Thin film modeling of crystal dissolution and growth in confinement

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gagliardi, Luca; Pierre-Louis, Olivier

2018-01-01

We present a continuum model describing dissolution and growth of a crystal contact confined against a substrate. Diffusion and hydrodynamics in the liquid film separating the crystal and the substrate are modeled within the lubrication approximation. The model also accounts for the disjoining pressure and surface tension. Within this framework, we obtain evolution equations which govern the nonequilibrium dynamics of the crystal interface. Based on this model, we explore the problem of dissolution under an external load, known as pressure solution. We find that in steady state, diverging (power-law) crystal-surface repulsions lead to flat contacts with a monotonic increase of the dissolution rate as a function of the load. Forces induced by viscous dissipation then surpass those due to disjoining pressure at large enough loads. In contrast, finite repulsions (exponential) lead to sharp pointy contacts with a dissolution rate independent of the load and the liquid viscosity. Ultimately, in steady state, the crystal never touches the substrate when pressed against it. This result is independent from the nature of the crystal-surface interaction due to the combined effects of viscosity and surface tension.

Asymptotic analysis of the contact-line microregion for a perfectly wetting volatile liquid in a pure-vapor atmosphere

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rednikov, A. Ye.; Colinet, P.

2017-12-01

We revisit the Wayner problem of the microregion of a contact line at rest formed by a perfectly wetting single-component liquid on an isothermal superheated flat substrate in an atmosphere of its own pure vapor. The focus is on the evaporation-induced apparent contact angles. The microregion is shaped by the effects of viscosity, Laplace and disjoining pressures (the latter in the form of an inverse-cubic law), and evaporation. The evaporation is in turn determined by heat conduction across the liquid film, kinetic resistance, and the Kelvin effect (i.e., saturation-condition dependence on the liquid-vapor pressure difference). While an asymptotic limit of large kinetic resistances was considered by Morris nearly two decades ago [J. Fluid Mech. 432, 1 (2001)], here we are concerned rather with matched asymptotic expansions in the limits of weak and strong Kelvin effects. Certain extensions are also touched upon within the asymptotic analysis. These are a more general form of the disjoining pressure and account for the Navier slip. Most notably, these also include the possibility of Wayner's extended microfilms (covering macroscopically dry parts of the substrate) actually getting truncated. A number of isolated cases encountered in the literature are thereby systematically recovered.

Enhanced oil displacement by nanofluid's structural disjoining pressure in model fractured porous media.

PubMed

Zhang, Hua; Ramakrishnan, T S; Nikolov, Alex; Wasan, Darsh

2018-02-01

Nanofluids for improved oil recovery has been demonstrated through laboratory corefloods. Despite numerous experimental studies, little is known about the efficacy of nanofluids in fractured systems. Here, we present studies of nanofluid injection in fractured porous media (both water-wet and oil-wet) formed by sintering borosilicate glass-beads around a dissolvable substrate. The fracture inside the porous medium is characterized and visualized using a high resolution X-ray microtomography. Based on a simple displacement theory, the nanofluid injection is conducted at a rate where structural disjoining pressure driven oil recovery is operational. An additional 23.8% oil was displaced using nanofluid after brine injection with an overall recovery efficiency of 90.4% provided the matrix was in its native wettability state. But only 6% additional oil was displaced by nanofluid following brine injection when the bead-pack was rendered oil-wet. Nanofluids appear to be a good candidate for enhanced oil recovery (EOR) in fractured water-wet to weakly water-wet media but not necessarily for strongly oil-wet systems. Our laboratory studies enable us to understand limitations of nanofluids for improving oil recovery in fractured media. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Effect of disjoining pressure on terminal velocity of a bubble sliding along an inclined wall.

PubMed

Del Castillo, Lorena A; Ohnishi, Satomi; White, Lee R; Carnie, Steven L; Horn, Roger G

2011-12-15

The influence of salt concentration on the terminal velocities of gravity-driven single bubbles sliding along an inclined glass wall has been investigated, in an effort to establish whether surface forces acting between the wall and the bubble influence the latter's mobility. A simple sliding bubble apparatus was employed to measure the terminal velocities of air bubbles with radii ranging from 0.3 to 1.5 mm sliding along the interior wall of an inclined Pyrex glass cylinder with inclination angles between 0.6 and 40.1°. Experiments were performed in pure water, 10 mM and 100 mM KCl solutions. We compared our experimental results with a theory by Hodges et al. which considers hydrodynamic forces only, and with a theory developed by two of us which considers surface forces to play a significant role. Our experimental results demonstrate that the terminal velocity of the bubble not only varies with the angle of inclination and the bubble size but also with the salt concentration, particularly at low inclination angles of ∼1-5°, indicating that double-layer forces between the bubble and the wall influence the sliding behavior. This is the first demonstration that terminal velocities of sliding bubbles are affected by disjoining pressure. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The watering of tall trees--embolization and recovery.

PubMed

Gouin, Henri

2015-03-21

We can propound a thermo-mechanical understanding of the ascent of sap to the top of tall trees thanks to a comparison between experiments associated with the cohesion-tension theory and the disjoining pressure concept for liquid thin-films. When a segment of xylem is tight-filled with crude sap, the liquid pressure can be negative although the pressure in embolized vessels remains positive. Examples are given that illustrate how embolized vessels can be refilled and why the ascent of sap is possible even in the tallest trees avoiding the problem due to cavitation. However, the maximum height of trees is limited by the stability domain of liquid thin-films. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Analysis of Evaporation and Condensation Processes in Complex Convective Flows.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xu, Xun

There are two parts in this dissertation. Part I, a numerical model was developed to analyze the flow and cloud formation processes in a concurrent-flow cloud chamber that recently has been designed by a group of researchers at Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory to examine the nucleation properties of smoke particles. This numerical model solves for the flow pattern and the distributions of temperature, water vapor, and liquid water droplets in the test chamber. Detailed information regarding these fields is difficult to obtain either by observation or by measurement during the experiment. The computational scheme uses a two-equation turbulence model (k-varepsilon model), which has been modified to include the effects of buoyancy and droplet condensation. The turbulent transport of momentum, heat, species, and droplets are simultaneously determined. The model also incorporates a treatment of the droplet growth and sedimentation mechanisms during the cloud formation process. Streamlines, isothermals, and constant contours of the concentrations have been obtained for a matrix of running conditions. Results from this numerical model indicate that the wall of the cylindrical chamber (oriented vertically) has a very strong influence on the flow field and on the temperature distribution inside the chamber. In Part II of this thesis, an analytical model is presented which can be used to predict the heat transfer characteristics of film evaporation on a microgroove surface. The model assumes that the liquid flow along a 'V' shaped groove channel is driven primarily by the capillary pressure difference due to the receding of the meniscus toward the apex of the groove, and the flow up the groove side wall is driven by the disjoining pressure difference. It also assumes that conduction across the thin liquid film is the dominant mechanism of heat transfer. A correlation between the Nusselt number and a non-dimensional parameter, Psi, is developed from this model which relates the heat transfer for the microgroove surface to the fluid properties, groove geometry, and the constants for the disjoining pressure relation. The results of a limited experimental study of the heat transfer during vaporization of a liquid coolant on a microgroove surface are also presented. Film evaporation transfer coefficients inferred from these experiments are found to correlate fairly well in terms of the Nusselt number and Psi parameter format developed in this model. The results of this study suggest that disjoining pressure differences may play a central role in evaporation processes in microgroove channels.

Multiscale modeling of interfacial flow in particle-solidification front dynamics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Garvin, Justin

2005-11-01

Particle-solidification front interactions are important in many applications, such as metal-matrix composite manufacture, frost heaving in soils and cryopreservation. The typical length scale of the particles and the solidification fronts are of the order of microns. However, the force of interaction between the particle and the front typically arises when the gap between them is of the order of tens of nanometers. Thus, a multiscale approach is necessary to analyze particle-front interactions. Solving the Navier-Stokes equations to simulate the dynamics by including the nano-scale gap between the particle and the front would be impossible. Therefore, the microscale dynamics is solved using a level-set based Eulerian technique, while an embedded model is developed for solution in the nano-scale (but continuum) gap region. The embedded model takes the form of a lubrication equation with disjoining pressure acting as a body force and is coupled to the outer solution. A particle is pushed by the front when the disjoining pressure is balanced by the viscous drag. The results obtained show that this balance can only occur when the thermal conductivity ratio of the particle to the melt is less than 1.0. The velocity of the front at which the particle pushing/engulfment transition occurs is predicted. In addition, this novel method allows for an in-depth analysis of the flow physics that cause particle pushing/engulfment.

Effect of disjoining pressure on terminal velocity of a bubble sliding along an inclined wall

PubMed Central

Del Castillo, Lorena A.; Ohnishi, Satomi; White, Lee R.; Carnie, Steven L.; Horn, Roger G.

2011-01-01

The influence of salt concentration on the terminal velocities of gravity-driven single bubbles sliding along an inclined glass wall has been investigated, in an effort to establish whether surface forces acting between the wall and the bubble influence the latter’s mobility. A simple sliding bubble apparatus was employed to measure the terminal velocities of air bubbles with radii ranging from 0.3 to 1.5 mm sliding along the interior wall of an inclined Pyrex glass cylinder with inclination angles between 0.6 and 40.1°. Experiments were performed in pure water, 10 mM and 100 mM KCl solutions. We compared our experimental results with a theory by Hodges et al. [1] which considers hydrodynamic forces only, and with a theory developed by two of us [2] which considers surface forces to play a significant role. Our experimental results demonstrate that the terminal velocity of the bubble not only varies with the angle of inclination and the bubble size but also with the salt concentration, particularly at low inclination angles of ∼1–5°, indicating that double-layer forces between the bubble and the wall influence the sliding behavior. This is the first demonstration that terminal velocities of sliding bubbles are affected by disjoining pressure. PMID:21924429

Multiscale Modeling of Particle-Solidification Front Dynamics, Part 3: Theoretical Aspects and Parametric Study (Preprint)

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-09-01

are investigated, i.e. the Hamaker constant, the particle size, the thermal conductivity ratio of the particle to the melt, and the solid- liquid...36 d A π =Π (1) where A is the Hamaker constant and d is the distance between the two surfaces. In this work, the disjoining pressure is...defined such that a negative Hamaker constant results in a repulsive force between the two interfaces whereas a positive Hamaker constant results in an

Zeta potential in oil-brine-sandstone system and its role in oil recovery during controlled salinity waterflooding

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, S.; Jackson, M.

2017-12-01

Wettability alteration is widely recognised as a primary role in improved oil recovery (IOR) during controlled salinity waterflooding (CSW) by modifying brine composition. The change of wettability of core sample depends on adsorption of polar oil compounds into the mineral surface which influences its surface charge density and zeta potential. It has been proved that zeta potentials can be useful to quantify the wettability and incremental oil recovery in natural carbonates. However, the study of zeta potential in oil-brine-sandstone system has not investigated yet. In this experimental study, the zeta potential is used to examine the controlled salinity effects on IOR in nature sandstone (Doddington) aged with two types of crude oils (Oil T and Oil D) over 4 weeks at 80 °C. Results show that the zeta potential measured in the Oil T-brine-sandstone system following primary waterflooding decreases compared to that in fully water saturation, which is consistent with the negative oil found in carbonates study, and IOR response during secondary waterflooding using diluted seawater was observed. In the case of negative oil, the injected low salinity brine induces a more repulsive electrostatic force between the mineral-brine interface and oil-brine interface, which results in an increase disjoining pressure and alters the rock surface to be more water-wet. For Oil D with a positive oil-brine interface, the zeta potential becomes more positive compared to that under single phase condition. The conventional waterflooding fails to observe the IOR in Oil D-brine-sandstone system due to a less repulsive electrostatic force built up between the two interfaces. After switching the injection brine from low salinity brine to formation brine, the IOR was observed. Measured zeta potentials shed some light on the mechanism of wettability alteration in the oil-brine-sandstone system and oil recovery during CSW.

Specific effects of Ca2+ ions and molecular structure of β-lactoglobulin interfacial layers that drive macroscopic foam stability† †Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available. See DOI: 10.1039/c6sm00636a Click here for additional data file.

PubMed Central

Schulze-Zachau, Felix; Nagel, Eva; Engelhardt, Kathrin; Stoyanov, Stefan; Gochev, Georgi; Khristov, Khr.; Mileva, Elena; Exerowa, Dotchi; Miller, Reinhard; Peukert, Wolfgang

2016-01-01

β-Lactoglobulin (BLG) adsorption layers at air–water interfaces were studied in situ with vibrational sum-frequency generation (SFG), tensiometry, surface dilatational rheology and ellipsometry as a function of bulk Ca2+ concentration. The relation between the interfacial molecular structure of adsorbed BLG and the interactions with the supporting electrolyte is additionally addressed on higher length scales along the foam hierarchy – from the ubiquitous air–water interface through thin foam films to macroscopic foam. For concentrations <1 mM, a strong decrease in SFG intensity from O–H stretching bands and a slight increase in layer thickness and surface pressure are observed. A further increase in Ca2+ concentrations above 1 mM causes an apparent change in the polarity of aromatic C–H stretching vibrations from interfacial BLG which we associate to a charge reversal at the interface. Foam film measurements show formation of common black films at Ca2+ concentrations above 1 mM due to considerable decrease of the stabilizing electrostatic disjoining pressure. These observations also correlate with a minimum in macroscopic foam stability. For concentrations >30 mM Ca2+, micrographs of foam films show clear signatures of aggregates which tend to increase the stability of foam films. Here, the interfacial layers have a higher surface dilatational elasticity. In fact, macroscopic foams formed from BLG dilutions with high Ca2+ concentrations where aggregates and interfacial layers with higher elasticity are found, showed the highest stability with much smaller bubble sizes. PMID:27337699

Wetting-dewetting films: the role of structural forces.

PubMed

Nikolov, Alex; Wasan, Darsh

2014-04-01

The liquid wetting and dewetting of solids are ubiquitous phenomena that occur in everyday life. Understanding the nature of these phenomena is beneficial for research and technological applications. However, despite their importance, the phenomena are still not well understood because of the nature of the substrate's surface energy non-ideality and dynamics. This paper illustrates the mechanisms and applications of liquid wetting and dewetting on hydrophilic and hydrophobic substrates. We discuss the classical understanding and application of wetting and film stability criteria based on the Frumkin-Derjaguin disjoining pressure model. The roles of the film critical thickness and capillary pressure on the film instability based on the disjoining pressure isotherm are elucidated, as are the criteria for stable and unstable wet films. We consider the film area in the model for the film stability and the applicable experiments. This paper also addresses the two classic film instability mechanisms for suspended liquid films based on the conditions of the free energy criteria originally proposed by de Vries (nucleation hole formation) and Vrij-Scheludko (capillary waves vs. van der Waals forces) that were later adapted to explain dewetting. We include a discussion of the mechanisms of nanofilm wetting and dewetting on a solid substrate based on nanoparticles' tendency to form a 2D layer and 2D inlayer in the film under the wetting film's surface confinement. We also present our view on the future of wetting-dewetting modeling and its applications in developing emerging technologies. We believe the review and analysis presented here will benefit the current and future understanding of the wetting-dewetting phenomena, as well as aid in the development of novel products and technologies. © 2013.

Understanding the role of brine ionic composition on oil recovery by assessment of wettability from colloidal forces.

PubMed

Alshakhs, Mohammed J; Kovscek, Anthony R

2016-07-01

The impact of injection brine salinity and ionic composition on oil recovery has been an active area of research for the past 25years. Evidence from laboratory studies and field tests suggests that implementing certain modifications to the ionic composition of the injection brine leads to greater oil recovery. The role of salinity modification is attributed to its ability to shift wettability of a rock surface toward water wetness. The amount of trapped oil released depends on the nature of rock, oil, and brine surface interactions. Reservoir rocks exhibit different affinities to fluids. Carbonates show stronger adsorption of oil films as opposed to the strongly water-wet and mixed-wet sandstones. The concentration of divalent ions and total salinity of the injection brine are other important factors to consider. Accordingly, this paper provides a review of laboratory and field studies of the role of brine composition on oil recovery from carbonaceous rock as well as rationalization of results using DLVO (Derjaguin, Landau, Verwey and Overbeek) theory of surface forces. DLVO evaluates the contribution of each component of the oil/brine/rock system to the wettability. Measuring zeta potential of each pair of surfaces by a charged particle suspension method is used to estimate double layer forces, disjoining pressure, and contact-angle. We demonstrate the applicability of the DLVO approach by showing a comprehensive experimental study that investigates the effect of divalent ions in carbonates, and uses disjoining pressure results to rationalize observations from core flooding and direct contact-angle measurements. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The origin of facet selectivity and alignment in anatase TiO 2 nanoparticles in electrolyte solutions: implications for oriented attachment in metal oxides

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

Sushko, M. L.; Rosso, K. M.

Atomic-to-mesoscale simulations were used to reveal the origin of oriented attachment between anatase TiO2 nanoparticles in aqueous HCl solutions. Analysis of the distance and pH dependence of interparticle interactions demonstrates that ion correlation forces are responsible for facet-specific attraction and rotation into lattice co-alignment at long-range. These forces give rise to a metastable solvent separated capture minimum on the disjoining pressure-distance curve, with the barrier to attachment largely due to steric hydration forces from structured intervening solvent.

Numerical investigation of thin film of polar liquid with added surfactant

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gordeeva, V. Y.; Lyushnin, A. V.

2017-11-01

The thin film of polar liquid with an added surfactant is investigated numerically in this paper. The evolution equations for film thickness and surface concentrations were solved using the semi-implicit Crank-Nikolson scheme. A few profiles on the liquid film developing from an ellipse-shaped drop were received. It was confirmed that the developing film divides into two coexisting films with predictable thickness. It was discovered that this pecularity of the polar liquid is valid only in little range of vapor pressure, which corresponds to the disjoining pressure. It was found that the surfactant desorbed on the gas-liquid interface does not effect to the thickness of the film while the surfactant desorbed on the substrate does effect. It was also found that the stable thickness of the film grows with absolute value of the vapor pressure in stated little range.

Effect of pressure on the α relaxation in glycerol and xylitol

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Paluch, M.; Casalini, R.; Hensel-Bielowka, S.; Roland, C. M.

2002-06-01

The effect of pressure on the dielectric relaxation of two polyhydroxy alcohols is examined by analysis of existing data on glycerol, together with new measurements on xylitol. The fragility, or Tg-normalized temperature dependence, changes with pressure for low pressures, but becomes invariant above 1 GPa. When compared at temperatures for which the α-relaxation times are equal, there is no effect of pressure (<1 GPa) on the shape of the α dispersion at higher temperatures. However, nearer Tg, pressure broadens the α peak, consistent with the expected correlation of fragility with the breadth of the relaxation function. We also observe that the α-relaxation peaks for both glycerol and xylitol show an excess intensity at higher frequencies. For xylitol, unlike for glycerol, at lower temperatures this wing disjoins to form a separate peak. For both glass formers, elevated pressure causes the excess wing to become more separated from the peak maximum; that is, the properties of the primary and excess intensities are not correlated. This implies that the excess wing in glycerol is also a distinct secondary process, although it cannot be resolved from the primary peak.

Density functional description of size-dependent effects at nucleation on neutral and charged nanoparticles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shchekin, Alexander K.; Lebedeva, Tatiana S.

2017-03-01

A numerical study of size-dependent effects in the thermodynamics of a small droplet formed around a solid nanoparticle has been performed within the square-gradient density functional theory. The Lennard-Jones fluid with the Carnahan-Starling model for the hard-sphere contribution to intermolecular interaction in liquid and vapor phases and interfaces has been used for description of the condensate. The intermolecular forces between the solid core and condensate molecules have been taken into account with the help of the Lennard-Jones part of the total molecular potential of the core. The influence of the electric charge of the particle has been considered under assumption of the central Coulomb potential in the medium with dielectric permittivity depending on local condensate density. The condensate density profiles and equimolecular radii for equilibrium droplets at different values of the condensate chemical potential have been computed in the cases of an uncharged solid core with the molecular potential, a charged core without molecular potential, and a core with joint action of the Coulomb and molecular potentials. The appearance of stable equilibrium droplets even in the absence of the electric charge has been commented. As a next step, the capillary, disjoining pressure, and electrostatic contributions to the condensate chemical potential have been considered and compared with the predictions of classical thermodynamics in a wide range of values of the droplet and the particle equimolecular radii. With the help of the found dependence of the condensate chemical potential in droplet on the droplet size, the activation barrier for nucleation on uncharged and charged particles has been computed as a function of the vapor supersaturation. Finally, the work of droplet formation and the work of wetting the particle have been found as functions of the droplet size.

Hydrophobic forces in thin water films stabilized by dodecylammonium chloride

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

Yoon, R.H.; Aksoy, B.S.

1999-03-01

A thin film balance of Scheludko-Exerowa type was used to determine equilibrium film thicknesses of dodecylammonium chloride (RNH{sub 3}Cl) solutions. The data were analyzed in view of the extended DLVO theory, which considers electrostatic, van der Waals. and hydrophobic forces. The hydrophobic force was represented as a power law which is of the same form as for the van der Waals force, so that its constant K{sub 232} can be directly compared with the Hamaker constant, A{sub 232}. The results showed that at low surfactant concentrations, K{sub 232} is positive and decreases with increasing surfactant concentration, suggesting that hydrophobic forcemore » plays an important role in thin films. When the K{sub 232} versus concentration plot was extrapolated to very dilute solutions, K{sub 232} approaches 10{sup {minus}17} J, which is approximately 270 times larger than A{sub 232}. When the surfactant concentration was increased above 2 {times} 10{sup {minus}3} M, however, K{sub 232} becomes negative, indicating that hydration force appears at high surfactant concentrations. These results suggest that air bubbles are hydrophobic and the hydrophobicity decreases with increasing surfactant concentration. A TFB was used to obtain a disjoining pressure isotherm at 10{sup {minus}3} M RNH{sub 3}Cl in the presence of 10{sup {minus}4} M NaCl. The results can be fitted to the extended DLVO theory with K{sub 232} = 6 {times} 10{sup {minus}19} J. Consideration of hydrophobic force predicted a rupture thickness larger than predicted using the DLVO theory, but is substantially smaller than the experimental result. This discrepancy may be ascribed to the hydrodynamic force operating in the film thinning process.« less

Contact line motion over substrates with spatially non-uniform properties

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ajaev, Vladimir; Gatapova, Elizaveta; Kabov, Oleg

2017-11-01

We develop mathematical models of moving contact lines over flat solid surfaces with spatial variation of temperature and wetting properties under the conditions when evaporation is significant. The gas phase is assumed to be pure vapor and a lubrication-type framework is employed for describing viscous flow in the liquid. Marangoni stresses at the liquid surface arise as a result of temperature variation in the vapor phase, non-equilibrium effects during evaporation at the interface, and Kelvin effect. The relative importance of these three factors is determined. Variation of wetting properties is modeled through a two-component disjoining pressure, with the main focus on spatially periodic patterns leading to time-periodic variation of the contact line speed.

Counterion-induced swelling of ionic microgels

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Denton, Alan R.; Tang, Qiyun

2016-10-01

Ionic microgel particles, when dispersed in a solvent, swell to equilibrium sizes that are governed by a balance between electrostatic and elastic forces. Tuning of particle size by varying external stimuli, such as pH, salt concentration, and temperature, has relevance for drug delivery, microfluidics, and filtration. To model swelling of ionic microgels, we derive a statistical mechanical theorem, which proves exact within the cell model, for the electrostatic contribution to the osmotic pressure inside a permeable colloidal macroion. Applying the theorem, we demonstrate how the distribution of counterions within an ionic microgel determines the internal osmotic pressure. By combining the electrostatic pressure, which we compute via both Poisson-Boltzmann theory and molecular dynamics simulation, with the elastic pressure, modeled via the Flory-Rehner theory of swollen polymer networks, we show how deswelling of ionic microgels with increasing concentration of particles can result from a redistribution of counterions that reduces electrostatic pressure. A linearized approximation for the electrostatic pressure, which proves remarkably accurate, provides physical insight and greatly eases numerical calculations for practical applications. Comparing with experiments, we explain why soft particles in deionized suspensions deswell upon increasing concentration and why this effect may be suppressed at higher ionic strength. The failure of the uniform ideal-gas approximation to adequately account for counterion-induced deswelling below close packing of microgels is attributed to neglect of spatial variation of the counterion density profile and the electrostatic pressure of incompletely neutralized macroions.

STABILITY OF AQUEOUS FILMS BETWEEN BUBBLES

PubMed Central

Ohnishi, Satomi; Vogler, Erwin A.; Horn, Roger G.

2010-01-01

Film thinning experiments have been conducted with aqueous films between two air phases in a thin film pressure balance. The films are free of added surfactant but simple NaCl electrolyte is added in some experiments. Initially the experiments begin with a comparatively large volume of water in a cylindrical capillary tube a few mm in diameter, and by withdrawing water from the center of the tube the two bounding menisci are drawn together at a prescribed rate. This models two air bubbles approaching at a controlled speed. In pure water the results show three regimes of behavior depending on the approach speed: at slow speed (<1 µm/s) it is possible to form a flat film of pure water, ~100 nm thick, that is stabilised indefinitely by disjoining pressure due to repulsive double-layer interactions between naturally-charged air/water interfaces. The data are consistent with a surface potential of −57 mV on the bubble surfaces. At intermediate approach speed (~1 – 150 µm/s) the films are transiently stable due to hydrodynamic drainage effects, and bubble coalescence is delayed by ~10 – 100 s. At approach speeds greater than ~150 µm/s the hydrodynamic resistance appears to become negligible, and the bubbles coalesce without any measurable delay. Explanations for these observations are presented that take into account DLVO and Marangoni effects entering through disjoining pressure, surface mobility and hydrodynamic flow regimes in thin film drainage. In particular, it is argued that the dramatic reduction in hydrodynamic resistance is a transition from viscosity-controlled drainage to inertia-controlled drainage associated with a change from immobile to mobile air/water interfaces on increasing the speed of approach of two bubbles. A simple model is developed that accounts for the boundaries between different film stability or coalescence regimes. Predictions of the model are consistent with the data, and the effects of adding electrolyte can be explained. In particular, addition of electrolyte at high concentration inhibits the near-instantaneous coalescence phenomenon, thereby contributing to increased foam film stability at high approach speeds, as reported in previous literature. This work highlights the significance of bubble approach speed as well as electrolyte concentration in affecting bubble coalescence. PMID:20146434

Nanoscale modeling for ultrathin liquid films: Spreading and coupled layering

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Phillips, David Michael

The hard disk drive (HDD) industry is currently experiencing a compound annual growth rate of 100% for the areal density. Current production drives have an areal density of 80 Gbit in-2, and drives with an areal density of 100 Gbit in-2 have been recently demonstrated. While much of this growth has been fueled by the development of new read/write heads, some of this gain was achieved by reducing the spacing between the heads and the magnetic media. This in turn reduces the spacing at the head-disk interface (HDI). The HDI in a HDD system consists of a slider, which contains the read/write heads, flying over the disk surface on an air bearing. The current designed separation distance, or fly height, is less than 10 nm. This spacing is expected to reduce to a mere 5 nm within the next few years. With the reduced fly height, intermittent contacts at the HDI become more probable. Only a thin lubricant film of perfluoropolyether (PFPE) and a sputtered carbon overcoat on the disk surface protect the slider and the stored data from mechanical and thermal damage. The PFPE film is quite thin, with a thickness of less than 2 nm or about a monolayer of molecules. During an HDI contact, the PFPE film is considered sacrificial and is often depleted in the contact area. In order to maintain adequate protection for the disk surface, PFPE molecules from the surrounding film must replenish the depleted area. This replenishment ability directly opposes the requirement that the PFPE film must not spin-off of the disk surface due to the disk rotation rate, which is as high as 10,000 RPM in current drives. To balance the PFPE films to sufficiently meet both requirements, HDD manufacturers functionalized the endgroups of the PFPE molecules to allow some portion of the lubricant film to reversibly bond with the disk overcoat. The result is a lubricant film that has a slower replenishment but does not spin-off. The work presented here focuses on the replenishment ability of thin films of liquid PFPE. The experimental analogue of replenishment is the one-dimensional spreading analysis. PFPEs with functional endgroups demonstrated coupled molecular layering and dewetting phenomena during the spreading analysis, while PFPEs with nonfunctional endgroups did not. All of the PFPE thin films spread via a diffusive process and had diffusion coefficients that depended on the local film thickness. A theoretical analysis is presented here for both the governing equation and the disjoining pressure driving force for the PFPE thin film spreading. For PFPEs with non-functional endgroups, a reasonable analysis is performed on the diffusion coefficient for two classes of film: submonolayer and multilayer. The diffusion coefficient of PFPEs with functional endgroups are qualitatively linked to the gradient of the film disjoining pressure. To augment this theory, both lattice-based and off-lattice Monte Carlo simulations are conducted for PFPE film models. The lattice-based model shows the existence of a critical functional endgroup interaction strength. It is also used to study the break-up of molecular layers for a spreading film via a fractal analysis. The off-lattice model is used to calculate the anisotropic pressure tensor for the model PFPE thin film and subsequently the film disjoining pressure. The model also qualitatively analyzes of the self diffusion in the film.

A three-scale model for ionic solute transport in swelling clays incorporating ion-ion correlation effects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Le, Tien Dung; Moyne, Christian; Murad, Marcio A.

2015-01-01

A new three-scale model is proposed to describe the movement of ionic species of different valences in swelling clays characterized by three separate length scales (nano, micro, and macro) and two levels of porosity (nano- and micropores). At the finest (nano) scale the medium is treated as charged clay particles saturated by aqueous electrolyte solution containing monovalent and divalent ions forming the electrical double layer. A new constitutive law is constructed for the disjoining pressure based on the numerical resolution of non-local problem at the nanoscale which, in contrast to the Poisson-Boltzmann theory for point charge ions, is capable of capturing the short-range interactions between the ions due to their finite size. At the intermediate scale (microscale), the two-phase homogenized particle/electrolyte solution system is represented by swollen clay clusters (or aggregates) with the nanoscale disjoining pressure incorporated in a modified form of Terzaghi's effective principle. At the macroscale, the electro-chemical-mechanical couplings within clay clusters is homogenized with the ion transport in the bulk fluid lying in the micro pores. The resultant macroscopic picture is governed by a three-scale model wherein ion transport takes place in the bulk solution strongly coupled with the mechanics of the clay clusters which play the role of sources/sinks of mass to the bulk fluid associated with ion adsorption/desorption in the electrical double layer at the nanoscale. Within the context of the quasi-steady version of the multiscale model, wherein the electrolyte solution in the nanopores is assumed at instantaneous thermodynamic equilibrium with the bulk fluid in the micropores, we build-up numerically the ion-adsorption isotherms along with the constitutive law of the retardation coefficients of monovalent and divalent ions. In addition, the constitutive law for the macroscopic swelling pressure is reconstructed numerically showing patterns of attractive forces between particles for bivalent ions for particular ranges of bulk concentrations. The three-scale model is applied to numerically simulate ion diffusion in a compacted clay liner underneath a sanitary landfill. Owing to the distinct constitutive behavior of the swelling pressure and partition coefficient for each ionic species, different compaction regimes and diffusion/adsorption patterns, with totally different characteristic time scales, are observed for sodium and calcium migration in the clay liner.

Numerical simulation and stability analysis of solutocapillary effect in ultrathin films

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gordeeva, V. Yu.; Lyushnin, A. V.

2017-04-01

Polar fluids, like water or polydimethylsiloxane, are widely used in technical and medical applications. Capillary effects arising from surface tension gradients can be significant in thin liquid films. The present paper is dedicated to investigation of capillary flow due to a surfactant added to a polar liquid under conditions when intermolecular forces and disjoining pressure play an important role. Evolution equations are formulated for a film profile and the surfactant concentration. Stability analysis shows that the Marangoni effect destabilizes the film, and oscillatory modes appear at slow evaporation rates. We find that the film has four stability modes of at slow evaporation: monotonic stable, monotonic unstable, oscillatory stable, and oscillatory unstable, depending on the wave number of disturbances.

Compliant, low profile, independently releasing, non-protruding and genderless docking system for robotic modules

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Khoshnevis, Behrokh (Inventor)

2010-01-01

An apparatus for coupling with a mating coupling module to facilitate the joining of two disjoined structures without requiring precise alignment between the disjoined structures during the coupling of them may include a rotating drive mechanism, a hollow cylindrical body operatively connected to the rotating drive mechanism, wherein the hollow cylindrical body has at least one internal spiral channel, and at least one connector claw positioned within the hollow cylindrical body and guided by the internal spiral channel, wherein the at least one connector claw is configured to extend outwardly from the coupling module to engage the mating coupling module when brought in close proximity but not necessarily in precise alignment with the mating coupling module.

Microfluidic pressure amplifier circuits and electrostatic gates for pneumatic microsystems

DOEpatents

Tice, Joshua D.; Bassett, Thomas A.; Desai, Amit V.; Apblett, Christopher A.; Kenis, Paul J. A.

2016-09-20

An electrostatic actuator is provide that can include a fluidic line, a first electrode, and a second electrode such that a gate chamber portion of the fluidic line is sandwiched between the first electrode and the second electrode. The electrostatic actuator can also include a pressure-balancing channel in fluid communication with the gate chamber portion where the first electrode is sandwiched between the pressure-balancing channel and the gate chamber portion. A pneumatic valve system is provided which includes an electrostatic gate and a fluidic channel fluidly separate from a fluidic control line. A pneumatic valve portion of the fluidic control line can be positioned relative to a portion of the fluidic channel such that expansion of the pneumatic valve portion restricts fluid flow through the fluidic channel. Methods of using an electrostatic actuator and a pneumatic valve system are also provided.

The low salinity effect at high temperatures

DOE PAGES

Xie, Quan; Brady, Patrick V.; Pooryousefy, Ehsan; ...

2017-04-05

The mechanism(s) of low salinity water flooding (LSWF) must be better understood at high temperatures and pressures if the method is to be applied in high T/P kaolinite-bearing sandstone reservoirs. We measured contact angles between a sandstone and an oil (acid number, AN = 3.98 mg KOH/g, base number, BN = 1.3 mg KOH/g) from a reservoir in the Tarim Field in western China in the presence of various water chemistries. We examined the effect of aqueous ionic solutions (formation brine, 100X diluted formation brine, and softened water), temperature (60, 100 and 140 °C) and pressure (20, 30, 40, andmore » 50 MPa) on the contact angle. We also measured the zeta potential of the oil/water and water/rock interfaces to calculate oil/brine/rock disjoining pressures. A surface complexation model was developed to interpret contact angle measurements and compared with DLVO theory predictions. Contact angles were greatest in formation water, followed by the softened water, and low salinity water at the same pressure and temperature. Contact angles increased slightly with temperature, whereas pressure had little effect. DLVO and surface complexation modelling predicted similar wettability trends and allow reasonably accurate interpretation of core-flood results. Water chemistry has a much larger impact on LSWF than reservoir temperature and pressure. As a result, low salinity water flooding should work in high temperature and high pressure kaolinite-bearing sandstone reservoirs.« less

The low salinity effect at high temperatures

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

Xie, Quan; Brady, Patrick V.; Pooryousefy, Ehsan

The mechanism(s) of low salinity water flooding (LSWF) must be better understood at high temperatures and pressures if the method is to be applied in high T/P kaolinite-bearing sandstone reservoirs. We measured contact angles between a sandstone and an oil (acid number, AN = 3.98 mg KOH/g, base number, BN = 1.3 mg KOH/g) from a reservoir in the Tarim Field in western China in the presence of various water chemistries. We examined the effect of aqueous ionic solutions (formation brine, 100X diluted formation brine, and softened water), temperature (60, 100 and 140 °C) and pressure (20, 30, 40, andmore » 50 MPa) on the contact angle. We also measured the zeta potential of the oil/water and water/rock interfaces to calculate oil/brine/rock disjoining pressures. A surface complexation model was developed to interpret contact angle measurements and compared with DLVO theory predictions. Contact angles were greatest in formation water, followed by the softened water, and low salinity water at the same pressure and temperature. Contact angles increased slightly with temperature, whereas pressure had little effect. DLVO and surface complexation modelling predicted similar wettability trends and allow reasonably accurate interpretation of core-flood results. Water chemistry has a much larger impact on LSWF than reservoir temperature and pressure. As a result, low salinity water flooding should work in high temperature and high pressure kaolinite-bearing sandstone reservoirs.« less

Modeling of nanoscale liquid mixture transport by density functional hydrodynamics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dinariev, Oleg Yu.; Evseev, Nikolay V.

2017-06-01

Modeling of multiphase compositional hydrodynamics at nanoscale is performed by means of density functional hydrodynamics (DFH). DFH is the method based on density functional theory and continuum mechanics. This method has been developed by the authors over 20 years and used for modeling in various multiphase hydrodynamic applications. In this paper, DFH was further extended to encompass phenomena inherent in liquids at nanoscale. The new DFH extension is based on the introduction of external potentials for chemical components. These potentials are localized in the vicinity of solid surfaces and take account of the van der Waals forces. A set of numerical examples, including disjoining pressure, film precursors, anomalous rheology, liquid in contact with heterogeneous surface, capillary condensation, and forward and reverse osmosis, is presented to demonstrate modeling capabilities.

DEVELOPMENT OF A HIGH-TEMPERATURE/HIGH-PRESSURE ELECTROSTATIC PRECIPITATOR

EPA Science Inventory

The report gives results of a laboratory test demonstrating the feasibility of electrostatic precipitation at high temperatures (to 1366 K) and pressures (to 3550 kPa): corona currents were stable at all temperatures. Detailed current/voltage characteristics under negative and po...

ELECTROSTATIC ENHANCEMENT OF FABRIC FILTRATION OF FLY ASH AND SPRAY DRYER BY-PRODUCT

EPA Science Inventory

The paper describes small pilot-scale experiments, showing that the pressure drop increase during the fabric filtration of redispersed spray dryer by-product (chiefly calcium salts and fly ash) is significantly reduced by electrostatic enhancement of the filtration. The pressure ...

Electrostatic Charging of Polymers by Particle Impact at Low Pressures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Calle, Carlos I.; Mantovani, J. G.; Buhler, C. R.; Hogue, M. D.; Nowicki, A. W.; Groop, E. E.; Thompson, Karen (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

Studies of the electrostatic interaction between micrometer-sized particles and polymer surfaces are of great interest to NASA's planetary exploration program. The unmanned landing missions to Mars planned for this decade as well as the possible manned missions that might take place during the second decade of this century require a better understanding of the electrostatic response of the materials used in landing crafts and equipment when exposed to wind-blown dust or to surface dust and sand particles. We report on preliminary experiments designed to measure the electrostatic charge developed on five polymer surfaces as they are impacted simultaneously by Mars simulant particles less than 5 micrometers in diameter moving at 20 m/s. Experiments were performed in a CO2 atmosphere at 10 mbars of pressure using a particle delivery method that propels the particles with contact. Experiments were also performed in dry air at atmospheric pressures using a pressurized particle delivery system. The five polymer surfaces, commonly used in space applications, were chosen so that they span the triboelectric series.

AN ELECTROSTATIC PRECIPITATOR BACKUP FOR SAMPLING SYSTEMS

EPA Science Inventory

The report describes a program carried out to design and evaluate the performance of an electrostatic collector to be used as an alternative to filters as a fine particle collector. Potential advantages of an electrostatic precipitator are low pressure drop and high capacity. Pot...

Instability and dynamics of volatile thin films

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ji, Hangjie; Witelski, Thomas P.

2018-02-01

Volatile viscous fluids on partially wetting solid substrates can exhibit interesting interfacial instabilities and pattern formation. We study the dynamics of vapor condensation and fluid evaporation governed by a one-sided model in a low-Reynolds-number lubrication approximation incorporating surface tension, intermolecular effects, and evaporative fluxes. Parameter ranges for evaporation-dominated and condensation-dominated regimes and a critical case are identified. Interfacial instabilities driven by the competition between the disjoining pressure and evaporative effects are studied via linear stability analysis. Transient pattern formation in nearly flat evolving films in the critical case is investigated. In the weak evaporation limit unstable modes of finite-amplitude nonuniform steady states lead to rich droplet dynamics, including flattening, symmetry breaking, and droplet merging. Numerical simulations show that long-time behaviors leading to evaporation or condensation are sensitive to transitions between filmwise and dropwise dynamics.

Electrostatic Precipitation in Nearly Pure Gaseous Nitrogen

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Buhler, Charles; Calle, Carlos; Clements, Sid; Cox, Bobby; Ritz, Mindy

2008-01-01

Electrostatic precipitation was performed in a nearly pure gaseous nitrogen system as a possible remedy for black dust contaminant from high pressure 6000 psi lines at the NASA Kennedy Space Center. The results of a prototype electrostatic precipitator that was built and tested using nitrogen gas at standard atmospheric pressures is presented. High voltage pulsed waveforms are generated using a rotating spark gap system at 30 Hz. A unique dust delivery system utilizing the Venturi effect was devised that supplies a given amount of dust per unit time for testing purposes.

Superstable Ultrathin Water Film Confined in a Hydrophilized Carbon Nanotube.

PubMed

Tomo, Yoko; Askounis, Alexandros; Ikuta, Tatsuya; Takata, Yasuyuki; Sefiane, Khellil; Takahashi, Koji

2018-03-14

Fluids confined in a nanoscale space behave differently than in the bulk due to strong interactions between fluid molecules and solid atoms. Here, we observed water confined inside "open" hydrophilized carbon nanotubes (CNT), with diameter of tens of nanometers, using transmission electron microscopy (TEM). A 1-7 nm water film adhering to most of the inner wall surface was observed and remained stable in the high vacuum (order of 10 -5 Pa) of the TEM. The superstability of this film was attributed to a combination of curvature, nanoroughness, and confinement resulting in a lower vapor pressure for water and hence inhibiting its vaporization. Occasional, suspended ultrathin water film with thickness of 3-20 nm were found and remained stable inside the CNT. This film thickness is 1 order of magnitude smaller than the critical film thickness (about 40 nm) reported by the Derjaguin-Landau-Verwey-Overbeek theory and previous experimental investigations. The stability of the suspended ultrathin water film is attributed to the additional molecular interactions due to the extended water meniscus, which balances the rest of the disjoining pressures.

Long-ranged electrostatic repulsion and crystallization of emulsion droplets in an ultralow dielectric medium supercritical carbon dioxide.

PubMed

Ryoo, Won; Webber, Stephen E; Bonnecaze, Roger T; Johnston, Keith P

2006-01-31

Electrostatic repulsion stabilizes micrometer-sized water droplets with spacings greater than 10 microm in an ultralow dielectric medium, CO2 (epsilon = 1.5), at elevated pressures. The morphology of the water/CO2 emulsion is characterized by optical microscopy and laser diffraction as a function of height. The counterions, stabilized with a nonionic, highly branched, stubby hydrocarbon surfactant, form an extremely thick double layer with a Debye screening length of 8.9 microm. As a result of the balance between electrostatic repulsion and the downward force due to gravity, the droplets formed a hexagonal crystalline lattice at the bottom of the high-pressure cell with spacings of over 10 microm. The osmotic pressure, calculated by solving the Poisson-Boltzmann equation in the framework of the Wigner-Seitz cell model, is in good agreement with that determined from the sedimentation profile measured by laser diffraction. Thus, the long-ranged stabilization of the emulsion may be attributed to electrostatic stabilization. The ability to form new types of colloids in CO2 with electrostatic stabilization is beneficial because steric stabilization is often unsatisfactory because of poor solvation of the stabilizers.

Effect of externally applied electrostatic fields on the surface topography of ceramide-enriched domains in mixed monolayers with sphingomyelin.

PubMed

Wilke, Natalia; Maggio, Bruno

2006-06-20

Lipid and protein molecules anisotropically oriented at a hydrocarbon-aqueous interface configure a dynamic array of self-organized molecular dipoles. Electrostatic fields applied to lipid monolayers have been shown to induce in-plane migration of domains or phase separation in a homogeneous system. In this work, we have investigated the effect of externally applied electrostatic fields on the distribution of the condensed ceramide-enriched domains in mixed monolayers with sphingomyelin. In these monolayers, the lipids segregate in different phases at all pressures. This allows analyzing by epifluorescence microscopy the effect of the electrostatic field at all lateral pressure because coexistence of lipid domains in condensed state are always present. Our observations indicate that a positive potential applied to an electrode placed over the monolayer promotes a repulsion of the ceramide-enriched domains which is rather insensitive to the film composition, depends inversely on the lateral pressure and exhibits threshold dependence on the in-plane elasticity.

Wetting of silicone oil onto a cell-seeded substrate

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lu, Yongjie; Chan, Yau Kei; Chao, Youchuang; Shum, Ho Cheung

2017-11-01

Wetting behavior of solid substrates in three-phase systems containing two immiscible liquids are widely studied. There exist many three-phase systems in biological environments, such as droplet-based microfluidics or tamponade of silicone oil for eye surgery. However, few studies focus on wetting behavior of biological surfaces with cells. Here we investigate wetting of silicone oil onto cell-seeded PMMA sheet immersed in water. Using a simple parallel-plate cell, we show the effect of cell density, viscosity of silicone oil, morphology of silicone oil drops and interfacial tension on the wetting phenomenon. The dynamics of wetting is also observed by squeezing silicone oil drop using two parallel plates. Experimental results are explained based on disjoining pressure which is dependent on the interaction of biological surfaces and liquid used. These findings are useful for explaining emulsification of silicone oil in ophthalmological applications.

Interfacial Force Field Characterization in a Constrained Vapor Bubble Thermosyphon

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

DasGupta, Sunando; Plawsky, Joel L.; Wayner, Peter C., Jr.

1995-01-01

Isothermal profiles of the extended meniscus in a quartz cuvette were measured in the earth's gravitational field using an image-analyzing interferometer that is based on computer-enhanced video microscopy of the naturally occurring interference fringes. These profiles are a function of the stress field. Experimentally, the augmented Young-Laplace equation is an excellent model for the force field at the solid-liquid-vapor interfaces for heptane and pentane menisci on quartz and tetradecane on SFL6. The effects of refractive indices of the solid and liquid on the measurement techniques were demonstrated. Experimentally obtained values of the disjoining pressure and dispersion constants were compared to those predicted from the Dzyaloshinskii - Lifshitz - Pilaevskii theory for an ideal surface and reasonable agreements were obtained. A parameter introduced gives a quantitative measurement of the closeness of the system to equilibrium. The nonequilibrium behavior of this parameter is also presented

Domain and rim growth kinetics in stratifying foam films

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Yiran; Yilixiati, Subinuer; Sharma, Vivek

Foam films are freely standing thin liquid films that typically consist of two surfactant-laden surfaces that are ~5 nm - 10 micron apart. Sandwiched between these interfacial layers is a fluid that drains primarily under the influence of viscous and interfacial forces, including disjoining pressure. Interestingly, a layered ordering of micelles inside the foam films (thickness <100 nm) leads to a stepwise thinning phenomena called stratification, which results in a thickness-dependent variation in reflected light intensity, visualized as progressively darker shades of gray. Thinner, darker domains spontaneously grow within foam films. During the initial expansion, a rim forms near the contact line between the growing thinner domain and the surrounding region, which influences the dynamics of domain growth as well as stratification Using newly developed interferometry digitial imaging optical microscopy (IDIOM) technique, we capture the rim evolution dynamics. Finally, we also develop a theoretical model to describe both rim evolution and domain growth dynamics.

Domain Growth Kinetics in Stratifying Foam Films

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Yiran; Sharma, Vivek

2015-03-01

Baking bread, brewing cappuccino, pouring beer, washing dishes, shaving, shampooing, whipping eggs and blowing bubbles all involve creation of aqueous foam films. Typical foam films consist of two surfactant-laden surfaces that are μ 5 nm - 10 micron apart. Sandwiched between these interfacial layers is a fluid that drains primarily under the influence of viscous and interfacial forces, including disjoining pressure. Interestingly, for certain low molecular weight surfactants, a layered ordering of micelles inside the foam films (thickness <100 nm) leads to a stepwise thinning phenomena called stratification. We experimentally elucidate the influence of these different driving forces, and confinement on drainage kinetics of horizontal stratifying foam films. Thinner, darker domains spontaneously grow within foam films. Quantitative characterization of domain growth visualized in a using Scheludko-type thin film cell and a theoretical model based on lubrication analysis, provide critical insights into hydrodynamics of thin foam films, and the strength and nature of surface forces, including supramolecular oscillatory structural forces.

Foam-oil interaction in porous media: implications for foam assisted enhanced oil recovery.

PubMed

Farajzadeh, R; Andrianov, A; Krastev, R; Hirasaki, G J; Rossen, W R

2012-11-15

The efficiency of a foam displacement process in enhanced oil recovery (EOR) depends largely on the stability of foam films in the presence of oil. Experimental studies have demonstrated the detrimental impact of oil on foam stability. This paper reviews the mechanisms and theories (disjoining pressure, coalescence and drainage, entering and spreading of oil, oil emulsification, pinch-off, etc.) suggested in the literature to explain the impact of oil on foam stability in the bulk and porous media. Moreover, we describe the existing approaches to foam modeling in porous media and the ways these models describe the oil effect on foam propagation in porous media. Further, we present various ideas on an improvement of foam stability and longevity in the presence of oil. The outstanding questions regarding foam-oil interactions and modeling of these interactions are pointed out. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Lubricant dynamics under sliding condition in disk drives

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Lin

2006-07-01

In this paper, we develop a two-dimensional flow model for the lubricant flow dynamics under a sliding head in disk drives. Our two-dimensional model includes important physics such as viscous force, external air shearing stress, air bearing pressure, centrifugal force, disjoining pressure, and surface tension. Our analysis shows that the lubricant flow dynamics under the sliding condition is a fully two-dimensional phenomenon and the circumferential lubricant flow is strongly coupled to the radial flow. It is necessary to have a two-dimensional flow model that couples the circumferential and radial flows together and includes all important physics to achieve realistic predictions. Our results show that the external air shearing stress has a dominant effect on the lubricant flow dynamics. Both velocity slippage at wall and Poiseuille flow effects have to be considered in the evaluation of the air shearing stress under the head. The nonuniform air bearing pressure has a non-negligible effect on the lubricant film dynamics mostly through the Poiseuille flow effect on the air shearing stress but not from its direct pushing or sucking effect on the lubricant surface. Prediction of the formation of lubricant depletion tracks under a sliding head using the two-dimensional model agrees reasonably well with the existing experimental measurements.

Multilayer out-of-plane overlap electrostatic energy harvesting structure actuated by blood pressure for powering intra-cardiac implants

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deterre, M.; Risquez, S.; Bouthaud, B.; Dal Molin, R.; Woytasik, M.; Lefeuvre, E.

2013-12-01

We present an innovative multilayer out-of-plane electrostatic energy harvesting device conceived in view of scavenging energy from regular blood pressure in the heart. This concept involves the use of a deformable packaging for the implant in order to transmit the blood pressure to the electrostatic transducer. As shown in previous work, this is possible by using thin metal micro-bellows structure, providing long term hermeticity and high flexibility. The design of the electrostatic device has overcome several challenges such as the very low frequency of the mechanical excitation (1 to 2 Hz) and the small available room in the medical implant. Analytical and numerical models have been used to maximize the capacitance variation, and hence to optimize the energy conversion. We have theoretically shown that a 25-layer transducer with 6-mm diameter and 1-mm thickness could harvest at least 20 mJ per heart beat in the left ventricle under a maximum voltage of 75 V. These results show that the proposed concept is promising and could power the next generation of leadless pacemakers.

Numerical Simulation of rivulet build up via lubrication equations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suzzi, N.; Croce, G.

2017-11-01

A number of engineering problems involve the evolution of a thin layer of liquid over a non-wettable substrate. For example, CO2 chemical absorption is carried out in packed columns, where post-combustion CO2 flows up while liquid solvent falls down through a collection of corrugated sheets. Further application include, among others, in-flight icing simulations, moisture condensation on de-humidifier fins, fogging build up and removal. Here, we present a development of an in-house code solving numerically the 2D lubrication equation for a film flowing down an inclined plate. The disjoining pressure approach is followed, in order to model both the contact line discontinuity and the surface wettability. With respect to the original implementation, the full modeling of capillary pressure terms according to Young- Laplace relation allows to investigate contact angles close to π/2. The code is thus validated with literature numerical results, obtained by a fully 3D approach (VOF), showing satisfying agreement despite a strong reduction in terms of computational cost. Steady and unsteady wetting dynamics of a developing rivulet are investigated (and validated) under different load conditions and for different values of the contact angles.

Electrostatic Inflation of Membrane Space Structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stiles, Laura A.

Membrane space structures provide a lightweight and cost effective alternative to traditional mechanical systems. The low-mass and high deployed-to-stored volume ratios allow for larger structures to be launched, expanding on-orbit science and technology capabilities. This research explores a novel method for deployment of membrane space structures using electrostatic pressure as the inflation mechanism. Applying electric charge to a layered gossamer structure provides an inflationary pressure due to the repulsive electrostatic forces between the charged layers. The electrostatic inflation of membrane structures (EIMS) concept is particularly applicable to non-precision structures such as sunshields or drag de-orbiting devices. This research addresses three fundamental topics: necessary conditions for EIMS in a vacuum, necessary conditions for EIMS in a plasma, and charging methods. Vacuum demonstrations show that less than 10 kiloVolts are required for electrostatic inflation of membrane structures in 1-g. On-orbit perturbation forces can be much smaller, suggesting feasible voltage requirements. Numerical simulation enables a relationship between required inflation pressure (to offset disturbances) and voltage. 100's of Volts are required for inflation in geosynchronous orbits (GEO) and a few kiloVolts in low Earth orbit (LEO). While GEO plasma has a small impact on the EIMS performance, Debye shielding at LEO reduces the electrostatic pressure. The classic Debye shielding prediction is far worse than actual shielding, raising the `effective' Debye length to the meter scale in LEO, suggesting feasibility for EIMS in LEO. Charged particle emission and remote charging methods are explored as inflation mechanisms. Secondary electron emission characteristics of EIMS materials were determined experimentally. Nonlinear fits to the Sternglass curve determined a maximum yield of 1.83 at 433 eV for Aluminized Kapton and a maximum yield of 1.78 at 511 eV for Aluminized Mylar. Remote charging was demonstrated to -500 V with a 5 keV electron beam. Charge emission power levels are below 1 Watt in GEO and from 10's of Watt to a kiloWatt in LEO.

Directional Electrostatic Accretion Process Employing Acoustic Droplet Formation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Oeftering, Richard (Inventor)

1998-01-01

The present invention is directed to an apparatus for manufacturing a free standing solid metal part. In the present invention, metal droplets are ejected in a nozzleless fashion from a free surface pool of molten metal by applying focused acoustic radiation pressure. The acoustic radiation pressure is produced by high intensity acoustic tone bursts emitted from an acoustic source positioned at the bottom of the pool which directs the acoustic energy at the pool surface. The metal droplets are electrostatically charged so their trajectory can be controlled by electric fields that guide the droplets to predetermined points on a target. The droplets impinge upon the target and solidify with the target material. The accretion of the electrostatically directed solidified droplets forms the free standing metal part.

Evaporation thermal anslysis of Swallow-tailed Axial-grooved Heat Pipe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Renping

2018-03-01

A detailed mathematical model that describes evaporating characteristics through thin liquid film at the evaporator section of swallow-tailed axial-grooved heat pipe was developed. The numerical simulation results about thin film profile, liquid-vapour interface temperature, evaporating rate and heat flux at the evaporating thin film region were given by the current investigation and the effect of superheat on the liquid-vapour interface temperature, evaporating mass rate and heat flux was discussed. Meanwhile, thermal model of the meniscus region at the evaporating section was developed to calculate the rate of heat transfer. The ratio of the heat conduction in the evaporating thin liquid film region and total heat rate were also discussed. It is indicated that the thickness of thin liquid film rises in a nearly linear fashion. The disjoining pressure can be neglected with increasing the liquid film thickness, tends to be negligibly small. The heat transfer rate at the intrinsic meniscus cannot be compared with that of the evaporating liquid film region.

Domain growth kinetics in stratifying foam films

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Yiran; Sharma, Vivek

2015-11-01

Baking bread, brewing cappuccino, pouring beer, washing dishes, shaving, shampooing, whipping eggs and blowing bubbles all involve creation of aqueous foam films. Typical foam films consist of two surfactant-laden surfaces that are ~ 5 nm - 10 micron apart. Sandwiched between these interfacial layers is a fluid that drains primarily under the influence of viscous and interfacial forces, including disjoining pressure. Interestingly, a layered ordering of micelles inside the foam films (thickness <100 nm) leads to a stepwise thinning phenomena called stratification, which results in a thickness-dependent variation in reflected light intensity, visualized as progressively darker shades of gray. Thinner, darker domains spontaneously grow within foam films. We show that the domain expansion dynamics exhibit two distinct growth regimes with characteristic scaling laws. Though several studies have focused on the expansion dynamics of isolated domains that exhibit a diffusion-like scaling, the change in expansion kinetics observed after domains contact with the Plateau border has not been reported and analyzed before.

Noncontact surface tension and viscosity measurements of molten oxides with a pressurized hybrid electrostatic-aerodynamic levitator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ishikawa, Takehiko; Yu, Jianding; Paradis, Paul-François

2006-05-01

In order to measure the surface tension and the viscosity of molten oxides, the oscillation drop technique has been applied on a pressurized hybrid electrostatic-aerodynamic levitator. To suppress the electrical discharge between the top and bottom electrodes, the drop excitation method which has been used with high vacuum electrostatic levitators has been modified. As a demonstration, the surface tension and viscosity of liquid BaTiO3 were measured using this new method. Over the 1500-2000K interval, the surface tension was measured as γ(T )=349-0.03 (T-Tm) (10-3N/m), where Tm=1893K is the melting temperature. Similarly, the viscosity was determined as η(T )=0.53exp[5.35×104/(RT)](10-3Pas) over the same temperature interval.

Automated Electrostatics Environmental Chamber

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Calle, Carlos; Lewis, Dean C.; Buchanan, Randy K.; Buchanan, Aubri

2005-01-01

The Mars Electrostatics Chamber (MEC) is an environmental chamber designed primarily to create atmospheric conditions like those at the surface of Mars to support experiments on electrostatic effects in the Martian environment. The chamber is equipped with a vacuum system, a cryogenic cooling system, an atmospheric-gas replenishing and analysis system, and a computerized control system that can be programmed by the user and that provides both automation and options for manual control. The control system can be set to maintain steady Mars-like conditions or to impose temperature and pressure variations of a Mars diurnal cycle at any given season and latitude. In addition, the MEC can be used in other areas of research because it can create steady or varying atmospheric conditions anywhere within the wide temperature, pressure, and composition ranges between the extremes of Mars-like and Earth-like conditions.

Electrostatic-Dipole (ED) Fusion Confinement Studies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miley, George H.; Shrestha, Prajakti J.; Yang, Yang; Thomas, Robert

2004-11-01

The Electrostatic-Dipole (ED) concept significantly differs from a "pure" dipole confinement device [1] in that the charged particles are preferentially confined to the high-pressure region interior of the dipole coil by the assistance of a surrounding spherical electrostatic grid. In present ED experiments, a current carrying coil is embedded inside the grid of an IEC such as to produce a magnetic dipole field. Charged particles are injected axisymmetrically from an ion gun (or duo-plasmatron) into the center of the ED confinement grid/dipole ring where they oscillate along the magnetic field lines and pass the peak field region at the center of the dipole region. As particles begin accelerating away from the center region towards the outer electrostatic grid region, they encounter a strong electrostatic potential (order of 10's of kilovolts) retarding force. The particles then decelerate, reverse direction and re-enter the dipole field region where again magnetic confinement dominates. This process continues, emulating a complex harmonic oscillator motion. The resulting pressure profile averaged over the field curvature offers good plasma stability in the ED configuration. The basic concept and results from preliminary experiments will be described. [1] M.E. Mauel, et al. "Dipole Equilibrium and Stability," 18th IAEA Conference of Plasma Phys. and Control. Nuclear Fusion, Varenna, Italy 2000, IAEA-F1-CN-70/TH

Method to Remove Particulate Matter from Dusty Gases at Low Pressures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Calle, Carlos; Clements, J. Sid

2012-01-01

Future human exploration of Mars will rely on local Martian resources to reduce the mass, cost, and risk of space exploration launched from Earth. NASA's In Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) Project seeks to produce mission consumables from local Martian resources, such as atmospheric gas. The Martian atmosphere, however, contains dust particles in the 2-to-10 -micrometer range. These dust particles must be removed before the Martian atmospheric gas can be processed. The low pressure of the Martian atmosphere, at 5 to 10 mbars, prevents the development of large voltages required for a standard electrostatic precipitator. If the voltage is increased too much, the corona transitions into a glow/streamer discharge unsuitable for the operation of a precipitator. If the voltage is not large enough, the dust particles are not sufficiently charged and the field is not strong enough to drive the particles to the collector. A method using electrostatic fields has been developed to collect dust from gaseous environments at low pressures, specifically carbon dioxide at pressures around 5 to 10 mbars. This method, commonly known as electrostatic precipitation, is a mature technology in air at one atmosphere. In this case, the high voltages required for the method to work can easily be achieved. However, in carbon dioxide at low pressures, such as those found on Mars, large voltages are not possible. The innovation reported here consists of two concentric cylindrical electrodes set at specific potential difference that generate an electric field that produces a corona capable of imparting an electrostatic charge to the incoming dust particles. The strength of the field is carefully balanced so as to produce a stable charging corona at 5 to 10 mbars, and is also capable of imparting a force to the particles that drives them to the collecting electrode. There are only two possible ways that dust can be removed from Martian atmospheric gas intakes: with this electrostatic precipitator design, and with the use of filters. However, filters require upstream compression of the gas to be treated because the atmospheric pressure on Mars is too close to vacuum to use a vacuum pump downstream to the filter to draw the gas through the filter. The electrostatic precipitator is the best and more efficient solution for this environment. No other precipitator designs have been developed for the environment of Mars due to the challenges of the low atmospheric pressure. Dust particles are charged using corona generation around the high-voltage discharge electrode, which ionizes gas molecules. Since the atmospheric gas intakes for the ISRU processing chambers will likely be cylindrical, cylindrical precipitator geometry was chosen. The electrostatic precipitator design presented here removes simulated Martian dust particles in the required range in a simulated Martian atmospheric environment. The current-voltage (I-V) characteristic curves taken for the nine precipitator configurations at 9 mbars of pressure showed that a cylindrical collecting electrode 7.0 cm in diameter with a concentric positive high voltage electrode 100 m thick provides the best range of voltage and charging corona current. This precipitator design is effective for the size of the dust particles expected in the Martian atmosphere. Mass determination, as well as microscopic images and particle size distributions of dust collected on a silicon wafer placed directly below the precipitator with the field on and off, showed excellent initial results.

Measurement and Control of Oxygen Partial Pressure in an Electrostatic Levitator

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

SanSoucie, Michael P.; Rogers, Jan R.

2014-01-01

Recently the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center electrostatic levitation (ESL) laboratory has been upgraded to include an oxygen control system. This system allows the oxygen partial pressure within the vacuum chamber to be measured and controlled, at elevated temperatures, theoretically in the range from 10(exp -36) to 10(exp 0) bar. The role of active surface agents in liquid metals is fairly well known; however, published surface tension data typically has large scatter, which has been hypothesized to be caused by the presence of oxygen. The surface tension of metals is affected by even a small amount of adsorption of oxygen. It has even been shown that oxygen partial pressures may need to be as low as 10(exp -24) bar to avoid oxidation. While electrostatic levitation is done under high vacuum, oxide films or dissolved oxygen may have significant effects on materials properties, such as surface tension and viscosity. Therefore, the ability to measure and control the oxygen partial pressure within the chamber is highly desirable. The oxygen control system installed at MSFC contains a potentiometric sensor, which measures the oxygen partial pressure, and an oxygen ion pump. In the pump, a pulse-width modulated electric current is applied to yttrium-stabilized zirconia, resulting in oxygen transfer into or out of the system. Also part of the system is a control unit, which consists of temperature controllers for the sensor and pump, PID-based current loop for the ion pump, and a control algorithm. This system can be used to study the effects of oxygen on the thermophysical properties of metals, ceramics, glasses, and alloys. It can also be used to provide more accurate measurements by processing the samples at very low oxygen partial pressures. The oxygen control system will be explained in more detail and an overview of its use and limitations in an electrostatic levitator will be described. Some preliminary measurements have been made, and the results to date will be provided.

Electrostatic forces in planetary rings

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Goertz, C. K.; Shan, Linhua; Havnes, O.

1988-01-01

The average charge on a particle in a particle-plasma cloud, the plasma potential inside the cloud, and the Coulomb force acting on the particle are calculated. The net repulsive electrostatic force on a particle depends on the plasma density, temperature, density of particles, particle size, and the gradient of the particle density. In a uniformly dense ring the electrostatic repulsion is zero. It is also shown that the electrostatic force acts like a pressure force, that even a collisionless ring can be stable against gravitational collapse, and that a finite ring thickness does not necessarily imply a finite velocity dispersion. A simple criterion for the importance of electrostatic forces in planetary rings is derived which involves the calculation of the vertical ring thickness which would result if only electrostatic repulsion were responsible for the finite ring thickness. Electrostatic forces are entirely negligible in the main rings of Saturn and the E and G rings. They may also be negligible in the F ring. However, the Uranian rings and Jupiter's ring seem to be very much influenced by electrostatic repulsion. In fact, electrostatic forces could support a Jovian ring which is an order of magnitude more dense than observed.

Collection of biological and non-biological particles by new and used filters made from glass and electrostatically charged synthetic fibers.

PubMed

Raynor, P C; Kim, B G; Ramachandran, G; Strommen, M R; Horns, J H; Streifel, A J

2008-02-01

Synthetic filters made from fibers carrying electrostatic charges and fiberglass filters that do not carry electrostatic charges are both utilized commonly in heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems. The pressure drop and efficiency of a bank of fiberglass filters and a bank of electrostatically charged synthetic filters were measured repeatedly for 13 weeks in operating HVAC systems at a hospital. Additionally, the efficiency with which new and used fiberglass and synthetic filters collected culturable biological particles was measured in a test apparatus. Pressure drop measurements adjusted to equivalent flows indicated that the synthetic filters operated with a pressure drop less than half that of the fiberglass filters throughout the test. When measured using total ambient particles, synthetic filter efficiency decreased during the test period for all particle diameters. For particles 0.7-1.0 mum in diameter, efficiency decreased from 92% to 44%. It is hypothesized that this reduction in collection efficiency may be due to charge shielding. Efficiency did not change significantly for the fiberglass filters during the test period. However, when measured using culturable biological particles in the ambient air, efficiency was essentially the same for new filters and filters used for 13 weeks in the hospital for both the synthetic and fiberglass filters. It is hypothesized that the lack of efficiency reduction for culturable particles may be due to their having higher charge than non-biological particles, allowing them to overcome the effects of charge shielding. The type of particles requiring capture may be an important consideration when comparing the relative performance of electrostatically charged synthetic and fiberglass filters. Electrostatically charged synthetic filters with high initial efficiency can frequently replace traditional fiberglass filters with lower efficiency in HVAC systems because properly designed synthetic filters offer less resistance to air flow. Although the efficiency of charged synthetic filters at collecting non-biological particles declined substantially with use, the efficiency of these filters at collecting biological particles remained steady. These findings suggest that the merits of electrostatically charged synthetic HVAC filters relative to fiberglass filters may be more pronounced if collection of biological particles is of primary concern.

A molecular model of proteoglycan-associated electrostatic forces in cartilage mechanics.

PubMed

Buschmann, M D; Grodzinsky, A J

1995-05-01

Measured values of the swelling pressure of charged proteoglycans (PG) in solution (Williams RPW, and Comper WD; Biophysical Chemistry 36:223, 1990) and the ionic strength dependence of the equilibrium modulus of PG-rich articular cartilage (Eisenberg SR, and Grodzinsky AJ; J Orthop Res 3: 148, 1985) are compared to the predictions of two models. Each model is a representation of electrostatic forces arising from charge present on spatially fixed macromolecules and spatially mobile micro-ions. The first is a macroscopic continuum model based on Donnan equilibrium that includes no molecular-level structure and assumes that the electrical potential is spatially invariant within the polyelectrolyte medium (i.e. zero electric field). The second model is based on a microstructural, molecular-level solution of the Poisson-Boltzmann (PB) equation within a unit cell containing a charged glycosaminoglycan (GAG) molecule and its surrounding atmosphere of mobile ions. This latter approach accounts for the space-varying electrical potential and electrical field between the GAG constituents of the PG. In computations involving no adjustable parameters, the PB-cell model agrees with the measured pressure of PG solutions to within experimental error (10%), whereas the ideal Donnan model overestimates the pressure by up to 3-fold. In computations involving one adjustable parameter for each model, the PB-cell model predicts the ionic strength dependence of the equilibrium modulus of articular cartilage. Near physiological ionic strength, the Donnan model overpredicts the modulus data by 2-fold, but the two models coincide for low ionic strengths (C0 < 0.025M) where the spatially invariant Donnan potential is a closer approximation to the PB potential distribution. The PB-cell model result indicates that electrostatic forces between adjacent GAGs predominate in determining the swelling pressure of PG in the concentration range found in articular cartilage (20-80 mg/ml). The PB-cell model is also consistent with data (Eisenberg and Grodzinsky, 1985, Lai WM, Hou JS, and Mow VC; J Biomech Eng 113: 245, 1991) showing that these electrostatic forces account for approximately 1/2 (290kPa) the equilibrium modulus of cartilage at physiological ionic strength while absolute swelling pressures may be as low as approximately 25-100kPa. This important property of electrostatic repulsion between GAGs that are highly charged but spaced a few Debye lengths apart allows cartilage to resist compression (high modulus) without generating excessive intratissue swelling pressures.

