SPRING 2022

2

HYDROGEN &A CARBON-NEUTRAL
FUTURE

10HYDROGENINFOGRAPHIC

12

V2X: VEHICLETO-EVERYTHING
SOLUTIONSIn the first week in
October, the Lucy spacecraft
was packed into the two
halves of the launch vehicle
fairing, which closed around
it like a clamshell in preparation for launch. The SwRI-led
Lucy mission will fly past
eight asteroids over 12 years,
traveling 4 billion miles to the
Trojan asteroids. These fossils,
left over from the formationof the solar system, are liketime capsules orbiting intandem with Jupiter.
“Because the Trojans areremnants of the primordialmaterial that formed theouter planets, they hold vital
clues to deciphering thehistory of the solar system
and revolutionizing theunderstanding of our origins,”
said SwRI’s Hal Levison, theprincipal investigator of the
Lucy mission.

IMAGE COURTESY NASA/KSC
D024983_7794

In early October, theencapsulated spacecraft wastransported to the Vehicle
Integration Facility at theCape Canaveral Space Force
Station, where it was “mated”
with the United Launch
Alliance Atlas V 401 rocket
to carry Lucy outside
SwRI microbiologists use these gel cultures
Earth’s atmosphere andto investigate how additives, biocides andbegin the long journey tostorage conditions affect existing microbiological
the Trojan asteroids.
activity in fuel stockpiles. Environmental chambersa spacecraft is
control temperature and humidity,“Launching
including using
likemonitor
sendingfuela child off
programmed exposure cycles. almost
Scientists
tocollege—you’vecomposition using a range of techniques, includingdone
what
you indicators
can to get thempH tracking, membrane filtration,
visual
ready
for
that
and fuel properties. Microbiological activity isnext big stepon their own,
” Levison said.
evaluated with adenosine triphosphate(ATP)-based
“It’s
now
time
to get Lucy intomeasurements, viable growth on specialty media,
the
sky
so
that
it can deliver
thixotropic gel cultures and dark-field, brightfieldits
revolutionary
scienceand membrane-staining microscopy.
about the origin of ourplanetary system.”SPRING 2022 • VOLUME 43, NO. 1

ON THE COVER
22	Pluto’s Atmosphere Decreasing
23	SwRI Studies Hypersonic

Neutral Future
9	Expanded Valve Testing
Separation Systems
10 	The Spectrum of a Hydrogen24 	New Horizons Probe Measures
Economy Infographic
Brightness of the Milky Way
12 V2X: Vehicle-to-Everything Solutions 25	Techbytes
19	
Vehicle Cybersecurity
28	Awards & Achievements
20	New Insights from Lunar Instrument

Welcome to the first issue of Technology Todayin our 75th anniversary year. It’s gratifying to know
that, after three-quarters of a century, SwRI remains
ahead of its time.

D024089_2653

Consider the times when Tom Slick Jr. decided to
expand his dream of a Scientific Research ranch(named “Essar” for the phonetic sounds of S and R)
into an organization including technology andengineering — the so-called “hard sciences.” In 1947,
the world, and Tom Slick himself, had just emerged
from a costly and brutal war into an uneasy andchallenging peace. The war had been won largely
through new technologies that were necessarily
ahead of their time. His new creation, Southwest
Research Institute, caught that tidal wave oftechnical advancement and has never allowed it tocalm or flatten.

IN THISISSUE

Through the lens of this Spring 2022 issue ofTechnology Today, let us compare events in the late
1940s with the Institute’s activities now:
• 1947: High-octane leaded gasoline was gaining
popularity as a preferred automotive fuel. 2022: SwRI
is evaluating a transition to cleaner hydrogen andhydrogen-fuel blends to offer a more natural
progression away from carbon-based fuels.

To address potential
risks associated withtransitioning to ahydrogen-based economy,
SwRI engineers useddetonation experiments
and computer simulations (shown here) to
evaluate shockwaves
generated by hydrogen
explosions.

D025301 P_V_150

CONTENTS
2	Hydrogen and a Carbon-• 1947: U.S. policymakers laid out maps of what
would become the preliminary federal highway
system. 2022: SwRI is leading the development of avehicle-to-everything platform in Florida that will
pave the way for tomorrow’s road systems that are
fully and intelligently connected to prioritize
mobility and safety.
• 1947: The X-1 became the first supersonic airplane.
2022: SwRI uses computational modeling and a
two-stage light-gas gun to investigate the effects ofsustained hypersonic (Mach 5-plus) flight.
• 1947: The latest high-altitude rocket experiments
had yet to escape Earth’s atmosphere. 2022: The
SwRI-led New Horizons spacecraft, having explored
Pluto up close seven years ago, is now viewing the
far-ultraviolet glow of deep space from a location so
distant, it’s no longer overwhelmed by sunlight.
Welcome to our celebration of 75 years of scientificand engineering progress. Welcome to our future.
Sincerely,

Walter D. Downing, P.E.
Executive Vice President/COO

TECHNOLOGY TODAY 1

HYDROGEN AND A
CARBON-NEUTRAL FUTURE
Five Opportunities
in a Hydrogen Economy
by Angel Wileman

Some of the largest carbon contributors are the power generation,transportation, residential gas and manufacturing industries. For morethan a century, petroleum products have fueled these activities, andextensive capital has been invested worldwide to build up petroleumbased processes and infrastructure. Upending the fossil fuels industry
and redesigning the power grid in one fell swoop would be costprohibitive. An alternative such as transitioning to hydrogen gas thatworks with existing infrastructure could offer a more natural progression
away from carbon-based fuels.
Consider power generation. Across the U.S., 61% of electricity is
generated from natural gas and coal-fired power plants. In comparison,
only 20% of our power is generated by renewables.1 A 10-year industrywide pivot to renewableelectricity generation isestimated to cost morethan $4.5 trillion dollars,
including a $32,000 price tag
for individual households.

The United States and many othercountries have set goals to reachcarbon neutrality by 2050 or sooner.
To achieve this end, entire economies
will need to be decarbonized.

Incrementally transitioning
to alternative fuels using
existing infrastructureoffers distinct advantages.2
For example, the power
generation industry could
begin blending small quantities of hydrogen gas into its natural gas
pipelines within the next few years. This blended gas can be used at
power plants to create electricity, or it can be supplied to residential
homes for heating and cooking. The automotive industry has taken
similar steps by blending hydrogen into diesel and natural gas engines
to decarbonize large industrial vehicles.

D025231_1402

Even these incremental changes in processes create technology
challenges to be overcome in transitioning toward net zero carbon
emissions. Hydrogen gas, the fuel discussed in this article, presents
challenges with high generation costs, safety and material compatibility.

ABOUT THE LEAD AUTHORAngel Wileman, manager of the
Thermofluids Section in SwRI’s
Mechanical Engineering Division,is leading SwRI’s multidivisionalhydrogen collaboration initiative.

Transitioning to a hydrogen economy will require multidisciplinary
approaches and broad expertise, particular strengths available atSouthwest Research Institute. SwRI engineers and scientists are collaborating across multiple disciplines, looking at the opportunities andobstacles associated with this potentially clean energy source. For example,
specialists from the Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Division arelooking at hydrogen generation and safety. Teams from the MechanicalEngineering Division are looking at distribution as well as how hydrogen
could be used for power generation. And Powertrain Engineering Division
specialists are looking at different techniques for using hydrogen intransportation applications. SwRI is leveraging multidisciplinary approaches,
working with U.S. government agencies and industrial partners toaddress technology challenges to move us closer to a carbon-neutral future.
1

U.S. Energy Information Administration2

Wood Mackenzie, “Deep decarbonisation: the multi-trillion-dollar
question”(2019)

TECHNOLOGY TODAY 3

D025235_1671

HYDROGEN
GENERATIONSwRI’s Chemical
Engineering Department,
led by Director Eloy
Flores, is evaluatinglab-scale techniques
to produce zero-CO2emission hydrogen thatcreates useful carbonbased byproducts.

Eloy
FloresOne of the primary challenges that must be solved iswith hydrogen generation. How will the world makeenough hydrogen to put a dent in carbon emissions at a
price point comparable with fossil fuels? SwRI assists clientsin areas of “clean” hydrogen production and utilizinghydrogen in the production of fuels and chemicals. SwRI’s
broad technology base offers an “all-of-the-above” option forour clients to develop, optimize and scale-up advanced
production processes.
Hydrogen is already an important feedstock used to
produce many of today’s fuels, lubricants and chemicals.
The two main methods for generating hydrogen are steam
methane reforming (SMR) and electrolysis. Both processes
have potential to create hydrogen with low carbon emissions,if implemented with carbon capture or renewable energy.

