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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 199 records · Page 11
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2014

SU-C-9A-02: Structured Noise Index as An Automated Quality Control for Nuclear Medicine: A Two Year Experience

Purpose: Flood-field uniformity evaluation is an essential element in the assessment of nuclear medicine (NM) gamma cameras. It serves as the central element of the quality control (QC) program, acquired and analyzed on a daily basis prior to clinical imaging. Uniformity images are traditionally analyzed using pixel value-based metrics which often fail to capture subtle structure and patterns caused by changes in gamma camera performance requiring additional visual inspection which is subjective and time demanding. The goal of this project was to develop and implement a robust QC metrology for NM that is effective in identifying non-uniformity issues, reporting issues in a timely manner for efficient correction prior to clinical involvement, all incorporated into an automated effortless workflow, and to characterize the program over a two year period. Methods: A new quantitative uniformity analysis metric was developed based on 2D noise power spectrum metrology and confirmed based on expert observer visual analysis. The metric, termed Structured Noise Index (SNI) was then integrated into an automated program to analyze, archive, and report on daily NM QC uniformity images. The effectiveness of the program was evaluated over a period of 2 years. Results: The SNI metric successfully identified visually apparent non-uniformities overlooked by the pixel valuebased analysis methods. Implementation of the program has resulted in nonuniformity identification in about 12% of daily flood images. In addition, due to the vigilance of staff response, the percentage of days exceeding trigger value shows a decline over time. Conclusion: The SNI provides a robust quantification of the NM performance of gamma camera uniformity. It operates seamlessly across a fleet of multiple camera models. The automated process provides effective workflow within the NM spectra between physicist, technologist, and clinical engineer. The reliability of this process has made it the preferred platform for NM uniformity analysis.

07 ISOTOPE AND RADIATION SOURCES↗
DOE OSTI2023

R-matrix Resolved Resonance Region Evaluation of 140,142 Ce

Oak Ridge National Laboratory completed the resolved resonance region (RRR) evaluation of the two most abundant cerium isotopes, 140 Ce (88.45%) and 142 Ce (11.11%), as requested by the US Nuclear Criticality Safety Program. These evaluations are based on recent high-resolution transmission and capture measurements performed on nat Ce and highly enriched 142 Ce samples at the JRC-Geel Linear Accelerator facility, as well as measured thermal constants available from the EXFOR database. Starting from the resonance parameters of the ENDF/B-VIII.0 library followed by a preliminary R-matrix analysis, an updated set of resonance parameters and corresponding covariance information were derived by fitting these measured data using the Reich–Moore approximation of the R -matrix theory, as implemented in the SAMMY code system. The 140 Ce RRR upper energy limit was kept at 200 keV, whereas the 142 Ce resonance region was extended from 13 to 26 keV. Updated statistical properties were obtained for the new evaluations and compared to those derived from the ENDF/B-VIII.0 nuclear data library. The new evaluation work improved some of the discrepancies found in previous work, such as the capture resonance integral and stellar Maxwellian-averaged cross sections. These integral quantities were mainly derived from the fit of the latest measured data, especially the neutron capture yield data for 142 Ce isotope.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2025

Driving Affordable Energy Through Utility Program Design

The presentation is aimed to teach participants about achieving affordable energy through utility program design. Learning objectives include: identify key utility program characteristics that support affordability and consumer choice; apply best practices in outreach, eligibility, and evaluation to improve program design; and evaluate strategies for aligning program design with customer needs and regulatory goals.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2019

PROGRESS ON 140,142CE NEUTRON CROSS SECTION RESOLVED RESONANCE REGION EVALUATIONS

Oak Ridge National Laboratory is working on completing the resonance parameter evaluation of 140,142Ce in the neutron energy range up to 200 keV. Performed with the support of the US Nuclear Criticality Safety Program, this evaluation aims to generate high-fidelity cerium cross-section and covariance data. A point-wise representation of the cross sections derived from the resonance parameters will provide improved calculations of self-shielding factors for nuclear criticality safety applications and additional evaluation support for continuous-energy radiation transport methodologies. The evaluation procedure uses the Reich Moore approximation of the R-matrix theory implemented in the SAMMY code system to fit resonance parameters to high-resolution transmission and neutron capture measurements of natCe performed in 2016 by the JRC-GEEL instrument scientists at the Geel Linear Accelerator facility as well as other experimental data sets on both natural and highly-enriched cerium samples available in the experimental library EXFOR. In the analyzed energy range this work aims to improve and extend the resolved resonance region present in the latest US nuclear data library ENDF/B-VIII.0 for 140,142Ce isotopes. This paper will present the preliminary results of the R-matrix analysis based on recently measured natCe transmission data.