Bus Vent Design Evolution for the Solar Dynamics Observatory

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Woronowicz, Michael

2010-01-01

As a spacecraft undergoes ascent in a launch vehicle, its pressure environment transitions from one atmosphere to high vacuum in a matter of minutes. Venting of internal cavities is necessary to prevent the buildup of pressure differentials across cavity walls. Opposing the need to vent these volumes freely into space are thermal, optical, and electrostatic requirements for limiting or prohibiting the intrusion of unwanted energy into the same cavities. Bus vent design evolution is discussed for the Solar Dynamics Observatory. Design changes were influenced by a number of factors and concerns, such as contamination control, electrostatic discharge, changes in bus material, and driving fairing ascent pressure for a launch vehicle that was just entering service as this satellite project had gotten underway.

Investigation of spray dispersion and particulate formation in diesel fuel flames

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Back, L. H.; Bankston, C. P.; Kwack, E. Y.; Bellan, J.; Harstad, K.

1988-01-01

An experimental study of electrostatical atomized and dispersed diesel fuel jets was conducted at various back pressures to 40 atm. A new electrostatic injection technique was utilized to generate continuous, stable fuel sprays at charge densities of 1.5 to 2.0 C/m3 of fluid at one atm, and about 1.0 C/m3 at 40 atm. Flowrates were varied from 0.5 to 2.5 ml/s and electric potentials to -18 kV. Visual observations showed that significant enhanced dispersion of charged fuel jets occurred at high back pressures compared to aerodynamic breakup and dispersion. The average drop size was about the same as the spray triode orifice diameter, and was between the Kelly theory and the Rayleigh limit. The ignition tests, done only at one atm, indicated stable combustion of the electrostatically dispersed fuel jets.

Advanced particulate matter control apparatus and methods

DOEpatents

Miller, Stanley J [Grand Forks, ND; Zhuang, Ye [Grand Forks, ND; Almlie, Jay C [East Grand Forks, MN

2012-01-10

Apparatus and methods for collection and removal of particulate matter, including fine particulate matter, from a gas stream, comprising a unique combination of high collection efficiency and ultralow pressure drop across the filter. The apparatus and method utilize simultaneous electrostatic precipitation and membrane filtration of a particular pore size, wherein electrostatic collection and filtration occur on the same surface.

Electrostatic atomization--Experiment, theory and industrial applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Okuda, H.; Kelly, Arnold J.

1996-05-01

Experimental and theoretical research has been initiated at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory on the electrostatic atomization process in collaboration with Charged Injection Corporation. The goal of this collaboration is to set up a comprehensive research and development program on the electrostatic atomization at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory so that both institutions can benefit from the collaboration. Experimental, theoretical and numerical simulation approaches are used for this purpose. An experiment consisting of a capillary sprayer combined with a quadrupole mass filter and a charge detector was installed at the Electrostatic Atomization Laboratory to study fundamental properties of the charged droplets such as the distribution of charges with respect to the droplet radius. In addition, a numerical simulation model is used to study interaction of beam electrons with atmospheric pressure water vapor, supporting an effort to develop an electrostatic water mist fire-fighting nozzle.

On the characteristics of obliquely propagating electrostatic structures in non-Maxwellian plasmas in the presence of ion pressure anisotropy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Adnan, Muhammad; Qamar, Anisa; Mahmood, Shahzad; Kourakis, Ioannis

2017-03-01

The dynamical characteristics of large amplitude ion-acoustic waves are investigated in a magnetized plasma comprising ions presenting space asymmetry in the equation of state and non-Maxwellian electrons. The anisotropic ion pressure is defined using the double adiabatic Chew-Golberger-Low theory. An excess in the superthermal component of the electron population is assumed, in agreement with long-tailed (energetic electron) distribution observations in space plasmas; this is modeled via a kappa-type distribution function. Large electrostatic excitations are assumed to propagate in a direction oblique to the external magnetic field. In the linear (small amplitude) regime, two electrostatic modes are shown to exist. The properties of arbitrary amplitude (nonlinear) obliquely propagating ion-acoustic solitary excitations are thus investigated via a pseudomechanical energy balance analogy, by adopting a Sagdeev potential approach. The combined effect of the ion pressure anisotropy and excess superthermal electrons is shown to alter the parameter region where solitary waves can exist. An excess in the suprathermal particles is thus shown to be associated with solitary waves, which are narrower, faster, and of larger amplitude. Ion pressure anisotropy, on the other hand, affects the amplitude of the solitary waves, which become weaker (in strength), wider (in spatial extension), and thus slower in comparison with the cold ion case.

Simulation of Aluminum Micro-mirrors for Space Applications at Cryogenic Temperatures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kuhn, J. L.; Dutta, S. B.; Greenhouse, M. A.; Mott, D. B.

2000-01-01

Closed form and finite element models are developed to predict the device response of aluminum electrostatic torsion micro-mirrors fabricated on silicon substrate for space applications at operating temperatures of 30K. Initially, closed form expressions for electrostatic pressure arid mechanical restoring torque are used to predict the pull-in and release voltages at room temperature. Subsequently, a detailed mechanical finite element model is developed to predict stresses and vertical beam deflection induced by the electrostatic and thermal loads. An incremental and iterative solution method is used in conjunction with the nonlinear finite element model and closed form electrostatic equations to solve. the coupled electro-thermo-mechanical problem. The simulation results are compared with experimental measurements at room temperature of fabricated micro-mirror devices.

Electrostatic Discharge Initiation Experiments using PVDF Pressure Transducers

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-12-01

ignition sensitivity. The results are discussed within the context of a preliminary model of electrostatic initiation. iii/iv NAVSWC TR 91-666 CONTENTS...Chapter Page 1 INTRODUCTION .......................................... 1-1 TWO PHASE IGNITION MODEL ....................... 1-1 SENSITIZING FACTORS...is necessary to establish effective techniques to reduce the hazards associated with ESD ignition. TWO-PHASE IGNITION MODEL A model has been proposed

Al-Coated Conductive Fiber Filters for High-Efficiency Electrostatic Filtration: Effects of Electrical and Fiber Structural Properties.

PubMed

Choi, Dong Yun; An, Eun Jeong; Jung, Soo-Ho; Song, Dong Keun; Oh, Yong Suk; Lee, Hyung Woo; Lee, Hye Moon

2018-04-10

Through the direct decomposition of an Al precursor ink AlH 3 {O(C 4 H 9 ) 2 }, we fabricated an Al-coated conductive fiber filter for the efficient electrostatic removal of airborne particles (>99%) with a low pressure drop (~several Pascals). The effects of the electrical and structural properties of the filters were investigated in terms of collection efficiency, pressure drop, and particle deposition behavior. The collection efficiency did not show a significant correlation with the extent of electrical conductivity, as the filter is electrostatically charged by the metallic Al layers forming electrical networks throughout the fibers. Most of the charged particles were collected via surface filtration by Coulombic interactions; consequently, the filter thickness had little effect on the collection efficiency. Based on simulations of various fiber structures, we found that surface filtration can transition to depth filtration depending on the extent of interfiber distance. Therefore, the effects of structural characteristics on collection efficiency varied depending on the degree of the fiber packing density. This study will offer valuable information pertaining to the development of a conductive metal/polymer composite air filter for an energy-efficient and high-performance electrostatic filtration system.

Effect of surface roughness on contact line dynamics of a thin droplet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bhattacharjee, Debanik; Soltannia, Babak; Nazaripoor, Hadi; Sadrzadeh, Mohtada

2017-11-01

Any surface possesses inherent roughness. Droplet spreading on a surface is an example of a contact line problem. The tri-phase contact line is prone to stress singularity which can be relieved by using precursor film assumption and disjoining pressure. In this study, an axisymmetric, incompressible, Newtonian droplet spreading on a surface was investigated. An evolution equation which tracks the droplet height over time was obtained considering the lubrication approximation. The nonlinear PDE of evolution equation was solved using finite difference scheme. A simplified Gaussian model was used as a starting point to assess the role of roughness in the dynamics of contact line. The preliminary results revealed that, for both impermeable and permeable surfaces, the apparent contact angle increased in the presence of defects whereas the equilibrium stage remained unaffected. The apparent contact angle, however, was more strongly dependent on the nature and density of defects for impermeable surfaces due to the longer droplet lifetime. Furthermore, random self-affine and non-Gaussian models are employed. The mathematical model results are finally compared with theoretical models like the Cassie-Baxter, Wenzel, and Penetration modes. NSERC.

Numerical Simulation of Thin Film Breakup on Nonwettable Surfaces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suzzi, N.; Croce, G.

2017-01-01

When a continuous film flows on a nonwettable substrate surface, it may break up, with the consequent formation of a dry-patch. The actual shape of the resulting water layer is of great interest in several engineering applications, from in-flight icing simulation to finned dehumidifier behavior modeling. Here, a 2D numerical solver for the prediction of film flow behavior is presented. The effect of the contact line is introduced via the disjoining pressure terms, and both gravity and shear are included in the formulation. The code is validated with literature experimental data for the case of a stationary dry-patch on an inclined plane. Detailed numerical results are compared with literature simplified model prediction. Numerical simulation are then performed in order to predict the threshold value of the film thickness allowing for film breakup and to analyze the dependence of the dynamic contact angle on film velocity and position along the contact line. Those informations will be useful in order to efficiently predict more complex configuration involving multiple breakups on arbitrarily curved substrate surfaces (as those involved in in-flight icing phenomena on aircraft).

Free-Surface and Contact Line Motion of Liquid in Microgravity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schwartz, Leonard W.

1996-01-01

This project involves fundamental studies of the role of nonlinearity in determining the motion of liquid masses under the principal influences of surface tension, viscosity and inertia. Issues to be explored are relevant to aspects of terrestrial processes, as well as being immediately applicable to fluid management in a low-gravity environment. Specific issues include: (1) the mechanic's of liquid masses in large-amplitude motions, (2) the influence of bounding surfaces on the motion, and (3) the ability of such surfaces to control liquid motion by wetting forces, especially when they are augmented by various surface treatments. Mathematical techniques include asymptotic analysis of the governing equations, for problem simplification, and numerical simulation, using both boundary-element and finite-difference methods. The flow problem is divided into an 'outer' or inviscid potential-flow region and one or more inner, or viscous dominated, regions. Relevant to one inner region, the vicinity of the contact line, we discuss time-dependent simulation of slow droplet motion, on a surface of variable wettability, using the lubrication approximation. The simulation uses a disjoining pressure model and reproduces realistic wetting-dewetting behavior.

Effect of an electric field on the structural and optical properties of fluorinated freely suspended smectic films

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Śliwa, I.; Zakharov, A. V.

2017-12-01

Within the framework of the generalized mean-field model that takes into account the anisotropic interactions between the nearest neighbors of molecules forming freely suspended smectic films (FSSFs) and the stabilizing effects of the smectic-A (SmA)-air interface, a numerical study was performed of the structural, thermodynamic, and optical properties of these systems in the process of their layer-by-layer thinning. The results of calculating the disjoining pressure P, the average thickness of the smectic layers L, and the reflectivity index R of a FSSF formed by 5- n-alkyl-2-(4- n-(perfluoroalkyl-methylene oxide)-pentyl) (H10F5MOPP) molecules showed that these values undergo precipitous changes in the process of layer-bylayer thinning of the film. Calculations of R( T) as a function of temperature T exceeding the phase transition temperature of SmA into an isotropic state in the bulk of the liquid crystal material are in good agreement with the experimentally obtained data for the reflectivity of the FSSF formed by H10F5MOPP molecules.

Interfacial force field characterization of a constrained vapor bubble thermosyphon using IAI

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dasgupta, Sunando; Plawsky, Joel L.; Wayner, Peter C., Jr.

1994-01-01

The isothermal profiles of the extended meniscus in a quartz cuvette were measured in a gravitational field using IAI (image analyzing interferometer) which is based on computer enhanced video microscopy of the naturally occurring interference fringes. The experimental results for heptane and pentane menisci were analyzed using the extended Young-Laplace Equation. These isothermal results characterized the interfacial force field in-situ at the start of the heat transfer experiments by quantifying the dispersion constant for the specific liquid-solid system. The experimentally obtained values of the disjoining pressures and the dispersion constants are compared to the subsequent non-isothermal experiments because one of the major variables in the heat sink capability of the CVBT is the dispersion constant. In all previous studies of micro heat pipes the value of the dispersion constant has been 'guesstimated'. The major advantages of the current glass cell is the ability to view the extended meniscus at all times. Experimentally, we find that the extended Young-Laplace Equation is an excellent model for for the force field at the solid-liquid vapor interfaces.

Measuring water adsorption on mineral surfaces in air, CO2, and supercritical CO2 with a quartz-crystal microbalance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bryan, C. R.; Wells, R. K.; Burton, P. D.; Heath, J. E.; Dewers, T. A.; Wang, Y.

2011-12-01

Carbon sequestration via underground storage in geologic formations is a proposed approach for reducing industrial CO2 emissions. However, current models for carbon injection and long-term storage of supercritical CO2 (scCO2) do not consider the development and stability of adsorbed water films at the scCO2-hydrophilic mineral interface. The thickness and properties of the water films control the surface tension and wettability of the mineral surface, and on the core scale, affect rock permeability, saturation, and capillary properties. The film thickness is strongly dependent upon the activity of water in the supercritical fluid, which will change as initially anhydrous scCO2 absorbs water from formation brine. As described in a companion paper by the coauthors, the thickness of the adsorbed water layer is controlled by the disjoining pressure; structural and van der Waals components dominate at low water activity, while electrostatic forces become more important with increasing film thickness (higher water activities). As scCO2 water activity and water layer thickness increase, concomitant changes in mineral surface properties and reservoir/caprock hydrologic properties will affect the mobility of the aqueous phase and of scCO2. Moreover, the development of a water layer may be critical to mineral dissolution reactions in scCO2. Here, we describe the use of a quartz-crystal microbalance (QCM) to monitor adsorption of water by mineral surfaces. QCMs utilize a piezoelectrically-stimulated quartz wafer to measure adsorbed or deposited mass via changes in vibrational frequency. When used to measure the mass of adsorbed liquid films, the frequency response of the crystal must be corrected for the viscoelastic, rather than elastic, response of the adsorbed layer. Results are presented for adsorption to silica in N2 and CO2 at one bar, and in scCO2. Additional data are presented for water uptake by clays deposited on a QCM wafer. In this case, water uptake occurs by the combined processes of interlayer cation hydration, surface adsorption, and capillary condensation. Sandia National Laboratories is a multi-program laboratory managed and operated by Sandia Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Lockheed Martin Corporation, for the U.S. Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration under contract DE-AC04-94AL85000. This work is supported by the DOE Sandia LDRD Program.

Fluctuation spectra in the NASA Lewis bumpy-torus plasma

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Singh, C. M.; Krawczonek, W. M.; Roth, J. R.; Hong, J. Y.; Powers, E. J.

1978-01-01

The electrostatic potential fluctuation spectrum in the NASA Lewis bumpy-torus plasma was studied with capacitive probes in the low pressure (high impedance) mode and in the high pressure (low impedance) mode. Under different operating conditions, the plasma exhibited electrostatic potential fluctuations (1) at a set of discrete frequencies, (2) at a continuum of frequencies, and (3) as incoherent high-frequency turbulence. The frequencies and azimuthal wave numbers were determined from digitally implemented autopower and cross-power spectra. The azimuthal dispersion characteristics of the unstable waves were examined by varying the electrode voltage, the polarity of the voltage, and the neutral background density at a constant magnetic field strength.

Extrusion of transmitter, water and ions generates forces to close fusion pore.

PubMed

Tajparast, M; Glavinović, M I

2009-05-01

During exocytosis the fusion pore opens rapidly, then dilates gradually, and may subsequently close completely, but what controls its dynamics is not well understood. In this study we focus our attention on forces acting on the pore wall, and which are generated solely by the passage of transmitter, ions and water through the open fusion pore. The transport through the charged cylindrical nano-size pore is simulated using a coupled system of Poisson-Nernst-Planck and Navier-Stokes equations and the forces that act radially on the wall of the fusion pore are then estimated. Four forces are considered: a) inertial force, b) pressure, c) viscotic force, and d) electrostatic force. The inertial and viscotic forces are small, but the electrostatic force and the pressure are typically significant. High vesicular pressure tends to open the fusion pore, but the pressure induced by the transport of charged particles (glutamate, ions), which is predominant when the pore wall charge density is high tends to close the pore. The electrostatic force, which also depends on the charge density on the pore wall, is weakly repulsive before the pore dilates, but becomes attractive and pronounced as the pore dilates. Given that the vesicular concentration of free transmitter can change rapidly due to the release, or owing to the dissociation from the gel matrix, we evaluated how much and how rapidly a change of the vesicular K(+)-glutamate(-) concentration affects the concentration of glutamate(-) and ions in the pore and how such changes alter the radial force on the wall of the fusion pore. A step-like rise of the vesicular K(+)-glutamate(-) concentration leads to a chain of events. Pore concentration (and efflux) of both K(+) and glutamate(-) rise reaching their new steady-state values in less than 100 ns. Interestingly within a similar time interval the pore concentration of Na(+) also rises, whereas that of Cl(-) diminishes, although their extra-cellular concentration does not change. Finally such changes affect also the water movement. Water efflux changes bi-phasically, first increasing before decreasing to a new, but lower steady-state value. Nevertheless, even under such conditions an overall approximate neutrality of the pore is maintained remarkably well, and the electrostatic, but also inertial, viscotic and pressure forces acting on the pore wall remain constant. In conclusion the extrusion of the vesicular content generates forces, primarily the force due to the electro-kinetically induced pressure and electrostatic force (both influenced by the pore radius and even more by the charge density on the pore wall), which tend to close the fusion pore.

Amine-Rich Organic Thin Films for Cell Culture: Possible Electrostatic Effects in Cell-Surface Interactions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wertheimer, Michael R.; St-Georges-Robillard, Amélie; Lerouge, Sophie; Mwale, Fackson; Elkin, Bentsian; Oehr, Christian; Wirges, Werner; Gerhard, Reimund

2012-11-01

In recent communications from these laboratories, we observed that amine-rich thin organic layers are very efficient surfaces for the adhesion of mammalian cells. We prepare such deposits by plasma polymerization at low pressure, atmospheric pressure, or by vacuum-ultraviolet photo-polymerization. More recently, we have also investigated a commercially available material, Parylene diX AM. In this article we first briefly introduce literature relating to electrostatic interactions between cells, proteins, and charged surfaces. We then present certain selected cell-response results that pertain to applications in orthopedic and cardiovascular medicine: we discuss the influence of surface properties on the observed behaviors of two particular cell lines, human U937 monocytes, and Chinese hamster ovary cells. Particular emphasis is placed on possible electrostatic attractive forces due to positively charged R-NH3+ groups and negatively charged proteins and cells, respectively. Experiments carried out with electrets, polymers with high positive or negative surface potentials are added for comparison.

Electrostatic Precipitation of Dust in the Martian Atmosphere: Implications for the Utilization of Resources During Future Manned Exploration Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Calle, Carlos I.; Clements, Judson S.; Thompson, Samuel M.; Cox, Nathan D.; Hogue, Michael D.; Johansen, Michael R.; Williams, Blakeley S.

2011-01-01

Future human missions to Mars will require the utilization of local resources for oxygen, fuel. and water. The In Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) project is an active research endeavor at NASA to develop technologies that can enable cost effective ways to live off the land. The extraction of oxygen from the Martian atmosphere. composed primarily of carbon dioxide, is one of the most important goals of the Mars ISRU project. The main obstacle is the relatively large amount of dust present in the Martian atmosphere. This dust must be efficiently removed from atmospheric gas intakes for ISRU processing chambers. A common technique to achieve this removal on earth is by electrostatic precipitation, where large electrostatic fields are established in a localized region to precipitate and collect previously charged dust particles. This technique is difficult to adapt to the Martian environment, with an atmospheric pressure of about one-hundredth of the terrestrial atmosphere. At these low pressures. the corona discharges required to implant an electrostatic charge to the particles to be collected is extremely difficult to sustain and the corona easily becomes biopolar. which is unsuitable for particle charging. In this paper, we report on our successful efforts to establish a stable corona under Martian simulated conditions. We also present results on dust collecting efficiencies with an electrostatic precipitator prototype that could be effectively used on a future mission to the red planet

A novel measuring method of clamping force for electrostatic chuck in semiconductor devices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kesheng, Wang; Jia, Cheng; Yin, Zhong; Linhong, Ji

2016-04-01

Electrostatic chucks are one of the core components of semiconductor devices. As a key index of electrostatic chucks, the clamping force must be controlled within a reasonable range. Therefore, it is essential to accurately measure the clamping force. To reduce the negative factors influencing measurement precision and repeatability, this article presents a novel method to measure the clamping force and we elaborate both the principle and the key procedure. A micro-force probe component is introduced to monitor, adjust, and eliminate the gap between the wafer and the electrostatic chuck. The contact force between the ruby probe and the wafer is selected as an important parameter to characterize de-chucking, and we have found that the moment of de-chucking can be exactly judged. Moreover, this article derives the formula calibrating equivalent action area of backside gas pressure under real working conditions, which can effectively connect the backside gas pressure at the moment of de-chucking and the clamping force. The experiments were then performed on a self-designed measuring platform. The de-chucking mechanism is discussed in light of our analysis of the experimental data. Determination criteria for de-chucking point are summed up. It is found that the relationship between de-chucking pressure and applied voltage conforms well to quadratic equation. Meanwhile, the result reveals that actual de-chucking behavior is much more complicated than the description given in the classical empirical formula. Project supported by No. 02 National Science and Technology Major Project of China (No. 2011ZX02403-004).

Psychiatric diagnosis, psychiatric power and psychiatric abuse.

PubMed Central

Szasz, T

1994-01-01

Psychiatric abuse, such as we usually associate with practices in the former Soviet Union, is related not to the misuse of psychiatric diagnoses, but to the political power intrinsic to the social role of the psychiatrist in totalitarian and democratic societies alike. Some reflections are offered on the modern, therapeutic state's proclivity to treat adults as patients rather than citizens, disjoin rights from responsibilities, and thus corrupt the language of political-philosophical discourse. PMID:7996558

[Diabetes mellitus].

PubMed

Ruiz, J

2012-01-18

The globalization became the topic the most often discussed in the socio-economic field by the media. The direct and indirect effects on the chronic diseases are not fully explored, especially by the biomedicine. Through the filter of the complex thought, which connects instead of disjoining, we try to widen the debate around the diabetes which became an emblematic disease. This change of perspective should enable us to approach the chronic diseases differently. It is the objective of this review.

The dependency of adhesion and friction on electrostatic attraction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Persson, B. N. J.

2018-04-01

I develop a general mean-field theory for the influence of electrostatic attraction between two solids on the contact mechanics. I assume elastic solids with random surface roughness. I consider two cases, namely, with and without an electrically insulating layer between the conducting solids. The former case is important for, e.g., the finger-touch screen interaction. I study how the electrostatic attraction influences the adhesion and friction. For the case of an insulating layer, I find that when the applied nominal contact pressure is relatively small, as the applied voltage increases, there is a sharp increase in the contact area, and hence in the friction, at a critical voltage.

Enhanced polymer capture speed and extended translocation time in pressure-solvation traps

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Buyukdagli, Sahin

2018-06-01

The efficiency of nanopore-based biosequencing techniques requires fast anionic polymer capture by like-charged pores followed by a prolonged translocation process. We show that this condition can be achieved by setting a pressure-solvation trap. Polyvalent cation addition to the KCl solution triggers the like-charge polymer-pore attraction. The attraction speeds-up the pressure-driven polymer capture but also traps the molecule at the pore exit, reducing the polymer capture time and extending the polymer escape time by several orders of magnitude. By direct comparison with translocation experiments [D. P. Hoogerheide et al., ACS Nano 8, 7384 (2014), 10.1021/nn5025829], we characterize as well the electrohydrodynamics of polymers transport in pressure-voltage traps. We derive scaling laws that can accurately reproduce the pressure dependence of the experimentally measured polymer translocation velocity and time. We also find that during polymer capture, the electrostatic barrier on the translocating molecule slows down the liquid flow. This prediction identifies the streaming current measurement as a potential way to probe electrostatic polymer-pore interactions.

Effects of pressure and solvents on the infrared absorption intensities of C-I stretching modes of methyl and ethyl iodides in solutions.

PubMed

Isogai, Hideto; Kato, Minoru; Taniguchi, Yoshihiro

2008-02-01

We have investigated effects of pressure and solvents on infrared intensities of methyl and ethyl iodides in solutions using a hydrostatic high-pressure cell with synthetic diamond windows. We focused on the absolute intensity of the C-I stretching mode, which was measured in carbon disulfide solvent up to 300MPa and at 293K, and in n-hexane solvent at 298K. For comparison, we investigated the effect of solvents on the absorption intensity. Effects of pressure and solvents on the infrared intensity were analyzed using two electrostatic models, which assume the shape of solute cavity as sphere or spheroid. The latter model is approximately in agreement with both effects on the intensity, particularly, for the pressure effect. This paper demonstrated that the electrostatic model taking the shape of the cavity into account is useful to explain the medium effect on the infrared intensity and also suggests that more improved models could provide information of the solvation structure from the medium effect on the infrared intensity.

Characterizing the Performance of the Wheel Electrostatic Spectrometer

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johansen, Michael R.; Mackey, P. J.; Holbert, E.; Calle, C. I.; Clements, J. S.

2013-01-01

Insulators need to be discharged after each wheel revolution. Sensor responses repeatable within one standard deviation in the noise of the signal. Insulators may not need to be cleaned after each revolution. Parent Technology- Mars Environmental Compatibility Assessment/Electrometer Electrostatic sensors with dissimilar cover insulators Protruding insulators tribocharge against regolith simulant Developed for use on the scoop for the 2001 Mars Odyssey lander Wheel Electrostatic Spectrometer Embedded electrostatic sensors in prototype Martian rover wheel If successful, this technology will enable constant electrostatic testing on Mars Air ionizing fan used to neutralize the surface charge on cover insulators . WES rolled on JSClA lunar simulant Control experiment -Static elimination not conducted between trials -Capacitor discharged after each experiment Charge neutralization experiment -Static elimination conducted between trials -Capacitor discharged after each experiment. Air ionizing fan used on insulators after each wheel revolution Capacitor discharged after each trial Care was taken to roll WES with same speed/pressure Error bars represent one standard deviation in the noise of e ach sensor

EFFECT OF NONCLASSICAL POLARIZATION OF Na+ AND K+ ON THE STABILITY OF SOIL COLLOIDAL PARTICLES IN SUSPENSION

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu-Quan, Ding; Jia-Hong, He; Lei, Wang; Xin-Min, Liu; Hang, Li

The study of soil colloids is essential because the stability of soil colloidal particles are important processes of interest to researchers in environmental fields. The strong nonclassical polarization of the adsorbed cations (Na+ and K+) decreased the electric field and the electrostatic repulsion between adjacent colloidal particles. The decrease of the absolute values of surface potential was greater for K+ than for Na+. The lower the concentration of Na+ and K+ in soil colloids, the greater the electrostatic repulsion between adjacent colloidal particles. The net pressure and the electrostatic repulsion was greater for Na+ than for K+ at the same ion concentration. For K+ and Na+ concentrations higher than 50mmol L-1 or 100 mmol L-1, there was a net negative (or attractive) pressure between two adjacent soil particles. The increasing total average aggregation (TAA) rate of soil colloids with increasing Na+ and K+ concentrations exhibited two stages: the growth rates of TAA increased rapidly at first and then increased slowly and eventually almost negligibly. The critical coagulation concentrations of soil colloids in Na+ and K+ were 91.6mmol L-1 and 47.8mmol L-1, respectively, and these were similar to the concentrations at the net negative pressure.

Multi-channel electronically scanned cryogenic pressure sensor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chapman, John J. (Inventor); Hopson, Purnell, Jr. (Inventor); Kruse, Nancy M. H. (Inventor)

1995-01-01

A miniature, multi-channel, electronically scanned pressure measuring device uses electrostatically bonded silicon dies in a multielement array. These dies are bonded at specific sites on a glass, prepatterned substrate. Thermal data is multiplexed and recorded on each individual pressure measuring diaphragm. The device functions in a cryogenic environment without the need of heaters to keep the sensor at constant temperatures.

SRM propellant, friction/ESD testing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Campbell, L. A.

1989-01-01

Following the Pershing 2 incident in 1985 and the Peacekeeper ignition during core removal in 1987, it was found that propellant can be much more sensitive to Electrostatic Discharges (ESD) than ever before realized. As a result of the Peacekeeper motor near miss incident, a friction machine was designed and fabricated, and used to determine friction hazards during core removal. Friction testing with and electrical charge being applied across the friction plates resulted in propellant ignitions at low friction pressures and extremely low ESD levels. The objective of this test series was to determine the sensitivity of solid rocket propellant to combined friction pressure and electrostatic stimuli and to compare the sensitivity of the SRM propellant to Peacekeeper propellant. The tests are fully discussed, summarized and conclusions drawn.

Multi-Channel Electronically Scanned Cryogenic Pressure Sensor And Method For Making Same

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chapman, John J. (Inventor); Hopson, Purnell, Jr. (Inventor); Holloway, Nancy M. (Inventor)

2001-01-01

A miniature, multi-channel, electronically scanned pressure measuring device uses electrostatically bonded silicon dies in a multi-element array. These dies are bonded at specific sites on a glass, pre-patterned substrate. Thermal data is multiplexed and recorded on each individual pressure measuring diaphragm. The device functions in a cryogenic environment without the need of heaters to keep the sensor at constant temperatures.

The National Shipbuilding Research Program. Application of Industrial Engineering Techniques to Reduce Workers’ Compensation and Environmental Costs - Deliverable D

DTIC Science & Technology

1999-10-01

Electrostatic guns provide opportunities for exterior application of topcoats such as urethanes, acrylics , alkyds and epoxies. Most shipbuilding...A hybrid of airless spray and conventional air-atomized spray, this kind of gun uses fluid pressures higher than those used in conventional air...voltage) by simply flipping a switch. All essential controls are located right at the back of the gun. Other electrostatic systems require constant

Role of Viscous Dissipative Processes on the Wetting of Textured Surfaces

PubMed Central

Grewal, H. S.; Nam Kim, Hong; Cho, Il-Joo; Yoon, Eui-Sung

2015-01-01

We investigate the role of viscous forces on the wetting of hydrophobic, semi-hydrophobic, and hydrophilic textured surfaces as second-order effects. We show that during the initial contact, the transition from inertia- to viscous-dominant regime occurs regardless of their surface topography and chemistry. Furthermore, we demonstrate the effect of viscosity on the apparent contact angle under quasi-static conditions by modulating the ratio of a water/glycerol mixture and show the effect of viscosity, especially on the semi-hydrophobic and hydrophobic textured substrates. The reason why the viscous force does not affect the apparent contact angle of the hydrophilic surface is explained based on the relationship between the disjoining pressure and surface chemistry. We further propose a wetting model that can predict the apparent contact angle of a liquid drop on a textured substrate by incorporating a viscous force component in the force balance equation. This model can predict apparent contact angles on semi-hydrophobic and hydrophobic textured surfaces exhibiting Wenzel state more accurately than the Wenzel model, indicating the importance of viscous forces in determining the apparent contact angle. The modified model can be applied for estimating the wetting properties of arbitrary engineered surfaces. PMID:26390958

Direct Numerical Simulation of Fingering Instabilities in Coating Flows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eres, Murat H.; Schwartz, Leonard W.

1998-11-01

We consider stability and finger formation in free surface flows. Gravity driven downhill drainage and temperature gradient driven climbing flows are two examples of such problems. The former situation occurs when a mound of viscous liquid on a vertical wall is allowed to flow. Constant surface shear stress due to temperature gradients (Marangoni stress) can initiate the latter problem. The evolution equations are derived using the lubrication approximation. We also include the effects of finite-contact angles in the evolution equations using a disjoining pressure model. Evolution equations for both problems are solved using an efficient alternating-direction-implicit method. For both problems a one-dimensional base state is established, that is steady in a moving reference frame. This base state is unstable to transverse perturbations. The transverse wavenumbers for the most rapidly growing modes are found through direct numerical solution of the nonlinear evolution equations, and are compared with published experimental results. For a range of finite equilibrium contact angles, the fingers can grow without limit leading to semi-finite steady fingers in a moving coordinate system. A computer generated movie of the nonlinear simulation results, for several sets of input parameters, will be shown.

Active damping of capillary oscillations on liquid columns

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thiessen, David B.; Wei, Wei; Marston, Philip L.

2002-05-01

Active control of acoustic radiation pressure and of electrostatic stresses on liquid columns has been demonstrated to overcome the Rayleigh-Plateau instability that normally causes long liquid columns to break [M. J. Marr-Lyon et al., J. Fluid Mech. 351, 345 (1997); Phys. Fluids 12, 986-995 (2000)]. Though originally demonstrated for liquid-liquid systems in plateau tanks, the electrostatic method also works on columns in air in reduced gravity [D. B. Thiessen, M. J. Marr-Lyon, and P. L. Marston, ``Active electrostatic stabilization of liquid bridges in low gravity,'' J. Fluid Mech. (in press)]. In new research, the electrostatic stresses are applied in proportion to the velocity of the surface of the column so as to actively dampen capillary oscillations of the surface. The mode amplitude is optically sensed and the rate-of-change is electronically determined. Plateau tank measurements and theory both show that the change in damping rate is proportional to the feedback gain. The results suggest that either active control of electrostatic stresses or of acoustic radiation stresses can be used to suppress the response of interfaces to vibration. [Work supported by NASA.

Osmotic Pressure in Ionic Microgel Dispersions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Denton, Alan R.; Tang, Qiyun

2015-03-01

Microgels are microscopic gel particles, typically 10-1000 nm in size, that are swollen by a solvent. Hollow microgels (microcapsules) can encapsulate cargo, such as dye molecules or drugs, in their solvent-filled cavities. Their sensitive response to environmental conditions (e.g., temperature, pH) and influence on flow properties suit microgels to widespread applications in the chemical, pharmaceutical, food, and consumer care industries. When dispersed in water, polyelectrolyte gels become charged through dissociation of counterions. The electrostatic contribution to the osmotic pressure inside and outside of ionic microgels influences particle swelling and bulk materials properties, including thermodynamic, structural, optical, and rheological properties. Within the primitive and cell models of polyelectrolyte solutions, we derive an exact statistical mechanical formula for the contribution of mobile microions to the osmotic pressure within ionic microgels. Using Poisson-Boltzmann theory, we validate this result by explicitly calculating ion distributions across the surface of an ionic microgel and the electrostatic contribution to the osmotic pressure. Within a coarse-grained one-component model, we further chart the limits of the cell model for salty dispersions. This work was supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. DMR-1106331.

Development of an Electrostatic Precipitator to Remove Martian Atmospheric Dust from ISRU Gas Intakes During Planetary Exploration Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Clements, J. Sidney; Thompson, Samuel M.; Cox, Nathan D.; Johansen, Michael R.; Williams, Blakeley S.; Hogue, Michael D.; Lowder, M. Loraine; Calle, Carlos I.

2011-01-01

Manned exploration missions to Mars will need dependable in situ resource utilization (ISRU) for the production of oxygen and other commodities. One of these resources is the Martian atmosphere itself, which is composed of carbon dioxide (95.3%), nitrogen (2.7%), argon (1.6%), oxygen (0.13%), carbon monoxide (0.07%), and water vapor (0.03%), as well as other trace gases. However, the Martian atmosphere also contains relatively large amounts of dust, uploaded by frequent dust devils and high Winds. To make this gas usable for oxygen extraction in specialized chambers requires the removal of most of the dust. An electrostatic precipitator (ESP) system is an obvious choice. But with an atmospheric pressure just one-hundredth of Earth's, electrical breakdown at low voltages makes the implementation of the electrostatic precipitator technology very challenging. Ion mobility, drag forces, dust particle charging, and migration velocity are also affected because the low gas pressure results in molecular mean free paths that are approximately one hundred times longer than those at Earth .atmospheric pressure. We report here on our efforts to develop this technology at the Kennedy Space Center, using gases with approximately the same composition as the Martian atmosphere in a vacuum chamber at 9 mbars, the atmospheric pressure on Mars. We also present I-V curves and large particle charging data for various versions of wire-cylinder and rod-cylinder geometry ESPs. Preliminary results suggest that use of an ESP for dust collection on Mars may be feasible, but further testing with Martian dust simulant is required.

CFD-ACE+: a CAD system for simulation and modeling of MEMS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stout, Phillip J.; Yang, H. Q.; Dionne, Paul; Leonard, Andy; Tan, Zhiqiang; Przekwas, Andrzej J.; Krishnan, Anantha

1999-03-01

Computer aided design (CAD) systems are a key to designing and manufacturing MEMS with higher performance/reliability, reduced costs, shorter prototyping cycles and improved time- to-market. One such system is CFD-ACE+MEMS, a modeling and simulation environment for MEMS which includes grid generation, data visualization, graphical problem setup, and coupled fluidic, thermal, mechanical, electrostatic, and magnetic physical models. The fluid model is a 3D multi- block, structured/unstructured/hybrid, pressure-based, implicit Navier-Stokes code with capabilities for multi- component diffusion, multi-species transport, multi-step gas phase chemical reactions, surface reactions, and multi-media conjugate heat transfer. The thermal model solves the total enthalpy from of the energy equation. The energy equation includes unsteady, convective, conductive, species energy, viscous dissipation, work, and radiation terms. The electrostatic model solves Poisson's equation. Both the finite volume method and the boundary element method (BEM) are available for solving Poisson's equation. The BEM method is useful for unbounded problems. The magnetic model solves for the vector magnetic potential from Maxwell's equations including eddy currents but neglecting displacement currents. The mechanical model is a finite element stress/deformation solver which has been coupled to the flow, heat, electrostatic, and magnetic calculations to study flow, thermal electrostatically, and magnetically included deformations of structures. The mechanical or structural model can accommodate elastic and plastic materials, can handle large non-linear displacements, and can model isotropic and anisotropic materials. The thermal- mechanical coupling involves the solution of the steady state Navier equation with thermoelastic deformation. The electrostatic-mechanical coupling is a calculation of the pressure force due to surface charge on the mechanical structure. Results of CFD-ACE+MEMS modeling of MEMS such as cantilever beams, accelerometers, and comb drives are discussed.

Electrostatic interactions as governing the fouling in protein microfiltration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ouammou, M.; Tijani, N.; Calvo, J. I.; Palacio, L.; Prádanos, P.; Hernández, A.

2005-03-01

The influence of pH and electrostatic interactions on the fouling mechanism during protein dead-end microfiltration (MF) has been investigated for two charged membranes. Polyethersulfone acidic membranes (ICE-450), being negatively charged, and basic ones (SB-6407), these positively charged, both from Pall Co., have been used in the investigations. BSA and Lysozyme solutions at different pH values (3.0, 5.0, 7.0, 8.5 and 10.0) were microfiltered through the membranes at a constant applied transmembrane pressure. Results have been analysed in terms of usual blocking filtration laws and a substantial change in the fouling behaviour has been observed when solution pH and/or membrane charge as the pressure was changed, this change being clearly related with the specific membrane-protein and protein-protein interactions.

Reliable aluminum contact formation by electrostatic bonding

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kárpáti, T.; Pap, A. E.; Radnóczi, Gy; Beke, B.; Bársony, I.; Fürjes, P.

2015-07-01

The paper presents a detailed study of a reliable method developed for aluminum fusion wafer bonding assisted by the electrostatic force evolving during the anodic bonding process. The IC-compatible procedure described allows the parallel formation of electrical and mechanical contacts, facilitating a reliable packaging of electromechanical systems with backside electrical contacts. This fusion bonding method supports the fabrication of complex microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) and micro-opto-electromechanical systems (MOEMS) structures with enhanced temperature stability, which is crucial in mechanical sensor applications such as pressure or force sensors. Due to the applied electrical potential of  -1000 V the Al metal layers are compressed by electrostatic force, and at the bonding temperature of 450 °C intermetallic diffusion causes aluminum ions to migrate between metal layers.

Osmotic Pressure of Aqueous Chondroitin Sulfate Solution: A Molecular Modeling Investigation

PubMed Central

Bathe, Mark; Rutledge, Gregory C.; Grodzinsky, Alan J.; Tidor, Bruce

2005-01-01

The osmotic pressure of chondroitin sulfate (CS) solution in contact with an aqueous 1:1 salt reservoir of fixed ionic strength is studied using a recently developed coarse-grained molecular model. The effects of sulfation type (4- vs. 6-sulfation), sulfation pattern (statistical distribution of sulfate groups along a chain), ionic strength, CS intrinsic stiffness, and steric interactions on CS osmotic pressure are investigated. At physiological ionic strength (0.15 M NaCl), the sulfation type and pattern, as measured by a standard statistical description of copolymerization, are found to have a negligible influence on CS osmotic pressure, which depends principally on the mean volumetric fixed charge density. The intrinsic backbone stiffness characteristic of polysaccharides such as CS, however, is demonstrated to contribute significantly to its osmotic pressure behavior, which is similar to that of a solution of charged rods for the 20-disaccharide chains considered. Steric excluded volume is found to play a negligible role in determining CS osmotic pressure at physiological ionic strength due to the dominance of repulsive intermolecular electrostatic interactions that maintain chains maximally spaced in that regime, whereas at high ionic-strength steric interactions become dominant due to electrostatic screening. Osmotic pressure predictions are compared to experimental data and to well-established theoretical models including the Donnan theory and the Poisson-Boltzmann cylindrical cell model. PMID:16055525

Infrasound pulses from lightning and electrostatic field changes: Observation and discussion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chum, J.; Diendorfer, G.; Å indelářová, T.; Baše, J.; Hruška, F.

2013-10-01

Narrow (~1-2 s) infrasound pulses that followed, with ~11 to ~50 s delays, rapid changes of electrostatic field were observed by a microbarometer array in the Czech Republic during thunderstorm activity. A positive pressure fluctuation (compression phase) always preceded decompression; the compression was usually higher than the decompression. The angles of arrival (azimuth and elevation) were analyzed for selected distinct events. Comparisons of distances and azimuths of infrasound sources from the center of microbarometer array with lightning locations determined by the European Cooperation for Lighting Detection lightning detection network show that most of the selected events can be very likely associated with intracloud (IC) discharges. The preceding rapid changes of electrostatic field, their potential association with IC discharges, and high-elevation angles of arrival for near infrasound sources indicate that an electrostatic mechanism is probably responsible for their generation. It is discussed that distinguishing the relative role of thermal and electrostatic mechanism is difficult and that none of the published models of electrostatic production of infrasound thunder can explain the presented observations precisely. A modification of the current models, based on consideration of at least two charged layers, is suggested. Further theoretical and experimental investigations are however needed to get a better description of the generation mechanism.

The Poisson-Helmholtz-Boltzmann model.

PubMed

Bohinc, K; Shrestha, A; May, S

2011-10-01

We present a mean-field model of a one-component electrolyte solution where the mobile ions interact not only via Coulomb interactions but also through a repulsive non-electrostatic Yukawa potential. Our choice of the Yukawa potential represents a simple model for solvent-mediated interactions between ions. We employ a local formulation of the mean-field free energy through the use of two auxiliary potentials, an electrostatic and a non-electrostatic potential. Functional minimization of the mean-field free energy leads to two coupled local differential equations, the Poisson-Boltzmann equation and the Helmholtz-Boltzmann equation. Their boundary conditions account for the sources of both the electrostatic and non-electrostatic interactions on the surface of all macroions that reside in the solution. We analyze a specific example, two like-charged planar surfaces with their mobile counterions forming the electrolyte solution. For this system we calculate the pressure between the two surfaces, and we analyze its dependence on the strength of the Yukawa potential and on the non-electrostatic interactions of the mobile ions with the planar macroion surfaces. In addition, we demonstrate that our mean-field model is consistent with the contact theorem, and we outline its generalization to arbitrary interaction potentials through the use of a Laplace transformation. © EDP Sciences / Società Italiana di Fisica / Springer-Verlag 2011

Electro-osmosis over inhomogeneously charged surfaces in presence of non-electrostatic ion-ion interactions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ghosh, Uddipta; Chakraborty, Suman

2016-06-01

In this study, we attempt to bring out a generalized formulation for electro-osmotic flows over inhomogeneously charged surfaces in presence of non-electrostatic ion-ion interactions. To this end, we start with modified electro-chemical potential of the individual species and subsequently use it to derive modified Nernst-Planck equation accounting for the ionic fluxes generated because of the presence of non-electrostatic potential. We establish what we refer to as the Poisson-Helmholtz-Nernst-Planck equations, coupled with the Navier-Stokes equations, to describe the complete transport process. Our analysis shows that the presence of non-electrostatic interactions between the ions results in an excess body force on the fluid, and modifies the osmotic pressure as well, which has hitherto remained unexplored. We further apply our analysis to a simple geometry, in an effort to work out the Smoluchowski slip velocity for thin electrical double layer limits. To this end, we employ singular perturbation and develop a general framework for the asymptotic analysis. Our calculations reveal that the final expression for slip velocity remains the same as that without accounting for non-electrostatic interactions. However, the presence of non-electrostatic interactions along with ion specificity can significantly change the quantitative behavior of Smoluchowski slip velocity. We subsequently demonstrate that the presence of non-electrostatic interactions may significantly alter the effective interfacial potential, also termed as the "Zeta potential." Our analysis can potentially act as a guide towards the prediction and possibly quantitative determination of the implications associated with the existence of non-electrostatic potential, in an electrokinetic transport process.

Direct Observation of 2D Electrostatics and Ohmic Contacts in Template-Grown Graphene/WS2 Heterostructures.

PubMed

Zheng, Changxi; Zhang, Qianhui; Weber, Bent; Ilatikhameneh, Hesameddin; Chen, Fan; Sahasrabudhe, Harshad; Rahman, Rajib; Li, Shiqiang; Chen, Zhen; Hellerstedt, Jack; Zhang, Yupeng; Duan, Wen Hui; Bao, Qiaoliang; Fuhrer, Michael S

2017-03-28

Large-area two-dimensional (2D) heterojunctions are promising building blocks of 2D circuits. Understanding their intriguing electrostatics is pivotal but largely hindered by the lack of direct observations. Here graphene-WS 2 heterojunctions are prepared over large areas using a seedless ambient-pressure chemical vapor deposition technique. Kelvin probe force microscopy, photoluminescence spectroscopy, and scanning tunneling microscopy characterize the doping in graphene-WS 2 heterojunctions as-grown on sapphire and transferred to SiO 2 with and without thermal annealing. Both p-n and n-n junctions are observed, and a flat-band condition (zero Schottky barrier height) is found for lightly n-doped WS 2 , promising low-resistance ohmic contacts. This indicates a more favorable band alignment for graphene-WS 2 than has been predicted, likely explaining the low barriers observed in transport experiments on similar heterojunctions. Electrostatic modeling demonstrates that the large depletion width of the graphene-WS 2 junction reflects the electrostatics of the one-dimensional junction between two-dimensional materials.

Charged drop dynamics experiment using an electrostatic-acoustic hybrid system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rhim, W. K.; Chung, S. K.; Trinh, E. H.; Elleman, D. D.

1987-01-01

The design and the performance of an electrostatic-acoustic hybrid system and its application to a charge drop rotation experiment are presented. This system can levitate a charged drop electrostatically and induce drop rotation or oscillation by imposing an acoustic torque or an oscillating acoustic pressure. Using this system, the equilibrium shapes and stability of a rotating charged drop were experimentally investigated. A 3 mm size water drop was rotated as a rigid body and its gyrostatic equilibrium shapes were observed. Families of axisymmetric shapes, two-lobed shapes, and eventual fissioning have been observed. With the assumption of 'effective surface tension' in which the surface charge simply modified the surface tension of neutral liquid, the results agree exceptionally well with the Brown and Scriven's (1980) prediction for uncharged drops.

Restoring the consistency with the contact density theorem of a classical density functional theory of ions at a planar electrical double layer.

PubMed

Gillespie, Dirk

2014-11-01

Classical density functional theory (DFT) of fluids is a fast and efficient theory to compute the structure of the electrical double layer in the primitive model of ions where ions are modeled as charged, hard spheres in a background dielectric. While the hard-core repulsive component of this ion-ion interaction can be accurately computed using well-established DFTs, the electrostatic component is less accurate. Moreover, many electrostatic functionals fail to satisfy a basic theorem, the contact density theorem, that relates the bulk pressure, surface charge, and ion densities at their distances of closest approach for ions in equilibrium at a smooth, hard, planar wall. One popular electrostatic functional that fails to satisfy the contact density theorem is a perturbation approach developed by Kierlik and Rosinberg [Phys. Rev. A 44, 5025 (1991)PLRAAN1050-294710.1103/PhysRevA.44.5025] and Rosenfeld [J. Chem. Phys. 98, 8126 (1993)JCPSA60021-960610.1063/1.464569], where the full free-energy functional is Taylor-expanded around a bulk (homogeneous) reference fluid. Here, it is shown that this functional fails to satisfy the contact density theorem because it also fails to satisfy the known low-density limit. When the functional is corrected to satisfy this limit, a corrected bulk pressure is derived and it is shown that with this pressure both the contact density theorem and the Gibbs adsorption theorem are satisfied.

Design and Optimisation of Electrostatic Precipitator for Diesel Exhaust

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Srinivaas, A.; Sathian, Samanyu; Ramesh, Arjun

2018-02-01

The principle of an industrially used emission reduction technique is employed in automotive diesel exhaust to reduce the diesel particulate emission. As the Emission regulation are becoming more stringent legislations have been formulated, due to the hazardous increase in the air quality index in major cities. Initially electrostatic precipitation principle and working was investigated. The High voltage requirement in an Electrostatic precipitator is obtained by designing an appropriate circuit in MATLAB -SIMULINK. Mechanical structural design of the new model after treatment device for the specific diesel exhaust was done. Fluid flow analysis of the ESP model was carried out using ANSYS CFX for optimized fluid with a reduced back pressure. Design reconsideration was done in accordance with fluid flow analysis. Accordingly, a new design is developed by considering diesel particulate filter and catalytic converter design to ESP model.

2D Electrostatic Actuation of Microshutter Arrays

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Burns, Devin E.; Oh, Lance H.; Li, Mary J.; Kelly, Daniel P.; Kutyrev, Alexander S.; Moseley, Samuel H.

2015-01-01

Electrostatically actuated microshutter arrays consisting of rotational microshutters (shutters that rotate about a torsion bar) were designed and fabricated through the use of models and experiments. Design iterations focused on minimizing the torsional stiffness of the microshutters, while maintaining their structural integrity. Mechanical and electromechanical test systems were constructed to measure the static and dynamic behavior of the microshutters. The torsional stiffness was reduced by a factor of four over initial designs without sacrificing durability. Analysis of the resonant behavior of the microshutters demonstrates that the first resonant mode is a torsional mode occurring around 3000 Hz. At low vacuum pressures, this resonant mode can be used to significantly reduce the drive voltage necessary for actuation requiring as little as 25V. 2D electrostatic latching and addressing was demonstrated using both a resonant and pulsed addressing scheme.

2D Electrostatic Actuation of Microshutter Arrays

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Burns, Devin E.; Oh, Lance H.; Li, Mary J.; Jones, Justin S.; Kelly, Daniel P.; Zheng, Yun; Kutyrev, Alexander S.; Moseley, Samuel H.

2015-01-01

An electrostatically actuated microshutter array consisting of rotational microshutters (shutters that rotate about a torsion bar) were designed and fabricated through the use of models and experiments. Design iterations focused on minimizing the torsional stiffness of the microshutters, while maintaining their structural integrity. Mechanical and electromechanical test systems were constructed to measure the static and dynamic behavior of the microshutters. The torsional stiffness was reduced by a factor of four over initial designs without sacrificing durability. Analysis of the resonant behavior of the microshutter arrays demonstrates that the first resonant mode is a torsional mode occurring around 3000 Hz. At low vacuum pressures, this resonant mode can be used to significantly reduce the drive voltage necessary for actuation requiring as little as 25V. 2D electrostatic latching and addressing was demonstrated using both a resonant and pulsed addressing scheme.

An electrostatic autoresonant ion trap mass spectrometer.

PubMed

Ermakov, A V; Hinch, B J

2010-01-01

A new method for ion extraction from an anharmonic electrostatic trap is introduced. Anharmonicity is a common feature of electrostatic traps which can be used for small scale spatial confinement of ions, and this feature is also necessary for autoresonant ion extraction. With the aid of ion trajectory simulations, novel autoresonant trap mass spectrometers (ART-MSs) have been designed based on these very simple principles. A mass resolution approximately 60 is demonstrated for the prototypes discussed here. We report also on the pressure dependencies, and the (mV) rf field strength dependencies of the ART-MS sensitivity. Importantly the new MS designs do not require heavy magnets, tight manufacturing tolerances, introduction of buffer gases, high power rf sources, nor complicated electronics. The designs described here are very inexpensive to implement relative to other instruments, and can be easily miniaturized. Possible applications are discussed.

Test progress on the electrostatic membrane reflector

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mihora, D. J.

1981-01-01

An extemely lightweight type of precision reflector antenna, being developed for potential deployment from the space shuttle, uses electrostatic forces to tension a thin membrane and form it into a concave reflector surface. The typical shuttle-deployed antenna would have a diameter of 100 meters and an RMS surface smoothness of 10 to 1 mm for operation at 1 to 10 GHz. NASA Langley Research Center built and is currently testing a subscale (16 foot diameter) model of the membrane reflector portion of such an antenna. Preliminary test results and principal factors affecting surface quality are addressed. Factors included are the effect of the perimeter boundary, splicing of the membrane, the long-scale smoothness of commercial membranes, and the spatial controllability of the membrane using voltage adjustments to alter the electrostatic pressure. Only readily available commercial membranes are considered.

High-voltage terminal test of a test stand for a 1-MV electrostatic accelerator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Park, Sae-Hoon; Kim, Yu-Seok

2015-10-01

The Korea Multipurpose Accelerator Complex has been developing a 300-kV test stand for a 1-MV electrostatic accelerator ion source. The ion source and accelerating tube will be installed in a high-pressure vessel. The ion source in the high-pressure vessel is required to have a high reliability. The test stand has been proposed and developed to confirm the stable operating conditions of the ion source. The ion source will be tested at the test stand to verify the long-time operating conditions. The test stand comprises a 300-kV high-voltage terminal, a battery for the ion-source power, a 60-Hz inverter, 200-MHz radio-frequency power supply, a 5-kV extraction power supply, a 300-kV accelerating tube, and a vacuum system. The results of the 300-kV high-voltage terminal tests are presented in this paper.

Field-Assisted Contact Line Motion in Thin Films.

PubMed

Ghosh, Udita Uday; DasGupta, Sunando

2018-04-25

The balance of intermolecular and surface forces plays a critical role in the transport phenomena near the contact line region of an extended meniscus in several technologically important processes. Externally applied fields can alter the equilibrium and stability of the meniscus with concomitant effects on its shape and spreading characteristics and may even lead to an oscillation. This feature article provides a detailed account of the present and past efforts in exploring the behavior of curved thin liquid films subjected to mild thermal perturbations, heat input, and electrical and magnetic fields for pure as well as colloidal suspensions, including the effects of particle charge and polarity. The shape-dependent intermolecular force field has been evaluated in situ by a nonobtrusive optical technique utilizing the interference phenomena and subsequent image processing. The critical role of disjoining pressure is identified along with the determination of the Hamaker constant. The spatial and temporal variations of the capillary forces are evaluated for the advancing and receding menisci. The Maxwell-stress-induced enhanced spreading during electrowetting, at relatively low voltages, and that due to the application of a magnetic field are discussed with respect to their distinctly different characteristics and application potentials. The use of the augmented Young-Laplace equation elicited additional insights into the fundamental physics for flow in ultrathin liquid films.

Theoretical and Experimental Investigation of the Stability of an Evaporating Constrained Vapor Bubble

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wayner, P. C., Jr.; Plawsky, J. L.; Wong, Harris

2004-01-01

The major accomplishments of the experimental portion of the research were documented in Ling Zheng's doctoral dissertation. Using Pentane, he obtained a considerable amount of data on the stability and heat transfer characteristics of an evaporating meniscus. The important points are that experimental equipment to obtain data on the stability and heat transfer characteristics of an evaporating meniscus were built and successfully operated. The data and subsequent analyses were accepted by the Journal of Heat Transfer for publication in 2004 [PU4]. The work was continued by a new graduate student using HFE-7000 [PU3] and then Pentane at lower heat fluxes. The Pentane results are being analyzed for publication. The experimental techniques are currently being used in our other NASA Grant. The oscillation of the contact line observed in the experiments involves evaporation (retraction part) and spreading. Since both processes occur with finite contact angles, it is important to derive a precise equation of the intermolecular forces (disjoining pressure) valid for non-zero contact angles. This theoretical derivation was accepted for publication by Journal of Fluid Mechanics [PU5]. The evaporation process near the contact line is complicated, and an idealized micro heat pipe has been proposed to help in elucidating the detailed evaporation process [manuscripts in preparation].

Nucleation type instabilities in partially wetting nanoscale nematic liquid films

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lam, Michael; Cummings, Linda; Kondic, Lou

2016-11-01

Nucleation type instabilities are studied in nematic liquid crystal (NLC) films with thicknesses less than a micrometer. Within the framework of the long wave approximation, a 4th order nonlinear partial differential equation is proposed for the free surface height. Unlike simple fluids, NLC molecules have a dipole moment which induces an elastic response due to deformation in the bulk of the fluid. The model includes the balance between the bulk elasticity energy and the anchoring (boundary) energy at the substrate and free surface, and van der Waals' intermolecular forces, by means of a structural disjoining pressure. In this presentation, we focus on two-dimensional flow and present simulation results for a flat film with a localized perturbation. We are interested in the morphology of the dewetted film as a function of the initial film thickness. We will show that there exists a range of film thicknesses within the linearly unstable flat film regime where stability analysis does not explain the morphology of the dewetted film. Marginal stability criterion (MSC) is used to derive an analytical expression for the velocity at which a perturbation propagates into the unstable flat film. Finally, we discuss the degree to which MSC can be used to explain the observed morphology.

Towards a more accurate microscopic description of the moving contact line problem - incorporating nonlocal effects through a statistical mechanics framework

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nold, Andreas; Goddard, Ben; Sibley, David; Kalliadasis, Serafim

2014-03-01

Multiscale effects play a predominant role in wetting phenomena such as the moving contact line. An accurate description is of paramount interest for a wide range of industrial applications, yet it is a matter of ongoing research, due to the difficulty of incorporating different physical effects in one model. Important small-scale phenomena are corrections to the attractive fluid-fluid and wall-fluid forces in inhomogeneous density distributions, which often previously have been accounted for by the disjoining pressure in an ad-hoc manner. We systematically derive a novel model for the description of a single-component liquid-vapor multiphase system which inherently incorporates these nonlocal effects. This derivation, which is inspired by statistical mechanics in the framework of colloidal density functional theory, is critically discussed with respect to its assumptions and restrictions. The model is then employed numerically to study a moving contact line of a liquid fluid displacing its vapor phase. We show how nonlocal physical effects are inherently incorporated by the model and describe how classical macroscopic results for the contact line motion are retrieved. We acknowledge financial support from ERC Advanced Grant No. 247031 and Imperial College through a DTG International Studentship.

Lubricant distribution and its effect on slider air bearing performance over bit patterned media disk of disk drives

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Lin

2011-04-01

The distribution dynamics of a thin lubricant film on a bit-patterned media disk and its effect on the performance of the ultralow flying air bearing slider of disk drives are studied by direct numerical simulations. Our analysis shows that the physics governing lubricant distribution dynamics changes when deep enough sub-100-nm nanostructures are patterned on the disk surface. Air shearing under the slider that dominates lubricant flow on a flat disk may become negligible on a bit-patterned media disk. Surface tension and disjoining pressure become dominant factors instead. Our results show that disks with nanoscale patterns/roughness may no longer be treated as flat, and the air bearing load may strongly depend not only on the geometric detail of disk patterns but also on how lubricants are distributed on the patterns when slider-disk clearance is reduced to sub-10-nm. Air bearing load and consequently the slider's flying attitude are affected by disk pattern geometry, average lubricant thickness, and material properties of lubricant such as the surface tension coefficient and Hamaker constant. The significantly expanded parameter space, upon which ultralow flying slider's dynamics depends, has to be seriously considered in evaluating the head/disk interface tribology performance of next generation patterned media magnetic recording systems.

Relaxation of contact-line singularities solely by the Kelvin effect and apparent contact angles for isothermal volatile liquids in contact with air

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rednikov, Alexey; Colinet, Pierre

2013-11-01

The contact (triple) line of a volatile liquid on a flat solid is studied theoretically. Like with a pure-vapor atmosphere [Phys. Rev. E 87, 010401, 2013], but here for isothermal diffusion-limited evaporation/condensation in the presence of an inert gas, we rigorously show that the notorious contact-line singularities (related to motion or phase change itself) can be regularized solely on account of the Kelvin effect (curvature dependence of the saturation conditions). No disjoining pressure, precursor films or Navier slip are in fact needed to this purpose, and nor are they taken into consideration here (``minimalist'' approach). The model applies to both perfect (zero Young's angle) and partial wetting, and is in particular used to study the related issue of evaporation-induced contact angles. Their modification by the contact-line motion (either advancing or receding) is assessed. The formulation is posed for a distinguished immediate vicinity of the contact line (the ``microregion''), the corresponding problem decoupling to leading order, here up to one unknown coefficient, from what actually happens at the macroscale. The lubrication approximation (implying sufficiently small contact angles) is used in the liquid, coupled with the diffusion equation in the gaz phase. Supported by ESA and BELSPO PRODEX and F.R.S.-FNRS.

Determination of the dispersion constant in a constrained vapor bubble thermosyphon

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dasgupta, Sunando; Plawsky, Joel L.; Wayner, Peter C., Jr.

1995-01-01

The isothermal profiles of the extended meniscus in a quartz cuvette were measured in a gravitational field using an image analyzing interferometer which is based on computer enhanced video microscopy of the naturally occurring interference fringes. The experimental results for heptane and pentane menisci were analyzed using the extended Young Laplace Equation. These isothermal results characterized the interfacial force field in-siru at the start of the heat transfer experiments by quantifying the dispersion constant, which is a function of the liquid-solid system and cleaning procedures. The experimentally obtained values of the disjoining pressure and the dispersion constants were compared to that predicted from the DLP theory and good agreements were obtained. The measurements are critical to the subsequent non-isothermal experiments because one of the major variables in the heat sink capability of the Constrained Vapor Bubble Thermosyphon, CVBT, is the dispersion constant. In all previous studies of micro heat pipes the value of the dispersion constant has been 'estimated'. One of the major advantages of the current glass cell is the ability to view the extended meniscus at all times. Experimentally, we find that the extended Young-Laplace Equation is an excellent model for the force field at the solid-liquid-vapor interfaces.

The electrostatic properties of Fiber-Reinforced-Plastics double wall underground storage gasoline tanks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Yipeng; Liu, Quanzhen; Meng, He; Sun, Lifu; Zhang, Yunpeng

2013-03-01

At present Fiber Reinforced Plastics (FRP) double wall underground storage gasoline tanks are wildly used. An FRP product with a resistance of more than 1011 Ω is a static non-conductor, so it is difficult for the static electricity in the FRP product to decay into the earth. In this paper an experimental system was built to simulate an automobile gasoline filling station. Some electrostatic parameters of the gasoline, including volume charge density, were tested when gasoline was unloaded into a FRP double wall underground storage tank. Measurements were taken to make sure the volume charge density in the oil-outlet was similar to the volume charge density in the tank. In most cases the volume charge density of the gasoline was more than 22.7 μC m-3, which is likely to cause electrostatic discharge in FRP double wall underground storage gasoline tanks. On the other hand, it would be hard to ignite the vapor by electrostatic discharge since the vapor pressure in the tanks is over the explosion limit. But when the tank is repaired or re-used, the operators must pay attention to the static electricity and some measurements should be taken to avoid electrostatic accident. Besides the relaxation time of charge in the FRP double wall gasoline storage tanks should be longer.

The effect of actuator nozzle designs on the electrostatic charge generated in pressurised metered dose inhaler aerosols.

PubMed

Chen, Yang; Young, Paul M; Fletcher, David F; Chan, Hak Kim; Long, Edward; Lewis, David; Church, Tanya; Traini, Daniela

2015-04-01

To investigate the influence of different actuator nozzle designs on aerosol electrostatic charges and aerosol performances for pressurised metered dose inhalers (pMDIs). Four actuator nozzle designs (flat, curved flat, cone and curved cone) were manufactured using insulating thermoplastics (PET and PTFE) and conducting metal (aluminium) materials. Aerosol electrostatic profiles of solution pMDI formulations containing propellant HFA 134a with different ethanol concentration and/or model drug beclomethasone dipropionate (BDP) were studied using a modified electrical low-pressure impactor (ELPI) for all actuator designs and materials. The mass of the deposited drug was analysed using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Both curved nozzle designs for insulating PET and PTFE actuators significantly influenced aerosol electrostatics and aerosol performance compared with conducting aluminium actuator, where reversed charge polarity and higher throat deposition were observed with pMDI formulation containing BDP. Results are likely due to the changes in plume geometry caused by the curved edge nozzle designs and the bipolar charging nature of insulating materials. This study demonstrated that actuator nozzle designs could significantly influence the electrostatic charges profiles and aerosol drug deposition pattern of pMDI aerosols, especially when using insulating thermoplastic materials where bipolar charging is more dominant.

A retrospective of the career of Ray Herb

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Norton, G. A.; Ferry, J. A.; Daniel, R. E.; Klody, G. M.

1999-04-01

Ray Herb's career in the development of electrostatic accelerators spans 65 years. He began in 1933 by pressurizing a Van de Graaff generator, for the first time. Over the next six years, the group at the University of Wisconsin, under his direction, developed the fundamentals of equipotential rings, potential grading, corona triode control, and other basic mechanisms for the practical use of electrostatic accelerators while making fundamental contributions to experimental nuclear physics. This group held the world's record in sustaining potential difference of 4.5 MV. During World War II, he worked on radar at the Radiation Laboratory. After the war, Herb resumed his career with further fundamental contributions including metal/ceramic bonding, ultrahigh vacuum pumping, negative ion source development and metal charge carriers. The company, National Electrostatics, under his direction manufactured the accelerator which still holds the world's record for the highest sustained potential difference of 32±1.5 MV. Throughout his career he led teams which made the electrostatic accelerator a valuable tool for applications in a wide variety of scientific fields, well beyond nuclear physics.

Trapping of ultracold polar molecules with a thin-wire electrostatic trap.

PubMed

Kleinert, J; Haimberger, C; Zabawa, P J; Bigelow, N P

2007-10-05

We describe the realization of a dc electric-field trap for ultracold polar molecules, the thin-wire electrostatic trap (TWIST). The thin wires that form the electrodes of the TWIST allow us to superimpose the trap onto a magneto-optical trap (MOT). In our experiment, ultracold polar NaCs molecules in their electronic ground state are created in the MOT via photoassociation, achieving a continuous accumulation in the TWIST of molecules in low-field seeking states. Initial measurements show that the TWIST trap lifetime is limited only by the background pressure in the chamber.

The baseline pressure of intracranial pressure (ICP) sensors can be altered by electrostatic discharges.