D025313

Industry traditionally uses SMR to produce hydrogen,combining methane and steam to produce hydrogen andcarbon dioxide (CO2). In 2018, the U.S. produced ten million
metric tons of H2 through SMR, producing about 90 million
tons of CO2 emissions. Because SMR produces most of thehydrogen used today, it offers a tremendous opportunity for
reducing CO2 emissions. SMR technology is fairly mature, so
the challenges lie with decarbonizing that process to makeclean “blue” hydrogen (see infographic about the hydrogenenergy spectrum on p. 10). New carbon capture technologies
have begun the transition from the laboratory into field
application. As industry works to employ these emerging
technologies, SwRI can provide expert assistance in scaling
them up into pilot-scale and field-scale demonstrations.
Electrolysis produces hydrogen by splitting water intohydrogen and oxygen using electricity, special electrodes
and membranes. Electrolysis typically requires a lot of
power, but when the power comes from renewable sources,
the resulting hydrogen has a minimal carbon footprint andis called “green” hydrogen. The downside of electrolysis isthat it relies on certain exotic metals and traditionallyhigh-cost membranes. SwRI is researching ways to lower thecost of electrolyzer construction and improve current
efficiencies.

SwRI specializes in developing new processes for creating hydrogen and other fuels. We thendemonstrate these processes in pilot plant facilities (shown here) that can be scaled up for
actual production plants.

4 Spring 2022

Methane pyrolysis produces a new “turquoise” hydrogenfrom natural gas without carbon dioxide emissions. The
thermal process has been used commercially for years tocreate solid black carbon materials used in rubbers, tires,plastics and coatings. It breaks down the methane in theabsence of an oxidizer, producing hydrogen gas and a solidcarbon byproduct instead of gaseous emissions. Industry
is now researching unique reactor designs or process
conditions to reduce the energy penalty and carbon footprint
associated with the thermal-based conversion process.
Chemists are also designing a flexible process that canadjust to market demands for carbon products.

SwRI conducted experiments tocharacterize the hazards ofhydrogen by filling bags withpressurized gas mixtures, igniting
them and then imaging andmeasuring the detonation andshock propagation.

HYDROGENSAFETYD025305

Alexandra
Schluneker

D025231_1402

As hydrogen becomes a larger part of theenergy sector, the gas will be integrated into
homes and businesses. Using modeling andtesting, SwRI takes a holistic, multitiered

approach to assess risk and consequencesand develop mitigation techniques.
In particularly complex or hazardous
environments such as a chemical plant,
engineers can use custom computational
fluid dynamics models to investigate incident
scenarios. Using internal funding, SwRI
developed a new computational capability
to simulate gas-phase detonations forreal-world scenarios that involve large-scale,complex domains and heterogeneous,
multicomponent mixtures. SwRI researchers
performed experiments to measure the overpressures that occur in a partially confinedstructure in the event of a detonation ofhydrogen-air or methane-oxygen mixtures.

When models are not enough, SwRI
performs large-scale experiments to gain areal-world understanding of the hazards ofhydrogen gas. Engineers pressurizehydrogen vessels to their limit and test for
weaknesses through scenarios such asbullet penetration and fire proximity. SwRI
also collaborated with the National
Institute of Standards and Technology(NIST) to conduct a series of experiments
releasing hydrogen at various concentrations into full-scale residential garages —with and without an automobile present —that were then ignited. The findings helped
create safety recommendations for the
automotive industry.

Lead Engineer Alexandra
Schluneker, a fire testing
specialist, demonstrates
one of the hazards ofhydrogen. When burning,
its flames are nearlyinvisible and require special
equipment to detect asshown in the side-by-side
comparison of standard
and infrared images.

D025254_1942

Hydrogen is a very small molecule. It isalso one quarter the density of natural gas,
which makes it difficult to contain. It canleak out of storage vessels and pipelines ata more rapid rate than natural gas, andwhen it escapes, it can ignite and/or
explode over a wide range of concentrations.
Hydrogen is a colorless, odorless andtasteless gas, and its flames are nearlyinvisible to the human eye, making thehazard harder to detect. So, how do we
safely harness and use this energy resource?

TECHNOLOGY TODAY 5HYDROGEN
DISTRIBUTION
D025229_0219

Principal Engineer Buddy Broerman led thedevelopment of this novel compressor using
custom materials and coatings to meet compression
efficiency objectives. The LMRC device isundergoing further development in 2022.

Eugene“Buddy”
BroermanMoving hydrogen from the point of distribution to thepoint of end use presents an array of technical challenges.
The low density of hydrogen gas presents efficiency
challenges for pressurizing the gas and pushing it aroundthe country in pipelines. Hydrogen’s associated small
particle size also increases the potential for gas leaks inflow equipment. In addition, hydrogen is associated withincreased fatigue crack growth rates, dramatically reducing the toughness of typical flow component steels andwelds. This can lead to catastrophic failures in distribution equipment. SwRI is conducting research to addressthese challenges across the gas distribution industry.

D025229_0822

Compressing hydrogen for pipeline distribution or asa transportation fuel is energy-intensive and challenging
from a materials and reliability perspective. To address
the need for faster and higher compression rates, SwRI
designed, built and tested a novel hermetically sealed
linear motor-driven reciprocating compressor (LMRC).
This unique hydrogen compressor demonstrated enhanced
reliability characteristices and leak-free performance forthe transportation industry and beyond.
The U.S has approximately three million miles ofnatural gas pipelines but only about 1,600 miles dedicatedto hydrogen. As a result, the industry is investigating
using existing natural gas piping networks to transportcleaner blends of natural gas and hydrogen. SwRI is
performing targeted research to understand potential
impacts on pipeline operation, including relatively small
volumes of hydrogen (up to 5%). Additional experiments
and design activities will help industry address thesechallenges and include materials and leak detection
testing for blended gases.
SwRI engineers are also characterizing how hydrogen
blends affect the mechanical response of a variety ofmaterials utilized in hydrogen gas transportation andintegrating these results into integrity strategies. Thesefitness-for-service and engineering assessments are
critical to determining safe operating conditions, minimum flaw sizes and inspection intervals.

Senior Research Engineer Nathan Poerner performs maintenance on the hermetically sealed
LMRC that SwRI designed for hydrogen compression.

6 SPRING 2022

SwRI performs mechanical testing in high-pressurehydrogen and blended-gas environments (up to 3,000 psi
and 500° F) by coupling autoclaves to servo-hydraulicload frames. Engineers perform tensile, fracture toughness, fatigue crack growth rate, crack arrest threshold andstrain-controlled and load-controlled fatigue tests per
ASTM standards in relevant environments. This batteryof tests is used to develop fitness-for-service analyses andensure safe operation of structures and infrastructure.
Additionally, SwRI supports the DOE HyBlend program
to address pipeline material challenges caused byblending hydrogen with natural gas.

HYDROGEN
for POWER
GENERATION

D021576_4187

Tim Allison
andTim Callahan

SwRI developed and tested a micromix injector for gas turbines; this concept is capable of operating reliably athydrogen’s high flame speeds.

More than 40% of electricity in the U.S. is currently produced byburning natural gas in large combined-cycle power plants that often
include both gas and steam turbines. Despite producing about halfof the carbon dioxide emissions of a coal-based power plant, natural
gas power plants still produce significant amounts of carbon dioxide.
In contrast, hydrogen-based power shows the potential for zerocarbon emissions.

helping design and test next-generation gas turbine combustors

Like natural gas, hydrogen can be stored for extended periods
in underground caverns, either as pure hydrogen, in hydrogen
carrier compounds such as ammonia or through molecular adsorption
into materials. SwRI’s Sorption Science Laboratory evaluates theproperties of potential hydrogen storage materials, measuring theperformance of a variety of natural and synthetic adsorption
materials. For instance, SwRI is part of a team working on the
integration and techno-economic assessment of a high-density
Cryogenic Flux Capacitor that stores hydrogen in an aerogelmaterial at cryogenic temperatures. The team will integrate thistechnology into a 100-megawatt-hour system at a natural gas
combined-cycle power plant for evaluation.

hydrogen blends or pure hydrogen. These power generation assets

D025237_0651

Hydrogen is not, however, a drop-in replacement for natural gas
in a conventional power plant due to differences in combustion
characteristics. Hydrogen has a much wider flammability range,
lower autoignition temperature and faster flame speed than naturalgas, which could result in damaging “flashback” conditions. SwRI is

that adapt the combustor geometry for hydrogen. These hydrogenappropriate designs include “micromix” injectors with many small
flow passages.

Spark-ignited, natural gas reciprocating engines widely used for

power generation, as peak-shaving assets for power plants or for
distributed power generation, can be adapted to natural gas/stabilize the grid as power demand fluctuates and provide backup
power in the event of a supply disruption. Like gas turbines,

reciprocating engines are sensitive to the combustion characteristics
of hydrogen or hydrogen/natural gas blends that can contribute toabnormal combustion events resulting in engine damage. Through a
combination of simulation, single-cylinder and multicylinder engine
testing, SwRI is developing port- and direct-injection combustion

systems and strategies to enable the use of hydrogen and hydrogen
blends in these engines, while minimizing chances for abnormal
combustion. SwRI has several specialized facilities to support thedevelopment of hydrogen engines up to 5 MW and can blendhydrogen with natural gas to facilitate engine testing.