Chapman, Chris↗
DOE OSTI2016

Evaluation of Additive Manufacturing for Stainless Steel Components

This collaboration between Oak Ridge National Laboratory and General Electric Company aimed to evaluate the mechanical properties, microstructure, and porosity of the additively manufactured 316L stainless steel by ORNL’s Renishaw AM250 machine for nuclear application. The program also evaluated the stress corrosion cracking and corrosion fatigue crack growth rate of the same material in high temperature water environments. Results show the properties of this material to be similar to the properties of 316L stainless steel fabricated additively with equipment from other manufacturers with slightly higher porosity. The stress corrosion crack growth rate is similar to that for wrought 316L stainless steel for an oxygenated high temperature water environment and slightly higher for a hydrogenated high temperature water environment. Optimized heat treatment of this material is expected to improve performance in high temperature water environments.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2019

Abradable Sealing Materials for Emerging IGCC-Based Turbine Systems (Final Report)

Reducing the gap between rotating and stationary parts in gas turbine engines, and mitigating gas leakage via these paths, can significantly increase the performance and attendant efficiency. One approach to reducing such gaps is to deploy abradable coatings on the stationary shroud components as seals, to reduce the blade-tip clearances under operational conditions. Abradable coatings must be able to withstand high temperature oxidation, thermal cycling, and erosion, while providing optimal controlled abrasion and associated shape retention. Existing abradable seals utilized in power generation turbines have generally been optimized for use with natural gas-fired systems; however, preliminary testing of syngas and high-hydrogen-content (HHC) fired turbines has shown that the stability of hot-section materials (and presumably abradable sealing materials) may be substantially altered due to characteristic changes in the combustion by-products (partial pressures of water vapor, etc.) as well as characteristic impurities and particulate matter entrained in the fuel. The primary focus of this research program has been to develop a mechanistic understanding of how the altered combustion environments modify the thermo-mechanical stability and performance of the sealing materials, including the requisite abradable sealing behavior. A key component of the research program carried out has been an exploration of mechanisms underpinning observed degradation processes, and an assessment of connections to the combustion environments and characteristic non-combustible constituents. The ultimate goal of the project has been to advance the goals of the Advanced Turbine Program by developing materials design protocols leading to turbine hot-section components with improved resistance to service lifetime degradation under advanced fuels exposures. This research program has evaluated the performance and degradation of ceramic abradable seals used in the high-temperature turbine sections of gas turbine engines. The focus has been two-fold: (1) to understand performance of such materials in relation to the turbines operating on coal-derived syngas and high hydrogen content (HHC) fuels, ultimately seeking an improved understanding of factors that control performance and durability of abradable seal materials for these combustion environments (and play into materials design protocols); and (2) to evaluate the potential of alternative materials as abradable seals for the higher temperatures expected with IGCC and HHC fueled turbine systems. In particular, we carried out an initial assessment of multi-layered systems of existing abradable seal materials (YSZ) and other ceramics. The research program also investigated several classes of abradable coatings under simulated exposures to syngas-based combustion environments, evaluating the relevant wear behavior, hardness, stability under cyclic oxidation, and general thermo-mechanical behavior. The research also attempted to develop alternatives to carrying out full-scale combustion-based abradability test rig exposures to evaluate materials system performance. The research has been focused on correlating the measured thermo-mechanical behavior, and controlled abrasive wear, with the intrinsic properties of the multilayer coatings and processing-controlled microstructural features that have shown attractive machinability characteristics based on weak interfacial bonding between the constituent phases at elevate temperatures (while maintaining thermochemical stability). This program has resulted in an improved mechanistic understanding of factors governing performance of high temperature abradable seals, and degradation mechanisms unique to IGCC-based power generation turbine systems and the realization of coal-derived syngas and HHC-based combustion environments – ultimately with the goal of developing a knowledge base upon which the design of coatings that retain optimal sealing characteristics and are more resistant to the observed wear/attack mechanisms, important aspects of advancing the goals of the DOE Advanced Turbine Program.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2025

