Briefs: Materials
Explicit Pore Pressure Material Model in Carbon-Cloth Phenolic
An explicit material model that uses predicted pressure in the pores of a carbon-cloth phenolic (CCP) composite has been developed. This model is intended to be used within a...
Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Paint-Overspray Catcher
An apparatus to catch paint overspray has been proposed. Overspray is an unavoidable parasitic component of spray that occurs because the flow of air or other gas in the spray must turn at the sprayed surface. Very...
Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Preparation of Regular Specimens for Atom Probes
A method of preparation of specimens of non-electropolishable materials for analysis by atom probes is being developed as a superior alternative to a prior method. In comparison with the prior method, the present method involves less processing time. Also, whereas the prior method yields...
Briefs: Materials
Treatment To Destroy Chloro-hydrocarbon Liquids in the Ground
A relatively simple chemical treatment that involves the use of emulsified iron has been found to be effective in remediating groundwater contaminated with trichloroethylene and other dense chlorohydrocarbon liquids. These liquids are members of the class of dense, non-aqueous phase...
Briefs: Materials
Process for Smoothing an Si Substrate After Etching of SiO₂
A reactive-ion etching (RIE) process for smoothing a silicon substrate has been devised. The process is especially useful for smoothing those silicon areas that have been exposed by etching a pattern of holes in a layer of silicon dioxide that covers the substrate. Applications in...
Briefs: Materials
Flexible Composite-Material Pressure Vessel
A proposed lightweight pressure vessel would be made of a composite of high-tenacity continuous fibers and a flexible matrix material. The flexibility of this pressure vessel would render it (1) compactly stowable for transport and (2) more able to withstand impacts, relative to lightweight pressure...
Briefs: Materials
Lower-Conductivity Thermal-Barrier Coatings
Thermal-barrier coatings (TBCs) that have both initial and post-exposure thermal conductivities lower than those of yttria-stabilized zirconia TBCs have been developed. TBCs are thin ceramic layers, generally applied by plasma spraying or physical vapor deposition, that are used to insulate air-cooled...
Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Electrophoretic Deposition for Fabricating Microbatteries
An improved method of fabrication of cathodes of microbatteries is based on electrophoretic deposition. Heretofore, sputtering (for deposition) and the use of photoresist and liftoff...
Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Microscope Cells Containing Multiple Micromachined Wells
An improved design for multiple-well microscope cells and an associated improved method of fabricating them have been devised. [As used here, "well" denotes a cavity that has...
Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Wheel Design Verified With FEA Software
This paper examines an aluminum wheel design used with a run-flat tire called an extended mobility technology (EMT) tire, which can be safely driven without air for at least 80 km (50 miles). The setup of the finite element model of the wheel is discussed in detail, along with a parametric study of the...
Briefs: Materials
Perovskite Superlattices as Tunable Microwave Devices
Experiments have shown that superlattices that comprise alternating epitaxial layers of dissimilar paraelectric perovskites can exhibit large changes in permittivity with the application...
Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Block Copolymers as Templates for Arrays of Carbon Nanotubes
A method of manufacturing regular arrays of precisely sized, shaped, positioned, and oriented carbon nanotubes has been proposed. Arrays of carbon nanotubes could prove useful in...
Briefs: Materials
Reliability and Design Considerations for Long Life Using Mica Capacitors in High-Voltage Apps
Over the last 40 years, a series of misconceptions regarding mica capacitor applications has led novice users to consistently over- derate wound...
Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Tool For Friction Stir Tack Welding of Aluminum Alloys
A small friction-stir- welding tool has been developed for use in tack welding of aluminum-alloy workpieces. It is necessary to tack-weld the workpieces in order to hold them together...
Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Improving Plating by Use of Intense Acoustic Beams
An improved method of selective plating of metals and possibly other materials involves the use of directed high-intensity acoustic beams. The beams, typically in the ultrasonic frequency...
Briefs: Materials
Annealing Would Improve β" — Alumina Solid Electrolyte
A pre-operational annealing process is under investigation as a potential means of preventing a sudden reduction of ionic conductivity in a β"—alumina solid electrolyte (BASE) during use. On the basis of tests described below, the sudden reduction of ionic conductivity, followed by a...
Briefs: Materials
Low-Power RIE of SiO₂ in CHF₃ To Obtain Steep Sidewalls
A reactive-ion etching (RIE) process has been developed to enable the formation of holes with steep sidewalls in a layer of silicon dioxide that covers a silicon substrate. The holes in question are through the thickness of the SiO2 and are used to define silicon substrate...
Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Fabricating Composite-Material Structures Containing SMA Ribbons
An improved method of designing and fabricating laminated composite-material (matrix/fiber) structures containing embedded shape-memory-alloy (SMA) actuators has been devised....
Briefs: Materials
Process for Encapsulating Protein Crystals
A process for growing protein crystals encapsulated within membranes has been invented. This process begins with the encapsulation of a nearly saturated aqueous protein solution inside semipermeable membranes to form microcapsules. The encapsulation is effected by use of special formulations of a...
Briefs: Materials
Mixed Conducting Electrodes for Better AMTEC Cells
Electrode materials that exhibit mixed conductivity (that is, both electronic and ionic conductivity) have been investigated in a continuing effort to improve the performance of the alkali metal thermal-to-electric converter (AMTEC). These electrode materials are intended primarily for use on...
Briefs: Materials
Nanolaminate Mirrors With "Piston" Figure-Control Actuators
Efforts are under way to develop a special class of thin-shell curved mirrors for high-resolution imaging in visible and infrared light in a variety of terrestrial or...
Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
A Reactive-Ion Etch for Patterning Piezoelectric Thin Film
Reactive-ion etching (RIE) under conditions described below has been found to be a suitable means for patterning piezoelectric thin films made from such materials as PbZr1-xTixO3 or BaxSr1-xTiO3. In the original...
Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Wafer-Level Membrane-Transfer Process for Fabricating MEMS
A process for transferring an entire wafer-level micromachined silicon structure for mating with and bonding to another such structure has been devised. This process is intended...
Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Pressure-Sensor Assembly Technique
Nielsen Engineering & Research (NEAR) recently developed an ultrathin data acquisition system for use in turbomachinery testing at NASA Glenn Research Center. This system integrates a microelectro-...
The performance of a composite part is primarily determined by the orientation of fibers in the plies. Designers wishing to exploit the full potential of...
Briefs: Materials
Low-EC-Content Electrolytes for Low-Temperature Li-Ion Cells
Electrolytes comprising LiPF6 dissolved at a concentration of 1.0 M in three different mixtures of alkyl carbonates have been found well suited for use in rechargeable lithium-ion electrochemical cells at low temperatures. These and other electrolytes have been investigated...
Briefs: Materials
Alkaline Capacitors Based on Nitride Nanoparticles
High-energy-density alkaline electrochemical capacitors based on electrodes made of transition-metal nitride nanoparticles are undergoing development. Transition-metal nitrides (in...
Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Micromachining of a Mesoscale Vibratory Gyroscope
A micromachining-based fabrication process has been proposed for low-volume production of copies of a mesoscale vibratory gyroscope. The process would include steps of photolithography,...
Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Deforming Fibrous Insulating Tiles To Fit Curved Surfaces
A curved tile of refractory silica-fiber-based or alumina-fiber-based thermal-insulation material can be formed from an initially flat billet in a process that includes pressing...
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