The information, data, or work presented herein was funded in part by the U.S.
Department of Energy, under award numbers DE-FE0032031, DE-EE0008415 and
DE-EE0005805. The views and opinions of the authors expressed herein do notnecessarily state or reflect those of the U.S. Government or any agency thereof.
Director Dr. Tim Allison, who specializes inenergy production turbomachinery, iscollaborating with Tim Callahan, a staff
engineer focusing on engine development,on the hydrogen initiative. They are using
SwRI’s High-Energy Annex Test Facility to
conduct large-scale testing of gas turbine
combustor components, including single
injectors or annular combustor tests, with
fuel blends of up to 100% hydrogen fuel.

TECHNOLOGY TODAY 7HYDROGEN in
TRANSPORTATION

D022750_6973

GrahamConwayTransitioning the transportationindustry to hydrogen fuel to lower tailpipe
CO2 emissions is a major technology andinfrastructure development undertaking.
Traditional internal combustion (IC) engines
power today’s ships, trains and automobiles(both highway and off-road), and there is noone-size-fits-all replacement technology.
While battery power will likely be theultimate low-emission solution for passenger
vehicles, hydrogen shows promise for theremainder of the transportation industry.
Hydrogen can either completely replaceor supplement traditional fossil fuels in
IC engines or can be used in fuel cell
powertrains. Both solutions lower tailpipe
CO2; however, they also present unique
technical challenges.
Hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles(FCEVs) are on the cusp of maturity and aninteresting alternative, particularly where
battery power is not yet feasible, such as forlarge vehicles. However, fuel cells require a
special high-purity hydrogen and are
currently more expensive to produce andless durable than IC or battery powertrains.
In contrast, the existing engineering,
manufacturing and servicing infrastructure
for IC engines is favorable for near-termtransitioning to hydrogen IC engine solutions.
Using internal funding, SwRI is benchmarking one of the few commerciallyavailable FCEVs on the market, subjecting
the vehicle to a barrage of tests and using
the data to determine baseline characteristics.

Hydrogen fuel can also decarbonize
tailpipe emissions in IC engines. Sparkignited IC engines burn gasoline andnatural gas while diesel fuels compressionignition engines. While properties of thesefuels lend themselves to their respective
combustion modes, hydrogen has uniqueproperties supporting both spark-ignitionand compression-ignition engines. For
example, a high burn rate, low minimum
ignition energy and wide flammability
limits permit stable combustion underhigh-efficiency, dilute conditions. In
spark-ignition engines, the low minimum
ignition energy can also lead to challenges
with controlling combustion, while highautoignition temperatures create challenges
in compression ignition engines.

Fuel
Injector

Spark
Plug

Spark-Ignited,
Pre-Mixed Sequence

Spark-Assisted,
Compression Ignition Sequence

Stratified-Pilot
Diffusion Combustion

Homogenous-Pilot
Diffusion Combustion

Compression Ignition Diffusion

SwRI’s patented multimode combustion approach forhydrogen IC engines takes advantage of properties thatenhance combustion while mitigating attributes thatnegatively affect performance and safety. The combustion chamber shows ignition (yellow) will be spark-,
compression- and spark-assisted compression in air-fuelmixtures, ranging from more air (lighter blues) to less air(darker blues).

SwRI has developed a multimodecombustion solution that takes advantage
of positive fuel properties while minimizing
the effects of negative properties associatedwith each combustion mode. Using internalfunding, engineers are testing and modelingthe globally patented multimode solution to
optimize each strategy.

SwRI Principal Engineer Dr. Graham Conway, a leader in the Powertrain
Engineering Division’s Technical Planning and Roadmap Strategy steeringgroup, is studying cleaner hydrogen-fuel engine applications.

D025243_1526

8 SPRING 2022

Benchmarking will allow SwRI to understandhow current hydrogen-based FCEVs should
perform and help establish a basis tocompare future iterations and other FCEVs.
Additionally, because fuel cells requiredifferent accessories than traditional
internal combustion engines, the data may
help material component suppliers andmanufacturers prepare for future needs.

D025306

SwRI operates a medium-duty single-cylinder engine with 100% direct-injection hydrogen at 170 bar injection
pressure to characterize hydrogen combustion.

EXPANDED VALVE TESTING, RESEARCH
SwRI has expanded its flow component testing facilities andcapabilities to evaluate the performance and safety of valves,particularly those used in emerging carbon capture and hydrogentransport applications.

The facility recently recorded its highest-ever nitrogen flow rateof 310 million standard cubic feet per day (MMscfd) at 2,400 pounds
per square inch gauge (psig). In addition to allowing more strenuous
testing for SSSVs and other safety and pollution prevention equipment, SwRI is expanding its valve testing capabilities to evaluate
existing SSSVs for carbon capture and storage (CCS) applications to
support clean energy initiatives. Companies can reduce their carbon
footprint by capturing and sequestering carbon dioxide (CO2) insubsurface caverns, reservoirs or depleted oil wells. SSSVs cansafeguard these storage applications.
“CO2 storage is challenging, because the fluid can be very coldand solidify under certain conditions,” said Nicole Lemon, a
research engineer in SwRI’s Fluids Engineering Department.
“Increased safety measures are needed for CCS testing because CO2
properties can change dramatically based on temperature andincreased pressure. Increased safety measures are required for any
testing program with CO2 to avoid a gas event.”

Investigating how existing SSSV designs perform at cold
temperatures in CCS applications is critical prior to long-term
service. SwRI’s experience with cryogenic and extreme cold testing
can help the energy industry evaluate existing SSSV designs andtest newly developed hardware.

HYDROGENIn seeking to decrease greenhouse gas emissions, the oil and gas
industry is looking at blending hydrogen into natural gas streams
that will ultimately be used for power generation or residential

D025307

NITROGEN BLOWDOWN
SwRI’s Blowdown Facility recreates the intense conditions of gas
events, making it possible to test subsurface safety valve (SSSV)
performance at high pressures to prevent injury, loss of life andenvironmental effects.
In addition to fire testing
valves, SwRI offers a range ofhydrogen safety evaluations and research,
including evaluating valves for material
compatibility and performance.

heating. This would require valve infrastructure to be less susceptible
to hydrogen-related embrittlement and more leak-tight.
“Transitioning to hydrogen gas that works with existing
infrastructure could offer a more natural progression away fromcarbon-based fuels,” said SwRI’s Angel Wileman, who heads theInstitute’s Thermofluids Section in the Mechanical Engineering
Division. “Finding clean energy solutions using hydrogen comeswith its own unique set of challenges, however. Challenges that
SwRI can help evaluate and overcome.” (see cover story, p. 2)
Hydrogen-specific valves must operate at either very low
temperatures or high pressures to safely store hydrogen. SwRI offers
nearly all testing methods for hydrogen valves, including fire
testing and the international standard, ISO 19880-3. Test pressures
can reach over 15,000 psig.
SwRI test facilities are accredited through the American Petroleum Institute (API) to perform validation testing on both surface
and subsurface safety valves. The facilities accommodate safety
testing of other flow components such as oilfield tools, pumping
units and even fire hydrants. All testing is completed under an API
Q1 and ISO 17025 quality management system.

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SwRI’s Flow Component Testing Facilities perform bothstandard and custom testing, including CO2 SSSV testing.

TECHNOLOGY TODAY 9The

In the quest for decarbonization,

SPECTRUM
of a Hydrogen Economy

transitioning to a hydrogen-based
economy could offer a realistic path tonet zero emissions across the energy
marketplace. Net zero refers to thebalance between the amount of greenhouse gas produced and the amountremoved from the atmosphere. Southwest
Research Institute is investigating apalette of hydrogen technologies todevelop clean, affordable and reliable

Process
SourceGREY
HYDROGENBLUE
HYDROGENSMR or gasification

SMR or gasification
with carbon capture(85-95%)

Methane or coal

Methane or coal

Grey hydrogen (H2), the most common
form of H2, is created using steam
methane reformation (SMR) without
sequestering the greenhouse gases madein the process. SMR, which emits 7 kg ofcarbon dioxide (CO2) for every kg of H2
produced, is only low carbon if CO2 iscaptured and stored permanently.

10 SPRING 2022

Blue hydrogen is a low-carbon resource,
also produced using steam reforming.
The process uses natural gas to produce
H2 and CO2, but the CO2 is captured andstored. SwRI is investigating new carbon
capture and storage techniques todecarbonize the process.

energy, reducing our dependence on fossil
fuels and looking for greener alternatives.
When the oil and gas industry refers to
the hues of hydrogen, it refers to the different
processes used to produce each. Whilehydrogen is an invisible gas, color codes –green, blue, turquoise and grey hydrogen –highlight the environmental footprint
associated with hydrogen production.
In addition to power production, SwRI
is investigating using hydrogen intransportation activities including fuel cells
in medium- and heavy-duty applications
and as fuel for internal combustion
engines. These applications could reducecarbon emissions, but the actual carbon
footprint would largely be determined by
the source or “color” of the hydrogen.

pipeline infrastructure, and the low density

Other challenges to the hydrogen
economy include hydrogen transport andsafety. For example, hydrogen embrittlement
could compromise existing natural gashydrogen are also subject to rupture if

TURQUOISEHYDROGENof hydrogen gas makes it harder topressurize and push around the pipeline
network. Plus, small-size hydrogenmolecules could increase leak risks and areflammable over a range of concentrations.
Pressurized vessels containing compressedthe vessel is compromised. SwRI is
conducting research to characterize andmitigate these risks.