LLM Benchmarking with LLaMA2: Evaluating Code Development Performance Across Multiple Programming Languages

The rapid evolution of large language models (LLMs) has opened new possibilities for automating various tasks in software development. This paper evaluates the capabilities of the LLaMA 2-70B model in automating these tasks for scientific applications written in commonly used programming languages. Using representative test problems, we assess the model's capacity to generate code, documentation, and unit tests, as well as its ability to translate existing code between commonly used programming languages. Our comprehensive analysis evaluates the compilation, runtime behavior, and correctness of the generated and translated code. Additionally, we assess the quality of automatically generated code, documentation, and unit tests. Here, our results indicate that while LLaMA 2-70B frequently generates syntactically correct and functional code for simpler numerical tasks, it encounters substantial difficulties with more complex, parallelized, or distributed computations, requiring considerable manual corrections. We identify key limitations and suggest areas for future improvements to better leverage AI-driven automation in scientific computing workflows.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
DOE OSTI2017

Low Temperature Waste Form for Supplemental Immobilization of Hanford Low Activity Waste - 17485

The Hanford site has approximately 56 million gallons of radioactive waste stored in 177 underground storage tanks. The Hanford Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) is being constructed to treat the waste but will only have sufficient capacity to treat about one-third of the Low Activity Waste (LAW) portion within the anticipated time-frame for completing the waste treatment mission. The LAW vitrification facility will need to be supplemented with additional LAW vitrification capacity or an alternate LAW immobilization technology. The LAW immobilization technologies considered must be capable of treating approximately 65% of Hanford's LAW and will be evaluated with respect to facilities required, quantity of final waste forms and secondary wastes produced, waste form performance data, technical viability, and life cycle cost and schedule estimates. A low temperature (i.e. non-thermal) waste form and treatment process is being evaluated to provide the additional LAW immobilization capacity. Low temperature, cementitious waste forms have been evaluated previously for immobilizing Hanford tank waste but were not further developed for various reasons. Over the past few years the Hanford Tank Operations Contractor has conducted a technology development program to evaluate a low temperature waste form for immobilization of Hanford LAW including formulation development and testing with a range of simulant compositions spiked with radioactive and hazardous contaminants of concern (COCs). The objectives of this program include; developing a low temperature waste form formulation that is robust with respect to both waste form performance and processing properties over a range of LAW compositions, demonstrating waste form performance with real waste, and conducting Engineering Scale testing to advance the technical maturity of the low temperature immobilization process. The purpose of this paper is to report progress toward these objectives, in particular testing with real waste including additives to enhance technetium and iodine retention. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2019

A Case Study with the HACCmk Kernel in SYCL

The SYCL standard specifies a cross-platform abstraction layer that enables programming of heterogeneous computing systems using standard C++ [1]. In the Open Computing Language (OpenCL) programming model, host and device codes are written in different languages [2 ]. To improve development productivity and performance portability, the SYCL programming model combines host and device codes for an application in a type-safe way. In this report, we are interested in applying the SYCL programming model to a computationally intensive routine derived from the Hardware Accelerated Cosmology Code (HACC) framework for a study on performance portability on a heterogeneous computing device. We use Intel® OneAPI toolkit [3] to build the OpenCL and SYCL programs, and evaluate the performance of both implementations on Intel® integrated GPUs. We find that the SYCL implementation can achieve the same performance as the OpenCL implementation after we specify a target backend for the compiler to build the SYCL program in offline compilation. Without the specification of a target backend, the runtime will have to compile intermediate device codes for a target platform. Such runtime overhead may become significant compared to the execution of a kernel on a target device. As the kernel routine is compute-bound, we evaluate the impact of the number of compute units upon the kernel’s raw performance using two GPUs. When the hardware resource is not underutilized, we can obtain almost linear performance speedup from 48 compute units to 72 compute units in offline compilation, which indicates that the number of compute units on a GPU are important to improving the raw performance of a compute-bound kernel. The experimental results show that SYCL is a promising programming model for heterogeneous computing. The remainder of the report is organized as follows: In Section II, we describe the SYCL programming model, the steps to map an OpenCL program to a SYCL program, and the architecture of an integrated GPU. Section III introduces the kernel routine, and presents the OpenCL and SYCL implementations of the kernel. In Section IV, we evaluate the performance of the implementations on the GPUs. Section V concludes the report.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
DOE OSTI2012