PubMed

Eide, Per K; Bakken, André

2011-08-22

The monitoring of intracranial pressure (ICP) has a crucial role in the surveillance of patients with brain injury. During long-term monitoring of ICP, we have seen spontaneous shifts in baseline pressure (ICP sensor zero point), which are of technical and not physiological origin. The aim of the present study was to explore whether or not baseline pressures of ICP sensors can be affected by electrostatics discharges (ESD's), when ESD's are delivered at clinically relevant magnitudes. We performed bench-testing of a set of commercial ICP sensors. In our experimental setup, the ICP sensor was placed in a container with 0.9% NaCl solution. A test person was charged 0.5-10 kV, and then delivered ESD's to the sensor by touching a metal rod that was located in the container. The continuous pressure signals were recorded continuously before/after the ESD's, and the pressure readings were stored digitally using a computerized system A total of 57 sensors were tested, including 25 Codman ICP sensors and 32 Raumedic sensors. When charging the test person in the range 0.5-10 kV, typically ESD's in the range 0.5-5 kV peak pulse were delivered to the ICP sensor. Alterations in baseline pressure ≥ 2 mmHg was seen in 24 of 25 (96%) Codman sensors and in 17 of 32 (53%) Raumedic sensors. Lasting changes in baseline pressure > 10 mmHg that in the clinical setting would affect patient management, were seen frequently for both sensor types. The changes in baseline pressure were either characterized by sudden shifts or gradual drifts in baseline pressure. The baseline pressures of commercial solid ICP sensors can be altered by ESD's at discharge magnitudes that are clinically relevant. Shifts in baseline pressure change the ICP levels visualised to the physician on the monitor screen, and thereby reveal wrong ICP values, which likely represent a severe risk to the patient.

The baseline pressure of intracranial pressure (ICP) sensors can be altered by electrostatic discharges

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Background The monitoring of intracranial pressure (ICP) has a crucial role in the surveillance of patients with brain injury. During long-term monitoring of ICP, we have seen spontaneous shifts in baseline pressure (ICP sensor zero point), which are of technical and not physiological origin. The aim of the present study was to explore whether or not baseline pressures of ICP sensors can be affected by electrostatics discharges (ESD's), when ESD's are delivered at clinically relevant magnitudes. Methods We performed bench-testing of a set of commercial ICP sensors. In our experimental setup, the ICP sensor was placed in a container with 0.9% NaCl solution. A test person was charged 0.5 - 10 kV, and then delivered ESD's to the sensor by touching a metal rod that was located in the container. The continuous pressure signals were recorded continuously before/after the ESD's, and the pressure readings were stored digitally using a computerized system Results A total of 57 sensors were tested, including 25 Codman ICP sensors and 32 Raumedic sensors. When charging the test person in the range 0.5-10 kV, typically ESD's in the range 0.5 - 5 kV peak pulse were delivered to the ICP sensor. Alterations in baseline pressure ≥ 2 mmHg was seen in 24 of 25 (96%) Codman sensors and in 17 of 32 (53%) Raumedic sensors. Lasting changes in baseline pressure > 10 mmHg that in the clinical setting would affect patient management, were seen frequently for both sensor types. The changes in baseline pressure were either characterized by sudden shifts or gradual drifts in baseline pressure. Conclusions The baseline pressures of commercial solid ICP sensors can be altered by ESD's at discharge magnitudes that are clinically relevant. Shifts in baseline pressure change the ICP levels visualised to the physician on the monitor screen, and thereby reveal wrong ICP values, which likely represent a severe risk to the patient. PMID:21859487

Flexibility of the Cu,Zn superoxide dismutase structure investigated at 0.57 GPa.

PubMed

Ascone, Isabella; Savino, Carmelinda; Kahn, Richard; Fourme, Roger

2010-06-01

The 2 A resolution crystal structure of bovine erythrocyte Cu,Zn superoxide dismutase (CuZnSOD) has been determined by X-ray diffraction at high pressure (0.57 GPa) and room temperature. At 0.57 GPa the secondary, tertiary and quaternary structures are similar to other previously determined bovine erythrocyte CuZnSOD structures. Nevertheless, pressure has a localized impact on the atomic coordinates of C(alpha) atoms and on side chains. The compression of the crystal and of the protein backbone is anisotropic. This anisotropy is discussed, taking into account intermolecular contacts and protein conformation. Pressure perturbation highlights the more flexible zones in the protein such as the electrostatic loop. At 0.57 GPa, a global shift of the dimetallic sites in both subunits and changes in the oxidation state of Cu were observed. The flexibility of the electrostatic loop may be useful for the interaction of different metal carriers in the copper-uptake process, whereas the flexibility of the metal sites involved in the activity of the protein could contribute to explaining the ubiquitous character of CuZnSODs, which are found in organisms living in very different conditions, including the deep-sea environment. This work illustrates the potential of combining X-ray crystallography with high pressure to promote and stabilize higher energy conformational substates.

The thermo-elastic instability model of melting of alkali halides in the Debye approximation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Owens, Frank J.

2018-05-01

The Debye model of lattice vibrations of alkali halides is used to show that there is a temperature below the melting temperature where the vibrational pressure exceeds the electrostatic pressure. The onset temperature of this thermo-elastic instability scales as the melting temperature of NaCl, KCl, and KBr, suggesting its role in the melting of the alkali halides in agreement with a previous more rigorous model.

Particle-in-cell simulation study of a lower-hybrid shock

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

Dieckmann, M. E.; Ynnerman, A.; Sarri, G.

2016-06-15

The expansion of a magnetized high-pressure plasma into a low-pressure ambient medium is examined with particle-in-cell simulations. The magnetic field points perpendicular to the plasma's expansion direction and binary collisions between particles are absent. The expanding plasma steepens into a quasi-electrostatic shock that is sustained by the lower-hybrid (LH) wave. The ambipolar electric field points in the expansion direction and it induces together with the background magnetic field a fast E cross B drift of electrons. The drifting electrons modify the background magnetic field, resulting in its pile-up by the LH shock. The magnetic pressure gradient force accelerates the ambientmore » ions ahead of the LH shock, reducing the relative velocity between the ambient plasma and the LH shock to about the phase speed of the shocked LH wave, transforming the LH shock into a nonlinear LH wave. The oscillations of the electrostatic potential have a larger amplitude and wavelength in the magnetized plasma than in an unmagnetized one with otherwise identical conditions. The energy loss to the drifting electrons leads to a noticeable slowdown of the LH shock compared to that in an unmagnetized plasma.« less

Martian Atmospheric Pressure Static Charge Elimination Tool

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johansen, Michael R.

2014-01-01

A Martian pressure static charge elimination tool is currently in development in the Electrostatics and Surface Physics Laboratory (ESPL) at NASA's Kennedy Space Center. In standard Earth atmosphere conditions, static charge can be neutralized from an insulating surface using air ionizers. These air ionizers generate ions through corona breakdown. The Martian atmosphere is 7 Torr of mostly carbon dioxide, which makes it inherently difficult to use similar methods as those used for standard atmosphere static elimination tools. An initial prototype has been developed to show feasibility of static charge elimination at low pressure, using corona discharge. A needle point and thin wire loop are used as the corona generating electrodes. A photo of the test apparatus is shown below. Positive and negative high voltage pulses are sent to the needle point. This creates positive and negative ions that can be used for static charge neutralization. In a preliminary test, a floating metal plate was charged to approximately 600 volts under Martian atmospheric conditions. The static elimination tool was enabled and the voltage on the metal plate dropped rapidly to -100 volts. This test data is displayed below. Optimization is necessary to improve the electrostatic balance of the static elimination tool.

A Large Signal Model for CMUT Arrays with Arbitrary Membrane Geometries Operating in Non-Collapsed Mode

PubMed Central

Satir, Sarp; Zahorian, Jaime; Degertekin, F. Levent

2014-01-01

A large signal, transient model has been developed to predict the output characteristics of a CMUT array operated in the non-collapse mode. The model is based on separation of the nonlinear electrostatic voltage-to-force relation and the linear acoustic array response. For linear acoustic radiation and crosstalk effects, the boundary element method is used. The stiffness matrix in the vibroacoustics calculations is obtained using static finite element analysis of a single membrane which can have arbitrary geometry and boundary conditions. A lumped modeling approach is used to reduce the order of the system for modeling the transient nonlinear electrostatic actuation. To accurately capture the dynamics of the non-uniform electrostatic force distribution over the CMUT electrode during large deflections, the membrane electrode is divided into patches shaped to match higher order membrane modes, each introducing a variable to the system model. This reduced order nonlinear lumped model is solved in the time domain using Simulink. The model has two linear blocks to calculate the displacement profile of the electrode patches and the output pressure for a given force distribution over the array, respectively. The force to array displacement block uses the linear acoustic model, and the Rayleigh integral is evaluated to calculate the pressure at any field point. Using the model, the transient transmitted pressure can be simulated for different large signal drive signal configurations. The acoustic model is verified by comparison to harmonic FEA in vacuum and fluid for high and low aspect ratio membranes as well as mass-loaded membranes. The overall Simulink model is verified by comparison to transient 3D FEA and experimental results for different large drive signals; and an example for a phased array simulation is given. PMID:24158297

Arbitrary amplitude electrostatic wave propagation in a magnetized dense plasma containing helium ions and degenerate electrons

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mahmood, S.; Sadiq, Safeer; Haque, Q.; Ali, Munazza Z.

2016-06-01

The obliquely propagating arbitrary amplitude electrostatic wave is studied in a dense magnetized plasma having singly and doubly charged helium ions with nonrelativistic and ultrarelativistic degenerate electrons pressures. The Fermi temperature for ultrarelativistic degenerate electrons described by N. M. Vernet [(Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2007), p. 57] is used to define ion acoustic speed in ultra-dense plasmas. The pseudo-potential approach is used to solve the fully nonlinear set of dynamic equations for obliquely propagating electrostatic waves in a dense magnetized plasma containing helium ions. The upper and lower Mach number ranges for the existence of electrostatic solitons are found which depends on the obliqueness of the wave propagation with respect to applied magnetic field and charge number of the helium ions. It is found that only compressive (hump) soliton structures are formed in all the cases and only subsonic solitons are formed for a singly charged helium ions plasma case with nonrelativistic degenerate electrons. Both subsonic and supersonic soliton hump structures are formed for doubly charged helium ions with nonrelativistic degenerate electrons and ultrarelativistic degenerate electrons plasma case containing singly as well as doubly charged helium ions. The effect of propagation direction on the soliton amplitude and width of the electrostatic waves is also presented. The numerical plots are also shown for illustration using dense plasma parameters of a compact star (white dwarf) from literature.

Microwave Interferometric Density Measurements of a Pulsed Helicon Source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Scime, Ethan; Scime, Earl; Thompson, Derek

2017-10-01

The intense rf environment of a helicon plasma source is problematic for electrostatic probe measurements of plasma density, particularly at low neutral pressures. Here we present measurements of the line-integrated plasma density in a helicon plasma source using a multi-frequency (20-40 GHz) microwave interferometer. The design of the diagnostic and the data acquisition system are presented, as well as a comparison to density profiles obtained with a moveable electrostatic probe. A parametric fit to the probe profile measurements is used to determine the peak density from the microwave density measurements. This work supported by U.S. National Science Foundation Grant No. PHY-1360278.

The influence of actuator materials and nozzle designs on electrostatic charge of pressurised metered dose inhaler (pMDI) formulations.

PubMed

Chen, Yang; Young, Paul M; Fletcher, David F; Chan, Hak Kim; Long, Edward; Lewis, David; Church, Tanya; Traini, Daniela

2014-05-01

To investigate the influence of different actuator materials and nozzle designs on the electrostatic charge properties of a series of solution metered dose inhaler (pMDI) aerosols. Actuators were manufactured with flat and cone nozzle designs using five different materials from the triboelectric series (Nylon, Polyethylene terephthalate, Polyethylene-High density, Polypropylene copolymer and Polytetrafluoroethylene). The electrostatic charge profiles of pMDI containing beclomethasone dipropionate (BDP) as model drug in HFA-134a propellant, with different concentrations of ethanol were studied. Electrostatic measurements were taken using a modified electrical low-pressure impactor (ELPI) and the deposited drug mass assayed chemically using HPLC. The charge profiles of HFA 134a alone have shown strong electronegativity with all actuator materials and nozzle designs, at an average of -1531.34 pC ± 377.34. The presence of co-solvent ethanol significantly reduced the negative charge magnitude. BDP reduced the suppressing effect of ethanol on the negative charging of the propellant. For all tested formulations, the flat nozzle design showed no significant differences in net charge between different actuator materials, whereas the charge profiles of cone designs followed the triboelectric series. The electrostatic charging profiles from a solution pMDI containing BDP and ethanol can be significantly influenced by the actuator material, nozzle design and formulation components. Ethanol concentration appears to have the most significant impact. Furthermore, BDP interactions with ethanol and HFA have an influence on the electrostatic charge of aerosols. By choosing different combinations of actuator materials and orifice design, the fine particle fractions of formulations can be altered.

Control system adds to precipitator efficiency

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

Gurrole, G.

1978-02-01

An electrostatic precipitator in use at Lion Oil Co., Martinez, Calif., in a fluid catalytic cracking and CO boiler application, was upgraded by mechanical sectionalization of the gas passage and a new electronic control system. The electrostatic precipitator is installed upstream of the CO boiler to handle gas flow up to 4.77 ft/sec, and pressure to 4.5 psi. The independent gas chambers in the electrostatic precipitator were divided by installing gas-tight partition walls to form a total of four electrostatic fields. The precipitator was also equipped with adjustable inlet gas flow-control baffles for even gas distribution. Rows of grounded collectingmore » electrodes are parallel with the flow of gas. The emitting electrode system, powered by separate high-energy transformers for each collecting field, uses silicon-controlled rectifiers and analog electronic networks for rapid response to changing gas and dust conditions. Regulatory requirements call for efficient collection of catalyst fines with no more than 40 lb/hr escaping through the boiler stack. Currently, stack losses average about 38 lb/hr. The installation of two additional control systems with transformers and rectifiers should reduce stack losses to 34 lb/hr.« less

Transient porosity pulses and microfracturing during a stress-generating retrograde metamorphic reaction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Renard, F.; Zheng, X.; Cordonnier, B.; Zhu, W.; Jamtveit, B.

2017-12-01

Several geological processes involve mineral transformations where nominally dry rocks transform into hydrated ones when left in contact with water (i.e. eclogitization, serpentinization). In these systems, the transformation induces stress if the rock is confined, and the new minerals create a so-called force of crystallization. Here, we study a model retrograde metamorphic reaction, the hydration of periclase, MgO, into brucite, Mg(OH)2, to quantify the coupling between reaction, stress generation, porosity evolution and fracturing. This hydration reaction generates a volume increase of 110%, and a density decrease of 33.8% of the solid. Samples of a microporous MgO ceramics were reacted at 170-211°C, 5-80 MPa confining pressure, 6-95 MPa differential stress and 5 MPa pore fluid pressure. They were installed into an X-ray transparent triaxial deformation rig, called Hades, and mounted on a synchrotron microtomography stage. Each experiment lasted between 2 and 5 hours, during which between 35 and 130 three-dimensional images were acquired, allowing to follow the chemical transformation and the deformation of the sample. Below 30 MPa mean pressure, the hydration reaction was coupled to fracturing of the MgO ceramics, and the transformation rate followed a sigmoidal kinetics curve with a slow initiation, a fast reaction coupled to fracturing and the generation of a transient porosity pulse, and a slow-down until an almost complete transformation of periclase into brucite.. Conversely, above 30 MPa, the reaction kinetics was very slow, without fracturing over the time scale of the experiment. When considering the driving force of the hydration reaction, stress generation should be several hundreds MPa, whereas the present experiments show that fracturing occurred only below 30 MPa. This indicates that the potential energy due to phase transformation generates much lower stress than what is estimated from non-equilibrium thermodynamics. A possible interpretation of this observation is that the stress created by the reaction may overcome the disjoining pressure at the grain-grain interface, expelling the water film trapped there and reducing the kinetics of reaction. As a consequence, only a fraction of the available potential driving force was used to accelerate the reaction by microfracturing.

Mechanical Removal and Rescreening of Local Screening Charges on Ferroelectric Surfaces

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

Tong, Sheng; Park, Woon Ik; Choi, YoonYoung

2015-01-20

We report the kinetics of screening charge removal and rescreening on periodically poled lithium niobate using charge-gradient microscopy and electrostatic force microscopy (EFM). A minimum pressure needs to be applied to initiate mechanical screening charge removal, and increasing the pressure leads to further removal of charge until a threshold is reached when all screening charges are removed. We fit all rescreening EFM contrast curves under various pressures into a universal exponential decay. The findings imply that we can control the screening degree of ferroelectric surfaces by mechanical means without affecting the polarization underneath.

Mechanical Removal and Rescreening of Local Screening Charges at Ferroelectric Surfaces

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

Tong, Sheng; Park, Woon Ik; Choi, Yoon-Young

2015-01-20

In this paper, we report the kinetics of screening charge removal and rescreening on periodically poled lithium niobate using charge-gradient microscopy and electrostatic force microscopy (EFM). A minimum pressure needs to be applied to initiate mechanical screening charge removal, and increasing the pressure leads to further removal of charge until a threshold is reached when all screening charges are removed. We fit all rescreening EFM contrast curves under various pressures into a universal exponential decay. Finally, the findings imply that we can control the screening degree of ferroelectric surfaces by mechanical means without affecting the polarization underneath.

Molecular dewetting on insulators.

PubMed

Burke, S A; Topple, J M; Grütter, P

2009-10-21

Recent attention given to the growth and morphology of organic thin films with regard to organic electronics has led to the observation of dewetting (a transition from layer(s) to islands) of molecular deposits in many of these systems. Dewetting is a much studied phenomenon in the formation of polymer and liquid films, but its observation in thin films of the 'small' molecules typical of organic electronics requires additional consideration of the structure of the interface between the molecular film and the substrate. This review covers some key concepts related to dewetting and molecular film growth. In particular, the origins of different growth modes and the thickness dependent interactions which give rise to dewetting are discussed in terms of surface energies and the disjoining pressure. Characteristics of molecular systems which may lead to these conditions, including the formation of metastable interface structures and commensurate-incommensurate phase transitions, are also discussed. Brief descriptions of some experimental techniques which have been used to study molecular dewetting are given as well. Examples of molecule-on-insulator systems which undergo dewetting are described in some detail, specifically perylene derivatives on alkali halides, C(60) on alkali halides, and the technologically important system of pentacene on SiO(2). These examples point to some possible predicting factors for the occurrence of dewetting, most importantly the formation of an interface layer which differs from the bulk crystal structure.

Chronicles of foam films.

PubMed

Gochev, G; Platikanov, D; Miller, R

2016-07-01

The history of the scientific research on foam films, traditionally known as soap films, dates back to as early as the late 17th century when Boyle and Hooke paid special attention to the colours of soap bubbles. Their inspiration was transferred to Newton, who began systematic study of the science of foam films. Over the next centuries, a number of scientists dealt with the open questions of the drainage, stability and thickness of foam films. The significant contributions of Plateau and Gibbs in the middle/late 19th century are particularly recognized. After the "colours" method of Newton, Reinold and Rücker as well as Johhonnot developed optical methods for measuring the thickness of the thinner "non-colour" films (first order black) that are still in use today. At the beginning of the 20th century, various aspects of the foam film science were elucidated by the works of Dewar and Perrin and later by Mysels. Undoubtedly, the introduction of the disjoining pressure by Derjaguin and the manifestation of the DLVO theory in describing the film stability are considered as milestones in the theoretical development of foam films. The study of foam films gained momentum with the introduction of the microscopic foam film methodology by Scheludko and Exerowa, which is widely used today. This historical perspective serves as a guide through the chronological development of knowledge on foam films achieved over several centuries. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Riemann surfaces of complex classical trajectories and tunnelling splitting in one-dimensional systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Harada, Hiromitsu; Mouchet, Amaury; Shudo, Akira

2017-10-01

The topology of complex classical paths is investigated to discuss quantum tunnelling splittings in one-dimensional systems. Here the Hamiltonian is assumed to be given as polynomial functions, so the fundamental group for the Riemann surface provides complete information on the topology of complex paths, which allows us to enumerate all the possible candidates contributing to the semiclassical sum formula for tunnelling splittings. This naturally leads to action relations among classically disjoined regions, revealing entirely non-local nature in the quantization condition. The importance of the proper treatment of Stokes phenomena is also discussed in Hamiltonians in the normal form.

Characterizing the Performance of the Wheel Electrostatic Spectrometer

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johansen, M. R.; Mackey, P. J.; Holbert, E.; Clements, J. S.; Calle, C. I.

2013-01-01

A Wheel Electrostatic Spectrometer has been developed as a surveying tool to be incorporated into a Martian rover design. Electrostatic sensors with various protruding cover insulators are embedded into a prototype rover wheel. When these insulators come into contact with a surface, a charge develops on the cover insulator through tribocharging. A charge spectrum is created by analyzing the accumulated charge on each of the dissimilar cover insulators. This charge spectrum can be used to determine differences in Martian regolith properties. In this study, we analyzed the repeatability of the measurements for this sensor package and found that the sensor repeatability lies within one standard deviation of the noise in the signal. In addition, we tested the need for neutralizing the surface charge on the cover insulators and discovered a need to discharge the sensor cover insulators after each revolution. Future work includes an electronics redesign to reduce noise and a Martian pressure static elimination tool that can be used to neutralize the charge on the sensor cover insulators after each wheel revolution.

cDPD: A new dissipative particle dynamics method for modeling electrokinetic phenomena at the mesoscale

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deng, Mingge; Li, Zhen; Borodin, Oleg; Karniadakis, George Em

2016-10-01

We develop a "charged" dissipative particle dynamics (cDPD) model for simulating mesoscopic electrokinetic phenomena governed by the stochastic Poisson-Nernst-Planck and the Navier-Stokes equations. Specifically, the transport equations of ionic species are incorporated into the DPD framework by introducing extra degrees of freedom and corresponding evolution equations associated with each DPD particle. Diffusion of ionic species driven by the ionic concentration gradient, electrostatic potential gradient, and thermal fluctuations is captured accurately via pairwise fluxes between DPD particles. The electrostatic potential is obtained by solving the Poisson equation on the moving DPD particles iteratively at each time step. For charged surfaces in bounded systems, an effective boundary treatment methodology is developed for imposing both the correct hydrodynamic and electrokinetics boundary conditions in cDPD simulations. To validate the proposed cDPD model and the corresponding boundary conditions, we first study the electrostatic structure in the vicinity of a charged solid surface, i.e., we perform cDPD simulations of the electrostatic double layer and show that our results are in good agreement with the well-known mean-field theoretical solutions. We also simulate the electrostatic structure and capacity densities between charged parallel plates in salt solutions with different salt concentrations. Moreover, we employ the proposed methodology to study the electro-osmotic and electro-osmotic/pressure-driven flows in a micro-channel. In the latter case, we simulate the dilute poly-electrolyte solution drifting by electro-osmotic flow in a micro-channel, hence demonstrating the flexibility and capability of this method in studying complex fluids with electrostatic interactions at the micro- and nano-scales.

40 CFR 63.7790 - What emission limitations must I meet?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

...) For each venturi scrubber applied to meet any particulate emission limit in Table 1 to this subpart, you must maintain the hourly average pressure drop and scrubber water flow rate at or above the... other than a baghouse, venturi scrubber, or electrostatic precipitator must submit a description of the...

40 CFR 63.7790 - What emission limitations must I meet?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

...) For each venturi scrubber applied to meet any particulate emission limit in Table 1 to this subpart, you must maintain the hourly average pressure drop and scrubber water flow rate at or above the... other than a baghouse, venturi scrubber, or electrostatic precipitator must submit a description of the...

Optimization and experimental validation of electrostatic adhesive geometry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ruffatto, D.; Shah, J.; Spenko, M.

This paper introduces a method to optimize the electrode geometry of electrostatic adhesives for robotic gripping, attachment, and manipulation applications. Electrostatic adhesion is achieved by applying a high voltage potential, on the order of kV, to a set of electrodes, which generates an electric field. The electric field polarizes the substrate material and creates an adhesion force. Previous attempts at creating electro-static adhesives have shown them to be effective, but researchers have made no effort to optimize the electrode configuration and geometry. We have shown that by optimizing the geometry of the electrode configuration, the electric field strength, and therefore the adhesion force, is enhanced. To accomplish this, Comsol Multiphysics was utilized to evaluate the average electric field generated by a given electrode geometry. Several electrode patterns were evaluated, including parallel conductors, concentric circles, Hilbert curves (a fractal geometry) and spirals. The arrangement of the electrodes in concentric circles with varying electrode widths proved to be the most effective. The most effective sizing was to use the smallest gap spacing allowable coupled with a variable electrode width. These results were experimentally validated on several different surfaces including drywall, wood, tile, glass, and steel. A new manufacturing process allowing for the fabrication of thin, conformal electro-static adhesive pads was utilized. By combining the optimized electrode geometry with the new fabrication process we are able to demonstrate a marked improvement of up to 500% in shear pressure when compared to previously published values.

Arbitrary amplitude electrostatic wave propagation in a magnetized dense plasma containing helium ions and degenerate electrons

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

Mahmood, S., E-mail: shahzadm100@gmail.com; Sadiq, Safeer; Haque, Q.

2016-06-15

The obliquely propagating arbitrary amplitude electrostatic wave is studied in a dense magnetized plasma having singly and doubly charged helium ions with nonrelativistic and ultrarelativistic degenerate electrons pressures. The Fermi temperature for ultrarelativistic degenerate electrons described by N. M. Vernet [(Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2007), p. 57] is used to define ion acoustic speed in ultra-dense plasmas. The pseudo-potential approach is used to solve the fully nonlinear set of dynamic equations for obliquely propagating electrostatic waves in a dense magnetized plasma containing helium ions. The upper and lower Mach number ranges for the existence of electrostatic solitons are found whichmore » depends on the obliqueness of the wave propagation with respect to applied magnetic field and charge number of the helium ions. It is found that only compressive (hump) soliton structures are formed in all the cases and only subsonic solitons are formed for a singly charged helium ions plasma case with nonrelativistic degenerate electrons. Both subsonic and supersonic soliton hump structures are formed for doubly charged helium ions with nonrelativistic degenerate electrons and ultrarelativistic degenerate electrons plasma case containing singly as well as doubly charged helium ions. The effect of propagation direction on the soliton amplitude and width of the electrostatic waves is also presented. The numerical plots are also shown for illustration using dense plasma parameters of a compact star (white dwarf) from literature.« less

Particle collection by a pilot plant venturi scrubber downstream from a pilot plant electrostatic precipitator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sparks, L. E.; Ramsey, G. H.; Daniel, B. E.

The results of pilot plant experiments of particulate collection by a venturi scrubber downstream from an electrostatic precipitator (ESP) are presented. The data, which cover a range of scrubber operating conditions and ESP efficiencies, show that particle collection by the venturi scrubber is not affected by the upstream ESP; i.e., for a given scrubber pressure drop, particle collection efficiency as a function of particle diameter is the same for both ESP on and ESP off. The experimental results are in excellent agreement with theoretical predictions. Order of magnitude cost estimates indicate that particle collection by ESP scrubber systems may be economically attractive when scrubbers must be used for SO x control.

A description of electron heating with an electrostatic potential jump in a parallel, collisionless, fire hose shock

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ellison, Donald C.; Jones, Frank C.

1988-01-01

The electron heating required if protons scatter elastically in a parallel, collisionless shock is calculated. Near-elastic proton scattering off large amplitude background magnetic field fluctuations might be expected if the waves responsible for the shock dissipation are generated by the fire hose instability. The effects of an electrostatic potential jump in the shock layer are included by assuming that the energy lost by protons in traversing the potential jump is converted into electron thermal pressure. It is found that the electron temperature increase is a strong function of the potential jump. Comparison is made to the parallel shock plasma simulation of Quest (1987).

Electrostatic bonding of thin (approximately 3 mil) 7070 cover glass to Ta2O5 AR-coated thin (approximately 2 mil) silicon wafers and solar cells

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Egelkrout, D. W.; Horne, W. E.

1980-01-01

Electrostatic bonding (ESB) of thin (3 mil) Corning 7070 cover glasses to Ta2O5 AR-coated thin (2 mil) silicon wafers and solar cells is investigated. An experimental program was conducted to establish the effects of variations in pressure, voltage, temperature, time, Ta2O5 thickness, and various prebond glass treatments. Flat wafers without contact grids were used to study the basic effects for bonding to semiconductor surfaces typical of solar cells. Solar cells with three different grid patterns were used to determine additional requirements caused by the raised metallic contacts.

[Filtering facepieces: effect of oily aerosol load on penetration through the filtering material].

PubMed

Plebani, Carmela; Listrani, S; Di Luigi, M

2010-01-01

Electrostatic filters are widely used in applications requiring high filtration efficiency and low pressure drop. However various studies showed that the penetration through electrostatic filters increases during exposure to an aerosol flow. This study investigates the effects of prolonged exposure to an oily aerosol on the penetration through filtering facepieces available on the market. Some samples of FFP1, FFP2 and FFP3 filtering facepieces were exposed for 8 hours consecutively to a paraffin oil polydisperse aerosol. At the end of the exposure about 830 mg of paraffin oil were deposited in the facepiece. All the examined facepieces showed penetration values that increased with paraffin oil load while pressure drop values were substantially the same before and after exposure. The measured maximum penetration values did not exceed the maximum penetration values allowed by the European technical standards, except in one case. According to the literature, 830 mg of oil load in a facepiece is not feasible in workplaces over an eight- hour shift. However, the trend of the penetration versus exposure mass suggests that if the load increases, the penetration may exceed the maximum allowed values. For comparison a mechanical filter was also studied. This showed an initial pressure drop higher than FFP2 filtering facepieces characterized by comparable penetration values. During exposure the pressure drop virtually doubled while penetration did not change. The increase in penetration with no increase in pressure drop in the analyzed facepieces indicates that it is necessary to comply with the information supplied by the manufacturer that restricts their use to a single shift.

Antimicrobial nanoparticle-coated electrostatic air filter with high filtration efficiency and low pressure drop.

PubMed

Sim, Kyoung Mi; Park, Hyun-Seol; Bae, Gwi-Nam; Jung, Jae Hee

2015-11-15

In this study, we demonstrated an antimicrobial nanoparticle-coated electrostatic (ES) air filter. Antimicrobial natural-product Sophora flavescens nanoparticles were produced using an aerosol process, and were continuously deposited onto the surface of air filter media. For the electrostatic activation of the filter medium, a corona discharge electrification system was used before and after antimicrobial treatment of the filter. In the antimicrobial treatment process, the deposition efficiency of S. flavescens nanoparticles on the ES filter was ~12% higher than that on the pristine (Non-ES) filter. In the evaluation of filtration performance using test particles (a nanosized KCl aerosol and submicron-sized Staphylococcus epidermidis bioaerosol), the ES filter showed better filtration efficiency than the Non-ES filter. However, antimicrobial treatment with S. flavescens nanoparticles affected the filtration efficiency of the filter differently depending on the size of the test particles. While the filtration efficiency of the KCl nanoparticles was reduced on the ES filter after the antimicrobial treatment, the filtration efficiency was improved after the recharging process. In summary, we prepared an antimicrobial ES air filter with >99% antimicrobial activity, ~92.5% filtration efficiency (for a 300-nm KCl aerosol), and a ~0.8 mmAq pressure drop (at 13 cm/s). This study provides valuable information for the development of a hybrid air purification system that can serve various functions and be used in an indoor environment. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Innovative Electrostatic Adhesion Technologies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bryan, Tom; Macleod, Todd; Gagliano, Larry; Williams, Scott; McCoy, Brian

2015-01-01

Developing specialized Electro-Static grippers (commercially used in Semiconductor Manufacturing and in package handling) will allow gentle and secure Capture, Soft Docking, and Handling of a wide variety of materials and shapes (such as upper-stages, satellites, arrays, and possibly asteroids) without requiring physical features or cavities for a pincher or probe or using harpoons or nets. Combined with new rigid boom mechanisms or small agile chaser vehicles, flexible, high speed Electro-Static Grippers can enable compliant capture of spinning objects starting from a safe stand-off distance. Electroadhesion (EA) can enable lightweight, ultra-low-power, compliant attachment in space by using an electrostatic force to adhere similar and dissimilar surfaces. A typical EA enabled device is composed of compliant space-rated materials, such as copper-clad polyimide encapsulated by polymers. Attachment is induced by strong electrostatic forces between any substrate material, such as an exterior satellite panel and a compliant EA gripper pad surface. When alternate positive and negative charges are induced in adjacent planar electrodes in an EA surface, the electric fields set up opposite charges on the substrate and cause an electrostatic adhesion between the electrodes and the induced charges on the substrate. Since the electrodes and the polymer are compliant and can conform to uneven or rough surfaces, the electrodes can remain intimately close to the entire surface, enabling high clamping pressures. Clamping pressures of more than 3 N/cm2 in shear can be achieved on a variety of substrates with ultra-low holding power consumption (measured values are less than 20 microW/Newton weight held). A single EA surface geometry can be used to clamp both dielectric and conductive substrates, with slightly different physical mechanisms. Furthermore EA clamping requires no normal force be placed on the substrate, as conventional docking requires. Internally funded research and development has demonstrated that EA can function effectively in space, even in the presence of strong ultraviolet radiation, atomic oxygen, and free electrons. We created a test setup in an existing vacuum chamber to simulate low-Earth-orbit conditions. An EA mechanism was fabricated and installed in the chamber, instrumented, operated in a vacuum, and subjected to ultraviolet photons and free electrons generated by an in-chamber multipactor electron emitter. Extensions to EA that can add value include proximity and contact sensing and transverse motion or rotation, both of which could enhance docking or assembly applications. Possible next steps include development of targeted applications for ground investigation or on-orbit subsystem performance demonstrations using low cost access to space such as CubeSats.

Innovative Electrostatic Adhesion Technologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gagliano, L.; Bryan, T.; Williams, S.; McCoy, B.; MacLeod, T.

Developing specialized Electro-Static grippers (commercially used in Semiconductor Manufacturing and in package handling) will allow gentle and secure Capture, Soft Docking, and Handling of a wide variety of materials and shapes (such as upper-stages, satellites, arrays, and possibly asteroids) without requiring physical features or cavities for a pincher or probe or using harpoons or nets. Combined with new rigid boom mechanisms or small agile chaser vehicles, flexible, high speed Electro-Static Grippers can enable compliant capture of spinning objects starting from a safe stand-off distance. Electroadhesion (EA) can enable lightweight, ultra-low-power, compliant attachment in space by using an electrostatic force to adhere similar and dissimilar surfaces. A typical EA enabled device is composed of compliant space-rated materials, such as copper-clad polyimide encapsulated by polymers. Attachment is induced by strong electrostatic forces between any substrate material, such as an exterior satellite panel and a compliant EA surface. When alternate positive and negative charges are induced in adjacent planar electrodes in an EA surface, the electric fields set up opposite charges on the substrate and cause an electrostatic adhesion between the electrodes and the induced charges on the substrate. Since the electrodes and the polymer are compliant and can conform to uneven or rough surfaces, the electrodes can remain intimately close to the entire surface, enabling high clamping pressures. Clamping pressures of more than 3 N/cm2 in shear can be achieved on a variety of substrates with ultra-low holding power consumption (measured values are less than 20 microW/Newton weight held). A single EA surface geometry can be used to clamp both dielectric and conductive substrates, with slightly different physical mechanisms. Furthermore EA clamping requires no normal force be placed on the substrate, as conventional docking requires. Internally funded research and development has demonstrated that EA can function effectively in space, even in the presence of strong ultraviolet radiation, atomic oxygen, and free electrons. We created a test setup in an existing vacuum chamber to simulate low-Earth-orbit conditions. An EA mechanism was fabricated and installed in the chamber, instrumented, operated in a vacuum, and subjected to ultraviolet photons and free electrons generated by an in-chamber multipactor electron emitter. Extensions to EA that can add value include proximity and contact sensing and transverse motion or rotation, both of which could enhance docking or assembly applications. Possible next steps include development of targeted applications for ground investigation or on-orbit subsystem performance demonstrations using low cost access to space such as CubeSats.

Micromachined diffraction based optical microphones and intensity probes with electrostatic force feedback

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bicen, Baris

Measuring acoustic pressure gradients is critical in many applications such as directional microphones for hearing aids and sound intensity probes. This measurement is especially challenging with decreasing microphone size, which reduces the sensitivity due to small spacing between the pressure ports. Novel, micromachined biomimetic microphone diaphragms are shown to provide high sensitivity to pressure gradients on one side of the diaphragm with low thermal mechanical noise. These structures have a dominant mode shape with see-saw like motion in the audio band, responding to pressure gradients as well as spurious higher order modes sensitive to pressure. In this dissertation, integration of a diffraction based optical detection method with these novel diaphragm structures to implement a low noise optical pressure gradient microphone is described and experimental characterization results are presented, showing 36 dBA noise level with 1mm port spacing, nearly an order of magnitude better than the current gradient microphones. The optical detection scheme also provides electrostatic actuation capability from both sides of the diaphragm separately which can be used for active force feedback. A 4-port electromechanical equivalent circuit model of this microphone with optical readout is developed to predict the overall response of the device to different acoustic and electrostatic excitations. The model includes the damping due to complex motion of air around the microphone diaphragm, and it calculates the detected optical signal on each side of the diaphragm as a combination of two separate dominant vibration modes. This equivalent circuit model is verified by experiments and used to predict the microphone response with different force feedback schemes. Single sided force feedback is used for active damping to improve the linearity and the frequency response of the microphone. Furthermore, it is shown that using two sided force feedback one can significantly suppress or enhance the desired vibration modes of the diaphragm. This approach provides an electronic means to tailor the directional response of the microphones, with significant implications in device performance for various applications. As an example, the use of this device as a particle velocity sensor for sound intensity and sound power measurements is investigated. Without force feedback, the gradient microphone provides accurate particle velocity measurement for frequencies below 2 kHz, after which the pressure response of the second order mode becomes significant. With two-sided force feedback, the calculations show that this upper frequency limit may be increased to 10 kHz. This improves the pressure residual intensity index by more than 15 dB in the 50 Hz--10 kHz range, matching the Class I requirements of IEC 1043 standards for intensity probes without any need for multiple spacers.

Acoustic performance of dual-electrode electrostatic sound generators based on CVD graphene on polyimide film.

PubMed

Lee, Kyoung-Ryul; Jang, Sung Hwan; Jung, Inhwa

2018-08-10

We investigated the acoustic performance of electrostatic sound-generating devices consisting of bi-layer graphene on polyimide film. The total sound pressure level (SPL) of the sound generated from the devices was measured as a function of source frequency by sweeping, and frequency spectra were measured at 1/3 octave band frequencies. The relationship between various operation conditions and total SPL was determined. In addition, the effects of changing voltage level, adding a DC offset, and using two pairs of electrodes were evaluated. It should be noted that two pairs of electrode operations improved sound generation by about 10 dB over all frequency ranges compared with conventional operation. As for the sound-generating capability, total SPL was 70 dBA at 4 kHz when an AC voltage of 100 V pp was applied with a DC offset of 100 V. Acoustic characteristics differed from other types of graphene-based sound generators, such as graphene thermoacoustic devices and graphene polyvinylidene fluoride devices. The effects of diameter and distance between electrodes were also studied, and we found that diameter greatly influenced the frequency response. We anticipate that the design information provided in this paper, in addition to describing key parameters of electrostatic sound-generating devices, will facilitate the commercial development of electrostatic sound-generating systems.

An Overview of the Materials Science Research at the Marshall Space Flight Center Electrostatic Levitator Facility and Recent CDDF Efforts

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2003-01-01

Containerless processing is an important tool for materials research. The freedom from a crucible allows processing of liquid materials in a metastable undercooled state, as well as allowing processing of high temperature and highly reactive melts. Electrostatic levitation (ESL) is a containerless method which provides a number of unique advantages, including the ability to process non-conducting materials, the ability to operate in ultra-high vacuum or at moderate gas pressure (approx. = 5 atm), and the decoupling of positioning force from sample heating. ESL also has the potential to reduce internal flow velocities below those possible with electromagnetic, acoustic, or aero-acoustic techniques. In electrostatic levitation, the acceleration of gravity (or residual acceleration in reduced gravity) is opposed by the action of an applied electric field on a charged sample. Microgravity allows electrostatic levitation to work even more effectively. The ESL facility at NASA s Marshall Space Flight Center is in use for materials research and thermophysical property measurement by a number of different internal and external investigators. Results from the recent CDDF studies on the high energy X-ray beamline at the Advanced Photon Source of Argonne National Laboratory will be presented. The Microgravity Research Program supports the facility.

Partial Molar Volumes of Aqua Ions from First Principles.

PubMed

Wiktor, Julia; Bruneval, Fabien; Pasquarello, Alfredo

2017-08-08

Partial molar volumes of ions in water solution are calculated through pressures obtained from ab initio molecular dynamics simulations. The correct definition of pressure in charged systems subject to periodic boundary conditions requires access to the variation of the electrostatic potential upon a change of volume. We develop a scheme for calculating such a variation in liquid systems by setting up an interface between regions of different density. This also allows us to determine the absolute deformation potentials for the band edges of liquid water. With the properly defined pressures, we obtain partial molar volumes of a series of aqua ions in very good agreement with experimental values.

Radiation and Maxwell Stress Stabilization of Liquid Bridges

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Marr-Lyon, M. J.; Thiessen, D. B.; Blonigen, F. J.; Marston, P. L.

1999-01-01

The use of both acoustic radiation stress and the Maxwell stress to stabilize liquid bridges is reported. Acoustic radiation stress arises from the time-averaged acoustic pressure at the surface of an object immersed in a sound field. Both passive and active acoustic stabilization schemes as well as an active electrostatic method are examined.

Positively charged microporous ceramic membrane for the removal of Titan Yellow through electrostatic adsorption.

PubMed

Cheng, Xiuting; Li, Na; Zhu, Mengfu; Zhang, Lili; Deng, Yu; Deng, Cheng

2016-06-01

To develop a depth filter based on the electrostatic adsorption principle, positively charged microporous ceramic membrane was prepared from a diatomaceous earth ceramic membrane. The internal surface of the highly porous ceramic membrane was coated with uniformly distributed electropositive nano-Y2O3 coating. The dye removal performance was evaluated through pressurized filtration tests using Titan Yellow aqueous solution. It showed that positively charged microporous ceramic membrane exhibited a flow rate of 421L/(m(2)·hr) under the trans-membrane pressure of 0.03bar. Moreover it could effectively remove Titan Yellow with feed concentration of 10mg/L between pH3 to 8. The removal rate increased with the enhancement of the surface charge properties with a maximum rejection of 99.6%. This study provides a new and feasible method of removing organic dyes in wastewater. It is convinced that there will be a broad market for the application of charged ceramic membrane in the field of dye removal or recovery from industry wastewater. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Onsager's symmetry relation and the residual parallel Reynolds stress in a magnetized plasma with electrostatic turbulence

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

Zuo, Yang, E-mail: yangzustc@gmail.com; Wang, Shaojie

2014-09-15

The physics of the residual parallel Reynolds stress in a rotating plasma with electrostatic turbulence is explicitly identified by using the transport formulation of the gyrokinetic turbulence. It is clarified that the residual stress consists of four terms, among which are the cross terms due to the pressure gradient and the temperature gradient and the terms related to the turbulent acceleration impulse and the turbulent heating rate. The last two terms are identified for the first time, and are shown to cause analogous residual term in the heat flux. Meanwhile, the transport matrix reveals diffusion in the phase space. Themore » transport matrix is demonstrated to satisfy the Onsager's symmetry relation.« less

Property measurements and solidification studies by electrostatic levitation.

PubMed

Paradis, Paul-François; Yu, Jianding; Ishikawa, Takehiko; Yoda, Shinichi

2004-11-01

The National Space Development Agency of Japan has recently developed several electrostatic levitation furnaces and implemented new techniques and procedures for property measurement, solidification studies, and atomic structure research. In addition to the contamination-free environment for undercooled and liquid metals and semiconductors, the newly developed facilities possess the unique capabilities of handling ceramics and high vapor pressure materials, reducing processing time, and imaging high luminosity samples. These are exemplified in this paper with the successful processing of BaTiO(3). This allowed measurement of the density of high temperature solid, liquid, and undercooled phases. Furthermore, the material resulting from containerless solidification consisted of micrometer-size particles and a glass-like phase exhibiting a giant dielectric constant exceeding 100,000.

Electrostatic interactions of colicin E1 with the surface of Escherichia coli total lipid.

PubMed

Tian, Chunhong; Tétreault, Elaine; Huang, Christopher K; Dahms, Tanya E S

2006-06-01

The surface properties of colicin E1, a 522-amino acid protein, and its interaction with monolayers of Escherichia coli (E. coli) total lipid and 1,2-Dimyristoyl-sn-Glycero-3-Phosphocholine (DOPC) were studied using the Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) technique. Colicin E1 is amphiphilic, forming a protein monolayer at the air/buffer interface. The protein is thought to interact with the E. coli total lipid head groups through electrostatic interactions, followed by its insertion into the lipid monolayers. Supported lipid bilayers (SLBs) of E. coli total lipid and DOPC, deposited onto mica at the cell membrane equivalence pressure for E. coli and incubated with colicin E1, were imaged by contact mode atomic force microscopy (CM-AFM). Colicin E1 formed protein aggregates on DOPC SLBs, while E. coli total lipid SLB was deformed following its incubation with colicin E1. Corresponding lateral force images, along with electrostatic surface potentials for colicin E1 P190, imply a direct interaction of colicin E1 with lipid head groups facilitating their charge neutralization.

Mass and Magnetic Field Dependence of Electrostatic Particle Transport and Turbulence in LAPD-U

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crocker, N. A.; Gilmore, M.; Peebles, W. A.; Will, S.; Nguyen, X. V.; Carter, T. A.

2003-10-01

The scaling of particle transport with ion mass and magnetic field strength remains an open question in plasma research. Direct comparison of experiment with theory is often complicated by inability to significantly vary critical parameters such as ion mass, pressure gradient, ion gyro-radius, etc. The LAPD-U magnetized, linear plasma at UCLA provides the ideal platform for such studies, allowing large parameter variation. The magnetic field in LAPD-U can be varied over a range of 500 - 1500 G, while ion species can be varied to change mass by a factor of at least 10. In addition, ion gyro-radii are small compared to the plasma diameter ( 1 m). Cross-field transport in LAPD-U is thought to be caused by electrostatic turbulence, also a leading candidate for transport in fusion plasmas. It is planned, therefore, to investigate turbulence and transport characteristics as a function of parameter space. In particular, measurement of the mass and magnetic field dependence of electrostatic particle transport and turbulence characteristics in LAPD-U will be presented.

Dynamics of Oscillating and Rotating Liquid Drop using Electrostatic Levitator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Matsumoto, Satoshi; Awazu, Shigeru; Abe, Yutaka; Watanabe, Tadashi; Nishinari, Katsuhiro; Yoda, Shinichi

2006-11-01

In order to understand the nonlinear behavior of liquid drop with oscillatory and/or rotational motions, an experimental study was performed. The electrostatic levitator was employed to achieve liquid drop formation on ground. A liquid drop with about 3 mm in diameter was levitated. The oscillation of mode n=2 along the vertical axis was induced by an external electrostatic force. The oscillatory motions were observed to clarify the nonlinearities of oscillatory behavior. A relationship between amplitude and frequency shift was made clear and the effect of frequency shift on amplitude agreed well with the theory. The frequency shift became larger with increasing the amplitude of oscillation. To confirm the nonlinear effects, we modeled the oscillation by employing the mass-spring-damper system included the nonlinear term. The result indicates that the large-amplitude oscillation includes the effect of nonlinear oscillation. The sound pressure was imposed to rotate the liquid drop along a vertical axis by using a pair of acoustic transducers. The drop transited to the two lobed shape due to centrifugal force when nondimensional angular velocity exceeded to 0.58.

Laser Induced Rotation of a Levitated Sample in Vacuum

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rhim, W. K.; Paradis, P. F.

1999-01-01

A method of systematically controlling the rotational state of a sample levitated in a high vacuum using the photon pressure is described. A zirconium sphere was levitated in the high-temperature electrostatic levitator and it was rotated by irradiating it with a narrow beam of a high power laser on a spot off the center of mass.

Global electrostatic potential structures of merging flux tubes in TS-U torus plasma merging experiment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sawada, Asuka; Hatano, Hironori; Akimitsu, Moe; Cao, Qinghong; Yamasaki, Kotaro; Tanabe, Hiroshi; Ono, Yasushi; TS-Group Team

2017-10-01

We have been investigating 2D potential profile of global merging tokamaks to solve high-power heating of magnetic reconnection in TS-3 and TS-3U (ST, FRC:R =0.2m, 1985-, 2017-) and TS-4 (ST, FRC:R =0.5m, 2000-), UTST (ST:R =0.45m, 2008-) and MAST (ST:R = 0.9m, 2000-) devices. These experiments made clear that the electrostatic potential well is formed not only in the downstream area of magnetic reconnection but also in the whole common (reconnected) flux area of two merging flux tubes: tokamak plasmas. This fact suggests that the ion acceleration/heating occurs in much wider region than the reconnection downstream. We studied how the potential structure depends on key reconnection parameters:guide toroidal field and plasma collisionality. We found the polarity of the guide toroidal field determines those of potential hills and wells, indicating their formation is affected by the Hall effect. The peak value of the electrostatic potential well decreased with gas pressure increasing, suggesting plasma collisionality suppresses the Hall effect. The relationship between the electrostatic potential structure and anomalous ion heating is being studied as a possible cause for the high-power heating of fast magnetic reconnection. This work was supported by JSPS KAKENHI Grant Numbers 15H05750, 15K14279 and 17H04863.

Development of miniaturized, spectroscopically assisted Penning gauges for fractional helium and hydrogen neutral pressure measurements

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

Flesch, K.; Kremeyer, T.; Schmitz, O.

Direct measurements of the helium (He) fractional neutral pressure in the neutral gas around fusion devices is challenging because of the small mass difference between the abundant D-2 molecules and the He ash which will be produced by deuterium-tritium fusion. In order to study He exhaust, an in situ Penning gauge system is being developed at UW-Madison that is optimized for good pressure and high spectroscopic sensitivity. There are three different anode geometries that we have studied regarding their vacuum electrostatic fields, light output, and ion current. The light output of the two new anode configurations are at least onemore » order of magnitude above the currently available designs, hence improving the spectroscopic sensitivity at similar total neutral pressure resolution.« less

Development of miniaturized, spectroscopically assisted Penning gauges for fractional helium and hydrogen neutral pressure measurements

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

Flesch, K., E-mail: kbflesch@wisc.edu; Kremeyer, T.; Schmitz, O.

Direct measurements of the helium (He) fractional neutral pressure in the neutral gas around fusion devices is challenging because of the small mass difference between the abundant D{sub 2} molecules and the He ash which will be produced by deuterium-tritium fusion. To study He exhaust, an in situ Penning gauge system is being developed at UW-Madison that is optimized for good pressure and high spectroscopic sensitivity. Three different anode geometries have been studied regarding their vacuum electrostatic fields, light output, and ion current. The light output of the two new anode configurations are at least one order of magnitude abovemore » the currently available designs, hence improving the spectroscopic sensitivity at similar total neutral pressure resolution.« less

Development of miniaturized, spectroscopically assisted Penning gauges for fractional helium and hydrogen neutral pressure measurements

DOE PAGES

Flesch, K.; Kremeyer, T.; Schmitz, O.; ...

2016-08-18

Direct measurements of the helium (He) fractional neutral pressure in the neutral gas around fusion devices is challenging because of the small mass difference between the abundant D-2 molecules and the He ash which will be produced by deuterium-tritium fusion. In order to study He exhaust, an in situ Penning gauge system is being developed at UW-Madison that is optimized for good pressure and high spectroscopic sensitivity. There are three different anode geometries that we have studied regarding their vacuum electrostatic fields, light output, and ion current. The light output of the two new anode configurations are at least onemore » order of magnitude above the currently available designs, hence improving the spectroscopic sensitivity at similar total neutral pressure resolution.« less

Diffusion of Charged Species in Liquids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Del Río, J. A.; Whitaker, S.

2016-11-01

In this study the laws of mechanics for multi-component systems are used to develop a theory for the diffusion of ions in the presence of an electrostatic field. The analysis begins with the governing equation for the species velocity and it leads to the governing equation for the species diffusion velocity. Simplification of this latter result provides a momentum equation containing three dominant forces: (a) the gradient of the partial pressure, (b) the electrostatic force, and (c) the diffusive drag force that is a central feature of the Maxwell-Stefan equations. For ideal gas mixtures we derive the classic Nernst-Planck equation. For liquid-phase diffusion we encounter a situation in which the Nernst-Planck contribution to diffusion differs by several orders of magnitude from that obtained for ideal gases.

Diffusion of Charged Species in Liquids.

PubMed

Del Río, J A; Whitaker, S

2016-11-04

In this study the laws of mechanics for multi-component systems are used to develop a theory for the diffusion of ions in the presence of an electrostatic field. The analysis begins with the governing equation for the species velocity and it leads to the governing equation for the species diffusion velocity. Simplification of this latter result provides a momentum equation containing three dominant forces: (a) the gradient of the partial pressure, (b) the electrostatic force, and (c) the diffusive drag force that is a central feature of the Maxwell-Stefan equations. For ideal gas mixtures we derive the classic Nernst-Planck equation. For liquid-phase diffusion we encounter a situation in which the Nernst-Planck contribution to diffusion differs by several orders of magnitude from that obtained for ideal gases.

Diffusion of Charged Species in Liquids

PubMed Central

del Río, J. A.; Whitaker, S.

2016-01-01

In this study the laws of mechanics for multi-component systems are used to develop a theory for the diffusion of ions in the presence of an electrostatic field. The analysis begins with the governing equation for the species velocity and it leads to the governing equation for the species diffusion velocity. Simplification of this latter result provides a momentum equation containing three dominant forces: (a) the gradient of the partial pressure, (b) the electrostatic force, and (c) the diffusive drag force that is a central feature of the Maxwell-Stefan equations. For ideal gas mixtures we derive the classic Nernst-Planck equation. For liquid-phase diffusion we encounter a situation in which the Nernst-Planck contribution to diffusion differs by several orders of magnitude from that obtained for ideal gases. PMID:27811959

Studies of Low-Current Back-Discharge in Point-Plane Geometry with Dielectric Layer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jaworek, Anatol; Rajch, Eryk; Krupa, Andrzej; Czech, Tadeusz; Lackowski, Marcin

2006-01-01

The paper presents results of spectroscopic investigations of back-discharges generated in the point-plane electrode geometry in ambient air at atmospheric pressure, with the plane electrode covered with a dielectric layer. Fly ash from an electrostatic precipitator of a coal-fired power plant was used as the dielectric layer in these investigations. The discharges for positive and negative polarities of the needle electrode were studied by measuring optical emission spectra at two regions of the discharge: near the needle electrode and dielectric layer surface. The visual forms of the discharge were recorded and correlated with the current-voltage characteristics and optical emission spectra. The back-arc discharge was of particular interest in these studies due to its detrimental effects it causes in electrostatic precipitators.

Electrostatic attraction between overall neutral surfaces.

PubMed

Adar, Ram M; Andelman, David; Diamant, Haim

2016-08-01

Two overall neutral surfaces with positively and negatively charged domains ("patches") have been shown in recent experiments to exhibit long-range attraction when immersed in an ionic solution. Motivated by the experiments, we calculate analytically the osmotic pressure between such surfaces within the Poisson-Boltzmann framework, using a variational principle for the surface-averaged free energy. The electrostatic potential, calculated beyond the linear Debye-Hückel theory, yields an overall attraction at large intersurface separations, over a wide range of the system's controlled length scales. In particular, the attraction is stronger and occurs at smaller separations for surface patches of larger size and charge density. In this large patch limit, we find that the attraction-repulsion crossover separation is inversely proportional to the square of the patch-charge density and to the Debye screening length.

Surface forces between colloidal particles at high hydrostatic pressure

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pilat, D. W.; Pouligny, B.; Best, A.; Nick, T. A.; Berger, R.; Butt, H.-J.

2016-02-01

It was recently suggested that the electrostatic double-layer force between colloidal particles might weaken at high hydrostatic pressure encountered, for example, in deep seas or during oil recovery. We have addressed this issue by means of a specially designed optical trapping setup that allowed us to explore the interaction of a micrometer-sized glass bead and a solid glass wall in water at hydrostatic pressures of up to 1 kbar. The setup allowed us to measure the distance between bead and wall with a subnanometer resolution. We have determined the Debye lengths in water for salt concentrations of 0.1 and 1 mM. We found that in the pressure range from 1 bar to 1 kbar the maximum variation of the Debye lengths was <1 nm for both salt concentrations. Furthermore, the magnitude of the zeta potentials of the glass surfaces in water showed no dependency on pressure.

A Lateral Differential Resonant Pressure Microsensor Based on SOI-Glass Wafer-Level Vacuum Packaging.

PubMed

Xie, Bo; Xing, Yonghao; Wang, Yanshuang; Chen, Jian; Chen, Deyong; Wang, Junbo

2015-09-21

This paper presents the fabrication and characterization of a resonant pressure microsensor based on SOI-glass wafer-level vacuum packaging. The SOI-based pressure microsensor consists of a pressure-sensitive diaphragm at the handle layer and two lateral resonators (electrostatic excitation and capacitive detection) on the device layer as a differential setup. The resonators were vacuum packaged with a glass cap using anodic bonding and the wire interconnection was realized using a mask-free electrochemical etching approach by selectively patterning an Au film on highly topographic surfaces. The fabricated resonant pressure microsensor with dual resonators was characterized in a systematic manner, producing a quality factor higher than 10,000 (~6 months), a sensitivity of about 166 Hz/kPa and a reduced nonlinear error of 0.033% F.S. Based on the differential output, the sensitivity was increased to two times and the temperature-caused frequency drift was decreased to 25%.

A Lateral Differential Resonant Pressure Microsensor Based on SOI-Glass Wafer-Level Vacuum Packaging

PubMed Central

Xie, Bo; Xing, Yonghao; Wang, Yanshuang; Chen, Jian; Chen, Deyong; Wang, Junbo

2015-01-01

This paper presents the fabrication and characterization of a resonant pressure microsensor based on SOI-glass wafer-level vacuum packaging. The SOI-based pressure microsensor consists of a pressure-sensitive diaphragm at the handle layer and two lateral resonators (electrostatic excitation and capacitive detection) on the device layer as a differential setup. The resonators were vacuum packaged with a glass cap using anodic bonding and the wire interconnection was realized using a mask-free electrochemical etching approach by selectively patterning an Au film on highly topographic surfaces. The fabricated resonant pressure microsensor with dual resonators was characterized in a systematic manner, producing a quality factor higher than 10,000 (~6 months), a sensitivity of about 166 Hz/kPa and a reduced nonlinear error of 0.033% F.S. Based on the differential output, the sensitivity was increased to two times and the temperature-caused frequency drift was decreased to 25%. PMID:26402679

Radiation Pressure Measurements on Micron Size Individual Dust Grains

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Abbas, M. M.; Craven, P.D.; Spann, J. F.; Tankosic, D.; Witherow, W. K.; LeClair, A.; West, E.; Sheldon, R.; Gallagher, D. L.; Adrian, M. L.

2003-01-01

Measurements of electromagnetic radiation pressure have been made on individual silica (SiO2) particles levitated in an electrodynamic balance. These measurements were made by inserting single charged particles of known diameter in the 0.2 micron to 6.82 micron range and irradiating them from above with laser radiation focused to beam-widths of approx. 175-400 micron, at ambient pressures approx. 10(exp -3) to 10(exp -4) torr. The downward displacement of the particle due to the radiation force is balanced by the electrostatic force indicated by the compensating dc potential applied to the balance electrodes, providing a direct measure of the radiation force on the levitated particle. Theoretical calculations of the radiation pressure with a least-squares fit to the measured data yield the radiation pressure efficiencies of the particles, and comparisons with Mie scattering theory calculations provide the imaginary part of the refractive index of silica and the corresponding extinction and scattering efficiencies.

Radiation Pressure Measurements on Micron-Size Individual Dust Grains

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Abbas, M. M.; Craven, P. D.; Spann, J. F.; Witherow, W. K.; West, E. A.; Gallagher, D. L.; Adrian, M. L.; Fishman, G. J.; Tankosic, D.; LeClair, A.

2003-01-01

Measurements of electromagnetic radiation pressure have been made on individual silica (SiO2) particles levitated in an electrodynamic balance. These measurements were made by inserting single charged particles of known diameter in the 0.2- to 6.82-micron range and irradiating them from above with laser radiation focused to beam widths of approximately 175- 400 microns at ambient pressures particle due to the radiation force is balanced by the electrostatic force indicated by the compensating dc potential applied to the balance electrodes, providing a direct measure of the radiation force on the levitated particle. Theoretical calculations of the radiation pressure with a least-squares fit to the measured data yield the radiation pressure efficiencies of the particles, and comparisons with Mie scattering theory calculations provide the imaginary part of the refractive index of SiO2 and the corresponding extinction and scattering efficiencies.

Experimental system for the control of surgically induced infections

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tevebaugh, M. D.

1971-01-01

The development tests to be performed on the experimental system are described in detail. The test equipment, conditions, and procedures are given. The portable clean room tests include assembly, collapsability, portability, and storage; laminar flow rate; static pressure; air flow pattern; and electrostatic buildup. The other tests are on the ventilation system, human factors evaluation, electrical subsystem, and material compatibility.

Estimation of Temporal Gait Parameters Using a Human Body Electrostatic Sensing-Based Method.

PubMed

Li, Mengxuan; Li, Pengfei; Tian, Shanshan; Tang, Kai; Chen, Xi

2018-05-28

Accurate estimation of gait parameters is essential for obtaining quantitative information on motor deficits in Parkinson's disease and other neurodegenerative diseases, which helps determine disease progression and therapeutic interventions. Due to the demand for high accuracy, unobtrusive measurement methods such as optical motion capture systems, foot pressure plates, and other systems have been commonly used in clinical environments. However, the high cost of existing lab-based methods greatly hinders their wider usage, especially in developing countries. In this study, we present a low-cost, noncontact, and an accurate temporal gait parameters estimation method by sensing and analyzing the electrostatic field generated from human foot stepping. The proposed method achieved an average 97% accuracy on gait phase detection and was further validated by comparison to the foot pressure system in 10 healthy subjects. Two results were compared using the Pearson coefficient r and obtained an excellent consistency ( r = 0.99, p < 0.05). The repeatability of the purposed method was calculated between days by intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC), and showed good test-retest reliability (ICC = 0.87, p < 0.01). The proposed method could be an affordable and accurate tool to measure temporal gait parameters in hospital laboratories and in patients' home environments.

Kinetic analysis of the interaction between poly(amidoamine) dendrimers and model lipid membranes.

PubMed

Tiriveedhi, Venkataswarup; Kitchens, Kelly M; Nevels, Kerrick J; Ghandehari, Hamidreza; Butko, Peter

2011-01-01

We used fluorescence spectroscopy and surface tensiometry to study the interaction between low-generation (G1 and G4) poly(amidoamine) (PAMAM) dendrimers, potential vehicles for intracellular drug delivery, and model lipid bilayers. Membrane association of fluorescently labeled dendrimers, measured by fluorescence anisotropy, increased with increasing size of the dendrimer and with increasing negative charge density in the membrane, indicating the electrostatic nature of the interaction. When the membrane was doped with pyrene-labeled phosphatidyl glycerol (pyrene-PG), pyrene excimer fluorescence demonstrated a dendrimer-induced selective aggregation of negatively charged lipids when the membrane was in the liquid crystalline state. A nonlinear Stern-Volmer quenching of dendrimer fluorescence with cobalt bromide suggested a dendrimer-induced aggregation of lipid vesicles, which increased with the dendrimer's generation number. Surface tensiometry measurements showed that dendrimers penetrated into the lipid monolayer only at subphysiologic surface pressures (<30mN/m). We conclude that the low-generation PAMAM dendrimers associate with lipid membranes predominantly electrostatically, without significantly compromising the bilayer integrity. They bind stronger to membranes with higher fluidity and lower surface pressure, which are characteristic of rapidly dividing cells. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

A mean-density model of ionic surfactants for the dispersion of carbon nanotubes in aqueous solutions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Joung, Young Soo

2018-05-01

We propose a new analytical model of ionic surfactants used for the dispersion of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) in aqueous solutions. Although ionic surfactants are commonly used to facilitate the dispersion of CNTs in aqueous solutions, understanding the dispersion process is challenging and time-consuming owing to its complexity and nonlinearity. In this work, we develop a mean-density model of ionic surfactants to simplify the calculation of interaction forces between CNTs stabilized by ionic surfactants. Using this model, we can evaluate various interaction forces between the CNTs and ionic surfactants under different conditions. The dispersion mechanism is investigated by estimating the potential of mean force (PMF) as a function of van der Waals forces, electrostatic forces, interfacial tension, and osmotic pressure. To verify the proposed model, we compare the PMFs derived using our method with those derived from molecular dynamics simulations using comparable CNTs and ionic surfactants. Notably, for stable dispersions, the osmotic pressure and interfacial energy are important for long-range and short-range interactions, respectively, in comparison with the effect of electrostatic forces. Our model effectively prescribes specific surfactants and their concentrations to achieve stable aqueous suspensions of CNTs.

Poisson-Boltzmann theory of the charge-induced adsorption of semi-flexible polyelectrolytes.

PubMed

Ubbink, Job; Khokhlov, Alexei R

2004-03-15

A model is suggested for the structure of an adsorbed layer of a highly charged semi-flexible polyelectrolyte on a weakly charged surface of opposite charge sign. The adsorbed phase is thin, owing to the effective reversal of the charge sign of the surface upon adsorption, and ordered, owing to the high surface density of polyelectrolyte strands caused by the generally strong binding between polyelectrolyte and surface. The Poisson-Boltzmann equation for the electrostatic interaction between the array of adsorbed polyelectrolytes and the charged surface is solved for a cylindrical geometry, both numerically, using a finite element method, and analytically within the weak curvature limit under the assumption of excess monovalent salt. For small separations, repulsive surface polarization and counterion osmotic pressure effects dominate over the electrostatic attraction and the resulting electrostatic interaction curve shows a minimum at nonzero separations on the Angstrom scale. The equilibrium density of the adsorbed phase is obtained by minimizing the total free energy under the condition of equality of chemical potential and osmotic pressure of the polyelectrolyte in solution and in the adsorbed phase. For a wide range of ionic conditions and charge densities of the charged surface, the interstrand separation as predicted by the Poisson-Boltzmann model and the analytical theory closely agree. For low to moderate charge densities of the adsorbing surface, the interstrand spacing decreases as a function of the charge density of the charged surface. Above about 0.1 M excess monovalent salt, it is only weakly dependent on the ionic strength. At high charge densities of the adsorbing surface, the interstrand spacing increases with increasing ionic strength, in line with the experiments by Fang and Yang [J. Phys. Chem. B 101, 441 (1997)]. (c) 2004 American Institute of Physics.

Pressurized fluidized-bed hydroretorting of Eastern oil shales -- Sulfur control. Topical report for Subtask 3.1, In-bed sulfur capture tests; Subtask 3.2, Electrostatic desulfurization; Subtask 3.3, Microbial desulfurization and denitrification

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

Roberts, M.J.; Abbasian, J.; Akin, C.

1992-05-01

This topical report on ``Sulfur Control`` presents the results of work conducted by the Institute of Gas Technology (IGT), the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT), and the Ohio State University (OSU) to develop three novel approaches for desulfurization that have shown good potential with coal and could be cost-effective for oil shales. These are (1) In-Bed Sulfur Capture using different sorbents (IGT), (2) Electrostatic Desulfurization (IIT), and (3) Microbial Desulfurization and Denitrification (OSU and IGT). The objective of the task on In-Bed Sulfur Capture was to determine the effectiveness of different sorbents (that is, limestone, calcined limestone, dolomite, and siderite)more » for capturing sulfur (as H{sub 2}S) in the reactor during hydroretorting. The objective of the task on Electrostatic Desulfurization was to determine the operating conditions necessary to achieve a high degree of sulfur removal and kerogen recovery in IIT`s electrostatic separator. The objectives of the task on Microbial Desulfurization and Denitrification were to (1) isolate microbial cultures and evaluate their ability to desulfurize and denitrify shale, (2) conduct laboratory-scale batch and continuous tests to improve and enhance microbial removal of these components, and (3) determine the effects of processing parameters, such as shale slurry concentration, solids settling characteristics, agitation rate, and pH on the process.« less

Characterization for the performance of capacitive switches activated by mechanical shock.