GREEN
HYDROGEN

Pyrolysis

Electrolysis

MethaneRenewable
electricity

Turquoise hydrogen is an emerging
resource, produced using methane
pyrolysis without gaseous carbon
emissions. The thermal process splits
methane, producing H2 and carbon solids.
SwRI is researching unique reactor designs
and process conditions to reduce theenergy penalty and carbon emissions
associated with the process and improvethe utility of carbon solid byproducts.

Green H2 is a zero-carbon resource,
produced using electrolysis powered bysurplus renewable energy from solar andwind resources. SwRI is studying theelectrochemical reaction used to split
water into hydrogen and oxygen,
emitting no CO2 in the process. Chemicalengineers are researching ways to lower
the cost of electrolyzer construction andimprove current efficiencies.

TECHNOLOGY TODAY 11

V2X:
Vehicle-toEverything
Solutions
Enhancing Safetywith a Traffic Data
Exchange Platform

By Michael Brown

Next time you are stuck intraffic amid a sea of tail lights
and exhaust emissions, imagine aroadway where movement is fully
and intelligently connected toprioritize mobility and safety.
Vehicle-to-everything, or V2X,
aims to integrate transportation
offering near-real-time connectivity
with other vehicles, networks,
pedestrians, devices and roadway
infrastructure. Millions of vehicles,
people and transportation
technology would be in constantcommunication, providing
seamless interchanges, rerouting
journeys away from congestion,
dynamically updating traffic
controls, efficiently allocating
parking and so on.

TECHNOLOGY TODAY 13

DETAIL
What are V2X technologies?
V2X (vehicle-to-everything)includes networks, devices
and data shared via
V2V (vehicle-to-vehicle),
V2N (vehicle-to-network),
V2P (vehicle-to-pedestrian),V2D (vehicle-to-device)
and V2I (vehicle-toinfrastructure) connectivity.

According to one forecast, the automotive
V2X market is slated to grow at an annual
rate of 38%, from $619 million in 2021 tomore than $2.2 billion in 2025. The numerous
benefits of V2X implementation, however,face challenges, including requiring a securesystem that ensures privacy, authenticity
and security for all types of V2X communication. Deploying V2X requires coordinatedaction across the mobility marketplace, fromindividual automakers to federal, state andlocal transportation agencies to infrastructuretechnology and communications networks.
With more than two decades of leadershipin intelligent transportation technology andapplications, Southwest Research Institute ison the vanguard of V2X research, development and deployment. SwRI engineers areleading a project to develop a data exchange
platform for the Florida Department ofTransportation (FDOT).
This system will leverage cloud, fog andedge computing to analyze road conditions
and communicate important information to
the traveling public, state/local government
entities, private sector partners and otherstakeholders. The platform will archive datato allow long-term historic analyses tosupport data-driven infrastructure investments and research initiatives.
SAFETY CENTEREDABOUT THE AUTHOR
Institute Engineer Michael Brown has been aleader in intelligent systems for more than 25
years. He has led multiple connected andautomated vehicle programs for the U.S.
Department of Transportation and is leading
key activities for related programs for the U.S.
Department of Energy. Brown has also led
multiple programs for state DOTs including
the Florida Department of Transportation
Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) Data Exchange
Platform discussed in this article.
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14 Spring 2022

No matter how it operates, V2X is allabout safety. The U.S. Department ofTransportation’s National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimatedthat 31,720 people died in motor vehicle
crashes from January through September 2021,
an increase of approximately 12% from the
28,325 fatalities projected for the first ninemonths of 2020. These data represent thehighest number of fatalities during the firstnine months of any year since 2006, and thehighest percentage increase during the firstnine months in the Fatality Analysis
Reporting System’s history. Moving theneedle to enhance roadway safety could notcome soon enough.
NHTSA estimates vehicle-to-vehicle(V2V) alone could reduce crashes by 13%,
resulting in over 600,000 fewer accidents

each year. The U.S. Department of Transportation estimates that V2X technology could
reduce unimpaired driver crashes by asmuch as 80%. With V2X, all traffic participants will be able to better perceive andpredict each other’s behavior on the road.
That will reduce crashes, congestion andother inefficiencies.
The FDOT project will be among the firstin the United States to develop a V2X dataexchange, capturing data from thousands ofdevices across connected and automatedvehicle (CAV) and infrastructure networks.
A key objective of the project is to standardize
the collection, analysis and sharing of datafrom several disparate systems, which havedifferent coding and encryption methodologies, and to make additional considerations
for privacy and safety. The primary goal is tosave lives and move people more efficiently
on roadways by sharing driving conditions.
This data exchange will lay the foundation
for FDOT to send alerts to drivers and traffic
managers to coordinate routing, roadclosures and emergency responses.
Another important aspect of safety issecurity, including hardening the technology
for cybersecurity. The exchange will capture
anonymous data both from standardized
onboard units communicating directly with
FDOT-owned roadside units and from the
proprietary data feeds of various car
manufacturers and fleets.
This connected vehicle data will be fusedwith a breadth of other data both from
FDOT-owned infrastructure and from thirdparty data feeds. This stream of enriched data
will be the basis for alerts in the near term as
well as analyses of long-term data to combine
machine learning and traditional algorithms
to understand trends and ultimately
revolutionize how to manage traffic.
COMPLEX COLLABORATION
Perhaps the most significant aspect of
this program is the team of players involved
in its development, which highlights the levelof cooperation needed to deploy V2X on awider scale. The SwRI-led team includes
tech companies, vehicle manufacturers,
academia, cloud and network providers,D025314

SwRI is leading the development of a statewide dataexchange program for FDOT
that ingests high-volume,
high-velocity data fromdiverse sources. The platform
will facilitate detection andnotification of actionableconditions as well as historicalanalysis to support future
initiatives.

original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and fleet companies, aswell as transportation agencies and the communications sector. The
V2X Data Exchange Platform is intended to encompass FDOT’s
operational, in-development and planned CAV project corridors. The
system will enable FDOT to disseminate CAV information to theautomobile industry, logistics providers and other third parties to
consume for their specific applications.
This V2X architecture takes advantage of a variety of computing
and data storage resources, serving as different layers of an overall
application. Generally speaking, the edge processes data locally to

reduce network traffic and resources. The fog acts as a gateway,collecting, combining and processing relevant edge data, distributing
some back to the edge and some back up to the larger cloud of data.
The cloud then intelligently stores the information to provide accessto data and archive long-term materials.
Some of the challenges facing V2X are similar to those faced inother internet of things (IoT) applications, where networks of disparate
devices must learn to communicate and collaborate in near-real-time
applications but in a cloud-based digital ecosystem. The key to the
V2X applications is employing fog and edge computing. In thisTECHNOLOGY TODAY 15

application, the fog processing is largely
provided by the intelligent transportation
systems whereas the edge is largely afunction of increasingly intelligent, connectedvehicles and roadside equipment.

EDGE

FOG

CLOUD

Road Users & Infrastructure

Transportation Management
CenterCloud Storage & AccessEDGE
The vehicle edge is a critical componentin V2X, so the automotive industry isundergoing a series of transitions, moving
toward digitalization and connected mobility.
While sales of traditional cars are decreasing,sales of connected cars are increasing,
signaling changing consumer preferences.
Connected car adoption is acceleratingfrom 35% in 2015 to around 98% of all cars
sold through 2020. The shift from conventional to intelligent vehicles includes
growing networks of digital technology andmicroprocessors within a vehicle powering
performance, control and communication
systems that can alert and assist drivers,
helping to reduce crashes.
Through V2V technology, vehicles
wirelessly exchange information about the
speed and position of surrounding vehicles
to help prevent crashes, ease traffic congestion and improve the environment. The
greatest benefits will be achieved when all
vehicles can communicate with each other,but in the interim, older vehicles will still
benefit from V2X through existing
Advanced Traffic Management Systems
technology used in most urban areas.

Roadside infrastructure such as cameras,
weather sensors and traffic signals is also
16 Spring 2022

Cloud, fog and edge computing represents different layers in
information technology. Cloud computing stores and accesses
data and programs over the internet, rather than on a local
computer. Fog computing pushes data processing down to a
local area network, closer to relevant sensor technology. Edge
computing processes data away from centralized nodes, at theedge of the network and individual sources of data.

Lead Computer Scientist
Darin Parish and AssistantProgram Manager Dan
Rossiter are developing
V2X software that will
support communications
between technology
such as traffic signal
controllers, roadside cameras
and traffic management
systems to improve
communications and safety
for the traveling public.

