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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 37 records · Page 2

Predicting multiphase flow and tracer transport for an underground chemical explosive test

Detecting radionuclide gas seepage from clandestine underground nuclear tests is central to nonproliferation explosion monitoring research. Yet, early-time (<6 day) gas transport driven by the explosive pressure wave remains poorly constrained due to scarcity of field data. We simulate multi-phase gas transport in the vadose zone using pre-shot data from a recent chemical explosion in P-Tunnel at the Nevada National Security Site, USA. Despite using a simplified 2D-radial model, predictions of tracer arrival matched observations within one order-of-magnitude. Our results show how transient blast forcing rapidly mobilizes gases from the cavity into surrounding rock – critical for optimizing sensor placement and test planning. This unique integration of field data and modeling represents a significant improvement in our ability to predict gas migration from underground explosions. More broadly, it offers insights into the coupled dynamics of pressure waves and contaminant transport in the vadose zone, with implications for monitoring and hazard assessment.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

EnergyPlus™ v.23.2.0 2023 [SWR-17-23]

EnergyPlus™ is a whole building energy simulation program that engineers, architects, and researchers use to model both energy consumption and water use in buildings. This is the EnergyPlus Development Repository. The Department of Energy maintains a public website for EnergyPlus where you can find much more information about the program. https://energyplus.net/ For detailed developer information, consult the wiki. https://github.com/NREL/EnergyPlus/wiki Many users (and developers) of EnergyPlus are active on Unmet Hours, so that's a great place to start if you have a question about EnergyPlus or building simulation. https://unmethours.com/questions/ For more in-depth, developer-driven support, please utilize the EnergyPlus Helpdesk. https://energyplushelp.freshdesk.com/support/home

Woods, Jason↗

2022 Site Environmental Report: Idaho National Laboratory

The INL Site’s operations, as well as the ongoing cleanup mission involve a commitment to environmental stewardship and full compliance with environmental protection laws. As part of this commitment, the INL Site Environmental Report is prepared annually to inform the public, regulators, stakeholders, and other interested parties of the INL Site’s environmental performance during the year. This report is published for U.S. Department of Energy, Idaho Operations Office (DOE-ID) in compliance with DOE O 231.1B, “Environment, Safety and Health Reporting.” The purpose of the report is to provide the following: (1) Present the INL Site, mission, and programs, (2) Report compliance status with applicable federal, state, and local regulations, (3) Describe the INL Site environmental programs and activities, (4) Summarize results of environmental monitoring, (5) Discuss potential radiation doses to the public residing in the vicinity of the INL Site, (6) Report on ecological monitoring and research conducted by contractors and affiliated agencies and by independent researchers through the Idaho National Environmental Research Park, (7) Describe quality assurance methods used to ensure confidence in monitoring data, and (8) Provide supplemental technical data and reports that support the INL Site Environmental Report (https://idahoeser.inl.gov/publications.html).

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Stoichiometry–Induced Ferromagnetism in Altermagnetic Candidate MnTe

The field of spintronics has seen a surge of interest in altermagnetism due to novel predictions and many possible applications. MnTe is a leading altermagnetic candidate that is of significant interest across spintronics due to its layered antiferromagnetic structure, high Neel temperature (T N ≈ 310 K) and semiconducting properties. The results on molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) grown MnTe/InP(111) films are presented. Here, it is found that the electronic and magnetic properties are driven by the natural stoichiometry of MnTe. Electronic transport and in situ angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy show the films are natively metallic with the Fermi level in the valence band and the band structure is in good agreement with first-principles calculations for altermagnetic spin-splitting. Neutron diffraction confirms that the film is antiferromagnetic with planar anisotropy and polarized neutron reflectometry indicates weak ferromagnetism, which is linked to a slight Mn-richness that is intrinsic to the MBE-grown samples. Further, when combined with the anomalous Hall effect, this work shows that the electronic response is strongly affected by the ferromagnetic moment. Altogether, this highlights potential mechanisms for controlling altermagnetic ordering for diverse spintronic applications.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Laser-Induced Cooperative Transition in Molecular Electronic Crystal