IRSN working program status on tools for evaluation of SFR cores static neutronics safety parameters

As technical support of the French Nuclear Safety Authority, IRSN will be in charge of safety assessment of any future project of Sodium Fast Reactor (SFR) that could be built in France. One of the main safety topics will deal with reactivity control. Since the design and safety assessment of the last two SFR plants in France (Phenix and Superphenix, more than thirty years ago), methods, codes and safety objectives have evolved. That is why a working program on core neutronic simulations has been launched in order to be able to evaluate accuracy of future core characteristics computations. The first step consists in getting experienced with the ERANOS well-known deterministic code used in the past for Phenix and Superphenix. Then Monte-Carlo codes have been tested to help in the interpretation of ERANOS results and to define what place this kind of codes can have in a new SFR safety demonstration. This experience is based on open benchmark computations. Different cases are chosen to cover a wide range of configurations. The paper shows, as an example, criticality results obtained with ERANOS, SCALE and MORET, and the first conclusions based on these results. In the future, this work will be extended to other safety parameters such as sodium void and Doppler effects, kinetic parameters or flux distributions. (authors)

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗
DOE OSTI2015

Multifamily Programmable Thermostat Data

This data set, compiled by the Fraunhofer Center for Sustainable Energy Systems, includes long-term 10-minute temperature and relative humidity data, and HVAC system state data for 79 apartments in a low-income housing complex in Revere, MA. The monitoring period spans two winters and one summer between 2011 and 2013. Data were collected as part of a project sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy Building America program to evaluate the impact of programmable thermostat usability on occupant behavior. This project was done in conjunction with NREL as part of the US Department of Energy's Building America program.

Array↗
DOE OSTI2022

ARM data-oriented metrics and diagnostics package for climate model evaluation (ARM-DIAGS-V3) version 3

A Python-based metrics and diagnostics package is currently being developed by the ARM Infrastructure Team at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory to facilitate the use of long-term high frequency measurements from the ARM program in evaluating the regional climate simulation of clouds, radiation, precipitation, and aerosols. This metrics and diagnostics package computes climatological means of targeted climate model simulation and generates tables and plots for comparing the model simulation with ARM observational data. The CMIP model data sets are also included in the package to enable model inter-comparison as demonstrated in Zhang et al. (2018) and Zhang et al. (2020). The mean of the CMIP model can be served as a reference for individual models. Basic performance metrics are computed to measure the accuracy of mean state and variability of climate models. The evaluated physical quantities include cloud fraction, temperature, relative humidity, cloud liquid water path, total column water vapor, precipitation, sensible and latent heat fluxes, aerosol optical depth, and radiative fluxes, with plan to extend to more fields, such as the evaluation of model simulated aerosol physicochemical properties and cloud microphysics properties. Process-oriented diagnostics focusing on aerosol, cloud, and precipitation-related phenomena are also being developed for the evaluation and development of specific model physical parameterizations. In addition to the Southern Great Plains (SGP), North Slope of Alaska (NSA) and Tropical Western Pacific (TWP) atmospheric observatories in the ARMDIAGS version 2.0, the version 3.0 package have extended to the data collected at the ARM Eastern North Atlantic (ENA) atmospheric observatory and the Observation and Modeling of the Green Ocean Amazon (GOAMAZON) field campaign. The metrics and diagnostics package are currently built upon standard Python libraries and additional Python packages developed by DOE (CDAT). The ARM metrics and diagnostic package is available publicly with the hope that it can serve as an easy entry point for climate modelers to compare their models with ARM data. In this report, we first provide an overview of major metrics in section 2. The input data, which constitutes the core content of the metrics and diagnostics package, is summarized in section 3. A user's guide documenting the workflow/structure of the version 3.0 codes and including step-by-step instruction for running the package is described in section 4.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2016