D025244_1776

Connected vehicles broadcast andreceive omnidirectional messages, providing
a 360-degree awareness of similarly
equipped nearby vehicles. V2V messaging
has a range of around 1,000 feet to assess
speed, position and heading. Many vehicles
offer driver-assist technologies like blindspot alerts to help prevent crashes, using
sensors on the vehicles. Connected vehicles
will share this information, for instancealerting a driver when an out-of-sightvehicle several cars ahead is braking.

DETAILD025315

At the edge and fog level, SwRI’s Active-Vision™ systems track and share trajectory information of vehicles in the vicinity using V2X.

part of the edge system. Holding as much information within thevehicle/roadside edge lowers the requirement for expensive
transmission capacity. Edge computing optimizes data flow tominimize operating costs, moving information out into the fog as
trends develop across the larger traffic ecosystem. Edge systems
support reflex-like actions such as detecting wrong-way drivers andimmediately notifying surrounding vehicles.
V2X information has been shared via a wireless protocol similar
to Wi-Fi known as dedicated short-range communications (DSRC).
However, the industry is quickly adapting a new protocol known as
C-V2X, which complements cellular technology by offering asimilar point-to-point communication mechanism while utilizing
the mobile network for long-range applications.

Edge computing can allow traffic management centers toefficiently derive meaningful information from CAV and roadside
sensor data.
FOG
Traffic management systems are the mission control or nerve
center for an urban area’s road system. In V2X applications, they
serve in a fog capacity, collecting, combining, analyzing and sharing
information both back to the traveling public and to the cloud
network for archiving and analysis.
Most of today’s intelligent transportation systems use a varietyof roadside devices to monitor traffic, identify incidents andcommunicate with drivers. Cameras can identify and relay events
causing backups to a traffic management system, which can thenuse dynamic messaging signs to communicate with the public, evenrecommending alternative routes. Advances are now allowing thevehicles themselves to directly communicate with infrastructure,

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INCIDENT RESPONSE

V2X applications will facilitate actionable communications while also archiving historical information in the cloud for
traffic trends analysis.

TECHNOLOGY TODAY 17

V2X CHARACTERISTICSIntelligent infrastructureuses various techniques
to monitor traffic, identify
incidents and communicate with drivers.

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and the infrastructure can also communicate directly with drivers
through messages to increasingly ubiquitous infotainment systems.
The vehicles themselves are becoming sensors providing data to theintelligent traffic infrastructure.
SwRI is developing the scalable FDOT platform-based costsaving serverless architecture, building and running services
without having to manage the underlying infrastructure. Softwaredevelopers will write and deploy code, while a cloud provider
allows servers to run their applications, databases and storage
systems at any scale.
CLOUD
The V2X platform will connect entire networks that will include
other devices such as smart phones. Eventually, the vehicle computer
vision systems could help identify potential bicycle and pedestriansafety concerns to serve these more vulnerable road users.
The FDOT V2X Data Exchange Platform’s cloud-fog-edge-basedarchitecture will make it easier to adapt, maintain and scale. The
team is integrating fog and edge data, intelligence and processing
capabilities closer to where the data originates — at the networkedge. The low-latency system will be optimized to process a very
high volume of data with minimal delay. Ultimately data will bearchived in the cloud to provide both route-level visualization andhistorical views of traffic data and events, including daily heatmaps for the speeds along a specified route.

18

Spring 2022

V2X REALIZEDFor more than 25 years, SwRI has been a leader in the development of intelligent transportation systems and machine learningtechnologies with software deployments at transportation agencies
across the United States. SwRI’s ActiveITS™ is used in 18 states andterritories, which combined have more than 50% of the U.S. population.
With this extensive experience, SwRI is developing the FDOT V2X
platform to ingest high-volume, high-velocity data from diverse
transit sources to enhance safety and mobility on Florida’s roads.
Participants in this V2X program include Ford Mobility, which
will supply V2X data from its connected vehicle platform; Iteris, asmart mobility company based in California; Florida International
University; Amazon Web Services; Google; and several OEMs andlogistics and fleet companies.

D025244_1790

Institute Engineer Michael
Brown explains how acloud-fog-edge-basedarchitecture will make the
FDOT V2X Data Exchange
Platform easier to adapt,maintain and scale to newstaff member, Computer
Scientist Jason Raiti.

Various data warehouse services will intelligently store thedata, distributed over several layers to provide rapid access while
maintaining long-term data at minimal costs. Preprocessed data will
be stored in three components. One data warehouse component will
be optimized for quick queries and visualizing data. The “middle”
component will support ad hoc and historical queries, and the longterm component will store data that is infrequently accessed. Decision
support and data analytics will combine status information withstatic and historical data to provide actionable information to FDOT.

VEHICLECYBERSECURITY,INTRUSION
DETECTION

SwRI engineers have developed an intrusion detection system(IDS) to protect military ground vehicles against cyberthreats toembedded systems and connected vehicle networks.
Developed in collaboration with the U.S. Army Ground Vehicle
Systems Center (GVSC) Ground System Cyber Engineering (GSCE)
Directorate, the IDS technology uses digital fingerprinting andalgorithms to identify communications anomalies across automotive systems and components.
Military, passenger and commercial vehicles use the standard
Controller Area Network (CAN) bus protocol to enable communications across various microprocessor nodes or electronic control
units. The CAN protocol, for example, informs a dashboard display
when a sensor detects low oil pressure or when headlights areturned on. It also relays operational communications for systems
such as transmissions and other critical automotive technology.
“A cyberattack could potentially send erroneous information
across the CAN protocol to alter or impede a vehicle’s operations,”
said SwRI’s Jonathan Wolford, who co-authored a paper on thesubject. “An attack on several connected vehicles could havedisastrous effects.”
Since 1986, CAN has been a standard automotive protocol,
providing a reliable and flexible platform to transmit information.
However, it was not designed with cybersecurity protections in
mind. As modern vehicles become increasingly connected via
external networks, the CAN system is more vulnerable to potential
cyberattacks from bad actors sending false messages.
SwRI’s new algorithms digitally fingerprint messages on nodes
that transmit information via the CAN bus protocol. Digital
fingerprinting allows SwRI’s intrusion detection systems to identify

when an unknown/invalid node or computer is connected to thevehicle network. These algorithms use the CAN transceiver’s
message transmission to track low-level physical layer

characteristics — such as the minimum and maximum voltages
as well as the voltage transition rates for each CAN frame — tocreate these digital fingerprints.

The researchers trained the system with baseline data to build afingerprint of each node, understand characteristics and better

identify anomalies. With digital fingerprinting, the intrusion systemaccurately identifies messages sent from unauthorized nodes orwhen a valid node is sending spurious messages indicative of a“masquerade attack.”

After training the system, SwRI engineers injected false data,

and the algorithms flagged them instantly. The system is capable ofboth identifying threats and defending against them.

“These attacks are theoretically easier for bad actors who havephysical access to a vehicle, but vehicles are also vulnerable towireless attacks,” said SwRI’s Peter Moldenhauer, who co-authoredthe research paper. “Our system is designed to build cyber resiliency
into the CAN protocol as we move to more connected and automatedvehicle networks.”

While developed for military vehicles, the system can also be used

to identify anomalies in passenger cars and commercial vehicles.
The research team won the Best Paper Award for the Cyber

Technical Session at the 2022 Ground Vehicle Systems Engineering& Technology Symposium (GVSETS) conference. The paper is titled“Cyberattack Defense through Digital Fingerprinting, Detection
Algorithms, and Bus Segmentation in Ground Vehicles.”TECHNOLOGY TODAY 19

Recent studies led by graduates of SwRI’s joint graduate programin physics and astronomy with The University of Texas at San Antonio
demonstrate new techniques to understand the composition oflunar surfaces.
The studies used data from the SwRI-developed and -led Lyman
Alpha Mapping Project (LAMP) instrument aboard NASA’s Lunar
Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), a robotic mission launched in 2009
to study the surface of the Moon and investigate potential future
landing sites.
LAMP’s primary purpose is to find water ice in deep polar craters
using background ultraviolet light generated by stars. However, scientists
are finding expanded uses for LAMP data.
COMPOSITION, EVOLUTION OF LUNAR SURFACES
A study led by Dr. Benjamin Byron, a post-doctoral researcher at
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, focused on measuring reflections of
far-ultraviolet (FUV) light to understand the composition of lunar
surfaces. LAMP’s FUV observations indicate that the lunar surface
reflectance in the ultraviolet wavelength is sensitive to changes in bothcomposition and maturity. This can lead to uncertainties in the interpretation of the composition of features because space weathering over timedims older surfaces, while fresh impact craters are more reflective.

NEW INSIGHTSFROM LUNARINSTRUMENT“We are using the optical maturity parameter to normalize theseyounger features in our maps of the lunar surface,” said Byron, who
conducted the research during his SwRI-UTSA graduate program.
“This method had previously been used for other regions of thespectrum, but we’ve shown for the first time that it can be used forthe far UV as well.”

