucial for both private citizens and the whole local population. The aim is not easy because a lot of consideration must be made: insolation, orientation of the surface, size of the surface, shading due to topography, shading due to taller buildings next the surface, shading due to taller vegetation and other possible problems typical of urban areas like the presence of chimneys. Accuracy of data related to the analyzed surfaces is indeed fundamental, and also the detail of geometric models used to represent buildings and their roofs. The complexity that these roofs can reach is elevated. This work uses LiDAR data to obtain, with a semi-automatic technique, the full geometry of each roof part complementing the pre-existing building data in the municipal cartography. With this data is possible to evaluate the placement of solar panels on roofs of a whole city analyzing the solar potential of each building in detail. Other traditional techniques, like photogrammetry, need strong manual editing effort in order to identify slopes and insert vector on surfaces at the right height. Regarding LiDAR data, in order to perform accurate modelling, it is necessary to obtain an high density point cloud. The method proposed can also be used as a fast and linear workflow process for an area where LiDAR data are available and a municipal cartography already exist: LiDAR data can be furthermore successfully used to cross-check errors in pre-existent digital cartography that can remain otherwise hidden.

D Model Visualization Enhancements in Real-Time Game Engines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Merlo, A.; Sánchez Belenguer, C.; Vendrell Vidal, E.; Fantini, F.; Aliperta, A.

2013-02-01

This paper describes two procedures used to disseminate tangible cultural heritage through real-time 3D simulations providing accurate-scientific representations. The main idea is to create simple geometries (with low-poly count) and apply two different texture maps to them: a normal map and a displacement map. There are two ways to achieve models that fit with normal or displacement maps: with the former (normal maps), the number of polygons in the reality-based model may be dramatically reduced by decimation algorithms and then normals may be calculated by rendering them to texture solutions (baking). With the latter, a LOD model is needed; its topology has to be quad-dominant for it to be converted to a good quality subdivision surface (with consistent tangency and curvature all over). The subdivision surface is constructed using methodologies for the construction of assets borrowed from character animation: these techniques have been recently implemented in many entertainment applications known as "retopology". The normal map is used as usual, in order to shade the surface of the model in a realistic way. The displacement map is used to finish, in real-time, the flat faces of the object, by adding the geometric detail missing in the low-poly models. The accuracy of the resulting geometry is progressively refined based on the distance from the viewing point, so the result is like a continuous level of detail, the only difference being that there is no need to create different 3D models for one and the same object. All geometric detail is calculated in real-time according to the displacement map. This approach can be used in Unity, a real-time 3D engine originally designed for developing computer games. It provides a powerful rendering engine, fully integrated with a complete set of intuitive tools and rapid workflows that allow users to easily create interactive 3D contents. With the release of Unity 4.0, new rendering features have been added, including DirectX 11 support. Real-time tessellation is a technique that can be applied by using such technology. Since the displacement and the resulting geometry are calculated by the GPU, the time-based execution cost of this technique is very low.

Noah-MP-Crop: Enhancing cropland representation in the community land surface modeling system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, X.; Chen, F.; Barlage, M. J.; Zhou, G.; Niyogi, D.

2015-12-01

Croplands are important in land-atmosphere interactions and in modifying local and regional weather and climate. Despite their importance, croplands are poorly represented in the current version of the coupled Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF)/ Noah land-surface modeling system, resulting in significant surface temperature and humidity biases across agriculture- dominated regions of the United States. This study aims to improve the WRF weather forecasting and regional climate simulations during the crop growing season by enhancing the representation of cropland in the Noah-MP land model. We introduced dynamic crop growth parameterization into Noah-MP and evaluated the enhanced model (Noah-MP-Crop) at both the field and regional scales with multiple crop biomass datasets, surface fluxes and soil moisture/temperature observations. We also integrated a detailed cropland cover map into WRF, enabling the model to simulate corn and soybean field across the U.S. Great Plains. Results show marked improvement in the Noah-MP-Crop performance in simulating leaf area index (LAI), crop biomass, soil temperature, and surface fluxes. Enhanced cropland representation is not only crucial for improving weather forecasting but can also help assess potential impacts of weather variability on regional hydrometeorology and crop yields. In addition to its applications to WRF, Noah-MP-Crop can be applied in high-spatial-resolution regional crop yield modeling and drought assessments

Integrated reservoir characterization and flow simulation for well targeting and reservoir management, Iagifu-Hedinia field, Southern Highlands Province, Papua New Guinea

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Franklin, S.P.; Livingston, J.E.; Fitzmorris, R.E.

Infill drilling based on integrated reservoir characterization and flow simulation is increasing recoverable reserves by 20 MMBO, in lagifu-Hedinia Field (IHF). Stratigraphically-zoned models are input to window and full-field flow simulations, and results of the flow simulations target deviated and horizontal wells. Logging and pressure surveys facilitate detailed reservoir management. Flooding surfaces are the dominant control on differential depletion within and between reservoirs. The primary reservoir is the basal Cretaceous Toro Sandstone. Within the IHF, Toro is a 100 m quartz sandstone composed of stacked, coarsening-upward parasequences within a wave-dominated deltaic complex. Flooding surfaces are used to form a hydraulicmore » zonation. The zonation is refined using discontinuities in RIFT pressure gradients and logs from development wells. For flow simulation, models use 3D geostatistical techniques. First, variograms defining spatial correlation are developed. The variograms are used to construct 3D porosity and permeability models which reflect the stratigraphic facies models. Structure models are built using dipmeter, biostratigraphic, and surface data. Deviated wells often cross axial surfaces and geometry is predicted from dip domain and SCAT. Faults are identified using pressure transient data and dipmeter. The Toro reservoir is subnormally pressured and fluid contacts are hydrodynamically tilted. The hydrodynamic flow and tilted contacts are modeled by flow simulation and constrained by maps of the potentiometric surface.« less

Vapor shielding models and the energy absorbed by divertor targets during transient events

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Skovorodin, D. I., E-mail: dskovorodin@gmail.com; Arakcheev, A. S.; Pshenov, A. A.

2016-02-15

The erosion of divertor targets caused by high heat fluxes during transients is a serious threat to ITER operation, as it is going to be the main factor determining the divertor lifetime. Under the influence of extreme heat fluxes, the surface temperature of plasma facing components can reach some certain threshold, leading to an onset of intense material evaporation. The latter results in formation of cold dense vapor and secondary plasma cloud. This layer effectively absorbs the energy of the incident plasma flow, turning it into its own kinetic and internal energy and radiating it. This so called vapor shieldingmore » is a phenomenon that may help mitigating the erosion during transient events. In particular, the vapor shielding results in saturation of energy (per unit surface area) accumulated by the target during single pulse of heat load at some level E{sub max}. Matching this value is one of the possible tests to verify complicated numerical codes, developed to calculate the erosion rate during abnormal events in tokamaks. The paper presents three very different models of vapor shielding, demonstrating that E{sub max} depends strongly on the heat pulse duration, thermodynamic properties, and evaporation energy of the irradiated target material. While its dependence on the other shielding details such as radiation capabilities of material and dynamics of the vapor cloud is logarithmically weak. The reason for this is a strong (exponential) dependence of the target material evaporation rate, and therefore the “strength” of vapor shield on the target surface temperature. As a result, the influence of the vapor shielding phenomena details, such as radiation transport in the vapor cloud and evaporated material dynamics, on the E{sub max} is virtually completely masked by the strong dependence of the evaporation rate on the target surface temperature. However, the very same details define the amount of evaporated particles, needed to provide an effective shielding to the target, and, therefore, strongly influence resulting erosion rate. Thus, E{sub max} cannot be used for validation of shielding models and codes, aimed at the target material erosion calculations.« less

Reduced-Order Model for the Geochemical Impacts of Carbon Dioxide, Brine and Trace Metal Leakage into an Unconfined, Oxidizing Carbonate Aquifer, Version 2.1

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bacon, Diana H.

2013-03-31

The National Risk Assessment Partnership (NRAP) consists of 5 U.S DOE national laboratories collaborating to develop a framework for predicting the risks associated with carbon sequestration. The approach taken by NRAP is to divide the system into components, including injection target reservoirs, wellbores, natural pathways including faults and fractures, groundwater and the atmosphere. Next, develop a detailed, physics and chemistry-based model of each component. Using the results of the detailed models, develop efficient, simplified models, termed reduced order models (ROM) for each component. Finally, integrate the component ROMs into a system model that calculates risk profiles for the site. Thismore » report details the development of the Groundwater Geochemistry ROM for the Edwards Aquifer at PNNL. The Groundwater Geochemistry ROM for the Edwards Aquifer uses a Wellbore Leakage ROM developed at LANL as input. The detailed model, using the STOMP simulator, covers a 5x8 km area of the Edwards Aquifer near San Antonio, Texas. The model includes heterogeneous hydraulic properties, and equilibrium, kinetic and sorption reactions between groundwater, leaked CO2 gas, brine, and the aquifer carbonate and clay minerals. Latin Hypercube sampling was used to generate 1024 samples of input parameters. For each of these input samples, the STOMP simulator was used to predict the flux of CO2 to the atmosphere, and the volume, length and width of the aquifer where pH was less than the MCL standard, and TDS, arsenic, cadmium and lead exceeded MCL standards. In order to decouple the Wellbore Leakage ROM from the Groundwater Geochemistry ROM, the response surface was transformed to replace Wellbore Leakage ROM input parameters with instantaneous and cumulative CO2 and brine leakage rates. The most sensitive parameters proved to be the CO2 and brine leakage rates from the well, with equilibrium coefficients for calcite and dolomite, as well as the number of illite and kaolinite sorption sites proving to be of secondary importance. The Groundwater Geochemistry ROM was developed using nonlinear regression to fit the response surface with a quadratic polynomial. The goodness of fit was excellent for the CO2 flux to the atmosphere, and very good for predicting the volumes of groundwater exceeding the pH, TDS, As, Cd and Pb threshold values.« less

The role of chemistry and pH of solid surfaces for specific adsorption of biomolecules in solution--accurate computational models and experiment.

PubMed

Heinz, Hendrik

2014-06-18

Adsorption of biomolecules and polymers to inorganic nanostructures plays a major role in the design of novel materials and therapeutics. The behavior of flexible molecules on solid surfaces at a scale of 1-1000 nm remains difficult and expensive to monitor using current laboratory techniques, while playing a critical role in energy conversion and composite materials as well as in understanding the origin of diseases. Approaches to implement key surface features and pH in molecular models of solids are explained, and distinct mechanisms of peptide recognition on metal nanostructures, silica and apatite surfaces in solution are described as illustrative examples. The influence of surface energies, specific surface features and protonation states on the structure of aqueous interfaces and selective biomolecular adsorption is found to be critical, comparable to the well-known influence of the charge state and pH of proteins and surfactants on their conformations and assembly. The representation of such details in molecular models according to experimental data and available chemical knowledge enables accurate simulations of unknown complex interfaces in atomic resolution in quantitative agreement with independent experimental measurements. In this context, the benefits of a uniform force field for all material classes and of a mineral surface structure database are discussed.

Solution processed deposition of electron transport layers on perovskite crystal surface-A modeling based study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mortuza, S. M.; Taufique, M. F. N.; Banerjee, Soumik

2017-02-01

The power conversion efficiency (PCE) of planar perovskite solar cells (PSCs) has reached up to ∼20%. However, structural and chemicals defects that lead to hysteresis in the perovskite based thin film pose challenges. Recent work has shown that thin films of [6,6]-phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM) deposited on the photo absorption layer, using solution processing techniques, minimize surface pin holes and defects thereby increasing the PCE. We developed and employed a multiscale model based on molecular dynamics (MD) and kinetic Monte Carlo (kMC) to establish a relationship between deposition rate and surface coverage on perovskite surface. The MD simulations of PCBMs dispersed in chlorobenzene, sandwiched between (110) perovskite substrates, indicate that PCBMs are deposited through anchoring of the oxygen atom of carbonyl group to the exposed lead (Pb) atom of (110) perovskite surface. Based on rates of distinct deposition events calculated from MD, kMC simulations were run to determine surface coverage at much larger time and length scales than accessible by MD alone. Based on the model, a generic relationship is established between deposition rate of PCBMs and surface coverage on perovskite crystal. The study also provides detailed insights into the morphology of the deposited film.

77 FR 28530 - Special Conditions: Tamarack Aerospace Group, Cirrus Model SR22; Active Technology Load...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-05-15

... have a novel or unusual design feature(s) associated with Tamarack Aerospace Group's modification. The... the control system. (b) The design of the load alleviation system or of any other automatic system...) Each detail of the Tamarack Active Control Surface (TACS) must be designed and installed to prevent...

Modeling the thermal structure and magnetic properties of the crust of active regions with application to the Rio Grande rift

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1982-01-01

Experiments in Curie depth estimation from long wavelength magnetic anomalies are summarized. The heart of the work is equivalent-layer-type magnetization models derived by inversion of high-elevation, long wavelength magnetic anomaly data. The methodology is described in detail in the above references. A magnetization distribution in a thin equivalent layer at the Earth's surface having maximum detail while retaining physical significance, and giving rise to a synthetic anomaly field which makes a best fit to the observed field in a least squares sense is discussed. The apparent magnetization contrast in the equivalent layer is approximated using an array of dipoles distributed in equal area at the Earth's surface. The dipoles are pointed in the direction of the main magnetic field, which carries the implicit assumption that crustal magnetization is dominantly induced or viscous. The determination of the closest possible dipole spacing giving a stable inversion to a solution having physical significance is accomplished by plotting the standard deviation of the solution parameters against their spatial separation for a series of solutions.

The HIRLAM fast radiation scheme for mesoscale numerical weather prediction models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rontu, Laura; Gleeson, Emily; Räisänen, Petri; Pagh Nielsen, Kristian; Savijärvi, Hannu; Hansen Sass, Bent

2017-07-01

This paper provides an overview of the HLRADIA shortwave (SW) and longwave (LW) broadband radiation schemes used in the HIRLAM numerical weather prediction (NWP) model and available in the HARMONIE-AROME mesoscale NWP model. The advantage of broadband, over spectral, schemes is that they can be called more frequently within the model, without compromising on computational efficiency. In mesoscale models fast interactions between clouds and radiation and the surface and radiation can be of greater importance than accounting for the spectral details of clear-sky radiation; thus calling the routines more frequently can be of greater benefit than the deterioration due to loss of spectral details. Fast but physically based radiation parametrizations are expected to be valuable for high-resolution ensemble forecasting, because as well as the speed of their execution, they may provide realistic physical perturbations. Results from single-column diagnostic experiments based on CIRC benchmark cases and an evaluation of 10 years of radiation output from the FMI operational archive of HIRLAM forecasts indicate that HLRADIA performs sufficiently well with respect to the clear-sky downwelling SW and longwave LW fluxes at the surface. In general, HLRADIA tends to overestimate surface fluxes, with the exception of LW fluxes under cold and dry conditions. The most obvious overestimation of the surface SW flux was seen in the cloudy cases in the 10-year comparison; this bias may be related to using a cloud inhomogeneity correction, which was too large. According to the CIRC comparisons, the outgoing LW and SW fluxes at the top of atmosphere are mostly overestimated by HLRADIA and the net LW flux is underestimated above clouds. The absorption of SW radiation by the atmosphere seems to be underestimated and LW absorption seems to be overestimated. Despite these issues, the overall results are satisfying and work on the improvement of HLRADIA for the use in HARMONIE-AROME NWP system is ongoing. In a HARMONIE-AROME 3-D forecast experiment we have shown that the frequency of the call for the radiation parametrization and choice of the parametrization scheme makes a difference to the surface radiation fluxes and changes the spatial distribution of the vertically integrated cloud cover and precipitation.

Improved global simulation of groundwater-ecosystem interactions via tight coupling of a dynamic global ecosystem model and a global hydrological model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Braakhekke, Maarten; Rebel, Karin; Dekker, Stefan; Smith, Benjamin; Sutanudjaja, Edwin; van Beek, Rens; van Kampenhout, Leo; Wassen, Martin

2017-04-01

In up to 30% of the global land surface ecosystems are potentially influenced by the presence of a shallow groundwater table. In these regions upward water flux by capillary rise increases soil moisture availability in the root zone, which has a strong effect on evapotranspiration, vegetation dynamics, and fluxes of carbon and nitrogen. Most global hydrological models and several land surface models simulate groundwater table dynamics and their effects on land surface processes. However, these models typically have relatively simplistic representation of vegetation and do not consider changes in vegetation type and structure. Dynamic global vegetation models (DGVMs), describe land surface from an ecological perspective, combining detailed description of vegetation dynamics and structure, and biogeochemical processes and are thus more appropriate to simulate the ecological and biogeochemical effects of groundwater interactions. However, currently virtually all DGVMs ignore these effects, assuming that water tables are too deep to affect soil moisture in the root zone. We have implemented a tight coupling between the dynamic global ecosystem model LPJ-GUESS and the global hydrological model PCR-GLOBWB, which explicitly simulates groundwater dynamics. This coupled model allows us to explicitly account for groundwater effects on terrestrial ecosystem processes at global scale. Results of global simulations indicate that groundwater strongly influences fluxes of water, carbon and nitrogen, in many regions, adding up to a considerable effect at the global scale.

Dense image matching of terrestrial imagery for deriving high-resolution topographic properties of vegetation locations in alpine terrain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Niederheiser, R.; Rutzinger, M.; Bremer, M.; Wichmann, V.

2018-04-01

The investigation of changes in spatial patterns of vegetation and identification of potential micro-refugia requires detailed topographic and terrain information. However, mapping alpine topography at very detailed scales is challenging due to limited accessibility of sites. Close-range sensing by photogrammetric dense matching approaches based on terrestrial images captured with hand-held cameras offers a light-weight and low-cost solution to retrieve high-resolution measurements even in steep terrain and at locations, which are difficult to access. We propose a novel approach for rapid capturing of terrestrial images and a highly automated processing chain for retrieving detailed dense point clouds for topographic modelling. For this study, we modelled 249 plot locations. For the analysis of vegetation distribution and location properties, topographic parameters, such as slope, aspect, and potential solar irradiation were derived by applying a multi-scale approach utilizing voxel grids and spherical neighbourhoods. The result is a micro-topography archive of 249 alpine locations that includes topographic parameters at multiple scales ready for biogeomorphological analysis. Compared with regional elevation models at larger scales and traditional 2D gridding approaches to create elevation models, we employ analyses in a fully 3D environment that yield much more detailed insights into interrelations between topographic parameters, such as potential solar irradiation, surface area, aspect and roughness.

Three dimensional thermal pollution models. Volume 3: Free surface models. [waste heat discharge from power plants and effects on ecosystems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lee, S. S.; Sengupta, S.

1978-01-01

Two sets of programs, named Nasum 2 and Nasum 3 are presented in detail. Nasum 2 is a far field formulation and is used without including the plant thermal discharge. Nasum 3 uses horizontal stretching to provide higher resolution at thermal discharge joints; and includes far field influences such as varying tides and ambient currents far from point of discharge.

A Numerical and Experimental Study of Damage Growth in a Composite Laminate

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

McElroy, Mark; Ratcliffe, James; Czabaj, Michael; Wang, John; Yuan, Fuh-Gwo

2014-01-01

The present study has three goals: (1) perform an experiment where a simple laminate damage process can be characterized in high detail; (2) evaluate the performance of existing commercially available laminate damage simulation tools by modeling the experiment; (3) observe and understand the underlying physics of damage in a composite honeycomb sandwich structure subjected to low-velocity impact. A quasi-static indentation experiment has been devised to provide detailed information about a simple mixed-mode damage growth process. The test specimens consist of an aluminum honeycomb core with a cross-ply laminate facesheet supported on a stiff uniform surface. When the sample is subjected to an indentation load, the honeycomb core provides support to the facesheet resulting in a gradual and stable damage growth process in the skin. This enables real time observation as a matrix crack forms, propagates through a ply, and then causes a delamination. Finite element analyses were conducted in ABAQUS/Explicit(TradeMark) 6.13 that used continuum and cohesive modeling techniques to simulate facesheet damage and a geometric and material nonlinear model to simulate core crushing. The high fidelity of the experimental data allows a detailed investigation and discussion of the accuracy of each numerical modeling approach.

The mathematical and computer modeling of the worm tool shaping

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Panchuk, K. L.; Lyashkov, A. A.; Ayusheev, T. V.

2017-06-01

Traditionally mathematical profiling of the worm tool is carried out on the first T. Olivier method, known in the theory of gear gearings, with receiving an intermediate surface of the making lath. It complicates process of profiling and its realization by means of computer 3D-modeling. The purpose of the work is the improvement of mathematical model of profiling and its realization based on the methods of 3D-modeling. Research problems are: receiving of the mathematical model of profiling which excludes the presence of the making lath in it; realization of the received model by means of frame and superficial modeling; development and approbation of technology of solid-state modeling for the solution of the problem of profiling. As the basic, the kinematic method of research of the mutually envelope surfaces is accepted. Computer research is executed by means of CAD based on the methods of 3D-modeling. We have developed mathematical model of profiling of the worm tool; frame, superficial and solid-state models of shaping of the mutually enveloping surfaces of the detail and the tool are received. The offered mathematical models and the technologies of 3D-modeling of shaping represent tools for theoretical and experimental profiling of the worm tool. The results of researches can be used at design of metal-cutting tools.

Introduction to CAUSES: Description of Weather and Climate Models and Their Near-Surface Temperature Errors in 5 day Hindcasts Near the Southern Great Plains

DOE PAGES

Morcrette, C. J.; Van Weverberg, K.; Ma, H. -Y.; ...

2018-02-16

We introduce the Clouds Above the United States and Errors at the Surface (CAUSES) project with its aim of better understanding the physical processes leading to warm screen temperature biases over the American Midwest in many numerical models. In this first of four companion papers, 11 different models, from nine institutes, perform a series of 5 day hindcasts, each initialized from reanalyses. After describing the common experimental protocol and detailing each model configuration, a gridded temperature data set is derived from observations and used to show that all the models have a warm bias over parts of the Midwest. Additionally,more » a strong diurnal cycle in the screen temperature bias is found in most models. In some models the bias is largest around midday, while in others it is largest during the night. At the Department of Energy Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Southern Great Plains (SGP) site, the model biases are shown to extend several kilometers into the atmosphere. Finally, to provide context for the companion papers, in which observations from the SGP site are used to evaluate the different processes contributing to errors there, it is shown that there are numerous locations across the Midwest where the diurnal cycle of the error is highly correlated with the diurnal cycle of the error at SGP. This suggests that conclusions drawn from detailed evaluation of models using instruments located at SGP will be representative of errors that are prevalent over a larger spatial scale.« less

Introduction to CAUSES: Description of Weather and Climate Models and Their Near-Surface Temperature Errors in 5 day Hindcasts Near the Southern Great Plains

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Morcrette, C. J.; Van Weverberg, K.; Ma, H. -Y.