PubMed

Younis, Mohammad I; Alsaleem, Fadi M; Miles, Ronald; Su, Quang

2007-01-01

This paper presents experimental and theoretical investigation of a new concept of switches (triggers) that are actuated at or beyond a specific level of mechanical shock or acceleration. The principle of operation of the switches is based on dynamic pull-in instability induced by the combined interaction between electrostatic and mechanical shock forces. These switches can be tuned to be activated at various shock and acceleration thresholds by adjusting the DC voltage bias. Two commercial off-the-shelf capacitive accelerometers operating in air are tested under mechanical shock and electrostatic loading. A single-degree-of-freedom model accounting for squeeze-film damping, electrostatic forces, and mechanical shock is utilized for the theoretical investigation. Good agreement is found between simulation results and experimental data. Our results indicate that designing these new switches to respond quasi-statically to mechanical shock makes them robust against variations in shock shape and duration. More importantly, quasi-static operation makes the switches insensitive to variations in damping conditions. This can be promising to lower the cost of packaging for these switches since they can operate in atmospheric pressure with no hermetic sealing or costly package required.

First storage of ion beams in the Double Electrostatic Ion-Ring Experiment: DESIREE.

PubMed

Schmidt, H T; Thomas, R D; Gatchell, M; Rosén, S; Reinhed, P; Löfgren, P; Brännholm, L; Blom, M; Björkhage, M; Bäckström, E; Alexander, J D; Leontein, S; Hanstorp, D; Zettergren, H; Liljeby, L; Källberg, A; Simonsson, A; Hellberg, F; Mannervik, S; Larsson, M; Geppert, W D; Rensfelt, K G; Danared, H; Paál, A; Masuda, M; Halldén, P; Andler, G; Stockett, M H; Chen, T; Källersjö, G; Weimer, J; Hansen, K; Hartman, H; Cederquist, H

2013-05-01

We report on the first storage of ion beams in the Double ElectroStatic Ion Ring ExpEriment, DESIREE, at Stockholm University. We have produced beams of atomic carbon anions and small carbon anion molecules (C(n)(-), n = 1, 2, 3, 4) in a sputter ion source. The ion beams were accelerated to 10 keV kinetic energy and stored in an electrostatic ion storage ring enclosed in a vacuum chamber at 13 K. For 10 keV C2 (-) molecular anions we measure the residual-gas limited beam storage lifetime to be 448 s ± 18 s with two independent detector systems. Using the measured storage lifetimes we estimate that the residual gas pressure is in the 10(-14) mbar range. When high current ion beams are injected, the number of stored particles does not follow a single exponential decay law as would be expected for stored particles lost solely due to electron detachment in collision with the residual-gas. Instead, we observe a faster initial decay rate, which we ascribe to the effect of the space charge of the ion beam on the storage capacity.

Characterization for the performance of capacitive switches activated by mechanical shock

PubMed Central

Younis, Mohammad I.; Alsaleem, Fadi M; Miles, Ronald; Su, Quang

2009-01-01

This paper presents experimental and theoretical investigation of a new concept of switches (triggers) that are actuated at or beyond a specific level of mechanical shock or acceleration. The principle of operation of the switches is based on dynamic pull-in instability induced by the combined interaction between electrostatic and mechanical shock forces. These switches can be tuned to be activated at various shock and acceleration thresholds by adjusting the DC voltage bias. Two commercial off-the-shelf capacitive accelerometers operating in air are tested under mechanical shock and electrostatic loading. A single-degree-of-freedom model accounting for squeeze-film damping, electrostatic forces, and mechanical shock is utilized for the theoretical investigation. Good agreement is found between simulation results and experimental data. Our results indicate that designing these new switches to respond quasi-statically to mechanical shock makes them robust against variations in shock shape and duration. More importantly, quasi-static operation makes the switches insensitive to variations in damping conditions. This can be promising to lower the cost of packaging for these switches since they can operate in atmospheric pressure with no hermetic sealing or costly package required. PMID:21720493

MEMS for Practical Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Esashi, Masayoshi

Silicon MEMS as electrostatically levitated rotational gyroscopes and 2D optical scanners, and wafer level packaged devices as integrated capacitive pressure sensors and MEMS switches are described. MEMS which use non-silicon materials as LTCC with electrical feedthrough, SiC and LiNbO3 for probe cards for wafer-level burn-in test, molds for glass press molding and SAW wireless passive sensors respectively are also described.

Kinetic simulation of edge instability in fusion plasmas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fulton, Daniel Patrick

In this work, gyrokinetic simulations in edge plasmas of both tokamaks and field reversed. configurations (FRC) have been carried out using the Gyrokinetic Toroidal Code (GTC) and A New Code (ANC) has been formulated for cross-separatrix FRC simulation. In the tokamak edge, turbulent transport in the pedestal of an H-mode DIII-D plasma is. studied via simulations of electrostatic driftwaves. Annulus geometry is used and simulations focus on two radial locations corresponding to the pedestal top with mild pressure gradient and steep pressure gradient. A reactive trapped electron instability with typical ballooning mode structure is excited in the pedestal top. At the steep gradient, the electrostatic instability exhibits unusual mode structure, peaking at poloidal angles theta=+- pi/2. Simulations find this unusual mode structure is due to steep pressure gradients in the pedestal but not due to the particular DIII-D magnetic geometry. Realistic DIII-D geometry has a stabilizing effect compared to a simple circular tokamak geometry. Driftwave instability in FRC is studied for the first time using gyrokinetic simulation. GTC. is upgraded to treat realistic equilibrium calculated by an MHD equilibrium code. Electrostatic local simulations in outer closed flux surfaces find ion-scale modes are stable due to the large ion gyroradius and that electron drift-interchange modes are excited by electron temperature gradient and bad magnetic curvature. In the scrape-off layer (SOL) ion-scale modes are excited by density gradient and bad curvature. Collisions have weak effects on instabilities both in the core and SOL. Simulation results are consistent with density fluctuation measurements in the C-2 experiment using Doppler backscattering (DBS). The critical density gradients measured by the DBS qualitatively agree with the linear instability threshold calculated by GTC simulations. One outstanding critical issue in the FRC is the interplay between turbulence in the FRC. core and SOL regions. While the magnetic flux coordinates used by GTC provide a number of computational advantages, they present unique challenges at the magnetic field separatrix. To address this limitation, a new code, capable of coupled core-SOL simulations, is formulated, implemented, and successfully verified.

Strong coupling electrostatics for randomly charged surfaces: antifragility and effective interactions.

PubMed

Ghodrat, Malihe; Naji, Ali; Komaie-Moghaddam, Haniyeh; Podgornik, Rudolf

2015-05-07

We study the effective interaction mediated by strongly coupled Coulomb fluids between dielectric surfaces carrying quenched, random monopolar charges with equal mean and variance, both when the Coulomb fluid consists only of mobile multivalent counterions and when it consists of an asymmetric ionic mixture containing multivalent and monovalent (salt) ions in equilibrium with an aqueous bulk reservoir. We analyze the consequences that follow from the interplay between surface charge disorder, dielectric and salt image effects, and the strong electrostatic coupling that results from multivalent counterions on the distribution of these ions and the effective interaction pressure they mediate between the surfaces. In a dielectrically homogeneous system, we show that the multivalent counterions are attracted towards the surfaces with a singular, disorder-induced potential that diverges logarithmically on approach to the surfaces, creating a singular but integrable counterion density profile that exhibits an algebraic divergence at the surfaces with an exponent that depends on the surface charge (disorder) variance. This effect drives the system towards a state of lower thermal 'disorder', one that can be described by a renormalized temperature, exhibiting thus a remarkable antifragility. In the presence of an interfacial dielectric discontinuity, the singular behavior of counterion density at the surfaces is removed but multivalent counterions are still accumulated much more strongly close to randomly charged surfaces as compared with uniformly charged ones. The interaction pressure acting on the surfaces displays in general a highly non-monotonic behavior as a function of the inter-surface separation with a prominent regime of attraction at small to intermediate separations. This attraction is caused directly by the combined effects from charge disorder and strong coupling electrostatics of multivalent counterions, which dominate the surface-surface repulsion due to the (equal) mean charges on the two surfaces and the osmotic pressure of monovalent ions residing between them. These effects can be quite significant even with a small degree of surface charge disorder relative to the mean surface charge. The strong coupling, disorder-induced attraction is typically much stronger than the van der Waals interaction between the surfaces, especially within a range of several nanometers for the inter-surface separation, where such effects are predicted to be most pronounced.

Suppressed ion-scale turbulence in a hot high-β plasma

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schmitz, L.; Fulton, D. P.; Ruskov, E.; Lau, C.; Deng, B. H.; Tajima, T.; Binderbauer, M. W.; Holod, I.; Lin, Z.; Gota, H.; Tuszewski, M.; Dettrick, S. A.; Steinhauer, L. C.

2016-12-01

An economic magnetic fusion reactor favours a high ratio of plasma kinetic pressure to magnetic pressure in a well-confined, hot plasma with low thermal losses across the confining magnetic field. Field-reversed configuration (FRC) plasmas are potentially attractive as a reactor concept, achieving high plasma pressure in a simple axisymmetric geometry. Here, we show that FRC plasmas have unique, beneficial microstability properties that differ from typical regimes in toroidal confinement devices. Ion-scale fluctuations are found to be absent or strongly suppressed in the plasma core, mainly due to the large FRC ion orbits, resulting in near-classical thermal ion confinement. In the surrounding boundary layer plasma, ion- and electron-scale turbulence is observed once a critical pressure gradient is exceeded. The critical gradient increases in the presence of sheared plasma flow induced via electrostatic biasing, opening the prospect of active boundary and transport control in view of reactor requirements.

Suppressed ion-scale turbulence in a hot high-β plasma

PubMed Central

Schmitz, L.; Fulton, D. P.; Ruskov, E.; Lau, C.; Deng, B. H.; Tajima, T.; Binderbauer, M. W.; Holod, I.; Lin, Z.; Gota, H.; Tuszewski, M.; Dettrick, S. A.; Steinhauer, L. C.

2016-01-01

An economic magnetic fusion reactor favours a high ratio of plasma kinetic pressure to magnetic pressure in a well-confined, hot plasma with low thermal losses across the confining magnetic field. Field-reversed configuration (FRC) plasmas are potentially attractive as a reactor concept, achieving high plasma pressure in a simple axisymmetric geometry. Here, we show that FRC plasmas have unique, beneficial microstability properties that differ from typical regimes in toroidal confinement devices. Ion-scale fluctuations are found to be absent or strongly suppressed in the plasma core, mainly due to the large FRC ion orbits, resulting in near-classical thermal ion confinement. In the surrounding boundary layer plasma, ion- and electron-scale turbulence is observed once a critical pressure gradient is exceeded. The critical gradient increases in the presence of sheared plasma flow induced via electrostatic biasing, opening the prospect of active boundary and transport control in view of reactor requirements. PMID:28000675

Investigation of Mechanisms Associated with Nucleate Boiling Under Microgravity Conditions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dhir, Vijay K.

1996-01-01

The focus of the present work is to experimentally study and to analytically/numerically model the mechanisms of growth of bubbles attached to, and sliding along, a heated surface. To control the location of the active cavities, the number, the spacing, and the nucleation superheat, artificial cavities will be formed on silicon wafers. In order to study the effect of magnitude of components of gravitational acceleration acting parallel to, and normal to the surface, experiments will be conducted on surfaces inclined at different angles including a downward facing surface. Information on the temperature field around bubbles, bubble shape and size, and bubble induced liquid velocities will be obtained through the use of holography, video/high speed photography and hydrogen bubble techniques, respectively. Analytical/numerical models will be developed to describe the heat transfer including that through the micro-macro layer underneath and around a bubble. In the micro layer model capillary and disjoining pressures will be included. Evolution of the interface along with induced liquid motion will be modelled. Subsequent to the world at normal gravity, experiments will be conducted in the KC-135 or the Lear jet especially to learn about bubble growth/detachment under low gravity conditions. Finally, an experiment will be defined to be conducted under long duration of microgravity conditions in the space shuttle. The experiment in the space shuttle will provide microgravity data on bubble growth and detachment and will lead to a validation of the nucleate boiling heat transfer model developed from the preceding studies performed at normal and low gravity (KC-135 or Lear jet) conditions.

Cleaning of nanopillar templates for nanoparticle collection using PDMS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Merzsch, S.; Wasisto, H. S.; Waag, A.; Kirsch, I.; Uhde, E.; Salthammer, T.; Peiner, E.

2011-05-01

Nanoparticles are easily attracted by surfaces. This sticking behavior makes it difficult to clean contaminated samples. Some complex approaches have already shown efficiencies in the range of 90%. However, a simple and cost efficient method was still missing. A commonly used silicone for soft lithography, PDMS, is able to mold a given surface. This property was used to cover surface-bonded particles from all other sides. After hardening the PDMS, particles are still embedded. A separation of silicone and sample disjoins also the particles from the surface. After this procedure, samples are clean again. This method was first tested with carbon particles on Si surfaces and Si pillar samples with aspect ratios up to 10. Experiments were done using 2 inch wafers, which, however, is not a size limitation for this method.

Energetic Materials Hazard Initiation: DoD Assessment Team Final Report

DTIC Science & Technology

1987-05-05

which the Department of De - fense is now emphasizing (JROC, 1986). Although this aspect of hazards reduction primarily involves fielded systems and the...source of deficiency in the impact testing. Some efforts are reported in which phototransistors, IR sensors and/or pressure sensors are used to detect...Montgomery (1959), and Moore (1973). Recent research on the electrostatic discharge sensitivity of solid propellant samples was begun at Societe Nationale des

Quasi-stationary fluid theory of the hole-boring process

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

Pei, Zhikun; Shen, Baifei, E-mail: bfshen@mail.shcnc.ac.cn; Shi, Yin

We present a quasi-stationary fluid theory to precisely describe the hole-boring process. The corresponding distributions of the electrostatic field and the particle density are theoretically obtained, which give more details than the previous stationary theory. The theoretical result is confirmed by one-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations. Such quasi-stationary fluid theory may help in understanding the basic mechanisms of ion acceleration in the radiation pressure acceleration.

Self-similar assemblies of globular whey proteins at the air-water interface: effect of the structure.

PubMed

Mahmoudi, Najet; Gaillard, Cédric; Boué, François; Axelos, Monique A V; Riaublanc, Alain

2010-05-01

We investigated the structure of heat-induced assemblies of whey globular proteins using small angle neutron scattering (SANS), static and dynamic light scattering (SLS and DLS), and cryogenic transmission electron microscopy (Cryo-TEM). Whey protein molecules self-assemble in fractal aggregates with a structure density depending on the electrostatic interactions. We determined the static and dynamic properties of interfacial layer formed by the protein assemblies, upon adsorption and spreading at the air-water interface using surface film balance and interfacial dilatational rheology. Upon spreading, all whey protein systems show a power-law scaling behavior of the surface pressure versus concentration in the semi-dilute surface concentration regime, with an exponent ranging from 5.5 to 9 depending on the electrostatic interactions and the aggregation state. The dilatational modulus derived from surface pressure isotherms shows a main peak at 6-8 mN/m, generally considered to be the onset of a conformational change in the monolayer, and a second peak or a shoulder at 15 mN/m. Long-time adsorption kinetics give similar results for both the native whey proteins and the corresponding self-similar assemblies, with a systematic effect of the ionic strength. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Dust Removal Technolgy for a Mars In Situ Resource Utilization System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Calle, C. I.; Johansen, M. R.; Williams, B. S.; Hogue, M. D.; Mackey, P. J.; Clements, J. S.

2011-01-01

Several In Situ Resource Utilization (lSRU) systems being considered to enable future manned exploration of Mars require capture of Martian atmospheric gas to extract oxygen and other commodities. However, the Martian atmosphere contains relatively large amounts of dust which must be removed in tbe collection systems of the ISRU chambers. The amount of atmospheric dust varies largely with the presence of daily dust devils and the less frequent but much more powerful global dust storms. A common and mature dust removal technology for terrestrial systems is the electrostatic precipitator. With this technology, dust particles being captured are imparted an electrostatic charge by means of a corona discharge. Charged dust particles are then driven to a region of high electric field which forces the particles onto a collector for capture. Several difficulties appear when this technology is adapted to the Martian atmospheric environment At the low atmospheric pressure of Mars, electrical breakdown occurs at much lower voltages than on Earth and corona discharge is difficult to sustain. In this paper, we report on our efforts to obtain a steady corona/glow discharge in a simulated Martian atmosphere of carbon dioxide at 9 millibars of pressure. We also present results on the design of a dust capture system under these atmospheric conditions.

Effects of feed solution chemistry on low pressure reverse osmosis filtration of cesium and strontium.

PubMed

Ding, Shiyuan; Yang, Yu; Huang, Haiou; Liu, Hengchen; Hou, Li-an

2015-08-30

The objective of this study was to identify the removal mechanisms of radionuclides by reverse osmosis (RO) membranes under conditions relevant to full-scale water treatment. For this purpose, the effects of feed solution chemistry on the removal of Cs and Sr by a low pressure RO system was investigated by systematically varying membrane surface charge, ionic composition, and organic matter concentrations. The results showed that the effects of solution chemistry on the filtration of Cs and Sr were related to their hydrated ionic radius, resulting in the predominance of the Donnan's effect and electrostatic interactions, respectively. Consequently, the rejection of Cs increased more pronouncedly than Sr with the increases of feed concentration. Due to the Donnan's effect, different anions decreased the rejection of Cs to different extents in accordance to the order of anions' radii as SO4(2-)>Cl(-)>NO3(-)>F(-). The variations in Sr rejection were influenced by the electrostatic interactions between Sr(2+) and the membrane. In addition, humic acid (HA) lowered the rejection of Cs and caused significant membrane flux decline, but did not change the rejection of Sr. Sr also aggravated HA fouling of the membrane. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

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

Zheng, Haiyan; Wang, Lijuan; Li, Kuo

Transformation between different types of carbon–carbon bonding in carbides often results in a dramatic change of physical and chemical properties. Under external pressure, unsaturated carbon atoms form new covalent bonds regardless of the electrostatic repulsion. It was predicted that calcium acetylide (also known as calcium carbide, CaC2) polymerizes to form calcium polyacetylide, calcium polyacenide and calcium graphenide under high pressure. In this work, the phase transitions of CaC2 under external pressure were systematically investigated, and the amorphous phase was studied in detail for the first time. Polycarbide anions like C 6 6- are identified with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and severalmore » other techniques, which evidences the pressure induced polymerization of the acetylide anions and suggests the existence of the polyacenide fragment. Additionally, the process of polymerization is accompanied with a 107 fold enhancement of the electrical conductivity. The polymerization of acetylide anions demonstrates that high pressure compression is a viable route to synthesize novel metal polycarbides and materials with extended carbon networks, while shedding light on the synthesis of more complicated metal organics.« less

Generating high-current monoenergetic proton beams by a circularly polarized laser pulse in the phase-stable acceleration regime.

PubMed

Yan, X Q; Lin, C; Sheng, Z M; Guo, Z Y; Liu, B C; Lu, Y R; Fang, J X; Chen, J E

2008-04-04

A new ion acceleration method, namely, phase-stable acceleration, using circularly-polarized laser pulses is proposed. When the initial target density n(0) and thickness D satisfy a(L) approximately (n(0)/n(c))D/lambda(L) and D>l(s) with a(L), lambda(L), l(s), and n(c) the normalized laser amplitude, the laser wavelength in vacuum, the plasma skin depth, and the critical density of the incident laser pulse, respectively, a quasiequilibrium for the electrons is established by the light pressure and the space charge electrostatic field at the interacting front of the laser pulse. The ions within the skin depth of the laser pulse are synchronously accelerated and bunched by the electrostatic field, and thereby a high-intensity monoenergetic proton beam can be generated. The proton dynamics is investigated analytically and the results are verified by one- and two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations.

Dust Mitigation for Martian Exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Williams, Blakeley Shay

2011-01-01

One of the efforts of the In-Situ Resource Utilization project is to extract oxygen, fuel, and water from the Martian air. However, the surface of Mars is covered in a layer of dust, which is uploaded into the atmosphere by dust devils and dust storms. This atmospheric dust would be collected along with the air during the conversion process. Thus, it is essential to extract the dust from the air prior to commencing the conversion. An electrostatic precipitator is a commonly used dust removal technology on earth. Using this technology, dust particles that pass through receive an electrostatic charge by means of a corona discharge. The particles are then driven to a collector in a region of high electric field at the center of the precipitator. Experiments were conducted to develop a precipitator that will function properly in the Martian atmosphere, which has a very low pressure and is made up . of primarily carbon dioxide.

Advances in Dust Detection and Removal for Tokamaks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Campos, A.; Skinner, C. H.; Roquemore, A. L.; Leisure, J. O. V.; Wagner, S.

2008-11-01

Dust diagnostics and removal techniques are vital for the safe operation of next step fusion devices such as ITER. An electrostatic dust detector[1] developed in the laboratory is being applied to NSTX. In the tokamak environment, large particles or fibres can fall on the grid potentially causing a permanent short. We report on the development of a gas puff system that uses helium to clear such particles from the detector. Experiments with varying nozzle designs, backing pressures, puff durations, and exit flow orientations have obtained an optimal configuration that effectively removes particles from a 25 cm^2 area. Dust removal from next step tokamaks will be required to meet regulatory dust limits. A tripolar grid of fine interdigitated traces has been designed that generates an electrostatic travelling wave for conveying dust particles to a ``drain.'' First trials have shown particle motion in optical microscope images. [1] C. H. Skinner et al., J. Nucl. Mater., 376 (2008) 29.

Counterion accumulation effects on a suspension of DNA molecules: Equation of state and pressure-driven denaturation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nicasio-Collazo, Luz Adriana; Delgado-González, Alexandra; Hernández-Lemus, Enrique; Castañeda-Priego, Ramón

2017-04-01

The study of the effects associated with the electrostatic properties of DNA is of fundamental importance to understand both its molecular properties at the single molecule level, like the rigidity of the chain, and its interaction with other charged bio-molecules, including other DNA molecules; such interactions are crucial to maintain the thermodynamic stability of the intra-cellular medium. In the present work, we combine the Poisson-Boltzmann mean-field theory with an irreversible thermodynamic approximation to analyze the effects of counterion accumulation inside DNA on both the denaturation profile of the chain and the equation of state of the suspension. To this end, we model the DNA molecule as a porous charged cylinder immersed in an aqueous solution. These thermo-electrostatic effects are explicitly studied in the particular case of some genes for which damage in their sequence is associated with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.

Use of an electric field in an electrostatic liquid film radiator.

PubMed

Bankoff, S G; Griffing, E M; Schluter, R A

2002-10-01

Experimental and numerical work was performed to further the understanding of an electrostatic liquid film radiator (ELFR) that was originally proposed by Kim et al.(1) The ELFR design utilizes an electric field that exerts a normal force on the interface of a flowing film. The field lowers the pressure under the film in a space radiator and, thereby, prevents leakage through a puncture in the radiator wall. The flowing film is subject to the Taylor cone instability, whereby a cone of fluid forms underneath an electrode and sharpens until a jet of fluid is pulled toward the electrode and disintegrates into droplets. The critical potential for the instability is shown to be as much as an order of magnitude higher than that used in previous designs.(2) Furthermore, leak stoppage experiments indicate that the critical field is adequate to stop leaks in a working radiator.

High Resolution and Large Dynamic Range Resonant Pressure Sensor Based on Q-Factor Measurement

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gutierrez, Roman C. (Inventor); Stell, Christopher B. (Inventor); Tang, Tony K. (Inventor); Vorperian, Vatche (Inventor); Wilcox, Jaroslava (Inventor); Shcheglov, Kirill (Inventor); Kaiser, William J. (Inventor)

2000-01-01

A pressure sensor has a high degree of accuracy over a wide range of pressures. Using a pressure sensor relying upon resonant oscillations to determine pressure, a driving circuit drives such a pressure sensor at resonance and tracks resonant frequency and amplitude shifts with changes in pressure. Pressure changes affect the Q-factor of the resonating portion of the pressure sensor. Such Q-factor changes are detected by the driving/sensing circuit which in turn tracks the changes in resonant frequency to maintain the pressure sensor at resonance. Changes in the Q-factor are reflected in changes of amplitude of the resonating pressure sensor. In response, upon sensing the changes in the amplitude, the driving circuit changes the force or strength of the electrostatic driving signal to maintain the resonator at constant amplitude. The amplitude of the driving signals become a direct measure of the changes in pressure as the operating characteristics of the resonator give rise to a linear response curve for the amplitude of the driving signal. Pressure change resolution is on the order of 10(exp -6) torr over a range spanning from 7,600 torr to 10(exp -6) torr. No temperature compensation for the pressure sensor of the present invention is foreseen. Power requirements for the pressure sensor are generally minimal due to the low-loss mechanical design of the resonating pressure sensor and the simple control electronics.

Effective charges and virial pressure of concentrated macroion solutions

DOE PAGES

Boon, Niels; Guerrero-García, Guillermo Ivan; van Roij, René; ...

2015-07-13

The stability of colloidal suspensions is crucial in a wide variety of processes, including the fabrication of photonic materials and scaffolds for biological assemblies. The ionic strength of the electrolyte that suspends charged colloids is widely used to control the physical properties of colloidal suspensions. The extensively used two-body Derjaguin-Landau-Verwey-Overbeek (DLVO) approach allows for a quantitative analysis of the effective electrostatic forces between colloidal particles. DLVO relates the ionic double layers, which enclose the particles, to their effective electrostatic repulsion. Nevertheless, the double layer is distorted at high macroion volume fractions. Therefore, DLVO cannot describe the many-body effects that arisemore » in concentrated suspensions. In this paper, we show that this problem can be largely resolved by identifying effective point charges for the macroions using cell theory. This extrapolated point charge (EPC) method assigns effective point charges in a consistent way, taking into account the excluded volume of highly charged macroions at any concentration, and thereby naturally accounting for high volume fractions in both salt-free and added-salt conditions. We provide an analytical expression for the effective pair potential and validate the EPC method by comparing molecular dynamics simulations of macroions and monovalent microions that interact via Coulombic potentials to simulations of macroions interacting via the derived EPC effective potential. The simulations reproduce the macroion-macroion spatial correlation and the virial pressure obtained with the EPC model. Finally, our findings provide a route to relate the physical properties such as pressure in systems of screened Coulomb particles to experimental measurements.« less

Vibration and sound radiation of an electrostatic speaker based on circular diaphragm.

PubMed

Chiang, Hsin-Yuan; Huang, Yu-Hsi

2015-04-01

This study investigated the lumped parameter method (LPM) and distributed parameter method (DPM) in the measurement of vibration and prediction of sound pressure levels (SPLs) produced by an electrostatic speaker with circular diaphragm. An electrostatic speaker with push-pull configuration was achieved by suspending the circular diaphragm (60 mm diameter) between two transparent conductive plates. The transparent plates included a two-dimensional array of holes to enable the visualization of vibrations and avoid acoustic distortion. LPM was used to measure the displacement amplitude at the center of the diaphragm using a scanning vibrometer with the aim of predicting symmetric modes using Helmholtz equations and SPLs using Rayleigh integral equations. DPM was used to measure the amplitude of displacement across the entire surface of the speaker and predict SPL curves. LPM results show that the prediction of SPL associated with the first three symmetric resonant modes is in good agreement with the results of DPM and acoustic measurement. Below the breakup frequency of 375 Hz, the SPL predicted by LPM and DPM are identical with the results of acoustic measurement. This study provides a rapid, accurate method with which to measure the SPL associated with the first three symmetric modes using semi-analytic LPM.

Development of Charge to Mass Ratio Microdetector for Future Mars Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chen, Yuan-Lian Albert

2003-01-01

The Mars environment comprises a dry, cold and low air pressure atmosphere with low gravity (0.38g) and high resistivity soil. The global dust storms that cover a large portion of Mars are observed often from Earth. This environment provides an ideal condition for turboelectric charging. The extremely dry conditions on the Martian surface have raised concerns that electrostatic charge buildup will not be dissipated easily. If turboelectrically generated charge cannot be dissipated or avoided, then dust will accumulate on charged surfaces and electrostatic discharge may cause hazards for future exploration missions. The low surface on Mars helps to prolong the charge decay on the dust particles and soil. To better understanding the physics of Martian charged dust particles is essential to future Mars missions. We research and design two sensors, velocity/charge sensor and PZT momentum sensors, to measure the velocity distribution, charge distribution and mass distribution of Martian wed dust particles. These sensors are fabricated at NASA Kenney Space Center, Electrostatic and Surface Physics Laboratory. The sensors are calibrated. The momentum sensor is capable to measure 45 pan size particles. The designed detector is very simple, robust, without moving parts, and does not require a high voltage power supply. Two sensors are combined to form the Dust Microdetector - CHAL.

Pressurized fluidized-bed hydroretorting of Eastern oil shales -- Sulfur control

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

Roberts, M.J.; Abbasian, J.; Akin, C.

1992-05-01

This topical report on Sulfur Control'' presents the results of work conducted by the Institute of Gas Technology (IGT), the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT), and the Ohio State University (OSU) to develop three novel approaches for desulfurization that have shown good potential with coal and could be cost-effective for oil shales. These are (1) In-Bed Sulfur Capture using different sorbents (IGT), (2) Electrostatic Desulfurization (IIT), and (3) Microbial Desulfurization and Denitrification (OSU and IGT). The objective of the task on In-Bed Sulfur Capture was to determine the effectiveness of different sorbents (that is, limestone, calcined limestone, dolomite, and siderite)more » for capturing sulfur (as H{sub 2}S) in the reactor during hydroretorting. The objective of the task on Electrostatic Desulfurization was to determine the operating conditions necessary to achieve a high degree of sulfur removal and kerogen recovery in IIT's electrostatic separator. The objectives of the task on Microbial Desulfurization and Denitrification were to (1) isolate microbial cultures and evaluate their ability to desulfurize and denitrify shale, (2) conduct laboratory-scale batch and continuous tests to improve and enhance microbial removal of these components, and (3) determine the effects of processing parameters, such as shale slurry concentration, solids settling characteristics, agitation rate, and pH on the process.« less

Vertical Diaphragm Electrostatic Actuator for a High Density Ink Jet Printer Head

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Norimatsu, Takayuki; Tanaka, Shuji; Esashi, Masayoshi

This paper describes the design, fabrication process and preliminary evaluation of an electrostatic ink jet printer head with vertical diaphragms in deep trenches. By adopting the novel structure where an ink cavity is surrounded by the vertical diaphragm, the footprint of each unit (40 μm × 500 μm) becomes approximately one fifth as small as that of a conventional one. Such small footprint is advantageous in cost, resolution and printing speed. To make the vertical diaphragms, a 0.5 μm thick sacrificial thermally-oxidized layer and a 4.5 μm thick poly-silicon layer are sequentially formed in deep-reactive-ion-etched trenches, and then the sacrificial layer is etched away by fluoric acid. The nozzles are fabricated on a Pyrex glass substrate by femtosecond laser ablation, and the nozzle outside is covered with a water repellant Au/Pt/Ti layer. Impedance measurement found that the electrostatic gaps were in contact or closely approaching. This could be because the diaphragms buckled by compressive stress induced in low pressure chemical vapor deposition (LPCVD). Ink ejection was tried using commercially-available blue ink, but failed. The nozzles were covered with the ink, because the water repellant finish of the nozzle outside was not good.

Electrodynamic Dust Shield for Surface Exploration Activities on the Moon and Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Calle, C. I.; Immer, C. D.; Clements, J. S.; Chen, A.; Buhler, C. R.; Lundeen, P.; Mantovani, J. G.; Starnes, J. W.; Michalenko, M.; Mazumder, M. K.

2006-01-01

The Apollo missions to the moon showed that lunar dust can hamper astronaut surface activities due to its ability to cling to most surfaces. NASA's Mars exploration landers and rovers have also shown that the problem is equally hard if not harder on Mars. In this paper, we report on our efforts to develop and electrodynamic dust shield to prevent the accumulation of dust on surfaces and to remove dust already adhering to those surfaces. The parent technology for the electrodynamic dust shield, developed in the 1970s, has been shown to lift and transport charged and uncharged particles using electrostatic and dielectrophoretic forces. This technology has never been applied for space applications on Mars or the moon due to electrostatic breakdown concerns. In this paper, we show that an appropriate design can prevent the electrostatic breakdown at the low Martian atmospheric pressures. We are also able to show that uncharged dust can be lifted and removed from surfaces under simulated Martian environmental conditions. This technology has many potential benefits for removing dust from visors, viewports and many other surfaces as well as from solar arrays. We have also been able to develop a version of the electrodynamic dust shield working under. hard vacuum conditions. This version should work well on the moon.

A hybrid electronically scanned pressure module for cryogenic environments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chapman, J. J.; Hopson, P., Jr.; Kruse, N.

1995-01-01

Pressure is one of the most important parameters measured when testing models in wind tunnels. For models tested in the cryogenic environment of the National Transonic Facility at NASA Langley Research Center, the technique of utilizing commercially available multichannel pressure modules inside the models is difficult due to the small internal volume of the models and the requirement of keeping the pressure transducer modules within an acceptable temperature range well above the -173 degrees C tunnel temperature. A prototype multichannel pressure transducer module has been designed and fabricated with stable, repeatable sensors and materials optimized for reliable performance in the cryogenic environment. The module has 16 single crystal silicon piezoresistive pressure sensors electrostatically bonded to a metalized Pyrex substrate for sensing the wind tunnel model pressures. An integral temperature sensor mounted on each silicon micromachined pressure sensor senses real-time temperature fluctuations to within 0.1 degrees C to correct for thermally induced non-random sensor drift. The data presented here are from a prototype sensor module tested in the 0.3 M cryogenic tunnel and thermal equilibrium conditions in an environmental chamber which approximates the thermal environment (-173 degrees C to +60 degrees C) of the National Transonic Facility.

Pressure induced polymerization of acetylide anions in CaC2 and 107 fold enhancement of electrical conductivity.

PubMed

Zheng, Haiyan; Wang, Lijuan; Li, Kuo; Yang, Youyou; Wang, Yajie; Wu, Jiajia; Dong, Xiao; Wang, Chun-Hai; Tulk, Christopher A; Molaison, Jamie J; Ivanov, Ilia N; Feygenson, Mikhail; Yang, Wenge; Guthrie, Malcolm; Zhao, Yusheng; Mao, Ho-Kwang; Jin, Changqing

2017-01-01

Transformation between different types of carbon-carbon bonding in carbides often results in a dramatic change of physical and chemical properties. Under external pressure, unsaturated carbon atoms form new covalent bonds regardless of the electrostatic repulsion. It was predicted that calcium acetylide (also known as calcium carbide, CaC 2 ) polymerizes to form calcium polyacetylide, calcium polyacenide and calcium graphenide under high pressure. In this work, the phase transitions of CaC 2 under external pressure were systematically investigated, and the amorphous phase was studied in detail for the first time. Polycarbide anions like C 6 6- are identified with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and several other techniques, which evidences the pressure induced polymerization of the acetylide anions and suggests the existence of the polyacenide fragment. Additionally, the process of polymerization is accompanied with a 10 7 fold enhancement of the electrical conductivity. The polymerization of acetylide anions demonstrates that high pressure compression is a viable route to synthesize novel metal polycarbides and materials with extended carbon networks, while shedding light on the synthesis of more complicated metal organics.

Superconductivity in Pristine 2 Ha-MoS2 at Ultrahigh Pressure

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chi, Zhenhua; Chen, Xuliang; Yen, Fei; Peng, Feng; Zhou, Yonghui; Zhu, Jinlong; Zhang, Yijin; Liu, Xiaodi; Lin, Chuanlong; Chu, Shengqi; Li, Yanchun; Zhao, Jinggeng; Kagayama, Tomoko; Ma, Yanming; Yang, Zhaorong

2018-01-01

As a follow-up of our previous work on pressure-induced metallization of the 2 Hc-MoS2 [Chi et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 113, 036802 (2014), 10.1103/PhysRevLett.113.036802], here we extend pressure beyond the megabar range to seek after superconductivity via electrical transport measurements. We found that superconductivity emerges in the 2 Ha-MoS2 with an onset critical temperature Tc of ca. 3 K at ca. 90 GPa. Upon further increasing the pressure, Tc is rapidly enhanced beyond 10 K and stabilized at ca. 12 K over a wide pressure range up to 220 GPa. Synchrotron x-ray diffraction measurements evidenced no further structural phase transition, decomposition, and amorphization up to 155 GPa, implying an intrinsic superconductivity in the 2 Ha-MoS2 . DFT calculations suggest that the emergence of pressure-induced superconductivity is intimately linked to the emergence of a new flat Fermi pocket in the electronic structure. Our finding represents an alternative strategy for achieving superconductivity in 2 H -MoS2 in addition to chemical intercalation and electrostatic gating.

Characterization of the Electrostatic Environment of Launchers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Soyah, Jamila; Mantion, Pascal; Herlem, Yannick

2016-05-01

The purpose of this study was to update knowledge in characterization of the electrostatic environment of launchers in order to be able to propose reductions of design constraints.The first part of this study showed that flashover discharges are the most energetic discharges likely to occur on a launcher. They are mostly due to accumulations of charges by triboelectricity on the external surface of the launcher while flying through clouds containing a lot of small solid particles.Actually flashover discharges are mitigated by limiting the surface's resistance of dielectric materials such as thermal protection set on the external skin of the launcher, thanks to antistatic paints that avoid significant accumulations of charges.But this specified limitation leads to a lot of non- conformances during production phases and, as a result, this leads to additional costs and delays in launches campaigns. That is why on-ground tests have been defined in order to assess the accessibility of a relaxation of those specifications, which would reduce non-conformances.On-ground tests have been carried out, in the second part, on samples of thermal protections covered with antistatic paints with different degraded values of surface resistance. These tests aimed at checking in which conditions a surface discharge can occur in order to deduce a relationship between characteristics of the samples (surface resistance, half-discharge time) and the occurrence of a surface discharge, at ambient pressure and at low pressure.In the third part, in-flight experiments have been defined in order to confirm some hypotheses considered in the study and to assess some parameters in a more accurate way like the incoming charges density per surface unit or the voltage between stages when they get separated, in order to assess more accurately whether the unwinding equalization wire dedicated to maintain the electrostatic balance between stages is necessary or not.

Magnetized retarding field energy analyzer measuring the particle flux and ion energy distribution of both positive and negative ions

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

Rafalskyi, Dmytro; Aanesland, Ane; Dudin, Stanislav

2015-05-15

This paper presents the development of a magnetized retarding field energy analyzer (MRFEA) used for positive and negative ion analysis. The two-stage analyzer combines a magnetic electron barrier and an electrostatic ion energy barrier allowing both positive and negative ions to be analyzed without the influence of electrons (co-extracted or created downstream). An optimal design of the MRFEA for ion-ion beams has been achieved by a comparative study of three different MRFEA configurations, and from this, scaling laws of an optimal magnetic field strength and topology have been deduced. The optimal design consists of a uniform magnetic field barrier createdmore » in a rectangular channel and an electrostatic barrier consisting of a single grid and a collector placed behind the magnetic field. The magnetic barrier alone provides an electron suppression ratio inside the analyzer of up to 6000, while keeping the ion energy resolution below 5 eV. The effective ion transparency combining the magnetic and electrostatic sections of the MRFEA is measured as a function of the ion energy. It is found that the ion transparency of the magnetic barrier increases almost linearly with increasing ion energy in the low-energy range (below 200 eV) and saturates at high ion energies. The ion transparency of the electrostatic section is almost constant and close to the optical transparency of the entrance grid. We show here that the MRFEA can provide both accurate ion flux and ion energy distribution measurements in various experimental setups with ion beams or plasmas run at low pressure and with ion energies above 10 eV.« less

The self-consistent parallel electric field due to electrostatic ion-cyclotron turbulence in downward auroral-current regions of the Earth's magnetosphere. IV

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jasperse, John R.; Basu, Bamandas; Lund, Eric J.; Grossbard, Neil

2010-06-01

The physical processes that determine the self-consistent electric field (E∥) parallel to the magnetic field have been an unresolved problem in magnetospheric physics for over 40 years. Recently, a new multimoment fluid theory was developed for inhomogeneous, nonuniformly magnetized plasma in the guiding-center and gyrotropic approximation that includes the effect of electrostatic, turbulent, wave-particle interactions (see Jasperse et al. [Phys. Plasmas 13, 072903 (2006); Jasperse et al., Phys. Plasmas13, 112902 (2006)]). In the present paper and its companion paper [Jasperse et al., Phys. Plasmas 17, 062903 (2010)], which are intended as sequels to the earlier work, a fundamental model for downward, magnetic field-aligned (Birkeland) currents for quasisteady conditions is presented. The model includes the production of electrostatic ion-cyclotron turbulence in the long-range potential region by an electron, bump-on-tail-driven ion-cyclotron instability. Anomalous momentum transfer (anomalous resistivity) by itself is found to produce a very small contribution to E∥; however, the presence of electrostatic, ion-cyclotron turbulence has a very large effect on the altitude dependence of the entire quasisteady solution. Anomalous energy transfer (anomalous heating and cooling) modifies the density, drift, and temperature altitude profiles and hence the generalized parallel-pressure gradients and mirror forces in the electron and ion momentum-balance equations. As a result, |E∥| is enhanced by nearly a factor of 40 compared to its value when turbulence is absent. The space-averaged potential increase associated with the strong double layer at the bottom of the downward-current sheet is estimated using the FAST satellite data and the multimoment fluid theory.

Free-field Calibration of the Pressure Sensitivity of Microphones at Frequencies up to 80 kHz

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Herring, G. C.; Zuckerwar, Allan J.; Elbing, Brian R.

2006-01-01

A free-field (FF) substitution method for calibrating the pressure sensitivity of microphones at frequencies up to 80 kHz is demonstrated with both grazing and normal incidence geometries. The substitution-based method, as opposed to a simultaneous method, avoids problems associated with the non-uniformity of the sound field and, as applied here, uses a 1/2 -inch air-condenser pressure microphone as a known reference. Best results were obtained with a centrifugal fan, which is used as a random, broadband sound source. A broadband source minimizes reflection-related interferences that often plague FF measurements. Calibrations were performed on 1/4-inch FF air-condenser, electret, and micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) microphones in an anechoic chamber. The accuracy of this FF method is estimated by comparing the pressure sensitivity of an air-condenser microphone, as derived from the FF measurement, with that of an electrostatic actuator calibration and is typically 0.3 dB (95% confidence), over the range 2-80 kHz.

Recent developments in novel freezing and thawing technologies applied to foods.

PubMed

Wu, Xiao-Fei; Zhang, Min; Adhikari, Benu; Sun, Jincai

2017-11-22

This article reviews the recent developments in novel freezing and thawing technologies applied to foods. These novel technologies improve the quality of frozen and thawed foods and are energy efficient. The novel technologies applied to freezing include pulsed electric field pre-treatment, ultra-low temperature, ultra-rapid freezing, ultra-high pressure and ultrasound. The novel technologies applied to thawing include ultra-high pressure, ultrasound, high voltage electrostatic field (HVEF), and radio frequency. Ultra-low temperature and ultra-rapid freezing promote the formation and uniform distribution of small ice crystals throughout frozen foods. Ultra-high pressure and ultrasound assisted freezing are non-thermal methods and shorten the freezing time and improve product quality. Ultra-high pressure and HVEF thawing generate high heat transfer rates and accelerate the thawing process. Ultrasound and radio frequency thawing can facilitate thawing process by volumetrically generating heat within frozen foods. It is anticipated that these novel technologies will be increasingly used in food industries in the future.

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

Zhang, Tianfu; Ma, Zhuang; Li, Guoping

Electrostatic self-assembly in organic solvent without intensively oxidative or corrosive environments, was adopted to prepare Al/Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3}/MWCNT nanostructured energetic materials as an energy generating material. The negatively charged MWCNT was used as a glue-like agent to direct the self-assembly of the well dispersed positively charged Al (fuel) and Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3} (oxide) nanoparticles. This spontaneous assembly method without any surfactant chemistry or other chemical and biological moieties decreased the aggregation of the same nanoparticles largely, moreover, the poor interfacial contact between the Al (fuel) and Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3} (oxide) nanoparticles was improved significantly, which was the key characteristic ofmore » high performance nanostructured energetic materials. In addition, the assembly process was confirmed as Diffusion-Limited Aggregation. The assembled Al/Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3}/MWCNT nanostructured energetic materials showed excellent performance with heat release of 2400 J/g, peak pressure of 0.42 MPa and pressurization rate of 105.71 MPa/s, superior to that in the control group Al/Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3} nanostructured energetic materials prepared by sonication with heat release of 1326 J/g, peak pressure of 0.19 MPa and pressurization rate of 33.33 MPa/s. Therefore, the approach, which is facile, opens a promising route to the high performance nanostructured energetic materials. - Graphical abstract: The negatively charged MWCNT was used as a glue-like agent to direct the self-assembly of the well dispersed positively charged Al (fuel) and Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3} (oxide) nanoparticles. - Highlights: • A facile spontaneous electrostatic assembly strategy without surfactant was adopted. • The fuels and oxidizers assembled into densely packed nanostructured composites. • The assembled nanostructured energetic materials have excellent performance. • This high performance energetic material can be scaled up for practical application. • This strategy can be applied into other nanostructured energetic material systems.« less

Protein-lipid interactions at the air/water interface.

PubMed

Lad, Mitaben D; Birembaut, Fabrice; Frazier, Richard A; Green, Rebecca J

2005-10-07

Surface pressure measurements and external reflection FTIR spectroscopy have been used to probe protein-lipid interactions at the air/water interface. Spread monomolecular layers of stearic acid and phosphocholine were prepared and held at different compressed phase states prior to the introduction of protein to the buffered subphase. Contrasting interfacial behaviour of the proteins, albumin and lysozyme, was observed and revealed the role of both electrostatic and hydrophobic interactions in protein adsorption. The rate of adsorption of lysozyme to the air/water interface increased dramatically in the presence of stearic acid, due to strong electrostatic interactions between the negatively charged stearic acid head group and lysozyme, whose net charge at pH 7 is positive. Introduction of albumin to the subphase resulted in solubilisation of the stearic acid via the formation of an albumin-stearic acid complex and subsequent adsorption of albumin. This observation held for both human and bovine serum albumin. Protein adsorption to a PC layer held at low surface pressure revealed adsorption rates similar to adsorption to the bare air/water interface and suggested very little interaction between the protein and the lipid. For PC layers in their compressed phase state some adsorption of protein occurred after long adsorption times. Structural changes of both lysozyme and albumin were observed during adsorption, but these were dramatically reduced in the presence of a lipid layer compared to that of adsorption to the pure air/water interface.

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

Zheng, Haiyan; Wang, Lijuan; Li, Kuo

Transformation between different types of carbon–carbon bonding in carbides often results in a dramatic change of physical and chemical properties. Under external pressure, unsaturated carbon atoms form new covalent bonds regardless of the electrostatic repulsion. It was predicted that calcium acetylide (also known as calcium carbide, CaC 2) polymerizes to form calcium polyacetylide, calcium polyacenide and calcium graphenide under high pressure. In this work, the phase transitions of CaC 2 under external pressure were systematically investigated, and the amorphous phase was studied in detail for the first time. Polycarbide anions like C 6 6– are identified with gas chromatography-mass spectrometrymore » and several other techniques, which evidences the pressure induced polymerization of the acetylide anions and suggests the existence of the polyacenide fragment. Additionally, the process of polymerization is accompanied with a 10 7 fold enhancement of the electrical conductivity. As a result, the polymerization of acetylide anions demonstrates that high pressure compression is a viable route to synthesize novel metal polycarbides and materials with extended carbon networks, while shedding light on the synthesis of more complicated metal organics.« less

Polyelectrolytes and Their Biological Interactions

PubMed Central

Katchalsky, A.

1964-01-01

Polyelectrolytes are water-soluble electrically charged polymers. Their properties are determined by the interplay of the electrical forces, the Brownian motion of the macromolecular chain, and intermolecular Van der Waals forces. Charged polyacids or polybases are stretched by the electrostatic forces, as evidenced by increase in solution viscosity, or by the stretching of polyelectrolyte gels. The electrical field of the polyions is neutralized by a dense atmosphere of counter-ions. The counter-ion attraction to the polyions is expressed by a reduction of the osmotic activity of the polyion—the osmotic pressure being only 15 to 20 per cent of the ideal in highly charged polyelectrolytes neutralized by monovalent counter-ions, and as low as 1 to 3 per cent of the ideal for polyvalent counter-ions. Since the ionic atmosphere is only slightly dependent on added low molecular salt, the osmotic pressure of polyelectrolyte salt mixtures is approximately equal to the sum of the osmotic pressure of polyelectrolyte and salt alone. Acidic and basic polyelectrolytes interact electrostatically with precipitation at the point of polymeric electroneutrality. At higher salt concentrations the interaction is inhibited by the screening of polymeric fixed charges. The importance of these interactions in enzymatic processes is discussed. The electrical double layer is polarizable as may be deduced from dielectric and conductometric studies. The polarizability leads to strong dipole formation in an electrical field. These macromolecular dipoles may play a role in the adsorption of polyelectrolytes on charged surfaces. The final part of the paper is devoted to interactions of polyelectrolytes with cell membranes and the gluing of cells to higher aggregates by charged biocolloids. ImagesFigure 17Figure 18Figure 19Figure 20 PMID:14104085

Spontaneous deswelling of pNIPAM microgels at high concentrations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gasser, Urs; Scotti, Andrea; Herman, Emily S.; Pelaez-Fernandez, Miguel; Han, Jun; Menzel, Andreas; Lyon, L. Andrew; Fernandez-Nieves, Alberto

Polydisperse suspensions of pNIPAM microgel particles show a unique, spontaneous particle deswelling behavior. Beyond a critical concentration, the largest microgels deswell and thereby reduce the polydispersity of the suspension. We have recently unraveled the mechanism of this spontaneous, selective deswelling. pNIPAM microgels carry charged sulfate groups originating from the ammonium persulfate starter used in particle synthesis. Most of the ammonium counterions are trapped close to the microgel surface, but a fraction of them escapes the electrostatic attraction and contributes to the osmotic pressure of the suspension. The counterion clouds of neighboring particles progressively overlap with increasing volume fraction, leading to an increase of free counterions and the osmotic pressure outside but not inside the microgel particles. We find particles to deswell when the resulting osmotic pressure difference between the inside and the outside becomes larger their bulk modulus. For pNIPAM microgels synthesized with the same protocol, the largest particles are the softest and deswell first.

Adhesion of bubbles and drops to solid surfaces, and anisotropic surface tensions studied by capillary meniscus dynamometry.

PubMed

Danov, Krassimir D; Stanimirova, Rumyana D; Kralchevsky, Peter A; Marinova, Krastanka G; Stoyanov, Simeon D; Blijdenstein, Theodorus B J; Cox, Andrew R; Pelan, Eddie G

2016-07-01

Here, we review the principle and applications of two recently developed methods: the capillary meniscus dynamometry (CMD) for measuring the surface tension of bubbles/drops, and the capillary bridge dynamometry (CBD) for quantifying the bubble/drop adhesion to solid surfaces. Both methods are based on a new data analysis protocol, which allows one to decouple the two components of non-isotropic surface tension. For an axisymmetric non-fluid interface (e.g. bubble or drop covered by a protein adsorption layer with shear elasticity), the CMD determines the two different components of the anisotropic surface tension, σs and σφ, which are acting along the "meridians" and "parallels", and vary throughout the interface. The method uses data for the instantaneous bubble (drop) profile and capillary pressure, but the procedure for data processing is essentially different from that of the conventional drop shape analysis (DSA) method. In the case of bubble or drop pressed against a substrate, which forms a capillary bridge, the CBD method allows one to determine also the capillary-bridge force for both isotropic (fluid) and anisotropic (solidified) adsorption layers. The experiments on bubble (drop) detachment from the substrate show the existence of a maximal pulling force, Fmax, that can be resisted by an adherent fluid particle. Fmax can be used to quantify the strength of adhesion of bubbles and drops to solid surfaces. Its value is determined by a competition of attractive transversal tension and repulsive disjoining pressure forces. The greatest Fmax values have been measured for bubbles adherent to glass substrates in pea-protein solutions. The bubble/wall adhesion is lower in solutions containing the protein HFBII hydrophobin, which could be explained with the effect of sandwiched protein aggregates. The applicability of the CBD method to emulsion systems is illustrated by experiments with soybean-oil drops adherent to hydrophilic and hydrophobic substrates in egg yolk solutions. The results reveal how the interfacial rigidity, as well as the bubble/wall and drop/wall adhesion forces, can be quantified and controlled in relation to optimizing the properties of foams and emulsions. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Lightning energetics: Estimates of energy dissipation in channels, channel radii, and channel-heating risetimes

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

Borovsky, J.E.

1998-05-01

In this report, several lightning-channel parameters are calculated with the aid of an electrodynamic model of lightning. The electrodynamic model describes dart leaders and return strokes as electromagnetic waves that are guided along conducting lightning channels. According to the model, electrostatic energy is delivered to the channel by a leader, where it is stored around the outside of the channel; subsequently, the return stroke dissipates this locally stored energy. In this report this lightning-energy-flow scenario is developed further. Then the energy dissipated per unit length in lightning channels is calculated, where this quantity is now related to the linear chargemore » density on the channel, not to the cloud-to-ground electrostatic potential difference. Energy conservation is then used to calculate the radii of lightning channels: their initial radii at the onset of return strokes and their final radii after the channels have pressure expanded. Finally, the risetimes for channel heating during return strokes are calculated by defining an energy-storage radius around the channel and by estimating the radial velocity of energy flow toward the channel during a return stroke. In three appendices, values for the linear charge densities on lightning channels are calculated, estimates of the total length of branch channels are obtained, and values for the cloud-to-ground electrostatic potential difference are estimated. {copyright} 1998 American Geophysical Union« less

Investigation of Nucleate Boiling Mechanisms Under Microgravity Conditions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dhir, V. K.; Qiu, D. M.; Ramanujapu, N.; Hasan, M. M.

1999-01-01

The present work is aimed at the experimental studies and numerical modeling of the bubble growth mechanisms of a single bubble attached to a heating surface and of a bubble sliding along an inclined heated plate. Single artificial cavity of 10 microns in diameter was made on the polished Silicon wafer which was electrically heated at the back side in order to control the surface nucleation superheat. Experiments with a sliding bubble were conducted at different inclination angles of the downward facing heated surface for the purpose of studying the effect of magnitude of components of gravity acting parallel to and normal to the heat transfer surface. Information on the bubble shape and size, the bubble induced liquid velocities as well as the surface temperature were obtained using the high speed imaging and hydrogen bubble techniques. Analytical/numerical models were developed to describe the heat transfer through the micro-macro layer underneath and around a bubble formed at a nucleation site. In the micro layer model the capillary and disjoining pressures were included. Evolution of the bubble-liquid interface along with induced liquid motion was modeled. As a follow-up to the studies at normal gravity, experiments are being conducted in the KC-135 aircraft to understand the bubble growth/detachment under low gravity conditions. Experiments have been defined to be performed under long duration of microgravity conditions in the space shuttle. The experiment in the space shuttle will provide bubble growth and detachment data at microgravity and will lead to validation of the nucleate boiling heat transfer model developed from the preceding studies conducted at normal and low gravity (KC-135) conditions.

Dynamics of rigid microparticles at the interface of co-flowing immiscible liquids in a microchannel.

PubMed

Jayaprakash, K S; Banerjee, U; Sen, A K

2017-05-01

We report the dynamical migration behavior of rigid polystyrene microparticles at an interface of co-flowing streams of primary CP 1 (aqueous) and secondary CP 2 (oils) immiscible phases at low Reynolds numbers (Re) in a microchannel. The microparticles initially suspended in the CP 1 either continue to flow in the bulk CP 1 or migrate across the interface into CP 2 , when the stream width of the CP 1 approaches the diameter of the microparticles. Experiments were performed with different secondary phases and it is found that the migration criterion depends on the sign of the spreading parameter S and the presence of surfactant at the interface. To substantiate the migration criterion, experiments were also carried out by suspending the microparticles in CP 2 (oil phase). Our study reveals that in case of aqueous-silicone oil combination, the microparticles get attached to the interface since S<0 and the three phase contact angle, θ>90°. For complete detachment of microparticles from the interface into the secondary phase, additional energy ΔG is needed. We discuss the role of interfacial perturbation, which causes detachment of microparticles from the interface. In case of mineral and olive oils, the surfactants present at the interface prevents attachment of the microparticles to the interface due to the repulsive disjoining pressure. Finally, using a aqueous-silicone oil system, we demonstrate size based sorting of microparticles of size 25μm and 15μm respectively from that of 15μm and 10μm and study the variation of separation efficiency η with the ratio of the width of the aqueous stream to the diameter of the microparticles ρ. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Equilibrium Droplets on Deformable Substrates: Equilibrium Conditions.

PubMed

Koursari, Nektaria; Ahmed, Gulraiz; Starov, Victor M

2018-05-15

Equilibrium conditions of droplets on deformable substrates are investigated, and it is proven using Jacobi's sufficient condition that the obtained solutions really provide equilibrium profiles of both the droplet and the deformed support. At the equilibrium, the excess free energy of the system should have a minimum value, which means that both necessary and sufficient conditions of the minimum should be fulfilled. Only in this case, the obtained profiles provide the minimum of the excess free energy. The necessary condition of the equilibrium means that the first variation of the excess free energy should vanish, and the second variation should be positive. Unfortunately, the mentioned two conditions are not the proof that the obtained profiles correspond to the minimum of the excess free energy and they could not be. It is necessary to check whether the sufficient condition of the equilibrium (Jacobi's condition) is satisfied. To the best of our knowledge Jacobi's condition has never been verified for any already published equilibrium profiles of both the droplet and the deformable substrate. A simple model of the equilibrium droplet on the deformable substrate is considered, and it is shown that the deduced profiles of the equilibrium droplet and deformable substrate satisfy the Jacobi's condition, that is, really provide the minimum to the excess free energy of the system. To simplify calculations, a simplified linear disjoining/conjoining pressure isotherm is adopted for the calculations. It is shown that both necessary and sufficient conditions for equilibrium are satisfied. For the first time, validity of the Jacobi's condition is verified. The latter proves that the developed model really provides (i) the minimum of the excess free energy of the system droplet/deformable substrate and (ii) equilibrium profiles of both the droplet and the deformable substrate.

Unbinding transition from fluid membranes with associated polymers.

PubMed

Benhamou, M; Kaidi, H

2013-10-01

We consider two neighboring fluid membranes that are associated with long flexible polymers (proteins or other macromolecules). We are interested in two physical systems consisting of i) two adjacent membranes with end-grafted (or adsorbed) polymers (system I), or ii) two membranes confining a polymer solution (system II). In addition to the pure interactions between membranes, the presence of polymers gives rise to new induced mediated interactions, which are repulsive, for system I, and attractive, for system II. In fact, repulsive induced interactions are caused by the excluded-volume forces between grafted polymers, while attractive ones, by entropy loss, due to free motion of polymers between membranes. The main goal is a quantitative study of the unbinding transition thermodynamics that is drastically affected by the associated polymers. For system I, the repulsive polymer-mediated force delays this transition that can happen at low temperature. To investigate the unbinding phenomenon, we first present an exact mathematical analysis of the total potential that is the sum of the primitive and induced potentials. This mathematical study enables us to classify the total interaction potentials, in terms of all parameters of the problem. Second, use is made of the standard variational method to calculate the first moments of the membrane separation. Special attention is paid to the determination of the unbinding temperature. In particular, we discuss its dependence on the extra parameters related to the associated polymers, which are the surface coverage and the polymer layer thickness on each membrane (for system I) or the polymer density and the gyration radius of coils (for system II). Third, we compute the disjoining pressure upon membrane separation. Finally, we emphasize that the presence of polymers may be a mechanism to delay or to accentuate the appearance of the unbinding transition between fluid membranes.

Liquid film drag out in the presence of molecular forces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schmidhalter, I.; Cerro, R. L.; Giavedoni, M. D.; Saita, F. A.

2013-03-01

From a practical as well as a conceptual point of view, one of the most interesting problems of physicochemical hydrodynamics is the drag out of a liquid film by a moving solid out of a pool of liquid. The basic problem, sometimes denoted the Landau-Levich problem [L. Landau and B. Levich, "Dragging of a liquid by a moving plate," Acta Physicochim. USSR 17, 42-54 (1942)], involves an interesting blend of capillary and viscous forces plus a matching of the static solution for capillary rise with a numerical solution of the film evolution equation, neglecting gravity, on the downstream region of the flow field. The original solution describes experimental data for a wide range of Capillary numbers but fails to match results for large and very small Capillary numbers. Molecular level forces are introduced to create an augmented version of the film evolution equation to show the effect of van der Waals forces at the lower range of Capillary numbers. A closed form solution for static capillary rise, including molecular forces, was matched with a numerical solution of the augmented film evolution equation in the dynamic meniscus region. Molecular forces do not sensibly modify the static capillary rise region, since film thicknesses are larger than the range of influence of van der Waals forces, but are determinant in shaping the downstream dynamic meniscus of the very thin liquid films. As expected, a quantitatively different level of disjoining pressure for different values of molecular constants remains in the very thin liquid film far downstream. Computational results for a wide range of Capillary numbers and Hamaker constants show a clear transition towards a region where the film thickness becomes independent of the coating speed.

Understanding electrostatic charge behaviour in aircraft fuel systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ogilvy, Jill A.; Hooker, Phil; Bennett, Darrell

2015-10-01

This paper presents work on the simulation of electrostatic charge build-up and decay in aircraft fuel systems. A model (EC-Flow) has been developed by BAE Systems under contract to Airbus, to allow the user to assess the effects of changes in design or in refuel conditions. Some of the principles behind the model are outlined. The model allows for a range of system components, including metallic and non-metallic pipes, valves, filters, junctions, bends and orifices. A purpose-built experimental rig was built at the Health and Safety Laboratory in Buxton, UK, to provide comparison data. The rig comprises a fuel delivery system, a test section where different components may be introduced into the system, and a Faraday Pail for measuring generated charge. Diagnostics include wall currents, charge densities and pressure losses. This paper shows sample results from the fitting of model predictions to measurement data and shows how analysis may be used to explain some of the observed trends.

Membrane rejection of nitrogen compounds

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lee, S.; Lueptow, R. M.

2001-01-01

Rejection characteristics of nitrogen compounds were examined for reverse osmosis, nanofiltration, and low-pressure reverse osmosis membranes. The rejection of nitrogen compounds is explained by integrating experimental results with calculations using the extended Nernst-Planck model coupled with a steric hindrance model. The molecular weight and chemical structure of nitrogen compounds appear to be less important in determining rejection than electrostatic properties. The rejection is greatest when the Donnan potential exceeds 0.05 V or when the ratio of the solute radius to the pore radius is greater than 0.8. The transport of solute in the pore is dominated by diffusion, although convective transport is significant for organic nitrogen compounds. Electromigration contributes negligibly to the overall solute transport in the membrane. Urea, a small organic compound, has lower rejection than ionic compounds such as ammonium, nitrate, and nitrite, indicating the critical role of electrostatic interaction in rejection. This suggests that better treatment efficiency for organic nitrogen compounds can be obtained after ammonification of urea.

A new, simple electrostatic-acoustic hybrid levitator

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lierke, E. G.; Loeb, H.; Gross, D.

1990-01-01

Battelle has developed a hybrid levitator by combining the known single-axis acoustic standing wave levitator with a coaxial DC electric field. The resulting Coulomb forces on the charged liquid or solid sample support its weight and, together with the acoustic force, center the sample. Liquid samples with volumes approximately less than 100 micro-liters are deployed from a syringe reservoir into the acoustic pressure node. The sample is charged using a miniature high voltage power supply (approximately less than 20 kV) connected to the syringe needle. As the electric field, generated by a second miniature power supply, is increased, the acoustic intensity is reduced. The combination of both fields allows stable levitation of samples larger than either single technique could position on the ground. Decreasing the acoustic intensity reduces acoustic convection and sample deformation. Neither the electrostatic nor the acoustic field requires sample position sensing or active control. The levitator, now used for static and dynamic fluid physics investigations on the ground, can be easily modified for space operations.

Transient electrokinetic transport in a finite length microchannel: currents, capacitance, and an electrical analogy.

PubMed

Mansouri, Ali; Bhattacharjee, Subir; Kostiuk, Larry W

2007-11-08

Numerical simulations with the fluid mechanics based on the unsteady Navier-Stokes equations and the Poisson-Nernst-Planck formulation of electrostatics and ion transport were used to explore the transient transport of charge through a finite length cylindrical microchannel that is driven by a pressure difference. The evolution of the transcapillary potential from a no-flow equilibrium to the steady-state-steady-flow streaming potential was analyzed by following the convection, migration, and net currents. Observations of the unsteady characteristics of the streaming current, electrical resistance, and capacitance led to an electrical analogy. This electrical analogy was made from a current source (to represent convection current), which was placed in parallel with a capacitor (to allow the accumulation of charge) and a resistor (to permit a migration current). A parametric study involving a range of geometries, fluid mechanics, electrostatics, and mass transfer states allowed predictive submodels for the current source, capacitor, and resistor to be developed based on a dimensional analysis.

First Demonstration of Electrostatic Damping of Parametric Instability at Advanced LIGO

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blair, Carl; Gras, Slawek; Abbott, Richard; Aston, Stuart; Betzwieser, Joseph; Blair, David; DeRosa, Ryan; Evans, Matthew; Frolov, Valera; Fritschel, Peter; Grote, Hartmut; Hardwick, Terra; Liu, Jian; Lormand, Marc; Miller, John; Mullavey, Adam; O'Reilly, Brian; Zhao, Chunnong; Abbott, B. P.; Abbott, T. D.; Adams, C.; Adhikari, R. X.; Anderson, S. B.; Ananyeva, A.; Appert, S.; Arai, K.; Ballmer, S. W.; Barker, D.; Barr, B.; Barsotti, L.; Bartlett, J.; Bartos, I.; Batch, J. C.; Bell, A. S.; Billingsley, G.; Birch, J.; Biscans, S.; Biwer, C.; Bork, R.; Brooks, A. F.; Ciani, G.; Clara, F.; Countryman, S. T.; Cowart, M. J.; Coyne, D. C.; Cumming, A.; Cunningham, L.; Danzmann, K.; Da Silva Costa, C. F.; Daw, E. J.; DeBra, D.; DeSalvo, R.; Dooley, K. L.; Doravari, S.; Driggers, J. C.; Dwyer, S. E.; Effler, A.; Etzel, T.; Evans, T. M.; Factourovich, M.; Fair, H.; Fernández Galiana, A.; Fisher, R. P.; Fulda, P.; Fyffe, M.; Giaime, J. A.; Giardina, K. D.; Goetz, E.; Goetz, R.; Gray, C.; Gushwa, K. E.; Gustafson, E. K.; Gustafson, R.; Hall, E. D.; Hammond, G.; Hanks, J.; Hanson, J.; Harry, G. M.; Heintze, M. C.; Heptonstall, A. W.; Hough, J.; Izumi, K.; Jones, R.; Kandhasamy, S.; Karki, S.; Kasprzack, M.; Kaufer, S.; Kawabe, K.; Kijbunchoo, N.; King, E. J.; King, P. J.; Kissel, J. S.; Korth, W. Z.; Kuehn, G.; Landry, M.; Lantz, B.; Lockerbie, N. A.; Lundgren, A. P.; MacInnis, M.; Macleod, D. M.; Márka, S.; Márka, Z.; Markosyan, A. S.; Maros, E.; Martin, I. W.; Martynov, D. V.; Mason, K.; Massinger, T. J.; Matichard, F.; Mavalvala, N.; McCarthy, R.; McClelland, D. E.; McCormick, S.; McIntyre, G.; McIver, J.; Mendell, G.; Merilh, E. L.; Meyers, P. M.; Mittleman, R.; Moreno, G.; Mueller, G.; Munch, J.; Nuttall, L. K.; Oberling, J.; Oppermann, P.; Oram, Richard J.; Ottaway, D. J.; Overmier, H.; Palamos, J. R.; Paris, H. R.; Parker, W.; Pele, A.; Penn, S.; Phelps, M.; Pierro, V.; Pinto, I.; Principe, M.; Prokhorov, L. G.; Puncken, O.; Quetschke, V.; Quintero, E. A.; Raab, F. J.; Radkins, H.; Raffai, P.; Reid, S.; Reitze, D. H.; Robertson, N. A.; Rollins, J. G.; Roma, V. J.; Romie, J. H.; Rowan, S.; Ryan, K.; Sadecki, T.; Sanchez, E. J.; Sandberg, V.; Savage, R. L.; Schofield, R. M. S.; Sellers, D.; Shaddock, D. A.; Shaffer, T. J.; Shapiro, B.; Shawhan, P.; Shoemaker, D. H.; Sigg, D.; Slagmolen, B. J. J.; Smith, B.; Smith, J. R.; Sorazu, B.; Staley, A.; Strain, K. A.; Tanner, D. B.; Taylor, R.; Thomas, M.; Thomas, P.; Thorne, K. A.; Thrane, E.; Torrie, C. I.; Traylor, G.; Vajente, G.; Valdes, G.; van Veggel, A. A.; Vecchio, A.; Veitch, P. J.; Venkateswara, K.; Vo, T.; Vorvick, C.; Walker, M.; Ward, R. L.; Warner, J.; Weaver, B.; Weiss, R.; Weßels, P.; Willke, B.; Wipf, C. C.; Worden, J.; Wu, G.; Yamamoto, H.; Yancey, C. C.; Yu, Hang; Yu, Haocun; Zhang, L.; Zucker, M. E.; Zweizig, J.; LSC Instrument Authors

2017-04-01

Interferometric gravitational wave detectors operate with high optical power in their arms in order to achieve high shot-noise limited strain sensitivity. A significant limitation to increasing the optical power is the phenomenon of three-mode parametric instabilities, in which the laser field in the arm cavities is scattered into higher-order optical modes by acoustic modes of the cavity mirrors. The optical modes can further drive the acoustic modes via radiation pressure, potentially producing an exponential buildup. One proposed technique to stabilize parametric instability is active damping of acoustic modes. We report here the first demonstration of damping a parametrically unstable mode using active feedback forces on the cavity mirror. A 15 538 Hz mode that grew exponentially with a time constant of 182 sec was damped using electrostatic actuation, with a resulting decay time constant of 23 sec. An average control force of 0.03 nN was required to maintain the acoustic mode at its minimum amplitude.

