Colorado Electrical Transmission Grid
This layer contains transmission network of Colorado as released by Xcel Energy.
15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY↗
SEARCH · Engineering Papers
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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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Data Analytics and Visualization of Energy Systems for Critical Infrastructure Insights
Modernization of energy systems including transportation facilities provides opportunities for increased efficiency, expansion of commerce and meeting industry and federal goals. A significant increase in electrical demand is projected to meet these needs, which concentrates at facilities such as airports. For example, Xcel Energy working with two airports in their service area recently published information projecting an up to fivefold increase in electricity demand in the next 25 years [1]. Concurrently, the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently surveyed 30 commercial service airports identifying more than 300 outages of more than 5 minutes between 2015 and 2022 [2]. Power, reliability, and resilience planning becomes more important to safely maintain operations and the flow of commerce with fewer energy carriers providing necessary energy to safely move passengers and goods. NREL proposes to develop methodologies to allow owners, utilities, and federal agencies to dynamically analyze, forecast, and manage energy loads at airports, focused upon maintaining the flow of commerce in an efficient, sustainable, and resilient way. To address these energy challenges, a suite of technologies and methodologies can be leveraged to validate concepts, inform design, de-risk solutions and optimize energy management during deployment. These technologies include digitalization of energy systems, microgrid methodologies, and related energy technologies for building and vehicle loads. [1] Electrifying Airport Ecosystems - https://www.enterprisemobility.com/content/dam/enterpriseholdings/marketing/innovation-in-mobility/vehicle-innovation/airport-electrification-study-full-report-2024.pdf [2] Airport Infrastructure: Selected Airport's Efforts to Enhance Electrical Resilience https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-23-105203.
critcal infrastructure↗
Beyond Widgets -- Systems Incentive Programs for Utilities
Utility incentive programs remain one of the most significant means of deploying commercialized, but underutilized building technologies to scale. However, these programs have been largely limited to component-based products (e.g., lamps, RTUs). While some utilities do provide ‘custom’ incentive programs with whole building and system level technical assistance, these programs require deeper levels of analysis, resulting in higher program costs. This results in custom programs being restricted to utilities with greater resources, and are typically applied mainly to large or energy-intensive facilities, leaving much of the market without cost effective access and incentives for these solutions. In addition, with increasingly stringent energy codes, cost effective component-based solutions that achieve significant savings are dwindling. Building systems (e.g., integrated façade, HVAC and/or lighting solutions) can deliver higher savings that translate into large sector-wide savings if deployed at the scale of these programs. However, systems application poses a number of challenges – baseline energy use must be defined and measured; the metrics for energy and performance must be defined and tested against; in addition, system savings must be validated under well understood conditions. This paper presents a sample of findings of a project to develop validated utility incentive program packages for three specific integrated building systems, in collaboration with Xcel Energy (CO, MN), ComEd, and a consortium of California Public Owned Utilities (CA POUs) (Northern California Power Agency(NCPA) and the Southern California Public Power Authority(SCPPA)). Furthermore, these program packages consist of system specifications, system performance, M&V protocols, streamlined assessment methods, market assessment and implementation guidance.
32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
Regional Hybrid Energy Systems Technoeconomic Analysis
This presentation summarizes the final outputs from a multi-year HFTO-funded project that evaluated the potential for hybridized nuclear power plants to economically produce hydrogen. The focus of this presentation is on the interactions between the electricity system modeling and hydrogen system optimization and the resulting figures of merit. This project partnered with Idaho National Laboratory, Argonne National Laboratory, Electric Power Research Institute, and Xcel Energy.
ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY,HYDROGEN↗
Beyond Widgets: Validated Systems Energy Savings and Utility Custom Incentive Program Systems Trends
Energy efficiency upgrades to buildings to date through avenues such as utility incentive programs have been largely limited to component-based products (e.g., lamps, RTUs). While some utilities do provide ‘custom’ incentive programs with whole building and system level technical assistance, these programs require deeper levels of analysis, resulting in higher program costs. This results in custom programs being restricted to utilities with greater resources, and are typically applied mainly to large or energy-intensive facilities, leaving much of the market without cost effective access and incentives for these solutions. In addition, with increasingly stringent energy codes, cost effective component-based solutions that achieve significant savings are dwindling. Integrated building systems (e.g., integrated façade, HVAC and/or lighting solutions) can deliver higher savings (Regnier et al. 2017) that translate into large sector-wide savings if deployed at the scale of these programs. However, systems application poses a number of challenges – energy savings assessments are inherently more complex and are not easily suited to the deemed measure model, and implementation of systems can be more disruptive. This paper presents the outcomes of a project to develop validated utility incentive program packages for three specific integrated building systems, in collaboration with ComEd, a consortium of California Public Owned Utilities (CA POUs) (Northern California Power Agency(NCPA) and the Southern California Public Power Authority(SCPPA)), and Xcel Energy (CO, MN). Previous work described the potential for energy savings of these systems at the individual and market level, early test findings for the task-ambient lighting system, and described the work products to develop utility incentive programs (Regnier et al. 2016). This paper presents validated end use energy savings of all three systems showing energy savings of ~20% for automated shading combined with daylight dimming (does not include light fixture retrofit savings); 30-46% for task-ambient lighting systems combined with plug load occupancy controls, depending on technology package and office building size (no daylight dimming impacts); and ~94% in the south-façade daylit zone for workstation specific lighting systems with daylight dimming (including lighting retrofit and task tuning). Using a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) reference building model (DOE 2018), this translates to whole building savings of 2-5% (large-medium commercial), 12-23% (large-small commercial), and 13-15% (medium-large commercial) for these systems respectively. Early findings from the utilities in deploying these systems through their incentive programs indicate that deployment methods such as direct install programs might be best suited for these integrated systems. Further, early findings from a scoping study across custom utility programs and federal retrofit programs indicate that component level retrofits are still prevalent even in these programs, pointing towards an opportunity for deeper energy savings deployment. High performance retrofit case studies demonstrate that deeper energy savings is possible through integrated approaches. Market stakeholder interviews indicate however that there is generally a low level of awareness of the potential for energy savings of these three integrated systems.
32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
Analysis and Planning Framework for Nuclear Plant Transformation
Commercial nuclear power in the United States has been an unqualified success by any measure, providing low cost, carbon-free, and safe baseload electricity for decades. The industry today is at the peak of its historical performance in terms of generation output, reliable operations, and demonstrated nuclear safety. However, it is no longer among the lowest-cost electric generation sources with the emergence of subsidized renewables and shale gas generation. The business model that has served the operating nuclear fleet so well over its life is now a drag on cost performance due to its reliance on a large highly skilled labor force. In contrast, digital technology and innovation are enabling dramatic efficiencies in energy production, resulting in fierce competition for a commodity such as electricity. The nuclear power industry has responded to this challenge with many initiatives to improve efficiency and modernize plant equipment, especially where reliability and obsolescence issues are pressing. However, it would be a missed opportunity to merely modernize the plant components and the work processes of an outdated business model that was formulated to manage the technology of the 1960s. Rather, the greater opportunity is to transform that business model to one that fully exploits the capabilities of modern digital technology, resulting in substantially lower production costs and sustainable market viability. One successful example of such transformation is the concept of Integrated Operations, which was introduced into the North Sea oil and gas industry a couple of decades ago when the profitability of operating these fields was severely threatened by low world petroleum prices and the high overhead of operating the offshore oil and gas platforms. This effort resulted in significant changes to how these oil fields were operated and allowed the industry to continue profitable operation of these platforms. This example has some remarkable parallels to the U.S. commercial nuclear industry as described in the next section. This report provides an analysis and planning framework for such a nuclear plant operating model transformation based on the transferable learnings from the North Sea transformation. This framework is termed Integrated Operations for Nuclear or ION. This report describes the key principles and methods of Integrated Operations and how they are being applied in a collaboration between the DOE Light Water Reactor Sustainability Program and Xcel Energy in an initiative to transform its operating model for performance improvement and long-term sustainability. It describes a method to bring the operating costs of a nuclear fleet in line with market-based pricing, transforming work functions to reduce cost with technology innovations. This initiative will continue over the next several years in the detailed development of transformative concepts for nuclear plants, which will be published as follow-up to this initial report on Integrated Operations for Nuclear.