We introduce the Clouds Above the United States and Errors at the Surface (CAUSES) project with its aim of better understanding the physical processes leading to warm screen temperature biases over the American Midwest in many numerical models. In this first of four companion papers, 11 different models, from nine institutes, perform a series of 5 day hindcasts, each initialized from reanalyses. After describing the common experimental protocol and detailing each model configuration, a gridded temperature data set is derived from observations and used to show that all the models have a warm bias over parts of the Midwest. Additionally,more » a strong diurnal cycle in the screen temperature bias is found in most models. In some models the bias is largest around midday, while in others it is largest during the night. At the Department of Energy Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Southern Great Plains (SGP) site, the model biases are shown to extend several kilometers into the atmosphere. Finally, to provide context for the companion papers, in which observations from the SGP site are used to evaluate the different processes contributing to errors there, it is shown that there are numerous locations across the Midwest where the diurnal cycle of the error is highly correlated with the diurnal cycle of the error at SGP. This suggests that conclusions drawn from detailed evaluation of models using instruments located at SGP will be representative of errors that are prevalent over a larger spatial scale.« less

Introduction to CAUSES: Description of Weather and Climate Models and Their Near-Surface Temperature Errors in 5 day Hindcasts Near the Southern Great Plains

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Morcrette, C. J.; Van Weverberg, K.; Ma, H.-Y.; Ahlgrimm, M.; Bazile, E.; Berg, L. K.; Cheng, A.; Cheruy, F.; Cole, J.; Forbes, R.; Gustafson, W. I.; Huang, M.; Lee, W.-S.; Liu, Y.; Mellul, L.; Merryfield, W. J.; Qian, Y.; Roehrig, R.; Wang, Y.-C.; Xie, S.; Xu, K.-M.; Zhang, C.; Klein, S.; Petch, J.

2018-03-01

We introduce the Clouds Above the United States and Errors at the Surface (CAUSES) project with its aim of better understanding the physical processes leading to warm screen temperature biases over the American Midwest in many numerical models. In this first of four companion papers, 11 different models, from nine institutes, perform a series of 5 day hindcasts, each initialized from reanalyses. After describing the common experimental protocol and detailing each model configuration, a gridded temperature data set is derived from observations and used to show that all the models have a warm bias over parts of the Midwest. Additionally, a strong diurnal cycle in the screen temperature bias is found in most models. In some models the bias is largest around midday, while in others it is largest during the night. At the Department of Energy Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Southern Great Plains (SGP) site, the model biases are shown to extend several kilometers into the atmosphere. Finally, to provide context for the companion papers, in which observations from the SGP site are used to evaluate the different processes contributing to errors there, it is shown that there are numerous locations across the Midwest where the diurnal cycle of the error is highly correlated with the diurnal cycle of the error at SGP. This suggests that conclusions drawn from detailed evaluation of models using instruments located at SGP will be representative of errors that are prevalent over a larger spatial scale.

The Potential for Predicting Precipitation on Seasonal-to-Interannual Timescales

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Koster, R. D.

1999-01-01

The ability to predict precipitation several months in advance would have a significant impact on water resource management. This talk provides an overview of a project aimed at developing this prediction capability. NASA's Seasonal-to-Interannual Prediction Project (NSIPP) will generate seasonal-to-interannual sea surface temperature predictions through detailed ocean circulation modeling and will then translate these SST forecasts into forecasts of continental precipitation through the application of an atmospheric general circulation model and a "SVAT"-type land surface model. As part of the process, ocean variables (e.g., height) and land variables (e.g., soil moisture) will be updated regularly via data assimilation. The overview will include a discussion of the variability inherent in such a modeling system and will provide some quantitative estimates of the absolute upper limits of seasonal-to-interannual precipitation predictability.

Influence of foundation mass and surface roughness on dynamic response of beam on dynamic foundation subjected to the moving load

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tran Quoc, Tinh; Khong Trong, Toan; Luong Van, Hai

2018-04-01

In this paper, Improved Moving Element Method (IMEM) is used to analyze the dynamic response of Euler-Bernoulli beam structures on the dynamic foundation model subjected to the moving load. The effects of characteristic foundation model parameters such as Winkler stiffness, shear layer based on the Pasternak model, viscoelastic dashpot and characteristic parameter of mass on foundation. Beams are modeled by moving elements while the load is fixed. Based on the principle of the publicly virtual balancing and the theory of moving element method, the motion differential equation of the system is established and solved by means of the numerical integration based on the Newmark algorithm. The influence of mass on foundation and the roughness of the beam surface on the dynamic response of beam are examined in details.

Calculation of surface potentials at the silica–water interface using molecular dynamics: Challenges and opportunities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lowe, Benjamin M.; Skylaris, Chris-Kriton; Green, Nicolas G.; Shibuta, Yasushi; Sakata, Toshiya

2018-04-01

Continuum-based methods are important in calculating electrostatic properties of interfacial systems such as the electric field and surface potential but are incapable of providing sufficient insight into a range of fundamentally and technologically important phenomena which occur at atomistic length-scales. In this work a molecular dynamics methodology is presented for interfacial electric field and potential calculations. The silica–water interface was chosen as an example system, which is highly relevant for understanding the response of field-effect transistors sensors (FET sensors). Detailed validation work is presented, followed by the simulated surface charge/surface potential relationship. This showed good agreement with experiment at low surface charge density but at high surface charge density the results highlighted challenges presented by an atomistic definition of the surface potential. This methodology will be used to investigate the effect of surface morphology and biomolecule addition; both factors which are challenging using conventional continuum models.

Relaxation of Actinide Surfaces: An All Electron Study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Atta-Fynn, Raymond; Dholabhai, Pratik; Ray, Asok

2006-10-01

Fully relativistic full potential density functional calculations with a linearized augmented plane wave plus local orbitals basis (LAPW + lo) have been performed to investigate the relaxations of heavy actinide surfaces, namely the (111) surface of fcc δ-Pu and the (0001) surface of dhcp Am using WIEN2k. This code uses the LAPW + lo method with the unit cell divided into non-overlapping atom-centered spheres and an interstitial region. The APW+lo basis is used to describe all s, p, d, and f states and LAPW basis to describe all higher angular momentum states. Each surface was modeled by a three-layer periodic slab separated by 60 Bohr vacuum with four atoms per surface unit cell. In general, we have found a contraction of the interlayer separations for both Pu and Am. We will report, in detail, the electronic and geometric structures of the relaxed surfaces and comparisons with the respective non-relaxed surfaces.

Measured and calculated acoustic attenuation rates of tuned resonator arrays for two surface impedance distribution models with flow

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Parrott, Tony L.; Abrahamson, A. Louis; Jones, Michael G.

1988-01-01

An experiment was performed to validate two analytical models for predicting low frequency attenuation of duct liner configurations built from an array of seven resonators that could be individually tuned via adjustable cavity depths. These analytical models had previously been developed for high frequency aero-engine inlet duct liner design. In the low frequency application, the liner surface impedance distribution is unavoidably spatially varying by virtue of available fabrication techniques. The characteristic length of this spatial variation may be a significant fraction of the acoustic wavelength. Comparison of measured and predicted attenuation rates and transmission losses for both modal decomposition and finite element propagation models were in good to excellent agreement for a test frequency range that included the first and second cavity resonance frequencies. This was true for either of two surface impedance distribution modeling procedures used to simplify the impedance boundary conditions. In the presence of mean flow, measurements revealed a fine scale structure of acoustic hot spots in the attenuation and phase profiles. These details were accurately predicted by the finite element model. Since no impedance changes due to mean flow were assumed, it is concluded that this fine scale structure was due to convective effects of the mean flow interacting with the surface impedance nonuniformities.

Results of the AFRSI detailed-environment test of the 0.035-scale SSV pressure-loads model 84-0 in the Ames 11x11 ft. TWT and the Lewis 8x6 ft. and 10x10 ft. SWT (OA-310A, B, C), volume 1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Marshall, B. A.; Marroquin, J.

1984-01-01

Detailed orbiter aerodynamic and aeroacoustic pressure data were obtained in a three-part experimental investigation (OA-310A, B and C). The tests were conducted in three NASA facilities: OA-310A in the Ames 11x11-foot Transonic Wind Tunnel; OA-310B in the Lewis 8x6-foot Supersonic Wind Tunnel; and OA-310C in the Lewis 10x10-foot Supersonic Wind Tunnel. Test data were obtained to support analysis of the Space Transportation System (STS)-6 advanced flexible reusable surface insulation (AFRSI) anomaly using the 0.035-scale space shuttle vehicle pressure-loads Model 84-0. Data were obtained in the areas of the orbiter where AFRSI is to be applied to OV-099 and OV-103. Emphasis was placed on acquiring detailed aeroacoustic data and time-averaged pressure distributions on five affected areas: (1) canopy; (2) side of fuselage; (3) upper surface of wing; (4) OMS pods; and (5) vertical tail. Data were obtained at nominal ascent and entry atmospheric flight trajectory conditions between M=0.6 through M-3.5. Sample plotted data are given. aba M.G.

The effects of atmospheric chemistry on radiation budget in the Community Earth Systems Model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Choi, Y.; Czader, B.; Diao, L.; Rodriguez, J.; Jeong, G.

2013-12-01

The Community Earth Systems Model (CESM)-Whole Atmosphere Community Climate Model (WACCM) simulations were performed to study the impact of atmospheric chemistry on the radiation budget over the surface within a weather prediction time scale. The secondary goal is to get a simplified and optimized chemistry module for the short time period. Three different chemistry modules were utilized to represent tropospheric and stratospheric chemistry, which differ in how their reactions and species are represented: (1) simplified tropospheric and stratospheric chemistry (approximately 30 species), (2) simplified tropospheric chemistry and comprehensive stratospheric chemistry from the Model of Ozone and Related Chemical Tracers, version 3 (MOZART-3, approximately 60 species), and (3) comprehensive tropospheric and stratospheric chemistry (MOZART-4, approximately 120 species). Our results indicate the different details in chemistry treatment from these model components affect the surface temperature and impact the radiation budget.

Numerical Modeling of Ablation Heat Transfer

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ewing, Mark E.; Laker, Travis S.; Walker, David T.

2013-01-01

A unique numerical method has been developed for solving one-dimensional ablation heat transfer problems. This paper provides a comprehensive description of the method, along with detailed derivations of the governing equations. This methodology supports solutions for traditional ablation modeling including such effects as heat transfer, material decomposition, pyrolysis gas permeation and heat exchange, and thermochemical surface erosion. The numerical scheme utilizes a control-volume approach with a variable grid to account for surface movement. This method directly supports implementation of nontraditional models such as material swelling and mechanical erosion, extending capabilities for modeling complex ablation phenomena. Verifications of the numerical implementation are provided using analytical solutions, code comparisons, and the method of manufactured solutions. These verifications are used to demonstrate solution accuracy and proper error convergence rates. A simple demonstration of a mechanical erosion (spallation) model is also provided to illustrate the unique capabilities of the method.

Titan's Exotic Weather

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Griffith, Caitlin A.

2006-09-01

Images of Titan, taken during the joint NASA and European Space Agency Cassini-Huygens mission, invoke a feeling of familiarity: washes wind downhill to damp lakebeds; massive cumuli form and quickly dissipate, suggestive of rain; and dark oval regions resemble lakes. These features arise from Titan's unique similarity with Earth: both cycle liquid between their surfaces and atmospheres, but in Titan's cool atmosphere it is methane that exists as a gas, liquid, and ice. While Titan enticingly resembles Earth, its atmosphere is 10 times thicker, so that its radiative time constant near the surface exceeds a Titan year, and prohibits large thermal gradients and seasonal surface temperature variations exceeding 3K. Titan also lacks oceans - central to Earth's climate - and instead stores much of its condensible in its atmosphere. As a result, Titan's weather differs remarkably from Earth's. Evidence for this difference appears in the location of Titan's large clouds, which frequent a narrow band at 40S latitude and a region within 30 latitude of the S. Pole. Ground-based and Cassini observations, combined with thermodynamic considerations, indicate that we are seeing large convective cloud systems. Detailed cloud models and general circulation models further suggest that these are severe rain storms, which will migrate with the change in season. Outside these migrating "gypsy" cloud bands, the atmosphere appears to be calm, humid and thus frequented by thin stratiform clouds. An intriguingly alien environment is predicted. Yet, the combined effects of Titan's patchy wet surface, atmospheric tides, possible ice volcanoes, and detailed seasonal variations remain unclear as we have witnessed only one season so far. This talk will review observations of Titan's lower atmosphere and modeling efforts to explain the observations, and explore the questions that still elude us.

Simulation of Runoff Concentration on Arable Fields and the Impact of Adapted Tillage Practises

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Winter, F.; Disse, M.

2012-04-01

Conservational tillage can reduce runoff on arable fields. Due to crop residues remaining on the fields a seasonal constant ground cover is achieved. This additional soil cover not only decreases the drying of the topsoil but also reduces the mechanical impact of raindrops and the possibly resulting soil crust. Further implications of the mulch layer can be observed during heavy precipitation events and occurring surface runoff. The natural roughness of the ground surface is further increased and thus the flow velocity is decreased, resulting in an enhanced ability of runoff to infiltrate into the soil (so called Runon-Infiltration). The hydrological model system WaSiM-ETH hitherto simulates runoff concentration by a flow time grid in the catchment, which is derived from topographical features of the catchment during the preprocessing analysis. The retention of both surface runoff and interflow is modelled by a single reservoir in every discrete flow time zone until the outlet of a subcatchment is reached. For a more detailed analysis of the flow paths in catchments of the lower mesoscale (< 1 km2) the model was extended by a kinematic wave approach for the surface runoff concentration. This allows the simulation of small-scale variation in runoff generation and its temporal distribution in detail. Therefore the assessment of adapted tillage systems can be derived. On singular fields of the Scheyern research farm north-west of Munich it can be shown how different crops and tillage practises can influence runoff generation and concentration during single heavy precipitation events. From the simulation of individual events in agricultural areas of the lower mesoscale hydrologically susceptible areas can be identified and the positive impact of an adapted agricultural management on runoff generation and concentration can be quantifed.

Future Probes of the Neutron Star Equation of State Using X-ray Bursts

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Strohmayer, Tod E.

2004-01-01

Observations with NASA s Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) have resulted in the discovery of fast (200 - 600 Hz), coherent X-ray intensity oscillations (hereafter, %urstoscillations ) during thermonuclear X-ray bursts from 12 low mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs). Although many of their detailed properties remain to be fully understood, it is now beyond doubt that these oscillations result from spin modulation of the thermonuclear burst flux from the neutron star surface. Among the new timing phenomena revealed by RXTE the burst oscillations are perhaps the best understood, in the sense that many of their properties can be explained in the framework of this relatively simple model. Because of this, detailed modelling of burst oscillations can be an extremely powerful probe of neutron star structure, and thus the equation of state (EOS) of supra-nuclear density matter. Both the compactness parameter beta = GM/c(sup 2)R, and the surface velocity, nu(sub rot) = Omega(sub spin)R, are encoded in the energy-dependent amplitude and shape of the modulation pulses. The new discoveries have spurred much new theoretical work on thermonuclear burning and propagation on neutron stars, so that in the near future it is not unreasonable to think that detailed physical models of the time dependent flux from burning neutron stars will be available for comparison with the observed pulse profiles from a future, large collecting area X-ray timing observatory. In addition, recent high resolution burst spectroscopy with XMM/Newton suggests the presence of redshifted absorption lines from the neutron star surface during bursts. This leads to the possibility of using large area, high spectral resolution measurements of X-ray bursts as a precise probe of neutron star structure. In this work I will explore the precision with which constraints on neutron star structure, and hence the dense matter EOS, can be made with the implementation of such programs.

Wind Tunnel Application of a Pressure-Sensitive Paint Technique to a Faceted Missile Model at Subsonic and Transonic Speeds

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Erickson, Gary E.

2004-01-01

A pressure-sensitive paint (PSP) technique was applied in a wind tunnel experiment in the NASA Langley Research Center 8-Foot Transonic Pressure Tunnel to quantify the vortex-induced surface static pressures on a slender, faceted missile model at subsonic and transonic speeds. Global PSP calibrations were obtained using an in-situ method featuring the simultaneous electronically-scanned pressures (ESP) measurements. Both techniques revealed the significant influence leading-edge vortices on the surface pressure distributions. The mean error in the PSP measurements relative to the ESP data was approximately 0.6 percent at M(sub infinity)=0.70 and 2.6 percent at M(sub infinity)=0.90 and 1.20. The vortex surface pressure signatures obtained from the PSP and ESP techniques were correlated with the off-surface vortex cross-flow structures obtained using a laser vapor screen (LVS) flow visualization technique. The on-surface and off-surface techniques were complementary, since each provided details of the vortex-dominated flow that were not clear or apparent in the other.

Improvements in lake water budget computations using Landsat data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gervin, J. C.; Shih, S. F.

1979-01-01

A supervised multispectral classification was performed on Landsat data for Lake Okeechobee's extensive littoral zone to provide two types of information. First, the acreage of a given plant species as measured by satellite was combined with a more accurate transpiration rate to give a better estimate of evapotranspiration from the littoral zone. Second, the surface area coupled by plant communities was used to develop a better estimate of the water surface as a function of lake stage. Based on this information, more detailed representations of evapotranspiration and total water surface (and hence total lake volume) were provided to the water balance budget model for lake volume predictions. The model results based on information derived from satellite demonstrated a 94 percent reduction in cumulative lake stage error and a 70 percent reduction in the maximum deviation of the lake stage.

Generalized model for laser-induced surface structure in metallic glass

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lin-Mao, Ye; Zhen-Wei, Wu; Kai-Xin, Liu; Xiu-Zhang, Tang; Xiang-Ming, Xiong

2016-06-01

The details of the special three-dimensional micro-nano scale ripples with a period of hundreds of microns on the surfaces of a Zr-based and a La-based metallic glass irradiated separately by single laser pulse are investigated. We use the small-amplitude capillary wave theory to unveil the ripple formation mechanism through considering each of the molten metallic glasses as an incompressible viscous fluid. A generalized model is presented to describe the special morphology, which fits the experimental result well. It is also revealed that the viscosity brings about the biggest effect on the monotone decreasing nature of the amplitude and the wavelength of the surface ripples. The greater the viscosity is, the shorter the amplitude and the wavelength are. Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 10572002, 10732010, and 11332002).

Theoretical analysis of the electrical aspects of the basic electro-impulse problem in aircraft de-icing applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Henderson, R. A.; Schrag, R. L.

1986-01-01

A summary of modeling the electrical system aspects of a coil and metal target configuration resembling a practical electro-impulse deicing (EIDI) installation, and a simple circuit for providing energy to the coil, was presented. The model was developed in sufficient theoretical detail to allow the generation of computer algorithms for the current in the coil, the magnetic induction on both surfaces of the target, the force between the coil and target, and the impulse delivered to the target. These algorithms were applied to a specific prototype EIDI test system for which the current, magnetic fields near the target surfaces, and impulse were previously measured.

Three-dimensional reconstruction of Roman coins from photometric image sets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

MacDonald, Lindsay; Moitinho de Almeida, Vera; Hess, Mona

2017-01-01

A method is presented for increasing the spatial resolution of the three-dimensional (3-D) digital representation of coins by combining fine photometric detail derived from a set of photographic images with accurate geometric data from a 3-D laser scanner. 3-D reconstructions were made of the obverse and reverse sides of two ancient Roman denarii by processing sets of images captured under directional lighting in an illumination dome. Surface normal vectors were calculated by a "bounded regression" technique, excluding both shadow and specular components of reflection from the metallic surface. Because of the known difficulty in achieving geometric accuracy when integrating photometric normals to produce a digital elevation model, the low spatial frequencies were replaced by those derived from the point cloud produced by a 3-D laser scanner. The two datasets were scaled and registered by matching the outlines and correlating the surface gradients. The final result was a realistic rendering of the coins at a spatial resolution of 75 pixels/mm (13-μm spacing), in which the fine detail modulated the underlying geometric form of the surface relief. The method opens the way to obtain high quality 3-D representations of coins in collections to enable interactive online viewing.

Finite Element Model Development For Aircraft Fuselage Structures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Buehrle, Ralph D.; Fleming, Gary A.; Pappa, Richard S.; Grosveld, Ferdinand W.

2000-01-01

The ability to extend the valid frequency range for finite element based structural dynamic predictions using detailed models of the structural components and attachment interfaces is examined for several stiffened aircraft fuselage structures. This extended dynamic prediction capability is needed for the integration of mid-frequency noise control technology. Beam, plate and solid element models of the stiffener components are evaluated. Attachment models between the stiffener and panel skin range from a line along the rivets of the physical structure to a constraint over the entire contact surface. The finite element models are validated using experimental modal analysis results.

Catalytic Chemistry of Hydrocarbon Conversion Reactions on Metallic Single Crystals

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tysoe, Wilfred T.

The ability to be able to follow the chemistry of adsorbates on model catalyst surfaces has, in principle, allowed us to peer inside the “black box” of a catalytic reaction and understand the pathway. Such a strategy is most simply implemented for well-ordered single crystal model catalysts for which the catalytic reaction proceeds in ultrahigh vacuum. Thus, in order to be a good model for the supported catalyst, the single crystal should catalyze the reactions with kinetics identical to those for the supported system. This chapter focuses on catalytic systems that fulfill these criteria, namely alkene and alkyne hydrogenation and acetylene cyclotrimerization on Pd(111). The surface chemistry and geometries of the reactants in ultrahigh vacuum are explored in detail allowing fundamental insights into the catalytic reaction pathways to be obtained.

Comparisons of Aquarius Measurements over Oceans with Radiative Transfer Models at L-Band

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dinnat, E.; LeVine, D.; Abraham, S.; DeMattheis, P.; Utku, C.

2012-01-01

The Aquarius/SAC-D spacecraft includes three L-band (1.4 GHz) radiometers dedicated to measuring sea surface salinity. It was launched in June 2011 by NASA and CONAE (Argentine space agency). We report detailed comparisons of Aquarius measurements with radiative transfer model predictions. These comparisons are used as part of the initial assessment of Aquarius data and to estimate the radiometer calibration bias and stability. Comparisons are also being performed to assess the performance of models used in the retrieval algorithm for correcting the effect of various sources of geophysical "noise" (e.g. Faraday rotation, surface roughness). Such corrections are critical in bringing the error in retrieved salinity down to the required 0.2 practical salinity unit on monthly global maps at 150 km by 150 km resolution.

A topological multilayer model of the human body.

PubMed

Barbeito, Antonio; Painho, Marco; Cabral, Pedro; O'Neill, João

2015-11-04

Geographical information systems deal with spatial databases in which topological models are described with alphanumeric information. Its graphical interfaces implement the multilayer concept and provide powerful interaction tools. In this study, we apply these concepts to the human body creating a representation that would allow an interactive, precise, and detailed anatomical study. A vector surface component of the human body is built using a three-dimensional (3-D) reconstruction methodology. This multilayer concept is implemented by associating raster components with the corresponding vector surfaces, which include neighbourhood topology enabling spatial analysis. A root mean square error of 0.18 mm validated the three-dimensional reconstruction technique of internal anatomical structures. The expansion of the identification and the development of a neighbourhood analysis function are the new tools provided in this model.