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20 Spring 2022

IMAGE COURTESY NASA/SwRIA new study used LAMP
data to determine thecomposition of areas on
the lunar surface bymeasuring the reflectanceof far-ultraviolet light. The
top image shows younger,
less mature features suchas impact craters while
the bottom image
removed these features toisolate the composition oflunar surfaces.

D025326

SwRI scientists joined ateam that reanalyzed andmodeled decade-old data
about materials ejected by
an impact, shown here
passing through LAMP’s
field of view. The new
findings suggest thatvolatile materials in thepermanently shaded
region near the lunar southpole were likely deliveredby a comet.

The team used existing observations that characterized thesurface maturity at visible wavelengths to apply an index called
the optical maturity parameter. Byron removed maturity-related
features from far-UV maps of the lunar surface so that only data
about the surface’s composition remained.

IMAGE COURTESY NASA/GSFC SCIENTIFIC VISUALIZATION STUDIO“What we see in our far-UV maps is a close correlation withcomposition maps from other regions of the electromagnetic
spectrum,” Byron said. “We’re seeing these composition-related
trends stand out in our maps more clearly than they had before,
which allows us to have a global view of composition in the far-UV.
It just goes to show that far-UV instruments such as LAMP areuseful in performing compositional mapping for the Moon andfor other bodies as well.”While far-UV spectrographs have been used to study theatmosphere and exosphere of other planetary bodies before, LAMP
is the first to measure the composition of the lunar surface usingreflected light in these wavelengths.
“I think this work shows how important it is to include instruments like these on future missions to asteroids and other planetary
bodies without atmospheres,” Byron said.
COMET DELIVERY TO MOONSwRI scientists joined a team that reanalyzed and modeled datafrom a planned lunar impact more than a decade ago. The findings
suggest that volatiles present in a crater near the Moon’s south polewere likely delivered by a comet. Volatiles are chemical elements
and compounds that can be readily vaporized and, in this case, werestabilized in ice lurking in this permanently shaded region (PSR).
LAMP had a bird’s eye view when its launch vehicle’s spent
upper stage intentionally struck the Moon’s Cabeus crater in 2009.
LRO and the Lunar CRater Observation and Sensing Satellite(LCROSS) launched together and monitored the plumes ofmaterials ejected into the atmosphere in this planned experiment

to excavate and understand the origin and evolution of volatiles
in this inky crater.
“The new research indicates that the crater materials are not
volcanic in origin and are best explained by cometary impact
delivery,” said SwRI’s Dr. Kurt Retherford, LAMP principal
investigator. “Ruling out volcanic sources could mean that the top
three meters of regolith in the Cabeus crater are younger thanpreviously thought, probably less than a billion years old.”
The most likely sources of the volatiles investigated were
volcanic outgassing, comet or micrometeoroid impacts, and surface
chemistry initiated by solar wind particles. For this research, theteam looked at plumes of materials measured by LCROSS and
LAMP and what they revealed about the composition of volatiles
in the regolith. To simplify the analysis and eliminate as many
influences as possible, the team compared the elemental composition of the volatiles to that of the potential sources, evaluating
abundances of four elements — hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen andsulfur — as they relate to carbon.
“Based on the ratios measured and the composition of comets,
such as Rosetta spacecraft measurements of Comet 67P, comets arelikely the primary source of these volatiles,” said Dr. Lizeth Magaña,
a recent graduate of the SwRI-UTSA program who recently joined
the Johns Hopkins University’s Applied Physics Laboratory.
“Studying these potential lunar resources not only supports
expanded human exploration, but also helps us to understand thehistory of the Earth-Moon system,” said JHUAPL’s Dr. Kathleen
Mandt, the lead author of a paper published in Nature Communications
about this research. Mandt, a LAMP coinvestigator, was also a UTSA
graduate and SwRI researcher prior to joining JHUAPL in 2017.
Present UTSA-SwRI graduate students continuing lunar studies
with the LAMP team are Elizabeth Czajka, Caleb Gimar, Joanna
Wedemeyer, Bereket Mamo, Mikhail Sharov and Patrice Smith.
TECHNOLOGY TODAY 21

When Pluto passed in front of a star, an
SwRI-led team of astronomers measured
the abundance of Pluto’s atmosphere,
shown here in New Horizons 2015 flyby
data, and determined that it is dwindling.
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PLUTO’S ATMOSPHERE DECREASING, FREEZING ONTO ITS SURFACE
When Pluto passed in front of a star on the night of August 15,
2018, an SwRI-led team of astronomers was watching. Numerous
telescopes deployed at sites across the U.S. and Mexico observed
Pluto’s atmosphere as it was briefly backlit by the well-placed
star. Scientists used this occultation event to measure the overall
abundance of Pluto’s tenuous atmosphere. The team foundcompelling evidence that Pluto’s atmosphere is beginning todisappear, refreezing back onto its surface as it moves farther
away from the Sun.
The occultation took about two minutes, during which time thestar faded from view as Pluto’s atmosphere and solid body passed
in front of it. The rate at which the star disappeared and reappeared
determined the density profile of Pluto’s atmosphere.
“Scientists have used occultations to monitor changes in Pluto’s
atmosphere since 1988,” said Dr. Eliot Young, a senior program
manager in SwRI’s Space Science and Engineering Division. “TheNew Horizons mission obtained an excellent density profile fromits 2015 flyby, consistent with Pluto’s bulk atmosphere doubling
every decade, but our 2018 observations do not show that trend
continuing from 2015.”
Like Earth, Pluto’s atmosphere is predominantly nitrogen.
Unlike Earth, Pluto’s atmosphere is supported by the vapor
pressure of its surface ices, which means that small changes insurface ice temperatures would result in large changes in the bulk
density of its atmosphere.

22 Spring 2022

Pluto takes 248 Earth years to complete one full orbit aroundthe Sun, and its distance varies from its closest point, about 30
astronomical units from the Sun (1 AU is the distance from the
Earth to the Sun), to 50 AU from the Sun. For the past quarter
century, Pluto has been receiving less and less sunlight as it moves
farther away from the Sun, but until 2018 its surface pressure andatmospheric density continued to increase. Scientists attributed thisto a phenomenon known as thermal inertia.
“An analogy to this is the way the Sun heats up sand on abeach,” said SwRI Staff Scientist Dr. Leslie Young, who specializes
in modeling the interaction between the surfaces and atmospheresof icy bodies in the outer solar system. “Sunlight is most intense athigh noon, but the sand then continues soaking up heat over thecourse of the afternoon, so it is hottest in late afternoon. The
continued persistence of Pluto’s atmosphere suggests that nitrogenice reservoirs on Pluto’s surface were kept warm by stored heat
under the surface. The new data suggest they are starting to cool.”
The largest known nitrogen reservoir is Sputnik Planitia, abright glacier that makes up the western lobe of the heart-shaped
Tombaugh Regio. The 2018 data will help atmospheric modelers
improve their understanding of Pluto’s subsurface layers, particularly regarding compositions that are compatible with the observed
limits on heat transfer.

SwRI STUDIES HYPERSONIC SEPARATION SYSTEMSSwRI is collaborating with The University of Texas at San
Antonio to advance hypersonics research under a three-year, $1.5
million grant through the University Consortium for Applied
Hypersonics. As a subcontractor to UTSA, SwRI will design
experiments to push the envelope on hypersonic system designs
and provide methods to better model complex system behavior.
Hypersonic speeds are faster than five times the speed of sound,or greater than Mach 5. When something is flying that fast, the airaround the flying object becomes superheated by shockwaves.
Depending upon the speed, some points behind the shockwave are
hotter than the surface of the Sun, causing the air to chemicallydecompose. This strange chemical environment can cause theseflight bodies to heat up, melt and chemically react with the air,which poses a unique challenge for aerospace applications that
require a separation event to occur.
Separation events happen when two or more parts of avehicle intentionally come apart. SwRI’s Dr. Nicholas Mueschke,program manager of SwRI’s Computational Mechanics Section,is leading hypersonic separation experiments that aim to better
understand the driving factors that must be considered to achieve
successful separation.
Separation events are commonplace in many aerospace
applications. For example, rocket boosters are ejected during spacelaunches, including some that now return to the launch pad after
separation. Military aircraft require safe separation of payloads
carried underwing or within storage bays. Some rocket nose cones
are designed to protect launch packages, such as satellites, which
split open and separate from the vehicle in flight.