International Medical Graduates in Radiation Oncology: Historical Trends and Comparison With Other Medical Specialties

Purpose: This is the first National Resident Matching Program analysis evaluating historical patterns of international medical graduates (IMGs) in radiation oncology (RO) and providing comparison with American (MD) medical graduates (AMGs), osteopathic students (DOs), unfilled positions, and other specialties. Methods and Materials: National Resident Matching Program data for IMGs were available from 2003 to 2015, with limited data for other specialty matches. The following RO-specific figures were obtained per year: total positions available; total matched positions; number of unfilled positions; and number of IMG, AMG, and DO matches. In addition, the number of IMG matches and total matched positions were obtained for 19 other specialties. Fisher exact tests and χ{sup 2} tests were considered significant at α <.05. Results: From 2010 to 2015, 0.8% of RO matches were IMGs, a decline from 2.4% in 2003 to 2009 (P=.006). Proportions of DO matches during these intervals increased by 40% (from 1.0% to 1.4%), significantly lower than IMGs for 2003 to 2009 (P=.03) but not 2010 to 2015 (P=.26). From 2003 to 2015, the percentage of IMG matches, at 1.5%, was significantly lower than the percentage of unfilled seats, at 3.5% (P<.001). In comparison with other specialties (2003-2015), RO had the fewest IMG matches (1.5%), followed by otolaryngology (1.9%) and orthopedics (2.2%); specialties with the highest IMG proportions were internal medicine (37.1%), family medicine (35.7%), and neurology (31.1%). Conclusions: Presently, IMGs represent <1% of RO matches, the lowest among major specialties. There are several speculative factors associated with this low proportion. There are significantly more unfilled positions than those filled by IMGs; programs at risk of not matching could weigh the advantages and disadvantages of interviewing IMGs.

62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE↗
DOE OSTI2024

U.S. Department of Energy Hydrogen Program: 2023 Annual Merit Review and Peer Evaluation Report; June 6-9, 2023

This document summarizes peer review comments and scores for the fiscal year 2023 U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Hydrogen Program Annual Merit Review and Peer Evaluation Meeting (AMR), held June 6-9, 2023. This review process provides project- and program-level evaluations of DOE-funded research, development, demonstration, and analysis of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies.

AMR↗
DOE OSTI2016

Accuracy of automated measurement and verification (M&V) techniques for energy savings in commercial buildings

Trustworthy savings calculations are critical to convincing investors in energy efficiency projects of the benefit and cost-effectiveness of such investments and their ability to replace or defer supply-side capital investments. However, today’s methods for measurement and verification (M&V) of energy savings constitute a significant portion of the total costs of efficiency projects. They also require time-consuming manual data acquisition and often do not deliver results until years after the program period has ended. The rising availability of “smart” meters, combined with new analytical approaches to quantifying savings, has opened the door to conducting M&V more quickly and at lower cost, with comparable or improved accuracy. These meter- and software-based approaches, increasingly referred to as “M&V 2.0”, are the subject of surging industry interest, particularly in the context of utility energy efficiency programs. Program administrators, evaluators, and regulators are asking how M&V 2.0 compares with more traditional methods, how proprietary software can be transparently performance tested, how these techniques can be integrated into the next generation of whole-building focused efficiency programs. This paper expands recent analyses of public-domain whole-building M&V methods, focusing on more novel M&V2.0 modeling approaches that are used in commercial technologies, as well as approaches that are documented in the literature, and/or developed by the academic building research community. We present a testing procedure and metrics to assess the performance of whole-building M&V methods. We then illustrate the test procedure by evaluating the accuracy of ten baseline energy use models, against measured data from a large dataset of 537 buildings. The results of this study show that the already available advanced interval data baseline models hold great promise for scaling the adoption of building measured savings calculations using Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) data. Median coefficient of variation of the root mean squared error (CV(RMSE)) was less than 25% for every model tested when twelve months of training data were used. With even six months of training data, median CV(RMSE) for daily energy total was under 25% for all models tested. Finally, these findings can be used to build confidence in model robustness, and the readiness of these approaches for industry uptake and adoption