Fundamental data on the desorption of pure interstellar ices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brown, Wendy A.; Bolina, Amandeep S.

2007-01-01

The desorption of molecular ices from grain surfaces is important in a number of astrophysical environments including dense molecular clouds, cometary nuclei and the surfaces and atmospheres of some planets. With this in mind, we have performed a detailed investigation of the desorption of pure water, pure methanol and pure ammonia ices from a model dust-grain surface. We have used these results to determine the desorption energy, order of desorption and the pre-exponential factor for the desorption of these molecular ices from our model surface. We find good agreement between our desorption energies and those determined previously; however, our values for the desorption orders, and hence also the pre-exponential factors, are different to those reported previously. The kinetic parameters derived from our data have been used to model desorption on time-scales relevant to astrophysical processes and to calculate molecular residence times, given in terms of population half-life as a function of temperature. These results show the importance of laboratory data for the understanding of astronomical situations whereby icy mantles are warmed by nearby stars and by other dynamical events.

An Investigation of Two Finite Element Modeling Solutions for Biomechanical Simulation Using a Case Study of a Mandibular Bone.

PubMed

Liu, Yun-Feng; Fan, Ying-Ying; Dong, Hui-Yue; Zhang, Jian-Xing

2017-12-01

The method used in biomechanical modeling for finite element method (FEM) analysis needs to deliver accurate results. There are currently two solutions used in FEM modeling for biomedical model of human bone from computerized tomography (CT) images: one is based on a triangular mesh and the other is based on the parametric surface model and is more popular in practice. The outline and modeling procedures for the two solutions are compared and analyzed. Using a mandibular bone as an example, several key modeling steps are then discussed in detail, and the FEM calculation was conducted. Numerical calculation results based on the models derived from the two methods, including stress, strain, and displacement, are compared and evaluated in relation to accuracy and validity. Moreover, a comprehensive comparison of the two solutions is listed. The parametric surface based method is more helpful when using powerful design tools in computer-aided design (CAD) software, but the triangular mesh based method is more robust and efficient.

No Future in the Past? The role of initial topography on landform evolution model predictions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hancock, G. R.; Coulthard, T. J.; Lowry, J.

2014-12-01

Our understanding of earth surface processes is based on long-term empirical understandings, short-term field measurements as well as numerical models. In particular, numerical landscape evolution models (LEMs) have been developed which have the capability to capture a range of both surface (erosion and deposition), tectonics, as well as near surface or critical zone processes (i.e. pedogenesis). These models have a range of applications for understanding both surface and whole of landscape dynamics through to more applied situations such as degraded site rehabilitation. LEMs are now at the stage of development where if calibrated, can provide some level of reliability. However, these models are largely calibrated based on parameters determined from present surface conditions which are the product of much longer-term geology-soil-climate-vegetation interactions. Here, we assess the effect of the initial landscape dimensions and associated error as well as parameterisation for a potential post-mining landform design. The results demonstrate that subtle surface changes in the initial DEM as well as parameterisation can have a large impact on landscape behaviour, erosion depth and sediment discharge. For example, the predicted sediment output from LEM's is shown to be highly variable even with very subtle changes in initial surface conditions. This has two important implications in that decadal time scale field data is needed to (a) better parameterise models and (b) evaluate their predictions. We question how a LEM using parameters derived from field plots can firstly be employed to examine long-term landscape evolution. Secondly, the potential range of outcomes is examined based on estimated temporal parameter change and thirdly, the need for more detailed and rigorous field data for calibration and validation of these models is discussed.

Acid-base properties of aqueous illite surfaces

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Du, Q.; Sun, Z.; Forsling, W.

In this paper, the acid-base properties of illite/water suspensions are examined using the constant capacitance surface complexation model. On the basis of results of potentiometric titrations and solubility experiments, the authors conclude that the proton reactions in the supernatants of illite suspensions can be successfully represented by proton reactions of Al(H{sub 2}O){sub 6}{sup 3+} and Si(OH){sub 4} in water solutions. For illustrating the acidic characteristics of aqueous illite surfaces, two surface protonation models are proposed: (1) one site-one pK{sub a} model, {triple_bond}SOH {r_reversible} {triple_bond}SO{sup {minus}} + H{sup +}, pK{sub a}{sup int} = 4.12-4.23; (2) two sites-two pK{sub a}s model, {triple_bond}S{submore » 1}OH {r_reversible} {triple_bond}S{sup 1}O{sup {minus}} + H{sup +}, pK{sub a{sub I}} = 4.17-4.44, and {triple_bond}S{sub II}OH {r_reversible} {triple_bond}S{sub II}O{sup {minus}} + H{sup +}, pK{sub a{sub II}}{sup int} = 6.35-7.74. Evaluation of these two models indicates that both of them can give good descriptions of the experimental data of systems with different illite concentrations and ionic strengths and that the one site-one pK{sub a} model can be considered as a simplification of the two sites-two pK{sub a}s model. Since both models assume only deprotonation reactions at the illite surfaces, they suggest that the surface behavior of the illite is similar to that of amorphous SiO{sub 2}. Model assumptions, experimental procedures, and evaluative criteria are detailed in the paper.« less

Initial Everglades Depth Estimation Network (EDEN) Digital Elevation Model Research and Development

USGS Publications Warehouse

Jones, John W.; Price, Susan D.

2007-01-01

Introduction The Everglades Depth Estimation Network (EDEN) offers a consistent and documented dataset that can be used to guide large-scale field operations, to integrate hydrologic and ecological responses, and to support biological and ecological assessments that measure ecosystem responses to the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (Telis, 2006). To produce historic and near-real time maps of water depths, the EDEN requires a system-wide digital elevation model (DEM) of the ground surface. Accurate Everglades wetland ground surface elevation data were non-existent before the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) undertook the collection of highly accurate surface elevations at the regional scale. These form the foundation for EDEN DEM development. This development process is iterative as additional high accuracy elevation data (HAED) are collected, water surfacing algorithms improve, and additional ground-based ancillary data become available. Models are tested using withheld HAED and independently measured water depth data, and by using DEM data in EDEN adaptive management applications. Here the collection of HAED is briefly described before the approach to DEM development and the current EDEN DEM are detailed. Finally future research directions for continued model development, testing, and refinement are provided.

Application of MODFLOW’s farm process to California’s Central Valley

USGS Publications Warehouse

Faunt, Claudia; Hanson, Randall T.; Schmid, Wolfgang; Belitz, Kenneth

2008-01-01

landscape processes. The FMP provides coupled simulation of the ground-water and surface-water components of the hydrologic cycle for irrigated and non-irrigated areas. A dynamic allocation of ground-water recharge and ground-water pumping is simulated on the basis of residual crop-water demand after surface-water deliveries and root uptake from shallow ground water. The FMP links with the Streamflow Routing Package SFR1) to facilitate the simulated conveyance of surface-water deliveries. Ground-water Pumpage through both single-aquifer and multi-node wells, irrigation return flow, and variable irrigation efficiencies also are simulated by the FMP. The simulated deliveries and ground-water pumpage in the updated model reflect climatic differences, differences among defined water-balance regions, and changes in the waterdelivery system, during the 1961–2003 simulation period. The model is designed to accept forecasts from Global Climate Models (GCMs) to simulate the potential effects on surface-water delivery, ground-water pumpage, and ground-water storage in response to climate change. The model provides a detailed transient analysis of changes in ground-water availability in relation to climatic variability, urbanization, and changes in irrigated agriculture.

Thinking outside the boxes: Using current reading models to assess and treat developmental surface dyslexia.

PubMed

Law, Caroline; Cupples, Linda

2017-03-01

Improving the reading performance of children with developmental surface dyslexia has proved challenging, with limited generalisation of reading skills typically reported after intervention. The aim of this study was to provide tailored, theoretically motivated intervention to two children with developmental surface dyslexia. Our objectives were to improve their reading performance, and to evaluate the utility of current reading models in therapeutic practice. Detailed reading and cognitive profiles for two male children with developmental surface dyslexia were compared to the results obtained by age-matched control groups. The specific area of single-word reading difficulty for each child was identified within the dual route model (DRM) of reading, following which a theoretically motivated intervention programme was devised. Both children showed significant improvements in single-word reading ability after training, with generalisation effects observed for untrained words. However, the assessment and intervention results also differed for each child, reinforcing the view that the causes and consequences of developmental dyslexia, even within subtypes, are not homogeneous. Overall, the results of the interventions corresponded more closely with the DRM than other current reading models, in that real word reading improved in the absence of enhanced nonword reading for both children.

Numerical simulation of cavitation flow characteristic on Pelton turbine bucket surface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zeng, C. J.; Xiao, Y. X.; Zhu, W.; Yao, Y. Y.; Wang, Z. W.

2015-01-01

The internal flow in the rotating bucket of Pelton turbine is free water sheet flow with moving boundary. The runner operates under atmospheric and the cavitation in the bucket is still a controversial problem. While more and more field practice proved that there exists cavitation in the Pelton turbine bucket and the cavitation erosion may occur at the worst which will damage the bucket. So a well prediction about the cavitation flow on the bucket surface of Pelton turbine and the followed cavitation erosion characteristic can effectively guide the optimization of Pelton runner bucket and the stable operation of unit. This paper will investigate the appropriate numerical model and method for the unsteady 3D water-air-vapour multiphase cavitation flow which may occur on the Pelton bucket surface. The computational domain will include the nozzle pipe flow, semi-free surface jet and runner domain. Via comparing the numerical results of different turbulence, cavity and multiphase models, this paper will determine the suitable numerical model and method for the simulation of cavitation on the Pelton bucket surface. In order to investigate the conditions corresponding to the cavitation phenomena on the bucket surface, this paper will adopt the suitable model to simulate the various operational conditions of different water head and needle travel. Then, the characteristics of cavitation flow the development process of cavitation will be analysed in in great detail.

Radiative recombination and photon recycling in gallium arsenide solar cells

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lundstrom, M. S.; Melloch, M. R.; Lush, G. B.; Patkar, M. P.; Young, M.; Durbin, S. M.; Gray, J. L.; MacMillan, H. F.; Keyes, B. M.; Levi, D. H.; Ahrenkiel, R. K.

1992-12-01

This talk reviews experimental work to develop a detailed understanding of radiative recombination in n-GaAs. Photoluminescence decay studies of minority carrier lifetimes versus doping in n-GaAs are presented. We show that when the substrate is removed by etching, photon recycling is enhanced, and lifetimes increase by nearly a factor of 10. The doping-dependent absorption coefficient is measured, and detailed balance arguments are used to relate absorption and recombination. Modeling surfaces, verified by comparison with experiments, are used to examine the effects of recycling in conventional solar cells and to explore new design options.

Design, Modeling, Fabrication & Characterization of Industrial Si Solar Cells

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chowdhury, Ahrar Ahmed

Photovoltaic is a viable solution towards meeting the energy demand in an ecofriendly environment. To ensure the mass access in photovoltaic electricity, cost effective approach needs to be adapted. This thesis aims towards substrate independent fabrication process in order to achieve high efficiency cost effective industrial Silicon (Si) solar cells. Most cost-effective structures, such as, Al-BSF (Aluminum Back Surface Field), FSF (Front Surface Field) and bifacial cells are investigated in detail to exploit the efficiency potentials. First off, we introduced two-dimensional simulation model to design and modeling of most commonly used Si solar cells in today's PV arena. Best modelled results of high efficiency Al-BSF, FSF and bifacial cells are 20.50%, 22% and 21.68% respectively. Special attentions are given on the metallization design on all the structures in order to reduce the Ag cost. Furthermore, detail design and modeling were performed on FSF and bifacial cells. The FSF cells has potentials to gain 0.42%abs efficiency by combining the emitter design and front surface passivation. The prospects of bifacial cells can be revealed with the optimization of gridline widths and gridline numbers. Since, bifacial cells have metallization on both sides, a double fold cost saving is possible via innovative metallization design. Following modeling an effort is undertaken to reach the modelled result in fabrication the process. We proposed substrate independent fabrication process aiming towards establishing simultaneous processing sequences for both monofacial and bifacial cells. Subsequently, for the contact formation cost effective screen-printed technology is utilized throughout this thesis. The best Al-BSF cell attained efficiency ˜19.40%. Detail characterization was carried out to find a roadmap of achieving >20.50% efficiency Al-BSF cell. Since, n-type cell is free from Light Induced degradation (LID), recently there is a growing interest on FSF cell. Our best fabricated result of FSF cell achieved ˜18.40% efficiency. Characterizations on such cells provide that, cell performance can be further improved by utilizing high lifetime base wafer. We showed a step by step improvement on the device parameters to achieve ˜22% efficiency FSF cell. Finally, bifacial cells were fabricated with 13.32% front and 9.65% rear efficiency. The efficiency limitation is due to the quality of base wafer. Detail resistance breakdown was conducted on these cells to analyze parasitic resistance losses. It was found that base and gridline resistances dominated the FF loss. However, very low contact resistance of 20 mO-cm 2 at front side and 2 mO-cm2 at the rear side was observed by utilizing same Ag paste for front and rear contact formation. This might provide a pathway towards the search of an optimized Ag paste to attain high efficiency screen-printed bifacial cell. Detail investigations needs to be carried out to unveil the property of this Ag paste. In future work, more focus will be given on the metallization design to incorporate further reduction in Ag cost. Al2O3 passivation layer will be incorporated as a means to attain ˜23% screen-printed bifacial cell.

Detailed modeling of electron emission for transpiration cooling of hypersonic vehicles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hanquist, Kyle M.; Hara, Kentaro; Boyd, Iain D.

2017-02-01

Electron transpiration cooling (ETC) is a recently proposed approach to manage the high heating loads experienced at the sharp leading edges of hypersonic vehicles. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) can be used to investigate the feasibility of ETC in a hypersonic environment. A modeling approach is presented for ETC, which includes developing the boundary conditions for electron emission from the surface, accounting for the space-charge limit effects of the near-wall plasma sheath. The space-charge limit models are assessed using 1D direct-kinetic plasma sheath simulations, taking into account the thermionically emitted electrons from the surface. The simulations agree well with the space-charge limit theory proposed by Takamura et al. for emitted electrons with a finite temperature, especially at low values of wall bias, which validates the use of the theoretical model for the hypersonic CFD code. The CFD code with the analytical sheath models is then used for a test case typical of a leading edge radius in a hypersonic flight environment. The CFD results show that ETC can lower the surface temperature of sharp leading edges of hypersonic vehicles, especially at higher velocities, due to the increase in ionized species enabling higher electron heat extraction from the surface. The CFD results also show that space-charge limit effects can limit the ETC reduction of surface temperatures, in comparison to thermionic emission assuming no effects of the electric field within the sheath.

The Impact of Ensemble Kalman Filter Assimilation of Near-Surface Observations on the Predictability of Atmospheric Conditions over Complex Terrain: Results from Recent MATERHORN Field Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pu, Z.; Zhang, H.

2013-12-01

Near-surface atmospheric observations are the main conventional observations for weather forecasts. However, in modern numerical weather prediction, the use of surface observations, especially those data over complex terrain, remains a unique challenge. There are fundamental difficulties in assimilating surface observations with three-dimensional variational data assimilation (3DVAR). In our early study[1] (Pu et al. 2013), a series of observing system simulation experiments was performed with the ensemble Kalman filter (EnKF) and compared with 3DVAR for its ability to assimilate surface observations with 3DVAR. Using the advanced research version of the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model, results demonstrate that the EnKF can overcome some fundamental limitations that 3DVAR has in assimilating surface observations over complex terrain. Specifically, through its flow-dependent background error term, the EnKF produces more realistic analysis increments over complex terrain in general. Over complex terrain, the EnKF clearly performs better than 3DVAR, because it is more capable of handling surface data in the presence of terrain misrepresentation. With this presentation, we further examine the impact of EnKF data assimilation on the predictability of atmospheric conditions over complex terrain with the WRF model and the observations obtained from the most recent field experiments of the Mountain Terrain Atmospheric Modeling and Observations (MATERHORN) Program. The MATERHORN program provides comprehensive observations over mountainous regions, allowing the opportunity to study the predictability of atmospheric conditions over complex terrain in great details. Specifically, during fall 2012 and spring 2013, comprehensive observations were collected of soil states, surface energy budgets, near-surface atmospheric conditions, and profiling measurements from multiple platforms (e.g., balloon, lidar, radiosondes, etc.) over Dugway Proving Ground (DPG), Utah. With the near-surface observations and sounding data obtained during the MATERHORN fall 2012 field experiment, a month-long cycled EnKF analysis and forecast was produced with the WRF model and an advanced EnKF data assimilation system. Results are compared with the WRF near real-time forecasting during the same month and a set of analysis with 3DVAR data assimilation. Overall evaluation suggests some useful insights on the impacts of different data assimilation methods, surface and soil states, terrain representation on the predictability of atmospheric conditions over mountainous terrain. Details will be presented. References [1] Pu, Z., H. Zhang, and J. A. Anderson,. 'Ensemble Kalman filter assimilation of near-surface observations over complex terrain: Comparison with 3DVAR for short-range forecasts.' Tellus A, vol. 65,19620. 2013. http://dx.doi.org/10.3402/tellusa.v65i0. 19620.

A Regional Model for Malaria Vector Developmental Habitats Evaluated Using Explicit, Pond-Resolving Surface Hydrology Simulations.

PubMed

Asare, Ernest Ohene; Tompkins, Adrian Mark; Bomblies, Arne

2016-01-01

Dynamical malaria models can relate precipitation to the availability of vector breeding sites using simple models of surface hydrology. Here, a revised scheme is developed for the VECTRI malaria model, which is evaluated alongside the default scheme using a two year simulation by HYDREMATS, a 10 metre resolution, village-scale model that explicitly simulates individual ponds. Despite the simplicity of the two VECTRI surface hydrology parametrization schemes, they can reproduce the sub-seasonal evolution of fractional water coverage. Calibration of the model parameters is required to simulate the mean pond fraction correctly. The default VECTRI model tended to overestimate water fraction in periods subject to light rainfall events and underestimate it during periods of intense rainfall. This systematic error was improved in the revised scheme by including the a parametrization for surface run-off, such that light rainfall below the initial abstraction threshold does not contribute to ponds. After calibration of the pond model, the VECTRI model was able to simulate vector densities that compared well to the detailed agent based model contained in HYDREMATS without further parameter adjustment. Substituting local rain-gauge data with satellite-retrieved precipitation gave a reasonable approximation, raising the prospects for regional malaria simulations even in data sparse regions. However, further improvements could be made if a method can be derived to calibrate the key hydrology parameters of the pond model in each grid cell location, possibly also incorporating slope and soil texture.

A Regional Model for Malaria Vector Developmental Habitats Evaluated Using Explicit, Pond-Resolving Surface Hydrology Simulations

PubMed Central

Asare, Ernest Ohene; Tompkins, Adrian Mark; Bomblies, Arne

2016-01-01

Dynamical malaria models can relate precipitation to the availability of vector breeding sites using simple models of surface hydrology. Here, a revised scheme is developed for the VECTRI malaria model, which is evaluated alongside the default scheme using a two year simulation by HYDREMATS, a 10 metre resolution, village-scale model that explicitly simulates individual ponds. Despite the simplicity of the two VECTRI surface hydrology parametrization schemes, they can reproduce the sub-seasonal evolution of fractional water coverage. Calibration of the model parameters is required to simulate the mean pond fraction correctly. The default VECTRI model tended to overestimate water fraction in periods subject to light rainfall events and underestimate it during periods of intense rainfall. This systematic error was improved in the revised scheme by including the a parametrization for surface run-off, such that light rainfall below the initial abstraction threshold does not contribute to ponds. After calibration of the pond model, the VECTRI model was able to simulate vector densities that compared well to the detailed agent based model contained in HYDREMATS without further parameter adjustment. Substituting local rain-gauge data with satellite-retrieved precipitation gave a reasonable approximation, raising the prospects for regional malaria simulations even in data sparse regions. However, further improvements could be made if a method can be derived to calibrate the key hydrology parameters of the pond model in each grid cell location, possibly also incorporating slope and soil texture. PMID:27003834

Introduction to CAUSES: Description of Weather and Climate Models and Their Near-Surface Temperature Errors in 5 day Hindcasts Near the Southern Great Plains

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Morcrette, C. J.; Van Weverberg, K.; Ma, H. -Y.

The Clouds Above the United States and Errors at the Surface (CAUSES) project is aimed at gaining a better understanding of the physical processes that are leading to the creation of warm screen-temperature biases over the American Midwest, which are seen in many numerical models. Here in Part 1, a series of 5-day hindcasts, each initialised from re-analyses and performed by 11 different models, are evaluated against screen-temperature observations. All the models have a warm bias over parts of the Midwest. Several ways of quantifying the impact of the initial conditions on the evolution of the simulations are presented, showingmore » that within a day or so all models have produced a warm bias that is representative of their bias after 5 days, and not closely tied to the conditions at the initial time. Although the surface temperature biases sometimes coincide with locations where the re-analyses themselves have a bias, there are many regions in each of the models where biases grow over the course of 5 days or are larger than the biases present in the reanalyses. At the Southern Great Plains site, the model biases are shown to not be confined to the surface, but extend several kilometres into the atmosphere. In most of the models, there is a strong diurnal cycle in the screen-temperature bias and in some models the biases are largest around midday, while in the others it is largest during the night. While the different physical processes that are contributing to a given model having a screen-temperature error will be discussed in more detail in the companion papers (Parts 2 and 3) the fact that there is a spatial coherence in the phase of the diurnal cycle of the error across wide regions and that there are numerous locations across the Midwest where the diurnal cycle of the error is highly correlated with the diurnal cycle of the error at SGP suggest that the detailed evaluations of the role of different processes in contributing to errors at SGP will be representative of errors that are prevalent over a much larger spatial scale.« less

Introduction to CAUSES: Description of weather and climate models and their near-surface temperature errors in 5-day hindcasts near the Southern Great Plains

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Morcrette, Cyril J.; Van Weverberg, Kwinten; Ma, H

2018-02-16

The Clouds Above the United States and Errors at the Surface (CAUSES) project is aimed at gaining a better understanding of the physical processes that are leading to the creation of warm screen-temperature biases over the American Midwest, which are seen in many numerical models. Here in Part 1, a series of 5-day hindcasts, each initialised from re-analyses and performed by 11 different models, are evaluated against screen-temperature observations. All the models have a warm bias over parts of the Midwest. Several ways of quantifying the impact of the initial conditions on the evolution of the simulations are presented, showingmore » that within a day or so all models have produced a warm bias that is representative of their bias after 5 days, and not closely tied to the conditions at the initial time. Although the surface temperature biases sometimes coincide with locations where the re-analyses themselves have a bias, there are many regions in each of the models where biases grow over the course of 5 days or are larger than the biases present in the reanalyses. At the Southern Great Plains site, the model biases are shown to not be confined to the surface, but extend several kilometres into the atmosphere. In most of the models, there is a strong diurnal cycle in the screen-temperature bias and in some models the biases are largest around midday, while in the others it is largest during the night. While the different physical processes that are contributing to a given model having a screen-temperature error will be discussed in more detail in the companion papers (Parts 2 and 3) the fact that there is a spatial coherence in the phase of the diurnal cycle of the error across wide regions and that there are numerous locations across the Midwest where the diurnal cycle of the error is highly correlated with the diurnal cycle of the error at SGP suggest that the detailed evaluations of the role of different processes in contributing to errors at SGP will be representative of errors that are prevalent over a much larger spatial scale.« less

Scale-free networks of the earth’s surface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Gang; He, Jing; Luo, Kaitian; Gao, Peichao; Ma, Lei

2016-06-01

Studying the structure of real complex systems is of paramount importance in science and engineering. Despite our understanding of lots of real systems, we hardly cognize our unique living environment — the earth. The structural complexity of the earth’s surface is, however, still unknown in detail. Here, we define the modeling of graph topology for the earth’s surface, using the satellite images of the earth’s surface under different spatial resolutions derived from Google Earth. We find that the graph topologies of the earth’s surface are scale-free networks regardless of the spatial resolutions. For different spatial resolutions, the exponents of power-law distributions and the modularity are both quite different; however, the average clustering coefficient is approximately equal to a constant. We explore the morphology study of the earth’s surface, which enables a comprehensive understanding of the morphological feature of the earth’s surface.