As next-generation hypersonic technology progresses, the ability
to support separating components must also advance. A boosterthat separates from a vehicle, for example, allows for extended range
and novel flight corridors. The challenge is designing componentsthat can separate easily to avoid damaging or upsetting the primary
vehicle, while withstanding the extreme aerodynamics and thermal
environment associated with traveling at hypersonic speeds.
SwRI is designing novel experiments to evaluate hypersonicsystem designs while also providing methods to better model
complex system behavior during separation events. The team isusing the Institute’s two-stage light-gas gun and ballistic testing
facilities to simulate hypersonic flight conditions, which allows
researchers to image objects in hypersonic flight.
“The goal is to generate aerodynamic and kinematic data thatwill anchor high-fidelity simulation models,” Mueschke said. “Wewill also leverage some of our advanced simulation capabilities todesign these experiments and evaluate how simulation models canimprove future vehicle designs.”
Ultimately, said Mueschke, this work is part of the broader effort
to leverage hypersonic technology to deliver operational capability andoptions to combatant commanders that otherwise do not exist today.
The University Consortium for Applied Hypersonics is an
inclusive, collaborative network of universities working withgovernment, industry, national laboratories, federally funded research
centers and existing university-affiliated research centers. It aims todeliver the innovation and workforce needed to advance modern
hypersonic flight systems in support of national defense.

“Flying at hypersonic speeds within the atmosphere makes the
aerodynamics and loads experienced by separating structures moredifficult to predict and harder to safely design around, because thetime-scales of these events are squeezed into milliseconds,”
Mueschke said.

This image ofhypersonic separation
illustrates a conicalflight body separatingfrom a sabot after
leaving the launch
tube of the light-gas
gun. Sabots encase
projectiles to keepthem aligned in thecenter of the barrel
when fired.
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TECHNOLOGY TODAY 23

From its vantage point aboard
the New Horizons spacecraft
traveling near the edge of thesolar system, the SwRI-led AliceUV spectrograph characterized
the subtle galactic componentof the Lyman-alpha background
UV glow. This false-color map
illustrates the Sun-dominated
Lyman-alpha component inorange as it fades to reveal thefaint background UV lightemitted by the Milky Way.
D025327/8

NASA’s New Horizons Probe Measures UV Brightness of the Milky Way
A new study has determined the brightness of the galactic
Lyman-alpha background light using an SwRI-developed instrument
aboard NASA’s Kuiper Belt space probe New Horizons.
The Lyman-alpha ultraviolet background, first detected in spacein the 1960s and confirmed in 1971, bathes space in an ultraviolet
glow. In most of our solar system, the background is dominated by
Lyman-alpha photons emitted by the Sun and scattered by interstellarhydrogen atoms passing through. In the outer solar system,
however, the scattered sunlight component of the Lyman-alphasignal wanes, making it easier to distinguish fainter components
from the Milky Way.
“The galactic Lyman-alpha background comes from hot regions
around massive stars that ionize all nearby matter, primarilyhydrogen, the most abundant element in the universe,” said SwRI’s
Dr. Randy Gladstone, the study’s lead author. “When the electronsand protons eventually get back together, or recombine, they nearly
always emit Lyman-alpha photons.”“It’s like standing near a streetlamp on a foggy night,” Gladstone
said. “The fog scatters the lamp’s light, making it hard to seeWith the SwRI-led Alice UV imaging spectrograph aboard New
Horizons, Gladstone was able to accurately measure the brightnessof the galactic component of the Lyman-alpha background for the
first time. New Horizons is now far beyond Pluto, allowing Gladstone
to determine that the glow is 20 times dimmer than the Lymanalpha background is near Earth.
“This has been something that’s been guessed at by astronomers for
decades,” Gladstone said. “Now we have a much more precise number.”Gladstone hopes that this discovery will help astronomers better
understand the nearby regions of the Milky Way galaxy.
“The unique position of New Horizons in the faraway Kuiper
Belt allows it to make discoveries like this that no other spacecraft
can,” said SwRI Associate Vice President Dr. Alan Stern, New
Horizons principal investigator. “What a great resource New
Horizons is, not just for the exploration of the Kuiper Belt, but also
to understand more about our galaxy and even the universe beyond
our galaxy through this and other observations by our scientificinstrument payload.”

IMAGES COURTESY NASA/JHU APL/SwRIHydrogen atoms between the stars scatter these photons into aroughly uniform glow throughout space. They are detectable, but
only at the Lyman-alpha wavelength, which is not visible to humaneyes. Because the solar component is so bright near the Earth,scientists could not tell how much light from the Milky Way galaxy
contributed to its overall brightness.

anything else. New Horizons has been flying away from the Sun
for more than 15 years now. The farther we moved away fromthe Sun, the less we were blinded by the solar component of the
Lyman-alpha background.”

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TECHBYTES
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CLEANER DIESEL FUELSSwRI worked with a client to develop a post-refinery fuel treatment
process that reduces exhaust emissions from diesel engines. The result
is a modified fuel that could potentially replace today’s ultra-low sulfur
diesel, biodiesel and other renewable diesel fuels.
When burning a fuel-air mixture, internal combustion engines
produce harmful pollutants such as soot and nitrogen oxides (NOx).
Engineers design and calibrate engines to decrease emissions but havebeen stymied by the soot/NOx trade-off. Attempts to reduce soot withincreased temperatures result in higher NOx, while lowering thetemperature has the opposite effect. The modified fuel produces lesssoot emissions without increasing NOx and without requiring engine
design or calibration changes.

SwRI geologists completed research characterizing the complex
geological evolution of the Orphan Basin, located off the eastern
coast of Newfoundland and Labrador. Using an extensive databaseof new 2D and 3D broadband seismic reflection data, geologists
were able to visualize and understand the area’s subsurface.
“By incorporating seismic interpretations of rock structures andlayers, along with regional gravity and magnetic data and estimatesof crustal thicknesses, we were able to generate structural interpretations of the Earth’s crust,” said SwRI’s Dr. Adam Cawood, who led
the research and is lead author of two recent papers on the subject.
“Integrating multiple datasets is critical for understanding complex
structural development in frontier oil and gas exploration regions.”
The Orphan Basin and Flemish Pass region on the Newfoundland
continental margin is a frontier area for oil and gas exploration. The
region has historically been poorly understood in terms of structuraland tectonic evolution, with few exploration wells and, until
recently, sparse seismic data coverage.
“We characterized the region using 2D and 3D seismic data,interpreting structural geometries and basin evolution throughtime,” said SwRI’s Dr. David Ferrill, who co-authored the papers.
“These analyses provide the context for upcoming assessments oflocation and distribution of source rock, reservoir and seal strata for
exploration in the area.”
The team used defined protocols for cross-section construction
and restoration, testing multiple scenarios and generating robustmodels for the geologic evolution of the Orphan Basin, Flemish Pass
and Flemish Cap region.
“By doing this, we can better understand the tectonic evolution
and related sediment accumulation during the formation of theNorth Atlantic, when the supercontinent of Pangea broke up andland masses drifted apart,” Cawood said. “These results are importantfor interpreting the oil and gas potential in this frontier area.”“While fossil fuels eventually may
be replaced by electric powertrains or
noncarbon fuels in our lifetime, theprocess developed with our client
could be implemented immediately,”said James Wood, a principal scientist in
SwRI’s Chemistry and Chemical Engineering
Division. “Reducing soot and NOx could
potentially protect human health and theenvironment from harmful emissions.”
SwRI designed, built and operated a benchscale processing plant to produce modified fuelsamples for laboratory testing. This internationallypatented breakthrough technology combines a uniquelow-concentration chemical treatment with a specializedmechanical mixing system to produce a stable diesel fuel.
SwRI’s Powertrain Engineering Division evaluated the fuels during
steady-state and transient engine emissions testing according toEnvironmental Protection Agency test procedures.
“The modified fuel resulted in a substantial reduction in soot massemissions compared to the baseline ultra-low sulfur diesel,” said
Dr. Imad Khalek, a senior program manager who operates SwRI’s
particulate laboratory.
Based on the bench-scale plant, SwRI helped design a productionscale facility that meets ASTM International and ANSI (American
National Standards Institute) standards and is capable of processing
12,000 barrels per day (150 million gallons per year). Production of themodified fuel is ready for commercial development.

TECHNOLOGY TODAY 25

D023931_0019

Characterizing Offshore Oil Fields

Although engine manufacturers routinely develop
cleaner engines for new vehicles, older model
vehicles continue to contribute heavily topollution levels. This new modified fuelcould potentially lower exhaust NOx andparticulates for both older and newer
model diesel engine vehicles.

TECHBYTESNASA Selects SwRI-Led CubeSat Mission
SPS

Solar
Array
SASS
Electronics
S-BandAntennas
Globalstar
Radio +
Antenna

MOXSI
AperturesNASA has selected the SwRI-led CubeSat Imaging X-Ray Solar
Spectrometer (CubIXSS) as a secondary payload on an upcoming
satellite launch. The nanosatellite will measure the composition ofmultimillion-degree plasmas in the solar corona — its outermost
atmosphere — to characterize the origins of hot ionized gases in
active regions of the Sun.

MOXSI
Grating +FilterAssembly

The Sun’s active regions are characterized by disturbances in its
magnetic fields. These regions spawn explosive solar events such as
solar flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs).

SASS
Detectors“As a magnetic field in an active region becomes increasingly
twisted and tangled, it basically ‘snaps’ back into a less tangled
shape,” said SwRI Principal Scientist Dr. Amir Caspi, the mission’s
leader. “That snap releases a lot of energy and creates events such as
solar flares.”