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2014

Qualification of Daiichi Units 1, 2, and 3 Data for Severe Accident Evaluations - Process and Illustrative Examples from Prior TMI-2 Evaluations

The accidents at the Three Mile Island Unit 2 (TMI-2) Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) and the Daiichi Units 1, 2, and 3 Boiling Water Reactors (BWRs) provide unique opportunities to evaluate instrumentation exposed to severe accident conditions. Conditions associated with the release of coolant and the hydrogen burn that occurred during the TMI-2 accident exposed instrumentation to harsh conditions, including direct radiation, radioactive contamination, and high humidity with elevated temperatures and pressures. As part of a program initiated in 2012 by the Department of Energy Office of Nuclear Energy (DOE-NE), a review was completed to gain insights from prior TMI-2 sensor survivability and data qualification efforts. This initial review focused on the set of sensors deemed most important by post-TMI-2 instrumentation evaluation programs. Instrumentation evaluation programs focused on data required by TMI-2 operators to assess the condition of the reactor and containment and the effect of mitigating actions taken by these operators. In addition, prior efforts focused on sensors providing data required for subsequent forensic evaluations and accident simulations. To encourage the potential for similar activities to be completed for qualifying data from Daiichi Units 1, 2, and 3, this report provides additional details related to the formal process used to develop a qualified TMI-2 data base and presents data qualification details for three parameters: primary system pressure; containment building temperature; and containment pressure. As described within this report, sensor evaluations and data qualification required implementation of various processes, including comparisons with data from other sensors, analytical calculations, laboratory testing, and comparisons with sensors subjected to similar conditions in large-scale integral tests and with sensors that were similar in design to instruments easily removed from the TMI-2 plant for evaluations. As documented in this report, results from qualifying data for these parameters led to key insights related to TMI-2 accident progression. Hence, these selected examples illustrate the types of activities completed in the TMI-2 data qualification process and the importance of such a qualification effort. These details are documented in this report to facilitate implementation of similar process using data and examinations at the Daiichi Units 1, 2, and 3 reactors so that BWR-specific benefits can be obtained.

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Carbon Capture and Storage Training Northwest - CCSTNW (Final Scientific Technical Report) [Slides]

This report details the activities of the Carbon Capture and Storage Training Northwest (CCSTNW) program 2009 to 2013. The CCSTNW created, implemented, and provided Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) training over the period of the program. With the assistance of an expert advisory board, CCSTNW created curriculum and conducted three short courses, more than three lectures, two symposiums, and a final conference. The program was conducted in five phases; 1) organization, gap analysis, and form advisory board; 2) develop list serves, website, and tech alerts; 3) training needs survey; 4) conduct lectures, courses, symposiums, and a conference; 5) evaluation surveys and course evaluations. This program was conducted jointly by Environmental Outreach and Stewardship Alliance (dba. Northwest Environmental Training Center – NWETC) and Pacific Northwest National Laboratories (PNNL).

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2018

Review of Criticality Evaluations for Direct Disposal of DPCs and Recommendations

There are currently 2,462 dual-purpose canisters (DPCs) containing spent nuclear fuel (SNF) across the United States. Repackaging DPCs into specialized disposal canisters can be financially and operationally costly with undue risks. Technical feasibility of direct disposal of DPCs has been evaluated by the Department of Energy (DOE) and industry over the past 15 years. A concerted effort most recently conducted by DOE Office of Nuclear Energy (NE) Spent Fuel and Waste Science and Technology (SFWST) research and development (R&D) programs is evaluating the technical feasibility of direct disposal of DPCs in various geologies. This report focuses on reviewing the work completed by SFWST for the criticality considerations of DPC geologic disposal. Disposal of DPCs is not only viable, but assured from a technical and assumed regulatory perspective (similar to 10 CFR 63). The analysis approach should be multi-faceted to ensure effective implementation of a licensing basis. Recommendations are provided in this report that could enhance the bases for direct disposal of DPCs by exploiting all technically attainable and regulatorily defensible options. The review objectives, including addressing several questions regarding the value of accumulating asloaded fuel and DPC design data, suitability of DPC designs for disposal, and reasonable modifications for loading of DPCs that could facilitate eventual disposal, are also addressed in this report.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