Discrete cilia modelling with singularity distributions: application to the embryonic node and the airway surface liquid.

PubMed

Smith, D J; Gaffney, E A; Blake, J R

2007-07-01

We discuss in detail techniques for modelling flows due to finite and infinite arrays of beating cilia. An efficient technique, based on concepts from previous 'singularity models' is described, that is accurate in both near and far-fields. Cilia are modelled as curved slender ellipsoidal bodies by distributing Stokeslet and potential source dipole singularities along their centrelines, leading to an integral equation that can be solved using a simple and efficient discretisation. The computed velocity on the cilium surface is found to compare favourably with the boundary condition. We then present results for two topics of current interest in biology. 1) We present the first theoretical results showing the mechanism by which rotating embryonic nodal cilia produce a leftward flow by a 'posterior tilt,' and track particle motion in an array of three simulated nodal cilia. We find that, contrary to recent suggestions, there is no continuous layer of negative fluid transport close to the ciliated boundary. The mean leftward particle transport is found to be just over 1 mum/s, within experimentally measured ranges. We also discuss the accuracy of models that represent the action of cilia by steady rotlet arrays, in particular, confirming the importance of image systems in the boundary in establishing the far-field fluid transport. Future modelling may lead to understanding of the mechanisms by which morphogen gradients or mechanosensing cilia convert a directional flow to asymmetric gene expression. 2) We develop a more complex and detailed model of flow patterns in the periciliary layer of the airway surface liquid. Our results confirm that shear flow of the mucous layer drives a significant volume of periciliary liquid in the direction of mucus transport even during the recovery stroke of the cilia. Finally, we discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the singularity technique and outline future theoretical and experimental developments required to apply this technique to various other biological problems, particularly in the reproductive system.

Calculational investigation of impact cratering dynamics - Material motions during the crater growth period

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Austin, M. G.; Thomsen, J. M.; Ruhl, S. F.; Orphal, D. L.; Schultz, P. H.

1980-01-01

The considered investigation was conducted in connection with studies which are to provide a better understanding of the detailed dynamics of impact cratering processes. Such an understanding is vital for a comprehension of planetary surfaces. The investigation is the continuation of a study of impact dynamics in a uniform, nongeologic material at impact velocities achievable in laboratory-scale experiments conducted by Thomsen et al. (1979). A calculation of a 6 km/sec impact of a 0.3 g spherical 2024 aluminum projectile into low strength (50 kPa) homogeneous plasticene clay has been continued from 18 microseconds to past 600 microseconds. The cratering flow field, defined as the material flow field in the target beyond the transient cavity but well behind the outgoing shock wave, has been analyzed in detail to see how applicable the Maxwell Z-Model, developed from analysis of near-surface explosion cratering calculations, is to impact cratering

Well Construction Details, Groundwater Elevations, and Figures for the Tijeras Arroyo Groundwater Area at Sandia National Laboratories, New Mexico

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Copland, John R.

This Sandia National Laboratories / New Mexico (SNL/NM) submittal contains groundwater information that the United States Geological Survey (USGS) has requested. The USGS will use the information to assist Kirtland Air Force Base (KAFB) in its ongoing groundwater studies. The information in this submittal contains well-construction details and groundwater-elevation data for monitoring wells that SNL/NM has installed. Relevant well-construction data from other government agencies are also summarized. This submittal contains four data tables and three figures. Information in the tables has been used by SNL/NM to prepare groundwater compliance reports that have previously incorporated the three figures. The figures depictmore » the potentiometric surface for the Perched Groundwater System, the potentiometric surface for the Regional Aquifer, and a Conceptual Site Model for the vicinity of Tijeras Arroyo in the northern portion of KAFB.« less

Propulsion Instruments for Small Hall Thruster Integration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johnson, Lee K.; Conroy, David G.; Spanjers, Greg G.; Bromaghim, Daron R.

2001-01-01

Planning and development are underway for the propulsion instrumentation necessary for the next AFRL electric propulsion flight project, which includes both a small Hall thruster and a micro-PPT. These instruments characterize the environment induced by the thruster and the associated data constitute part of a 'user's manual' for these thrusters. Several instruments probe the back-flow region of the thruster plume, and the data are intended for comparison with detailed numerical models in this region. Specifically, an ion probe is under development to determine the energy and species distributions, and a Langmuir probe will be employed to characterize the electron density and temperature. Other instruments directly measure the effects of thruster operation on spacecraft thermal control surfaces, optical surfaces, and solar arrays. Specifically, radiometric, photometric, and solar-cell-based sensors are under development. Prototype test data for most sensors should be available, together with details of the instrumentation subsystem and spacecraft interface.

Heat Transfer and Flow on the First Stage Blade Tip of a Power Generation Gas Turbine. Part 2; Simulation Results

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ameri, A. A.; Bunker, R. S.

1999-01-01

A combined experimental and computational study has been performed to investigate the detailed distribution of convective heat transfer coefficients on the first stage blade tip surface for a geometry typical of large power generation turbines (>1OOMW). This paper is concerned with the numerical prediction of the tip surface heat transfer. Good comparison with the experimental measured distribution was achieved through accurate modeling of the most important features of the blade passage and heating arrangement as well as the details of experimental rig likely to affect the tip heat transfer. A sharp edge and a radiused edge tip were considered. The results using the radiused edge tip agreed better with the experimental data. This improved agreement was attributed to the absence of edge separation on the tip of the radiused edge blade.

Infrared thermography for detection of laminar-turbulent transition in low-speed wind tunnel testing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Joseph, Liselle A.; Borgoltz, Aurelien; Devenport, William

2016-05-01

This work presents the details of a system for experimentally identifying laminar-to-turbulent transition using infrared thermography applied to large, metal models in low-speed wind tunnel tests. Key elements of the transition detection system include infrared cameras with sensitivity in the 7.5- to 14.0-µm spectral range and a thin, insulating coat for the model. The fidelity of the system was validated through experiments on two wind-turbine blade airfoil sections tested at Reynolds numbers between Re = 1.5 × 106 and 3 × 106. Results compare well with measurements from surface pressure distributions and stethoscope observations. However, the infrared-based system provides data over a much broader range of conditions and locations on the model. This paper chronicles the design, implementation and validation of the infrared transition detection system, a subject which has not been widely detailed in the literature to date.

Modelling atmospheric transport of α-hexachlorocyclohexane in the Northern Hemispherewith a 3-D dynamical model: DEHM-POP

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hansen, K. M.; Christensen, J. H.; Brandt, J.; Frohn, L. M.; Geels, C.

2004-07-01

The Danish Eulerian Hemispheric Model (DEHM) is a 3-D dynamical atmospheric transport model originally developed to describe the atmospheric transport of sulphur into the Arctic. A new version of the model, DEHM-POP, developed to study the atmospheric transport and environmental fate of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) is presented. During environmental cycling, POPs can be deposited and re-emitted several times before reaching a final destination. A description of the exchange processes between the land/ocean surfaces and the atmosphere is included in the model to account for this multi-hop transport. The α-isomer of the pesticide hexachlorocyclohexane (α-HCH) is used as tracer in the model development. The structure of the model and processes included are described in detail. The results from a model simulation showing the atmospheric transport for the years 1991 to 1998 are presented and evaluated against measurements. The annual averaged atmospheric concentration of α-HCH for the 1990s is well described by the model; however, the shorter-term average concentration for most of the stations is not well captured. This indicates that the present simple surface description needs to be refined to get a better description of the air-surface exchange processes of POPs.

Modelling atmospheric transport of persistent organic pollutants in the Northern Hemisphere with a 3-D dynamical model: DEHM-POP

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hansen, K. M.; Christensen, J. H.; Brandt, J.; Frohn, L. M.; Geels, C.

2004-03-01

The Danish Eulerian Hemispheric Model (DEHM) is a 3-D dynamical atmospheric transport model originally developed to describe the atmospheric transport of sulphur into the Arctic. A new version of the model, DEHM-POP, developed to study the atmospheric transport and environmental fate of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) is presented. During environmental cycling, POPs can be deposited and re-emitted several times before reaching a final destination. A description of the exchange processes between the land/ocean surfaces and the atmosphere is included in the model to account for this multi-hop transport. The α-isomer of the pesticide hexachlorocyclohexane (α-HCH) is used as tracer in the model development. The structure of the model and processes included are described in detail. The results from a model simulation showing the atmospheric transport for the years 1991 to 1998 are presented and evaluated against measurements. The annual averaged atmospheric concentration of α-HCH for the 1990s is well described by the model; however, the shorter-term average concentration for most of the stations is not well captured. This indicates that the present simple surface description needs to be refined to get a better description of the air-surface exchange proceses of POPs.

Smart wing wind tunnel model design

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Martin, Christopher A.; Jasmin, Larry; Flanagan, John S.; Appa, Kari; Kudva, Jayanth N.

1997-05-01

To verify the predicted benefits of the smart wing concept, two 16% scale wind tunnel models, one conventional and the other incorporating smart wing design features, were designed, fabricated and tested. Meticulous design of the two models was essential to: (1) ensure the required factor of safety of four for operation in the NASA Langley TDT wind tunnel, (2) efficiently integrate the smart actuation systems, (3) quantify the performance improvements, and (4) facilitate eventual scale-up to operational aircraft. Significant challenges were encountered in designing the attachment of the shape memory alloy control surfaces to the wing box, integration of the SMA torque tube in the wing structure, and development of control mechanisms to protect the model and the tunnel in the event of failure of the smart systems. In this paper, detailed design of the two models are presented. First, dynamic scaling of the models based on the geometry and structural details of the full- scale aircraft is presented. Next, results of the stress, divergence and flutter analyses are summarized. Finally some of the challenges of integrating the smart actuators with the model are highlighted.

Spectral characterization and surface complexation modeling of low molecular weight organics on hematite nanoparticles: Role of electrolytes in the binding mechanism

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Given the ubiquity of organic-metal oxide interfaces in environmental and medical systems, it is incumbent to obtain mechanistic details at the molecular level from experimental procedures that mimic real systems and conditions. We report herein the adsorption pH envelopes (range 9-5) and isotherms...

Altmetric: 165More detailArticle | OPENClimate change-induced increases in precipitation are reducing the potential for solar ultraviolet radiation to inactivate pathogens in surface waters

EPA Science Inventory

Climate change is accelerating the release of dissolved organic matter (DOM) to inland and coastal waters through increases in precipitation, thawing of permafrost, and changes in vegetation. Our modeling approach suggests that the selective absorption of ultraviolet radiation (U...

Into the third dimension: Benefits of incorporating LiDAR data in wildlife habitat models

Treesearch

Melissa J. Merrick; John L. Koprowski; Craig Wilcox

2013-01-01

LiDAR (Light detection and ranging) is a tool with potential for characterizing wildlife habitat by providing detailed, three-dimensional landscape information not available from other remote sensing applications. The ability to accurately map structural components such as canopy height, canopy cover, woody debris, tree density, and ground surface has potential to...

CoFlame: A refined and validated numerical algorithm for modeling sooting laminar coflow diffusion flames

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eaves, Nick A.; Zhang, Qingan; Liu, Fengshan; Guo, Hongsheng; Dworkin, Seth B.; Thomson, Murray J.

2016-10-01

Mitigation of soot emissions from combustion devices is a global concern. For example, recent EURO 6 regulations for vehicles have placed stringent limits on soot emissions. In order to allow design engineers to achieve the goal of reduced soot emissions, they must have the tools to so. Due to the complex nature of soot formation, which includes growth and oxidation, detailed numerical models are required to gain fundamental insights into the mechanisms of soot formation. A detailed description of the CoFlame FORTRAN code which models sooting laminar coflow diffusion flames is given. The code solves axial and radial velocity, temperature, species conservation, and soot aggregate and primary particle number density equations. The sectional particle dynamics model includes nucleation, PAH condensation and HACA surface growth, surface oxidation, coagulation, fragmentation, particle diffusion, and thermophoresis. The code utilizes a distributed memory parallelization scheme with strip-domain decomposition. The public release of the CoFlame code, which has been refined in terms of coding structure, to the research community accompanies this paper. CoFlame is validated against experimental data for reattachment length in an axi-symmetric pipe with a sudden expansion, and ethylene-air and methane-air diffusion flames for multiple soot morphological parameters and gas-phase species. Finally, the parallel performance and computational costs of the code is investigated.

IR temperatures of Mauna Loa caldera obtained with multispectral thermal imager

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pendergast, Malcolm M.; O'Steen, Byron L.; Kurzeja, Robert J.

2002-01-01

A survey of surface temperatures of the Mauna Loa caldera during 7/14/00 and 7/15/00 was made by SRTC in conjunction with a MTI satellite image collection. The general variation of surface temperature appears quite predictable responding to solar heating. The analysis of detailed times series of temperature indicates systematic variations in temperature of 5 C corresponding to time scales of 3-5 minutes and space scales of 10-20 m. The average temperature patterns are consistent with those predicted by the Regional Atmospheric Modeling System (RAMS).

An adaptive Bayesian inversion for upper-mantle structure using surface waves and scattered body waves

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eilon, Zachary; Fischer, Karen M.; Dalton, Colleen A.

2018-07-01

We present a methodology for 1-D imaging of upper-mantle structure using a Bayesian approach that incorporates a novel combination of seismic data types and an adaptive parametrization based on piecewise discontinuous splines. Our inversion algorithm lays the groundwork for improved seismic velocity models of the lithosphere and asthenosphere by harnessing the recent expansion of large seismic arrays and computational power alongside sophisticated data analysis. Careful processing of P- and S-wave arrivals isolates converted phases generated at velocity gradients between the mid-crust and 300 km depth. This data is allied with ambient noise and earthquake Rayleigh wave phase velocities to obtain detailed VS and VP velocity models. Synthetic tests demonstrate that converted phases are necessary to accurately constrain velocity gradients, and S-p phases are particularly important for resolving mantle structure, while surface waves are necessary for capturing absolute velocities. We apply the method to several stations in the northwest and north-central United States, finding that the imaged structure improves upon existing models by sharpening the vertical resolution of absolute velocity profiles, offering robust uncertainty estimates, and revealing mid-lithospheric velocity gradients indicative of thermochemical cratonic layering. This flexible method holds promise for increasingly detailed understanding of the upper mantle.

Experimental evaluation of radiosity for room sound-field prediction.

PubMed

Hodgson, Murray; Nosal, Eva-Marie

2006-08-01

An acoustical radiosity model was evaluated for how it performs in predicting real room sound fields. This was done by comparing radiosity predictions with experimental results for three existing rooms--a squash court, a classroom, and an office. Radiosity predictions were also compared with those by ray tracing--a "reference" prediction model--for both specular and diffuse surface reflection. Comparisons were made for detailed and discretized echograms, sound-decay curves, sound-propagation curves, and the variations with frequency of four room-acoustical parameters--EDT, RT, D50, and C80. In general, radiosity and diffuse ray tracing gave very similar predictions. Predictions by specular ray tracing were often very different. Radiosity agreed well with experiment in some cases, less well in others. Definitive conclusions regarding the accuracy with which the rooms were modeled, or the accuracy of the radiosity approach, were difficult to draw. The results suggest that radiosity predicts room sound fields with some accuracy, at least as well as diffuse ray tracing and, in general, better than specular ray tracing. The predictions of detailed echograms are less accurate, those of derived room-acoustical parameters more accurate. The results underline the need to develop experimental methods for accurately characterizing the absorptive and reflective characteristics of room surfaces, possible including phase.

An adaptive Bayesian inversion for upper mantle structure using surface waves and scattered body waves

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eilon, Zachary; Fischer, Karen M.; Dalton, Colleen A.

2018-04-01

We present a methodology for 1-D imaging of upper mantle structure using a Bayesian approach that incorporates a novel combination of seismic data types and an adaptive parameterisation based on piecewise discontinuous splines. Our inversion algorithm lays the groundwork for improved seismic velocity models of the lithosphere and asthenosphere by harnessing the recent expansion of large seismic arrays and computational power alongside sophisticated data analysis. Careful processing of P- and S-wave arrivals isolates converted phases generated at velocity gradients between the mid-crust and 300 km depth. This data is allied with ambient noise and earthquake Rayleigh wave phase velocities to obtain detailed VS and VP velocity models. Synthetic tests demonstrate that converted phases are necessary to accurately constrain velocity gradients, and S-p phases are particularly important for resolving mantle structure, while surface waves are necessary for capturing absolute velocities. We apply the method to several stations in the northwest and north-central United States, finding that the imaged structure improves upon existing models by sharpening the vertical resolution of absolute velocity profiles, offering robust uncertainty estimates, and revealing mid-lithospheric velocity gradients indicative of thermochemical cratonic layering. This flexible method holds promise for increasingly detailed understanding of the upper mantle.

Hyperthermia with implanted electrodes.

PubMed

Brezovich, I A; Young, J H

1981-01-01

A general solution is given for the steady state form of the heat conduction equation applied to a simple tumor model which is imagined as being heated by means of electrical currents flowing between metallic electrodes. The model assumes a homogeneous tumor with no bloodflow. The solution for the special case of constant temperature and potential at the surface of the heated volume is examined in detail. The solution shows that there exists, independent of the particular tumor and electrode geometry, a close relationship between the steady state temperature distribution and the electrical potential. Among the more important implications of this relationship are that equipotential surfaces within the heated volume are also isothermal surfaces and that no areas of excessive heat at or near any sharp edges or corners of the electrodes should develop, despite the high electric field intensity. Based on the theory, a procedure is outlined which might greatly facilitate the determination of temperature distributions in phantoms. Finally, the usefulness and the limitations of the theoretical models in clinical hyperthermia are discussed.

Low-illumination image denoising method for wide-area search of nighttime sea surface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Song, Ming-zhu; Qu, Hong-song; Zhang, Gui-xiang; Tao, Shu-ping; Jin, Guang

2018-05-01

In order to suppress complex mixing noise in low-illumination images for wide-area search of nighttime sea surface, a model based on total variation (TV) and split Bregman is proposed in this paper. A fidelity term based on L1 norm and a fidelity term based on L2 norm are designed considering the difference between various noise types, and the regularization mixed first-order TV and second-order TV are designed to balance the influence of details information such as texture and edge for sea surface image. The final detection result is obtained by using the high-frequency component solved from L1 norm and the low-frequency component solved from L2 norm through wavelet transform. The experimental results show that the proposed denoising model has perfect denoising performance for artificially degraded and low-illumination images, and the result of image quality assessment index for the denoising image is superior to that of the contrastive models.

3-D Upper-Mantle Shear Velocity Model Beneath the Contiguous United States Based on Broadband Surface Wave from Ambient Seismic Noise

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xie, Jun; Chu, Risheng; Yang, Yingjie

2018-05-01

Ambient noise seismic tomography has been widely used to study crustal and upper-mantle shear velocity structures. Most studies, however, concentrate on short period (< 50 s) surface wave from ambient noise, while studies using long period surface wave from ambient noise are limited. In this paper, we demonstrate the feasibility of using long-period surface wave from ambient noise to study the lithospheric structure on a continental scale. We use broadband Rayleigh wave phase velocities to obtain a 3-D V S structures beneath the contiguous United States at period band of 10-150 s. During the inversion, 1-D shear wave velocity profile is parameterized using B-spline at each grid point and is inverted with nonlinear Markov Chain Monte Carlo method. Then, a 3-D shear velocity model is constructed by assembling all the 1-D shear velocity profiles. Our model is overall consistent with existing models which are based on multiple datasets or data from earthquakes. Our model along with the other post-USArray models reveal lithosphere structures in the upper mantle, which are consistent with the geological tectonic background (e.g., the craton root and regional upwelling provinces). The model has comparable resolution on lithosphere structures compared with many published results and can be used for future detailed regional or continental studies and analysis.

Field testing model predictions of foam coverage and bubble content in the surf zone

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shi, F.; Kirby, J. T.; Ma, G.; Holman, R. A.; Chickadel, C. C.

2012-12-01

Field-scale modeling of surfzone bubbles and foam coverage is challenging in terms of the computational intensity of multi-phase bubble models based on Navier-Stokes/VOF formulation. In this study, we developed the NHWAVE-bubble package, which includes a 3D non-hydrostatic wave model NHWAVE (Ma et al., 2012), a multi-phase bubble model and a foam model. NHWAVE uses a surface and bottom following sigma coordinate system, making it more applicable to 3D modeling of nearshore waves and circulation in a large-scale field domain. It has been extended to include a multiphase description of polydisperse bubble populations following the approach applied in a 3D VOF model by Ma et al. (2012). A model of a foam layer on the water surface is specified in the model package using a shallow water formulation based on a balance of drag forces due to wind and water column motion. Foam mass conservation includes source and sink terms representing outgassing of the water column, direct foam generation due to surface agitation, and erosion due to bubble bursting. The model is applied in a field scale domain at FRF, Duck, NC where optical data in either visible band (ARGUS) or infrared band were collected during 2010 Surf Zone Optics experiments. The decay of image brightness or intensity following the passage of wave crests is presumably tied to both decay of bubble populations and foam coverage after passage of a broken wave crest. Infrared imagery is likely to provide more detailed information which could separate active breaking from passive foam decay on the surface. Model results will be compared with the measurements with an attention to distinguishing between active generation and passive decay of the foam signature on the water surface.