Degradation of Organics in a Glow Discharge Under Martian Conditions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hintze, P. E.; Calle, L. M.; Calle, C. I.; Buhler, C. R.; Trigwell, S.; Starnes, J. W.; Schuerger, A. C.

2006-01-01

The primary objective of this project is to understand the consequences of glow electrical discharges on the chemistry and biology of Mars. The possibility was raised some time ago that the absence of organic material and carbonaceous matter in the Martian soil samples studied by the VikinG Landers might be due in part to an intrinsic atmospheric mechanism such as glow discharge. The high probability for dust interactions during Martian dust storms and dust devils, combined with the cold, dry climate of Mars most likely results in airborne dust that is highly charged. Such high electrostatic potentials generated during dust storms on Earth are not permitted in the low-pressure CO2 environment on Mars; therefore electrostatic energy released in the form of glow discharges is a highly likely phenomenon. Since glow discharge methods are used for cleaning and sterilizing surfaces throughout industry, the idea that dust in the Martian atmosphere undergoes a cleaning action many times over geologic time scales appears to be a plausible one.

PCE: web tools to compute protein continuum electrostatics

PubMed Central

Miteva, Maria A.; Tufféry, Pierre; Villoutreix, Bruno O.

2005-01-01

PCE (protein continuum electrostatics) is an online service for protein electrostatic computations presently based on the MEAD (macroscopic electrostatics with atomic detail) package initially developed by D. Bashford [(2004) Front Biosci., 9, 1082–1099]. This computer method uses a macroscopic electrostatic model for the calculation of protein electrostatic properties, such as pKa values of titratable groups and electrostatic potentials. The MEAD package generates electrostatic energies via finite difference solution to the Poisson–Boltzmann equation. Users submit a PDB file and PCE returns potentials and pKa values as well as color (static or animated) figures displaying electrostatic potentials mapped on the molecular surface. This service is intended to facilitate electrostatics analyses of proteins and thereby broaden the accessibility to continuum electrostatics to the biological community. PCE can be accessed at . PMID:15980492

Pressure induced polymerization of acetylide anions in CaC 2 and 10 7 fold enhancement of electrical conductivity

DOE PAGES

Zheng, Haiyan; Wang, Lijuan; Li, Kuo; ...

2016-08-17

Transformation between different types of carbon–carbon bonding in carbides often results in a dramatic change of physical and chemical properties. Under external pressure, unsaturated carbon atoms form new covalent bonds regardless of the electrostatic repulsion. It was predicted that calcium acetylide (also known as calcium carbide, CaC 2) polymerizes to form calcium polyacetylide, calcium polyacenide and calcium graphenide under high pressure. In this work, the phase transitions of CaC 2 under external pressure were systematically investigated, and the amorphous phase was studied in detail for the first time. Polycarbide anions like C 6 6– are identified with gas chromatography-mass spectrometrymore » and several other techniques, which evidences the pressure induced polymerization of the acetylide anions and suggests the existence of the polyacenide fragment. Additionally, the process of polymerization is accompanied with a 10 7 fold enhancement of the electrical conductivity. As a result, the polymerization of acetylide anions demonstrates that high pressure compression is a viable route to synthesize novel metal polycarbides and materials with extended carbon networks, while shedding light on the synthesis of more complicated metal organics.« less

Ultrahigh pressure superconductivity in molybdenum disulfide

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

Chi, Zhenhua; Yen, Feihsiang; Peng, Feng

2015-03-18

Superconductivity commonly appears under pressure in charge densit wave (CDW)-bearing transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) 1,2, but ha emerged so far only via either intercalation with electron donors 3 or electrostati doping 4 in CDW-free TMDs. Theoretical calculations have predicted that th latter should be metallized through bandgap closure under pressure 5,6, bu superconductivity remained elusive in pristine 2H-MoS 2 upon substantia compression, where a pressure of up to 60 GPa only evidenced the metalli state 7,8. Here we report the emergence of superconductivity in pristine 2H-MoS at 90 GPa. The maximum onset transition temperature T c (onset) of 11.5 K,more » th highest value among TMDs and nearly constant from 120 up to 200 GPa, is wel above that obtained by chemical doping3 but comparable to that obtained b electrostatic doping4. T c (onset) is more than an order of magnitude larger tha present theoretical expectations, raising questions on either the curren calculation methodologies or the mechanism of the pressure-induced pairin state. Lastly, our findings strongly suggest further experimental and theoretical effort directed toward the study of the pressure-induced superconductivity in all CDWfre TMDs.« less

Structure and osmotic pressure of ionic microgel dispersions

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

Hedrick, Mary M.; Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, North Dakota State University, Fargo, North Dakota 58108-6050; Chung, Jun Kyung

We investigate structural and thermodynamic properties of aqueous dispersions of ionic microgels—soft colloidal gel particles that exhibit unusual phase behavior. Starting from a coarse-grained model of microgel macroions as charged spheres that are permeable to microions, we perform simulations and theoretical calculations using two complementary implementations of Poisson-Boltzmann (PB) theory. Within a one-component model, based on a linear-screening approximation for effective electrostatic pair interactions, we perform molecular dynamics simulations to compute macroion-macroion radial distribution functions, static structure factors, and macroion contributions to the osmotic pressure. For the same model, using a variational approximation for the free energy, we compute bothmore » macroion and microion contributions to the osmotic pressure. Within a spherical cell model, which neglects macroion correlations, we solve the nonlinear PB equation to compute microion distributions and osmotic pressures. By comparing the one-component and cell model implementations of PB theory, we demonstrate that the linear-screening approximation is valid for moderately charged microgels. By further comparing cell model predictions with simulation data for osmotic pressure, we chart the cell model’s limits in predicting osmotic pressures of salty dispersions.« less

Insulator Surface Charge as a Function of Pressure: Theory and Simulation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hogue, Michael D.; Calle, Carlos I.; Mucciolo, Eduardo; Hintze, Paul

2005-01-01

A two-phase equilibrium model was developed to explain the discontinuous surface charge decay versus atmospheric pressure of insulators that had been charged triboelectrically. The two-phase model is an electrostatic form of the Langmuir Isotherm for ions adsorbed on a surface in equilibrium with ions in the gas phase. In this paper, the model was extended to account for vibrational states of the adsorbed surface ions via the vibrational partition function. An analysis is performed that rules out Paschen discharge as the cause of the discharge observed. Also, a numerical simulation is performed using NWChem to calculate the adsorption energies of ions on insulator surfaces for comparison to curve fit adsorption energies developed from the model and experimental data.

Miniature reciprocating heat pumps and engines

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Thiesen, Jack H. (Inventor); Mohling, Robert A. (Inventor); Willen, Gary S. (Inventor)

2003-01-01

The present invention discloses a miniature thermodynamic device that can be constructed using standard micro-fabrication techniques. The device can be used to provide cooling, generate power, compress gases, pump fluids and reduce pressure below ambient (operate as a vacuum pump). Embodiments of the invention relating to the production of a cooling effect and the generation of electrical power, change the thermodynamic state of the system by extracting energy from a pressurized fluid. Energy extraction is attained using an expansion process, which is as nearly isentropic as possible for the appropriately chosen fluid. An isentropic expansion occurs when a compressed gas does work to expand, and in the disclosed embodiments, the gas does work by overcoming either an electrostatic or a magnetic force.

Inter-conversion of Work and Heat With Plasma Electric Fields

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Avinash, K.

2010-11-01

Thermodynamics of a model system where a group of cold charged particles locally confined in a volume VP within a warm plasma of temperature T and fixed volume V (VP<

Electrostatic dust detector

DOEpatents

Skinner, Charles H [Lawrenceville, NJ

2006-05-02

An apparatus for detecting dust in a variety of environments which can include radioactive and other hostile environments both in a vacuum and in a pressurized system. The apparatus consists of a grid coupled to a selected bias voltage. The signal generated when dust impacts and shorts out the grid is electrically filtered, and then analyzed by a signal analyzer which is then sent to a counter. For fine grids a correlation can be developed to relate the number of counts observed to the amount of dust which impacts the grid.

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

Kleinert, J.; Haimberger, C.; Zabawa, P. J.

We describe the realization of a dc electric-field trap for ultracold polar molecules, the thin-wire electrostatic trap (TWIST). The thin wires that form the electrodes of the TWIST allow us to superimpose the trap onto a magneto-optical trap (MOT). In our experiment, ultracold polar NaCs molecules in their electronic ground state are created in the MOT via photoassociation, achieving a continuous accumulation in the TWIST of molecules in low-field seeking states. Initial measurements show that the TWIST trap lifetime is limited only by the background pressure in the chamber.

Sensors and Micromachined Devices for the Automotive and New Markets: The Delphi Delco Electronics MEMS Story.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Logsdon, James

2002-03-01

This presentation will provide a brief history of the development of MEMS products and technology, beginning with the manifold absolute pressure sensor in the late seventies through the current variety of Delphi Delco Electronics sensors available today. The technology development of micromachining from uncompensated P plus etch stops to deep reactive ion etching and the technology development of wafer level packaging from electrostatic bonding to glass frit sealing and silicon to silicon direct bonding will be reviewed.

Micro/nano electro mechanical systems for practical applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Esashi, Masayoshi

2009-09-01

Silicon MEMS as electrostatically levitated rotational gyroscope, 2D optical scanner and wafer level packaged devices as integrated capacitive pressure sensor and MEMS switch are described. MEMS which use non-silicon materials as diamond, PZT, conductive polymer, CNT (carbon nano tube), LTCC with electrical feedthrough, SiC (silicon carbide) and LiNbO3 for multi-probe data storage, multi-column electron beam lithography system, probe card for wafer-level burn-in test, mould for glass press moulding and SAW wireless passive sensor respectively are also described.

Novel Synthesis of Calcium Oxide-Aluminum Oxide Glasses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weber, J. K. Richard; Tangeman, Jean A.; Key, Thomas S.; Hiera, Kirsten J.; Paradis, Paul-Francois; Ishikawa, Takehiko; Yu, Jianding; Yoda, Shinichi

2002-05-01

Binary Al2O3:CaO glasses containing 36-50 mole% Al2O3 were synthesized by containerless processing of liquids in nitrogen using aerodynamic and a pressurized electrostatic-aerodynamic levitator. The critical cooling rate for glass formation RC under containerless conditions was ca. 70 K/s. The Vickers hardness of the glasses was 775-785; and the infrared transmission extended to approximately 5500 nm. The work function of the 36 mole% Al2O3 composition was 3.7 eV at 1100 K.

Structure and stabilizing interactions of casein micelles probed by high-pressure light scattering and FTIR.

PubMed

Gebhardt, Ronald; Takeda, Naohiro; Kulozik, Ulrich; Doster, Wolfgang

2011-03-17

Caseins form heterogeneous micelles composed of three types of disordered protein chains (α, β, κ), which include protein-bound calcium phosphate particles. We probe the stability limits of the micelle by applying hydrostatic pressure. The resulting changes of the size distribution and the average molecular weight are recorded in situ with static and dynamic light scattering. Pressure induces irreversible dissociation of the micelles into monomers above a critical value depending on their size. The critical pressure increases with temperature, pH, and calcium concentration due to the interplay of hydrophobic and electrostatic interactions. The pressure transition curves are biphasic, reflecting the equilibrium of two micelle states with different stability, average size, entropy, and calcium bound. The fast process of pressure dissociation is used to probe the slow equilibrium of the two micelle states under various conditions. Binding and release of β-casein from the micelle is suggested as the molecular mechanism of stabilization associated with the two states. In situ FTIR spectroscopy covering the P-O stretching region indicates that bound calcium phosphate particles are released from serine phosphate residues at pressures above 100 MPa. The resulting imbalance of charge triggers the complete decomposition of the micelle. © 2011 American Chemical Society

An Overview of the Molecular Mechanisms of Recombinational DNA Repair

PubMed Central

Kowalczykowski, Stephen C.

2015-01-01

Recombinational DNA repair is a universal aspect of DNA metabolism and is essential for genomic integrity. It is a template-directed process that uses a second chromosomal copy (sister, daughter, or homolog) to ensure proper repair of broken chromosomes. The key steps of recombination are conserved from phage through human, and an overview of those steps is provided in this review. The first step is resection by helicases and nucleases to produce single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) that defines the homologous locus. The ssDNA is a scaffold for assembly of the RecA/RAD51 filament, which promotes the homology search. On finding homology, the nucleoprotein filament catalyzes exchange of DNA strands to form a joint molecule. Recombination is controlled by regulating the fate of both RecA/RAD51 filaments and DNA pairing intermediates. Finally, intermediates that mature into Holliday structures are disjoined by either nucleolytic resolution or topological dissolution. PMID:26525148

Surface decoration through electrostatic interaction leading to enhanced reactivity: Low temperature synthesis of nanostructured chromium borides (CrB and CrB{sub 2})

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

Menaka,; Kumar, Bharat; Kumar, Sandeep

The present study describes a novel low temperature route at ambient pressure for the synthesis of nanocrystalline chromium borides (CrB and CrB{sub 2}) without using any flux or additives. The favorable and intimate mixing of nanoparticles of chromium acetate (Cr source) and boron forms an active chromium–boron precursor which decomposes at much lower temperature (400 °C) to form CrB (which is ∼1000 °C less than the known ambient pressure synthesis). The chromium acetate nanoparticles (∼5 nm) decorate the larger boron particles (150–200 nm) due to electrostatic interactions resulting from opposing surface charges of boron (zeta potential:+48.101 mV) and chromium acetatemore » (zeta potential:−4.021 mV) in ethanolic medium and is evident in the TEM micrographs. The above method leads to the formation of pure CrB film like structure at 400 °C and nanospheres (40–60 nm) at 600 °C. Also, chromium diboride (CrB{sub 2}) nanoparticles (25 nm) could be obtained at 1000 °C. - Graphical abstract: Variation of surface charge of reactants, precursor and the products, chromium borides (CrB and CrB{sub 2}). Highlights: ► Novel borothermal reduction process for synthesis of chromium boride. ► Significant lowering of reaction temperature to obtain nanocrystalline chromium boride. ► Enhanced reactivity due to appropriate surface interactions.« less

Electron Density and Two-Channel Neutron Emission Measurements in Steady-State Spherical Inertial-Electrostatically Confined Plasmas, with Review of the 1-D Kinetic Model

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dobson, Chris C.; Hrbud, Ivana

2004-01-01

Electron density measurements have been made in steady-state plasmas in a spherical inertial electrostatic confinement (IEC) discharge using microwave interferometry. Plasma cores interior to two cathodes, having diameters of 15 and 23 cm, respectively, were probed over a transverse range of 10 cm with a spatial resolution of about 1.4 cm for buffer gas pressures from 0.2 to 6 Pa in argon and deuterium. The transverse profiles are generally flat, in some cases with eccentric symmetric minima, and give mean densities of from approx. = 0.4 to 7x 10(exp 10)/cu cm, the density generally increasing with the neutral gas pressure. Numerical solutions of the 1-D Poisson equation for EC plasmas are reviewed and energy distribution functions are identified which give flat transverse profiles. These functions are used with the plasma approximation to obtain solutions which also give densities consistent with the measurements, and a double potential well solution is obtained which has minima qualitatively similar to those observed. Explicit consideration is given to the compatibility of the solutions interior and exterior to the cathode, and to grid transparency. Deuterium fusion neutron emission rates were also measured and found to be isotropic, to within the measurement error, over two simultaneous directions. Anisotropy was observed in residual emissions during operation with non-fusing hydrogen-1. The deuterium rates are consistent with predictions from the model.

Compact electrostatic comb actuator

DOEpatents

Rodgers, M. Steven; Burg, Michael S.; Jensen, Brian D.; Miller, Samuel L.; Barnes, Stephen M.

2000-01-01

A compact electrostatic comb actuator is disclosed for microelectromechanical (MEM) applications. The actuator is based upon a plurality of meshed electrostatic combs, some of which are stationary and others of which are moveable. One or more restoring springs are fabricated within an outline of the electrostatic combs (i.e. superposed with the moveable electrostatic combs) to considerably reduce the space required for the actuator. Additionally, a truss structure is provided to support the moveable electrostatic combs and prevent bending or distortion of these combs due to unbalanced electrostatic forces or external loading. The truss structure formed about the moveable electrostatic combs allows the spacing between the interdigitated fingers of the combs to be reduced to about one micron or less, thereby substantially increasing the number of active fingers which can be provided in a given area. Finally, electrostatic shields can be used in the actuator to substantially reduce unwanted electrostatic fields to further improve performance of the device. As a result, the compact electrostatic comb actuator of the present invention occupies only a fraction of the space required for conventional electrostatic comb actuators, while providing a substantial increase in the available drive force (up to one-hundred times).

Maintaining stable radiation pressure acceleration of ion beams via cascaded electron replenishment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shen, X. F.; Qiao, B.; Chang, H. X.; Zhang, W. L.; Zhang, H.; Zhou, C. T.; He, X. T.

2017-03-01

A method to maintain ion stable radiation pressure acceleration (RPA) from laser-irradiated thin foils is proposed, where a series of high-Z nanofilms are placed behind to successively replenish co-moving electrons into the accelerating foil as electron charging stations (ECSs). Such replenishment of co-moving electrons, on the one hand, helps to keep a dynamic balance between the electrostatic pressure in the accelerating slab and the increasing laser radiation pressure with a Gaussian temporal profile at the rising front, i.e. dynamically matching the optimal condition of RPA; on the other hand, it aids in suppressing the foil Coulomb explosion due to loss of electrons induced by transverse instabilities during RPA. Two-dimensional and three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations show that a monoenergetic Si14+ beam with a peak energy of 3.7 GeV and particle number 4.8× {10}9 (charge 11 nC) can be obtained at an intensity of 7 × 1021 W cm-2 and the conversion efficiency from laser to high energy ions is improved significantly by using the ECSs in our scheme.

Phase transition of a DPPC bilayer induced by an external surface pressure: from bilayer to monolayer behavior. a molecular dynamics simulation study.

PubMed

López Cascales, J J; Otero, T F; Fernandez Romero, A J; Camacho, L

2006-06-20

Understanding the lipid phase transition of lipid bilayers is of great interest from biophysical, physicochemical, and technological points of view. With the aim of elucidating the structural changes that take place in a DPPC phospholipid bilayer induced by an external isotropic surface pressure, five computer simulations were carried out in a range from 0.1 to 40 mN/m. Molecular dynamics simulations provided insight into the structural changes that took place in the lipid structure. It was seen that low pressures ranging from 0.1 to 1 mN/m had hardly any effect on the structure, electrical properties, or hydration of the lipid bilayer. However, for pressures above 40 mN/m, there was a sharp change in the lipid-lipid interactions, hydrocarbon lipid fluidity, and electrostatic potential, corresponding to the mesomorphic transition from a liquid crystalline state (L(alpha)) to its gel state (P'(beta)). The head lipid orientation remained almost unaltered, parallel to the lipid layer, as the surface pressure was increased, although a noticeable change in its angular distribution function was evident with the phase transition.

Catalytic hydrodeoxygenation of methyl-substituted phenols: correlations of kinetic parameters with molecular properties.

PubMed

Massoth, F E; Politzer, P; Concha, M C; Murray, J S; Jakowski, J; Simons, Jack

2006-07-27

The hydrodeoxygenation of methyl-substituted phenols was carried out in a flow microreactor at 300 degrees C and 2.85 MPa hydrogen pressure over a sulfided CoMo/Al(2)O(3) catalyst. The primary reaction products were methyl-substituted benzene, cyclohexene, cyclohexane, and H(2)O. Analysis of the results suggests that two independent reaction paths are operative, one leading to aromatics and the other to partially or completely hydrogenated cyclohexanes. The reaction data were analyzed using Langmuir-Hinshelwood kinetics to extract the values of the reactant-to-catalyst adsorption constant and of the rate constants characterizing the two reaction paths. The adsorption constant was found to be the same for both reactions, suggesting that a single catalytic site center is operative in both reactions. Ab initio electronic structure calculations were used to evaluate the electrostatic potentials and valence orbital ionization potentials for all of the substituted phenol reactants. Correlations were observed between (a) the adsorption constant and the two reaction rate constants measured for various methyl-substitutions and (b) certain moments of the electrostatic potentials and certain orbitals' ionization potentials of the isolated phenol molecules. On the basis of these correlations to intrinsic reactant-molecule properties, a reaction mechanism is proposed for each pathway, and it is suggested that the dependencies of adsorption and reaction rates upon methyl-group substitution are a result of the substituents' effects on the electrostatic potential and orbitals rather than geometric (steric) effects.

Anomalous columnar order of charged colloidal platelets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Morales-Anda, L.; Wensink, H. H.; Galindo, A.; Gil-Villegas, A.

2012-01-01

Monte Carlo computer simulations are carried out for a model system of like-charged colloidal platelets in the isothermal-isobaric ensemble (NpT). The aim is to elucidate the role of electrostatic interactions on the structure of synthetic clay systems at high particle densities. Short-range repulsions between particles are described by a suitable hard-core model representing a discotic particle. This potential is supplemented with an electrostatic potential based on a Yukawa model for the screened Coulombic potential between infinitely thin disklike macro-ions. The particle aspect-ratio and electrostatic parameters were chosen to mimic an aqueous dispersion of thin, like-charged, rigid colloidal platelets at finite salt concentration. An examination of the fluid phase diagram reveals a marked shift in the isotropic-nematic transition compared to the hard cut-sphere reference system. Several statistical functions, such as the pair correlation function for the center-of-mass coordinates and structure factor, are obtained to characterize the structural organization of the platelets phases. At low salinity and high osmotic pressure we observe anomalous hexagonal columnar structures characterized by interpenetrating columns with a typical intercolumnar distance corresponding to about half of that of a regular columnar phase. Increasing the ionic strength leads to the formation of glassy, disordered structures consisting of compact clusters of platelets stacked into finite-sized columns. These so-called "nematic columnar" structures have been recently observed in systems of charge-stabilized gibbsite platelets. Our findings are corroborated by an analysis of the static structure factor from a simple density functional theory.

Total fluid pressure imbalance in the scrape-off layer of tokamak plasmas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Churchill, R. M.; Canik, J. M.; Chang, C. S.; Hager, R.; Leonard, A. W.; Maingi, R.; Nazikian, R.; Stotler, D. P.

2017-04-01

Simulations using the fully kinetic neoclassical code XGCa (X-point included guiding- center axisymmetric) were undertaken to explore the impact of kinetic effects on scrape-off layer (SOL) physics in DIII-D H-mode plasmas. XGCa is a total-f, gyrokinetic code which self-consistently calculates the axisymmetric electrostatic potential and plasma dynamics, and includes modules for Monte Carlo neutral transport. Previously presented XGCa results showed several noteworthy features, including large variations of ion density and pressure along field lines in the SOL, experimentally relevant levels of SOL parallel ion flow (Mach number  ˜ 0.5), skewed ion distributions near the sheath entrance leading to subsonic flow there, and elevated sheath potentials (Churchill 2016 Nucl. Mater. Energy 1-6). In this paper, we explore in detail the question of pressure balance in the SOL, as it was observed in the simulation that there was a large deviation from a simple total pressure balance (the sum of ion and electron static pressure plus ion inertia). It will be shown that both the contributions from the ion viscosity (driven by ion temperature anisotropy) and neutral source terms can be substantial, and should be retained in the parallel momentum equation in the SOL, but still falls short of accounting for the observed fluid pressure imbalance in the XGCa simulation results.

Electrostatically screened, voltage-controlled electrostatic chuck

DOEpatents

Klebanoff, Leonard Elliott

2001-01-01

Employing an electrostatically screened, voltage-controlled electrostatic chuck particularly suited for holding wafers and masks in sub-atmospheric operations will significantly reduce the likelihood of contaminant deposition on the substrates. The electrostatic chuck includes (1) an insulator block having a outer perimeter and a planar surface adapted to support the substrate and comprising at least one electrode (typically a pair of electrodes that are embedded in the insulator block), (2) a source of voltage that is connected to the at least one electrode, (3) a support base to which the insulator block is attached, and (4) a primary electrostatic shield ring member that is positioned around the outer perimeter of the insulator block. The electrostatic chuck permits control of the voltage of the lithographic substrate; in addition, it provides electrostatic shielding of the stray electric fields issuing from the sides of the electrostatic chuck. The shielding effectively prevents electric fields from wrapping around to the upper or front surface of the substrate, thereby eliminating electrostatic particle deposition.

Casein micelle dissociation in skim milk during high-pressure treatment: effects of pressure, pH, and temperature.

PubMed

Orlien, V; Boserup, L; Olsen, K

2010-01-01

The effect of pH (from 5.5 to 7.5) and temperature (from 5 to 40 degrees C) on the turbidity of reconstituted skim milk powder was investigated at ambient pressure and in situ under pressure (up to 500MPa) by measurement of light scattering. High-pressure treatment reduced the turbidity of milk for all combinations of pH and temperature due to micelle dissociation. The turbidity profiles had a characteristic sigmoidal shape in which almost no effect on turbidity was observed at low pressures (100MPa), followed by a stronger pressure dependency over a pressure range of 150MPa during which turbidity decreased extremely. From the turbidity profiles, the threshold pressure for disruption of micelle integrity was determined and ranged from 150MPa at low pH to 350-400MPa at high pH. The threshold pressure diagram clearly showed a relationship between the barostability of casein micelles and pH, whereas almost no effect of temperature was shown. This remarkable pH effect was a consequence of pressure-induced changes in the electrostatic interactions between colloidal calcium phosphate and the caseins responsible for maintaining micellar structure and was explained by a shift in the calcium phosphate balance in the micelle-serum system. Accordingly, a mechanism for high pressure-induced disruption of micelle integrity is suggested in which the state of calcium plays a crucial role in the micelle dissociation process. Copyright 2010 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Characterization of airborne transducers by optical tomography

PubMed

Bou Matar O; Pizarro; Certon; Remenieras; Patat

2000-03-01

This paper describes the application of an acousto-optic method to the measurement of airborne ultrasound. The method consists of a heterodyne interferometric probing of the pressure emitted by the transducer combined with a tomographic algorithm. The heterodyne interferometer measures the optical phase shift of the probe laser beam, proportional to the acoustic pressure integrated along the light path. A number of projections of the sound field, e.g. a set of ray integrals obtained along parallel paths, are made in moving the transducer to be tested. The main advantage of the method is its very high sensitivity in air (2 x 10(-4) Pa Hz-1/2), combined with a large bandwidth. Using the same principle as X-ray tomography the ultrasonic pressure in a plane perpendicular to the transducer axis can be reconstructed. Several ultrasonic fields emitted by wide-band home made electrostatic transducers, with operating frequencies between 200 and 700 kHz, have been measured. The sensitivities compared favorably with those of commercial airborne transducers.

Effects of internal structure on equilibrium of field-reversed configuration plasma sustained by rotating magnetic field

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

Yambe, Kiyoyuki; Inomoto, Michiaki; Okada, Shigefumi

The effects of an internal structure on the equilibrium of a field-reversed configuration (FRC) plasma sustained by rotating magnetic field is investigated by using detailed electrostatic probe measurements in the FRC Injection Experiment apparatus [S. Okada, et al., Nucl. Fusion. 45, 1094 (2005)]. An internal structure installed axially on the geometrical axis, which simulates Ohmic transformer or external toroidal field coils on the FRC device, brings about substantial changes in plasma density profile. The internal structure generates steep density-gradients not only on the inner side but on the outer side of the torus. The radial electric field is observed tomore » sustain the ion thermal pressure-gradient in the FRC without the internal structure; however, the radial electric field is not sufficient to sustain the increased ion thermal pressure-gradient in the FRC with the internal structure. Spontaneously driven azimuthal ion flow will be accountable for the imbalance of the radial pressure which is modified by the internal structure.« less

Pressure Dependence of Insulator-Insulator Contact Charging

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hogue, Michael D.

2005-01-01

The mechanism of insulator-insulator triboelectric (contact) charging is being studied by the Electrostatics and Surface Physics Laboratory at KSC. The hypothesis that surface ion exchange is the primary mechanism is being tested experimentally. A two-phase model based on a small partial pressure of singly charged ions in an ambient ideal gas in equilibrium with a submonolayer adsorbed film will provide predictions about charging as a function Of ion mass, pressure, temperature, and surface adsorption energy. Interactions between ions will be considered in terms of coulombic and screened potential energies. This work is yielding better understanding of the triboelectrification of insulators, which is an important problem in. space exploration technology. The work is also relevant to important industrial processes such as xerography and the application of paints and coatings. Determining a better understanding of the fundamental mechanism of insulator-insulator triboelectrification will hopefully lead to better means of eliminating or at least mitigating its hazards and enhancing its useful applications.

Landing in the future: Biological experiments on Earth and in space orbit

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pokrovskiy, A.

1980-09-01

The development of an Earth biosatellite to duplicate the parameters of pressure, temperature, humidity and others in a space environment onboard Cosmos-1129 is discussed. Effects of a space environment on fruit flies, dogs, laboratory rats in procreation, behavior, stress, biorhythm, body composition, gravitation preference, and cell cultures are examined. The space environment for agricultural products is also studied. The effects of heavy nuclei of galactic space radiation on biological objects inside and outside the satellite is studied, and methods of electrostatic protection are developed.

Experimental and Numerical Examination of a Hall Thruster Plume (Preprint)

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-07-31

Hall thruster has been characterized through measurements from various plasma electrostatic probes. Ion current flux, plasma potential, plasma density, and electron temperatures were measured from the near-field plume to 60 cm downstream of the exit plane. These experimentally derived measurements were compared to numerical simulations run with the plasma plume code DRACO. A major goal of this study was to determine the fidelity of the DRACO numerical simulation. The effect of background pressure on the thruster plume was also examined using ion current flux measurements

Upstream ionization instability associated with a current-free double layer.

PubMed

Aanesland, A; Charles, C; Lieberman, M A; Boswell, R W

2006-08-18

A low frequency instability has been observed using various electrostatic probes in a low-pressure expanding helicon plasma. The instability is associated with the presence of a current-free double layer (DL). The frequency of the instability increases linearly with the potential drop of the DL, and simultaneous measurements show their coexistence. A theory for an upstream ionization instability has been developed, which shows that electrons accelerated through the DL increase the ionization upstream and are responsible for the observed instability. The theory is in good agreement with the experimental results.

The prevention of electronical breakdown and electrostatic voltage problems in the space shuttle and its payloads. Part 2: Design guides and operations considerations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Whitson, D. W.

1975-01-01

The specific electrical discharge problems that can directly affect the shuttle vehicle and its payloads are addressed. General design guidelines are provided to assist flight hardware managers in minimizing these kinds of problems. Specific data are included on workmanship practices and system testing while in low pressure environments. Certain electrical discharge problems that may be unique to the design of the shuttle vehicle itself and to its various mission operational models are discussed.

Landing in the future: Biological experiments on Earth and in space orbit

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pokrovskiy, A.

1980-01-01

The development of an Earth biosatellite to duplicate the parameters of pressure, temperature, humidity and others in a space environment onboard Cosmos-1129 is discussed. Effects of a space environment on fruit flies, dogs, laboratory rats in procreation, behavior, stress, biorhythm, body composition, gravitation preference, and cell cultures are examined. The space environment for agricultural products is also studied. The effects of heavy nuclei of galactic space radiation on biological objects inside and outside the satellite is studied, and methods of electrostatic protection are developed.

Electrostatic measurement of plasma plume characteristics in pulsed laser evaporated carbon

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mayo, R. M.; Newman, J. W.; Sharma, A.; Yamagata, Y.; Narayan, J.

1999-09-01

A triple Langmuir probe measurement has been implemented to investigate plasma plume character in low fluence (˜3.0 J/cm2) pulsed laser evaporation (PLE) discharges and has been found to be an extremely valuable tool. Absolute plasma plume density estimates are found to reside in the range 1.0×1013-2.0×1014cm-3 for vacuum pulses. A simple heavy particle streaming model for vacuum pulses allows estimates of the plume ionization fraction of ˜10%. This is consistent with typical deposition inventory suggesting that high kinetic energy ions may play an important role in diamond-like carbon (DLC) film deposition. Electron temperature inferred from the electrostatic probe is found to consistently reside in the range 0.5-3.0 eV, and appears to be uninfluenced by operating conditions and large variations in Ar and N2 fill gas pressure. Consistent with strong plume ion and neutral particle coupling to the background fill, constancy of Te suggests expulsion of background gas by the energetic plume. The leading edge ion plume speed is measured via temporal displacement of spatially separated probe signals on consecutive PLE pulses. Flow speeds as high as 5.0×104m/s are observed, corresponding to ˜156 eV in C+. The ion flow speed is found to be a strongly decreasing function of fill pressure from an average high of ˜126 eV in vacuum to ˜0.24 eV at 600 mTorr N2. Raman scattering spectroscopy indicates DLC film quality also degrades with fill pressure suggesting the importance of high ion kinetic energy in producing good quality films, consistent with earlier work demonstrating the importance of energetic particles. Optical emission indicates an increase in C2 molecular light intensity with fill gas pressure implying a reduced, if any, role of these species in DLC production. Ion current signal anomalies are often seen during high pressure pulses. It is suggested that this may indicate the formation of high mass carbon clusters during plume evolution in the presence of background gas. Mass diffusivity estimates, based on density decay, suggest the presence of C2+ under these conditions. Demonstration and control of such cluster formation may provide method(s) for controlling novel advanced materials properties.

Analytical treatment of the deformation behavior of EUVL masks during electrostatic chucking

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brandstetter, Gerd; Govindjee, Sanjay

2012-03-01

A new analytical approach is presented to predict mask deformation during electro-static chucking in next generation extreme-ultraviolet-lithography (EUVL). Given an arbitrary profile measurement of the mask and chuck non-flatness, this method has been developed as an alternative to time-consuming finite element simulations for overlay error correction algorithms. We consider the feature transfer of each harmonic component in the profile shapes via linear elasticity theory and demonstrate analytically how high spatial frequencies are filtered. The method is compared to presumably more accurate finite element simulations and has been tested successfully in an overlay error compensation experiment, where the residual error y-component could be reduced by a factor 2. As a side outcome, the formulation provides a tool to estimate the critical pin-size and -pitch such that the distortion on the mask front-side remains within given tolerances. We find for a numerical example that pin-pitches of less than 5 mm will result in a mask pattern-distortion of less than 1 nm if the chucking pressure is below 30 kPa.

Analytical treatment of the deformation behavior of extreme-ultraviolet-lithography masks during electrostatic chucking

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brandstetter, Gerd; Govindjee, Sanjay

2012-10-01

A new analytical approach is presented to predict mask deformation during electrostatic chucking in next-generation extreme-ultraviolet-lithography. Given an arbitrary profile measurement of the mask and chuck nonflatness, this method has been developed as an alternative to time-consuming finite element simulations for overlay error correction algorithms. We consider the feature transfer of each harmonic component in the profile shapes via linear elasticity theory and demonstrate analytically how high spatial frequencies are filtered. The method is compared to presumably more accurate finite element simulations and has been tested successfully in an overlay error compensation experiment, where the residual error y-component could be reduced by a factor of 2. As a side outcome, the formulation provides a tool to estimate the critical pin-size and -pitch such that the distortion on the mask front-side remains within given tolerances. We find for a numerical example that pin-pitches of less than 5 mm will result in a mask pattern distortion of less than 1 nm if the chucking pressure is below 30 kPa.

On the improvement for charging large-scale flexible electrostatic actuators

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liao, Hsu-Ching; Chen, Han-Long; Su, Yu-Hao; Chen, Yu-Chi; Ko, Wen-Ching; Liou, Chang-Ho; Wu, Wen-Jong; Lee, Chih-Kung

2011-04-01

Recently, the development of flexible electret based electrostatic actuator has been widely discussed. The devices was shown to have high sound quality, energy saving, flexible structure and can be cut to any shape. However, achieving uniform charge on the electret diaphragm is one of the most critical processes needed to have the speaker ready for large-scale production. In this paper, corona discharge equipment contains multi-corona probes and grid bias was set up to inject spatial charges within the electret diaphragm. The optimal multi-corona probes system was adjusted to achieve uniform charge distribution of electret diaphragm. The processing conditions include the distance between the corona probes, the voltages of corona probe and grid bias, etc. We assembled the flexible electret loudspeakers first and then measured their sound pressure and beam pattern. The uniform charge distribution within the electret diaphragm based flexible electret loudspeaker provided us with the opportunity to shape the loudspeaker arbitrarily and to tailor the sound distribution per specifications request. Some of the potential futuristic applications for this device such as sound poster, smart clothes, and sound wallpaper, etc. were discussed as well.

Full-field drift Hamiltonian particle orbits in 3D geometry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cooper, W. A.; Graves, J. P.; Brunner, S.; Isaev, M. Yu

2011-02-01

A Hamiltonian/Lagrangian theory to describe guiding centre orbit drift motion which is canonical in the Boozer coordinate frame has been extended to include full electromagnetic perturbed fields in anisotropic pressure 3D equilibria with nested magnetic flux surfaces. A redefinition of the guiding centre velocity to eliminate the motion due to finite equilibrium radial magnetic fields and the choice of a gauge condition that sets the radial component of the electromagnetic vector potential to zero are invoked to guarantee that the Boozer angular coordinates retain the canonical structure. The canonical momenta are identified and the guiding centre particle radial drift motion and parallel gyroradius evolution are derived. The particle coordinate position is linearly modified by wave-particle interactions. All the nonlinear wave-wave interactions appear explicitly only in the evolution of the parallel gyroradius. The radial variation of the electrostatic potential is related to the binormal component of the displacement vector for MHD-type perturbations. The electromagnetic vector potential projections can then be determined from the electrostatic potential and the radial component of the MHD displacement vector.

Instrumentation and Methodology Development for Mars Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chen, Yuan-Liang Albert

2002-01-01

The Mars environment comprises a dry, cold and low air pressure atmosphere with low gravity (0.38g) and high resistivity soil. The global dust storms that cover a large portion of Mars were observed often from Earth. This environment provides an idea condition for triboelectric charging. The extremely dry conditions on the Martian surface have raised concerns that electrostatic charge buildup will not be dissipated easily. If triboelectrically generated charge cannot be dissipated or avoided, then dust will accumulate on charged surfaces and electrostatic discharge may cause hazards for future exploration missions. The low surface temperature on Mars helps to prolong the charge decay on the dust particles and soil. To better understand the physics of Martian charged dust particles is essential to future Mars missions. We research and design two sensors, velocity/charge sensor and PZT momentum sensors, to detect the velocity distribution, charge distribution and mass distribution of Martian charged dust particles. These sensors are fabricated at NASA Kenney Space Center, Electromagnetic Physics Testbed. The sensors will be tested and calibrated for simulated Mars atmosphere condition with JSC MARS-1 Martian Regolith simulant in this NASA laboratory.

Laser Radiation Pressure Acceleration of Monoenergetic Protons in an Ultra-Thin Foil

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eliasson, Bengt; Liu, Chuan S.; Shao, Xi; Sagdeev, Roald Z.; Shukla, Padma K.

2009-11-01

We present theoretical and numerical studies of the acceleration of monoenergetic protons in a double layer formed by the laser irradiation of an ultra-thin film. The stability of the foil is investigated by direct Vlasov-Maxwell simulations for different sets of laser-plasma parameters. It is found that the foil is stable, due to the trapping of both electrons and ions in the thin laser-plasma interaction region, where the electrons are trapped in a potential well composed of the ponderomo-tive potential of the laser light and the electrostatic potential due to the ions, and the ions are trapped in a potential well composed of the inertial potential in an accelerated frame and the electrostatic potential due to the electrons. The result is a stable double layer, where the trapped ions are accelerated to monoenergetic energies up to 100 MeV and beyond, which makes them suitable for medical applications cancer treatment. The underlying physics of trapped and untapped ions in a double layer is also investigated theoretically and numerically.

Study on the shrinkage behavior and conductivity of silver microwires during electrostatic field assisted sintering

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shangguan, Lei; Ma, Liuhong; Li, Mengke; Peng, Wei; Zhong, Yinghui; Su, Yufeng; Duan, Zhiyong

2018-05-01

An electrostatic field was applied to sintering Ag microwires to achieve a more compact structure and better conductivity. The shrinkage behavior of Ag microwires shows anisotropy, since bigger particle sizes, less micropores and smoother surfaces were observed in the direction of the electrostatic field in comparsion with the direction perpendicular to the electrostatic field, and the shrinkage rate of Ag microwires in the direction of electrostatic field improves about 2.4% with the electrostatic field intensity of 800 V cm‑1. The electrostatic field assisted sintering model of Ag microwires is proposed according to thermal diffuse dynamics analysis and experimental research. Moreover, the grain size of Ag microwres sintered with electrostatic field increases with the electrostatic field intensity and reaches 113 nm when the electrostatic field intensity is 800 V cm‑1, and the resistivity decreases to 2.07  ×  10‑8 Ω m as well. This method may overcome the restriction of metal wires which fabricated by the pseudoplastic metal nanoparticle fluid and be used as interconnects in nanoimprint lithography.

Electrostatic actuators for portable microfluidic systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tice, Joshua

Both developed and developing nations have an urgent need to diagnose disease cheaply, reliably, and independently of centralized facilities. Microfulidic platforms are well-positioned to address the need for portable diagnostics, mainly due to their obvious advantage in size. However, most microfluidic methods rely on equipment outside of the chip either for driving fluid flow (e.g., syringe pumps) or for taking measurements (e.g., lasers or microscopes). The energy and space requirements of the whole system inhibit portability and contribute to costs. To capitalize on the strengths of microfluidic platforms and address the serious needs of society, system components need to be miniaturized. Also, miniaturization should be accomplished as simply as possible, considering that simplicity is usually requisite for achieving truly transformative technology. Herein, I attempt to address the issue of controlling fluid flow in portable microfluidic systems. I focus on systems that are driven by elastomer-based membrane valves, since these valves are inherently simple, yet they are capable of sophisticated fluid manipulation. Others have attempted to modify pneumatic microvalves for portable applications, e.g., by transitioning to electromagnetic, thermopneumatic, or piezoelectric actuation principles. However, none of these strategies maintain the proper balance of simplicity, functionality, and ease of integration. My research centers on electrostatic actuators, due to their conceptual simplicity and the efficacy of electrostatic forces on the microscale. To ensure easy integration with polymer-based systems, and to maintain simplicity in the fabrication procedure, the actuators were constructed solely from poly(dimethylsiloxane) and multi-walled carbon nanotubes. In addition, the actuators were fabricated exclusively with soft-lithographic techniques. A mathematical model was developed to identify actuator parameters compatible with soft-lithography, and also to minimize actuation potentials while eliminating stiction. Two strategies were developed to overcome challenges with electrode screening in the presence of aqueous fluids. First, instead of using the electrostatic actuators to interact directly with aqueous solutions, the actuators were used to regulate pressurized control lines for pneumatic microvalves. Secondly, by adopting a normally-closed architecture, the actuators were converted into microvalves capable of directly interacting with aqueous solutions. The two strategies are complementary, and together should enable sophisticated microfluidic systems for applications ranging from point-of-care diagnostics to portable chemical detection. To conclude the dissertation, I demonstrate a proof-of-principle microfluidic system that contained sixteen independently-operated electrostatic valves, operated with battery-operated electrical ancillaries in a hand-held format.

Protein electrostatics: a review of the equations and methods used to model electrostatic equations in biomolecules--applications in biotechnology.

PubMed

Neves-Petersen, Maria Teresa; Petersen, Steffen B

2003-01-01

The molecular understanding of the initial interaction between a protein and, e.g., its substrate, a surface or an inhibitor is essentially an understanding of the role of electrostatics in intermolecular interactions. When studying biomolecules it is becoming increasingly evident that electrostatic interactions play a role in folding, conformational stability, enzyme activity and binding energies as well as in protein-protein interactions. In this chapter we present the key basic equations of electrostatics necessary to derive the equations used to model electrostatic interactions in biomolecules. We will also address how to solve such equations. This chapter is divided into two major sections. In the first part we will review the basic Maxwell equations of electrostatics equations called the Laws of Electrostatics that combined will result in the Poisson equation. This equation is the starting point of the Poisson-Boltzmann (PB) equation used to model electrostatic interactions in biomolecules. Concepts as electric field lines, equipotential surfaces, electrostatic energy and when can electrostatics be applied to study interactions between charges will be addressed. In the second part we will arrive at the electrostatic equations for dielectric media such as a protein. We will address the theory of dielectrics and arrive at the Poisson equation for dielectric media and at the PB equation, the main equation used to model electrostatic interactions in biomolecules (e.g., proteins, DNA). It will be shown how to compute forces and potentials in a dielectric medium. In order to solve the PB equation we will present the continuum electrostatic models, namely the Tanford-Kirkwood and the modified Tandord-Kirkwood methods. Priority will be given to finding the protonation state of proteins prior to solving the PB equation. We also present some methods that can be used to map and study the electrostatic potential distribution on the molecular surface of proteins. The combination of graphical visualisation of the electrostatic fields combined with knowledge about the location of key residues on the protein surface allows us to envision atomic models for enzyme function. Finally, we exemplify the use of some of these methods on the enzymes of the lipase family.

Investigation of Electrostatic Accelerometer in HUST for Space Science Missions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bai, Yanzheng; Hu, Ming; Li, Gui; Liu, Li; Qu, Shaobo; Wu, Shuchao; Zhou, Zebing

2014-05-01

High-precision electrostatic accelerometers are significant payload in CHAMP, GRACE and GOCE gravity missions to measure the non-gravitational forces. In our group, space electrostatic accelerometer and inertial sensor based on the capacitive sensors and electrostatic control technique has been investigated for space science research in China such as testing of equivalence principle (TEPO), searching non-Newtonian force in micrometer range, satellite Earth's field recovery and so on. In our group, a capacitive position sensor with a resolution of 10-7pF/Hz1/2 and the μV/Hz1/2 level electrostatic actuator are developed. The fiber torsion pendulum facility is adopt to measure the parameters of the electrostatic controlled inertial sensor such as the resolution, and the electrostatic stiffness, the cross couple between different DOFs. Meanwhile, high voltage suspension and free fall methods are applied to verify the function of electrostatic accelerometer. Last, the engineering model of electrostatic accelerometer has been developed and tested successfully in space and preliminary results are present.

Molecular simulation of the swelling of polyelectrolyte gels by monovalent and divalent counterions

PubMed Central

Yin, De-Wei; Horkay, Ferenc; Douglas, Jack F.; de Pablo, Juan J.

2008-01-01

Permanently crosslinked polyelectrolyte gels are known to undergo discontinuous first-order volume phase transitions, the onset of which may be caused by a number of factors. In this study we examine the volumetric properties of such polyelectrolyte gels in relation to the progressive substitution of monovalent counterions by divalent counterions as the gels are equilibrated in solvents of different dielectric qualities. We compare the results of coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations of polyelectrolyte gels with previous experimental measurements by others on polyacrylate gels. The simulations show that under equilibrium conditions there is an approximate cancellation between the electrostatic contribution and the counterion excluded-volume contribution to the osmotic pressure in the gel-solvent system; these two contributions to the osmotic pressure have, respectively, energetic and entropic origins. The finding of such a cancellation between the two contributions to the osmotic pressure of the gel-solvent system is consistent with experimental observations that the swelling behavior of polyelectrolyte gels can be described by equations of state for neutral gels. Based on these results, we show and explain that a modified form of the Flory–Huggins model for nonionic polymer solutions, which accounts for neither electrostatic effects nor counterion excluded-volume effects, fits both experimental and simulated data for polyelectrolyte gels. The Flory–Huggins interaction parameters obtained from regression to the simulation data are characteristic of ideal polymer solutions, whereas the experimentally obtained interaction parameters, particularly that associated with the third virial coefficient, exhibit a significant departure from ideality, leading us to conclude that further enhancements to the simulation model, such as the inclusion of excess salt, the allowance for size asymmetric electrolytes, or the use of a distance-dependent solvent dielectricity model, may be required. Molecular simulations also reveal that the condensation of divalent counterions onto the polyelectrolyte network backbone occurs preferentially over that of monovalent counterions. PMID:19045224

Molecular simulation of the swelling of polyelectrolyte gels by monovalent and divalent counterions.

PubMed

Yin, De-Wei; Horkay, Ferenc; Douglas, Jack F; de Pablo, Juan J

2008-10-21

Permanently crosslinked polyelectrolyte gels are known to undergo discontinuous first-order volume phase transitions, the onset of which may be caused by a number of factors. In this study we examine the volumetric properties of such polyelectrolyte gels in relation to the progressive substitution of monovalent counterions by divalent counterions as the gels are equilibrated in solvents of different dielectric qualities. We compare the results of coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations of polyelectrolyte gels with previous experimental measurements by others on polyacrylate gels. The simulations show that under equilibrium conditions there is an approximate cancellation between the electrostatic contribution and the counterion excluded-volume contribution to the osmotic pressure in the gel-solvent system; these two contributions to the osmotic pressure have, respectively, energetic and entropic origins. The finding of such a cancellation between the two contributions to the osmotic pressure of the gel-solvent system is consistent with experimental observations that the swelling behavior of polyelectrolyte gels can be described by equations of state for neutral gels. Based on these results, we show and explain that a modified form of the Flory-Huggins model for nonionic polymer solutions, which accounts for neither electrostatic effects nor counterion excluded-volume effects, fits both experimental and simulated data for polyelectrolyte gels. The Flory-Huggins interaction parameters obtained from regression to the simulation data are characteristic of ideal polymer solutions, whereas the experimentally obtained interaction parameters, particularly that associated with the third virial coefficient, exhibit a significant departure from ideality, leading us to conclude that further enhancements to the simulation model, such as the inclusion of excess salt, the allowance for size asymmetric electrolytes, or the use of a distance-dependent solvent dielectricity model, may be required. Molecular simulations also reveal that the condensation of divalent counterions onto the polyelectrolyte network backbone occurs preferentially over that of monovalent counterions.

Electrostatics in protein–protein docking

PubMed Central

Heifetz, Alexander; Katchalski-Katzir, Ephraim; Eisenstein, Miriam

2002-01-01

A novel geometric-electrostatic docking algorithm is presented, which tests and quantifies the electrostatic complementarity of the molecular surfaces together with the shape complementarity. We represent each molecule to be docked as a grid of complex numbers, storing information regarding the shape of the molecule in the real part and information regarding the electrostatic character of the molecule in the imaginary part. The electrostatic descriptors are derived from the electrostatic potential of the molecule. Thus, the electrostatic character of the molecule is represented as patches of positive, neutral, or negative values. The potential for each molecule is calculated only once and stored as potential spheres adequate for exhaustive rotation/translation scans. The geometric-electrostatic docking algorithm is applied to 17 systems, starting form the structures of the unbound molecules. The results—in terms of the complementarity scores of the nearly correct solutions, their ranking in the lists of sorted solutions, and their statistical uniqueness—are compared with those of geometric docking, showing that the inclusion of electrostatic complementarity in docking is very important, in particular in docking of unbound structures. Based on our results, we formulate several "good electrostatic docking rules": The geometric-electrostatic docking procedure is more successful than geometric docking when the potential patches are large and when the potential extends away from the molecular surface and protrudes into the solvent. In contrast, geometric docking is recommended when the electrostatic potential around the molecules to be docked appears homogenous, that is, with a similar sign all around the molecule. PMID:11847280

Expansion Rate Scaling and Energy Evolution in the Electron Diffusion Gauge Experiment.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Morrison, Kyle; Davidson, Ronald; Paul, Stephen; Jenkins, Thomas

2001-10-01

The expansion of the Electron Diffusion Gauge (EDG) pure electron plasma resulting from collisions with background neutral gas atoms is characterized by the pressure and magnetic field scalings of the profile expansion rate (d/dt) < r^2 >. The measured expansion rate in the higher pressure regime is found to be in good agreement with the classical estimate [ fracddt< r^2 > = frac2 NL e^2 ν_enm ω_c^2 (1+frac2TNL e^2). ] Expansion rate data is obtained for smaller initial plasmas (with outer diameter 1/4 of the trap wall diameter) generated with an improved filament installed in the EDG device, and the data is compared with previous results for larger-filament plasmas. The dynamic energy evolution of the plasma, including electrostatic energy and inferred temperature evolution for several of the measurements, is discussed.

Electrostatic potential map modelling with COSY Infinity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maloney, J. A.; Baartman, R.; Planche, T.; Saminathan, S.

2016-06-01

COSY Infinity (Makino and Berz, 2005) is a differential-algebra based simulation code which allows accurate calculation of transfer maps to arbitrary order. COSY's existing internal procedures were modified to allow electrostatic elements to be specified using an array of field potential data from the midplane. Additionally, a new procedure was created allowing electrostatic elements and their fringe fields to be specified by an analytic function. This allows greater flexibility in accurately modelling electrostatic elements and their fringe fields. Applied examples of these new procedures are presented including the modelling of a shunted electrostatic multipole designed with OPERA, a spherical electrostatic bender, and the effects of different shaped apertures in an electrostatic beam line.

Nonequilibrium 2-Hydroxyoctadecanoic Acid Monolayers: Effect of Electrolytes

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

Lendrum, Conrad D.; Ingham, Bridget; Lin, Binhua

2012-02-06

2-Hydroxyacids display complex monolayer phase behavior due to the additional hydrogen bonding afforded by the presence of the second hydroxy group. The placement of this group at the position {alpha} to the carboxylic acid functionality also introduces the possibility of chelation, a utility important in crystallization including biomineralization. Biomineralization, like many biological processes, is inherently a nonequilibrium process. The nonequilibrium monolayer phase behavior of 2-hydroxyoctadecanoic acid was investigated on each of pure water, calcium chloride, sodium bicarbonate and calcium carbonate crystallizing subphases as a precursor study to a model calcium carbonate biomineralizing system, each at a pH of {approx}6. Themore » role of the bicarbonate co-ion in manipulating the monolayer structure was determined by comparison with monolayer phase behavior on a sodium chloride subphase. Monolayer phase behavior was probed using surface pressure/area isotherms, surface potential, Brewster angle microscopy, and synchrotron-based grazing incidence X-ray diffraction and X-ray reflectivity. Complex phase behavior was observed for all but the sodium chloride subphase with hydrogen bonding, electrostatic and steric effects defining the symmetry of the monolayer. On a pure water subphase hydrogen bonding dominates with three phases coexisting at low pressures. Introduction of calcium ions into the aqueous subphase ensures strong cation binding to the surfactant head groups through chelation. The monolayer becomes very unstable in the presence of bicarbonate ions within the subphase due to short-range hydrogen bonding interactions between the monolayer and bicarbonate ions facilitated by the sodium cation enhancing surfactant solubility. The combined effects of electrostatics and hydrogen bonding are observed on the calcium carbonate crystallizing subphase.« less

Binding of cationic pentapeptides with modified side chain lengths to negatively charged lipid membranes: Complex interplay of electrostatic and hydrophobic interactions.

PubMed

Hoernke, Maria; Schwieger, Christian; Kerth, Andreas; Blume, Alfred

2012-07-01

Basic amino acids play a key role in the binding of membrane associated proteins to negatively charged membranes. However, side chains of basic amino acids like lysine do not only provide a positive charge, but also a flexible hydrocarbon spacer that enables hydrophobic interactions. We studied the influence of hydrophobic contributions to the binding by varying the side chain length of pentapeptides with ammonium groups starting with lysine to lysine analogs with shorter side chains, namely omithine (Orn), alpha, gamma-diaminobutyric acid (Dab) and alpha, beta-diaminopropionic acid (Dap). The binding to negatively charged phosphatidylglycerol (PG) membranes was investigated by calorimetry, FT-infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and monolayer techniques. The binding was influenced by counteracting and sometimes compensating contributions. The influence of the bound peptides on the lipid phase behavior depends on the length of the peptide side chains. Isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) experiments showed exothermic and endothermic effects compensating to a different extent as a function of side chain length. The increase in lipid phase transition temperature was more significant for peptides with shorter side chains. FTIR-spectroscopy revealed changes in hydration of the lipid bilayer interface after peptide binding. Using monolayer techniques, the contributions of electrostatic and hydrophobic effects could clearly be observed. Peptides with short side chains induced a pronounced decrease in surface pressure of PG monolayers whereas peptides with additional hydrophobic interactions decreased the surface pressure much less or even lead to an increase, indicating insertion of the hydrophobic part of the side chain into the lipid monolayer.

Suspended polytetrafluoroethylene nanostructure electret film in dual variable cavities for self-powered micro-shock sensing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhu, Jianxiong; Chen, Cong; Guo, Xiaoyu

2018-04-01

We report a suspended polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) nanostructure electret film in dual variable cavities for a self-powered micro-shock sensing application. The prototype contained series variable air cavities, a suspended nanostructure PTFE electret film and independent electrode films. The charges on the suspended nanostructure PTFE electret film provided the electrostatic field around the electret film in the series variable air cavities. When the reported device was driven by a micro-shock pressure, the inducted electrostatic charges on both the top and bottom electrodes would vary as the micro-shock pressing or releasing. Experimental results showed that the maximum of a short-circuit current density (J sc ) and an open-circuit voltage (V oc ) reached 3 ± 0.1 nA cm‑2 and 3.6 ± 0.1 V, respectively. It was found that the parameter J sc was more advantageous in identifying stronger shocks (parameter acceleration a bigger than 0.1 m s‑2), whereas the parameter V oc was more sensitive for weaker shocks, such as acceleration a smaller than 0.1 m s‑2. Moreover, finger continuous micro-shock pressure taps application was used to demonstrate the mechanical energy conversion performance with 4.5 ± 0.2 V open-circuit voltages. The research on the nanostructure electret PTFE film in series dual variable air cavities not only gave us a fresh idea about the principle and design of the shocking sensor, but also provided an easy fabrication and a low cost shocking sensor for the Internet of Things (IoT) systems.

Physicochemical controls on absorbed water film thickness in unsaturated geological media

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

Tokunaga, T.

2011-06-14

Adsorbed water films commonly coat mineral surfaces in unsaturated soils and rocks, reducing flow and transport rates. Therefore, it is important to understand how adsorbed film thickness depends on matric potential, surface chemistry, and solution chemistry. Here, the problem of adsorbed water film thickness is examined through combining capillary scaling with the Derjaguin-Landau-Verwey-Overbeek (DLVO) theory. Novel aspects of this analysis include determining capillary influences on film thicknesses, and incorporating solution chemistry-dependent electrostatic potential at air-water interfaces. Capillary analysis of monodisperse packings of spherical grains provided estimated ranges of matric potentials where adsorbed films are stable, and showed that pendular ringsmore » within drained porous media retain most of the 'residual' water except under very low matric potentials. Within drained pores, capillary contributions to thinning of adsorbed films on spherical grains are shown to be small, such that DLVO calculations for flat surfaces are suitable approximations. Hamaker constants of common soil minerals were obtained to determine ranges of the dispersion component to matric potential-dependent film thickness. The pressure component associated with electrical double layer forces was estimated using the compression and linear superposition approximations. The pH-dependent electrical double layer pressure component is the dominant contribution to film thicknesses at intermediate values of matric potential, especially in lower ionic strength solutions (< 10 mol m{sup -3}) on surfaces with higher magnitude electrostatic potentials (more negative than - 50 mV). Adsorbed water films are predicted to usually range in thickness from 1 to 20 nm in drained pores and fractures of unsaturated environments.« less

Physicochemical controls on adsorbed water film thickness in unsaturated geological media

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tokunaga, Tetsu K.

2011-08-01

Adsorbed water films commonly coat mineral surfaces in unsaturated soils and rocks, reducing flow and transport rates. Therefore, it is important to understand how adsorbed film thickness depends on matric potential, surface chemistry, and solution chemistry. Here the problem of adsorbed water film thickness is examined by combining capillary scaling with the Derjaguin-Landau-Verwey-Overbeek (DLVO) theory. Novel aspects of this analysis include determining capillary influences on film thicknesses and incorporating solution chemistry-dependent electrostatic potential at air-water interfaces. Capillary analysis of monodisperse packings of spherical grains provided estimated ranges of matric potentials where adsorbed films are stable and showed that pendular rings within drained porous media retain most of the "residual" water except under very low matric potentials. Within drained pores, capillary contributions to thinning of adsorbed films on spherical grains are shown to be small, such that DLVO calculations for flat surfaces are suitable approximations. Hamaker constants of common soil minerals were obtained to determine ranges of the dispersion component to matric potential-dependent film thickness. The pressure component associated with electrical double-layer forces was estimated using the compression and linear superposition approximations. The pH-dependent electrical double-layer pressure component is the dominant contribution to film thicknesses at intermediate values of matric potential, especially in lower ionic strength solutions (<10 mol m-3) on surfaces with higher-magnitude electrostatic potentials (more negative than ≈-50 mV). Adsorbed water films are predicted to usually range in thickness from ≈1 to 20 nm in drained pores and fractures of unsaturated environments.

Competitive adsorption of a binary CO2-CH4 mixture in nanoporous carbons: effects of edge-functionalization.

PubMed

Lu, Xiaoqing; Jin, Dongliang; Wei, Shuxian; Zhang, Mingmin; Zhu, Qing; Shi, Xiaofan; Deng, Zhigang; Guo, Wenyue; Shen, Wenzhong

2015-01-21

The effect of edge-functionalization on the competitive adsorption of a binary CO2-CH4 mixture in nanoporous carbons (NPCs) has been investigated for the first time by combining density functional theory (DFT) and grand canonical Monte Carlo (GCMC) simulation. Our results show that edge-functionalization has a more positive effect on the single-component adsorption of CO2 than CH4, therefore significantly enhancing the selectivity of CO2 over CH4, in the order of NH2-NPC > COOH-NPC > OH-NPC > H-NPC > NPC at low pressure. The enhanced adsorption originates essentially from the effects of (1) the conducive environment with a large pore size and an effective accessible surface area, (2) the high electronegativity/electropositivity, (3) the strong adsorption energy, and (4) the large electrostatic contribution, due to the inductive effect/direct interaction of the embedded edge-functionalized groups. The larger difference from these effects results in the higher competitive adsorption advantage of CO2 in the binary CO2-CH4 mixture. Temperature has a negative effect on the gas adsorption, but no obvious influence on the electrostatic contribution on selectivity. With the increase of pressure, the selectivity of CO2 over CH4 first decreases sharply and subsequently flattens out to a constant value. This work highlights the potential of edge-functionalized NPCs in competitive adsorption, capture, and separation for the binary CO2-CH4 mixture, and provides an effective and superior alternative strategy in the design and screening of adsorbent materials for carbon capture and storage.

A log-normal distribution model for the molecular weight of aquatic fulvic acids

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cabaniss, S.E.; Zhou, Q.; Maurice, P.A.; Chin, Y.-P.; Aiken, G.R.

2000-01-01

The molecular weight of humic substances influences their proton and metal binding, organic pollutant partitioning, adsorption onto minerals and activated carbon, and behavior during water treatment. We propose a lognormal model for the molecular weight distribution in aquatic fulvic acids to provide a conceptual framework for studying these size effects. The normal curve mean and standard deviation are readily calculated from measured M(n) and M(w) and vary from 2.7 to 3 for the means and from 0.28 to 0.37 for the standard deviations for typical aquatic fulvic acids. The model is consistent with several types of molecular weight data, including the shapes of high- pressure size-exclusion chromatography (HP-SEC) peaks. Applications of the model to electrostatic interactions, pollutant solubilization, and adsorption are explored in illustrative calculations.The molecular weight of humic substances influences their proton and metal binding, organic pollutant partitioning, adsorption onto minerals and activated carbon, and behavior during water treatment. We propose a log-normal model for the molecular weight distribution in aquatic fulvic acids to provide a conceptual framework for studying these size effects. The normal curve mean and standard deviation are readily calculated from measured Mn and Mw and vary from 2.7 to 3 for the means and from 0.28 to 0.37 for the standard deviations for typical aquatic fulvic acids. The model is consistent with several type's of molecular weight data, including the shapes of high-pressure size-exclusion chromatography (HP-SEC) peaks. Applications of the model to electrostatic interactions, pollutant solubilization, and adsorption are explored in illustrative calculations.

Electrostatics, structure prediction, and the energy landscapes for protein folding and binding.

PubMed

Tsai, Min-Yeh; Zheng, Weihua; Balamurugan, D; Schafer, Nicholas P; Kim, Bobby L; Cheung, Margaret S; Wolynes, Peter G

2016-01-01

While being long in range and therefore weakly specific, electrostatic interactions are able to modulate the stability and folding landscapes of some proteins. The relevance of electrostatic forces for steering the docking of proteins to each other is widely acknowledged, however, the role of electrostatics in establishing specifically funneled landscapes and their relevance for protein structure prediction are still not clear. By introducing Debye-Hückel potentials that mimic long-range electrostatic forces into the Associative memory, Water mediated, Structure, and Energy Model (AWSEM), a transferable protein model capable of predicting tertiary structures, we assess the effects of electrostatics on the landscapes of thirteen monomeric proteins and four dimers. For the monomers, we find that adding electrostatic interactions does not improve structure prediction. Simulations of ribosomal protein S6 show, however, that folding stability depends monotonically on electrostatic strength. The trend in predicted melting temperatures of the S6 variants agrees with experimental observations. Electrostatic effects can play a range of roles in binding. The binding of the protein complex KIX-pKID is largely assisted by electrostatic interactions, which provide direct charge-charge stabilization of the native state and contribute to the funneling of the binding landscape. In contrast, for several other proteins, including the DNA-binding protein FIS, electrostatics causes frustration in the DNA-binding region, which favors its binding with DNA but not with its protein partner. This study highlights the importance of long-range electrostatics in functional responses to problems where proteins interact with their charged partners, such as DNA, RNA, as well as membranes. © 2015 The Protein Society.

STABILITY OF A CYLINDRICAL SOLUTE-SOLVENT INTERFACE: EFFECT OF GEOMETRY, ELECTROSTATICS, AND HYDRODYNAMICS.

PubMed

Li, B O; Sun, Hui; Zhou, Shenggao

The solute-solvent interface that separates biological molecules from their surrounding aqueous solvent characterizes the conformation and dynamics of such molecules. In this work, we construct a solvent fluid dielectric boundary model for the solvation of charged molecules and apply it to study the stability of a model cylindrical solute-solvent interface. The motion of the solute-solvent interface is defined to be the same as that of solvent fluid at the interface. The solvent fluid is assumed to be incompressible and is described by the Stokes equation. The solute is modeled simply by the ideal-gas law. All the viscous force, hydrostatic pressure, solute-solvent van der Waals interaction, surface tension, and electrostatic force are balanced at the solute-solvent interface. We model the electrostatics by Poisson's equation in which the solute-solvent interface is treated as a dielectric boundary that separates the low-dielectric solute from the high-dielectric solvent. For a cylindrical geometry, we find multiple cylindrically shaped equilibrium interfaces that describe polymodal (e.g., dry and wet) states of hydration of an underlying molecular system. These steady-state solutions exhibit bifurcation behavior with respect to the charge density. For their linearized systems, we use the projection method to solve the fluid equation and find the dispersion relation. Our asymptotic analysis shows that, for large wavenumbers, the decay rate is proportional to wavenumber with the proportionality half of the ratio of surface tension to solvent viscosity, indicating that the solvent viscosity does affect the stability of a solute-solvent interface. Consequences of our analysis in the context of biomolecular interactions are discussed.

Effects of dielectric inhomogeneity on electrostatic twist rigidity of a helical biomolecule in Debye-Hückel regime

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rezaie-Dereshgi, Amir; Mohammad-Rafiee, Farshid

2018-04-01

The electrostatic interactions play a crucial role in biological systems. Here we consider an impermeable dielectric molecule in the solvent with a different dielectric constant. The electrostatic free energy in the problem is studied in the Debye-Hückel regime using the analytical Green function that is calculated in the paper. Using this electrostatic free energy, we study the electrostatic contribution to the twist rigidity of a double stranded helical molecule such as a DNA and an actin filament. The dependence of the electrostatic twist rigidity of the molecule to the dielectric inhomogeneity, structural parameters, and the salt concentration is studied. It is shown that, depending on the parameters, the electrostatic twist rigidity could be positive or negative.