The competing and non-equilibrium phase transitions, involving dynamic tunability of cooperative electronic and magnetic states in strongly correlated materials, show great promise in quantum sensing and information technology. To date, the stabilization of transient states is still in the preliminary stage, particularly with respect to molecular electronic solids. Here, a dynamic and cooperative phase in potassium-7,7,8,8-tetracyanoquinodimethane (K-TCNQ) with the control of pulsed electromagnetic excitation is demonstrated. Simultaneous dynamic and coherent lattice perturbation with 8 ns pulsed laser (532 nm, 15 MW cm -2 , 10 Hz) in such a molecular electronic crystal initiates a stable long-lived (over 400 days) conducting paramagnetic state (≈42 Ωcm), showing the charge–spin bistability over a broad temperature range from 2 to 360 K. Comprehensive noise spectroscopy, in situ high-pressure measurements, electron spin resonance (ESR), theoretical model, and scanning tunneling microscopy/spectroscopy (STM/STS) studies provide further evidence that such a transition is cooperative, requiring a dedicated charge–spin–lattice decoupling to activate and subsequently stabilize nonequilibrium phase. Finally, the cooperativity triggered by ultrahigh-strain-rate (above 10 6 s -1 ) pulsed excitation offers a collective control toward the generation and stabilization of strongly correlated electronic and magnetic orders in molecular electronic solids and offers unique electro-magnetic phases with technological promises.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Pathways Toward Efficient and Durable Anion Exchange Membrane Water Electrolyzers Enabled By Electro‐Active Porous Transport Layers

Abstract Green hydrogen, produced via water electrolysis using renewable electricity, will play a crucial role in decarbonizing industrial and heavy‐duty transportation sectors. Anion exchange membrane water electrolyzers (AEMWEs) can overcome many of the performance and cost limitations of incumbent technologies, however, still suffer from durability challenges due to oxidative instability of anion‐exchange ionomers. Herein, the use of an electro‐active porous transport layer as anode (PTL‐electrode) is demonstrated to enable efficient and durable AEMWEs. The stainless‐steel PTL‐electrodes are shown to have superior performance and durability compared to traditional catalyst layers containing ionomer and nanoparticle catalysts. An AEMWE cell operating at 2 A cm −2 for over 600 h exhibited a degradation rate of just 5 µV h −1 . During operation, the surface composition of the stainless steel transforms into a mixture of iron and nickel oxyhydroxides, contributing to enhanced oxygen‐evolution reaction activity. The combination of experimental work and modeling elucidates how the bulk structure of the PTL‐electrode offers an additional design dimension to further improve electrolyzer performance. Lastly, a surface modification strategy is applied to a PTL‐electrode to achieve an even higher performing AEMWE (2.3 vs 2.0 A cm −2 at 1.8 V). Overall, this work lays out pathways toward more efficient, durable, and affordable AEMWEs.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Quantitative Microstructural Characterization of Plutonium Oxalate Auto-Degradation and Evidence for PuO2 Nanocrystal Formation

It has been known since the 1950s that plutonium oxalate powders change color and lose mass over time when stored at room temperature in air. Despite several studies monitoring these changes, there are still discrepancies in the literature regarding the speciation of intermediate and final products that result from this decomposition. Presented here for the first time is a comprehensive series of time-resolved powder X-ray diffraction experiments coupled with solid-state optical spectroscopy and electron microscopy of aged plutonium (III) and (IV) oxalate powders. These data provide fresh insight into the chemical and structural changes that occur in these solids over time at room temperature and represent new evidence suggesting both plutonium (III) and plutonium (IV) oxalates decompose to form nanocrystalline plutonium oxide in the solid state.

Corbey, Jordan F.↗

Mechanical suppression of invasive Northern Pike in Box Canyon Reservoir, Washington