Stochastic and Deterministic Approaches to Gas-grain Modeling of Interstellar Sources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vasyunin, Anton; Herbst, Eric; Caselli, Paola

During the last decade, our understanding of the chemistry on surfaces of interstellar grains has been significantly enchanced. Extensive laboratory studies have revealed complex structure and dynamics in interstellar ice analogues, thus making our knowledge much more detailed. In addition, the first qualitative investigations of new processes were made, such as non-thermal chemical desorption of species from dust grains into the gas. Not surprisingly, the rapid growth of knowledge about the physics and chemistry of interstellar ices led to the development of a new generation of astrochemical models. The models are typically characterized by more detailed treatments of the ice physics and chemistry than previously. The utilized numerical approaches vary greatly from microscopic models, in which every single molecule is traced, to ``mean field'' macroscopic models, which simulate the evolution of averaged characteristics of interstellar ices, such as overall bulk composition. While microscopic models based on a stochastic Monte Carlo approach are potentially able to simulate the evolution of interstellar ices with an account of most subtle effects found in a laboratory, their use is often impractical due to limited knowledge about star-forming regions and huge computational demands. On the other hand, deterministic macroscopic models that often utilize kinetic rate equations are computationally efficient but experience difficulties in incorporation of such potentially important effects as ice segregation or discreteness of surface chemical reactions. In my talk, I will review the state of the art in the development of gas-grain astrochemical models. I will discuss how to incorporate key features of ice chemistry and dynamics in the gas-grain astrochemical models, and how the incorporation of recent laboratory findings into gas-grain models helps to better match observations.

Progress toward an explicit mechanistic model for the light-driven pump, bacteriorhodopsin

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lanyi, J. K.

1999-01-01

Recent crystallographic information about the structure of bacteriorhodopsin and some of its photointermediates, together with a large amount of spectroscopic and mutational data, suggest a mechanistic model for how this protein couples light energy to the translocation of protons across the membrane. Now nearing completion, this detailed molecular model will describe the nature of the steric and electrostatic conflicts at the photoisomerized retinal, as well as the means by which it induces proton transfers in the two half-channels leading to the two membrane surfaces, thereby causing unidirectional, uphill transport.

The cooling rates of pahoehoe flows: The importance of lava porosity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jones, Alun C.

1993-01-01

Many theoretical models have been put forward to account for the cooling history of a lava flow; however, only limited detailed field data exist to validate these models. To accurately model the cooling of lava flows, data are required, not only on the heat loss mechanisms, but also on the surface skin development and the causes of differing cooling rates. This paper argues that the cause of such variations in the cooling rates are attributed, primarily, to the vesicle content and degassing history of the lava.

A Combined Experimental and Analytical Modeling Approach to Understanding Friction Stir Welding

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nunes, Arthur C., Jr.; Stewart, Michael B.; Adams, Glynn P.; Romine, Peter

1998-01-01

In the Friction Stir Welding (FSW) process a rotating pin tool joins the sides of a seam by stirring them together. This solid state welding process avoids problems with melting and hot-shortness presented by some difficult-to weld high-performance light alloys. The details of the plastic flow during the process are not well understood and are currently a subject of research. Two candidate models of the FSW process, the Mixed Zone (MZ) and the Single Slip Surface (S3) model are presented and their predictions compared to experimental data.

Influence of Soil Heterogeneity on Mesoscale Land Surface Fluxes During Washita '92

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jasinski, Michael F.; Jin, Hao

1998-01-01

The influence of soil heterogeneity on the partitioning of mesoscale land surface energy fluxes at diurnal time scales is investigated over a 10(exp 6) sq km domain centered on the Little Washita Basin, Oklahoma, for the period June 10 - 18, 1992. The sensitivity study is carried out using MM5/PLACE, the Penn State/NCAR MM5 model enhanced with the Parameterization for Land-Atmosphere-Cloud Exchange or PLACE. PLACE is a one-dimensional land surface model possessing detailed plant and soil water physics algorithms, multiple soil layers, and the capacity to model subgrid heterogeneity. A series of 12-hour simulations were conducted with identical atmospheric initialization and land surface characterization but with different initial soil moisture and texture. A comparison then was made of the simulated land surface energy flux fields, the partitioning of net radiation into latent and sensible heat, and the soil moisture fields. Results indicate that heterogeneity in both soil moisture and texture affects the spatial distribution and partitioning of mesoscale energy balance. Spatial averaging results in an overprediction of latent heat flux, and an underestimation of sensible heat flux. In addition to the primary focus on the partitioning of the land surface energy, the modeling effort provided an opportunity to examine the issue of initializing the soil moisture fields for coupled three-dimensional models. For the present case, the initial soil moisture and temperature were determined from off-line modeling using PLACE at each grid box, driven with a combination of observed and assimilated data fields.

Urban dust in the Guanzhong basin of China, part II: A case study of urban dust pollution using the WRF-Dust model.

PubMed

Li, Nan; Long, Xin; Tie, Xuexi; Cao, Junji; Huang, Rujin; Zhang, Rong; Feng, Tian; Liu, Suixin; Li, Guohui

2016-01-15

We developed a regional dust dynamical model (WRF-Dust) to simulate surface dust concentrations in the Guanzhong (GZ) basin of China during two typical dust cases (19th Aug. and 26th Nov., 2013), and compared model results with the surface measurements at 17 urban and rural sites. The important improvement of the model is to employ multiple high-resolution (0.5-500 m) remote sensing data to construct dust sources. The new data include the geographic information of constructions, croplands, and barrens over the GZ basin in summer and winter of 2013. For the first time, detailed construction dust emissions have been introduced in a regional dust model in large cities of China. Our results show that by including the detailed dust sources, model performance at simulating dust pollutions in the GZ basin is significantly improved. For example, the simulated dust concentration average for the 17 sites increases from 28 μg m(-3) to 59 μg m(-3), closing to the measured concentration of 66 μg m(-3). In addition, the correlation coefficient (r) between the calculated and measured dust concentrations is also improved from 0.17 to 0.57, suggesting that our model better presents the spatial variation. Further analysis shows that urban construction activities are the crucial source in controlling urban dust pollutions. It should be considered by policy makers for mitigating particulate air pollution in many Chinese cities. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Aqueous aerosol SOA formation: impact on aerosol physical properties.

PubMed

Woo, Joseph L; Kim, Derek D; Schwier, Allison N; Li, Ruizhi; McNeill, V Faye

2013-01-01

Organic chemistry in aerosol water has recently been recognized as a potentially important source of secondary organic aerosol (SOA) material. This SOA material may be surface-active, therefore potentially affecting aerosol heterogeneous activity, ice nucleation, and CCN activity. Aqueous aerosol chemistry has also been shown to be a potential source of light-absorbing products ("brown carbon"). We present results on the formation of secondary organic aerosol material in aerosol water and the associated changes in aerosol physical properties from GAMMA (Gas-Aerosol Model for Mechanism Analysis), a photochemical box model with coupled gas and detailed aqueous aerosol chemistry. The detailed aerosol composition output from GAMMA was coupled with two recently developed modules for predicting a) aerosol surface tension and b) the UV-Vis absorption spectrum of the aerosol, based on our previous laboratory observations. The simulation results suggest that the formation of oligomers and organic acids in bulk aerosol water is unlikely to perturb aerosol surface tension significantly. Isoprene-derived organosulfates are formed in high concentrations in acidic aerosols under low-NO(x) conditions, but more experimental data are needed before the potential impact of these species on aerosol surface tension may be evaluated. Adsorption of surfactants from the gas phase may further suppress aerosol surface tension. Light absorption by aqueous aerosol SOA material is driven by dark glyoxal chemistry and is highest under high-NO(x) conditions, at high relative humidity, in the early morning hours. The wavelength dependence of the predicted absorption spectra is comparable to field observations and the predicted mass absorption efficiencies suggest that aqueous aerosol chemistry can be a significant source of aerosol brown carbon under urban conditions.

Temporal Arctic longwave surface emissivity feedbacks in the Community Earth System Model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kuo, C.; Feldman, D.; Huang, X.; Flanner, M.; Yang, P.; Chen, X.

2017-12-01

We have investigated how the inclusion of realistic and consistent surface emissivity in both land-surface and atmospheric components of the CESM coupled-climate model affects a wide range of climate variables. We did this by replacing the unit emissivity values in RRTMG_LW for water, fine-grained snow, and desert scenes with spectral emissivity values, and by replacing broadband emissivity values in surface components with the Planck-curve weighted counterparts. We find that this harmonized treatment of surface emissivity within CESM can be important for reducing high-latitude temperature biases. We also find that short-term effects of atmospheric dynamics and spectral information need to be considered to understand radiative effects in higher detail, and are possible with radiative kernels computed for every grid and time point for the entire model integration period. We find that conventional climatological feedback calculations indicate that sea-ice emissivity feedback is positive in sign, but that the radiative effects of the difference in emissivity between frozen and unfrozen surfaces exhibit seasonal dependence. Furthermore, this seasonality itself exhibits meridional asymmetry due to differences in sea-ice response to climate forcing between the Arctic and the Antarctic. In the Arctic, this seasonal, temporally higher order analysis exhibits increasing outgoing surface emissivity radiative response in a warming climate. While the sea-ice emissivity feedback and seasonal sea-ice emissivity radiative response amplitudes are a few percent of surface albedo feedbacks, the feedback analysis methods outlined in this work demonstrate that spatially and temporally localized feedback analysis can give insight into the mechanisms at work on those scales which differ in amplitude and sign from conventional climatological analyses. We note that the inclusion of this realistic physics leads to improved agreement between CESM model results and Arctic surface temperatures and sea-ice trends. This reduction of persistent high-latitude model biases suggests that the current unrealistic representation of surface emissivity in model component radiation routines may be an important contributing factor to cold-pole biases.

Effect of inlet modelling on surface drainage in coupled urban flood simulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jang, Jiun-Huei; Chang, Tien-Hao; Chen, Wei-Bo

2018-07-01

For a highly developed urban area with complete drainage systems, flood simulation is necessary for describing the flow dynamics from rainfall, to surface runoff, and to sewer flow. In this study, a coupled flood model based on diffusion wave equations was proposed to simulate one-dimensional sewer flow and two-dimensional overland flow simultaneously. The overland flow model provides details on the rainfall-runoff process to estimate the excess runoff that enters the sewer system through street inlets for sewer flow routing. Three types of inlet modelling are considered in this study, including the manhole-based approach that ignores the street inlets by draining surface water directly into manholes, the inlet-manhole approach that drains surface water into manholes that are each connected to multiple inlets, and the inlet-node approach that drains surface water into sewer nodes that are connected to individual inlets. The simulation results were compared with a high-intensity rainstorm event that occurred in 2015 in Taipei City. In the verification of the maximum flood extent, the two approaches that considered street inlets performed considerably better than that without street inlets. When considering the aforementioned models in terms of temporal flood variation, using manholes as receivers leads to an overall inefficient draining of the surface water either by the manhole-based approach or by the inlet-manhole approach. Using the inlet-node approach is more reasonable than using the inlet-manhole approach because the inlet-node approach greatly reduces the fluctuation of the sewer water level. The inlet-node approach is more efficient in draining surface water by reducing flood volume by 13% compared with the inlet-manhole approach and by 41% compared with the manhole-based approach. The results show that inlet modeling has a strong influence on drainage efficiency in coupled flood simulation.

Resonance and streaming of armored microbubbles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Spelman, Tamsin; Bertin, Nicolas; Stephen, Olivier; Marmottant, Philippe; Lauga, Eric

2015-11-01

A new experimental technique involves building a hollow capsule which partially encompasses a microbubble, creating an ``armored microbubble'' with long lifespan. Under acoustic actuation, such bubble produces net streaming flows. In order to theoretically model the induced flow, we first extend classical models of free bubbles to describe the streaming flow around a spherical body for any known axisymmetric shape oscillation. A potential flow model is then employed to determine the resonance modes of the armored microbubble. We finally use a more detailed viscous model to calculate the surface shape oscillations at the experimental driving frequency, and from this we predict the generated streaming flows.

Global investigation of potential energy surfaces for the pyrolysis of C(1)-C(3) hydrocarbons: toward the development of detailed kinetic models from first principles.

PubMed

Ryazantsev, Mikhail N; Jamal, Adeel; Maeda, Satoshi; Morokuma, Keiji

2015-11-07

Detailed kinetic models (DKMs) are the most fundamental "bottom-up" approaches to computational investigation of the pyrolysis and oxidation of fuels. The weakest points of existing DKMs are incomplete information about the reaction types that can be involved in the potential energy surfaces (PESs) in pyrolysis and oxidation processes. Also, the computational thermodynamic parameters available in the literature vary widely with the level of theory employed. More sophisticated models require improvement both in our knowledge of the type of the reactions involved and the consistency of thermodynamic and kinetic parameters. In this paper, we aim to address these issues by developing ab initio models that can be used to describe early stages of pyrolysis of C1-C3 hydrocarbons. We applied a recently developed global reaction route mapping (GRRM) strategy to systematically investigate the PES of the pyrolysis of C1-C3 hydrocarbons at a consistent level of theory. The reactions are classified into 14 reaction types. The critical points on the PES for all reactions in the network are calculated at the highly accurate UCCSD(T)-F12b/cc-pVTZ//UM06-2X/cc-pVTZ level of theory. The data reported in this paper can be used for first principle calculations of kinetic constants and for a subsequent study on modeling the evolution of the species from the reaction network of the pyrolysis and oxidation of C1-C3 hydrocarbons.

Axisymmetric Lattice Boltzmann Model of Droplet Impact on Solid Surfaces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dalgamoni, Hussein; Yong, Xin

2017-11-01

Droplet impact is a ubiquitous fluid phenomena encountered in scientific and engineering applications such as ink-jet printing, coating, electronics manufacturing, and many others. It is of great technological importance to understand the detailed dynamics of drop impact on various surfaces. The lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) emerges as an efficient method for modeling complex fluid systems involving rapidly evolving fluid-fluid and fluid-solid interfaces with complex geometries. In this work, we model droplet impact on flat solid substrates with well-defined wetting behavior using a two-phase axisymmetric LBM with high density and viscosity contrasts. We extend the two-dimensional Lee and Liu model to capture axisymmetric effect in the normal impact. First we compare the 2D axisymmetric results with the 2D and 3D results reported by Lee and Liu to probe the effect of axisymmetric terms. Then, we explore the effects of Weber number, Ohnesorge number, and droplet-surface equilibrium contact angle on the impact. The dynamic contact angle and spreading factor of the droplet during impact are investigated to qualitatively characterize the impact dynamics.

Reflectance from images: a model-based approach for human faces.

PubMed

Fuchs, Martin; Blanz, Volker; Lensch, Hendrik; Seidel, Hans-Peter

2005-01-01

In this paper, we present an image-based framework that acquires the reflectance properties of a human face. A range scan of the face is not required. Based on a morphable face model, the system estimates the 3D shape and establishes point-to-point correspondence across images taken from different viewpoints and across different individuals' faces. This provides a common parameterization of all reconstructed surfaces that can be used to compare and transfer BRDF data between different faces. Shape estimation from images compensates deformations of the face during the measurement process, such as facial expressions. In the common parameterization, regions of homogeneous materials on the face surface can be defined a priori. We apply analytical BRDF models to express the reflectance properties of each region and we estimate their parameters in a least-squares fit from the image data. For each of the surface points, the diffuse component of the BRDF is locally refined, which provides high detail. We present results for multiple analytical BRDF models, rendered at novel orientations and lighting conditions.

Mars Tumbleweed Simulation Using Singular Perturbation Theory

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Raiszadeh, Behzad; Calhoun, Phillip

2005-01-01

The Mars Tumbleweed is a new surface rover concept that utilizes Martian winds as the primary source of mobility. Several designs have been proposed for the Mars Tumbleweed, all using aerodynamic drag to generate force for traveling about the surface. The Mars Tumbleweed, in its deployed configuration, must be large and lightweight to provide the ratio of drag force to rolling resistance necessary to initiate motion from the Martian surface. This paper discusses the dynamic simulation details of a candidate Tumbleweed design. The dynamic simulation model must properly evaluate and characterize the motion of the tumbleweed rover to support proper selection of system design parameters. Several factors, such as model flexibility, simulation run times, and model accuracy needed to be considered in modeling assumptions. The simulation was required to address the flexibility of the rover and its interaction with the ground, and properly evaluate its mobility. Proper assumptions needed to be made such that the simulated dynamic motion is accurate and realistic while not overly burdened by long simulation run times. This paper also shows results that provided reasonable correlation between the simulation and a drop/roll test of a tumbleweed prototype.

Flight crew aiding for recovery from subsystem failures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hudlicka, E.; Corker, K.; Schudy, R.; Baron, Sheldon

1990-01-01

Some of the conceptual issues associated with pilot aiding systems are discussed and an implementation of one component of such an aiding system is described. It is essential that the format and content of the information the aiding system presents to the crew be compatible with the crew's mental models of the task. It is proposed that in order to cooperate effectively, both the aiding system and the flight crew should have consistent information processing models, especially at the point of interface. A general information processing strategy, developed by Rasmussen, was selected to serve as the bridge between the human and aiding system's information processes. The development and implementation of a model-based situation assessment and response generation system for commercial transport aircraft are described. The current implementation is a prototype which concentrates on engine and control surface failure situations and consequent flight emergencies. The aiding system, termed Recovery Recommendation System (RECORS), uses a causal model of the relevant subset of the flight domain to simulate the effects of these failures and to generate appropriate responses, given the current aircraft state and the constraints of the current flight phase. Since detailed information about the aircraft state may not always be available, the model represents the domain at varying levels of abstraction and uses the less detailed abstraction levels to make inferences when exact information is not available. The structure of this model is described in detail.

Ab initio study of perovskite type oxide materials for solid oxide fuel cells

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Yueh-Lin

2011-12-01

Perovskite type oxides form a family of materials of significant interest for cathodes and electrolytes of solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs). These perovskites not only are active catalysts for surface oxygen reduction (OR) reactions but also allow incorporating the spilt oxygen monomers into their bulk, an unusual and poorly understood catalytic mechanism that couples surface and bulk properties. The OR mechanisms can be influenced strongly by defects in perovskite oxides, composition, and surface defect structures. This thesis work initiates a first step in developing a general strategy based on first-principles calculations for detailed control of oxygen vacancy content, transport rates of surface and bulk oxygen species, and surface/interfacial reaction kinetics. Ab initio density functional theory methods are used to model properties relevant for the OR reactions on SOFC cathodes. Three main research thrusts, which focus on bulk defect chemistry, surface defect structures and surface energetics, and surface catalytic properties, are carried to investigate different level of material chemistry for improved understanding of key physics/factors that govern SOFC cathode OR activity. In the study of bulk defect chemistry, an ab initio based defect model is developed for modeling defect chemistry of LaMnO 3 under SOFC conditions. The model suggests an important role for defect interactions, which are typically excluded in previous defect models. In the study of surface defect structures and surface energetics, it is shown that defect energies change dramatically (1˜2 eV lower) from bulk values near surfaces. Based on the existing bulk defect model with the calculated ab initio surface defect energetics, we predict the (001) MnO 2 surface oxygen vacancy concentration of (La0.9Sr0.1 )MnO3 is about 5˜6 order magnitude higher than that of the bulk under typical SOFC conditions. Finally, for surface catalytic properties, we show that area specific resistance, oxygen exchange rates, and key OR energetics of the SOFC cathode perovskites, can be described by a single descriptor, either the bulk O p-band or the bulk oxygen vacancy formation energy. These simple descriptors will further enable first-principles optimization/design of new SOFC cathodes.

Using Simplistic Shape/Surface Models to Predict Brightness in Estimation Filters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wetterer, C.; Sheppard, D.; Hunt, B.

The prerequisite for using brightness (radiometric flux intensity) measurements in an estimation filter is to have a measurement function that accurately predicts a space objects brightness for variations in the parameters of interest. These parameters include changes in attitude and articulations of particular components (e.g. solar panel east-west offsets to direct sun-tracking). Typically, shape models and bidirectional reflectance distribution functions are combined to provide this forward light curve modeling capability. To achieve precise orbit predictions with the inclusion of shape/surface dependent forces such as radiation pressure, relatively complex and sophisticated modeling is required. Unfortunately, increasing the complexity of the models makes it difficult to estimate all those parameters simultaneously because changes in light curve features can now be explained by variations in a number of different properties. The classic example of this is the connection between the albedo and the area of a surface. If, however, the desire is to extract information about a single and specific parameter or feature from the light curve, a simple shape/surface model could be used. This paper details an example of this where a complex model is used to create simulated light curves, and then a simple model is used in an estimation filter to extract out a particular feature of interest. In order for this to be successful, however, the simple model must be first constructed using training data where the feature of interest is known or at least known to be constant.

Parameterizing atmosphere-land surface exchange for climate models with satellite data: A case study for the Southern Great Plains CART site

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gao, W.

High-resolution satellite data provide detailed, quantitative descriptions of land surface characteristics over large areas so that objective scale linkage becomes feasible. With the aid of satellite data, Sellers et al. and Wood and Lakshmi examined the linearity of processes scaled up from 30 m to 15 km. If the phenomenon is scale invariant, then the aggregated value of a function or flux is equivalent to the function computed from aggregated values of controlling variables. The linear relation may be realistic for limited land areas having no large surface contrasts to cause significant horizontal exchange. However, for areas with sharp surfacemore » contrasts, horizontal exchange and different dynamics in the atmospheric boundary may induce nonlinear interactions, such as at interfaces of land-water, forest-farm land, and irrigated crops-desert steppe. The linear approach, however, represents the simplest scenario, and is useful for developing an effective scheme for incorporating subgrid land surface processes into large-scale models. Our studies focus on coupling satellite data and ground measurements with a satellite-data-driven land surface model to parameterize surface fluxes for large-scale climate models. In this case study, we used surface spectral reflectance data from satellite remote sensing to characterize spatial and temporal changes in vegetation and associated surface parameters in an area of about 350 {times} 400 km covering the southern Great Plains (SGP) Cloud and Radiation Testbed (CART) site of the US Department of Energy`s Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Program.« less

Wax Layers on Cosmos bipinnatus Petals Contribute Unequally to Total Petal Water Resistance1[OPEN

PubMed Central

Buschhaus, Christopher; Hager, Dana; Jetter, Reinhard

2015-01-01

Cuticular waxes coat all primary aboveground plant organs as a crucial adaptation to life on land. Accordingly, the properties of waxes have been studied in much detail, albeit with a strong focus on leaf and fruit waxes. Flowers have life histories and functions largely different from those of other organs, and it remains to be seen whether flower waxes have compositions and physiological properties differing from those on other organs. This work provides a detailed characterization of the petal waxes, using Cosmos bipinnatus as a model, and compares them with leaf and stem waxes. The abaxial petal surface is relatively flat, whereas the adaxial side consists of conical epidermis cells, rendering it approximately 3.8 times larger than the projected petal area. The petal wax was found to contain unusually high concentrations of C22 and C24 fatty acids and primary alcohols, much shorter than those in leaf and stem waxes. Detailed analyses revealed distinct differences between waxes on the adaxial and abaxial petal sides and between epicuticular and intracuticular waxes. Transpiration resistances equaled 3 × 104 and 1.5 × 104 s m−1 for the adaxial and abaxial surfaces, respectively. Petal surfaces of C. bipinnatus thus impose relatively weak water transport barriers compared with typical leaf cuticles. Approximately two-thirds of the abaxial surface water barrier was found to reside in the epicuticular wax layer of the petal and only one-third in the intracuticular wax. Altogether, the flower waxes of this species had properties greatly differing from those on vegetative organs. PMID:25413359

Evolution of surface structure in laser-preheated, perturbed materials

DOE PAGES

Di Stefano, Carlos; Merritt, Elizabeth Catherine; Doss, Forrest William; ...