Assessment and control of electrostatic charges. [hazards to space missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Barrett, M.

1974-01-01

The experience is described of NASA and DOD with electrostatic problems, generation mechanisms, and type of electrostatic hazards. Guidelines for judging possible effects of electrostatic charges on space missions are presented along with mathematical formulas and definitions.

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

Churchill, Randy M.; Canik, John M.; Chang, C. S.

Simulations using the fully kinetic neoclassical code XGCa (X-point included guiding-center axisymmetric) were undertaken to explore the impact of kinetic effects on scrape-off layer (SOL) physics in DIII-D H-mode plasmas. XGCa is a total-f, gyrokinetic code which self-consistently calculates the axisymmetric electrostatic potential and plasma dynamics, and includes modules for Monte Carlo neutral transport. Previously presented XGCa results showed several noteworthy features, including large variations of ion density and pressure along field lines in the SOL, experimentally relevant levels of SOL parallel ion flow (Mach number similar to 0.5), skewed ion distributions near the sheath entrance leading to subsonic flowmore » there, and elevated sheath potentials (Churchill 2016 Nucl. Mater. Energy 1-6). In this paper, we explore in detail the question of pressure balance in the SOL, as it was observed in the simulation that there was a large deviation from a simple total pressure balance (the sum of ion and electron static pressure plus ion inertia). It will be shown that both the contributions from the ion viscosity (driven by ion temperature anisotropy) and neutral source terms can be substantial, and should be retained in the parallel momentum equation in the SOL, but still falls short of accounting for the observed fluid pressure imbalance in the XGCa simulation results.« less

Combined effect of moisture and electrostatic charges on powder flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rescaglio, Antonella; Schockmel, Julien; Vandewalle, Nicolas; Lumay, Geoffroy

2017-06-01

It is well known in industrial applications involving powders and granular materials that the relative air humidity and the presence of electrostatic charges influence drastically the material flowing properties. The relative air humidity induces the formation of capillary bridges and modify the grain surface conductivity. The presence of capillary bridges produces cohesive forces. On the other hand, the apparition of electrostatic charges due to the triboelectric effect at the contacts between the grains and at the contacts between the grains and the container produces electrostatic forces. Therefore, in many cases, the powder cohesiveness is the result of the interplay between capillary and electrostatic forces. Unfortunately, the triboelectric effect is still poorly understood, in particular inside a granular material. Moreover, reproducible electrostatic measurements are difficult to perform. We developed an experimental device to measures the ability of a powder to charge electrostatically during a flow in contact with a selected material. Both electrostatic and flow measurements have been performed in different hygrometric conditions. The correlation between the powder electrostatic properties, the hygrometry and the flowing behavior are analyzed.

Electrostatic spraying in the chemical control of Triozoida limbata (Enderlein) (Hemiptera: Triozidae) in guava trees (Psidium guajava L.).

PubMed

Tavares, Rafael M; Cunha, João Par; Alves, Thales C; Bueno, Mariana R; Silva, Sérgio M; Zandonadi, César Hs

2017-06-01

Owing to the difficulty in reaching targets during pesticide applications on guava trees, it is important to evaluate new technologies that may improve pest management. In electrostatic spraying, an electric force is added to the droplets to control their movements such that they are efficiently directed to the target. The present study evaluated the performance of electrostatic and non-electrostatic spraying in the control of the guava psyllid, the deposition of the spray mixture on the leaves and the losses to the soil. The deposition of the spray mixture was up to 2 times greater when using electrostatic spraying in comparison with non-electrostatic application. The losses of the spray mixture to the soil were up to 4 times smaller with the electrostatic spraying. Electrostatic spraying had better control of the psyllid. It was possible to reduce the volume rate of application with electrostatic spraying without adversely affecting the control of the guava psyllid. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry.

Calibration of the pressure sensitivity of microphones by a free-field method at frequencies up to 80 khz.

PubMed

Zuckerwar, Allan J; Herring, G C; Elbing, Brian R

2006-01-01

A free-field (FF) substitution method for calibrating the pressure sensitivity of microphones at frequencies up to 80 kHz is demonstrated with both grazing and normal-incidence geometries. The substitution-based method, as opposed to a simultaneous method, avoids problems associated with the nonuniformity of the sound field and, as applied here, uses a 1/4-in. air-condenser pressure microphone as a known reference. Best results were obtained with a centrifugal fan, which is used as a random, broadband sound source. A broadband source minimizes reflection-related interferences that can plague FF measurements. Calibrations were performed on 1/4-in. FF air-condenser, electret, and microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) microphones in an anechoic chamber. The uncertainty of this FF method is estimated by comparing the pressure sensitivity of an air-condenser FF microphone, as derived from the FF measurement, with that of an electrostatic actuator calibration. The root-mean-square difference is found to be +/- 0.3 dB over the range 1-80 kHz, and the combined standard uncertainty of the FF method, including other significant contributions, is +/- 0.41 dB.

The Use of an Electron Microchannel as a Self-Extracting and Focusing Plasma Cathode Electron Gun

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cornish, S.; Khachan, J.

2016-02-01

A new and simple type of electron gun is presented. Unlike conventional electron guns, which require a heated filament or extractor, accelerator and focusing electrodes, this gun uses the collimated electron microchannels of an inertial electrostatic confinement (IEC) discharge to achieve the same outcome. A cylindrical cathode is placed coaxially within a cylindrical anode to create the discharge. Collimated beams of electrons and fast neutrals emerge along the axis of the cylindrical cathode. This geometry isolates one of the microchannels that emerge in a negatively biased IEC grid. The internal operating pressure range of the gun is 35-190 mTorr. A small aperture separates the gun from the main vacuum chamber in order to achieve a pressure differential. The chamber was operated at pressures of 4-12 mTorr. The measured current produced by the gun was 0.1-3 mA (0.2-14 mA corrected measurement) for discharge currents of 1-45 mA and discharge voltages of 0.5-12 kV. The collimated electron beam emerges from the aperture into the vacuum chamber. The performance of the gun is unaffected by the pressure differential between the vacuum chamber and the gun. This allows the aperture to be removed and the chamber pressure to be equal to the gun pressure if required.

Total fluid pressure imbalance in the scrape-off layer of tokamak plasmas

DOE PAGES

Churchill, Randy M.; Canik, John M.; Chang, C. S.; ...

2017-03-10

Simulations using the fully kinetic neoclassical code XGCa (X-point included guiding-center axisymmetric) were undertaken to explore the impact of kinetic effects on scrape-off layer (SOL) physics in DIII-D H-mode plasmas. XGCa is a total-f, gyrokinetic code which self-consistently calculates the axisymmetric electrostatic potential and plasma dynamics, and includes modules for Monte Carlo neutral transport. Previously presented XGCa results showed several noteworthy features, including large variations of ion density and pressure along field lines in the SOL, experimentally relevant levels of SOL parallel ion flow (Mach number similar to 0.5), skewed ion distributions near the sheath entrance leading to subsonic flowmore » there, and elevated sheath potentials (Churchill 2016 Nucl. Mater. Energy 1-6). In this paper, we explore in detail the question of pressure balance in the SOL, as it was observed in the simulation that there was a large deviation from a simple total pressure balance (the sum of ion and electron static pressure plus ion inertia). It will be shown that both the contributions from the ion viscosity (driven by ion temperature anisotropy) and neutral source terms can be substantial, and should be retained in the parallel momentum equation in the SOL, but still falls short of accounting for the observed fluid pressure imbalance in the XGCa simulation results.« less

Adsorptive Separation of Methanol-Acetone on Isostructural Series of Metal-Organic Frameworks M-BTC (M = Ti, Fe, Cu, Co, Ru, Mo): A Computational Study of Adsorption Mechanisms and Metal-Substitution Impacts.

PubMed

Wu, Ying; Chen, Huiyong; Xiao, Jing; Liu, Defei; Liu, Zewei; Qian, Yu; Xi, Hongxia

2015-12-09

The adsorptive separation properties of M-BTC isostructural series (M = Ti, Fe, Cu, Co, Ru, Mo) for methanol-acetone mixtures were investigated by using various computational procedures of grand canonical Monte Carlo simulations (GCMC), density functional theory (DFT), and ideal adsorbed solution theory (IAST), following with comprehensive understanding of adsorbate-metal interactions on the adsorptive separation behaviors. The obtained results showed that the single component adsorptions were driven by adsorbate-framework interactions at low pressures and by framework structures at high pressures, among which the mass effects, electrostatics, and geometric accessibility of the metal sites also played roles. In the case of methanol-acetone separation, the selectivity of methanol on M-BTCs decreased with rising pressures due to the pressure-dependent separation mechanisms: the cooperative effects between methanol and acetone hindered the separation at low pressures, whereas the competitive effects of acetone further resulted in the lower selectivity at high pressures. Among these M-BTCs, Ti and Fe analogues exhibited the highest thermodynamic methanol/acetone selectivity, making them promising for adsorptive methanol/acetone separation processes. The investigation provides mechanistic insights on how the nature of metal centers affects the adsorption properties of MOFs, and will further promote the rational design of new MOF materials for effective gas mixture separation.

Dynamics of bacteriophage genome ejection in vitro and in vivo

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Panja, Debabrata; Molineux, Ian J.

2010-12-01

Bacteriophages, phages for short, are viruses of bacteria. The majority of phages contain a double-stranded DNA genome packaged in a capsid at a density of ~500 mg ml-1. This high density requires substantial compression of the normal B-form helix, leading to the conjecture that DNA in mature phage virions is under significant pressure, and that pressure is used to eject the DNA during infection. A large number of theoretical, computer simulation and in vitro experimental studies surrounding this conjecture have revealed many—though often isolated and/or contradictory—aspects of packaged DNA. This prompts us to present a unified view of the statistical physics and thermodynamics of DNA packaged in phage capsids. We argue that the DNA in a mature phage is in a (meta)stable state, wherein electrostatic self-repulsion is balanced by curvature stress due to confinement in the capsid. We show that in addition to the osmotic pressure associated with the packaged DNA and its counterions, there are four different pressures within the capsid: pressure on the DNA, hydrostatic pressure, the pressure experienced by the capsid and the pressure associated with the chemical potential of DNA ejection. Significantly, we analyze the mechanism of force transmission in the packaged DNA and demonstrate that the pressure on DNA is not important for ejection. We derive equations showing a strong hydrostatic pressure difference across the capsid shell. We propose that when a phage is triggered to eject by interaction with its receptor in vitro, the (thermodynamic) incentive of water molecules to enter the phage capsid flushes the DNA out of the capsid. In vivo, the difference between the osmotic pressures in the bacterial cell cytoplasm and the culture medium similarly results in a water flow that drags the DNA out of the capsid and into the bacterial cell.

A hybrid sales forecasting scheme by combining independent component analysis with K-means clustering and support vector regression.

PubMed

Lu, Chi-Jie; Chang, Chi-Chang

2014-01-01

Sales forecasting plays an important role in operating a business since it can be used to determine the required inventory level to meet consumer demand and avoid the problem of under/overstocking. Improving the accuracy of sales forecasting has become an important issue of operating a business. This study proposes a hybrid sales forecasting scheme by combining independent component analysis (ICA) with K-means clustering and support vector regression (SVR). The proposed scheme first uses the ICA to extract hidden information from the observed sales data. The extracted features are then applied to K-means algorithm for clustering the sales data into several disjoined clusters. Finally, the SVR forecasting models are applied to each group to generate final forecasting results. Experimental results from information technology (IT) product agent sales data reveal that the proposed sales forecasting scheme outperforms the three comparison models and hence provides an efficient alternative for sales forecasting.

A Hybrid Sales Forecasting Scheme by Combining Independent Component Analysis with K-Means Clustering and Support Vector Regression

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Sales forecasting plays an important role in operating a business since it can be used to determine the required inventory level to meet consumer demand and avoid the problem of under/overstocking. Improving the accuracy of sales forecasting has become an important issue of operating a business. This study proposes a hybrid sales forecasting scheme by combining independent component analysis (ICA) with K-means clustering and support vector regression (SVR). The proposed scheme first uses the ICA to extract hidden information from the observed sales data. The extracted features are then applied to K-means algorithm for clustering the sales data into several disjoined clusters. Finally, the SVR forecasting models are applied to each group to generate final forecasting results. Experimental results from information technology (IT) product agent sales data reveal that the proposed sales forecasting scheme outperforms the three comparison models and hence provides an efficient alternative for sales forecasting. PMID:25045738

Reintroducing electrostatics into macromolecular crystallographic refinement: application to neutron crystallography and DNA hydration.

PubMed

Fenn, Timothy D; Schnieders, Michael J; Mustyakimov, Marat; Wu, Chuanjie; Langan, Paul; Pande, Vijay S; Brunger, Axel T

2011-04-13

Most current crystallographic structure refinements augment the diffraction data with a priori information consisting of bond, angle, dihedral, planarity restraints, and atomic repulsion based on the Pauli exclusion principle. Yet, electrostatics and van der Waals attraction are physical forces that provide additional a priori information. Here, we assess the inclusion of electrostatics for the force field used for all-atom (including hydrogen) joint neutron/X-ray refinement. Two DNA and a protein crystal structure were refined against joint neutron/X-ray diffraction data sets using force fields without electrostatics or with electrostatics. Hydrogen-bond orientation/geometry favors the inclusion of electrostatics. Refinement of Z-DNA with electrostatics leads to a hypothesis for the entropic stabilization of Z-DNA that may partly explain the thermodynamics of converting the B form of DNA to its Z form. Thus, inclusion of electrostatics assists joint neutron/X-ray refinements, especially for placing and orienting hydrogen atoms. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Reintroducing Electrostatics into Macromolecular Crystallographic Refinement: Application to Neutron Crystallography and DNA Hydration

PubMed Central

Fenn, Timothy D.; Schnieders, Michael J.; Mustyakimov, Marat; Wu, Chuanjie; Langan, Paul; Pande, Vijay S.; Brunger, Axel T.

2011-01-01

Summary Most current crystallographic structure refinements augment the diffraction data with a priori information consisting of bond, angle, dihedral, planarity restraints and atomic repulsion based on the Pauli exclusion principle. Yet, electrostatics and van der Waals attraction are physical forces that provide additional a priori information. Here we assess the inclusion of electrostatics for the force field used for all-atom (including hydrogen) joint neutron/X-ray refinement. Two DNA and a protein crystal structure were refined against joint neutron/X-ray diffraction data sets using force fields without electrostatics or with electrostatics. Hydrogen bond orientation/geometry favors the inclusion of electrostatics. Refinement of Z-DNA with electrostatics leads to a hypothesis for the entropic stabilization of Z-DNA that may partly explain the thermodynamics of converting the B form of DNA to its Z form. Thus, inclusion of electrostatics assists joint neutron/X-ray refinements, especially for placing and orienting hydrogen atoms. PMID:21481775

Electrostatic complementarity at protein/protein interfaces.

PubMed

McCoy, A J; Chandana Epa, V; Colman, P M

1997-05-02

Calculation of the electrostatic potential of protein-protein complexes has led to the general assertion that protein-protein interfaces display "charge complementarity" and "electrostatic complementarity". In this study, quantitative measures for these two terms are developed and used to investigate protein-protein interfaces in a rigorous manner. Charge complementarity (CC) was defined using the correlation of charges on nearest neighbour atoms at the interface. All 12 protein-protein interfaces studied had insignificantly small CC values. Therefore, the term charge complementarity is not appropriate for the description of protein-protein interfaces when used in the sense measured by CC. Electrostatic complementarity (EC) was defined using the correlation of surface electrostatic potential at protein-protein interfaces. All twelve protein-protein interfaces studied had significant EC values, and thus the assertion that protein-protein association involves surfaces with complementary electrostatic potential was substantially confirmed. The term electrostatic complementarity can therefore be used to describe protein-protein interfaces when used in the sense measured by EC. Taken together, the results for CC and EC demonstrate the relevance of the long-range effects of charges, as described by the electrostatic potential at the binding interface. The EC value did not partition the complexes by type such as antigen-antibody and proteinase-inhibitor, as measures of the geometrical complementarity at protein-protein interfaces have done. The EC value was also not directly related to the number of salt bridges in the interface, and neutralisation of these salt bridges showed that other charges also contributed significantly to electrostatic complementarity and electrostatic interactions between the proteins. Electrostatic complementarity as defined by EC was extended to investigate the electrostatic similarity at the surface of influenza virus neuraminidase where the epitopes of two monoclonal antibodies, NC10 and NC41, overlap. Although NC10 and NC41 both have quite high values of EC for their interaction with neuraminidase, the similarity in electrostatic potential generated by the two on the overlapping region of the epitopes is insignificant. Thus, it is possible for two antibodies to recognise the electrostatic surface of a protein in dissimilar ways.

Compliant layer chucking surface

DOEpatents

Blaedel, Kenneth L [Dublin, CA; Spence, Paul A [Pleasanton, CA; Thompson, Samuel L [Pleasanton, CA

2004-12-28

A method and apparatus are described wherein a thin layer of complaint material is deposited on the surface of a chuck to mitigate the deformation that an entrapped particle might cause in the part, such as a mask or a wafer, that is clamped to the chuck. The harder particle will embed into the softer layer as the clamping pressure is applied. The material composing the thin layer could be a metal or a polymer for vacuum or electrostatic chucks. It may be deposited in various patterns to affect an interrupted surface, such as that of a "pin" chuck, thereby reducing the probability of entrapping a particle.

Parameters of a collisional radio-frequency sheath and dust characteristics resulting from the microparticle levitation

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

Yaroshenko, V. V.; Antonova, T.; Thomas, H. M.

2009-10-15

The screening length, the time-average electric field, and the particle charge as well as the local vertical gradients of these quantities are determined experimentally within a sheath of a capacitively coupled rf, 13.56 MHz, discharge at enhanced argon gas pressures of 30, 55, and 100 Pa. The parameters are derived directly from comparative measurements of levitation positions of the particles of different sizes and variations in the levitation heights caused by formation of new dust layers. The electrostatic effect of the horizontally extended dust layers on the sheath electric field is investigated.

The effect of a combined low-pressure gas discharge on metal surfaces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brzhozovskii, B.; Brovkova, M.; Gestrin, S.; Martynov, V.; Zinina, E.

2018-04-01

The properties and effects of a combined gas discharge, obtained by superimposing ultrahigh-frequency electromagnetic and electrostatic fields on the surface of metal products, have been studied. Estimates for the main physical properties characterizing the discharge have been obtained. The paper shows that the properties of a combined discharge essentially depend on the sign of the constant electric potential of the workpiece. In the case of a positive potential, there is a substantial hardening of the metal surface layer. Blanket coating formation, which is a nanocomposite two-phase structure, has been recorded.

Plasma heating for containerless and microgravity materials processing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Leung, Emily W. (Inventor); Man, Kin F. (Inventor)

1994-01-01

A method for plasma heating of levitated samples to be used in containerless microgravity processing is disclosed. A sample is levitated by electrostatic, electromagnetic, aerodynamic, or acoustic systems, as is appropriate for the physical properties of the particular sample. The sample is heated by a plasma torch at atmospheric pressure. A ground plate is provided to help direct the plasma towards the sample. In addition, Helmholtz coils are provided to produce a magnetic field that can be used to spiral the plasma around the sample. The plasma heating system is oriented such that it does not interfere with the levitation system.

Langmuir probe surveys of an arcjet exhaust

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zana, Lynnette M.

1987-01-01

Electrostatic (Langmuir) probes of both spherical and cylindrical geometry have been used to obtain electron number density and temperature in the exhaust of a laboratory arcjet. The arcjet thruster operated on nitrogen and hydrogen mixtures to simulate fully decomposed hydrazine in a vacuum environment with background pressures less than 0.05 Pa. The exhaust appears to be only slightly ionized (less than 1 percent) with local plasma potentials near facility ground. The current-voltage characteristics of the probes indicate a Maxwellian temperature distribution. Plume data are presented as a function of arcjet operating conditions and also position in the exhaust.

DEPPDB - DNA electrostatic potential properties database. Electrostatic properties of genome DNA elements.

PubMed

Osypov, Alexander A; Krutinin, Gleb G; Krutinina, Eugenia A; Kamzolova, Svetlana G

2012-04-01

Electrostatic properties of genome DNA are important to its interactions with different proteins, in particular, related to transcription. DEPPDB - DNA Electrostatic Potential (and other Physical) Properties Database - provides information on the electrostatic and other physical properties of genome DNA combined with its sequence and annotation of biological and structural properties of genomes and their elements. Genomes are organized on taxonomical basis, supporting comparative and evolutionary studies. Currently, DEPPDB contains all completely sequenced bacterial, viral, mitochondrial, and plastids genomes according to the NCBI RefSeq, and some model eukaryotic genomes. Data for promoters, regulation sites, binding proteins, etc., are incorporated from established DBs and literature. The database is complemented by analytical tools. User sequences calculations are available. Case studies discovered electrostatics complementing DNA bending in E.coli plasmid BNT2 promoter functioning, possibly affecting host-environment metabolic switch. Transcription factors binding sites gravitate to high potential regions, confirming the electrostatics universal importance in protein-DNA interactions beyond the classical promoter-RNA polymerase recognition and regulation. Other genome elements, such as terminators, also show electrostatic peculiarities. Most intriguing are gene starts, exhibiting taxonomic correlations. The necessity of the genome electrostatic properties studies is discussed.

Deppdb--DNA electrostatic potential properties database: electrostatic properties of genome DNA.

PubMed

Osypov, Alexander A; Krutinin, Gleb G; Kamzolova, Svetlana G

2010-06-01

The electrostatic properties of genome DNA influence its interactions with different proteins, in particular, the regulation of transcription by RNA-polymerases. DEPPDB--DNA Electrostatic Potential Properties Database--was developed to hold and provide all available information on the electrostatic properties of genome DNA combined with its sequence and annotation of biological and structural properties of genome elements and whole genomes. Genomes in DEPPDB are organized on a taxonomical basis. Currently, the database contains all the completely sequenced bacterial and viral genomes according to NCBI RefSeq. General properties of the genome DNA electrostatic potential profile and principles of its formation are revealed. This potential correlates with the GC content but does not correspond to it exactly and strongly depends on both the sequence arrangement and its context (flanking regions). Analysis of the promoter regions for bacterial and viral RNA polymerases revealed a correspondence between the scale of these proteins' physical properties and electrostatic profile patterns. We also discovered a direct correlation between the potential value and the binding frequency of RNA polymerase to DNA, supporting the idea of the role of electrostatics in these interactions. This matches a pronounced tendency of the promoter regions to possess higher values of the electrostatic potential.

Electrostatic design and beam transport for a folded tandem electrostatic quadrupole accelerator facility for accelerator-based boron neutron capture therapy.

PubMed

Vento, V Thatar; Bergueiro, J; Cartelli, D; Valda, A A; Kreiner, A J

2011-12-01

Within the frame of an ongoing project to develop a folded Tandem-Electrostatic-Quadrupole (TESQ) accelerator facility for Accelerator-Based Boron Neutron Capture Therapy (AB-BNCT), we discuss here the electrostatic design of the machine, including the accelerator tubes with electrostatic quadrupoles and the simulations for the transport and acceleration of a high intensity beam. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Stiffness Variation of a Micro-Ring Driven by a Traveling Piecewise-Electrode

PubMed Central

Li, Yingjie; Yu, Tao; Hu, Yuh-Chung

2014-01-01

In the practice of electrostatically actuated micro devices; the electrostatic force is implemented by sequentially actuated piecewise-electrodes which result in a traveling distributed electrostatic force. However; such force was modeled as a traveling concentrated electrostatic force in literatures. This article; for the first time; presents an analytical study on the stiffness variation of microstructures driven by a traveling piecewise electrode. The analytical model is based on the theory of shallow shell and uniform electrical field. The traveling electrode not only applies electrostatic force on the circular-ring but also alters its dynamical characteristics via the negative electrostatic stiffness. It is known that; when a structure is subjected to a traveling constant force; its natural mode will be resonated as the traveling speed approaches certain critical speeds; and each natural mode refers to exactly one critical speed. However; for the case of a traveling electrostatic force; the number of critical speeds is more than that of the natural modes. This is due to the fact that the traveling electrostatic force makes the resonant frequencies of the forward and backward traveling waves of the circular-ring different. Furthermore; the resonance and stability can be independently controlled by the length of the traveling electrode; though the driving voltage and traveling speed of the electrostatic force alter the dynamics and stabilities of microstructures. This paper extends the fundamental insights into the electromechanical behavior of microstructures driven by electrostatic forces as well as the future development of MEMS/NEMS devices with electrostatic actuation and sensing. PMID:25230308

The stiffness variation of a micro-ring driven by a traveling piecewise-electrode.

PubMed

Li, Yingjie; Yu, Tao; Hu, Yuh-Chung

2014-09-16

In the practice of electrostatically actuated micro devices; the electrostatic force is implemented by sequentially actuated piecewise-electrodes which result in a traveling distributed electrostatic force. However; such force was modeled as a traveling concentrated electrostatic force in literatures. This article; for the first time; presents an analytical study on the stiffness variation of microstructures driven by a traveling piecewise electrode. The analytical model is based on the theory of shallow shell and uniform electrical field. The traveling electrode not only applies electrostatic force on the circular-ring but also alters its dynamical characteristics via the negative electrostatic stiffness. It is known that; when a structure is subjected to a traveling constant force; its natural mode will be resonated as the traveling speed approaches certain critical speeds; and each natural mode refers to exactly one critical speed. However; for the case of a traveling electrostatic force; the number of critical speeds is more than that of the natural modes. This is due to the fact that the traveling electrostatic force makes the resonant frequencies of the forward and backward traveling waves of the circular-ring different. Furthermore; the resonance and stability can be independently controlled by the length of the traveling electrode; though the driving voltage and traveling speed of the electrostatic force alter the dynamics and stabilities of microstructures. This paper extends the fundamental insights into the electromechanical behavior of microstructures driven by electrostatic forces as well as the future development of MEMS/NEMS devices with electrostatic actuation and sensing.

21 CFR 892.1630 - Electrostatic x-ray imaging system.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Electrostatic x-ray imaging system. 892.1630... (CONTINUED) MEDICAL DEVICES RADIOLOGY DEVICES Diagnostic Devices § 892.1630 Electrostatic x-ray imaging system. (a) Identification. An electrostatic x-ray imaging system is a device intended for medical...

21 CFR 892.1630 - Electrostatic x-ray imaging system.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Electrostatic x-ray imaging system. 892.1630... (CONTINUED) MEDICAL DEVICES RADIOLOGY DEVICES Diagnostic Devices § 892.1630 Electrostatic x-ray imaging system. (a) Identification. An electrostatic x-ray imaging system is a device intended for medical...

Limiting assumptions in molecular modeling: electrostatics.

PubMed

Marshall, Garland R

2013-02-01

Molecular mechanics attempts to represent intermolecular interactions in terms of classical physics. Initial efforts assumed a point charge located at the atom center and coulombic interactions. It is been recognized over multiple decades that simply representing electrostatics with a charge on each atom failed to reproduce the electrostatic potential surrounding a molecule as estimated by quantum mechanics. Molecular orbitals are not spherically symmetrical, an implicit assumption of monopole electrostatics. This perspective reviews recent evidence that requires use of multipole electrostatics and polarizability in molecular modeling.

Pressurizing Field-Effect Transistors of Few-Layer MoS 2 in a Diamond Anvil Cell

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

Chen, Yabin; Ke, Feng; Ci, Penghong

Hydrostatic pressure applied using diamond anvil cells (DAC) has been widely explored to modulate physical properties of materials by tuning their lattice degree of freedom. Independently, electrical field is able to tune the electronic degree of freedom of functional materials via, for example, the field-effect transistor (FET) configuration. Combining these two orthogonal approaches would allow discovery of new physical properties and phases going beyond the known phase space. Such experiments are, however, technically challenging and have not been demonstrated. In this paper, we report a feasible strategy to prepare and measure FETs in a DAC by lithographically patterning the nanodevicesmore » onto the diamond culet. Multiple-terminal FETs were fabricated in the DAC using few-layer MoS 2 and BN as the channel semiconductor and dielectric layer, respectively. It is found that the mobility, conductance, carrier concentration, and contact conductance of MoS 2 can all be significantly enhanced with pressure. Finally, we expect that the approach could enable unprecedented ways to explore new phases and properties of materials under coupled mechano-electrostatic modulation.« less

Washable antimicrobial polyester/aluminum air filter with a high capture efficiency and low pressure drop.

PubMed

Choi, Dong Yun; Heo, Ki Joon; Kang, Juhee; An, Eun Jeong; Jung, Soo-Ho; Lee, Byung Uk; Lee, Hye Moon; Jung, Jae Hee

2018-06-05

Here, we introduce a reusable bifunctional polyester/aluminum (PET/Al) air filter for the high efficiency simultaneous capture and inactivation of airborne microorganisms. Both bacteria of Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus epidermidis were collected on the PET/Al filter with a high efficiency rate (∼99.99%) via the electrostatic interactions between the charged bacteria and fibers without sacrificing pressure drop. The PET/Al filter experienced a pressure drop approximately 10 times lower per thickness compared with a commercial high-efficiency particulate air filter. As the Al nanograins grew on the fibers, the antimicrobial activity against airborne E. coli and S. epidermidis improved to ∼94.8% and ∼96.9%, respectively, due to the reinforced hydrophobicity and surface roughness of the filter. Moreover, the capture and antimicrobial performances were stably maintained during a cyclic washing test of the PET/Al filter, indicative of its reusability. The PET/Al filter shows great potential for use in energy-efficient bioaerosol control systems suitable for indoor environments. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Effect of the ordered interfacial water layer in protein complex formation: A nonlocal electrostatic approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rubinstein, A.; Sabirianov, R. F.; Mei, W. N.; Namavar, F.; Khoynezhad, A.

2010-08-01

Using a nonlocal electrostatic approach that incorporates the short-range structure of the contacting media, we evaluated the electrostatic contribution to the energy of the complex formation of two model proteins. In this study, we have demonstrated that the existence of an ordered interfacial water layer at the protein-solvent interface reduces the charging energy of the proteins in the aqueous solvent, and consequently increases the electrostatic contribution to the protein binding (change in free energy upon the complex formation of two proteins). This is in contrast with the finding of the continuum electrostatic model, which suggests that electrostatic interactions are not strong enough to compensate for the unfavorable desolvation effects.

Effect of the ordered interfacial water layer in protein complex formation: A nonlocal electrostatic approach.

PubMed

Rubinstein, A; Sabirianov, R F; Mei, W N; Namavar, F; Khoynezhad, A

2010-08-01

Using a nonlocal electrostatic approach that incorporates the short-range structure of the contacting media, we evaluated the electrostatic contribution to the energy of the complex formation of two model proteins. In this study, we have demonstrated that the existence of an ordered interfacial water layer at the protein-solvent interface reduces the charging energy of the proteins in the aqueous solvent, and consequently increases the electrostatic contribution to the protein binding (change in free energy upon the complex formation of two proteins). This is in contrast with the finding of the continuum electrostatic model, which suggests that electrostatic interactions are not strong enough to compensate for the unfavorable desolvation effects.

Electrostatic particle trap for ion beam sputter deposition

DOEpatents

Vernon, Stephen P.; Burkhart, Scott C.

2002-01-01

A method and apparatus for the interception and trapping of or reflection of charged particulate matter generated in ion beam sputter deposition. The apparatus involves an electrostatic particle trap which generates electrostatic fields in the vicinity of the substrate on which target material is being deposited. The electrostatic particle trap consists of an array of electrode surfaces, each maintained at an electrostatic potential, and with their surfaces parallel or perpendicular to the surface of the substrate. The method involves interception and trapping of or reflection of charged particles achieved by generating electrostatic fields in the vicinity of the substrate, and configuring the fields to force the charged particulate material away from the substrate. The electrostatic charged particle trap enables prevention of charged particles from being deposited on the substrate thereby enabling the deposition of extremely low defect density films, such as required for reflective masks of an extreme ultraviolet lithography (EUVL) system.

Properties of liquid Ti alloys from electrostatic levitation experiments and simulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Novak, Brian; Raush, Jonathan; Zhang, Xiaoman; Moldovan, Dorel; Meng, Wenjin; Guo, Shengmin

Accurate thermophysical property data for liquid metals and alloys are important for the development of realistic simulations of laser-based 3D printing processes. We are using the container-less electrostatic levitation (ESL) method, molecular simulation, and CALPHAD calculations to obtain such data for Ti alloys. We performed vacuum ESL measurements of viscosity and surface tension with an oscillating drop technique at NASA MSFC on molten elemental Ti, Ti-xAl binaries (x = 0-10 wt%), Ti-6Al-4V, and Ti-6Al-4V-10Mo which showed improved mechanical properties compared with traditional β Ti alloys. We also used classical molecular simulations to obtain viscosities and surface tensions for Ti-xAl. Pair distribution functions, diffusivities, and vapor pressures were also obtained from simulations. The simulated viscosities and surface tensions for pure Ti agree well with the ESL data while the Ti-xAl viscosities have the same trends as the ESL data, but not quantitative agreement. Chemical activity and Gibbs free energy of Ti-10Al were generated using the CALPHAD technique and compared to experimental values. Supported by the National Science Foundation through cooperative agreement OIA-1541079 and the Louisiana Board of Regents.

The structure and intermolecular forces of DNA condensates.

PubMed

Yoo, Jejoong; Aksimentiev, Aleksei

2016-03-18

Spontaneous assembly of DNA molecules into compact structures is ubiquitous in biological systems. Experiment has shown that polycations can turn electrostatic self-repulsion of DNA into attraction, yet the physical mechanism of DNA condensation has remained elusive. Here, we report the results of atomistic molecular dynamics simulations that elucidated the microscopic structure of dense DNA assemblies and the physics of interactions that makes such assemblies possible. Reproducing the setup of the DNA condensation experiments, we measured the internal pressure of DNA arrays as a function of the DNA-DNA distance, showing a quantitative agreement between the results of our simulations and the experimental data. Analysis of the MD trajectories determined the DNA-DNA force in a DNA condensate to be pairwise, the DNA condensation to be driven by electrostatics of polycations and not hydration, and the concentration of bridging cations, not adsorbed cations, to determine the magnitude and the sign of the DNA-DNA force. Finally, our simulations quantitatively characterized the orientational correlations of DNA in DNA arrays as well as diffusive motion of DNA and cations. © The Author(s) 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

Passive and Active Stabilization of Liquid Bridges in Low Gravity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Marston, Philip L.; Thiessen, David B.; Marr-Lyon, Mark J.; Wei, Wei; Niederhaus, Charles E.; Truong, Duc K.

2001-01-01

Tests are planned in the low gravity environment of the International Space Station (ISS) of new methods for the suppression of the capillary instability of liquid bridges. Our suppression methods are unusual in that they are not limited to liquid bridges having very special properties and may impact a variety of low-gravity and earth-based technologies. There are two main approaches to be investigated: (1) Passive Acoustic Stabilization (PAS); and (2) Active Electrostatic Stabilization (AES). In PAS, the suppression of the mode growth is accomplished by placing the bridge in an acoustic field having the appropriate properties such that the acoustic radiation pressure automatically pulls outward on the thinnest portion of the bridge. In AES, the bridge deformation is sensed optically and counteracted by actively adjusting the electrostatic Maxwell stresses via two ring electrodes concentric with the slightly conducting bridge to offset the growth of the unstable mode. While the present work emphasizes cylindrical bridges, the methods need not be restricted to that case. The methods to be explored are relevant to the suppression of capillary instabilities in floating zone crystal growth, breakup of liquid jets and columns, bubbles, and annular films as well as the management of coolants or propellants in low-gravity.

Electrostatic Properties of Polymers Subjected to Atmospheric Pressure Plasma Treatment; Correlation of Experimental Results with Atomistic Modeling

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Trigwell, S.; Boucher, D.; Calle, C. I.

2007-01-01

this study, PE, PTFE, PS and PMMA were exposed to a He+O2, APGD and pre and post treatment surface chemistries were analyzed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and contact angle measurements. Semi-empirical and ab-initio calculations were performed to correlate the experimental results with sonic plausible molecular and electronic structure features of the oxidation process. For the PE and PS, significant surface oxidation showing C-O, C=O, and O-C=O bonding, and a decrease in the surface contact angles was observed. For the PTFE and PM MA, little change in the surface composition was observed. The molecular modeling calculations were performed on single and multiple oligomers and showed regardless of oxidation mechanism, e.g. -OH, =O or a combination thereof, experimentally observed levels of surface oxidation were unlikely to lead to a significant change in the electronic structure of PE and PS, and that the increased hydrophilic properties are the primary reason for the observed changes in its electrostatic behavior. Calculations for PTFE and PMMA argue strongly against significant oxidation of those materials, as confirmed by the XPS results.

The MICROSCOPE experiment, ready for the in-orbit test of the equivalence principle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Touboul, P.; Métris, G.; Lebat, V.; Robert, A.

2012-09-01

Deviations from standard general relativity are being intensively tested in various aspects. The MICROSCOPE space mission, which has recently been approved to be launched in 2016, aims at testing the universality of free fall with an accuracy better than 10-15. The instrument has been developed and most of the sub-systems have been tested to the level required for the detection of accelerations lower than one tenth of a femto-g. Two concentric test masses are electrostatically levitated inside the same silica structure and controlled on the same trajectory at better than 0.1 Å. Any dissymmetry in the measured electrostatic pressures shall be analysed with respect to the Earth's gravity field. The nearly 300 kg heavy dedicated satellite is defined to provide a very steady environment to the experiment and a fine control of its attitude and of its drag-free motion along the orbit. Both the evaluations of the performance of the instrument and the satellite demonstrate the expected test accuracy. The detailed description of the experiment and the major driving parameters of the instrument, the satellite and the data processing are provided in this paper.

Control of Flowing Liquid Films By Electrostatic Fields in Space

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bankoff, S. George; Miksis, Michael J.; Kim, Hyo

1996-01-01

A novel type of lightweight space radiator has been proposed which employs internal electrostatic fields to stop coolant leaks from punctures caused by micrometeorites or space debris. Extensive calculations have indicated the feasibility of leak stoppage without film destabilization for both stationary and rotating designs. Solutions of the evolution equation for a liquid-metal film on an inclined plate, using lubrication theory for low Reynolds numbers, Karman-Pohlhausen quadratic velocity profiles for higher Reynolds numbers, and a direct numerical solution are shown. For verification an earth-based falling-film experiment on a precisely-vertical wall with controllable vacuum on either side of a small puncture is proposed. The pressure difference required to start and to stop the leak, in the presence and absence of a strong electric field, will be measured and compared with calculations. Various parameters, such as field strength, film Reynolds number, contact angle, and hole diameter will be examined. A theoretical analysis will be made of the case where the electrode is close enough to the film surface that the electric field equation and the surface dynamics equations are coupled. Preflight design calculations will be made in order to transfer the modified equipment to a flight experiment.

Impact of electrostatic and conventional sprayers characteristics on dispersion of barrier spray

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

A study was conducted to analyze the performance of three electrostatic (Electrolon BP-2.5TM, Spectrum Electrostatic 4010, and Spectrum Electrostatic head on a Stihl 420) and two conventional (Buffalo Turbine CSM2 and Stihl 420) sprayers for barrier sprays to suppress an adult mosquito population in...

40 CFR 60.5175 - How do I establish operating limits if I do not use a wet scrubber, fabric filter, electrostatic...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... I do not use a wet scrubber, fabric filter, electrostatic precipitator, activated carbon injection..., fabric filter, electrostatic precipitator, activated carbon injection, or afterburner, or if I limit... device other than a wet scrubber, fabric filter, electrostatic precipitator, activated carbon injection...

40 CFR 60.5175 - How do I establish operating limits if I do not use a wet scrubber, fabric filter, electrostatic...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... I do not use a wet scrubber, fabric filter, electrostatic precipitator, activated carbon injection..., fabric filter, electrostatic precipitator, activated carbon injection, or afterburner, or if I limit... device other than a wet scrubber, fabric filter, electrostatic precipitator, activated carbon injection...

40 CFR 60.5175 - How do I establish operating limits if I do not use a wet scrubber, fabric filter, electrostatic...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... I do not use a wet scrubber, fabric filter, electrostatic precipitator, activated carbon injection..., fabric filter, electrostatic precipitator, activated carbon injection, or afterburner, or if I limit... device other than a wet scrubber, fabric filter, electrostatic precipitator, activated carbon injection...

40 CFR 60.5175 - How do I establish operating limits if I do not use a wet scrubber, fabric filter, electrostatic...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... I do not use a wet scrubber, fabric filter, electrostatic precipitator, activated carbon injection..., fabric filter, electrostatic precipitator, activated carbon injection, or afterburner, or if I limit... device other than a wet scrubber, fabric filter, electrostatic precipitator, activated carbon injection...

Evaporation-driven instability of the precorneal tear film.

PubMed

Peng, Cheng-Chun; Cerretani, Colin; Braun, Richard J; Radke, C J

2014-04-01

Tear-film instability is widely believed to be a signature of eye health. When an interblink is prolonged, randomly distributed ruptures occur in the tear film. "Black spots" and/or "black streaks" appear in 15 to 40 s for normal individuals. For people who suffer from dry eye, tear-film breakup time (BUT) is typically less than a few seconds. To date, however, there is no satisfactory quantitative explanation for the origin of tear rupture. Recently, it was proposed that tear-film breakup is related to locally high evaporative thinning. A spatial variation in the thickness of the tear-film lipid layer (TFLL) may lead to locally elevated evaporation and subsequent tear-film breakup. We examine the local-evaporation-driven tear-film-rupture hypothesis in a one-dimensional (1-D) model for the evolution of a thin aqueous tear film overriding the cornea subject to locally elevated evaporation at its anterior surface and osmotic water influx at its posterior surface. Evaporation rate depends on mass transfer both through the coating lipid layer and through ambient air. We establish that evaporation-driven tear-film breakup can occur under normal conditions but only for higher aqueous evaporation rates. Predicted roles of environmental conditions, such as wind speed and relative humidity, on tear-film stability agree with clinical observations. More importantly, locally elevated evaporation leads to hyperosmolar spots in the tear film and, hence, vulnerability to epithelial irritation. In addition to evaporation rate, tear-film instability depends on the strength of healing flow from the neighboring region outside the breakup region, which is determined by the surface tension at the tear-film surface and by the repulsive thin-film disjoining pressure. This study provides a physically consistent and quantitative explanation for the formation of black streaks and spots in the human tear film during an interblink. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Long-wave dynamics of an elastic sheet lubricated by a thin liquid film on a wetting substrate

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Young, Y.-N.; Stone, H. A.

2017-06-01

The dynamics of an elastic sheet lubricated by a thin liquid film on a wetting solid substrate is examined using both numerical simulations of a long-wave lubrication equation and a quasistatic model. Interactions between the liquid and the wetting substrate are modeled by a disjoining pressure that gives rise to an ultrathin (precursor) film. For a fluid interface without elastic bending stiffness, a flat precursor film may be linearly unstable and evolve towards an equilibrium of a single "drop" connected to a flat ultrathin film. Similar behavior is found when the thin film is covered by an elastic sheet: The sheet deforms, rearranging the thin liquid film, and contributes regulating surface forces such as a bending resistance and/or a tensile force, which may arise from interactions between the sheet and liquid or inextensibility of the sheet. Glasner's quasistatic model [Phys. Fluids 15, 1837 (2003), 10.1063/1.1578076], developed for a liquid film, is adopted to investigate the combined effects of elastic and tensile forces in the sheet on the thin film dynamics. The equilibrium height of the drop is found to vary inversely with the bending rigidity. When the elastic sheet is inextensible (such as a lipid bilayer membrane), a compressive tensile force may occur and the equilibrium film height is dependent less on the bending rigidity and more on the excess area of the membrane. Analyses of the lubrication equation also show that the precursor film transitions monotonically to the core film for tension-dominated dynamics. In contrast, for elasticity-dominated dynamics, a spatial oscillation of film height in the contact line region is found. In addition, elasticity in the sheet causes a sliding motion of the thin film: the contact angle is rendered zero by elasticity, and the contact line moves at a finite speed.

Thermal force induced by the presence of a particle near a solidifying interface.

PubMed

Hadji, L

2001-11-01

The presence of a foreign particle in the melt, ahead of a solid-liquid interface, leads to the onset of interfacial deformations if the thermal conductivity of the particle, k(p), differs from that of the melt, k(l). In this paper, the influence of the thermal conductivity contrast on the interaction between the solidifying interface and the particle is quantified. We show that the interface distortion gives rise to a thermal force whose expression is given by F(th)=2piLGa3(1-alpha)/(2+alpha)T(m), where L is the latent heat of fusion per unit volume, T(m) is the melting point, a is the particle's radius, G the thermal gradient in the liquid phase and alpha=k(p)/k(l). The derivation makes use of the following assumptions: (i) the particle is small compared to the horizontal extent of the interface, (ii) the particle is placed in the near proximity of the deformable solid-liquid interface, and (iii) the interface is practically immobile in the calculation of the thermal field, i.e., V

Energy of adhesion of human T cells to adsorption layers of monoclonal antibodies measured by a film trapping technique.

PubMed Central

Ivanov, I B; Hadjiiski, A; Denkov, N D; Gurkov, T D; Kralchevsky, P A; Koyasu, S

1998-01-01

A novel method for studying the interaction of biological cells with interfaces (e.g., adsorption monolayers of antibodies) is developed. The method is called the film trapping technique because the cell is trapped within an aqueous film of equilibrium thickness smaller than the cell diameter. A liquid film of uneven thickness is formed around the trapped cell. When observed in reflected monochromatic light, this film exhibits an interference pattern of concentric bright and dark fringes. From the radii of the fringes one can restore the shape of interfaces and the cell. Furthermore, one can calculate the adhesive energy between the cell membrane and the aqueous film surface (which is covered by a layer of adsorbed proteins and/or specific ligands), as well as the disjoining pressure, representing the force of interaction per unit area of the latter film. The method is applied to two human T cell lines: Jurkat and its T cell receptor negative (TCR-) derivative. The interaction of these cells with monolayers of three different monoclonal antibodies adsorbed at a water-air interface is studied. The results show that the adhesive energy is considerable (above 0.5 mJ/m2) when the adsorption monolayer contains antibodies acting as specific ligands for the receptors expressed on the cell surface. In contrast, the adhesive energy is close to zero in the absence of such a specific ligand-receptor interaction. In principle, the method can be applied to the study of the interaction of a variety of biological cells (B cells, natural killer cells, red blood cells, etc.) with adsorption monolayers of various biologically active molecules. In particular, film trapping provides a tool for the gentle micromanipulation of cells and for monitoring of processes (say the activation of a T lymphocyte) occurring at the single-cell level. PMID:9649417

Capillary bridge stability and dynamics: Active electrostatic stress control and acoustic radiation pressure

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wei, Wei

2005-11-01

In low gravity, the stability of liquid bridges and other systems having free surfaces is affected by the ambient vibration of the spacecraft. Such vibrations are expected to excite capillary modes. The lowest unstable mode of cylindrical liquid bridges, the (2,0) mode, is particularly sensitive to the vibration when the ratio of the bridge length to the diameter approaches pi. In this work, a Plateau tank has been used to simulate the weightless condition. An optical system has been used to detect the (2,0) mode oscillation amplitude and generate an error signal which is determined by the oscillation amplitude. This error signal is used by the feedback system to produce proper voltages on the electrodes which are concentric with the electrically conducting, grounded bridge. A mode-coupled electrostatic stress is thus generated on the surface of the bridge. The feedback system is designed such that the modal force applied by the Maxwell stress can be proportional to the modal amplitude or modal velocity, which is the derivative of the modal amplitude. Experiments done in the Plateau tank demonstrate that the damping of the capillary oscillation can be enhanced by using the electrostatic stress in proportion to the modal velocity. On the other hand, using the electrostatic stress in proportion to the modal amplitude can raise the natural frequency of the bridge oscillation. If a spacecraft vibration frequency is close to a capillary mode frequency, the amplitude gain can be used to shift the mode frequency away from that of the spacecraft and simultaneously add some artificial damping to further reduce the effect of g-jitter. It is found that the decay of a bridge (2,0) mode oscillation is well modeled by a Duffing equation with a small cubic soft-spring term. The nonlinearity of the bridge (3,0) mode is also studied. The experiments reveal the hysteresis of (3,0) mode bridge oscillations, and this behavior is a property of the soft nonlinearity of the bridge. Relevant to acoustical bridge stabilization, the theoretical radiation force on a compressible cylinder in an acoustic standing wave is also investigated.

Theoretical insight into the binding energy and detonation performance of ε-, γ-, β-CL-20 cocrystals with β-HMX, FOX-7, and DMF in different molar ratios, as well as electrostatic potential.

PubMed

Feng, Rui-Zhi; Zhang, Shu-Hai; Ren, Fu-de; Gou, Rui-Jun; Gao, Li

2016-06-01

Molecular dynamics method was employed to study the binding energies on the selected crystal planes of the ε-, γ-, β-conformation 2,4,6,8,10,12-hexanitrohexaazaisowurtzitane (ε-, γ-, β-CL-20) cocrystal explosives with 1,1-diamino-2,2-dinitroethylene (FOX-7), 1,3,5,7-tetranitro- 1,3,5,7-tetrazacyclooctane with β-conformation (β-HMX) and N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF) in different molar ratios. The oxygen balance, density, detonation velocity, detonation pressure, and surface electrostatic potential were analyzed. The results indicate that the binding energies E b (*) and stabilities are in the order of 1:1 > 2:1 > 3:1 > 5:1 > 8:1 (CL-20:FOX-7/β-HMX/DMF). The values of E b (*) and stabilities of the energetic-nonenergetic CL-20/DMF cocrystals are far larger than those of the energetic-energetic CL-20/FOX-7 and CL-20/β-HMX, and those of CL-20/β-HMX are the smallest. For CL-20/FOX-7 and CL-20/β-HMX, the largest E b (*) appears in the cocrystals with the 1:1, 1:2 or 1:3 molar ratio, and the stabilities of the cocrystals with the excess ratio of CL-20 are weaker than those in the cocrystals with the excess ratio of FOX-7 or β-HMX. In CL-20/FOX-7, CL-20 prefers adopting the γ-form, and ε-CL-20 is the preference in CL-20/β-HMX, and ε-CL-20 and β-CL-20 can be found in CL-20/DMF. The CL-20/FOX-7 and CL-20/β-HMX cocrystals with low molar ratios can meet the requirements of low sensitive high energetic materials. Surface electrostatic potential reveals the nature of the sensitivity change upon the cocrystal formation. Graphical Abstract MD method was employed to study the binding energies on the selected crystal planes in the ε-, γ-, β-CL-20 cocrystals with FOX-7, β-HMX and DMF in different molar ratios. Surface electrostatic potential reveals the nature of the sensitivity change in cocrystals.

A new constituent of electrostatic energy in semiconductors. An attempt to reformulate electrostatic energy in matter

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sallese, Jean-Michel

2016-06-01

The concept of electric energy is revisited in detail for semiconductors. We come to the conclusion that the main relationship used to calculate the energy related to the penetration of the electric field in semiconductors is missing a fundamental term. For instance, spatial derivate of the electrostatic energy using the traditional formula fails at giving the correct electrostatic force between semiconductor based capacitor plates, and reveals unambiguously the existence of an extra contribution to the standard electrostatic free energy. The additional term is found to be related to the generation of space charge regions which are predicted when combining electrostatics with semiconductor physics laws, such as for accumulation and inversion layers. On the contrary, no such energy is needed when relying on electrostatics only, as for instance when adopting the so-called full depletion approximation. The same holds for neutral and charged insulators that are still consistent with the customary definition, but these two examples are in fact singular cases. In semiconductors for instance, this additional energy can largely exceed the energy gained by the dipoles, thus becoming the dominant term. This unexpected result clearly asks for a generalization of electrostatic energy in matter in order to reconcile basic concepts of electrostatic energy in the framework of classical physics.

The two sides of complement C3d: evolution of electrostatics in a link between innate and adaptive immunity.

PubMed

Kieslich, Chris A; Morikis, Dimitrios

2012-01-01

The interaction between complement fragment C3d and complement receptor 2 (CR2) is a key aspect of complement immune system activation, and is a component in a link between innate and adaptive immunities. The complement immune system is an ancient mechanism for defense, and can be found in species that have been on Earth for the last 600 million years. However, the link between the complement system and adaptive immunity, which is formed through the association of the B-cell co-receptor complex, including the C3d-CR2 interaction, is a much more recent adaptation. Human C3d and CR2 have net charges of -1 and +7 respectively, and are believed to have evolved favoring the role of electrostatics in their functions. To investigate the role of electrostatics in the function and evolution of human C3d and CR2, we have applied electrostatic similarity methods to identify regions of evolutionarily conserved electrostatic potential based on 24 homologues of complement C3d and 4 homologues of CR2. We also examine the effects of structural perturbation, as introduced through molecular dynamics and mutations, on spatial distributions of electrostatic potential to identify perturbation resistant regions, generated by so-called electrostatic "hot-spots". Distributions of electrostatic similarity based on families of perturbed structures illustrate the presence of electrostatic "hot-spots" at the two functional sites of C3d, while the surface of CR2 lacks electrostatic "hot-spots" despite its excessively positive nature. We propose that the electrostatic "hot-spots" of C3d have evolved to optimize its dual-functionality (covalently attaching to pathogen surfaces and interaction with CR2), which are both necessary for the formation B-cell co-receptor complexes. Comparison of the perturbation resistance of the electrostatic character of the homologues of C3d suggests that there was an emergence of a new role of electrostatics, and a transition in the function of C3d, after the divergence of jawless fish.

The Two Sides of Complement C3d: Evolution of Electrostatics in a Link between Innate and Adaptive Immunity

PubMed Central

Kieslich, Chris A.; Morikis, Dimitrios

2012-01-01

The interaction between complement fragment C3d and complement receptor 2 (CR2) is a key aspect of complement immune system activation, and is a component in a link between innate and adaptive immunities. The complement immune system is an ancient mechanism for defense, and can be found in species that have been on Earth for the last 600 million years. However, the link between the complement system and adaptive immunity, which is formed through the association of the B-cell co-receptor complex, including the C3d-CR2 interaction, is a much more recent adaptation. Human C3d and CR2 have net charges of −1 and +7 respectively, and are believed to have evolved favoring the role of electrostatics in their functions. To investigate the role of electrostatics in the function and evolution of human C3d and CR2, we have applied electrostatic similarity methods to identify regions of evolutionarily conserved electrostatic potential based on 24 homologues of complement C3d and 4 homologues of CR2. We also examine the effects of structural perturbation, as introduced through molecular dynamics and mutations, on spatial distributions of electrostatic potential to identify perturbation resistant regions, generated by so-called electrostatic “hot-spots”. Distributions of electrostatic similarity based on families of perturbed structures illustrate the presence of electrostatic “hot-spots” at the two functional sites of C3d, while the surface of CR2 lacks electrostatic “hot-spots” despite its excessively positive nature. We propose that the electrostatic “hot-spots” of C3d have evolved to optimize its dual-functionality (covalently attaching to pathogen surfaces and interaction with CR2), which are both necessary for the formation B-cell co-receptor complexes. Comparison of the perturbation resistance of the electrostatic character of the homologues of C3d suggests that there was an emergence of a new role of electrostatics, and a transition in the function of C3d, after the divergence of jawless fish. PMID:23300422

Fast ion stabilization of the ion temperature gradient driven modes in the Joint European Torus hybrid-scenario plasmas: a trigger mechanism for internal transport barrier formation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Romanelli, M.; Zocco, A.; Crisanti, F.; Contributors, JET-EFDA

2010-04-01

Understanding and modelling turbulent transport in thermonuclear fusion plasmas are crucial for designing and optimizing the operational scenarios of future fusion reactors. In this context, plasmas exhibiting state transitions, such as the formation of an internal transport barrier (ITB), are particularly interesting since they can shed light on transport physics and offer the opportunity to test different turbulence suppression models. In this paper, we focus on the modelling of ITB formation in the Joint European Torus (JET) [1] hybrid-scenario plasmas, where, due to the monotonic safety factor profile, magnetic shear stabilization cannot be invoked to explain the transition. The turbulence suppression mechanism investigated here relies on the increase in the plasma pressure gradient in the presence of a minority of energetic ions. Microstability analysis of the ion temperature gradient driven modes (ITG) in the presence of a fast-hydrogen minority shows that energetic ions accelerated by the ion cyclotron resonance heating (ICRH) system (hydrogen, nH,fast/nD,thermal up to 10%, TH,fast/TD,thermal up to 30) can increase the pressure gradient enough to stabilize the ITG modes driven by the gradient of the thermal ions (deuterium). Numerical analysis shows that, by increasing the temperature of the energetic ions, electrostatic ITG modes are gradually replaced by nearly electrostatic modes with tearing parity at progressively longer wavelengths. The growth rate of the microtearing modes is found to be lower than that of the ITG modes and comparable to the local E × B-velocity shearing rate. The above mechanism is proposed as a possible trigger for the formation of ITBs in this type of discharges.

Electrostatic similarity of proteins: Application of three dimensional spherical harmonic decomposition

PubMed Central

Długosz, Maciej; Trylska, Joanna

2008-01-01

We present a method for describing and comparing global electrostatic properties of biomolecules based on the spherical harmonic decomposition of electrostatic potential data. Unlike other approaches our method does not require any prior three dimensional structural alignment. The electrostatic potential, given as a volumetric data set from a numerical solution of the Poisson or Poisson–Boltzmann equation, is represented with descriptors that are rotation invariant. The method can be applied to large and structurally diverse sets of biomolecules enabling to cluster them according to their electrostatic features. PMID:18624502

Effect of the ordered interfacial water layer in protein complex formation: a non-local electrostatic approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rubinstein, Alexander; Sabirianov, Renat

2011-03-01

Using a non-local electrostatic approach that incorporates the short-range structure of the contacting media, we evaluated the electrostatic contribution to the energy of the complex formation of two model proteins. In this study, we have demonstrated that the existence of an low-dielectric interfacial water layer at the protein-solvent interface reduces the charging energy of the proteins in the aqueous solvent, and consequently increases the electrostatic contribution to the protein binding (change in free energy upon the complex formation of two proteins). This is in contrast with the finding of the continuum electrostatic model, which suggests that electrostatic interactions are not strong enough to compensate for the unfavorable desolvation effects.

NASA Tech Briefs, November 2006

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2006-01-01

Topics include: Simulator for Testing Spacecraft Separation Devices; Apparatus for Hot Impact Testing of Material Specimens; Instrument for Aircraft-Icing and Cloud-Physics Measurements; Advances in Measurement of Skin Friction in Airflow; Improved Apparatus for Testing Monoball Bearings; High-Speed Laser Scanner Maps a Surface in Three Dimensions; Electro-Optical Imaging Fourier-Transform Spectrometer; Infrared Instrument for Detecting Hydrogen Fires; Modified Coaxial Probe Feeds for Layered Antennas; Detecting Negative Obstacles by Use of Radar; Cryogenic Pound Circuits for Cryogenic Sapphire Oscillators; PixelLearn; New Software for Predicting Charging of Spacecraft; Conversion Between Osculating and Mean Orbital Elements; Generating a 2D Representation of a Complex Data Structure; Making Activated Carbon by Wet Pressurized Pyrolysis; Composite Solid Electrolyte Containing Li+- Conducting Fibers; Electrically Conductive Anodized Aluminum Surfaces; Rapid-Chill Cryogenic Coaxial Direct-Acting Solenoid Valve; Variable-Tension-Cord Suspension/Vibration- Isolation System; Techniques for Connecting Superconducting Thin Films; Versatile Friction Stir Welding/Friction Plug Welding System; Thermal Spore Exposure Vessels; Enumerating Spore-Forming Bacteria Airborne with Particles; Miniature Oxidizer Ionizer for a Fuel Cell; Miniature Ion-Array Spectrometer; Promoted-Combustion Chamber with Induction Heating Coil; Miniature Ion-Mobility Spectrometer; Mixed-Salt/Ester Electrolytes for Low-Temperature Li+ Cells; Miniature Free-Space Electrostatic Ion Thrusters; Miniature Bipolar Electrostatic Ion Thruster; Holographic Plossl Retroreflectors; Miniature Electrostatic Ion Thruster With Magnet; Using Apex To Construct CPM-GOMS Models; Sequence Detection for PPM Optical Communication With ISI; Algorithm for Rapid Searching Among Star-Catalog Entries; Expectation-Based Control of Noise and Chaos; Radio Heating of Lunar Soil to Release Gases; Using Electrostriction to Manipulate Ullage in Microgravity; Equations for Scoring Rules When Data Are Missing; Insulating Material for Next-Generation Spacecraft; and Pseudorandom Switching for Adding Radar to the AFF Sensor.

Influence of gas flow and applied voltage on interaction of jets in a cross-field helium plasma jet array

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wan, Meng; Liu, Feng; Fang, Zhi; Zhang, Bo; Wan, Hui

2017-09-01

Atmospheric Pressure Plasma Jet arrays can greatly enhance the treatment area to fulfill the need for large-scale surface processing, while the spatial uniformity of the plasma jet array is closely related to the interactions of the adjacent jets. In this paper, a three-tube one-dimensional (1D) He plasma jet array with a cross-field needle-ring electrode structure is used to investigate the influences of the gas flow rate and applied voltage on the interactions of the adjacent jets through electrical, optical, and fluid measurements. The repulsion of the adjacent plume channels is observed using an intensified charge-coupled device (ICCD) and the influence of the gas flow rate and applied voltage on the electrostatic repulsion force, Coulomb force, is discussed. It is found that electrical coupling, mainly electrostatic repulsion force, exists among the jets in the array, which causes both the divergence of the lateral plumes and the nonlinear changes of the discharge power and the transport charge. The deflection angle of the lateral plumes with respect to the central plume in the optical images increases with the increase of applied voltage and decreases with the increase of gas flow rate. The deflection angle of the lateral plumes in the optical images is obviously larger than that of the lateral gas streams in the Schlieren images under the same experimental conditions, and the unconformity of the deflection angles is mainly attributed to the electrostatic repulsion force in adjacent plasma plume channels. The experimental results can help understand the interaction mechanisms of jets in the array and design controllable and scalable plasma jet arrays.

A Study of the Electrostatic Interaction Between Insulators and Martian/Lunar Soil Simulants

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mantovani, James G.

2001-01-01

Using our previous experience with the Mars Environmental Compatibility Assessment (MECA) electrometer, we have designed a new type of aerodynamic electrometer. The goal of the research was to measure the buildup of electrostatic surface charge on a stationary cylindrical insulator after windborne granular particles have collided with the insulator surface in a simulated dust storm. The experiments are performed inside a vacuum chamber. This allows the atmospheric composition and pressure to be controlled in order to simulate the atmospheric conditions near the equator on the Martian surface. An impeller fan was used to propel the dust particles at a cylindrically shaped insulator under low vacuum conditions. We tested the new electrometer in a 10 mbar CO2 atmosphere by exposing two types of cylindrical insulators, Teflon (1.9 cm diameter) and Fiberglass (2.5 cm diameter), to a variety of windborne granular particulate materials. The granular materials tested were JSC Mars-1 simulant, which is a mixture of coarse and fine (<5microns diameter) particle sizes, and some of the major mineral constituents of the Martian soil. The minerals included Ottawa sand (SiO2), iron oxide (Fe2O3), aluminum oxide (Al2O3) and magnesium oxide (MgO). We also constructed a MECA-like electrometer that contained an insulator capped planar electrode for measuring the amount of electrostatic charge produced by rubbing an insulator surface over Martian and lunar soil simulants. The results of this study indicate that it is possible to detect triboelectric charging of insulator surfaces by windborne Martian soil simulant, and by individual mineral constituents of the soil simulant. We have also found that Teflon and Fiberglass insulator surfaces respond in different ways by developing opposite polarity surface charge, which decays at different rates after the particle impacts cease.

Theoretical insights into the stabilities, detonation performance, and electrostatic potentials of cocrystals containing α- or β-HMX and TATB, FOX-7, NTO, or DMF in various molar ratios.

PubMed

Song, Ken-Peng; Ren, Fu-de; Zhang, Shu-Hai; Shi, Wen-Jing

2016-10-01

A molecular dynamics method was employed to study the binding energies associated with the cocrystallization (at selected crystal planes) of either 1,3,5-triamino-2,4,6-trinitro-benzene (TATB), 1,1-diamino-2,2-dinitroethylene, 3-nitro-1,2,4-triazol-5-one (TATB, FOX-7, and NTO, respectively, all of which are explosives), or N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF, a nonenergetic solvent) in various molar ratios with 1,3,5,7-tetranitro-1,3,5,7-tetrazacyclooctane in its α and β conformations (α-HMX and β-HMX, respectively). The results showed that the cocrystals with low molar ratios (2:1, 1:1, 1:2, and 1:3) were the most stable. The binding energies of HMX/NTO and HMX/DMF were larger than those of HMX/TATB and HMX/FOX-7. According to the calculated stabilities, HMX prefers to adopt its α form in HMX/TATB and its β form in HMX/NTO, whereas the two forms coexist in HMX/FOX-7. For HMX/TATB, HMX/NTO, and α-HMX/FOX-7, increasing the proportion of the cocrystal component with the highest detonation heat (HMX in the first two cases, FOX-7 in the latter) increases the detonation heat, velocity, and pressure of the cocrystal. However, increasing the proportion of the component with the highest detonation heat in β-HMX/FOX-7 and γ-CL-20/FOX-7 increases the detonation heat of the cocrystal but decreases its detonation velocity. An investigation of the surface electrostatic potential revealed how the sensitivity changes upon cocrystal formation. Graphical Abstract Surface electrostatic potential of HMX/TATB.

Determination of Collision Cross Sections Using a Fourier Transform Electrostatic Linear Ion Trap Mass Spectrometer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dziekonski, Eric T.; Johnson, Joshua T.; Lee, Kenneth W.; McLuckey, Scott A.

2018-02-01

Collision cross sections (CCSs) were determined from the frequency-domain linewidths in a Fourier transform electrostatic linear ion trap. With use of an ultrahigh-vacuum precision leak valve and nitrogen gas, transients were recorded as the background pressure in the mass analyzer chamber was varied between 4× 10-8 and 7 × 10-7 Torr. The energetic hard-sphere ion-neutral collision model, described by Xu and coworkers, was used to relate the recorded image charge to the CCS of the molecule. In lieu of our monoisotopically isolating the mass of interest, the known relative isotopic abundances were programmed into the Lorentzian fitting algorithm such that the linewidth was extracted from a sum of Lorentzians. Although this works only if the isotopic distribution is known a priori, it prevents ion loss, preserves the high signal-to-noise ratio, and minimizes the experimental error on our homebuilt instrument. Six tetraalkylammonium cations were used to correlate the CCS measured in the electrostatic linear ion trap with that measured by drift-tube ion mobility spectrometry, for which there was an excellent correlation ( R 2 ≈ 0.9999). Although the absolute CCSs derived with our method differ from those reported, the extracted linear correlation can be used to correct the raw CCS. With use of [angiotensin II]2+ and reserpine, the corrected CCSs (334.9 ± 2.1 and 250.1 ± 0.5, respectively) were in good agreement with the reported ion mobility spectrometry CCSs (335 and 254.3, respectively). With sufficient signal-to-noise ratio, the CCSs determined are reproducible to within a fraction of a percent, comparable to the uncertainties reported on dedicated ion mobility instruments.

The Effect of Background Pressure on Electron Acceleration from Ultra-Intense Laser-Matter Interactions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Le, Manh; Ngirmang, Gregory; Orban, Chris; Morrison, John; Chowdhury, Enam; Roquemore, William

2017-10-01

We present two-dimensional particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations that investigate the role of background pressure on the acceleration of electrons from ultra intense laser interaction at normal incidence with liquid density ethylene glycol targets. The interaction was simulated at ten different pressures varying from 7.8 mTorr to 26 Torr. We calculated conversion efficiencies from the simulation results and plotted the efficiencies with respect to the background pressure. The results revealed that the laser to > 100 keV electron conversion efficiency remained flat around 0.35% from 7.8 mTorr to 1.2 Torr and increased exponentially from 1.2 Torr onward to about 1.47% at 26 Torr. Increasing the background pressure clearly has a dramatic effect on the acceleration of electrons from the target. We explain how electrostatic effects, in particular the neutralization of the target by the background plasma, allows electrons to escape more easily and that this effect is strengthened with higher densities. This work could facilitate the design of future experiments in increasing laser to electron conversion efficiency and generating substantial bursts of electrons with relativistic energies. This research is supported by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research under LRIR Project 17RQCOR504 under the management of Dr. Riq Parra and Dr. Jean-Luc Cambier. Support was also provided by the DOD HPCMP Internship Program.