Abstract Objective Northern Pike Esox lucius recently invaded Box Canyon Reservoir, Washington, expanding to over 10,000 individuals by 2011. To limit further impacts, a significant reduction in population abundance was required. Project objectives were to reduce relative abundance (catch per unit effort [CPUE]) to less than 1.7 Northern Pike/net (87% reduction) in the core area and to less than 0.5 Northern Pike/net in the northern reservoir section within 3 years and then maintain those abundance targets thereafter. Methods Using gill nets, we conducted intensive annual (2012–2018) suppression each spring, focusing on spawning aggregations in shallow (<2-m), flooded habitats. To evaluate CPUE, a standardized spring pike index netting (SPIN) survey was conducted annually in May and compared to suppression netting CPUE. Result In total, 17,464 Northern Pike were removed in 4868 net sets, with 92.9% captured in the first 3 years, limiting future recruitment. Mean SPIN CPUE in the core area declined from a presuppression (2011) high of 13.2 Northern Pike/net to less than 1.0 Northern Pike/net by 2014. Effort was reduced by up to 80% as the project transitioned from the initial suppression phase (2012–2014) to a control phase (2015–2018), which explored the minimum effort required to maintain abundance targets. A significant rebound in CPUE occurred from 2017 to 2018, indicating that over 267 net sets annually may be required for long-term control. Although the mean CPUE (±95% confidence interval) increased slightly in 2018 (0.6 ± 0.5 Northern Pike/net), the target abundance in the core area was achieved annually from 2013 to 2018. Changes in suppression CPUE reflected those observed in SPIN surveys, further validating the survey and corroborating abundance trends. Conclusion Results demonstrate that the suppression of Northern Pike in large, complex waters is feasible but requires a substantial long-term commitment. We expect the suppression of this invasive species to become standard practice outside of its native range. The methodology and equipment described here could be applied directly or modified by others to suppress Northern Pike.

Bean, Nicholas J.↗

Phenotypic effects of changes in the FTVTxK region of an Arabidopsis secondary wall cellulose synthase compared with results from analogous mutations in other isoforms

Abstract Understanding protein structure and function relationships in cellulose synthase (CesA), including divergent isomers, is an important goal. Here, we report results from mutant complementation assays that tested the ability of sequence variants of AtCesA7, a secondary wall CesA of Arabidopsis thaliana , to rescue the collapsed vessels, short stems, and low cellulose content of the irx3‐1 AtCesA7 null mutant. We tested a catalytic null mutation and seven missense or small domain changes in and near the AtCesA7 FTVTSK motif, which lies near the catalytic domain and may, analogously to bacterial CesA, exist within a substrate “gating loop.” A low‐to‐high gradient of rescue occurred, and even inactive AtCesA7 had a small positive effect on stem cellulose content but not stem elongation. Overall, secondary wall cellulose content and stem length were moderately correlated, but the results were consistent with threshold amounts of cellulose supporting particular developmental processes. Vibrational sum frequency generation microscopy allowed tissue‐specific analysis of cellulose content in stem xylem and interfascicular fibers, revealing subtle differences between selected genotypes that correlated with the extent of rescue of the collapsing xylem phenotype. Similar tests on PpCesA5 from the moss Physcomitrium (formerly Physcomitrella ) patens helped us to synergize the AtCesA7 results with prior results on AtCesA1 and PpCesA5. The cumulative results show that the FTVTxK region is important for the function of an angiosperm secondary wall CesA as well as widely divergent primary wall CesAs, while differences in complementation results between isomers may reflect functional differences that can be explored in further work.

Burris, Jason N.↗

Titanium Carbide MXene Hole Contacts for CdTe Photovoltaics

CdTe is a high‐efficiency thin‐film photovoltaic technology that has seen tremendous commercial success over the past decade. Yet despite the improvement of other device characteristics, the fabrication of an ohmic hole back contact layer has remained a challenge due to the high ionization potential of CdTe, which limits the external potential that can be feasibly reached even as other characteristics of the device improve. MXenes, a family of 2D materials with rapidly growing scientific and commercial interest, offer a promising route to forming low‐cost, low‐barrier contacts due to their demonstrated high work function, metallic conductivity, and facile solution processing from benign solvents. Here, it is shown that Ti 3 C 2 T x MXene films processed from an aqueous colloidal dispersion can perform as a highly efficient hole contact material for CdTe solar cells, resulting in high power‐conversion efficiencies. The role of the Schottky barrier formation in Ti 3 C 2 T x ‐contacted CdTe devices is probed, and potential pathways for the future development of this potent combination of materials are elucidated. The modularity of the expansive MXene family of materials presents a promising strategy for developing next‐generation hole contacts for CdTe solar cells.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