2017-02-03

Here, we report an experimental and computational study investigating the effects of laser preheat on the hydrodynamic behavior of a material layer. In particular, we find that perturbation of the surface of the layer results in a complex interaction, in which the bulk of the layer develops density, pressure, and temperature structure and in which the surface experiences instability-like behavior, including mode coupling. A uniform one-temperature preheat model is used to reproduce the experimentally observed behavior, and we find that this model can be used to capture the evolution of the layer, while also providing evidence of complexities in themore » preheat behavior. Lastly, this result has important consequences for inertially confined fusion plasmas, which can be difficult to diagnose in detail, as well as for laser hydrodynamics experiments, which generally depend on assumptions about initial conditions in order to interpret their results.« less

Precise Determination of the Zero-Gravity Surface Figure of a Mirror without Gravity-Sag Modeling

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bloemhof, Eric E.; Lam, Jonathan C.; Feria, V. Alfonso; Chang, Zensheu

2007-01-01

The zero-gravity surface figure of optics used in spaceborne astronomical instruments must be known to high accuracy, but earthbound metrology is typically corrupted by gravity sag. Generally, inference of the zero-gravity surface figure from a measurement made under normal gravity requires finite-element analysis (FEA), and for accurate results the mount forces must be well characterized. We describe how to infer the zero-gravity surface figure very precisely using the alternative classical technique of averaging pairs of measurements made with the direction of gravity reversed. We show that mount forces as well as gravity must be reversed between the two measurements and discuss how the St. Venant principle determines when a reversed mount force may be considered to be applied at the same place in the two orientations. Our approach requires no finite-element modeling and no detailed knowledge of mount forces other than the fact that they reverse and are applied at the same point in each orientation. If mount schemes are suitably chosen, zero-gravity optical surfaces may be inferred much more simply and more accurately than with FEA.

Optimized aerodynamic design process for subsonic transport wing fitted with winglets. [wind tunnel model

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kuhlman, J. M.

1979-01-01

The aerodynamic design of a wind-tunnel model of a wing representative of that of a subsonic jet transport aircraft, fitted with winglets, was performed using two recently developed optimal wing-design computer programs. Both potential flow codes use a vortex lattice representation of the near-field of the aerodynamic surfaces for determination of the required mean camber surfaces for minimum induced drag, and both codes use far-field induced drag minimization procedures to obtain the required spanloads. One code uses a discrete vortex wake model for this far-field drag computation, while the second uses a 2-D advanced panel wake model. Wing camber shapes for the two codes are very similar, but the resulting winglet camber shapes differ widely. Design techniques and considerations for these two wind-tunnel models are detailed, including a description of the necessary modifications of the design geometry to format it for use by a numerically controlled machine for the actual model construction.

Three Dimensional Modeling via Photographs for Documentation of a Village Bath

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Balta, H. B.; Hamamcioglu-Turan, M.; Ocali, O.

2013-07-01

The aim of this study is supporting the conceptual discussions of architectural restoration with three dimensional modeling of monuments based on photogrammetric survey. In this study, a 16th century village bath in Ulamış, Seferihisar, and Izmir is modeled for documentation. Ulamış is one of the historical villages within which Turkish population first settled in the region of Seferihisar - Urla. The methodology was tested on an antique monument; a bath with a cubical form. Within the limits of this study, only the exterior of the bath was modeled. The presentation scale for the bath was determined as 1 / 50, considering the necessities of designing structural interventions and architectural ones within the scope of a restoration project. The three dimensional model produced is a realistic document presenting the present situation of the ruin. Traditional plan, elevation and perspective drawings may be produced from the model, in addition to the realistic textured renderings and wireframe representations. The model developed in this study provides opportunity for presenting photorealistic details of historical morphologies in scale. Compared to conventional drawings, the renders based on the 3d models provide an opportunity for conceiving architectural details such as color, material and texture. From these documents, relatively more detailed restitution hypothesis can be developed and intervention decisions can be taken. Finally, the principles derived from the case study can be used for 3d documentation of historical structures with irregular surfaces.

High-fidelity simulation capability for virtual testing of seismic and acoustic sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wilson, D. Keith; Moran, Mark L.; Ketcham, Stephen A.; Lacombe, James; Anderson, Thomas S.; Symons, Neill P.; Aldridge, David F.; Marlin, David H.; Collier, Sandra L.; Ostashev, Vladimir E.

2005-05-01

This paper describes development and application of a high-fidelity, seismic/acoustic simulation capability for battlefield sensors. The purpose is to provide simulated sensor data so realistic that they cannot be distinguished by experts from actual field data. This emerging capability provides rapid, low-cost trade studies of unattended ground sensor network configurations, data processing and fusion strategies, and signatures emitted by prototype vehicles. There are three essential components to the modeling: (1) detailed mechanical signature models for vehicles and walkers, (2) high-resolution characterization of the subsurface and atmospheric environments, and (3) state-of-the-art seismic/acoustic models for propagating moving-vehicle signatures through realistic, complex environments. With regard to the first of these components, dynamic models of wheeled and tracked vehicles have been developed to generate ground force inputs to seismic propagation models. Vehicle models range from simple, 2D representations to highly detailed, 3D representations of entire linked-track suspension systems. Similarly detailed models of acoustic emissions from vehicle engines are under development. The propagation calculations for both the seismics and acoustics are based on finite-difference, time-domain (FDTD) methodologies capable of handling complex environmental features such as heterogeneous geologies, urban structures, surface vegetation, and dynamic atmospheric turbulence. Any number of dynamic sources and virtual sensors may be incorporated into the FDTD model. The computational demands of 3D FDTD simulation over tactical distances require massively parallel computers. Several example calculations of seismic/acoustic wave propagation through complex atmospheric and terrain environments are shown.

Dislocation nucleation facilitated by atomic segregation

DOE PAGES

Zou, Lianfeng; Yang, Chaoming; Lei, Yinkai; ...

2017-11-27

Surface segregation—the enrichment of one element at the surface, relative to the bulk—is ubiquitous to multi-component materials. Using the example of a Cu–Au solid solution, we demonstrate that compositional variations induced by surface segregation are accompanied by misfit strain and the formation of dislocations in the subsurface region via a surface di˙usion and trapping process. The resulting chemically ordered surface regions acts as an e˙ective barrier that inhibits subsequent dislocation annihilation at free surfaces. Using dynamic, atomic-scale resolution electron microscopy observations and theory modelling, we show that the dislocations are highly active, and we delineate the specific atomic-scale mechanisms associatedmore » with their nucleation, glide, climb, and annihilation at elevated temperatures. As a result, these observations provide mechanistic detail of how dislocations nucleate and migrate at heterointerfaces in dissimilar-material systems.« less

Species-dependent hydrodynamics of flagellum-tethered bacteria in early biofilm development.

PubMed

Bennett, Rachel R; Lee, Calvin K; De Anda, Jaime; Nealson, Kenneth H; Yildiz, Fitnat H; O'Toole, George A; Wong, Gerard C L; Golestanian, Ramin

2016-02-01

Monotrichous bacteria on surfaces exhibit complex spinning movements. Such spinning motility is often a part of the surface detachment launch sequence of these cells. To understand the impact of spinning motility on bacterial surface interactions, we develop a hydrodynamic model of a surface-bound bacterium, which reproduces behaviours that we observe in Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Shewanella oneidensis and Vibrio cholerae, and provides a detailed dictionary for connecting observed spinning behaviour to bacteria-surface interactions. Our findings indicate that the fraction of the flagellar filament adhered to the surface, the rotation torque of this appendage, the flexibility of the flagellar hook and the shape of the bacterial cell dictate the likelihood that a microbe will detach and the optimum orientation that it should have during detachment. These findings are important for understanding species-specific reversible attachment, the key transition event between the planktonic and biofilm lifestyle for motile, rod-shaped organisms. © 2016 The Author(s).

Water's Interfacial Hydrogen Bonding Structure Reveals the Effective Strength of Surface-Water Interactions.

PubMed

Shin, Sucheol; Willard, Adam P

2018-06-05

We combine all-atom molecular dynamics simulations with a mean field model of interfacial hydrogen bonding to analyze the effect of surface-water interactions on the structural and energetic properties of the liquid water interface. We show that the molecular structure of water at a weakly interacting ( i.e., hydrophobic) surface is resistant to change unless the strength of surface-water interactions are above a certain threshold. We find that below this threshold water's interfacial structure is homogeneous and insensitive to the details of the disordered surface, however, above this threshold water's interfacial structure is heterogeneous. Despite this heterogeneity, we demonstrate that the equilibrium distribution of molecular orientations can be used to quantify the energetic component of the surface-water interactions that contribute specifically to modifying the interfacial hydrogen bonding network. We identify this specific energetic component as a new measure of hydrophilicity, which we refer to as the intrinsic hydropathy.

An Efficient Approach to Modeling the Topographic Control of Surface Hydrology for Regional and Global Climate Modeling.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stieglitz, Marc; Rind, David; Famiglietti, James; Rosenzweig, Cynthia

1997-01-01

The current generation of land-surface models used in GCMs view the soil column as the fundamental hydrologic unit. While this may be effective in simulating such processes as the evolution of ground temperatures and the growth/ablation of a snowpack at the soil plot scale, it effectively ignores the role topography plays in the development of soil moisture heterogeneity and the subsequent impacts of this soil moisture heterogeneity on watershed evapotranspiration and the partitioning of surface fluxes. This view also ignores the role topography plays in the timing of discharge and the partitioning of discharge into surface runoff and baseflow. In this paper an approach to land-surface modeling is presented that allows us to view the watershed as the fundamental hydrologic unit. The analytic form of TOPMODEL equations are incorporated into the soil column framework and the resulting model is used to predict the saturated fraction of the watershed and baseflow in a consistent fashion. Soil moisture heterogeneity represented by saturated lowlands subsequently impacts the partitioning of surface fluxes, including evapotranspiration and runoff. The approach is computationally efficient, allows for a greatly improved simulation of the hydrologic cycle, and is easily coupled into the existing framework of the current generation of single column land-surface models. Because this approach uses the statistics of the topography rather than the details of the topography, it is compatible with the large spatial scales of today's regional and global climate models. Five years of meteorological and hydrological data from the Sleepers River watershed located in the northeastern United States where winter snow cover is significant were used to drive the new model. Site validation data were sufficient to evaluate model performance with regard to various aspects of the watershed water balance, including snowpack growth/ablation, the spring snowmelt hydrograph, storm hydrographs, and the seasonal development of watershed evapotranspiration and soil moisture.

The Pliocene Model Intercomparison Project - Phase 2

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Haywood, Alan; Dowsett, Harry; Dolan, Aisling; Rowley, David; Abe-Ouchi, Ayako; Otto-Bliesner, Bette; Chandler, Mark; Hunter, Stephen; Lunt, Daniel; Pound, Matthew; Salzmann, Ulrich

2016-04-01

The Pliocene Model Intercomparison Project (PlioMIP) is a co-ordinated international climate modelling initiative to study and understand climate and environments of the Late Pliocene, and their potential relevance in the context of future climate change. PlioMIP examines the consistency of model predictions in simulating Pliocene climate, and their ability to reproduce climate signals preserved by geological climate archives. Here we provide a description of the aim and objectives of the next phase of the model intercomparison project (PlioMIP Phase 2), and we present the experimental design and boundary conditions that will be utilised for climate model experiments in Phase 2. Following on from PlioMIP Phase 1, Phase 2 will continue to be a mechanism for sampling structural uncertainty within climate models. However, Phase 1 demonstrated the requirement to better understand boundary condition uncertainties as well as uncertainty in the methodologies used for data-model comparison. Therefore, our strategy for Phase 2 is to utilise state-of-the-art boundary conditions that have emerged over the last 5 years. These include a new palaeogeographic reconstruction, detailing ocean bathymetry and land/ice surface topography. The ice surface topography is built upon the lessons learned from offline ice sheet modelling studies. Land surface cover has been enhanced by recent additions of Pliocene soils and lakes. Atmospheric reconstructions of palaeo-CO2 are emerging on orbital timescales and these are also incorporated into PlioMIP Phase 2. New records of surface and sea surface temperature change are being produced that will be more temporally consistent with the boundary conditions and forcings used within models. Finally we have designed a suite of prioritized experiments that tackle issues surrounding the basic understanding of the Pliocene and its relevance in the context of future climate change in a discrete way.

Description and validation of the Simple, Efficient, Dynamic, Global, Ecological Simulator (SEDGES v.1.0)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Paiewonsky, Pablo; Elison Timm, Oliver

2018-03-01

In this paper, we present a simple dynamic global vegetation model whose primary intended use is auxiliary to the land-atmosphere coupling scheme of a climate model, particularly one of intermediate complexity. The model simulates and provides important ecological-only variables but also some hydrological and surface energy variables that are typically either simulated by land surface schemes or else used as boundary data input for these schemes. The model formulations and their derivations are presented here, in detail. The model includes some realistic and useful features for its level of complexity, including a photosynthetic dependency on light, full coupling of photosynthesis and transpiration through an interactive canopy resistance, and a soil organic carbon dependence for bare-soil albedo. We evaluate the model's performance by running it as part of a simple land surface scheme that is driven by reanalysis data. The evaluation against observational data includes net primary productivity, leaf area index, surface albedo, and diagnosed variables relevant for the closure of the hydrological cycle. In this setup, we find that the model gives an adequate to good simulation of basic large-scale ecological and hydrological variables. Of the variables analyzed in this paper, gross primary productivity is particularly well simulated. The results also reveal the current limitations of the model. The most significant deficiency is the excessive simulation of evapotranspiration in mid- to high northern latitudes during their winter to spring transition. The model has a relative advantage in situations that require some combination of computational efficiency, model transparency and tractability, and the simulation of the large-scale vegetation and land surface characteristics under non-present-day conditions.

Comments on the Synergism Between the Analytic Planetary Boundary-Layer Model and Remote Sensing Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brown, R. A.

2005-08-01

This paper is adapted from a presentation at the session of the European Geophysical Society meeting in 2002 honouring Joost Businger. It documents the interaction of the non-linear planetary boundary-layer (PBL) model (UW-PBL) and satellite remote sensing of marine surface winds from verification and calibration studies for the sensor model function to the current state of verification of the model by satellite data. It is also a personal history where Joost Businger had seminal input to this research at several critical junctures. The first scatterometer in space was on SeaSat in 1978, while currently in orbit there are the QuikSCAT and ERS-2 scatterometers and the WindSat radiometer. The volume and detail of data from the scatterometers during the past decade are unprecedented, though the value of these data depends on a careful interpretation of the PBL dynamics. The model functions (algorithms) that relate surface wind to sensor signal have evolved from straight empirical correlation with simple surface-layer 10-m winds to satellite sensor model functions for surface pressure fields. A surface stress model function is also available. The validation data for the satellite model functions depended crucially on the PBL solution. The non-linear solution for the flow of fluid in the boundary layer of a rotating coordinate system was completed in 1969. The implications for traditional ways of measuring and modelling the PBL were huge and continue to this day. Unfortunately, this solution replaced an elegant one by Ekman with a stability/finite perturbation equilibrium solution. Consequently, there has been great reluctance to accept this solution. The verification of model predictions has been obtained from the satellite data.

Computation of nonstationary strong shock diffraction by curved surfaces

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Yang, J. Y.; Lombard, C. K.; Bershader, D.

1986-01-01

A two-dimensional, high resolution shock-capturing algorithm was used on a supercomputer to solve Eulerian gasdynamic equations in order to simulate nonstationary strong shock diffraction by a circular arc model in a shock tube. The hypersonic Mach shock wave was assumed to arrive at a high angle of incidence, and attention was given to the effect of varying values of the ratio of specific heats on the shock diffraction process. Details of the conservation equations of the numerical algorithm, written in curvilinear coordinates, are provided, and model output is illustrated with the results generated for a Mach shock encountering a 15 deg circular arc. The sample graphics include isopycnics, a shock surface density profile, and pressure and Mach number contours.

Wind-Stress Simulations and Equatorial Dynamics in an AGCM. Part 1; Basic Results from a 1979-1999 Forced SST Experiment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bacmeister, Julio T.; Suarez, Max J.; Einaudi, Franco (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

This is the first of a two part study examining the connection of the equatorial momentum budget in an AGCM (Atmospheric General Circulation Model), with simulated equatorial surface wind stresses over the Pacific. The AGCM used in this study forms part of a newly developed coupled forecasting system used at NASA's Seasonal- to-Interannual Prediction Project. Here we describe the model and present results from a 20-year (1979-1999) AMIP-type experiment forced with observed SSTs (Sea Surface Temperatures). Model results are compared them with available observational data sets. The climatological pattern of extra-tropical planetary waves as well as their ENSO-related variability is found to agree quite well with re-analysis estimates. The model's surface wind stress is examined in detail, and reveals a reasonable overall simulation of seasonal interannual variability, as well as seasonal mean distributions. However, an excessive annual oscillation in wind stress over the equatorial central Pacific is found. We examine the model's divergent circulation over the tropical Pacific and compare it with estimates based on re-analysis data. These comparisons are generally good, but reveal excessive upper-level convergence in the central Pacific. In Part II of this study a direct examination of individual terms in the AGCM's momentum budget is presented. We relate the results of this analysis to the model's simulation of surface wind stress.

Free energy profiles from single-molecule pulling experiments.

PubMed

Hummer, Gerhard; Szabo, Attila

2010-12-14

Nonequilibrium pulling experiments provide detailed information about the thermodynamic and kinetic properties of molecules. We show that unperturbed free energy profiles as a function of molecular extension can be obtained rigorously from such experiments without using work-weighted position histograms. An inverse Weierstrass transform is used to relate the system free energy obtained from the Jarzynski equality directly to the underlying molecular free energy surface. An accurate approximation for the free energy surface is obtained by using the method of steepest descent to evaluate the inverse transform. The formalism is applied to simulated data obtained from a kinetic model of RNA folding, in which the dynamics consists of jumping between linker-dominated folded and unfolded free energy surfaces.

Surface chemistry and mineralogy. [of planet Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Banin, A.; Clark, B. C.; Waenke, H.

1992-01-01

The accumulated knowledge on the chemistry and mineralogy of Martian surface materials is reviewed. Pertinent information obtained by direct analyses of the soil on Mars by the Viking Landers, by remote sensing of Mars from flyby and orbiting spacecraft, by telescopic observations from earth, and through detailed analyses of the SNC meteorites presumed to be Martian rocks are summarized and analyzed. A compositional model for Mars soil, giving selected average elemental concentrations of major and trace elements, is suggested. It is proposed that the fine surface materials on Mars are a multicomponent mixture of weathered and nonweathered minerals. Smectite clays, silicate mineraloids similar to palagonite, and scapolite are suggested as possible major candidate components among the weathered minerals.

Rupture processes of the 2013-2014 Minab earthquake sequence, Iran

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kintner, Jonas A.; Ammon, Charles J.; Cleveland, K. Michael; Herman, Matthew

2018-06-01

We constrain epicentroid locations, magnitudes and depths of moderate-magnitude earthquakes in the 2013-2014 Minab sequence using surface-wave cross-correlations, surface-wave spectra and teleseismic body-wave modelling. We estimate precise relative locations of 54 Mw ≥ 3.8 earthquakes using 48 409 teleseismic, intermediate-period Rayleigh and Love-wave cross-correlation measurements. To reduce significant regional biases in our relative locations, we shift the relative locations to align the Mw 6.2 main-shock centroid to a location derived from an independent InSAR fault model. Our relocations suggest that the events lie along a roughly east-west trend that is consistent with the faulting geometry in the GCMT catalogue. The results support previous studies that suggest the sequence consists of left-lateral strain release, but better defines the main-shock fault length and shows that most of the Mw ≥ 5.0 aftershocks occurred on one or two similarly oriented structures. We also show that aftershock activity migrated westwards along strike, away from the main shock, suggesting that Coulomb stress transfer played a role in the fault failure. We estimate the magnitudes of the relocated events using surface-wave cross-correlation amplitudes and find good agreement with the GCMT moment magnitudes for the larger events and underestimation of small-event size by catalogue MS. In addition to clarifying details of the Minab sequence, the results demonstrate that even in tectonically complex regions, relative relocation using teleseismic surface waves greatly improves the precision of relative earthquake epicentroid locations and can facilitate detailed tectonic analyses of remote earthquake sequences.

Wind Tunnel Results from a Nozzle Afterbody Test of A 0.1-Scale Fighter Aircraft in the Mach Number Regime of 0.6 to 1.6

DTIC Science & Technology

1978-06-01

25 4. Nose Strake and Pitot Boom Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 5. Exhaust Nozzle Closure...actual wing through the use of simulated wing gloves (Fig. 3c) which duplicated the modification required on the wingtip supported model. The pitot ...pressure rakes located in the model plenum upstream of the nozzle throat were used to monitor the simulated jet flow. 2.2.5 Surface Pressures

Characterizing observed circulation patterns within a bay using HF radar and numerical model simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

O'Donncha, Fearghal; Hartnett, Michael; Nash, Stephen; Ren, Lei; Ragnoli, Emanuele

2015-02-01

In this study, High Frequency Radar (HFR), observations in conjunction with numerical model simulations investigate surface flow dynamics in a tidally-active, wind-driven bay; Galway Bay situated on the West coast of Ireland. Comparisons against ADCP sensor data permit an independent assessment of HFR and model performance, respectively. Results show root-mean-square (rms) differences in the range 10 - 12cm/s while model rms equalled 12 - 14cm/s. Subsequent analysis focus on a detailed comparison of HFR and model output. Harmonic analysis decompose both sets of surface currents based on distinct flow process, enabling a correlation analysis between the resultant output and dominant forcing parameters. Comparisons of barotropic model simulations and HFR tidal signal demonstrate consistently high agreement, particularly of the dominant M2 tidal signal. Analysis of residual flows demonstrate considerably poorer agreement, with the model failing to replicate complex flows. A number of hypotheses explaining this discrepancy are discussed, namely: discrepancies between regional-scale, coastal-ocean models and globally-influenced bay-scale dynamics; model uncertainties arising from highly-variable wind-driven flows across alarge body of water forced by point measurements of wind vectors; and the high dependence of model simulations on empirical wind-stress coefficients. The research demonstrates that an advanced, widely-used hydro-environmental model does not accurately reproduce aspects of surface flow processes, particularly with regards wind forcing. Considering the significance of surface boundary conditions in both coastal and open ocean dynamics, the viability of using a systematic analysis of results to improve model predictions is discussed.