Electrostatic coating enhances bioavailability of insecticides and breaks pyrethroid resistance in mosquitoes

PubMed Central

Andriessen, Rob; Snetselaar, Janneke; Suer, Remco A.; Osinga, Anne J.; Deschietere, Johan; Lyimo, Issa N.; Mnyone, Ladslaus L.; Brooke, Basil D.; Ranson, Hilary; Knols, Bart G. J.; Farenhorst, Marit

2015-01-01

Insecticide resistance poses a significant and increasing threat to the control of malaria and other mosquito-borne diseases. We present a novel method of insecticide application based on netting treated with an electrostatic coating that binds insecticidal particles through polarity. Electrostatic netting can hold small amounts of insecticides effectively and results in enhanced bioavailability upon contact by the insect. Six pyrethroid-resistant Anopheles mosquito strains from across Africa were exposed to similar concentrations of deltamethrin on electrostatic netting or a standard long-lasting deltamethrin-coated bednet (PermaNet 2.0). Standard WHO exposure bioassays showed that electrostatic netting induced significantly higher mortality rates than the PermaNet, thereby effectively breaking mosquito resistance. Electrostatic netting also induced high mortality in resistant mosquito strains when a 15-fold lower dose of deltamethrin was applied and when the exposure time was reduced to only 5 s. Because different types of particles adhere to electrostatic netting, it is also possible to apply nonpyrethroid insecticides. Three insecticide classes were effective against strains of Aedes and Culex mosquitoes, demonstrating that electrostatic netting can be used to deploy a wide range of active insecticides against all major groups of disease-transmitting mosquitoes. Promising applications include the use of electrostatic coating on walls or eave curtains and in trapping/contamination devices. We conclude that application of electrostatically adhered particles boosts the efficacy of WHO-recommended insecticides even against resistant mosquitoes. This innovative technique has potential to support the use of unconventional insecticide classes or combinations thereof, potentially offering a significant step forward in managing insecticide resistance in vector-control operations. PMID:26324912

A Triboelectric Sensor Array for Electrostatic Studies on the Lunar Surface

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johansen, Michael R.; Mackey, Paul J.; Calle, C. I.

2015-01-01

The moons electrostatic environment requires careful consideration in the development of future lunar landers. Electrostatically charged dust was well documented during the Apollo missions to cause thermal control, mechanical, and visibility issues. The fine dust particles that make up the surface are electrostatically charged as a result of numerous charging mechanisms. The relatively dry conditions on the moon creates a prime tribocharging environment during surface operations. The photoelectric effect is dominant for lunar day static charging, while plasma electrons are the main contributor for lunar night electrostatic effects. Electrostatic charging is also dependent on solar intensity, Earth-moon relative positions, and cosmic ray flux. This leads to a very complex and dynamic electrostatic environment that must be studied for the success of long term lunar missions.In order to better understand the electrostatic environment of planetary bodies, Kennedy Space Center, in previous collaboration with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, has developed an electrostatic sensor suite. One of the instruments included in this package is the triboelectric sensor array. It is comprised of strategically selected materials that span the triboelectric series and that also have previous spaceflight history. In this presentation, we discuss detailed testing with the triboelectric sensor array performed at Kennedy Space Center. We will discuss potential benefits and use cases of this low mass, low cost sensor package, both for science and for mission success.

Bounding the electrostatic free energies associated with linear continuum models of molecular solvation.

PubMed

Bardhan, Jaydeep P; Knepley, Matthew G; Anitescu, Mihai

2009-03-14

The importance of electrostatic interactions in molecular biology has driven extensive research toward the development of accurate and efficient theoretical and computational models. Linear continuum electrostatic theory has been surprisingly successful, but the computational costs associated with solving the associated partial differential equations (PDEs) preclude the theory's use in most dynamical simulations. Modern generalized-Born models for electrostatics can reproduce PDE-based calculations to within a few percent and are extremely computationally efficient but do not always faithfully reproduce interactions between chemical groups. Recent work has shown that a boundary-integral-equation formulation of the PDE problem leads naturally to a new approach called boundary-integral-based electrostatics estimation (BIBEE) to approximate electrostatic interactions. In the present paper, we prove that the BIBEE method can be used to rigorously bound the actual continuum-theory electrostatic free energy. The bounds are validated using a set of more than 600 proteins. Detailed numerical results are presented for structures of the peptide met-enkephalin taken from a molecular-dynamics simulation. These bounds, in combination with our demonstration that the BIBEE methods accurately reproduce pairwise interactions, suggest a new approach toward building a highly accurate yet computationally tractable electrostatic model.

Bounding the electrostatic free energies associated with linear continuum models of molecular solvation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bardhan, Jaydeep P.; Knepley, Matthew G.; Anitescu, Mihai

2009-03-01

The importance of electrostatic interactions in molecular biology has driven extensive research toward the development of accurate and efficient theoretical and computational models. Linear continuum electrostatic theory has been surprisingly successful, but the computational costs associated with solving the associated partial differential equations (PDEs) preclude the theory's use in most dynamical simulations. Modern generalized-Born models for electrostatics can reproduce PDE-based calculations to within a few percent and are extremely computationally efficient but do not always faithfully reproduce interactions between chemical groups. Recent work has shown that a boundary-integral-equation formulation of the PDE problem leads naturally to a new approach called boundary-integral-based electrostatics estimation (BIBEE) to approximate electrostatic interactions. In the present paper, we prove that the BIBEE method can be used to rigorously bound the actual continuum-theory electrostatic free energy. The bounds are validated using a set of more than 600 proteins. Detailed numerical results are presented for structures of the peptide met-enkephalin taken from a molecular-dynamics simulation. These bounds, in combination with our demonstration that the BIBEE methods accurately reproduce pairwise interactions, suggest a new approach toward building a highly accurate yet computationally tractable electrostatic model.

Does increasing pressure always accelerate the condensed material decay initiated through bimolecular reactions? A case of the thermal decomposition of TKX-50 at high pressures.

PubMed

Lu, Zhipeng; Zeng, Qun; Xue, Xianggui; Zhang, Zengming; Nie, Fude; Zhang, Chaoyang

2017-08-30

Performances and behaviors under high temperature-high pressure conditions are fundamentals for many materials. We study in the present work the pressure effect on the thermal decomposition of a new energetic ionic salt (EIS), TKX-50, by confining samples in a diamond anvil cell, using Raman spectroscopy measurements and ab initio simulations. As a result, we find a quadratic increase in decomposition temperature (T d ) of TKX-50 with increasing pressure (P) (T d = 6.28P 2 + 12.94P + 493.33, T d and P in K and GPa, respectively, and R 2 = 0.995) and the decomposition under various pressures initiated by an intermolecular H-transfer reaction (a bimolecular reaction). Surprisingly, this finding is contrary to a general observation about the pressure effect on the decomposition of common energetic materials (EMs) composed of neutral molecules: increasing pressure will impede the decomposition if it starts from a bimolecular reaction. Our results also demonstrate that increasing pressure impedes the H-transfer via the enhanced long-range electrostatic repulsion of H +δ H +δ of neighboring NH 3 OH + , with blue shifts of the intermolecular H-bonds. And the subsequent decomposition of the H-transferred intermediates is also suppressed, because the decomposition proceeds from a bimolecular reaction to a unimolecular one, which is generally prevented by compression. These two factors are the basic root for which the decomposition retarded with increasing pressure of TKX-50. Therefore, our finding breaks through the previously proposed concept that, for the condensed materials, increasing pressure will accelerate the thermal decomposition initiated by bimolecular reactions, and reveals a distinct mechanism of the pressure effect on thermal decomposition. That is to say, increasing pressure does not always promote the condensed material decay initiated through bimolecular reactions. Moreover, such a mechanism may be feasible to other EISs due to the similar intermolecular interactions.

Electrostatic Precipitator

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-06-09

New Electrostatic Precipitator in a flow-through system. The precipitator system is being developed to remove dust from the atmospheric intakes of the MARS ISRU chambers. It uses electrostatic forces for the dust removal.

Activation of Latent Dihydroorotase from Aquifex aeolicus by Pressure*

PubMed Central

Hervé, Guy; Evans, Hedeel Guy; Fernado, Roshini; Patel, Chandni; Hachem, Fatme; Evans, David R.

2017-01-01

Elevated hydrostatic pressure was used to probe conformational changes of Aquifex aeolicus dihydroorotase (DHO), which catalyzes the third step in de novo pyrimidine biosynthesis. The isolated protein, a 45-kDa monomer, lacks catalytic activity but becomes active upon formation of a dodecameric complex with aspartate transcarbamoylase (ATC). X-ray crystallographic studies of the isolated DHO and of the complex showed that association induces several major conformational changes in the DHO structure. In the isolated DHO, a flexible loop occludes the active site blocking the access of substrates. The loop is mostly disordered but is tethered to the active site region by several electrostatic and hydrogen bonds. This loop becomes ordered and is displaced from the active site upon formation of DHO-ATC complex. The application of pressure to the complex causes its time-dependent dissociation and the loss of both DHO and ATC activities. Pressure induced irreversible dissociation of the obligate ATC trimer, and as a consequence the DHO is also inactivated. However, moderate hydrostatic pressure applied to the isolated DHO subunit mimics the complex formation and reversibly activates the isolated subunit in the absence of ATC, suggesting that the loop has been displaced from the active site. This effect of pressure is explained by the negative volume change associated with the disruption of ionic interactions and exposure of ionized amino acids to the solvent (electrostriction). The interpretation that the loop is relocated by pressure was validated by site-directed mutagenesis and by inhibition by small peptides that mimic the loop residues. PMID:27746403

Effects of Oxygen Partial Pressure on the Surface Tension of Liquid Nickel

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

SanSoucie, Michael P.; Rogers, Jan R.; Gowda, Vijaya Kumar Malahalli Shankare; Rodriguez, Justin; Matson, Douglas M.

2015-01-01

The NASA Marshall Space Flight Center's electrostatic levitation (ESL) laboratory has been recently upgraded with an oxygen partial pressure controller. This system allows the oxygen partial pressure within the vacuum chamber to be measured and controlled, theoretically in the range from 10-36 to 100 bar. The oxygen control system installed in the ESL laboratory's main chamber consists of an oxygen sensor, oxygen pump, and a control unit. The sensor is a potentiometric device that determines the difference in oxygen activity in two gas compartments (inside the chamber and the air outside of the chamber) separated by an electrolyte, which is yttria-stabilized zirconia. The pump utilizes coulometric titration to either add or remove oxygen. The system is controlled by a desktop control unit, which can also be accessed via a computer. The controller performs temperature control for the sensor and pump, PID-based current loop, and a control algorithm. Oxygen partial pressure has been shown to play a significant role in the surface tension of liquid metals. Oxide films or dissolved oxygen may lead to significant changes in surface tension. The effects of oxygen partial pressure on the surface tension of undercooled liquid nickel will be analyzed, and the results will be presented. The surface tension will be measured at several different oxygen partial pressures while the sample is undercooled. Surface tension will be measured using the oscillating drop method. While undercooled, each sample will be oscillated several times consecutively to investigate how the surface tension behaves with time while at a particular oxygen partial pressure.

One-dimensional Ar-SF{sub 6} hydromodel at low-pressure in e-beam generated plasmas

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

Petrov, George M., E-mail: george.petrov@nrl.navy.mil; Boris, David R.; Petrova, Tzvetelina B.

2016-03-15

A one-dimensional steady-state hydrodynamic model of electron beam generated plasmas produced in Ar-SF{sub 6} mixtures at low pressure in a constant magnetic field was developed. Simulations were performed for a range of SF{sub 6} partial pressures at constant 30 mTorr total gas pressure to determine the spatial distribution of species densities and fluxes. With the addition of small amount of SF{sub 6} (∼1%), the confining electrostatic field sharply decreases with respect to the pure argon case. This effect is due to the applied magnetic field inhibiting electron diffusion. The hallmark of electronegative discharge plasmas, positive ion—negative ion core and positivemore » ion—electron edge, was not observed. Instead, a plasma with large electronegativity (∼100) is formed throughout the volume, and only a small fraction (≈30%) of the parent SF{sub 6} molecules were dissociated to F{sub 2}, SF{sub 2}, and SF{sub 4}. Importantly, F radical densities were found to be very low, on the order of the ion density. Model predictions for the electron density, ion density, and plasma electronegativity are in good agreement with experimental data over the entire range of SF{sub 6} concentrations investigated.« less

Effect of confining wall potential on charged collimated dust beam in low-pressure plasma

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kausik, S. S.; Kakati, B.; Saikia, B. K.

2013-05-01

The effect of confining wall potential on charged collimated dust beam in low-pressure plasma has been studied in a dusty plasma experimental setup by applying electrostatic field to each channel of a multicusp magnetic cage. Argon plasma is produced by hot cathode discharge method at a pressure of 5×10-4 millibars and is confined by a full line cusped magnetic field confinement system. Silver dust grains are produced by gas-evaporation technique and move upward in the form of a collimated dust beam due to differential pressure maintained between the dust and plasma chambers. The charged grains in the beam after coming out from the plasma column enter into the diagnostic chamber and are deflected by a dc field applied across a pair of deflector plates at different confining potentials. Both from the amount of deflection and the floating potential, the number of charges collected by the dust grains is calculated. Furthermore, the collimated dust beam strikes the Faraday cup, which is placed above the deflector plates, and the current (˜pA) so produced is measured by an electrometer at different confining potentials. The experimental results demonstrate the significant effect of confining wall potential on charging of dust grains.

On the Proper Calculation of Electrostatic Interactions in Solid-Supported Bilayer Systems

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-01-01

the effects of im- plementing different electrostatic boundary conditions on the structural and electrostatic properties of a quartz/water/vacuum...interface and a similar quartz-supported hydrated lipid bilayer exposed to vacuum. Since these interfacial systems have a net polarization, implementing the...implemented electrostatic boundary condition removed these inconsistencies. This formulation is generally applicable to similar interfacial systems in bulk

Coupled modes in magnetized dense plasma with relativistic-degenerate electrons

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khan, S. A.

2012-01-01

Low frequency electrostatic and electromagnetic waves are investigated in ultra-dense quantum magnetoplasma with relativistic-degenerate electron and non-degenerate ion fluids. The dispersion relation is derived for mobile as well as immobile ions by employing hydrodynamic equations for such plasma under the influence of electromagnetic forces and pressure gradient of relativistic-degenerate Fermi gas of electrons. The result shows the coexistence of shear Alfven and ion modes with relativistically modified dispersive properties. The relevance of results to the dense degenerate plasmas of astrophysical origin (for instance, white dwarf stars) is pointed out with brief discussion on ultra-relativistic and non-relativistic limits.

Graphene gas pumps

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Davidovikj, D.; Bouwmeester, D.; van der Zant, H. S. J.; Steeneken, P. G.

2018-07-01

We report on the development of a pneumatically coupled graphene membrane system, comprising of two circular cavities connected by a narrow trench. Both cavities and the trench are covered by a thin few-layer graphene membrane to form a sealed dumbbell-shaped chamber. Local electrodes at the bottom of each cavity allow for actuation of each membrane separately, enabling electrical control and manipulation of the gas flow inside the channel. Using laser interferometry, we measure the displacement of each drum at atmospheric pressure as a function of the frequency of the electrostatic driving force and provide a proof-of-principle of using graphene membranes to pump attolitre quantities of gases at the nanoscale.

Process parameter and surface morphology of pineapple leaf electrospun nanofibers (PALF)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Surip, S. N.; Aziz, F. M. A.; Bonnia, N. N.; Sekak, K. A.; Zakaria, M. N.

2017-09-01

In recent times, nanofibers have attracted the attention of researchers due to their pronounced micro and nano structural characteristics that enable the development of advanced materials that have sophisticated applications. The production of nanofibers by the electrospinning process is influenced both by the electrostatic forces and the viscoelastic behavior of the polymer. Process parameters, like solution feed rate, applied voltage, nozzle-collector distance, and spinning environment, and material properties, like solution concentration, viscosity, surface tension, conductivity, and solvent vapor pressure, influence the structure and properties of electrospun nanofibers. Significant work has been done to characterize the properties of PALF nanofibers as a function of process and material parameters.

Field Modeling, Symplectic Tracking, and Spin Decoherence for EDM and Muon $$g\\textrm{-}2$$ Lattices

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

Valetov, Eremey Vladimirovich

2017-01-01

While the first particle accelerators were electrostatic machines, and several electrostatic storage rings were subsequently commissioned and operated, electrostatic storage rings pose a number of challenges. Unlike motion in the magnetic field, where particle energy remains constant, particle energy generally changes in electrostatic elements. Conservation of energy in an electrostatic element is, in practice, only approximate, and it requires careful and accurate design, manufacturing, installation, and operational use. Electrostatic deflectors require relatively high electrostatic fields, tend to introduce nonlinear aberrations of all orders, and are more challenging to manufacture than homogeneous magnetic dipoles. Accordingly, magnetic storage rings are overwhelmingly prevalent.more » The search for electric dipole moments (EDMs) of fundamental particles is of key importance in the study of C and CP violations and their sources. C and CP violations are part of the Sakharov conditions that explain the matter–antimatter asymmetry in the universe. Determining the source of CP violations would provide valuable empirical insight for beyond-Standard-Model physics. EDMs of fundamental particles have not to this date been experimentally observed. The search for fundamental particle EDMs has narrowed the target search region; however, an EDM signal is yet to be discovered. In 2008, Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) had proposed the frozen spin (FS) concept for the search of a deuteron EDM. The FS concept envisions launching deuterons through a storage ring with combined electrostatic and magnetic fields. The electrostatic and magnetic fields are in a proportion that would, without an EDM, freeze the deuteron’s spin along its momentum as the deuteron moves around the lattice. The radial electrostatic field would result in a torque on the spin vector, proportional to a deuteron EDM, rotating the spin vector out of the midplane.« less

Linear and nonlinear interactions of an electron beam with oblique whistler and electrostatic waves in the magnetosphere

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Y. L.; Matsumoto, H.; Omura, Y.

1993-12-01

Both linear and nonlinear interactions between oblique whistler, electrostatic, quasi-upper hybrid mode waves and an electron beam are studied by linear analyses and electromagnetic particle simulations. In addition to a background cold plasma, we assumed a hot electron beam drifting along a static magnetic field. Growth rates of the oblique whistler, oblique electrostatic, and quasi-upper hybrid instabilities were first calculated. We found that there are four kinds of unstable mode waves for parallel and oblique propagations. They are the electromagnetic whistler mode wave (WW1), the electrostatic whistler mode wave (WW2), the electrostatic mode wave (ESW), and the quasi-upper hybrid mode wave (UHW). A possible mechanism is proposed to explain the satellite observations of whistler mode chorus and accompanied electrostatic waves, whose amplitudes are sometimes modulated at the chorus frequency.

Roles of Long-range Electrostatic Domain Interactions and K+ in Phosphoenzyme Transition of Ca2+-ATPase*

PubMed Central

Yamasaki, Kazuo; Daiho, Takashi; Danko, Stefania; Suzuki, Hiroshi

2013-01-01

Sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+-ATPase couples the motions and rearrangements of three cytoplasmic domains (A, P, and N) with Ca2+ transport. We explored the role of electrostatic force in the domain dynamics in a rate-limiting phosphoenzyme (EP) transition by a systematic approach combining electrostatic screening with salts, computer analysis of electric fields in crystal structures, and mutations. Low KCl concentration activated and increasing salt above 0.1 m inhibited the EP transition. A plot of the logarithm of the transition rate versus the square of the mean activity coefficient of the protein gave a linear relationship allowing division of the activation energy into an electrostatic component and a non-electrostatic component in which the screenable electrostatic forces are shielded by salt. Results show that the structural change in the transition is sterically restricted, but that strong electrostatic forces, when K+ is specifically bound at the P domain, come into play to accelerate the reaction. Electric field analysis revealed long-range electrostatic interactions between the N and P domains around their hinge. Mutations of the residues directly involved and other charged residues at the hinge disrupted in parallel the electric field and the structural transition. Favorable electrostatics evidently provides a low energy path for the critical N domain motion toward the P domain, overcoming steric restriction. The systematic approach employed here is, in general, a powerful tool for understanding the structural mechanisms of enzymes. PMID:23737524

Electrostatics in pharmaceutical aerosols for inhalation.

PubMed

Wong, Jennifer; Chan, Hak-Kim; Kwok, Philip Chi Lip

2013-08-01

Electrostatics continues to play an important role in pharmaceutical aerosols for inhalation. Despite its ubiquitous nature, the charging process is complex and not well understood. Nonetheless, significant advances in the past few years continue to improve understanding and lead to better control of electrostatics. The purpose of this critical review is to present an overview of the literature, with an emphasis on how electrostatic charge can be useful in improving pulmonary drug delivery.

Stability, Nonlinearity and Reliability of Electrostatically Actuated MEMS Devices

PubMed Central

Zhang, Wen-Ming; Meng, Guang; Chen, Di

2007-01-01

Electrostatic micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) is a special branch with a wide range of applications in sensing and actuating devices in MEMS. This paper provides a survey and analysis of the electrostatic force of importance in MEMS, its physical model, scaling effect, stability, nonlinearity and reliability in detail. It is necessary to understand the effects of electrostatic forces in MEMS and then many phenomena of practical importance, such as pull-in instability and the effects of effective stiffness, dielectric charging, stress gradient, temperature on the pull-in voltage, nonlinear dynamic effects and reliability due to electrostatic forces occurred in MEMS can be explained scientifically, and consequently the great potential of MEMS technology could be explored effectively and utilized optimally. A simplified parallel-plate capacitor model is proposed to investigate the resonance response, inherent nonlinearity, stiffness softened effect and coupled nonlinear effect of the typical electrostatically actuated MEMS devices. Many failure modes and mechanisms and various methods and techniques, including materials selection, reasonable design and extending the controllable travel range used to analyze and reduce the failures are discussed in the electrostatically actuated MEMS devices. Numerical simulations and discussions indicate that the effects of instability, nonlinear characteristics and reliability subjected to electrostatic forces cannot be ignored and are in need of further investigation.

Conservation and Role of Electrostatics in Thymidylate Synthase.

PubMed

Garg, Divita; Skouloubris, Stephane; Briffotaux, Julien; Myllykallio, Hannu; Wade, Rebecca C

2015-11-27

Conservation of function across families of orthologous enzymes is generally accompanied by conservation of their active site electrostatic potentials. To study the electrostatic conservation in the highly conserved essential enzyme, thymidylate synthase (TS), we conducted a systematic species-based comparison of the electrostatic potential in the vicinity of its active site. Whereas the electrostatics of the active site of TS are generally well conserved, the TSs from minimal organisms do not conform to the overall trend. Since the genomes of minimal organisms have a high thymidine content compared to other organisms, the observation of non-conserved electrostatics was surprising. Analysis of the symbiotic relationship between minimal organisms and their hosts, and the genetic completeness of the thymidine synthesis pathway suggested that TS from the minimal organism Wigglesworthia glossinidia (W.g.b.) must be active. Four residues in the vicinity of the active site of Escherichia coli TS were mutated individually and simultaneously to mimic the electrostatics of W.g.b TS. The measured activities of the E. coli TS mutants imply that conservation of electrostatics in the region of the active site is important for the activity of TS, and suggest that the W.g.b. TS has the minimal activity necessary to support replication of its reduced genome.

Embedding beyond electrostatics-The role of wave function confinement.

PubMed

Nåbo, Lina J; Olsen, Jógvan Magnus Haugaard; Holmgaard List, Nanna; Solanko, Lukasz M; Wüstner, Daniel; Kongsted, Jacob

2016-09-14

We study excited states of cholesterol in solution and show that, in this specific case, solute wave-function confinement is the main effect of the solvent. This is rationalized on the basis of the polarizable density embedding scheme, which in addition to polarizable embedding includes non-electrostatic repulsion that effectively confines the solute wave function to its cavity. We illustrate how the inclusion of non-electrostatic repulsion results in a successful identification of the intense π → π(∗) transition, which was not possible using an embedding method that only includes electrostatics. This underlines the importance of non-electrostatic repulsion in quantum-mechanical embedding-based methods.

Very compact, high-stability electrostatic actuator featuring contact-free self-limiting displacement

DOEpatents

Rodgers, M. Steven; Miller, Samuel L.

2003-01-01

A compact electrostatic actuator is disclosed for microelectromechanical (MEM) applications. The actuator utilizes stationary and moveable electrodes, with the stationary electrodes being formed on a substrate and the moveable electrodes being supported above the substrate on a frame. The frame provides a rigid structure which allows the electrostatic actuator to be operated at high voltages (up to 190 Volts) to provide a relatively large actuation force compared to conventional electrostatic comb actuators which are much larger in size. For operation at its maximum displacement, the electrostatic actuator is relatively insensitive to the exact value of the applied voltage and provides a self-limiting displacement.

The Electromechanical Behavior of a Micro-Ring Driven by Traveling Electrostatic Force

PubMed Central

Ye, Xiuqian; Chen, Yibao; Chen, Da-Chih; Huang, Kuo-Yi; Hu, Yuh-Chung

2012-01-01

There is no literature mentioning the electromechanical behavior of micro structures driven by traveling electrostatic forces. This article is thus the first to present the dynamics and stabilities of a micro-ring subjected to a traveling electrostatic force. The traveling electrostatic force may be induced by sequentially actuated electrodes which are arranged around the flexible micro-ring. The analysis is based on a linearized distributed model considering the electromechanical coupling effects between electrostatic force and structure. The micro-ring will resonate when the traveling speeds of the electrostatic force approach some critical speeds. The critical speeds are equal to the ratio of the natural frequencies to the wave number of the correlative natural mode of the ring. Apart from resonance, the ring may be unstable at some unstable traveling speeds. The unstable regions appear not only near the critical speeds, but also near some fractions of some critical speeds differences. Furthermore the unstable regions expand with increasing driving voltage. This article may lead to a new research branch on electrostatic-driven micro devices. PMID:22438705

Ionic strength independence of charge distributions in solvation of biomolecules

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Virtanen, J. J.; Sosnick, T. R.; Freed, K. F.

2014-12-01

Electrostatic forces enormously impact the structure, interactions, and function of biomolecules. We perform all-atom molecular dynamics simulations for 5 proteins and 5 RNAs to determine the dependence on ionic strength of the ion and water charge distributions surrounding the biomolecules, as well as the contributions of ions to the electrostatic free energy of interaction between the biomolecule and the surrounding salt solution (for a total of 40 different biomolecule/solvent combinations). Although water provides the dominant contribution to the charge density distribution and to the electrostatic potential even in 1M NaCl solutions, the contributions of water molecules and of ions to the total electrostatic interaction free energy with the solvated biomolecule are comparable. The electrostatic biomolecule/solvent interaction energies and the total charge distribution exhibit a remarkable insensitivity to salt concentrations over a huge range of salt concentrations (20 mM to 1M NaCl). The electrostatic potentials near the biomolecule's surface obtained from the MD simulations differ markedly, as expected, from the potentials predicted by continuum dielectric models, even though the total electrostatic interaction free energies are within 11% of each other.

Electrostatic Levitator (ESL)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1998-01-01

Dr. Rulison of Space System LORAl working with the Electrostatic Levitation (ESL) prior to the donation. Space System/LORAL donated the electrostatic containerless processing system to NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC). The official hand over took place in July 1998.

In-Situ Measurements of Electrostatic Dust Transport on the Lunar Surface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, X.; Sternovsky, Z.; Horanyi, M.

2018-02-01

A design of the Cubesat Electrostatic Dust Analyzer (CEDA) is described to verify and characterize the electrostatic dust transport process on the lunar surface and to estimate its effect on the surface evolution.

Hybrid Electrostatic/Acoustic Levitator

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rhim, Won K.; Trinh, Eugene H.; Chung, Sang K.; Elleman, Daniel D.

1987-01-01

Because electrostatic and acoustic forces independent of each other, hybrid levitator especially suitable for studies of drop dynamics. Like all-acoustic or all-electrostatic systems, also used in studies of containerless material processing. Vertical levitating force applied to sample by upper and lower electrodes. Torques or vibrational forces in horizontal plane applied by acoustic transducers. Electrically charged water drop about 4 mm in diameter levitated electrostatically and rotated acoustically until it assumed dumbell shape and broke apart.

A small-gap electrostatic micro-actuator for large deflections

PubMed Central

Conrad, Holger; Schenk, Harald; Kaiser, Bert; Langa, Sergiu; Gaudet, Matthieu; Schimmanz, Klaus; Stolz, Michael; Lenz, Miriam

2015-01-01

Common quasi-static electrostatic micro actuators have significant limitations in deflection due to electrode separation and unstable drive regions. State-of-the-art electrostatic actuators achieve maximum deflections of approximately one third of the electrode separation. Large electrode separation and high driving voltages are normally required to achieve large actuator movements. Here we report on an electrostatic actuator class, fabricated in a CMOS-compatible process, which allows high deflections with small electrode separation. The concept presented makes the huge electrostatic forces within nanometre small electrode separation accessible for large deflections. Electrostatic actuations that are larger than the electrode separation were measured. An analytical theory is compared with measurement and simulation results and enables closer understanding of these actuators. The scaling behaviour discussed indicates significant future improvement on actuator deflection. The presented driving concept enables the investigation and development of novel micro systems with a high potential for improved device and system performance. PMID:26655557

Electrostatics at the nanoscale.

PubMed

Walker, David A; Kowalczyk, Bartlomiej; de la Cruz, Monica Olvera; Grzybowski, Bartosz A

2011-04-01

Electrostatic forces are amongst the most versatile interactions to mediate the assembly of nanostructured materials. Depending on experimental conditions, these forces can be long- or short-ranged, can be either attractive or repulsive, and their directionality can be controlled by the shapes of the charged nano-objects. This Review is intended to serve as a primer for experimentalists curious about the fundamentals of nanoscale electrostatics and for theorists wishing to learn about recent experimental advances in the field. Accordingly, the first portion introduces the theoretical models of electrostatic double layers and derives electrostatic interaction potentials applicable to particles of different sizes and/or shapes and under different experimental conditions. This discussion is followed by the review of the key experimental systems in which electrostatic interactions are operative. Examples include electroactive and "switchable" nanoparticles, mixtures of charged nanoparticles, nanoparticle chains, sheets, coatings, crystals, and crystals-within-crystals. Applications of these and other structures in chemical sensing and amplification are also illustrated.

The establishment and application of direct coupled electrostatic-structural field model in electrostatically controlled deployable membrane antenna

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gu, Yongzhen; Duan, Baoyan; Du, Jingli

2018-05-01

The electrostatically controlled deployable membrane antenna (ECDMA) is a promising space structure due to its low weight, large aperture and high precision characteristics. However, it is an extreme challenge to describe the coupled field between electrostatic and membrane structure accurately. A direct coupled method is applied to solve the coupled problem in this paper. Firstly, the membrane structure and electrostatic field are uniformly described by energy, considering the coupled problem is an energy conservation phenomenon. Then the direct coupled electrostatic-structural field governing equilibrium equations are obtained by energy variation approach. Numerical results show that the direct coupled method improves the computing efficiency by 36% compared with the traditional indirect coupled method with the same level accuracy. Finally, the prototype has been manufactured and tested and the ECDMA finite element simulations show good agreement with the experiment results as the maximum surface error difference is 6%.

Electrostatic thin film chemical and biological sensor

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

Prelas, Mark A.; Ghosh, Tushar K.; Tompson, Jr., Robert V.

A chemical and biological agent sensor includes an electrostatic thin film supported by a substrate. The film includes an electrostatic charged surface to attract predetermined biological and chemical agents of interest. A charge collector associated with said electrostatic thin film collects charge associated with surface defects in the electrostatic film induced by the predetermined biological and chemical agents of interest. A preferred sensing system includes a charge based deep level transient spectroscopy system to read out charges from the film and match responses to data sets regarding the agents of interest. A method for sensing biological and chemical agents includesmore » providing a thin sensing film having a predetermined electrostatic charge. The film is exposed to an environment suspected of containing the biological and chemical agents. Quantum surface effects on the film are measured. Biological and/or chemical agents can be detected, identified and quantified based on the measured quantum surface effects.« less

Pyrotechnic hazards classification and evaluation program. Electrostatic vulnerability of the E8 and XM15/XM165 clusters, phase 1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1970-01-01

A survey of the electrostatic vulnerability of explosive manufacturing plants and recommendations for reducing the vulnerability are discussed. During the course of the investigations, the XM15/XM165 and the E8 launcher were shown to be susceptible to electrostatic ignition. The pyrotechnic hazard of prime concern associated with electrostatics is that of the spark which can be generated. The heat, shock, and ionization produced by the spark can cause ignition of pyrotechnics. However, as a result of the initial ignition tests (XM15 fuse train), changes have been incorporated to make the fusing system relatively safe from premature electrostatic activation.

Biofilm formation and local electrostatic force characteristics of Escherichia coli O157:H7 observed by electrostatic force microscopy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oh, Y. J.; Jo, W.; Yang, Y.; Park, S.

2007-04-01

The authors report growth media dependence of electrostatic force characteristics in Escherichia coli O157:H7 biofilm through local measurement by electrostatic force microscopy (EFM). The difference values of electrostatic interaction between the bacterial surface and the abiotic surface show an exponential decay behavior during biofilm development. In the EFM data, the biofilm in the low nutrient media shows a faster decay than the biofilm in the rich media. The surface potential in the bacterial cells was changed from 957to149mV. Local characterization of extracellular materials extracted from the bacteria reveals the progress of the biofilm formation and functional complexities.

Electrostatically tunable resonance frequency beam utilizing a stress-sensitive film

DOEpatents

Thundat, Thomas G.; Wachter, Eric A.; Davis, J. Kenneth

2001-01-01

Methods and apparatus for detecting particular frequencies of acoustic vibration utilize an electrostatically-tunable beam element having a stress-sensitive coating and means for providing electrostatic force to controllably deflect the beam element thereby changing its stiffness and its resonance frequency. It is then determined from the response of the electrostatically-tunable beam element to the acoustical vibration to which the beam is exposed whether or not a particular frequency or frequencies of acoustic vibration are detected.

ELECTROSTATIC ACCELERATORS (in French)

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

Gerbier, R.

1962-04-01

The various methods presently in use for producing the continuous high voltage necessary for the operation of electrostatic accelerators are reviewed. The methods considered are voltage multiplier units (Greinacher and Morganstern types) and electrostatic instruments (Van de Graaff and Trump machines and Felici rotnting cylinder instruments). The electrostatic accelerators used at Grenoble which give currents of several milliamperes at voltages up to 1.2 Mv are described. In this energy region electron accelerators and neutron generators offer very interesting possibilities. (auth)

New Distributed Multipole Methods for Accurate Electrostatics for Large-Scale Biomolecular Simultations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sagui, Celeste

2006-03-01

An accurate and numerically efficient treatment of electrostatics is essential for biomolecular simulations, as this stabilizes much of the delicate 3-d structure associated with biomolecules. Currently, force fields such as AMBER and CHARMM assign ``partial charges'' to every atom in a simulation in order to model the interatomic electrostatic forces, so that the calculation of the electrostatics rapidly becomes the computational bottleneck in large-scale simulations. There are two main issues associated with the current treatment of classical electrostatics: (i) how does one eliminate the artifacts associated with the point-charges (e.g., the underdetermined nature of the current RESP fitting procedure for large, flexible molecules) used in the force fields in a physically meaningful way? (ii) how does one efficiently simulate the very costly long-range electrostatic interactions? Recently, we have dealt with both of these challenges as follows. In order to improve the description of the molecular electrostatic potentials (MEPs), a new distributed multipole analysis based on localized functions -- Wannier, Boys, and Edminston-Ruedenberg -- was introduced, which allows for a first principles calculation of the partial charges and multipoles. Through a suitable generalization of the particle mesh Ewald (PME) and multigrid method, one can treat electrostatic multipoles all the way to hexadecapoles all without prohibitive extra costs. The importance of these methods for large-scale simulations will be discussed, and examplified by simulations from polarizable DNA models.

Teaching Electrostatics in University Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hughes, J. F.

1974-01-01

Describes an optional course on applied electrostatics that was offered to electrical engineers in their final year. Topics included the determination of electric fields, nature of the charging process, static electricity in liquids, solid state processes, charged particle applications, and electrostatic ignition. (GS)

Vibrational mode and sound radiation of electrostatic speakers using circular and annular diaphragms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, Yu-Hsi; Chiang, Hsin-Yuan

2016-06-01

This study modeled two diaphragms comprising a pair of indium tin oxide (ITO) transparent plates sandwiching a vibrating diaphragm to create circular (30 mm radius) and annular (30 mm outer and 3 mm inner radius) push-pull electrostatic speakers. We then measured the displacement amplitudes and mode shapes produced by the devices. Vibration characteristics were used to predict sound pressure levels (SPLs) using the lumped parameter method (LPM) and distributed parameter method (DPM). The two measurement results obtained using a laser system were compared to the SPLs obtained using traditional acoustic measurement (AM) from 20 Hz to 20 kHz in order to verify our predictions. When using LPM and DPM, the SPL prediction results in the first three symmetric modes were in good agreement with the AM results. Under the assumption of linear operations, the DPM and amplitude-fluctuation electronic speckle pattern interferometry (ESPI) techniques proved effective in determining the visualization of mode shape (0,1)-(0,3). The use of ITO plates is a practical technique for the prediction of SPL, as well as measurement of mode shapes. The four evaluation methods, i.e. LPM, DPM, ESPI and AM, present a high degree of consistency with regard to vibrational mode and sound radiation characteristics.

Theoretical studies on 2-diazo-4,6-dinitrophenol derivatives aimed at finding superior propellants.

PubMed

Liu, Yan; Wang, Lianjun; Wang, Guixiang; Du, Hongchen; Gong, Xuedong

2012-04-01

In an attempt to find superior propellants, 2-diazo-4,6-dinitrophenol (DDNP) and its -NO(2), -NH(2), -CN, -NC, -ONO(2), and -NF(2) derivatives were studied at the B3LYP/6-311++G level of density functional theory (DFT). Sensitivity was evaluated using bond dissociation enthalpies (BDEs) and molecular surface electrostatic potentials. The C-NO(2) bond appears to be the trigger bond during the thermolysis process for these compounds, except for the -ONO(2) and -NF(2) derivatives. Electrostatic potential results show that electron-withdrawing substituents make the charge imbalance more anomalous, which may change the strength of the bond, especially the weakest trigger bond. Most of the DDNP derivatives have the impact sensitivities that are higher than that of DDNP, making them favorable for use as solid propellants in micro-rockets. The theoretical densities (ρ), heats of formation (HOFs), detonation energies (Q), detonation pressures (P), and detonation velocities (D) of the compounds were estimated. The effects of various substituent groups on ρ, HOF, Q, D, and P were investigated. Some derivatives exhibit perfect detonation properties. The calculated relative specific impulses (I (r,sp)) of all compounds except for -NH(2) derivatives were higher than that of DDNP, and also meet the requirements of propellants.

Quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics modeling of photoelectron spectra: the carbon 1s core-electron binding energies of ethanol-water solutions.

PubMed

Löytynoja, T; Niskanen, J; Jänkälä, K; Vahtras, O; Rinkevicius, Z; Ågren, H

2014-11-20

Using ethanol-water solutions as illustration, we demonstrate the capability of the hybrid quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics (QM/MM) paradigm to simulate core photoelectron spectroscopy: the binding energies and the chemical shifts. An integrated approach with QM/MM binding energy calculations coupled to preceding molecular dynamics sampling is adopted to generate binding energies averaged over the solute-solvent configurations available at a particular temperature and pressure and thus allowing for a statistical assessment with confidence levels for the final binding energies. The results are analyzed in terms of the contributions in the molecular mechanics model-electrostatic, polarization, and van der Waals-with atom or bond granulation of the corresponding MM charge and polarizability force-fields. The role of extramolecular charge transfer screening of the core-hole and explicit hydrogen bonding is studied by extending the QM core to cover the first solvation shell. The results are compared to those obtained from pure electrostatic and polarizable continuum models. Particularly, the dependence of the carbon 1s binding energies with respect to the ethanol concentration is studied. Our results indicate that QM/MM can be used as an all-encompassing model to study photoelectron binding energies and chemical shifts in solvent environments.

Micromachined silicon electrostatic chuck

DOEpatents

Anderson, R.A.; Seager, C.H.

1996-12-10

An electrostatic chuck is faced with a patterned silicon plate, created by micromachining a silicon wafer, which is attached to a metallic base plate. Direct electrical contact between the chuck face (patterned silicon plate`s surface) and the silicon wafer it is intended to hold is prevented by a pattern of flat-topped silicon dioxide islands that protrude less than 5 micrometers from the otherwise flat surface of the chuck face. The islands may be formed in any shape. Islands may be about 10 micrometers in diameter or width and spaced about 100 micrometers apart. One or more concentric rings formed around the periphery of the area between the chuck face and wafer contain a low-pressure helium thermal-contact gas used to assist heat removal during plasma etching of a silicon wafer held by the chuck. The islands are tall enough and close enough together to prevent silicon-to-silicon electrical contact in the space between the islands, and the islands occupy only a small fraction of the total area of the chuck face, typically 0.5 to 5 percent. The pattern of the islands, together with at least one hole bored through the silicon veneer into the base plate, will provide sufficient gas-flow space to allow the distribution of the helium thermal-contact gas. 6 figs.

First-principles study of low Miller index Ni3S2 surfaces in hydrotreating conditions.

PubMed

Aray, Yosslen; Vega, David; Rodriguez, Jesus; Vidal, Alba B; Grillo, Maria Elena; Coll, Santiago

2009-03-12

Density functional theory (DFT) calculations combined with surface thermodynamic arguments and the Gibbs-Curie-Wulff equilibrium morphology formalism have been employed to explore the effect of the reaction conditions, temperature (T), and gas-phase partial pressures (PH2 and PH2S) on the stability of nickel sulfide (Ni3S2) surfaces. Furthermore, the strength and nature of chemical bonds for selected Ni3S2 surface cuts were investigated with the quantum theory of atoms in molecules methodology. A particular analysis of the electrostatic potential within this theoretical framework is performed to study the potential activity of nickel sulfide nanoparticles as hydrodesulfurization (HDS) catalysts. The calculated thermodynamic surface stabilities and the resulting equilibrium morphology model suggest that unsupported Ni3S2 nanoparticles mainly expose (111) and (111) type surface faces in HDS conditions. Analysis of the electrostatic potential mapped onto a selected electron density isocontour (0.001 au) on those expose surface reveals a poor potential reactivity toward electron-donating reagents (i.e., low Lewis acidity). Consequently, a very low attraction between coordinatively unsaturated active sites (Lewis sites) exposed at the catalytic particles and the S atoms coming from reagent polluting molecules does inactive these kinds of particles for HDS.

Preliminary design notes on a low F-number EMR

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mihora, D. J.

1982-01-01

Conceptual design studies were completed on a new Electrostatic Membrane Reflector, EMR. This new model incorporates both a preformed, curved membrane reflector and membrane control surface. This improved model is the second step toward a high precision large space antenna that could eventually exhibit a performance in terms of aperture diameter to surface quality exceeding 1,000,000. Design trades indicate that the goal of a low ratio of focal length to aperture diameter (f sub n) can be achieved while operating in a humid sea-level environment. A nominal surface quality of 1.0 mm (RMS) is possible using available off-the-shelf commercial membranes. Both the membrane reflector and control electrode surface are fabricated from 12 gore segments and attached to the available 12 sided, 4.88 m diameter rim. The preferred conceptual design has a f sub n = 1.0. The 4.88 m aperture is performed with a centerline displacement of 0.306 m. The nominal spacing between the membrane reflector and the electrode control surface is 50.8 mm. The centerline membrane displacement from its performed to its tensioned, smooth shape is about 3 mm. The membrane tensioning is achieved by application of an electrostatic pressure of 2.6 N/sq cm and a voltage of about 38 kV.

Communication: Origin of the contributions to DNA structure in phages

PubMed Central

Myers, Christopher G.; Pettitt, B. Montgomery

2013-01-01

Cryo electron microscopy (cryo-EM) data of the interior of phages show ordering of the interior DNA that has been interpreted as a nearly perfectly ordered polymer. We show surface-induced correlations, excluded volume, and electrostatic forces are sufficient to predict most of the major features of the current structural data for DNA packaged within viral capsids without additional ordering due to elastic bending forces for the polymer. Current models assume highly-ordered, even spooled, hexagonally packed conformations based on interpretation of cryo-EM density maps. We show herein that the surface induced packing of short (6mer), unconnected DNA polymer segments is the only necessary ingredient in creating ringed densities consistent with experimental density maps. This implies the ensemble of possible conformations of polymeric DNA within the capsid that are consistent with cryo-EM data may be much larger than implied by traditional interpretations where such rings can only result from highly-ordered spool-like conformations. This opens the possibility of a more disordered, entropically-driven view of phage packaging thermodynamics. We also show the electrostatics of the DNA contributes a large portion of the internal hydrostatic and osmotic pressures of a phage virion, suggesting that nonlinear elastic anomalies might reduce the overall elastic bending enthalpy of more disordered conformations to have allowable free energies. PMID:23444988

Communication: Origin of the contributions to DNA structure in phages.

PubMed

Myers, Christopher G; Pettitt, B Montgomery

2013-02-21

Cryo electron microscopy (cryo-EM) data of the interior of phages show ordering of the interior DNA that has been interpreted as a nearly perfectly ordered polymer. We show surface-induced correlations, excluded volume, and electrostatic forces are sufficient to predict most of the major features of the current structural data for DNA packaged within viral capsids without additional ordering due to elastic bending forces for the polymer. Current models assume highly-ordered, even spooled, hexagonally packed conformations based on interpretation of cryo-EM density maps. We show herein that the surface induced packing of short (6mer), unconnected DNA polymer segments is the only necessary ingredient in creating ringed densities consistent with experimental density maps. This implies the ensemble of possible conformations of polymeric DNA within the capsid that are consistent with cryo-EM data may be much larger than implied by traditional interpretations where such rings can only result from highly-ordered spool-like conformations. This opens the possibility of a more disordered, entropically-driven view of phage packaging thermodynamics. We also show the electrostatics of the DNA contributes a large portion of the internal hydrostatic and osmotic pressures of a phage virion, suggesting that nonlinear elastic anomalies might reduce the overall elastic bending enthalpy of more disordered conformations to have allowable free energies.

Electron Acoustic Waves in Pure Ion Plasmas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anderegg, F.; Driscoll, C. F.; Dubin, D. H. E.; O'Neil, T. M.

2009-11-01

Electron Acoustic Waves (EAW) are the low frequency branch of electrostatic plasma waves. These waves exist in neutralized plasmas, pure electron plasmas and in pure ion plasmasfootnotetextF. Anderegg et al., PRL 102, 095001 (2009) and PoP 16, 055705 (2009). (where the name is deceptive). Here, we observe standing mθ= 0 mz= 1 EAWs in a pure ion plasma column. At small amplitude, the EAWs have a phase velocity vph ˜1.4 v, and the frequencies are in close agreement with theory. At moderate amplitudes, waves can be excited over a broad range of frequencies, with observed phase velocities in the range of 1.4 v <=vph <=2.1 v. This frequency variability comes from the plasma adjusting its velocity distribution so as to make the EAW resonant with the drive frequency. Our wave-coherent laser-induced fluorescence diagnostic shows that particles slower than vph oscillate in phase with the wave, while particles moving faster than vph oscillate 180^o out of phase with the wave. From a fluid perspective, this gives an unusual negative dynamical compressibility. That is, the wave pressure oscillations are 180^o out of phase from the density oscillations, almost fully canceling the electrostatic restoring force, giving the low and malleable frequency.

Origins of microstructural transformations in charged vesicle suspensions: the crowding hypothesis.

PubMed

Seth, Mansi; Ramachandran, Arun; Murch, Bruce P; Leal, L Gary

2014-09-02

It is observed that charged unilamellar vesicles in a suspension can spontaneously deflate and subsequently transition to form bilamellar vesicles, even in the absence of externally applied triggers such as salt or temperature gradients. We provide strong evidence that the driving force for this deflation-induced transition is the repulsive electrostatic pressure between charged vesicles in concentrated suspensions, above a critical effective volume fraction. We use volume fraction measurements and cryogenic transmission electron microscopy imaging to quantitatively follow both the macroscopic and microstructural time-evolution of cationic diC18:1 DEEDMAC vesicle suspensions at different surfactant and salt concentrations. A simple model is developed to estimate the extent of deflation of unilamellar vesicles caused by electrostatic interactions with neighboring vesicles. It is determined that when the effective volume fraction of the suspension exceeds a critical value, charged vesicles in a suspension can experience "crowding" due to overlap of their electrical double layers, which can result in deflation and subsequent microstructural transformations to reduce the effective volume fraction of the suspension. Ordinarily in polydisperse colloidal suspensions, particles interacting via a repulsive potential transform into a glassy state above a critical volume fraction. The behavior of charged vesicle suspensions reported in this paper thus represents a new mechanism for the relaxation of repulsive interactions in crowded situations.

Genetic and molecular dosimetry of HZE radiation (US-1 RADIAT)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nelson, Gregory A.; Schubert, W. W.; Kazarians, G. A.; Richards, G. F.; Benton, E. V.; Benton, E. R.; Henke, R. P.

1995-01-01

In order to estimate radiation exposure in space, experiments were conducted during the 1st International Microgravity Laboratory (IML-1) mission in order to isolate genetic changes in animal cells caused by cosmic rays. The space measurements were evaluated against results from synthetic cosmic rays produced by particle accelerators on the ground. The biological material used was the tiny soil nematode, Caenorhabditis elegans. The measurements were made by thermoluminescent detectors and plastic nuclear track detectors. The development and the chromosome mechanics in microgravity were studied, and the mutagenesis induced by radiation exposure was analyzed. The results showed that there are no obvious differences in the development, behavior and chromosome mechanics, as a function of gravity unloading (reproduction, self-fertilization and mating of males with hermaphrodites, gross anatomy, symmetry and gametogenesis, pairing, disjoining and recombination of chromosomes). A variety of mutants were isolated, and it was noted that mutants isolated from regions of identified high particles were more severely affected than those isolated by random screening. Linear energy transfer particles seem to favor large scale genetic lesions.

Switchable Q-switched and modelocked operation in ytterbium doped fiber laser under all-normal-dispersion configuration

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

Mukhopadhyay, Pranb K., E-mail: pkm@rrcat.gov.in; Gupta, Pradeep K.; Singh, Chandra Pal

2015-03-15

We have constructed an Yb-doped fiber laser in all-normal-dispersion configuration which can be independently operated in Q-switched or modelocked configuration with the help of a simple fiber optic ring resonator (FORR). In the presence of FORR, the laser operates in Q-switched mode producing stable pulses in the range of 1 μs-200 ns with repetition rate in the range of 45 kHz-82 kHz. On the other hand, the laser can be easily switched to mode-locked operation by disjoining the FORR loop producing train of ultrashort pulses of ∼5 ps duration (compressible to ∼150 fs) at ∼38 MHz repetition rate. The transmissionmore » characteristics of FORR in combination with the nonlinear polarization rotation for passive Q-switching operation is numerically investigated and experimentally verified. The laser can serve as a versatile seed source for power amplifier which can be easily configured for application in the fields that require different pulsed fiber lasers.« less

PREFACE: Electrostatics 2015

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Matthews, James

2015-10-01

Electrostatics 2015, supported by the Institute of Physics, was held in the Sir James Matthews building at Southampton Solent University, UK between 12th and 16th April 2015. Southampton is a historic city on the South Coast of England with a strong military and maritime history. Southampton is home to two Universities: Solent University, which hosted the conference, and the University of Southampton, where much work is undertaken related to electrostatics. 37 oral and 44 poster presentations were accepted for the conference, and 60 papers were submitted and accepted for the proceedings. The Bill Bright Memorial Lecture was delivered this year by Professor Mark Horenstein from Boston University who was, until recently, Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Electrostatics. He spoke on The contribution of surface potential to diverse problems in electrostatics and his thorough knowledge of the subject of electrostatics was evident in the presentation. The first session was chaired by the Conference Chair, Dr Keith Davies, whose experience in the field showed through his frequent contributions to the discussions throughout the conference. Hazards and Electrostatic Discharge have formed a strong core to Electrostatics conferences for many years, and this conference contained sessions on both Hazards and on ESD, including an invited talk from Dr Jeremy Smallwood on ESD in Industry - Present and Future. Another strong theme to emerge from this year's programme was Non-Thermal Plasmas, which was covered in two sessions. There were two invited talks on this subject: Professor Masaaki Okubo gave a talk on Development of super-clean diesel engine and combustor using nonthermal plasma hybrid after treatment and Dr David Go presented a talk on Atmospheric-pressure ionization processes: New approaches and applications for plasmas in contact with liquids. A new innovation to the conference this year was the opportunity for conference sponsors to present to the delegates a technical presentation related to their work. Chilworth Technology and Infolytica both took advantage of this opportunity. David Firth from Chilworth Technology delivered some case studies related to process safety and Chris Emson from Infolytica compared the different types of modelling software used in industry and academia. For two days of the conference, an exhibition was held for delegates to meet and discuss their work with interested companies. Sessions on Modelling and Simulation and on Measurement and Instrumentation were included. Recent successful IOP meetings on Electrospinning and Electrospray prove that this is an important topic, and were the subject of a session in the conference, including an invited talk by Dr Horst von Recum on Electrospun materials for affinity based drug delivery. The conference finished with a session on Environmental and Space Applications. The Southampton Yacht Club provided a fitting venue for the conference dinner on the Wednesday evening. Meal times, and conference dinners in particular, are always a great opportunity to meet with other workers in related fields, and there were many conversations started in question and answer sessions that continued over a plate of food. Within the conference dinner, prizes were awarded for the best student work. Ladislav Konopka's talk in the modelling and simulation session discussed how different particle sizes can be shown to transfer charge in a modelled system. Matthias Perez's poster presented early work on the use of a small-scale wind turbine to generate wind power. The discussions both within the lecture theatre and the ongoing discussions that occur over coffee and tea in between sessions are often a place where new ideas are shared. In fact, the presentation submitted by Dr Atsushi Ohsawa, Charge neutralisation from the side surface of an insulating plate, acknowledged an inspiration from a question raised at a previous Electrostatics conference in Budapest in 2013. In these proceedings the conference committee took the decision to transcribe the questions and answers to leave a lasting record of the conversations that took place after each oral presentation and they are included in the printed proceedings. I am very grateful to Keith Davies and the conference committee, and Joanne Hemstock and other IOP staff, who provided advice and assistance throughout the whole process. A peer reviewed proceedings is not possible without willing expert reviewers who are able to provide reviews on abstracts and submitted papers. I am grateful to all who undertook reviews throughout the process. I hope to see many of this year's delegates in four years time for Electrostatics 2019.

Protonmotive force: development of electrostatic drivers for synthetic molecular motors.

PubMed

Crowley, James D; Steele, Ian M; Bosnich, Brice

2006-12-04

Ferrocene has been investigated as a platform for developing protonmotive electrostatic drivers for molecular motors. When two 3-pyridine groups are substituted to the (rapidly rotating) cyclopentadienyl (Cp) rings of ferrocene, one on each Cp, it is shown that the (Cp) eclipsed, pi-stacked rotameric conformation is preferred both in solution and in the solid state. Upon quaternization of both of the pyridines substituents, either by protonation or by alkylation, it is shown that the preferred rotameric conformation is one where the pyridinium groups are rotated away from the fully pi-stacked conformation. Electrostatic calculations indicate that the rotation is caused by the electrostatic repulsion between the charges. Consistently, when the pi-stacking energy is increased pi-stacked population increases, and conversely when the electrostatic repulsion is increased pi-stacked population is decreased. This work serves to provide an approximate estimate of the amount of torque that the electrostatically driven ferrocene platform can generate when incorporated into a molecular motor. The overall conclusion is that the electrostatic interaction energy between dicationic ferrocene dipyridyl systems is similar to the pi-stacking interaction energy and, consequently, at least tricationic systems are required to fully uncouple the pi-stacked pyridine substituents.

Material Science Smart Coatings

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

Rubinstein, A. I.; Sabirianov, R. F.; Namavar, Fereydoon

2014-07-01

The contribution of electrostatic interactions to the free energy of binding between model protein and a ceramic implant surface in the aqueous solvent, considered in the framework of the nonlocal electrostatic model, is calculated as a function of the implant low-frequency dielectric constant. We show that the existence of a dynamically ordered (low-dielectric) interfacial solvent layer at the protein-solvent and ceramic-solvent interface markedly increases charging energy of the protein and ceramic implant, and consequently makes the electrostatic contribution to the protein-ceramic binding energy more favorable (attractive). Our analysis shows that the corresponding electrostatic energy between protein and oxide ceramics dependsmore » nonmonotonically on the dielectric constant of ceramic, ε C. Obtained results indicate that protein can attract electrostatically to the surface if ceramic material has a moderate ε C below or about 35 (in particularly ZrO 2 or Ta 2O 5). This is in contrast to classical (local) consideration of the solvent, which demonstrates an unfavorable electrostatic interaction of protein with typical metal oxide ceramic materials (ε C>10). Thus, a solid implant coated by combining oxide ceramic with a reduced dielectric constant can be beneficial to strengthen the electrostatic binding of the protein-implant complex.« less

SMPBS: Web server for computing biomolecular electrostatics using finite element solvers of size modified Poisson-Boltzmann equation.

PubMed

Xie, Yang; Ying, Jinyong; Xie, Dexuan

2017-03-30

SMPBS (Size Modified Poisson-Boltzmann Solvers) is a web server for computing biomolecular electrostatics using finite element solvers of the size modified Poisson-Boltzmann equation (SMPBE). SMPBE not only reflects ionic size effects but also includes the classic Poisson-Boltzmann equation (PBE) as a special case. Thus, its web server is expected to have a broader range of applications than a PBE web server. SMPBS is designed with a dynamic, mobile-friendly user interface, and features easily accessible help text, asynchronous data submission, and an interactive, hardware-accelerated molecular visualization viewer based on the 3Dmol.js library. In particular, the viewer allows computed electrostatics to be directly mapped onto an irregular triangular mesh of a molecular surface. Due to this functionality and the fast SMPBE finite element solvers, the web server is very efficient in the calculation and visualization of electrostatics. In addition, SMPBE is reconstructed using a new objective electrostatic free energy, clearly showing that the electrostatics and ionic concentrations predicted by SMPBE are optimal in the sense of minimizing the objective electrostatic free energy. SMPBS is available at the URL: smpbs.math.uwm.edu © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Synchrotron X-ray Diffraction and High-Pressure Electrical Resistivity Studies for High-Tc Candidate Nd3.5Sm0.5Ni3O8

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Uehara, Masatomo; Kobayashi, Kai; Yamamoto, Hiroki; Nakata, Akitoshi; Wakiya, Kazuhei; Umehara, Izuru; Gouchi, Jun; Uwatoko, Yoshiya

2017-11-01

Ln4Ni3O8 (Ln = La, Nd, Sm) has attracted much attention as a candidate for high-Tc superconductor due to its close structural and electrical similarities with high-Tc cuprates. However, Ln4Ni3O8 is not a superconductor and shows semiconducting behavior. Our recent work has revealed that Nd3.5Sm0.5Ni3O8 displays metallic behavior down to 20-40 K upon intercalation and subsequent deintercalation treatments with sulfur, followed by a weak semiconducting tendency at lower temperatures. A synchrotron X-ray diffraction experiment suggests that the structural change induced by sulfur treatment can be explained electrostatically by the removal of additional apical oxygen. High-pressure electrical resistivity measurements up to 8 GPa on a metallic sample show the enhancement of the semiconducting tendency at low temperatures, suggesting that the removal of additional apical oxygen is not totally completed under the present conditions of sulfur treatment.

MC3, Version 1

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

Cawkwell, Marc Jon

2016-09-09

The MC3 code is used to perform Monte Carlo simulations in the isothermal-isobaric ensemble (constant number of particles, temperature, and pressure) on molecular crystals. The molecules within the periodic simulation cell are treated as rigid bodies, alleviating the requirement for a complex interatomic potential. Intermolecular interactions are described using generic, atom-centered pair potentials whose parameterization is taken from the literature [D. E. Williams, J. Comput. Chem., 22, 1154 (2001)] and electrostatic interactions arising from atom-centered, fixed, point partial charges. The primary uses of the MC3 code are the computation of i) the temperature and pressure dependence of lattice parameters andmore » thermal expansion coefficients, ii) tensors of elastic constants and compliances via the Parrinello and Rahman’s fluctuation formula [M. Parrinello and A. Rahman, J. Chem. Phys., 76, 2662 (1982)], and iii) the investigation of polymorphic phase transformations. The MC3 code is written in Fortran90 and requires LAPACK and BLAS linear algebra libraries to be linked during compilation. Computationally expensive loops are accelerated using OpenMP.« less

Electron core ionization in compressed alkali metal cesium

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Degtyareva, V. F.

2018-01-01

Elements of groups I and II in the periodic table have valence electrons of s-type and are usually considered as simple metals. Crystal structures of these elements at ambient pressure are close-packed and high-symmetry of bcc and fcc-types, defined by electrostatic (Madelung) energy. Diverse structures were found under high pressure with decrease of the coordination number, packing fraction and symmetry. Formation of complex structures can be understood within the model of Fermi sphere-Brillouin zone interactions and supported by Hume-Rothery arguments. With the volume decrease there is a gain of band structure energy accompanied by a formation of many-faced Brillouin zone polyhedra. Under compression to less than a half of the initial volume the interatomic distances become close to or smaller than the ionic radius which should lead to the electron core ionization. At strong compression it is necessary to assume that for alkali metals the valence electron band overlaps with the upper core electrons, which increases the valence electron count under compression.

Experimental Investigation of Electron Cloud Containment in a Nonuniform Magnetic Field

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Eninger, J. E.

1974-01-01

Dense clouds of electrons were generated and studied in an axisymmetric, nonuniform magnetic field created by a short solenoid. The operation of the experiment was similar to that of a low-pressure (approximately 0.000001 Torr) magnetron discharge. Discharge current characteristics are presented as a function of pressure, magnetic field strength, voltage, and cathode end-plate location. The rotation of the electron cloud is determined from the frequency of diocotron waves. In the space charge saturated regime of operation, the cloud is found to rotate as a solid body with frequency close to V sub a/phi sub a where V sub a is the anode voltage and phi suba is the total magnetic flux. This result indicates that, in regions where electrons are present, the magnetic field lines are electrostatic equipotentials (E bar, B bar = 0). Equilibrium electron density distributions suggested by this conditions are integrated with respect to total ionizing power and are found consistent with measured discharge currents.

Control of Flowing Liquid Films by Electrostatic Fields in Space

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Griffing, E. M.; Bankoff, S. G.; Schluter, R. A.; Miksis, M. J.

1999-01-01

The interaction of a spacially varying electric field and a flowing thin liquid film is investigated experimentally for the design of a proposed light weight space radiator. Electrodes are utilized to create a negative pressure at the bottom of a fluid film and suppress leaks if a micrometeorite punctures the radiator surface. Experimental pressure profiles under a vertical falling film, which passes under a finite electrode, show that fields of sufficient strength can be used safely in such a device. Leak stopping experiments demonstrate that leaks can be stopped with an electric field in earth gravity. A new type of electrohydrodynamic instability causes waves in the fluid film to develop into 3D cones and touch the electrode at a critical voltage. Methods previously used to calculate critical voltages for non moving films are shown to be inappropriate for this situation. The instability determines a maximum field which may be utilized in design, so the possible dependence of critical voltage on electrode length, height above the film, and fluid Reynolds number is discussed.

Postadsorption Work Function Tuning via Hydrogen Pressure Control

PubMed Central

2015-01-01

The work function of metal substrates can be easily tuned, for instance, by adsorbing layers of molecular electron donors and acceptors. In this work, we discuss the possibility of changing the donor/acceptor mixing ratio reversibly after adsorption by choosing a donor/acceptor pair that is coupled via a redox reaction and that is in equilibrium with a surrounding gas phase. We discuss such a situation for the example of tetrafluoro-1,4-benzenediol (TFBD)/tetrafluoro-1,4-benzoquinone (TFBQ), adsorbed on Cu(111) and Ag(111) surfaces. We use density functional theory and ab initio thermodynamics to show that arbitrary TFBD/TFBQ mixing ratios can be set using hydrogen pressures attainable in low to ultrahigh vacuum. Adjusting the mixing ratio allows modifying the work function over a range of about 1 eV. Finally, we contrast single-species submonolayers with mixed layers to discuss why the resulting inhomogeneities in the electrostatic energy above the surface have different impacts on the interfacial level alignment and the work function. PMID:26692915

Sound propagation in a monodisperse bubble cloud: from the crystal to the glass.

PubMed

Devaud, M; Hocquet, T; Leroy, V

2010-05-01

We present a theoretical study of the propagation of a monochromatic pressure wave in an unbounded monodisperse bubbly liquid. We begin with the case of a regular bubble array--a bubble crystal--for which we derive a dispersion relation. In order to interpret the different branches of this relation, we introduce a formalism, the radiative picture, which is the adaptation to acoustics of the standard splitting of the electric field in an electrostatic and a radiative part in Coulomb gauge. In the case of an irregular or completely random array--a bubble glass--and at wavelengths large compared to the size of the bubble array spatial inhomogeneities, the difference between order and disorder is not felt by the pressure wave: a dispersion relation still holds, coinciding with that of a bubble crystal with the same bubble size and air volume fraction at the centre of its first Brillouin zone. This relation is discussed and compared to that obtained by Foldy in the framework of his multiscattering approach.

In situ electrostatic characterisation of ion beams in the region of ion acceleration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bennet, Alexander; Charles, Christine; Boswell, Rod

2018-02-01

In situ and ex situ techniques have been used to measure directional ion beams created by a sharp axial potential drop in low pressure expanding plasmas. Although Retarding Field Energy Analysers (RFEAs) are the most convenient technique to measure the ion velocities and plasma potentials along with the plasma density, they are bulky and are contained in a grounded shield that may perturb the electric potential profile of the expanding plasma. In principle, ex situ techniques produce a more reliable measurement and Laser Induced Fluorescence spectroscopy (LIF) has previously been used to characterise the spatial velocity profile of ion beams in the same region of acceleration for a range of pressures. Here, satisfactory agreement between the ion velocity profiles measured by LIF and RFEA techniques has allowed the RFEA method to be confidently used to probe the ion beam characteristics in the regions of high gradients in plasma density and DC electric fields which have previously proven difficult.

Effects of Environmental Oxygen Content and Dissolved Oxygen on the Surface Tension and Viscosity of Liquid Nickel

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

SanSoucie, M. P.; Rogers, J. R.; Kumar, V.; Rodriguez, J.; Xiao, X.; Matson, D. M.

2016-07-01

The NASA Marshall Space Flight Center's electrostatic levitation (ESL) laboratory has recently added an oxygen partial pressure controller. This system allows the oxygen partial pressure within the vacuum chamber to be measured and controlled in the range from approximately 10^{-28} {to} 10^{-9} bar, while in a vacuum atmosphere. The oxygen control system installed in the ESL laboratory's main chamber consists of an oxygen sensor, oxygen pump, and a control unit. The sensor is a potentiometric device that determines the difference in oxygen activity in two gas compartments (inside the chamber and the air outside of the chamber) separated by an electrolyte. The pump utilizes coulometric titration to either add or remove oxygen. The system is controlled by a desktop control unit, which can also be accessed via a computer. The controller performs temperature control for the sensor and pump, has a PID-based current loop and a control algorithm. Oxygen partial pressure has been shown to play a significant role in the surface tension of liquid metals. Oxide films or dissolved oxygen may lead to significant changes in surface tension. The effects on surface tension and viscosity by oxygen partial pressure in the surrounding environment and the melt dissolved oxygen content will be evaluated, and the results will be presented. The surface tension and viscosity will be measured at several different oxygen partial pressures while the sample is undercooled. Surface tension and viscosity will be measured using the oscillating droplet method.