SASS
Apertures

XB1
Avionics

36.6 cm

IDPU

GPS
Antenna

XB1 ADCS

m
.5 c
11

23.7 cmStar Tracker

NASA has selected the SwRI-designed CubIXSS as asecondary payload for an upcoming satellite launch. The
shoebox-sized CubeSat includes multiple spectrometers toquantify elements in the Sun’s corona and tease out theorigin of hot plasmas in active regions that spawn explosive
events such as solar flares.
D025318

INSPECTING AIRCRAFT
ENGINE MATERIALSInterfaceBoard

The solar flare heats the Sun’s plasma in that region to tens of
millions of degrees Celsius, considerably hotter than the rest of thesolar corona.

MOXSI
Camera“We don’t know how much plasma in solar flares is heateddirectly in the corona and how much is heated in the Sun’s lower
atmosphere and then transported up to the corona,” Caspi said.
“CubIXSS will measure X-rays from these phenomena to help us
unravel this mystery.”
CubIXSS is a larger CubeSat, about the size of a shoebox. It will
carry multiple spectrometers to measure different wavelengths or“colors” of solar X-rays, including a new instrument that will quantify
certain ions that only exist in a specific range of temperatures.
Measuring the abundance of these elements at each temperature
will provide insight into where heated plasmas originate.
“Studying the Sun is very important for people living on Earth,”
Caspi said. “CMEs and solar flares can disrupt satellite and groundbased communications. Understanding how these things happen
will help us understand why they happen, which will help us predictthese events and mitigate their effects.”

The dark regions in this image show the “dirty white spots” sometimes found innickel alloy engine components, anomalies that can lead to catastrophic failures.
Under a new FAA contract, SwRI will develop new inspection methods to ensureanomalies like these are detected during the material manufacturing process.

IMAGE COURTESY FAA
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26 Spring 2022

WEST
TEXAS
SPRINGSTUDYSwRI hydrologists are conducting a two-year investigationof West Texas spring systems
to improve water resource
management for semiarid
regions. Funded by a
WaterSMART Applied Science
Grant from the U.S. Bureau of
Reclamation, the project isstudying vital water systems at
potential risk, including San
Solomon Springs.
D025320

D025317

SwRI DEMONSTRATES DRONE AUTONOMY
During the European Robotics Hackathon

Developed and tested through internally(EnRicH) 2022, SwRI demonstrated an unmanned

funded research, SwRI’s technology combines

aerial system (UAS) that autonomously explored

new algorithms with computer vision sensors toand mapped the interior of a nuclear power

allow drones to autonomously explore and map

plant and detected radiation sources autono-

previously unknown environments.

mously without the aid of a human pilot. The

D025316

equipped with several sensors – LIDAR, alife-saving search-and-rescue missions andtime-of-flight camera and radiation detectors.

hazardous inspections at industrial facilities and

The team utilized both on-drone processors andinfrastructure following natural disasters andground-based processing to perform sensing

other incidents.

and perception, simultaneous localization and

The event took place in Austria’s Zwentendorf
Nuclear Power Plant, the world’s only nuclear

mapping (SLAM), exploration and other tasks.
“Our exploratory planner, which allows thefacility to be completely built but never activated.

system to navigate new spaces without the aid of

The inoperable boiling water reactor plant serves

human operators, performed well despite theas a training ground to prepare for radiologicalchallenging environment,” said Chris Bang, an

and nuclear incidents and disaster scenarios.

SwRI program manager in the Intelligent Systems“Today’s drones and ground robots typically

D025316

SwRI’s EnRicH entry featured a quadcopter

drone technology can potentially assist in

Division. “The planner is very robust and flexible,

require a lot of input and supervision from aadeptly operating in both man-made environ-

human operator,” said Dr. Eric Thorn, manager ofments and natural locations such as caves.”

SwRI’s UAS research team. “The autonomy we’ve

During the EnRicH hackathon, the drone

demonstrated has the potential to significantly

autonomously detected two sources of the

reduce the burden on human operators, allowing

radioisotope cobalt-60 hidden in separate

robotic systems to operate independently.”

locations as part of the challenge.

SwRI engineers used LIDAR point cloud data to reconstruct a high-resolution image of a facility that houses electric
turbines at a nonoperational nuclear plant. These data visualizations can identify damage and potential hazards
following accidents at nuclear power plants and other facilities.

TECHNOLOGY TODAY 27

AWARDS & ACHIEVEMENTS
AC HIEVEMENTS

78

WEBINARS, WORKSHOPS andTRAINING COURSES HOSTED by SwRI:

presentations
given in

GD&T (Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing),
April 25, 2022. Virtual training course.
Introduction to Propulsion Simulation using NPSS,May 3, 2022. Virtual training course.
NASGRO Training Course, May 3, 2022. Live virtual
training course.
Purchasing and Supply Management, May 16,
2022. Virtual training course.
Pulsations and Vibrations, May 17, 2022.
In-person training.

7

statescountries

Tolerance Stack Analysis, May 23, 2022. Live
online webinar.

CONFERENCES/MEETINGS:ASNT Annual Conference, Phoenix, November 15,
2022. Booth No. 659.
BioFest Invest, University of Incarnate Word, San
Antonio, March 30, 2022.
Space Symposium, Colorado Springs, Colorado,
April 4, 2022, Booth No. 311.
AIChE Spring Meeting & 18th Global Congress
on Process Safety, San Antonio, April 10, 2022,
Booth No. 600.
eChemExpo, Kingsport, Tennessee, April 20, 2022,
Booth No. 406.
MRO Americas, Dallas, April 26, 2022,
Booth No. 7010.
23rd Microencapsulation Industrial Convention(virtual), Rotterdam, Netherlands, May 2, 2022.
Offshore Technology Conference, Houston, May 2,2022, Booth No. 1842.
Indo Pacific 2022 International Maritime Expo,
Sydney, Australia, May 10, 2022.

2&28

by thenumbers
WINTER 2021 –SPRING 20226

paperspublished in

virtualconferences

6

publications

16
patents
awarded

28 Spring 2022

D025311

D025312

D025309

DM25223_0074

D025310

Dr. Imad A. Khalek, a senior program manager in SwRI’s
Powertrain Engineering Division, was elected a Fellow of theSociety of Automotive Engineers (SAE). SAE awards fellowships
to only about 20 members a year, recognizing those who havemade significant impacts to the mobility industry through“leadership, research, publishing, innovation and volunteering.”
The Explorers Club — an international professional organization
dedicated to the advancement of scientific exploration andfield study — has selected SwRI’s Dr. Stefano Livi (Space Scienceand Engineering Division) for membership in its Explorers Club 50
Class of 2022. The organization launched “The Explorers Club
50: Fifty People Changing the World that You Need Know
About” initiative in 2021 to highlight “…trailblazing explorers,
scientists, artists, and activists spanning the globe.”
Dr. Peter W. A. Roming, director of SwRI’s Department of SpaceEngineering, has been named a Fellow of the American
Physical Society (APS). This distinction recognizes outstanding
contributions to physics, particularly his ultraviolet observationsof gamma ray bursts and supernovae as well as leadership of
the UV/Optical Telescope on the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory.
Dr. Ben Thacker, P.E., has been named vice president ofSouthwest Research Institute’s Mechanical Engineering
Division. Thacker previously served as executive director ofthe division’s Materials and Fluids Engineering Departments.
As vice president, Thacker will oversee a staff of more than 300,
working in five research departments.

IMAGE COURTESY ELEMENTS MAGAZINESwRI Senior Research Scientist Dr. Natalie Hinkel and Research
Scientist Dr. Cayman Unterborn were guest editors of a special
issue of Elements Magazine exploring interdisciplinary viewson exoplanets. The issue contains seven articles by 19 authors
and gives a diverse overview of exoplanets, reviewing observations made about their geology, composition, atmosphere andpotential to support life.

SPRING 2022 • VOLUME 43, NO. 1

Executive Director of Communications
Tim Martin, Ph.D.
EditorDeb Schmid
Contributors
Joanna Carver
Robert Crowe
Lisa Peña
Maria Stothoff
Tracey Whelan
DesignJessica Vidal
Photography
Ian McKinney
Bryan Winter
Circulation
Stephanie Paredes
Address correspondence to the Editor,
Communications Department,
Southwest Research Institute,
6220 Culebra Road
San Antonio, Texas 78238-5166,
or e-mail dschmid@swri.org.
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©2022 Southwest Research Institute. All rights reserved.
Technology Today, Southwest ResearchInstitute, and SwRI are registered marks in the
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

swri.org

Dr. Elizabeth Trillo, a principal engineer in SwRI’s Mechanicaland Materials Section, has been named a National Associationof Corrosion Engineers (NACE) Fellow. She was chosen as oneof 13 fellows recognized in 2021 for their distinguishedcontributions in the field of corrosion and its prevention. Trillo
was nominated for using her intellect and engineering skills to
make the world a safer place.

TECHNOLOGY TODAY 29

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