ALAMEDA, a Structural–Functional Model for Faba Bean Crops: Morphological Parameterization and Verification

PubMed Central

RUIZ-RAMOS, MARGARITA; MÍNGUEZ, M. INÉS

2006-01-01

• Background Plant structural (i.e. architectural) models explicitly describe plant morphology by providing detailed descriptions of the display of leaf and stem surfaces within heterogeneous canopies and thus provide the opportunity for modelling the functioning of plant organs in their microenvironments. The outcome is a class of structural–functional crop models that combines advantages of current structural and process approaches to crop modelling. ALAMEDA is such a model. • Methods The formalism of Lindenmayer systems (L-systems) was chosen for the development of a structural model of the faba bean canopy, providing both numerical and dynamic graphical outputs. It was parameterized according to the results obtained through detailed morphological and phenological descriptions that capture the detailed geometry and topology of the crop. The analysis distinguishes between relationships of general application for all sowing dates and stem ranks and others valid only for all stems of a single crop cycle. • Results and Conclusions The results reveal that in faba bean, structural parameterization valid for the entire plant may be drawn from a single stem. ALAMEDA was formed by linking the structural model to the growth model ‘Simulation d'Allongement des Feuilles’ (SAF) with the ability to simulate approx. 3500 crop organs and components of a group of nine plants. Model performance was verified for organ length, plant height and leaf area. The L-system formalism was able to capture the complex architecture of canopy leaf area of this indeterminate crop and, with the growth relationships, generate a 3D dynamic crop simulation. Future development and improvement of the model are discussed. PMID:16390842

Capturing and modelling high-complex alluvial topography with UAS-borne laser scanning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mandlburger, Gottfried; Wieser, Martin; Pfennigbauer, Martin

2015-04-01

Due to fluvial activity alluvial forests are zones of highest complexity and relief energy. Alluvial forests are dominated by new and pristine channels in consequence of current and historic flood events. Apart from topographic features, the vegetation structure is typically very complex featuring, both, dense under story as well as high trees. Furthermore, deadwood and debris carried from upstream during periods of high discharge within the river channel are deposited in these areas. Therefore, precise modelling of the micro relief of alluvial forests using standard tools like Airborne Laser Scanning (ALS) is hardly feasible. Terrestrial Laser Scanning (TLS), in turn, is very time consuming for capturing larger areas as many scan positions are necessary for obtaining complete coverage due to view occlusions in the forest. In the recent past, the technological development of Unmanned Arial Systems (UAS) has reached a level that light-weight survey-grade laser scanners can be operated from these platforms. For capturing alluvial topography this could bridge the gap between ALS and TLS in terms of providing a very detailed description of the topography and the vegetation structure due to the achievable very high point density of >100 points per m2. In our contribution we demonstrate the feasibility to apply UAS-borne laser scanning for capturing and modelling the complex topography of the study area Neubacher Au, an alluvial forest at the pre-alpine River Pielach (Lower Austria). The area was captured with Riegl's VUX-1 compact time-of-flight laser scanner mounted on a RiCopter (X-8 array octocopter). The scanner features an effective scan rate of 500 kHz and was flown in 50-100 m above ground. At this flying height the laser footprint is 25-50 mm allowing mapping of very small surface details. Furthermore, online waveform processing of the backscattered laser energy enables the retrieval of multiple targets for single laser shots resulting in a dense point cloud of, both, the ground surface and the alluvial vegetation. From the acquired point cloud the following products could be derived: (i) a very high resolution Digital Terrain Model (10 cm raster), (ii) a high resolution model of the water surface of the River Pielach (especially useful for validation of topo-bathymetry LiDAR data) and (iii) a detailed description of the complex vegetation structure.

A dynamic model of the piezoelectric traveling wave rotary ultrasonic motor stator with the finite volume method.

PubMed

Renteria Marquez, I A; Bolborici, V

2017-05-01

This manuscript presents a method to model in detail the piezoelectric traveling wave rotary ultrasonic motor (PTRUSM) stator response under the action of DC and AC voltages. The stator is modeled with a discrete two dimensional system of equations using the finite volume method (FVM). In order to obtain accurate results, a model of the stator bridge is included into the stator model. The model of the stator under the action of DC voltage is presented first, and the results of the model are compared versus a similar model using the commercial finite element software COMSOL Multiphysics. One can observe that there is a difference of less than 5% between the displacements of the stator using the proposed model and the one with COMSOL Multiphysics. After that, the model of the stator under the action of AC voltages is presented. The time domain analysis shows the generation of the traveling wave in the stator surface. One can use this model to accurately calculate the stator surface velocities, elliptical motion of the stator surface and the amplitude and shape of the stator traveling wave. A system of equations discretized with the finite volume method can easily be transformed into electrical circuits, because of that, FVM may be a better choice to develop a model-based control strategy for the PTRUSM. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Mesoscale numerical investigations of air traffic emissions over the North Atlantic during SONEX flight 8: A case study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bieberbach, George; Fuelberg, Henry E.; Thompson, Anne M.; Schmitt, Alfons; Hannan, John R.; Gregory, G. L.; Kondo, Yutaka; Knabb, Richard D.; Sachse, G. W.; Talbot, R. W.

2000-02-01

Chemical data from flight 8 of NASA's Subsonic Assessment (SASS) Ozone and Nitrogen Oxide Experiment (SONEX) exhibited signatures consistent with aircraft emissions, stratospheric air, and surface-based pollution. These signatures are examined in detail, focusing on the broad aircraft emission signatures that are several hundred kilometers in length. A mesoscale meteorological model provides high-resolution wind data that are used to calculate backward trajectories arriving at locations along the flight track. These trajectories are compared to aircraft locations in the North Atlantic Flight Corridor (NAFC) over a 27-33 hour period. Time series of flight level NO and the number of trajectory/aircraft encounters within the NAFC show excellent agreement. Trajectories arriving within the stratospheric and surface-based pollution regions are found to experience very few aircraft encounters. Conversely, there are many trajectory/aircraft encounters within the two chemical signatures corresponding to aircraft emissions. Even many detailed fluctuations of NO within the two aircraft signature regions correspond to similar fluctuations in aircraft encountered. These NO spikes are due to the superposition of 14 to 25 aircraft plumes transported to the DC-8 flight track during the previous 33 hours. Results confirm that aircraft emissions were responsible for two chemical signatures observed during SONEX flight 8. They also indicate that high-resolution meteorological modeling, when coupled with detailed aircraft location data, is useful for understanding chemical signatures from aircraft emissions at scales of several hundred kilometers.

Air-sea interactions during strong winter extratropical storms

USGS Publications Warehouse

Nelson, Jill; He, Ruoying; Warner, John C.; Bane, John

2014-01-01

A high-resolution, regional coupled atmosphere–ocean model is used to investigate strong air–sea interactions during a rapidly developing extratropical cyclone (ETC) off the east coast of the USA. In this two-way coupled system, surface momentum and heat fluxes derived from the Weather Research and Forecasting model and sea surface temperature (SST) from the Regional Ocean Modeling System are exchanged via the Model Coupling Toolkit. Comparisons are made between the modeled and observed wind velocity, sea level pressure, 10 m air temperature, and sea surface temperature time series, as well as a comparison between the model and one glider transect. Vertical profiles of modeled air temperature and winds in the marine atmospheric boundary layer and temperature variations in the upper ocean during a 3-day storm period are examined at various cross-shelf transects along the eastern seaboard. It is found that the air–sea interactions near the Gulf Stream are important for generating and sustaining the ETC. In particular, locally enhanced winds over a warm sea (relative to the land temperature) induce large surface heat fluxes which cool the upper ocean by up to 2 °C, mainly during the cold air outbreak period after the storm passage. Detailed heat budget analyses show the ocean-to-atmosphere heat flux dominates the upper ocean heat content variations. Results clearly show that dynamic air–sea interactions affecting momentum and buoyancy flux exchanges in ETCs need to be resolved accurately in a coupled atmosphere–ocean modeling framework.

2-D and 3-D oscillating wing aerodynamics for a range of angles of attack including stall

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Piziali, R. A.

1994-01-01

A comprehensive experimental investigation of the pressure distribution over a semispan wing undergoing pitching motions representative of a helicopter rotor blade was conducted. Testing the wing in the nonrotating condition isolates the three-dimensional (3-D) blade aerodynamic and dynamic stall characteristics from the complications of the rotor blade environment. The test has generated a very complete, detailed, and accurate body of data. These data include static and dynamic pressure distributions, surface flow visualizations, two-dimensional (2-D) airfoil data from the same model and installation, and important supporting blockage and wall pressure distributions. This body of data is sufficiently comprehensive and accurate that it can be used for the validation of rotor blade aerodynamic models over a broad range of the important parameters including 3-D dynamic stall. This data report presents all the cycle-averaged lift, drag, and pitching moment coefficient data versus angle of attack obtained from the instantaneous pressure data for the 3-D wing and the 2-D airfoil. Also presented are examples of the following: cycle-to-cycle variations occurring for incipient or lightly stalled conditions; 3-D surface flow visualizations; supporting blockage and wall pressure distributions; and underlying detailed pressure results.

No One's Home: the Fate of Carbon on Lifeless Earths

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Neveu, Marc

Although several thousands of exoplanets are now known, including many terrestrial planets, their possible geology and climates remain poorly understood and understudied. Yet, understanding how elements such as carbon are cycled between a planet's interior, surface, and atmosphere is crucial to predict how lifeless planets operate and, by contrast, be able to detect deviations from abiotic backgrounds due to biology, the holy grail of exoplanet science. As a first, feasible step towards the difficult, long-term goal of understanding how key reactive elements (H, C, N, O, S) are cycled in the atmospheres, surfaces, and interiors of terrestrial exoplanets through time, we propose to carry out a self-consistent theoretical study of the fate of carbon in the atmospheres and at the surfaces of Earth-like, lifeless exoplanets. We will: 1. Model the near-surface geochemistry and geophysics of the carbon cycle to determine net carbon gas fluxes as a function of terrestrial planet size and redox conditions; 2. Model the atmospheric fate of carbon species as a function of stellar input; 3. Perform simulations that self-consistently combine geological and atmospheric processes; 4. Convert resulting atmospheric compositions to spectra to be archived as a public database for use by observers. We will track the abiotic fate of carbon and its atmospheric expression on Earth-like planets as a function of three key parameters: planet size, surface and atmospheric redox conditions, and stellar irradiation. To do so, we will further develop and use state-of-theart planetary geological ("Geo") and atmospheric ("Atmos") models. We have previously developed a code that couples geophysical evolution and water-rock geochemistry (Neveu et al. 2015, GRL 42, 10197). Using this code, we will calculate the speciation of carbon species versus depth in subaerial oceans, their possible incorporation into the crust by water-rock interaction at the seafloor or by subduction of sediments, and outgassing as a function of temperature, pressure, and fluid/rock composition. We will expand this code with benchmarked parameterizations of land and seafloor weathering and outgassing rates. This modeling will result in detailed boundary conditions to be implemented into an existing atmospheric photochemical-climate model (DomagalGoldman et al. 2014, ApJ 792, 90). The atmospheric model will be used to predict species mixing ratios from net surface fluxes, given planetary and stellar parameters. The models will be benchmarked against what is known of the surfaces and atmospheres of the Earth (present and prior to atmospheric oxygenation) and Titan. Atmospheric model outputs will be fed back into the geological model in combined simulations of carbon cycling. We will investigate in detail the mutual feedbacks between geological and atmospheric processes, so far understudied for terrestrial exoplanets. The resulting atmospheric compositions will be converted to predicted exoplanet spectra using the Spectral Mapping Atmospheric Radiative Transfer model (SMART; Meadows & Crisp 1996, JGR 101, 4595). This grid of spectra will be made freely available to the exoplanet community. This proposal is relevant to the Exoplanets Research Program (E.3) objectives, as it "supports directly the scientific goals of advancing our knowledge and understanding of exoplanetary systems." It involves the "characterization of exoplanets (including their surfaces, interiors, and atmospheres) [...] including the determination of their compositions, dynamics, energetics, and chemical behaviors." This investigation will also advance "understanding the chemical and physical processes of exoplanets (including the state and evolution of their surfaces, interiors, and atmospheres)." Furthermore, this proposal is not "aimed at investigating the habitability of an exoplanet" and therefore not relevant to the Habitable Worlds program element (E.4).

Estimates of diffuse phosphorus sources in surface waters of the United States using a spatially referenced watershed model

USGS Publications Warehouse

Alexander, R.B.; Smith, R.A.; Schwarz, G.E.

2004-01-01

The statistical watershed model SPARROW (SPAtially Referenced Regression On Watershed attributes) was used to estimate the sources and transport of total phosphorus (TP) in surface waters of the United States. We calibrated the model using stream measurements of TP from 336 watersheds of mixed land use and spatial data on topography, soils, stream hydrography, and land use (agriculture, forest, shrub/grass, urban). The model explained 87% of the spatial variability in log transformed stream TP flux (kg yr-1). Predictions of stream yield (kg ha-1 yr-1) were typically within 45% of the observed values at the monitoring sites. The model identified appreciable effects of soils, streams, and reservoirs on TP transport, The estimated aquatic rates of phosphorus removal declined with increasing stream size and rates of water flushing in reservoirs (i.e. areal hydraulic loads). A phosphorus budget for the 2.9 million km2 Mississippi River Basin provides a detailed accounting of TP delivery to streams, the removal of TP in surface waters, and the stream export of TP from major interior watersheds for sources associated with each land-use type. ?? US Government 2004.

Numerical Modeling of 3D Seismic Wave Propagation around Yogyakarta, the Southern Part of Central Java, Indonesia, Using Spectral-Element Method on MPI-GPU Cluster

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sudarmaji; Rudianto, Indra; Eka Nurcahya, Budi

2018-04-01

A strong tectonic earthquake with a magnitude of 5.9 Richter scale has been occurred in Yogyakarta and Central Java on May 26, 2006. The earthquake has caused severe damage in Yogyakarta and the southern part of Central Java, Indonesia. The understanding of seismic response of earthquake among ground shaking and the level of building damage is important. We present numerical modeling of 3D seismic wave propagation around Yogyakarta and the southern part of Central Java using spectral-element method on MPI-GPU (Graphics Processing Unit) computer cluster to observe its seismic response due to the earthquake. The homogeneous 3D realistic model is generated with detailed topography surface. The influences of free surface topography and layer discontinuity of the 3D model among the seismic response are observed. The seismic wave field is discretized using spectral-element method. The spectral-element method is solved on a mesh of hexahedral elements that is adapted to the free surface topography and the internal discontinuity of the model. To increase the data processing capabilities, the simulation is performed on a GPU cluster with implementation of MPI (Message Passing Interface).

The structure and dipole moment of globular proteins in solution and crystalline states: use of NMR and X-ray databases for the numerical calculation of dipole moment.

PubMed

Takashima, S

2001-04-05

The large dipole moment of globular proteins has been well known because of the detailed studies using dielectric relaxation and electro-optical methods. The search for the origin of these dipolemoments, however, must be based on the detailed knowledge on protein structure with atomic resolutions. At present, we have two sources of information on the structure of protein molecules: (1) x-ray databases obtained in crystalline state; (2) NMR databases obtained in solution state. While x-ray databases consist of only one model, NMR databases, because of the fluctuation of the protein folding in solution, consist of a number of models, thus enabling the computation of dipole moment repeated for all these models. The aim of this work, using these databases, is the detailed investigation on the interdependence between the structure and dipole moment of protein molecules. The dipole moment of protein molecules has roughly two components: one dipole moment is due to surface charges and the other, core dipole moment, is due to polar groups such as N--H and C==O bonds. The computation of surface charge dipole moment consists of two steps: (A) calculation of the pK shifts of charged groups for electrostatic interactions and (B) calculation of the dipole moment using the pK corrected for electrostatic shifts. The dipole moments of several proteins were computed using both NMR and x-ray databases. The dipole moments of these two sets of calculations are, with a few exceptions, in good agreement with one another and also with measured dipole moments.

Reintroducing radiometric surface temperature into the Penman-Monteith formulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mallick, Kaniska; Boegh, Eva; Trebs, Ivonne; Alfieri, Joseph G.; Kustas, William P.; Prueger, John H.; Niyogi, Dev; Das, Narendra; Drewry, Darren T.; Hoffmann, Lucien; Jarvis, Andrew J.

2015-08-01

Here we demonstrate a novel method to physically integrate radiometric surface temperature (TR) into the Penman-Monteith (PM) formulation for estimating the terrestrial sensible and latent heat fluxes (H and λE) in the framework of a modified Surface Temperature Initiated Closure (STIC). It combines TR data with standard energy balance closure models for deriving a hybrid scheme that does not require parameterization of the surface (or stomatal) and aerodynamic conductances (gS and gB). STIC is formed by the simultaneous solution of four state equations and it uses TR as an additional data source for retrieving the "near surface" moisture availability (M) and the Priestley-Taylor coefficient (α). The performance of STIC is tested using high-temporal resolution TR observations collected from different international surface energy flux experiments in conjunction with corresponding net radiation (RN), ground heat flux (G), air temperature (TA), and relative humidity (RH) measurements. A comparison of the STIC outputs with the eddy covariance measurements of λE and H revealed RMSDs of 7-16% and 40-74% in half-hourly λE and H estimates. These statistics were 5-13% and 10-44% in daily λE and H. The errors and uncertainties in both surface fluxes are comparable to the models that typically use land surface parameterizations for determining the unobserved components (gS and gB) of the surface energy balance models. However, the scheme is simpler, has the capabilities for generating spatially explicit surface energy fluxes and independent of submodels for boundary layer developments. This article was corrected on 27 AUG 2015. See the end of the full text for details.

Super free fall for a container composed of diverging flat plates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Medina, A.; Torres, A.; Peralta, S.; Weidman, P. D.

2010-11-01

We have analyzed experimentally and theoretically the characteristics of the upper free surface of a liquid column released from rest in a vertical container whose cross-section opens slowly in the downward direction. In distinction with the work of Villermaux and Pomeau (2010) for a conical container, we consider a container composed of slightly inclined flat surfaces. At small times for which viscous effects can be neglected, the free surface moves downward with an acceleration larger than gravity. The existence of a nipple centered on the upper free surface with amplitude an increasing function of time is observed. A one-dimensional model of the initial acceleration for flat, slightly expanding walls reproduces the observed super free fall experiments fairly well. Details of the nipple development will be presented.

Mars' surface radiation environment measured with the Mars Science Laboratory's Curiosity rover.

PubMed

Hassler, Donald M; Zeitlin, Cary; Wimmer-Schweingruber, Robert F; Ehresmann, Bent; Rafkin, Scot; Eigenbrode, Jennifer L; Brinza, David E; Weigle, Gerald; Böttcher, Stephan; Böhm, Eckart; Burmeister, Soenke; Guo, Jingnan; Köhler, Jan; Martin, Cesar; Reitz, Guenther; Cucinotta, Francis A; Kim, Myung-Hee; Grinspoon, David; Bullock, Mark A; Posner, Arik; Gómez-Elvira, Javier; Vasavada, Ashwin; Grotzinger, John P

2014-01-24

The Radiation Assessment Detector (RAD) on the Mars Science Laboratory's Curiosity rover began making detailed measurements of the cosmic ray and energetic particle radiation environment on the surface of Mars on 7 August 2012. We report and discuss measurements of the absorbed dose and dose equivalent from galactic cosmic rays and solar energetic particles on the martian surface for ~300 days of observations during the current solar maximum. These measurements provide insight into the radiation hazards associated with a human mission to the surface of Mars and provide an anchor point with which to model the subsurface radiation environment, with implications for microbial survival times of any possible extant or past life, as well as for the preservation of potential organic biosignatures of the ancient martian environment.

Electric-field noise from carbon-adatom diffusion on a Au(110) surface: First-principles calculations and experiments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, E.; Safavi-Naini, A.; Hite, D. A.; McKay, K. S.; Pappas, D. P.; Weck, P. F.; Sadeghpour, H. R.

2017-03-01

The decoherence of trapped-ion quantum gates due to heating of their motional modes is a fundamental science and engineering problem. This heating is attributed to electric-field noise arising from the trap-electrode surfaces. In this work, we investigate the source of this noise by focusing on the diffusion of carbon-containing adsorbates on the surface of Au(110). We show by density functional theory, based on detailed scanning probe microscopy, how the carbon adatom diffusion on the gold surface changes the energy landscape and how the adatom dipole moment varies with the diffusive motion. A simple model for the diffusion noise, which varies quadratically with the variation of the dipole moment, predicts a noise spectrum, in accordance with the measured values.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chen, Li; He, YaLing; Tao, Wen -Quan

The electrode of a vanadium redox flow battery generally is a carbon fibre-based porous medium, in which important physicochemical processes occur. In this work, pore-scale simulations are performed to study complex multiphase flow and reactive transport in the electrode by using the lattice Boltzmann method (LBM). Four hundred fibrous electrodes with different fibre diameters and porosities are reconstructed. Both the permeability and diffusivity of the reconstructed electrodes are predicted and compared with empirical relationships in the literature. Reactive surface area of the electrodes is also evaluated and it is found that existing empirical relationship overestimates the reactive surface under lowermore » porosities. Further, a pore-scale electrochemical reaction model is developed to study the effects of fibre diameter and porosity on electrolyte flow, V II/V III transport, and electrochemical reaction at the electrolyte-fibre surface. Finally, evolution of bubble cluster generated by the side reaction is studied by adopting a LB multiphase flow model. Effects of porosity, fibre diameter, gas saturation and solid surface wettability on average bubble diameter and reduction of reactive surface area due to coverage of bubbles on solid surface are investigated in detail. It is found that gas coverage ratio is always lower than that adopted in the continuum model in the literature. Furthermore, the current pore-scale studies successfully reveal the complex multiphase flow and reactive transport processes in the electrode, and the simulation results can be further upscaled to improve the accuracy of the current continuum-scale models.« less

The influence of incommensurability on the long-range periodicity of the Pd(100)-(√{ 5 } ×√{ 5 })R27°-PdO(101)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shipilin, Mikhail; Stierle, Andreas; Merte, Lindsay R.; Gustafson, Johan; Hejral, Uta; Martin, Natalia M.; Zhang, Chu; Franz, Dirk; Kilic, Volkan; Lundgren, Edvin

2017-06-01

The structural model of the (√{ 5 } ×√{ 5 })R27°-PdO(101) surface oxide grown on Pd(100) has been proposed and refined by a number of authors over more than a decade. In the current contribution we discuss the long-range periodicity of this structure arising along one of the crystallographic directions due to its incommensurability with the substrate. Analyzing the results of surface sensitive diffraction studies, we determined a slight distortion of the previously reported perfect (√{ 5 } ×√{ 5 })R27° surface oxide unit cell. Considering it, we were able to achieve both qualitatively and quantitatively better fit to the experimental diffraction data than it was possible for the perfect structure. Further, taking into account the experimentally obtained scanning tunneling microscopy data and closely examining high-resolution patterns recorded by means of high-energy surface X-ray diffraction, we developed a qualitative structural model based on a larger non-orthogonal surface unit cell to shed more light on the long-range order of the PdO(101) surface oxide. The model comprises a shift of the atoms of the PdO perpendicularly to the direction of the incommensurability to correct for it. This structural model reproduces the fine details of the high-resolution diffraction patterns and qualitatively explains the periodic stripes of structural distortion observed in the images recorded by a scanning tunneling microscope.