Piezoelectrically-induced trap-depth reduction model of elastico-mechanoluminescent materials

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chandra, B. P.; Chandra, V. K.; Jha, Piyush

2015-03-01

Considering the detrapping of charge carriers due to reduction in trap-depth caused by piezoelectric field produced by applied pressure, an expression is derived for the detrapping rate of electrons. Then, an expression is obtained for the rate of generation of excited ions produced during capture of detrapped electrons by Eu3+ ions in persistent luminescent materials or by the energy released during electron-hole recombination in ZnS:Mn crystals. Finally, an expression is explored for the elastico-mechanoluminescence (EML) intensity, which is able to explain satisfactorily the characteristics of EML for the application of static pressure as well as for impact pressure. The total number of detrapped electrons and the total EML intensity are found to increase linearly with the electrostatic energy of the crystals in piezoelectric field. It is shown that the EML intensity should increase with the EML efficiency, number of crystallites (volume of sample), concentration of local piezoelectric regions in crystallites, piezoelectric constant of local piezoelectric regions, average length of the local piezoelectric regions, total number of electron traps, pressing rate, and applied pressure, and it should be higher for the materials having low value of threshold pressure and low value of trap-depth in unstressed condition. On the basis of the piezoelectrically-induced trap-depth reduction model of EML reported in the present investigation novel intense elastico mechanoluminescent materials having repetitive EML with undiminished intensity for successive loadings can be tailored which may find applications in sensing, imaging, lighting, colored displays, and other mechano-optical devices.

VASP-E: Specificity Annotation with a Volumetric Analysis of Electrostatic Isopotentials

PubMed Central

Chen, Brian Y.

2014-01-01

Algorithms for comparing protein structure are frequently used for function annotation. By searching for subtle similarities among very different proteins, these algorithms can identify remote homologs with similar biological functions. In contrast, few comparison algorithms focus on specificity annotation, where the identification of subtle differences among very similar proteins can assist in finding small structural variations that create differences in binding specificity. Few specificity annotation methods consider electrostatic fields, which play a critical role in molecular recognition. To fill this gap, this paper describes VASP-E (Volumetric Analysis of Surface Properties with Electrostatics), a novel volumetric comparison tool based on the electrostatic comparison of protein-ligand and protein-protein binding sites. VASP-E exploits the central observation that three dimensional solids can be used to fully represent and compare both electrostatic isopotentials and molecular surfaces. With this integrated representation, VASP-E is able to dissect the electrostatic environments of protein-ligand and protein-protein binding interfaces, identifying individual amino acids that have an electrostatic influence on binding specificity. VASP-E was used to examine a nonredundant subset of the serine and cysteine proteases as well as the barnase-barstar and Rap1a-raf complexes. Based on amino acids established by various experimental studies to have an electrostatic influence on binding specificity, VASP-E identified electrostatically influential amino acids with 100% precision and 83.3% recall. We also show that VASP-E can accurately classify closely related ligand binding cavities into groups with different binding preferences. These results suggest that VASP-E should prove a useful tool for the characterization of specific binding and the engineering of binding preferences in proteins. PMID:25166865

Three-dimensional structural modelling and calculation of electrostatic potentials of HLA Bw4 and Bw6 epitopes to explain the molecular basis for alloantibody binding: toward predicting HLA antigenicity and immunogenicity.

PubMed

Mallon, Dermot H; Bradley, J Andrew; Winn, Peter J; Taylor, Craig J; Kosmoliaptsis, Vasilis

2015-02-01

We have previously shown that qualitative assessment of surface electrostatic potential of HLA class I molecules helps explain serological patterns of alloantibody binding. We have now used a novel computational approach to quantitate differences in surface electrostatic potential of HLA B-cell epitopes and applied this to explain HLA Bw4 and Bw6 antigenicity. Protein structure models of HLA class I alleles expressing either the Bw4 or Bw6 epitope (defined by sequence motifs at positions 77 to 83) were generated using comparative structure prediction. The electrostatic potential in 3-dimensional space encompassing the Bw4/Bw6 epitope was computed by solving the Poisson-Boltzmann equation and quantitatively compared in a pairwise, all-versus-all fashion to produce distance matrices that cluster epitopes with similar electrostatics properties. Quantitative comparison of surface electrostatic potential at the carboxyl terminal of the α1-helix of HLA class I alleles, corresponding to amino acid sequence motif 77 to 83, produced clustering of HLA molecules in 3 principal groups according to Bw4 or Bw6 epitope expression. Remarkably, quantitative differences in electrostatic potential reflected known patterns of serological reactivity better than Bw4/Bw6 amino acid sequence motifs. Quantitative assessment of epitope electrostatic potential allowed the impact of known amino acid substitutions (HLA-B*07:02 R79G, R82L, G83R) that are critical for antibody binding to be predicted. We describe a novel approach for quantitating differences in HLA B-cell epitope electrostatic potential. Proof of principle is provided that this approach enables better assessment of HLA epitope antigenicity than amino acid sequence data alone, and it may allow prediction of HLA immunogenicity.

Optimization of binding electrostatics: Charge complementarity in the barnase-barstar protein complex

PubMed Central

lee, Lee-Peng; Tidor, Bruce

2001-01-01

Theoretical and experimental studies have shown that the large desolvation penalty required for polar and charged groups frequently precludes their involvement in electrostatic interactions that contribute strongly to net stability in the folding or binding of proteins in aqueous solution near room temperature. We have previously developed a theoretical framework for computing optimized electrostatic interactions and illustrated use of the algorithm with simplified geometries. Given a receptor and model assumptions, the method computes the ligand-charge distribution that provides the most favorable balance of desolvation and interaction effects on binding. In this paper the method has been extended to treat complexes using actual molecular shapes. The barnase-barstar protein complex was investigated with barnase treated as a target receptor. The atomic point charges of barstar were varied to optimize the electrostatic binding free energy. Barnase and natural barstar form a tight complex (Kd ∼ 10−14 M) with many charged and polar groups near the interface that make this a particularly relevant system for investigating the role of electrostatic effects on binding. The results show that sets of barstar charges (resulting from optimization with different constraints) can be found that give rise to relatively large predicted improvements in electrostatic binding free energy. Principles for enhancing the effect of electrostatic interactions in molecular binding in aqueous environments are discussed in light of the optima. Our findings suggest that, in general, the enhancements in electrostatic binding free energy resulting from modification of polar and charged groups can be substantial. Moreover, a recently proposed definition of electrostatic complementarity is shown to be a useful tool for examining binding interfaces. Finally, calculational results suggest that wild-type barstar is closer to being affinity optimized than is barnase for their mutual binding, consistent with the known roles of these proteins. PMID:11266622

Electrostatic orientation of the electron-transfer complex between plastocyanin and cytochrome c.

PubMed

Roberts, V A; Freeman, H C; Olson, A J; Tainer, J A; Getzoff, E D

1991-07-15

To understand the specificity and efficiency of protein-protein interactions promoting electron transfer, we evaluated the role of electrostatic forces in precollision orientation by the development of two new methods, computer graphics alignment of protein electrostatic fields and a systematic orientational search of intermolecular electrostatic energies for two proteins at present separation distances. We applied these methods to the plastocyanin/cytochrome c interaction, which is faster than random collision, but too slow for study by molecular dynamics techniques. Significant electrostatic potentials were concentrated on one-fourth (969 A2) of the plastocyanin surface, with the greatest negative potential centered on the Tyr-83 hydroxyl within the acidic patch, and on one-eighth (632 A2) of the cytochrome c surface, with the greatest positive potential centered near the exposed heme edge. Coherent electrostatic fields occurred only over these regions, suggesting that local, rather than global, charge complementarity controls productive recognition. The three energetically favored families of pre-collision orientations all directed the positive region surrounding the heme edge of cytochrome c toward the acidic patch of plastocyanin but differed in heme plane orientation. Analysis of electrostatic fields, electrostatic energies of precollision orientations with 12 and 6 A separation distances, and surface topographies suggested that the favored orientations should converge to productive complexes promoting a single electron-transfer pathway from the cytochrome c heme edge to Tyr-83 of plastocyanin. Direct interactions of the exposed Cu ligand in plastocyanin with the cytochrome c heme edge are not unfavorable sterically or electrostatically but should occur no faster than randomly, indicating that this is not the primary pathway for electron transfer.

Ferroelectric hydration shells around proteins: electrostatics of the protein-water interface.

PubMed

LeBard, David N; Matyushov, Dmitry V

2010-07-22

Numerical simulations of hydrated proteins show that protein hydration shells are polarized into a ferroelectric layer with large values of the average dipole moment magnitude and the dipole moment variance. The emergence of the new polarized mesophase dramatically alters the statistics of electrostatic fluctuations at the protein-water interface. The linear response relation between the average electrostatic potential and its variance breaks down, with the breadth of the electrostatic fluctuations far exceeding the expectations of the linear response theories. The dynamics of these non-Gaussian electrostatic fluctuations are dominated by a slow (approximately = 1 ns) component that freezes in at the temperature of the dynamical transition of proteins. The ferroelectric shell propagates 3-5 water diameters into the bulk.

Electrostatic Phenomena on Planetary Surfaces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Calle, Carlos I.

2017-02-01

The diverse planetary environments in the solar system react in somewhat different ways to the encompassing influence of the Sun. These different interactions define the electrostatic phenomena that take place on and near planetary surfaces. The desire to understand the electrostatic environments of planetary surfaces goes beyond scientific inquiry. These environments have enormous implications for both human and robotic exploration of the solar system. This book describes in some detail what is known about the electrostatic environment of the solar system from early and current experiments on Earth as well as what is being learned from the instrumentation on the space exploration missions (NASA, European Space Agency, and the Japanese Space Agency) of the last few decades. It begins with a brief review of the basic principles of electrostatics.

Using Programmable Calculators to Solve Electrostatics Problems.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yerian, Stephen C.; Denker, Dennis A.

1985-01-01

Provides a simple routine which allows first-year physics students to use programmable calculators to solve otherwise complex electrostatic problems. These problems involve finding electrostatic potential and electric field on the axis of a uniformly charged ring. Modest programing skills are required of students. (DH)

Edutainment Science: Electrostatics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ahlers, Carl

2009-01-01

Electrostatics should find a special place in all primary school science curricula. It is a great learning area that reinforces the basics that underpin electricity and atomic structure. Furthermore, it has many well documented hands-on activities. Unfortunately, the "traditional" electrostatics equipment such as PVC rods, woollen cloths, rabbit…

Numerical Investigation of Two-Phase Flows With Charged Droplets in Electrostatic Field

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kim, Sang-Wook

1996-01-01

A numerical method to solve two-phase turbulent flows with charged droplets in an electrostatic field is presented. The ensemble-averaged Navier-Stokes equations and the electrostatic potential equation are solved using a finite volume method. The transitional turbulence field is described using multiple-time-scale turbulence equations. The equations of motion of droplets are solved using a Lagrangian particle tracking scheme, and the inter-phase momentum exchange is described by the Particle-In-Cell scheme. The electrostatic force caused by an applied electrical potential is calculated using the electrostatic field obtained by solving a Laplacian equation and the force exerted by charged droplets is calculated using the Coulombic force equation. The method is applied to solve electro-hydrodynamic sprays. The calculated droplet velocity distributions for droplet dispersions occurring in a stagnant surrounding are in good agreement with the measured data. For droplet dispersions occurring in a two-phase flow, the droplet trajectories are influenced by aerodynamic forces, the Coulombic force, and the applied electrostatic potential field.

AESOP: A Python Library for Investigating Electrostatics in Protein Interactions.

PubMed

Harrison, Reed E S; Mohan, Rohith R; Gorham, Ronald D; Kieslich, Chris A; Morikis, Dimitrios

2017-05-09

Electric fields often play a role in guiding the association of protein complexes. Such interactions can be further engineered to accelerate complex association, resulting in protein systems with increased productivity. This is especially true for enzymes where reaction rates are typically diffusion limited. To facilitate quantitative comparisons of electrostatics in protein families and to describe electrostatic contributions of individual amino acids, we previously developed a computational framework called AESOP. We now implement this computational tool in Python with increased usability and the capability of performing calculations in parallel. AESOP utilizes PDB2PQR and Adaptive Poisson-Boltzmann Solver to generate grid-based electrostatic potential files for protein structures provided by the end user. There are methods within AESOP for quantitatively comparing sets of grid-based electrostatic potentials in terms of similarity or generating ensembles of electrostatic potential files for a library of mutants to quantify the effects of perturbations in protein structure and protein-protein association. Copyright © 2017 Biophysical Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A Nonlinear Elasticity Model of Macromolecular Conformational Change Induced by Electrostatic Forces

PubMed Central

Zhou, Y. C.; Holst, Michael; McCammon, J. Andrew

2008-01-01

In this paper we propose a nonlinear elasticity model of macromolecular conformational change (deformation) induced by electrostatic forces generated by an implicit solvation model. The Poisson-Boltzmann equation for the electrostatic potential is analyzed in a domain varying with the elastic deformation of molecules, and a new continuous model of the electrostatic forces is developed to ensure solvability of the nonlinear elasticity equations. We derive the estimates of electrostatic forces corresponding to four types of perturbations to an electrostatic potential field, and establish the existance of an equilibrium configuration using a fixed-point argument, under the assumption that the change in the ionic strength and charges due to the additional molecules causing the deformation are sufficiently small. The results are valid for elastic models with arbitrarily complex dielectric interfaces and cavities, and can be generalized to large elastic deformation caused by high ionic strength, large charges, and strong external fields by using continuation methods. PMID:19461946

Geometric and electrostatic modeling using molecular rigidity functions

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

Mu, Lin; Xia, Kelin; Wei, Guowei

Geometric and electrostatic modeling is an essential component in computational biophysics and molecular biology. Commonly used geometric representations admit geometric singularities such as cusps, tips and self-intersecting facets that lead to computational instabilities in the molecular modeling. Our present work explores the use of flexibility and rigidity index (FRI), which has a proved superiority in protein B-factor prediction, for biomolecular geometric representation and associated electrostatic analysis. FRI rigidity surfaces are free of geometric singularities. We propose a rigidity based Poisson–Boltzmann equation for biomolecular electrostatic analysis. These approaches to surface and electrostatic modeling are validated by a set of 21 proteins.more » Our results are compared with those of established methods. Finally, being smooth and analytically differentiable, FRI rigidity functions offer excellent curvature analysis, which characterizes concave and convex regions on protein surfaces. Polarized curvatures constructed by using the product of minimum curvature and electrostatic potential is shown to predict potential protein–ligand binding sites.« less

Electrostatic effects on hyaluronic acid configuration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Berezney, John; Saleh, Omar

2015-03-01

In systems of polyelectrolytes, such as solutions of charged biopolymers, the electrostatic repulsion between charged monomers plays a dominant role in determining the molecular conformation. Altering the ionic strength of the solvent thus affects the structure of such a polymer. Capturing this electrostatically-driven structural dependence is important for understanding many biological systems. Here, we use single molecule manipulation experiments to collect force-extension behavior on hyaluronic acid (HA), a polyanion which is a major component of the extracellular matrix in all vertebrates. By measuring HA elasticity in a variety of salt conditions, we are able to directly assess the contribution of electrostatics to the chain's self-avoidance and local stiffness. Similar to recent results from our group on single-stranded nucleic acids, our data indicate that HA behaves as a swollen chain of electrostatic blobs, with blob size proportional to the solution Debye length. Our data indicate that the chain structure within the blob is not worm-like, likely due to long-range electrostatic interactions. We discuss potential models of this effect.

Geometric and electrostatic modeling using molecular rigidity functions

DOE PAGES

Mu, Lin; Xia, Kelin; Wei, Guowei

2017-03-01

Geometric and electrostatic modeling is an essential component in computational biophysics and molecular biology. Commonly used geometric representations admit geometric singularities such as cusps, tips and self-intersecting facets that lead to computational instabilities in the molecular modeling. Our present work explores the use of flexibility and rigidity index (FRI), which has a proved superiority in protein B-factor prediction, for biomolecular geometric representation and associated electrostatic analysis. FRI rigidity surfaces are free of geometric singularities. We propose a rigidity based Poisson–Boltzmann equation for biomolecular electrostatic analysis. These approaches to surface and electrostatic modeling are validated by a set of 21 proteins.more » Our results are compared with those of established methods. Finally, being smooth and analytically differentiable, FRI rigidity functions offer excellent curvature analysis, which characterizes concave and convex regions on protein surfaces. Polarized curvatures constructed by using the product of minimum curvature and electrostatic potential is shown to predict potential protein–ligand binding sites.« less

Optimization design combined with coupled structural-electrostatic analysis for the electrostatically controlled deployable membrane reflector

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Chao; Yang, Guigeng; Zhang, Yiqun

2015-01-01

The electrostatically controlled deployable membrane reflector (ECDMR) is a promising scheme to construct large size and high precision space deployable reflector antennas. This paper presents a novel design method for the large size and small F/D ECDMR considering the coupled structure-electrostatic problem. First, the fully coupled structural-electrostatic system is described by a three field formulation, in which the structure and passive electrical field is modeled by finite element method, and the deformation of the electrostatic domain is predicted by a finite element formulation of a fictitious elastic structure. A residual formulation of the structural-electrostatic field finite element model is established and solved by Newton-Raphson method. The coupled structural-electrostatic analysis procedure is summarized. Then, with the aid of this coupled analysis procedure, an integrated optimization method of membrane shape accuracy and stress uniformity is proposed, which is divided into inner and outer iterative loops. The initial state of relatively high shape accuracy and uniform stress distribution is achieved by applying the uniform prestress on the membrane design shape and optimizing the voltages, in which the optimal voltage is computed by a sensitivity analysis. The shape accuracy is further improved by the iterative prestress modification using the reposition balance method. Finally, the results of the uncoupled and coupled methods are compared and the proposed optimization method is applied to design an ECDMR. The results validate the effectiveness of this proposed methods.

Bluues: a program for the analysis of the electrostatic properties of proteins based on generalized Born radii

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background The Poisson-Boltzmann (PB) equation and its linear approximation have been widely used to describe biomolecular electrostatics. Generalized Born (GB) models offer a convenient computational approximation for the more fundamental approach based on the Poisson-Boltzmann equation, and allows estimation of pairwise contributions to electrostatic effects in the molecular context. Results We have implemented in a single program most common analyses of the electrostatic properties of proteins. The program first computes generalized Born radii, via a surface integral and then it uses generalized Born radii (using a finite radius test particle) to perform electrostic analyses. In particular the ouput of the program entails, depending on user's requirement: 1) the generalized Born radius of each atom; 2) the electrostatic solvation free energy; 3) the electrostatic forces on each atom (currently in a dvelopmental stage); 4) the pH-dependent properties (total charge and pH-dependent free energy of folding in the pH range -2 to 18; 5) the pKa of all ionizable groups; 6) the electrostatic potential at the surface of the molecule; 7) the electrostatic potential in a volume surrounding the molecule; Conclusions Although at the expense of limited flexibility the program provides most common analyses with requirement of a single input file in PQR format. The results obtained are comparable to those obtained using state-of-the-art Poisson-Boltzmann solvers. A Linux executable with example input and output files is provided as supplementary material. PMID:22536964

DEVELOPMENT OF A MODEL THAT CONTAINS BOTH MULTIPOLE MOMENTS AND GAUSSIANS FOR THE CALCULATION OF MOLECULAR ELECTROSTATIC POTENTIALS

EPA Science Inventory

The electrostatic interaction is a critical component of intermolecular interactions in biological processes. Rapid methods for the computation and characterization of the molecular electrostatic potential (MEP) that segment the molecular charge distribution and replace this cont...

Electrostatics with Computer-Interfaced Charge Sensors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morse, Robert A.

2006-01-01

Computer interfaced electrostatic charge sensors allow both qualitative and quantitative measurements of electrostatic charge but are quite sensitive to charges accumulating on modern synthetic materials. They need to be used with care so that students can correctly interpret their measurements. This paper describes the operation of the sensors,…

Generating electrospray from microchip devices using electroosmotic pumping

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

Ramsey, R.S.; Ramsey, J.M.

1997-03-15

A method of generating electrospray from solutions emerging from small channels etched on planer substrates in described. The fluids are delivered using electroosmotically induced pressures and are sprayed electrostatically from the terminus of a channel by applying an electrical potential of sufficient amplitude to generate the electrospray between the microchip and a conductor spaced from the channel terminus. No major modification of the microchip is required other than to expose a channel opening. The principles that regulate the fluid delivery are described and demonstrated. A spectrum for a test compound, tetrabutylammonium iodide, that was continuously electrophoresed was obtained by couplingmore » the microchip to an ion trap mass spectrometer. 35 refs., 6 figs.« less

Recent development of plasma optical systems (invited)

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

Goncharov, A. A., E-mail: gonchar@iop.kiev.ua

2016-02-15

The article devotes a brief description of the recent development and current status of an ongoing research of plasma optical systems based on the fundamental plasma optical idea magnetic electron isolation, equipotentialization magnetic field lines, and the axi-symmetric cylindrical electrostatic plasma lens (PL) configuration. The experimental, theoretical, and simulation investigations have been carried out over recent years collaboratively between IP NASU (Kiev), LBNL (Berkeley, USA), and HCEI RAS (Tomsk). The crossed electric and magnetic fields inherent the PL configuration that provides the attractive method for establishing a stable plasma discharge at low pressure. Using PL configuration, several high reliability plasmamore » devices were developed. These devices are attractive for many high-tech applications.« less

Heterogeneous mass transfer in HRE in the presence of electrostatic field research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reshetnikov, S. M.; Zyryanov, I. A.; Budin, A. G.; Pozolotin, A. P.

2017-01-01

The paper presents research results of polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) combustion in a hybrid rocket engine (HRE) under the influence of an electrostatic field. It is shown that the main mechanism of electrostatic field influence on the combustion rate is process changes in the condensed phase.

Getting Shocks: Teaching Secondary School Physics through History.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Heering, Peter

2000-01-01

Uses several replicas of experimental set-ups that were originally used in electrostatic research in teaching electrostatics through history on secondary school level. Makes visible the change of the style of electrostatic experimentation that took place at the end of the 18th century. (Contains 25 references.) (ASK)

Electrostatic Field Invisibility Cloak

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lan, Chuwen; Yang, Yuping; Geng, Zhaoxin; Li, Bo; Zhou, Ji

2015-11-01

The invisibility cloak has been drawing much attention due to its new concept for manipulating many physical fields, from oscillating wave fields (electromagnetic, acoustic and elastic) to static magnetic fields, dc electric fields, and diffusive fields. Here, an electrostatic field invisibility cloak has been theoretically investigated and experimentally demonstrated to perfectly hide two dimensional objects without disturbing their external electrostatic fields. The desired cloaking effect has been achieved via both cancelling technology and transformation optics (TO). This study demonstrates a novel way for manipulating electrostatic fields, which shows promise for a wide range of potential applications.

Don't kill canaries! Introducing a new test device to assess the electrostatic risk potential to photomasks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sebald, Thomas

2008-10-01

Electrostatic protection is an issue for all masks, whether during mask production, shipping, storage, handling or inspection and exposure. Up to now, only manual electrostatic field measurements, or expensive and elaborate analyses with Canary reticles have given hints about the risks of pattern damage by ESD events. A new test device is being introduced, which consists of electrostatic field sensors, integrated INSIDE a closed fused quartz housing which has the outside dimensions of a 6 inch mask. This device can be handled and used like a normal 6 inch reticle. It can be handled and processed while recording the electrostatic charges on the chrome patterns created by friction or field induction just as a reticle would "see" during normal processing.

Research and Development of Electrostatic Accelerometers for Space Science Missions at HUST.

PubMed

Bai, Yanzheng; Li, Zhuxi; Hu, Ming; Liu, Li; Qu, Shaobo; Tan, Dingyin; Tu, Haibo; Wu, Shuchao; Yin, Hang; Li, Hongyin; Zhou, Zebing

2017-08-23

High-precision electrostatic accelerometers have achieved remarkable success in satellite Earth gravity field recovery missions. Ultralow-noise inertial sensors play important roles in space gravitational wave detection missions such as the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) mission, and key technologies have been verified in the LISA Pathfinder mission. Meanwhile, at Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST, China), a space accelerometer and inertial sensor based on capacitive sensors and the electrostatic control technique have also been studied and developed independently for more than 16 years. In this paper, we review the operational principle, application, and requirements of the electrostatic accelerometer and inertial sensor in different space missions. The development and progress of a space electrostatic accelerometer at HUST, including ground investigation and space verification are presented.

Computational Methods for Biomolecular Electrostatics

PubMed Central

Dong, Feng; Olsen, Brett; Baker, Nathan A.

2008-01-01

An understanding of intermolecular interactions is essential for insight into how cells develop, operate, communicate and control their activities. Such interactions include several components: contributions from linear, angular, and torsional forces in covalent bonds, van der Waals forces, as well as electrostatics. Among the various components of molecular interactions, electrostatics are of special importance because of their long range and their influence on polar or charged molecules, including water, aqueous ions, and amino or nucleic acids, which are some of the primary components of living systems. Electrostatics, therefore, play important roles in determining the structure, motion and function of a wide range of biological molecules. This chapter presents a brief overview of electrostatic interactions in cellular systems with a particular focus on how computational tools can be used to investigate these types of interactions. PMID:17964951

Research and Development of Electrostatic Accelerometers for Space Science Missions at HUST

PubMed Central

Bai, Yanzheng; Li, Zhuxi; Hu, Ming; Liu, Li; Qu, Shaobo; Tan, Dingyin; Tu, Haibo; Wu, Shuchao; Yin, Hang; Li, Hongyin; Zhou, Zebing

2017-01-01

High-precision electrostatic accelerometers have achieved remarkable success in satellite Earth gravity field recovery missions. Ultralow-noise inertial sensors play important roles in space gravitational wave detection missions such as the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) mission, and key technologies have been verified in the LISA Pathfinder mission. Meanwhile, at Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST, China), a space accelerometer and inertial sensor based on capacitive sensors and the electrostatic control technique have also been studied and developed independently for more than 16 years. In this paper, we review the operational principle, application, and requirements of the electrostatic accelerometer and inertial sensor in different space missions. The development and progress of a space electrostatic accelerometer at HUST, including ground investigation and space verification are presented. PMID:28832538

Electrostatic contribution to twist rigidity of DNA.

PubMed

Mohammad-Rafiee, Farshid; Golestanian, Ramin

2004-06-01

The electrostatic contribution to the twist rigidity of DNA is studied, and it is shown that the Coulomb self-energy of the double-helical sugar-phosphate backbone makes a considerable contribution-the electrostatic twist rigidity of DNA is found to be C(elec) approximately 5 nm, which makes up about 7% of its total twist rigidity ( C(DNA) approximately 75 nm). The electrostatic twist rigidity is found, however, to depend only weakly on the salt concentration, because of a competition between two different screening mechanisms: (1) Debye screening by the salt ions in the bulk, and (2) structural screening by the periodic charge distribution along the backbone of the helical polyelectrolyte. It is found that, depending on the parameters, the electrostatic contribution to the twist rigidity could stabilize or destabilize the structure of a helical polyelectrolyte.

Testing electrostatic equilibrium in the ionosphere by detailed comparison of ground magnetic deflection and incoherent scatter radar.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cosgrove, R. B.; Schultz, A.; Imamura, N.

2016-12-01

Although electrostatic equilibrium is always assumed in the ionosphere, there is no good theoretical or experimental justification for the assumption. In fact, recent theoretical investigations suggest that the electrostatic assumption may be grossly in error. If true, many commonly used modeling methods are placed in doubt. For example, the accepted method for calculating ionospheric conductance??field line integration??may be invalid. In this talk we briefly outline the theoretical research that places the electrostatic assumption in doubt, and then describe how comparison of ground magnetic field data with incoherent scatter radar (ISR) data can be used to test the electrostatic assumption in the ionosphere. We describe a recent experiment conducted for the purpose, where an array of magnetometers was temporalily installed under the Poker Flat AMISR.

Explosion safety in industrial electrostatics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Szabó, S. V.; Kiss, I.; Berta, I.

2011-01-01

Complicated industrial systems are often endangered by electrostatic hazards, both from atmospheric (lightning phenomenon, primary and secondary lightning protection) and industrial (technological problems caused by static charging and fire and explosion hazards.) According to the classical approach protective methods have to be used in order to remove electrostatic charging and to avoid damages, however no attempt to compute the risk before and after applying the protective method is made, relying instead on well-educated and practiced expertise. The Budapest School of Electrostatics - in close cooperation with industrial partners - develops new suitable solutions for probability based decision support (Static Control Up-to-date Technology, SCOUT) using soft computing methods. This new approach can be used to assess and audit existing systems and - using the predictive power of the models - to design and plan activities in industrial electrostatics.

Determination of electrostatic force and its characteristics based on phase difference by amplitude modulation atomic force microscopy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Kesheng; Cheng, Jia; Yao, Shiji; Lu, Yijia; Ji, Linhong; Xu, Dengfeng

2016-12-01

Electrostatic force measurement at the micro/nano scale is of great significance in science and engineering. In this paper, a reasonable way of applying voltage is put forward by taking an electrostatic chuck in a real integrated circuit manufacturing process as a sample, applying voltage in the probe and the sample electrode, respectively, and comparing the measurement effect of the probe oscillation phase difference by amplitude modulation atomic force microscopy. Based on the phase difference obtained from the experiment, the quantitative dependence of the absolute magnitude of the electrostatic force on the tip-sample distance and applied voltage is established by means of theoretical analysis and numerical simulation. The results show that the varying characteristics of the electrostatic force with the distance and voltage at the micro/nano scale are similar to those at the macroscopic scale. Electrostatic force gradually decays with increasing distance. Electrostatic force is basically proportional to the square of applied voltage. Meanwhile, the applicable conditions of the above laws are discussed. In addition, a comparison of the results in this paper with the results of the energy dissipation method shows the two are consistent in general. The error decreases with increasing distance, and the effect of voltage on the error is small.

Role of non-native electrostatic interactions in the coupled folding and binding of PUMA with Mcl-1

PubMed Central

Chu, Wen-Ting; Clarke, Jane; Shammas, Sarah L.; Wang, Jin

2017-01-01

PUMA, which belongs to the BH3-only protein family, is an intrinsically disordered protein (IDP). It binds to its cellular partner Mcl-1 through its BH3 motif, which folds upon binding into an α helix. We have applied a structure-based coarse-grained model, with an explicit Debye—Hückel charge model, to probe the importance of electrostatic interactions both in the early and the later stages of this model coupled folding and binding process. This model was carefully calibrated with the experimental data on helical content and affinity, and shown to be consistent with previously published experimental data on binding rate changes with respect to ionic strength. We find that intramolecular electrostatic interactions influence the unbound states of PUMA only marginally. Our results further suggest that intermolecular electrostatic interactions, and in particular non-native electrostatic interactions, are involved in formation of the initial encounter complex. We are able to reveal the binding mechanism in more detail than is possible using experimental data alone however, and in particular we uncover the role of non-native electrostatic interactions. We highlight the potential importance of such electrostatic interactions for describing the binding reactions of IDPs. Such approaches could be used to provide predictions for the results of mutational studies. PMID:28369057

Study of a condition for the mode conversion from purely perpendicular electrostatic waves to electromagnetic waves

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

Kalaee, Mohammad Javad, E-mail: mjkalaee@ut.ac.ir; Katoh, Yuto, E-mail: yuto@stpp.gp.tohoku.ac.jp

One of the mechanisms for generating electromagnetic plasma waves (Z-mode and LO-mode) is mode conversion from electrostatic waves into electromagnetic waves in inhomogeneous plasma. Herein, we study a condition required for mode conversion of electrostatic waves propagating purely perpendicular to the ambient magnetic field, by numerically solving the full dispersion relation. An approximate model is derived describing the coupling between electrostatic waves (hot plasma Bernstein mode) and Z-mode waves at the upper hybrid frequency. The model is used to study conditions required for mode conversion from electrostatic waves (electrostatic electron cyclotron harmonic waves, including Bernstein mode) into electromagnetic plasma wavesmore » (LO-mode). It is shown that for mode conversion to occur in inhomogeneous plasma, the angle between the boundary surface and the magnetic field vector should be within a specific range. The range of the angle depends on the norm of the k vector of waves at the site of mode conversion in the inhomogeneous region. The present study reveals that inhomogeneity alone is not a sufficient condition for mode conversion from electrostatic waves to electromagnetic plasma waves and that the angle between the magnetic field and the density gradient plays an important role in the conversion process.« less

Diminish electrostatic in piezoresponse force microscopy through longer or ultra-stiff tips

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gomez, A.; Puig, T.; Obradors, X.

2018-05-01

Piezoresponse Force Microscopy is a powerful but delicate nanoscale technique that measures the electromechanical response resulting from the application of a highly localized electric field. Though mechanical response is normally due to piezoelectricity, other physical phenomena, especially electrostatic interaction, can contribute to the signal read. We address this problematic through the use of longer ultra-stiff probes providing state of the art sensitivity, with the lowest electrostatic interaction and avoiding working in high frequency regime. In order to find this solution we develop a theoretical description addressing the effects of electrostatic contributions in the total cantilever vibration and its quantification for different setups. The theory is subsequently tested in a Periodically Poled Lithium Niobate (PPLN) crystal, a sample with well-defined 0° and 180° domains, using different commercial available conductive tips. We employ the theoretical description to compare the electrostatic contribution effects into the total phase recorded. Through experimental data our description is corroborated for each of the tested commercially available probes. We propose that a larger probe length can be a solution to avoid electrostatic forces, so the cantilever-sample electrostatic interaction is reduced. Our proposed solution has great implications into avoiding artifacts while studying soft biological samples, multiferroic oxides, and thin film ferroelectric materials.

Probing lipid membrane electrostatics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Yi

The electrostatic properties of lipid bilayer membranes play a significant role in many biological processes. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) is highly sensitive to membrane surface potential in electrolyte solutions. With fully characterized probe tips, AFM can perform quantitative electrostatic analysis of lipid membranes. Electrostatic interactions between Silicon nitride probes and supported zwitterionic dioleoylphosphatidylcholine (DOPC) bilayer with a variable fraction of anionic dioleoylphosphatidylserine (DOPS) were measured by AFM. Classical Gouy-Chapman theory was used to model the membrane electrostatics. The nonlinear Poisson-Boltzmann equation was numerically solved with finite element method to provide the potential distribution around the AFM tips. Theoretical tip-sample electrostatic interactions were calculated with the surface integral of both Maxwell and osmotic stress tensors on tip surface. The measured forces were interpreted with theoretical forces and the resulting surface charge densities of the membrane surfaces were in quantitative agreement with the Gouy-Chapman-Stern model of membrane charge regulation. It was demonstrated that the AFM can quantitatively detect membrane surface potential at a separation of several screening lengths, and that the AFM probe only perturbs the membrane surface potential by <2%. One important application of this technique is to estimate the dipole density of lipid membrane. Electrostatic analysis of DOPC lipid bilayers with the AFM reveals a repulsive force between the negatively charged probe tips and the zwitterionic lipid bilayers. This unexpected interaction has been analyzed quantitatively to reveal that the repulsion is due to a weak external field created by the internai membrane dipole moment. The analysis yields a dipole moment of 1.5 Debye per lipid with a dipole potential of +275 mV for supported DOPC membranes. This new ability to quantitatively measure the membrane dipole density in a noninvasive manner will be useful in identifying the biological effects of the dipole potential. Finally, heterogeneous model membranes were studied with fluid electric force microscopy (FEFM). Electrostatic mapping was demonstrated with 50 nm resolution. The capabilities of quantitative electrostatic measurement and lateral charge density mapping make AFM a unique and powerful probe of membrane electrostatics.

On-Orbit 3-Dimensional Electrostatic Detumble for Generic Spacecraft Geometries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bennett, Trevor J.

In recent years, there is a growing interest in active debris removal and on-orbit servicing of Earth orbiting assets. The growing need for such approaches is often exemplified by the Iridium-Kosmos collision in 2009 that generated thousands of debris fragments. There exists a variety of active debris removal and on-orbit servicing technologies in development. Conventional docking mechanisms and mechanical capture by actuated manipulators, exemplified by NASA's Restore-L mission, require slow target tumble rates or more aggressive circumnavigation rate matching. The tumble rate limitations can be overcome with flexible capture systems such nets, harpoons, or tethers yet these systems require complex deployment, towing, and/or interfacing strategies to avoid servicer and target damage. Alternatively, touchless methods overcome the tumble rate limitations by provide detumble control prior to a mechanical interface. This thesis explores electrostatic detumble technology to touchlessly reduce large target rotation rates of Geostationary satellites and debris. The technical challenges preceding flight implementation largely reside in the long-duration formation flying guidance, navigation, and control of a servicer spacecraft equipped with electrostatic charge transfer capability. Leveraging prior research into the electrostatic charging of spacecraft, electrostatic detumble control formulations are developed for both axisymmetric and generic target geometries. A novel relative position vector and associated relative orbit control approach is created to manage the long-duration proximity operations. Through detailed numerical simulations, the proposed detumble and relative motion control formulations demonstrate detumble of several thousand kilogram spacecraft tumbling at several degrees per second in only several days. The availability, either through modeling or sensing, of the relative attitude, relative position, and electrostatic potential are among key concerns with implementation of electrostatic detumble control on-orbit. Leveraging an extended Kalman filter scheme, the relative position information is readily obtained. In order to touchlessly acquire the target electrostatic potential, a nested two-time scale Kalman filter is employed to provide real-time estimates of both relative position and electrostatic potential while on-orbit. The culmination of the presented control formulations for generic spacecraft geometries, the proximity and formation flying control capability, and the availability of necessary state information provide significant contributions towards the viability of electrostatic detumble mission concepts.

Electrostatic Similarity Analysis of Human β-Defensin Binding in the Melanocortin System

PubMed Central

Nix, Matthew A.; Kaelin, Christopher B.; Palomino, Rafael; Miller, Jillian L.; Barsh, Gregory S.; Millhauser, Glenn L.

2015-01-01

Summary The β-defensins are a class of small cationic proteins that serve as components of numerous systems in vertebrate biology, including the immune and melanocortin systems. Human β-defensin 3 (HBD3), which is produced in the skin, has been found to bind to melanocortin receptors 1 and 4 through complementary electrostatics, a unique mechanism of ligand-receptor interaction. This finding indicates that electrostatics alone, and not specific amino acid contact points, could be sufficient for function in this ligand-receptor system, and further suggests that other small peptide ligands could interact with these receptors in a similar fashion. Here, we conducted molecular-similarity analyses and functional studies of additional members of the human β-defensin family, examining their potential as ligands of melanocortin-1 receptor, through selection based on their electrostatic similarity to HBD3. Using Poisson-Boltzmann electrostatic calculations and molecular-similarity analysis, we identified members of the human β-defensin family that are both similar and dissimilar to HBD3 in terms of electrostatic potential. Synthesis and functional testing of a subset of these β-defensins showed that peptides with an HBD3-like electrostatic character bound to melanocortin receptors with high affinity, whereas those that were anticorrelated to HBD3 showed no binding affinity. These findings expand on the central role of electrostatics in the control of this ligand-receptor system and further demonstrate the utility of employing molecular-similarity analysis. Additionally, we identified several new potential ligands of melanocortin-1 receptor, which may have implications for our understanding of the role defensins play in melanocortin physiology. PMID:26536271

Understanding and Manipulating Electrostatic Fields at the Protein-Protein Interface Using Vibrational Spectroscopy and Continuum Electrostatics Calculations.

PubMed

Ritchie, Andrew W; Webb, Lauren J

2015-11-05

Biological function emerges in large part from the interactions of biomacromolecules in the complex and dynamic environment of the living cell. For this reason, macromolecular interactions in biological systems are now a major focus of interest throughout the biochemical and biophysical communities. The affinity and specificity of macromolecular interactions are the result of both structural and electrostatic factors. Significant advances have been made in characterizing structural features of stable protein-protein interfaces through the techniques of modern structural biology, but much less is understood about how electrostatic factors promote and stabilize specific functional macromolecular interactions over all possible choices presented to a given molecule in a crowded environment. In this Feature Article, we describe how vibrational Stark effect (VSE) spectroscopy is being applied to measure electrostatic fields at protein-protein interfaces, focusing on measurements of guanosine triphosphate (GTP)-binding proteins of the Ras superfamily binding with structurally related but functionally distinct downstream effector proteins. In VSE spectroscopy, spectral shifts of a probe oscillator's energy are related directly to that probe's local electrostatic environment. By performing this experiment repeatedly throughout a protein-protein interface, an experimental map of measured electrostatic fields generated at that interface is determined. These data can be used to rationalize selective binding of similarly structured proteins in both in vitro and in vivo environments. Furthermore, these data can be used to compare to computational predictions of electrostatic fields to explore the level of simulation detail that is necessary to accurately predict our experimental findings.

Electrostatic Rate Enhancement and Transient Complex of Protein-Protein Association

PubMed Central

Alsallaq, Ramzi; Zhou, Huan-Xiang

2012-01-01

The association of two proteins is bounded by the rate at which they, via diffusion, find each other while in appropriate relative orientations. Orientational constraints restrict this rate to ~105 – 106 M−1s−1. Proteins with higher association rates generally have complementary electrostatic surfaces; proteins with lower association rates generally are slowed down by conformational changes upon complex formation. Previous studies (Zhou, Biophys. J. 1997;73:2441–2445) have shown that electrostatic enhancement of the diffusion-limited association rate can be accurately modeled by kD = kD0 exp(−*/ kBT), where kD and kD0 are the rates in the presence and absence of electrostatic interactions, respectively, * is the average electrostatic interaction energy in a “transient-complex” ensemble, and kBT is thermal energy. The transient-complex ensemble separates the bound state from the unbound state. Predictions of the transient-complex theory on four protein complexes were found to agree well with experiment when the electrostatic interaction energy was calculated with the linearized Poisson-Boltzmann (PB) equation (Alsallaq and Zhou, Structure 2007, 15:215–224). Here we show that the agreement is further improved when the nonlinear PB equation is used. These predictions are obtained with the dielectric boundary defined as the protein van der Waals surface. When the dielectric boundary is instead specified as the molecular surface, electrostatic interactions in the transient complex become repulsive and are thus predicted to retard association. Together these results demonstrate that the transient-complex theory is predictive of electrostatic rate enhancement and can help parameterize PB calculations. PMID:17932929

In Situ Test Method for the Electrostatic Characterization of Lunar Dust

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Buhler, C. R.; Calle, Carlos I.; CLements, S. J.; Mantovani, J.; Ritz, M. I.

2007-01-01

This paper serves to illustrate the testing methods necessary to classify the electrostatic properties of lunar dust using in situ instrumentation and the required techniques therein. A review of electrostatic classification of lunar simulant materials is provided as is its relevance to the success of future human lunar missions.

Aerial electrostatic-charged spray for deposition and efficacy against sweetpotato whitefly (Bemisia tabaci) on cotton

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Efficacy of aerial electrostatic-charged sprays was evaluated for spray deposit characteristics and season-long control of sweet potato whitefly (SWF), Bemisia tabaci biotype B (a.k.a. B. argentifolii), in an irrigated 24-ha cotton field. Treatments included electrostatic-charged sprays at full and ...

Helping Lower Secondary Students Develop Conceptual Understanding of Electrostatic Forces

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moynihan, Richard; van Kampen, Paul; Finlayson, Odilla; McLoughlin, Eilish

2016-01-01

This article describes the development of a lesson sequence that supports secondary-level students to construct an explanatory model for electrostatic attraction using a guided enquiry method. The students examine electrostatic interactions at a macro level and explain the phenomena at the atomic level. Pre-tests, post-tests, homework assignments…

Evaluation of a combined electrostatic and magnetostatic configuration for active space-radiation shielding

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Joshi, Ravindra P.; Qiu, Hao; Tripathi, Ram K.

2013-05-01

Developing successful and optimal solutions to mitigating the hazards of severe space radiation in deep space long duration missions is critical for the success of deep-space explorations. A recent report (Tripathi et al., 2008) had explored the feasibility of using electrostatic shielding. Here, we continue to extend the electrostatic shielding strategy and examine a hybrid configuration that utilizes both electrostatic and magnetostatic fields. The main advantages of this system are shown to be: (i) a much better shielding and repulsion of incident ions from both solar particle events (SPE) and galactic cosmic rays (GCR), (ii) reductions in the power requirement for re-charging the electrostatic sub-system, and (iii) low requirements of the magnetic fields that are well below the thresholds set for health and safety for long-term exposures. Furthermore, our results show transmission levels reduced to levels as low as 30% for energies around 1000 MeV, and near total elimination of SPE radiation by these hybrid configurations. It is also shown that the power needed to replenish the electrostatic charges due to particle hits from the GCR and SPE radiation is minimal.

Material identification based on electrostatic sensing technology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Kai; Chen, Xi; Li, Jingnan

2018-04-01

When the robot travels on the surface of different media, the uncertainty of the medium will seriously affect the autonomous action of the robot. In this paper, the distribution characteristics of multiple electrostatic charges on the surface of materials are detected, so as to improve the accuracy of the existing electrostatic signal material identification methods, which is of great significance to help the robot optimize the control algorithm. In this paper, based on the electrostatic signal material identification method proposed by predecessors, the multi-channel detection circuit is used to obtain the electrostatic charge distribution at different positions of the material surface, the weights are introduced into the eigenvalue matrix, and the weight distribution is optimized by the evolutionary algorithm, which makes the eigenvalue matrix more accurately reflect the surface charge distribution characteristics of the material. The matrix is used as the input of the k-Nearest Neighbor (kNN)classification algorithm to classify the dielectric materials. The experimental results show that the proposed method can significantly improve the recognition rate of the existing electrostatic signal material recognition methods.

Imaging latex–carbon nanotube composites by subsurface electrostatic force microscopy

DOE PAGES

Patel, Sajan; Petty, Clayton W.; Krafcik, Karen Lee; ...

2016-09-08

Electrostatic modes of atomic force microscopy have shown to be non-destructive and relatively simple methods for imaging conductors embedded in insulating polymers. Here we use electrostatic force microscopy to image the dispersion of carbon nanotubes in a latex-based conductive composite, which brings forth features not observed in previously studied systems employing linear polymer films. A fixed-potential model of the probe-nanotube electrostatics is presented which in principle gives access to the conductive nanoparticle's depth and radius, and the polymer film dielectric constant. Comparing this model to the data results in nanotube depths that appear to be slightly above the film–air interface.more » Furthermore, this result suggests that water-mediated charge build-up at the film–air interface may be the source of electrostatic phase contrast in ambient conditions.« less

Electrostatic Characterization of Lunar Dust

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2008-01-01

To ensure the safety and success of future lunar exploration missions, it is important to measure the toxicity of the lunar dust and its electrostatic properties. The electrostatic properties of lunar dust govern its behavior, from how the dust is deposited in an astronaut s lungs to how it contaminates equipment surfaces. NASA has identified the threat caused by lunar dust as one of the top two problems that need to be solved before returning to the Moon. To understand the electrostatic nature of lunar dust, NASA must answer the following questions: (1) how much charge can accumulate on the dust? (2) how long will the charge remain? and (3) can the dust be removed? These questions can be answered by measuring the electrostatic properties of the dust: its volume resistivity, charge decay, charge-to-mass ratio or chargeability, and dielectric properties.

Electrostatic effects in the collapse transition of phospholiquid monolayer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nguyen, Toan T.; Gopal, Ajaykumar; Lee, Ka Yee C.; Witten, Thomas A.

2004-03-01

We study the collapse transition of fluidic phospholipid surfactant monolayers under lateral compression. DMPC, DPPC or POPG surfactants and their binary mixtures are used. Various collapsed structures (circular discs, cylinderical tubes and pearls-on-a-string) were observed during the transition. We show that electrostatics plays an important role in the formation of these structures. By changing the composition of charged surfactant (POGP) or the screening condition of the solution, one can change the dominant collapsed structure from discs to tubes to pearls in the order of increasing the strength of electrostatic interactions, in accordance with theoretical estimates. We also study a complimentary electrostatic effect due charge relaxation in the transitions between these structures. It is shown that free energy gained from relaxations of charge molecule is small and can be neglected when considering electrostatics of these systems.

Electrostatic Solvation Free Energy of Amino Acid Side Chain Analogs: Implications for the Validity of Electrostatic Linear Response in Water

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

Lin, Bin; Pettitt, Bernard M.

Electrostatic free energies of solvation for 15 neutral amino acid side chain analogs are computed. We compare three methods of varying computational complexity and accuracy for three force fields: free energy simulations, Poisson-Boltzmann (PB), and linear response approximation (LRA) using AMBER, CHARMM, and OPLSAA force fields. We find that deviations from simulation start at low charges for solutes. The approximate PB and LRA produce an overestimation of electrostatic solvation free energies for most of molecules studied here. These deviations are remarkably systematic. The variations among force fields are almost as large as the variations found among methods. Our study confirmsmore » that success of the approximate methods for electrostatic solvation free energies comes from their ability to evaluate free energy differences accurately.« less

Electrostatics of proteins in dielectric solvent continua. I. Newton's third law marries qE forces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stork, Martina; Tavan, Paul

2007-04-01

The authors reformulate and revise an electrostatic theory treating proteins surrounded by dielectric solvent continua [B. Egwolf and P. Tavan, J. Chem. Phys. 118, 2039 (2003)] to make the resulting reaction field (RF) forces compatible with Newton's third law. Such a compatibility is required for their use in molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, in which the proteins are modeled by all-atom molecular mechanics force fields. According to the original theory the RF forces, which are due to the electric field generated by the solvent polarization and act on the partial charges of a protein, i.e., the so-called qE forces, can be quite accurately computed from Gaussian RF dipoles localized at the protein atoms. Using a slightly different approximation scheme also the RF energies of given protein configurations are obtained. However, because the qE forces do not account for the dielectric boundary pressure exerted by the solvent continuum on the protein, they do not obey the principle that actio equals reactio as required by Newton's third law. Therefore, their use in MD simulations is severely hampered. An analysis of the original theory has led the authors now to a reformulation removing the main difficulties. By considering the RF energy, which represents the dominant electrostatic contribution to the free energy of solvation for a given protein configuration, they show that its negative configurational gradient yields mean RF forces obeying the reactio principle. Because the evaluation of these mean forces is computationally much more demanding than that of the qE forces, they derive a suggestion how the qE forces can be modified to obey Newton's third law. Various properties of the thus established theory, particularly issues of accuracy and of computational efficiency, are discussed. A sample application to a MD simulation of a peptide in solution is described in the following paper [M. Stork and P. Tavan, J. Chem. Phys., 126, 165106 (2007).

Multiscale Multiphysics and Multidomain Models I: Basic Theory

PubMed Central

Wei, Guo-Wei

2013-01-01

This work extends our earlier two-domain formulation of a differential geometry based multiscale paradigm into a multidomain theory, which endows us the ability to simultaneously accommodate multiphysical descriptions of aqueous chemical, physical and biological systems, such as fuel cells, solar cells, nanofluidics, ion channels, viruses, RNA polymerases, molecular motors and large macromolecular complexes. The essential idea is to make use of the differential geometry theory of surfaces as a natural means to geometrically separate the macroscopic domain of solvent from the microscopic domain of solute, and dynamically couple continuum and discrete descriptions. Our main strategy is to construct energy functionals to put on an equal footing of multiphysics, including polar (i.e., electrostatic) solvation, nonpolar solvation, chemical potential, quantum mechanics, fluid mechanics, molecular mechanics, coarse grained dynamics and elastic dynamics. The variational principle is applied to the energy functionals to derive desirable governing equations, such as multidomain Laplace-Beltrami (LB) equations for macromolecular morphologies, multidomain Poisson-Boltzmann (PB) equation or Poisson equation for electrostatic potential, generalized Nernst-Planck (NP) equations for the dynamics of charged solvent species, generalized Navier-Stokes (NS) equation for fluid dynamics, generalized Newton's equations for molecular dynamics (MD) or coarse-grained dynamics and equation of motion for elastic dynamics. Unlike the classical PB equation, our PB equation is an integral-differential equation due to solvent-solute interactions. To illustrate the proposed formalism, we have explicitly constructed three models, a multidomain solvation model, a multidomain charge transport model and a multidomain chemo-electro-fluid-MD-elastic model. Each solute domain is equipped with distinct surface tension, pressure, dielectric function, and charge density distribution. In addition to long-range Coulombic interactions, various non-electrostatic solvent-solute interactions are considered in the present modeling. We demonstrate the consistency between the non-equilibrium charge transport model and the equilibrium solvation model by showing the systematical reduction of the former to the latter at equilibrium. This paper also offers a brief review of the field. PMID:25382892

Multiscale Multiphysics and Multidomain Models I: Basic Theory.

PubMed

Wei, Guo-Wei

2013-12-01

This work extends our earlier two-domain formulation of a differential geometry based multiscale paradigm into a multidomain theory, which endows us the ability to simultaneously accommodate multiphysical descriptions of aqueous chemical, physical and biological systems, such as fuel cells, solar cells, nanofluidics, ion channels, viruses, RNA polymerases, molecular motors and large macromolecular complexes. The essential idea is to make use of the differential geometry theory of surfaces as a natural means to geometrically separate the macroscopic domain of solvent from the microscopic domain of solute, and dynamically couple continuum and discrete descriptions. Our main strategy is to construct energy functionals to put on an equal footing of multiphysics, including polar (i.e., electrostatic) solvation, nonpolar solvation, chemical potential, quantum mechanics, fluid mechanics, molecular mechanics, coarse grained dynamics and elastic dynamics. The variational principle is applied to the energy functionals to derive desirable governing equations, such as multidomain Laplace-Beltrami (LB) equations for macromolecular morphologies, multidomain Poisson-Boltzmann (PB) equation or Poisson equation for electrostatic potential, generalized Nernst-Planck (NP) equations for the dynamics of charged solvent species, generalized Navier-Stokes (NS) equation for fluid dynamics, generalized Newton's equations for molecular dynamics (MD) or coarse-grained dynamics and equation of motion for elastic dynamics. Unlike the classical PB equation, our PB equation is an integral-differential equation due to solvent-solute interactions. To illustrate the proposed formalism, we have explicitly constructed three models, a multidomain solvation model, a multidomain charge transport model and a multidomain chemo-electro-fluid-MD-elastic model. Each solute domain is equipped with distinct surface tension, pressure, dielectric function, and charge density distribution. In addition to long-range Coulombic interactions, various non-electrostatic solvent-solute interactions are considered in the present modeling. We demonstrate the consistency between the non-equilibrium charge transport model and the equilibrium solvation model by showing the systematical reduction of the former to the latter at equilibrium. This paper also offers a brief review of the field.

Molecular Dynamics Simulation of Membranes and a Transmembrane Helix

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Duong, Tap Ha; Mehler, Ernest L.; Weinstein, Harel

1999-05-01

Three molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of 1.5-ns length were carried out on fully hydrated patches of dimyristoyl phosphatidylcholine (DMPC) bilayers in the liquid-crystalline phase. The simulations were performed using different ensembles and electrostatic conditions: a microcanonical ensemble or constant pressure-temperature ensemble, with or without truncated electrostatic interactions. Calculated properties of the membrane patches from the three different protocols were compared to available data from experiments. These data include the resulting overall geometrical dimensions, the order characteristics of the lipid hydrocarbon chains, as well as various measures of the conformations of the polar head groups. The comparisons indicate that the simulation carried out within the microcanonical ensemble with truncated electrostatic interactions yielded results closest to the experimental data, provided that the initial equilibration phase preceding the production run was sufficiently long. The effects of embedding a non-ideal helical protein domain in the membrane patch were studied with the same MD protocols. This simulation was carried out for 2.5 ns. The protein domain corresponds to the seventh transmembrane segment (TMS7) of the human serotonin 5HT 2Areceptor. The peptide is composed of two α-helical segments linked by a hinge domain around a perturbing Asn-Pro motif that produces at the end of the simulation a kink angle of nearly 80° between the two helices. Several aspects of the TMS7 structure, such as the bending angle, backbone Φ and Ψ torsion angles, the intramolecular hydrogen bonds, and the overall conformation, were found to be very similar to those determined by NMR for the corresponding transmembrane segment of the tachykinin NK-1 receptor. In general, the simulations were found to yield structural and dynamic characteristics that are in good agreement with experiment. These findings support the application of simulation methods to the study of the complex biomolecular systems at the membrane interface of cells.

Effects of the dielectric properties of the ceramic-solvent interface on the binding of proteins to oxide ceramics: a non-local electrostatic approach.

PubMed

Rubinstein, Alexander I; Sabirianov, Renat F; Namavar, Fereydoon

2016-10-14

The rapid development of nanoscience and nanotechnology has raised many fundamental questions that significantly impede progress in these fields. In particular, understanding the physicochemical processes at the interface in aqueous solvents requires the development and application of efficient and accurate methods. In the present work we evaluate the electrostatic contribution to the energy of model protein-ceramic complex formation in an aqueous solvent. We apply a non-local (NL) electrostatic approach that accounts for the effects of the short-range structure of the solvent on the electrostatic interactions of the interfacial systems. In this approach the aqueous solvent is considered as a non-ionic liquid, with the rigid and strongly correlated dipoles of the water molecules. We have found that an ordered interfacial aqueous solvent layer at the protein- and ceramic-solvent interfaces reduces the charging energy of both the ceramic and the protein in the solvent, and significantly increases the electrostatic contribution to their association into a complex. This contribution in the presented NL approach was found to be significantly shifted with respect to the classical model at any dielectric constant value of the ceramics. This implies a significant increase of the adsorption energy in the protein-ceramic complex formation for any ceramic material. We show that for several biocompatible ceramics (for example HfO2, ZrO2, and Ta2O5) the above effect predicts electrostatically induced protein-ceramic complex formation. However, in the framework of the classical continuum electrostatic model (the aqueous solvent as a uniform dielectric medium with a high dielectric constant ∼80) the above ceramics cannot be considered as suitable for electrostatically induced complex formation. Our results also show that the protein-ceramic electrostatic interactions can be strong enough to compensate for the unfavorable desolvation effect in the process of protein-ceramic complex formation.

Effects of the dielectric properties of the ceramic-solvent interface on the binding of proteins to oxide ceramics: a non-local electrostatic approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rubinstein, Alexander I.; Sabirianov, Renat F.; Namavar, Fereydoon

2016-10-01

The rapid development of nanoscience and nanotechnology has raised many fundamental questions that significantly impede progress in these fields. In particular, understanding the physicochemical processes at the interface in aqueous solvents requires the development and application of efficient and accurate methods. In the present work we evaluate the electrostatic contribution to the energy of model protein-ceramic complex formation in an aqueous solvent. We apply a non-local (NL) electrostatic approach that accounts for the effects of the short-range structure of the solvent on the electrostatic interactions of the interfacial systems. In this approach the aqueous solvent is considered as a non-ionic liquid, with the rigid and strongly correlated dipoles of the water molecules. We have found that an ordered interfacial aqueous solvent layer at the protein- and ceramic-solvent interfaces reduces the charging energy of both the ceramic and the protein in the solvent, and significantly increases the electrostatic contribution to their association into a complex. This contribution in the presented NL approach was found to be significantly shifted with respect to the classical model at any dielectric constant value of the ceramics. This implies a significant increase of the adsorption energy in the protein-ceramic complex formation for any ceramic material. We show that for several biocompatible ceramics (for example HfO2, ZrO2, and Ta2O5) the above effect predicts electrostatically induced protein-ceramic complex formation. However, in the framework of the classical continuum electrostatic model (the aqueous solvent as a uniform dielectric medium with a high dielectric constant ˜80) the above ceramics cannot be considered as suitable for electrostatically induced complex formation. Our results also show that the protein-ceramic electrostatic interactions can be strong enough to compensate for the unfavorable desolvation effect in the process of protein-ceramic complex formation.

Polarizable polymer chain under external electric field: Effects of many-body electrostatic dipole correlations.

PubMed

Budkov, Yu A; Kolesnikov, A L

2016-11-01

We present a new simple self-consistent field theory of a polarizable flexible polymer chain under an external constant electric field with account for the many-body electrostatic dipole correlations. We show the effects of electrostatic dipole correlations on the electric-field-induced globule-coil transition. We demonstrate that only when the polymer chain is in the coil conformation, the electrostatic dipole correlations of monomers can be considered as pairwise. However, when the polymer chain is in a collapsed state, the dipole correlations have to be considered at the many-body level.

Theoretical Prediction of the Heats of Formation, Densities, and Relative Sensitivities for 5,7-dinitro-5,7-diaza-1,3-dioxabicyclo (3:3:0)octan-2-one

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-04-01

dioxabicyclo(3:3:0)octan-2-one molecule .............................................1 Fig. 2 Electrostatic potential map of 5,7-dinitro-5,7-diaza-1,3...the impact sensitivities, the electrostatic maps on the 0.001 isosurfaces were generated with the scalar range of the electrostatic surface potential... Electrostatic potential map of 5,7-dinitro-5,7-diaza-1,3-dioxabicyclo(3:3:0)octan-2- one, a) with and b-c) without molecule overlay. Image c) shows the opposite

Electrostatic and structural similarity of classical and non-classical lactam compounds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Coll, Miguel; Frau, Juan; Vilanova, Bartolomé; Donoso, Josefa; Muñoz, Francisco

2001-09-01

Various electrostatic and structural parameters for a series of classical and non-classical β-lactams were determined and compared in order to ascertain whether some specific β-lactams possess antibacterial or β-lactamase inhibitory properties. The electrostatic parameters obtained, based on the Distributed Multipole Analysis (DMA) of high-quality wavefunctions for the studied structures, suggest that some non-classical β-lactams effectively inhibit the action of β-lactamases. As shown in this work, such electrostatic parameters provide much more reliable information about the antibacterial and inhibitory properties of β-lactams than do structural parameters.

Investigating Premature Ignition of Thruster Pressure Cartridges by Vibration-Induced Electrostatic Discharge

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Woods, Stephen S.; Saulsberry, Regor

2010-01-01

Pyrotechnic thruster pressure cartridges (TPCs) are used for aeroshell separation on a new NASA crew launch vehicle. Nondestructive evaluation (NDE) during TPC acceptance testing indicated that internal assemblies moved during shock and vibration testing due to an internal bond anomaly. This caused concerns that the launch environment might produce the same movement and release propellant grains that might be prematurely ignited through impact or through electrostatic discharge (ESD) as grains vibrated against internal surfaces. Since a new lot could not be fabricated in time, a determination had to be made as to whether the lot was acceptable to fly. This paper discusses the ESD evaluation and a separate paper addresses the impact problem. A challenge to straight forward assessment existed due to the unavailability of triboelectric data characterizing the static charging characteristics of the propellants within the TPC. The approach examined the physical limitations for charge buildup within the TPC system geometry and evaluated it for discharge under simulated vibrations used to qualify components for launch. A facsimile TPC was fabricated using SS 301 for the case and surrogate worst case materials for the propellants based on triboelectric data. System discharge behavior was evaluated by applying high voltage to the point of discharge in air and by placing worst case charge accumulations within the facsimile TPC and forcing discharge. The facsimile TPC contained simulated propellant grains and lycopodium, a well characterized indicator for static discharge in dust explosions, and was subjected to accelerations equivalent to the maximum accelerations possible during launch. The magnitude of charge generated within the facsimile TPC system was demonstrated to lie in a range of 100 to 10,000 times smaller than the spark energies measured to ignite propellant grains in industry standard discharge tests. The test apparatus, methodology, and results are described in this paper.

Electrostatic Properties of PE and PTFE Subjected to Atmospheric Pressure Plasma Treatment; Correlation of Experimental Results with Atomistic Modeling

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Trigwell, Steve; Boucher, Derrick; Calle, Carlos

2006-01-01

The use of an atmospheric pressure glow discharge (APGD) plasma was used at KSC to increase the hydrophilicity of spaceport materials to enhance their surface charge dissipation and prevent possible ESD in spaceport operations. Significant decreases in charge decay times were observed after tribocharging the materials using the standard KSC tribocharging test. The polarity and amount of charge transferred was dependent upon the effective work function differences between the respective materials. In this study, polyethylene (PE) and polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) were exposed to a He+O2 APGD. The pre and post treatment surface chemistry was analyzed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and contact angle measurements. Semi-empirical and ab initio calculations were performed to correlate the experimental results with some plausible molecular and electronic structure features of the oxidation process. For the PE, significant surface oxidation was observed, as indicated by XPS showing C-O, C=O, and O-C=O bonding, and a decrease in the surface contact angle from 98.9 deg to 61.2 deg. For the PTFE, no C-O bonding appeared and the surface contact angle increased indicating the APGD only succeeded in cleaning the PTFE surface without affecting the surface structure. The calculations using the PM3 and DFT methods were performed on single and multiple oligomers to simulate a wide variety of oxidation scenarios. Calculated work function results suggest that regardless of oxidation mechanism, e.g. -OH, =0 or a combination thereof, the experimentally observed levels of surface oxidation are unlikely to lead to a significant change in the electronic structure of PE and that its increased hydrophilic properties are the primary reason for the observed changes in its electrostatic behavior. The calculations for PTFE argue strongly against significant oxidation of that material, as confirmed by the XPS results.

Kinetic Description of the Impedance Probe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oberrath, Jens; Lapke, Martin; Mussenbrock, Thomas; Brinkmann, Ralf

2011-10-01

Active plasma resonance spectroscopy is a well known diagnostic method. Many concepts of this method are theoretically investigated and realized as a diagnostic tool, one of which is the impedance probe (IP). The application of such a probe in plasmas with pressures of a few Pa raises the question whether kinetic effects have to be taken into account or not. To address this question a kinetic model is necessary. A general kinetic model for an electrostatic concept of active plasma spectroscopy was presented by R.P. Brinkmann and can be used to describe the multipole resonance probe (MRP). In principle the IP is interpretable as a special case of the MRP in lower order. Thus, we are able to describe the IP by the kinetic model of the MRP. Based on this model we derive a solution to investigate the influence of kinetic effects to the resonance behavior of the IP. Active plasma resonance spectroscopy is a well known diagnostic method. Many concepts of this method are theoretically investigated and realized as a diagnostic tool, one of which is the impedance probe (IP). The application of such a probe in plasmas with pressures of a few Pa raises the question whether kinetic effects have to be taken into account or not. To address this question a kinetic model is necessary. A general kinetic model for an electrostatic concept of active plasma spectroscopy was presented by R.P. Brinkmann and can be used to describe the multipole resonance probe (MRP). In principle the IP is interpretable as a special case of the MRP in lower order. Thus, we are able to describe the IP by the kinetic model of the MRP. Based on this model we derive a solution to investigate the influence of kinetic effects to the resonance behavior of the IP. The authors acknowledge the support by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) via the Ruhr University Research School and the Federal Ministry of Education and Research in frame of the PluTO project.

On the Impact of Electrostatic Correlations on the Double-Layer Polarization of a Spherical Particle in an Alternating Current Field.

PubMed

Alidoosti, Elaheh; Zhao, Hui

2018-05-15

At concentrated electrolytes, the ion-ion electrostatic correlation effect is considered an important factor in electrokinetics. In this paper, we compute, in theory and simulation, the dipole moment for a spherical particle (charged, dielectric) under the action of an alternating electric field using the modified continuum Poisson-Nernst-Planck (PNP) model by Bazant et al. [ Double Layer in Ionic Liquids: Overscreening Versus Crowding . Phys. Rev. Lett. 2011 , 106 , 046102 ] We investigate the dependency of the dipole moment in terms of frequency and its variation with such quantities like ζ-potential, electrostatic correlation length, and double-layer thickness. With thin electric double layers, we develop simple models through performing an asymptotic analysis of the modified PNP model. We also present numerical results for an arbitrary Debye screening length and electrostatic correlation length. From the results, we find a complicated impact of electrostatic correlations on the dipole moment. For instance, with increasing the electrostatic correlation length, the dipole moment decreases and reaches a minimum and then it goes up. This is because of initially decreasing of surface conduction and finally increasing due to the impact of ion-ion electrostatic correlations on ion's convection and migration. Also, we show that in contrast to the standard PNP model, the modified PNP model can qualitatively explain the data from the experimental results in multivalent electrolytes.

Electrostatic steering and ionic tethering in enzyme-ligand binding: insights from simulations.

PubMed

Wade, R C; Gabdoulline, R R; Lüdemann, S K; Lounnas, V

1998-05-26

To bind at an enzyme's active site, a ligand must diffuse or be transported to the enzyme's surface, and, if the binding site is buried, the ligand must diffuse through the protein to reach it. Although the driving force for ligand binding is often ascribed to the hydrophobic effect, electrostatic interactions also influence the binding process of both charged and nonpolar ligands. First, electrostatic steering of charged substrates into enzyme active sites is discussed. This is of particular relevance for diffusion-influenced enzymes. By comparing the results of Brownian dynamics simulations and electrostatic potential similarity analysis for triose-phosphate isomerases, superoxide dismutases, and beta-lactamases from different species, we identify the conserved features responsible for the electrostatic substrate-steering fields. The conserved potentials are localized at the active sites and are the primary determinants of the bimolecular association rates. Then we focus on a more subtle effect, which we will refer to as "ionic tethering." We explore, by means of molecular and Brownian dynamics simulations and electrostatic continuum calculations, how salt links can act as tethers between structural elements of an enzyme that undergo conformational change upon substrate binding, and thereby regulate or modulate substrate binding. This is illustrated for the lipase and cytochrome P450 enzymes. Ionic tethering can provide a control mechanism for substrate binding that is sensitive to the electrostatic properties of the enzyme's surroundings even when the substrate is nonpolar.