Atomistic and molecular effects in electric double layers at high surface charges

DOE PAGES

Templeton, Jeremy Alan; Lee, Jonathan; Mani, Ali

2015-06-16

Here, the Poisson–Boltzmann theory for electrolytes near a charged surface is known to be invalid due to unaccounted physics associated with high ion concentration regimes. In order to investigate this regime, fluids density functional theory (f-DFT) and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations were used to determine electric surface potential as a function of surface charge. Based on these detailed computations, for electrolytes with nonpolar solvent, the surface potential is shown to depend quadratically on the surface charge in the high charge limit. We demonstrate that modified Poisson–Boltzmann theories can model this limit if they are augmented with atomic packing densities providedmore » by MD. However, when the solvent is a highly polar molecule water an intermediate regime is identified in which a constant capacitance is realized. Simulation results demonstrate the mechanism underlying this regime, and for the salt water system studied here, it persists throughout the range of physically realistic surface charge densities so the potential’s quadratic surface charge dependence is not obtained.« less

Uncertainty in surface water flood risk modelling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Butler, J. B.; Martin, D. N.; Roberts, E.; Domuah, R.

2009-04-01

Two thirds of the flooding that occurred in the UK during summer 2007 was as a result of surface water (otherwise known as ‘pluvial') rather than river or coastal flooding. In response, the Environment Agency and Interim Pitt Reviews have highlighted the need for surface water risk mapping and warning tools to identify, and prepare for, flooding induced by heavy rainfall events. This need is compounded by the likely increase in rainfall intensities due to climate change. The Association of British Insurers has called for the Environment Agency to commission nationwide flood risk maps showing the relative risk of flooding from all sources. At the wider European scale, the recently-published EC Directive on the assessment and management of flood risks will require Member States to evaluate, map and model flood risk from a variety of sources. As such, there is now a clear and immediate requirement for the development of techniques for assessing and managing surface water flood risk across large areas. This paper describes an approach for integrating rainfall, drainage network and high-resolution topographic data using Flowroute™, a high-resolution flood mapping and modelling platform, to produce deterministic surface water flood risk maps. Information is provided from UK case studies to enable assessment and validation of modelled results using historical flood information and insurance claims data. Flowroute was co-developed with flood scientists at Cambridge University specifically to simulate river dynamics and floodplain inundation in complex, congested urban areas in a highly computationally efficient manner. It utilises high-resolution topographic information to route flows around individual buildings so as to enable the prediction of flood depths, extents, durations and velocities. As such, the model forms an ideal platform for the development of surface water flood risk modelling and mapping capabilities. The 2-dimensional component of Flowroute employs uniform flow formulae (Manning's Equation) to direct flow over the model domain, sourcing water from the channel or sea so as to provide a detailed representation of river and coastal flood risk. The initial development step was to include spatially-distributed rainfall as a new source term within the model domain. This required optimisation to improve computational efficiency, given the ubiquity of ‘wet' cells early on in the simulation. Collaboration with UK water companies has provided detailed drainage information, and from this a simplified representation of the drainage system has been included in the model via the inclusion of sinks and sources of water from the drainage network. This approach has clear advantages relative to a fully coupled method both in terms of reduced input data requirements and computational overhead. Further, given the difficulties associated with obtaining drainage information over large areas, tests were conducted to evaluate uncertainties associated with excluding drainage information and the impact that this has upon flood model predictions. This information can be used, for example, to inform insurance underwriting strategies and loss estimation as well as for emergency response and planning purposes. The Flowroute surface-water flood risk platform enables efficient mapping of areas sensitive to flooding from high-intensity rainfall events due to topography and drainage infrastructure. As such, the technology has widespread potential for use as a risk mapping tool by the UK Environment Agency, European Member States, water authorities, local governments and the insurance industry. Keywords: Surface water flooding, Model Uncertainty, Insurance Underwriting, Flood inundation modelling, Risk mapping.

An assessment of precipitation and surface air temperature over China by regional climate models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Xueyuan; Tang, Jianping; Niu, Xiaorui; Wang, Shuyu

2016-12-01

An analysis of a 20-year summer time simulation of present-day climate (1989-2008) over China using four regional climate models coupled with different land surface models is carried out. The climatic means, interannual variability, linear trends, and extremes are examined, with focus on precipitation and near surface air temperature. The models are able to reproduce the basic features of the observed summer mean precipitation and temperature over China and the regional detail due to topographic forcing. Overall, the model performance is better for temperature than that of precipitation. The models reasonably grasp the major anomalies and standard deviations over China and the five subregions studied. The models generally reproduce the spatial pattern of high interannual variability over wet regions, and low variability over the dry regions. The models also capture well the variable temperature gradient increase to the north by latitude. Both the observed and simulated linear trend of precipitation shows a drying tendency over the Yangtze River Basin and wetting over South China. The models capture well the relatively small temperature trends in large areas of China. The models reasonably simulate the characteristics of extreme precipitation indices of heavy rain days and heavy precipitation fraction. Most of the models also performed well in capturing both the sign and magnitude of the daily maximum and minimum temperatures over China.

Development and Implementation of the DTOPLATS-MP land surface model over the Continental US at 30 meters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chaney, N.; Wood, E. F.

2014-12-01

The increasing accessibility of high-resolution land data (< 100 m) and high performance computing allows improved parameterizations of subgrid hydrologic processes in macroscale land surface models. Continental scale fully distributed modeling at these spatial scales is possible; however, its practicality for operational use is still unknown due to uncertainties in input data, model parameters, and storage requirements. To address these concerns, we propose a modeling framework that provides the spatial detail of a fully distributed model yet maintains the benefits of a semi-distributed model. In this presentation we will introduce DTOPLATS-MP, a coupling between the NOAH-MP land surface model and the Dynamic TOPMODEL hydrologic model. This new model captures a catchment's spatial heterogeneity by clustering high-resolution land datasets (soil, topography, and land cover) into hundreds of hydrologic similar units (HSUs). A prior DEM analysis defines the connections between each HSU. At each time step, the 1D land surface model updates each HSU; the HSUs then interact laterally via the subsurface and surface. When compared to the fully distributed form of the model, this framework allows a significant decrease in computation and storage while providing most of the same information and enabling parameter transferability. As a proof of concept, we will show how this new modeling framework can be run over CONUS at a 30-meter spatial resolution. For each catchment in the WBD HUC-12 dataset, the model is run between 2002 and 2012 using available high-resolution continental scale land and meteorological datasets over CONUS (dSSURGO, NLCD, NED, and NCEP Stage IV). For each catchment, the model is run with 1000 model parameter sets obtained from a Latin hypercube sample. This exercise will illustrate the feasibility of running the model operationally at continental scales while accounting for model parameter uncertainty.

3D surface reconstruction and visualization of the Drosophila wing imaginal disc at cellular resolution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bai, Linge; Widmann, Thomas; Jülicher, Frank; Dahmann, Christian; Breen, David

2013-01-01

Quantifying and visualizing the shape of developing biological tissues provide information about the morphogenetic processes in multicellular organisms. The size and shape of biological tissues depend on the number, size, shape, and arrangement of the constituting cells. To better understand the mechanisms that guide tissues into their final shape, it is important to investigate the cellular arrangement within tissues. Here we present a data processing pipeline to generate 3D volumetric surface models of epithelial tissues, as well as geometric descriptions of the tissues' apical cell cross-sections. The data processing pipeline includes image acquisition, editing, processing and analysis, 2D cell mesh generation, 3D contourbased surface reconstruction, cell mesh projection, followed by geometric calculations and color-based visualization of morphological parameters. In their first utilization we have applied these procedures to construct a 3D volumetric surface model at cellular resolution of the wing imaginal disc of Drosophila melanogaster. The ultimate goal of the reported effort is to produce tools for the creation of detailed 3D geometric models of the individual cells in epithelial tissues. To date, 3D volumetric surface models of the whole wing imaginal disc have been created, and the apicolateral cell boundaries have been identified, allowing for the calculation and visualization of cell parameters, e.g. apical cross-sectional area of cells. The calculation and visualization of morphological parameters show position-dependent patterns of cell shape in the wing imaginal disc. Our procedures should offer a general data processing pipeline for the construction of 3D volumetric surface models of a wide variety of epithelial tissues.

A general rough-surface inversion algorithm: Theory and application to SAR data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Moghaddam, M.

1993-01-01

Rough-surface inversion has significant applications in interpretation of SAR data obtained over bare soil surfaces and agricultural lands. Due to the sparsity of data and the large pixel size in SAR applications, it is not feasible to carry out inversions based on numerical scattering models. The alternative is to use parameter estimation techniques based on approximate analytical or empirical models. Hence, there are two issues to be addressed, namely, what model to choose and what estimation algorithm to apply. Here, a small perturbation model (SPM) is used to express the backscattering coefficients of the rough surface in terms of three surface parameters. The algorithm used to estimate these parameters is based on a nonlinear least-squares criterion. The least-squares optimization methods are widely used in estimation theory, but the distinguishing factor for SAR applications is incorporating the stochastic nature of both the unknown parameters and the data into formulation, which will be discussed in detail. The algorithm is tested with synthetic data, and several Newton-type least-squares minimization methods are discussed to compare their convergence characteristics. Finally, the algorithm is applied to multifrequency polarimetric SAR data obtained over some bare soil and agricultural fields. Results will be shown and compared to ground-truth measurements obtained from these areas. The strength of this general approach to inversion of SAR data is that it can be easily modified for use with any scattering model without changing any of the inversion steps. Note also that, for the same reason it is not limited to inversion of rough surfaces, and can be applied to any parameterized scattering process.

Mineralogy of the Martian Surface: Crustal Composition to Surface Processes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mustard, John F.

1997-01-01

The main results have been published in the refereed literature, and thus this report serves mainly to summarize the main findings and indicate where the detailed papers may be found. Reflectance spectroscopy has been an important tool for determining the mineralogic makeup of the near surface materials on Mars. Analysis of the spectral properties of the surface have demonstrated that these attributes are heterogeneous from the coarse spatial but high spectral resolution spectra obtained with telescopes to the high spatial but coarse spectral resolution Viking data (e.g. Arvidson et al., 1989; McEwen et al., 1989). Low albedo materials show strong evidence for the presence of igneous rock forming minerals while bright materials are generally interpreted as representing heavily altered crustal material. How these materials are physically and genetically related has important implications for understanding martian surface properties and processes, weathering histories and paths, and crustal composition. The goal of this research is to characterize the physical and chemical properties of low albedo materials on Mars and the relationship to intermediate and high albedo materials. Fundamental science questions to be pursued include: (1) the observed distributions of soil, rock, and dust a function of physical processes or weathering and (2) different stages of chemical and physical alteration fresh rock identified. These objectives will be addressed through detailed analyses and modelling of the ISM data from the Phobos-2 mission with corroborating evidence of surface composition and properties provided by data from the Viking mission.

Thermophysical modelling for high-resolution digital terrain models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pelivan, I.

2018-07-01

A method is presented for efficiently calculating surface temperatures for highly resolved celestial body shapes. A thorough investigation of the necessary conditions leading to reach model convergence shows that the speed of surface temperature convergence depends on factors such as the quality of initial boundary conditions, thermal inertia, illumination conditions, and resolution of the numerical depth grid. The optimization process to shorten the simulation time while increasing or maintaining the accuracy of model results includes the introduction of facet-specific boundary conditions such as pre-computed temperature estimates and pre-evaluated simulation times. The individual facet treatment also allows for assigning other facet-specific properties such as local thermal inertia. The approach outlined in this paper is particularly useful for very detailed digital terrain models in combination with unfavourable illumination conditions such as little-to-no sunlight at all for a period of time as experienced locally on comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. Possible science applications include thermal analysis of highly resolved local (landing) sites experiencing seasonal, environment, and lander shadowing. In combination with an appropriate roughness model, the method is very suitable for application to disc-integrated and disc-resolved data. Further applications are seen where the complexity of the task has led to severe shape or thermophysical model simplifications such as in studying surface activity or thermal cracking.

Thermophysical modeling for high-resolution digital terrain models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pelivan, I.

2018-04-01

A method is presented for efficiently calculating surface temperatures for highly resolved celestial body shapes. A thorough investigation of the necessary conditions leading to reach model convergence shows that the speed of surface temperature convergence depends on factors such as the quality of initial boundary conditions, thermal inertia, illumination conditions, and resolution of the numerical depth grid. The optimization process to shorten the simulation time while increasing or maintaining the accuracy of model results includes the introduction of facet-specific boundary conditions such as pre-computed temperature estimates and pre-evaluated simulation times. The individual facet treatment also allows for assigning other facet-specific properties such as local thermal inertia. The approach outlined in this paper is particularly useful for very detailed digital terrain models in combination with unfavorable illumination conditions such as little to no sunlight at all for a period of time as experienced locally on comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. Possible science applications include thermal analysis of highly resolved local (landing) sites experiencing seasonal, environment and lander shadowing. In combination with an appropriate roughness model, the method is very suitable for application to disk-integrated and disk-resolved data. Further applications are seen where the complexity of the task has led to severe shape or thermophysical model simplifications such as in studying surface activity or thermal cracking.

Nanoscale effects in the characterization of viscoelastic materials with atomic force microscopy: Coupling of a quasi-three-dimensional standard linear solid model with in-plane surface interactions

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Solares, Santiago D.

Significant progress has been accomplished in the development of experimental contact-mode and dynamic-mode atomic force microscopy (AFM) methods designed to measure surface material properties. However, current methods are based on one-dimensional (1D) descriptions of the tip-sample interaction forces, thus neglecting the intricacies involved in the material behavior of complex samples (such as soft viscoelastic materials) as well as the differences in material response between the surface and the bulk. In order to begin to address this gap, a computational study is presented where the sample is simulated using an enhanced version of a recently introduced model that treats the surfacemore » as a collection of standard-linear-solid viscoelastic elements. The enhanced model introduces in-plane surface elastic forces that can be approximately related to a two-dimensional (2D) Young's modulus. Relevant cases are discussed for single-and multifrequency intermittent-contact AFM imaging, with focus on the calculated surface indentation profiles and tip-sample interaction force curves, as well as their implications with regards to experimental interpretation. A variety of phenomena are examined in detail, which highlight the need for further development of more physically accurate sample models that are specifically designed for AFM simulation. As a result, a multifrequency AFM simulation tool based on the above sample model is provided as supporting information.« less

3D documentation and visualization of external injury findings by integration of simple photography in CT/MRI data sets (IprojeCT).

PubMed

Campana, Lorenzo; Breitbeck, Robert; Bauer-Kreuz, Regula; Buck, Ursula

2016-05-01

This study evaluated the feasibility of documenting patterned injury using three dimensions and true colour photography without complex 3D surface documentation methods. This method is based on a generated 3D surface model using radiologic slice images (CT) while the colour information is derived from photographs taken with commercially available cameras. The external patterned injuries were documented in 16 cases using digital photography as well as highly precise photogrammetry-supported 3D structured light scanning. The internal findings of these deceased were recorded using CT and MRI. For registration of the internal with the external data, two different types of radiographic markers were used and compared. The 3D surface model generated from CT slice images was linked with the photographs, and thereby digital true-colour 3D models of the patterned injuries could be created (Image projection onto CT/IprojeCT). In addition, these external models were merged with the models of the somatic interior. We demonstrated that 3D documentation and visualization of external injury findings by integration of digital photography in CT/MRI data sets is suitable for the 3D documentation of individual patterned injuries to a body. Nevertheless, this documentation method is not a substitution for photogrammetry and surface scanning, especially when the entire bodily surface is to be recorded in three dimensions including all external findings, and when precise data is required for comparing highly detailed injury features with the injury-inflicting tool.

Nanoscale effects in the characterization of viscoelastic materials with atomic force microscopy: Coupling of a quasi-three-dimensional standard linear solid model with in-plane surface interactions

DOE PAGES

Solares, Santiago D.

2016-04-15

Significant progress has been accomplished in the development of experimental contact-mode and dynamic-mode atomic force microscopy (AFM) methods designed to measure surface material properties. However, current methods are based on one-dimensional (1D) descriptions of the tip-sample interaction forces, thus neglecting the intricacies involved in the material behavior of complex samples (such as soft viscoelastic materials) as well as the differences in material response between the surface and the bulk. In order to begin to address this gap, a computational study is presented where the sample is simulated using an enhanced version of a recently introduced model that treats the surfacemore » as a collection of standard-linear-solid viscoelastic elements. The enhanced model introduces in-plane surface elastic forces that can be approximately related to a two-dimensional (2D) Young's modulus. Relevant cases are discussed for single-and multifrequency intermittent-contact AFM imaging, with focus on the calculated surface indentation profiles and tip-sample interaction force curves, as well as their implications with regards to experimental interpretation. A variety of phenomena are examined in detail, which highlight the need for further development of more physically accurate sample models that are specifically designed for AFM simulation. As a result, a multifrequency AFM simulation tool based on the above sample model is provided as supporting information.« less

Discrete model of gas-free spin combustion of a powder mixture

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klimenok, Kirill L.; Rashkovskiy, Sergey A.

2015-01-01

We propose a discrete model of gas-free combustion of a cylindrical sample which reproduces in detail a spin combustion mode. It is shown that a spin combustion, in its classical sense as a continuous spiral motion of heat release zones on the surface of the sample, does not exist. Such a concept has arisen due to the misinterpretation of the experimental data. This study shows that in fact a spinlike combustion is realized, at which two energy release zones appear on the lateral surface of the sample and propagate circumferentially in the opposite directions. After some time two new heat release zones are formed on the next layer of the cylinder surface and make the same counter-circular motion. This process continues periodically and from a certain angle it looks like a spiral movement of the luminous zone along the lateral surface of the sample. The model shows that on approaching the combustion limit the process becomes more complicated and the spinlike combustion mode shifts to a more complex mode with multiple zones of heat release moving in different directions along the lateral surface. It is shown that the spin combustion mode appears due to asymmetry of initial conditions and always transforms into a layer-by-layer combustion mode with time.

Comparison of Spacecraft Contamination Models with Well-Defined Flight Experiment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pippin, G. H.

1998-01-01

The report presents analyzed surface areas on particular experiment trays from the Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) for silicone-based molecular contamination. The trays for examination were part of the Ultra-Heavy Cosmic Ray Experiment (UHCRE). These particular trays were chosen because each tray was identical to the others in construction, and the materials on each tray were well known, documented, and characterized. In particular, a known specific source of silicone contamination was present on each tray. Only the exposure conditions varied from tray to tray. The results of post-flight analyses of surfaces of three trays were compared with the predictions of the three different spacecraft molecular contamination models. Phase one tasks included: 1) documenting the detailed geometry of the hardware; 2) determining essential properties of the anodized aluminum, Velcro(Tm), silverized Teflon(Tm), silicone gaskets, and DC6-1104(Tm) silicone adhesive materials used to make the trays, tray covers, and thermal control blankets; 3) selecting and removing areas from each tray; and 4) beginning surface analysis of the selected tray walls. Phase two tasks included: 1) completion of surface analysis measurements of the selected tray surface, 2) obtaining auger depth profiles at selected locations, and 3) running versions of the ISEM, MOFLUX, and PLIMP (Plume Impingement) contamination prediction models and making comparisons with experimental results.

Discrete model of gas-free spin combustion of a powder mixture.

PubMed

Klimenok, Kirill L; Rashkovskiy, Sergey A

2015-01-01

We propose a discrete model of gas-free combustion of a cylindrical sample which reproduces in detail a spin combustion mode. It is shown that a spin combustion, in its classical sense as a continuous spiral motion of heat release zones on the surface of the sample, does not exist. Such a concept has arisen due to the misinterpretation of the experimental data. This study shows that in fact a spinlike combustion is realized, at which two energy release zones appear on the lateral surface of the sample and propagate circumferentially in the opposite directions. After some time two new heat release zones are formed on the next layer of the cylinder surface and make the same counter-circular motion. This process continues periodically and from a certain angle it looks like a spiral movement of the luminous zone along the lateral surface of the sample. The model shows that on approaching the combustion limit the process becomes more complicated and the spinlike combustion mode shifts to a more complex mode with multiple zones of heat release moving in different directions along the lateral surface. It is shown that the spin combustion mode appears due to asymmetry of initial conditions and always transforms into a layer-by-layer combustion mode with time.

The Aquarius Salinity Retrieval Algorithm

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Meissner, Thomas; Wentz, Frank; Hilburn, Kyle; Lagerloef, Gary; Le Vine, David

2012-01-01

The first part of this presentation gives an overview over the Aquarius salinity retrieval algorithm. The instrument calibration [2] converts Aquarius radiometer counts into antenna temperatures (TA). The salinity retrieval algorithm converts those TA into brightness temperatures (TB) at a flat ocean surface. As a first step, contributions arising from the intrusion of solar, lunar and galactic radiation are subtracted. The antenna pattern correction (APC) removes the effects of cross-polarization contamination and spillover. The Aquarius radiometer measures the 3rd Stokes parameter in addition to vertical (v) and horizontal (h) polarizations, which allows for an easy removal of ionospheric Faraday rotation. The atmospheric absorption at L-band is almost entirely due to molecular oxygen, which can be calculated based on auxiliary input fields from numerical weather prediction models and then successively removed from the TB. The final step in the TA to TB conversion is the correction for the roughness of the sea surface due to wind, which is addressed in more detail in section 3. The TB of the flat ocean surface can now be matched to a salinity value using a surface emission model that is based on a model for the dielectric constant of sea water [3], [4] and an auxiliary field for the sea surface temperature. In the current processing only v-pol TB are used for this last step.

Assessing the ability of mechanistic volatilization models to simulate soil surface conditions: a study with the Volt'Air model.

PubMed

Garcia, L; Bedos, C; Génermont, S; Braud, I; Cellier, P

2011-09-01

Ammonia and pesticide volatilization in the field is a surface phenomenon involving physical and chemical processes that depend on the soil surface temperature and water content. The water transfer, heat transfer and energy budget sub models of volatilization models are adapted from the most commonly accepted formalisms and parameterizations. They are less detailed than the dedicated models describing water and heat transfers and surface status. The aim of this work was to assess the ability of one of the available mechanistic volatilization models, Volt'Air, to accurately describe the pedo-climatic conditions of a soil surface at the required time and space resolution. The assessment involves: (i) a sensitivity analysis, (ii) an evaluation of Volt'Air outputs in the light of outputs from a reference Soil-Vegetation-Atmosphere Transfer model (SiSPAT) and three experimental datasets, and (iii) the study of three tests based on modifications of SiSPAT to establish the potential impact of the simplifying assumptions used in Volt'Air. The analysis confirmed that a 5 mm surface layer was well suited, and that Volt'Air surface temperature correlated well with the experimental measurements as well as with SiSPAT outputs. In terms of liquid water transfers, Volt'Air was overall consistent with SiSPAT, with discrepancies only during major rainfall events and dry weather conditions. The tests enabled us to identify the main source of the discrepancies between Volt'Air and SiSPAT: the lack of gaseous water transfer description in Volt'Air. They also helped to explain why neither Volt'Air nor SiSPAT was able to represent lower values of surface water content: current classical water retention and hydraulic conductivity models are not yet adapted to cases of very dry conditions. Given the outcomes of this study, we discuss to what extent the volatilization models can be improved and the questions they pose for current research in water transfer modeling and parameterization. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.