21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗
Digitalization Guiding Principles and Method for Nuclear Industry Work Processes
The commercial U.S. light-water reactor fleet has been operating at historical efficiency, reliability, and safety over the last decade. Nuclear power has the highest capacity factor of any other power generation technology while also serving as the largest baseload source for carbon-free energy. Despite this remarkable achievement, continued operations for many plants are threatened due to fierce electricity market competition and rising operations and maintenance costs of which continued maintenance of obsolete analog equipment is a contributor. The digital age and associated technologies are where the future lies in process control, and nuclear has yet to take full advantage of the capabilities offered therein. The Light Water Reactor Sustainability Program (LWRS) at Idaho National Laboratory (INL), sponsored by the Department of Energy, has a mission to help the light-water reactor fleet manage its foundational capabilities to continue providing safe and reliable carbon-free power. LWRS helps support that mission by providing scientific, technology-based solutions for advanced concepts of operations with a more viable business model that will allow the fleet to continue to operate at peak levels through extended plant operation. The LWRS Digitalization Project at INL seeks to leverage digital technologies to synthesize and transform work processes. We provide a state-of-the-art analysis of digitalized work processes in nuclear power and investigate ways in which researchers at INL and the nuclear industry can work together to identify what data to access, how to access it, what to do with the data, and most importantly, how to use the insights for decision-making across all levels within the business. Borne from these considerations, we present four guiding principles for digitalization: develop a coherent digitalization plan, apply human factors engineering, establish data governance, and anticipate unintended consequences. Together, these principles form a method that plants can use to effectively to digitalize nuclear industry work processes. Our guiding principles are informed by multiple knowledge sources. First, we document activities from the Work Digitalization Initiative, which was conceived as a means for nuclear organizations to help define and standardize the industry’s approach to digitalizing work. Second, we detail primary research conducted with industry professionals regarding drivers and barriers to digitalization adoption. We present survey results that demonstrate what the industry hopes to get out of digitalization and the ways that INL can continue to support the industry’s digital transformation. Third, we present a digitalization use case with industry partners NextAxiom Technology and Xcel Energy. The project objective was to transform the current condition report work process from paper to digital, incorporating digitalized principles. We report the development of the application and lessons learned. The accomplishments achieved by this research and development serve to identify critical needs for plant guidance in support of digitalization implementation and contribute to the knowledge and strategies available for utilities considering or undertaking digitalization.
21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗
EVALUATION OF SOLID SORBENTS AS A RETROFIT TECHNOLOGY FOR CO2 CAPTURE FROM COAL-FIRED POWER PLANTS
Through a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) funded cooperative agreement DE-NT0005649, ADA Environmental Solutions (ADA) has begun evaluating the use of solid sorbents for CO{sub 2} capture. The project objective was to address the viability and accelerate development of a solid-based CO{sub 2} capture technology. To meet this objective, initial evaluations of sorbents and the process/equipment were completed. First the sorbents were evaluated using a temperature swing adsorption process at the laboratory scale in a fixed-bed apparatus. A slipstream reactor designed to treat flue gas produced by coal-fired generation of nominally 1 kWe was designed and constructed, which was used to evaluate the most promising materials on a more meaningful scale using actual flue gas. In a concurrent effort, commercial-scale processes and equipment options were also evaluated for their applicability to sorbent-based CO{sub 2} capture. A cost analysis was completed that can be used to direct future technology development efforts. ADA completed an extensive sorbent screening program funded primarily through this project, DOE NETL cooperative agreement DE-NT0005649, with support from the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) and other industry participants. Laboratory screening tests were completed on simulated and actual flue gas using simulated flue gas and an automated fixed bed system. The following types and quantities of sorbents were evaluated: 87 supported amines; 31 carbon based materials; 6 zeolites; 7 supported carbonates (evaluated under separate funding); and 10 hydrotalcites. Sorbent evaluations were conducted to characterize materials and down-select promising candidates for further testing at the slipstream scale. More than half of the materials evaluated during this program were supported amines. Based on the laboratory screening four supported amine sorbents were selected for evaluation at the 1 kW scale at two different field sites. ADA designed and fabricated a slipstream pilot to allow an evaluation of the kinetic behavior of sorbents and provide some flexibility for the physical characteristics of the materials. The design incorporated a transport reactor for the adsorber (co-current reactor) and a fluidized-bed in the regenerator. This combination achieved the sorbent characterization goals and provided an opportunity to evaluate whether the potential cost savings associated with a relatively simple process design could overcome the sacrifices inherent in a co-current separation process. The system was installed at two field sites during the project, Luminant's Martin Lake Steam Electric Station and Xcel Energy's Sherburne County Generating Station (Sherco). Although the system could not maintain continuous 90% CO{sub 2} removal with the sorbents evaluated under this program, it was useful to compare the CO{sub 2} removal properties of several different sorbents on actual flue gas. One of the supported amine materials, sorbent R, was evaluated at both Martin Lake and Sherco. The 1 kWe pilot was operated in continuous mode as well as batch mode. In continuous mode, the sorbent performance could not overcome the limitations of the cocurrent adsorbent design. In batch mode, sorbent R was able to remove up to 90% CO{sub 2} for several cycles. Approximately 50% of the total removal occurred in the first three feet of the adsorption reactor, which was a transport reactor. During continuous testing at Sherco, CO{sub 2} removal decreased to approximately 20% at steady state. The lack of continuous removal was due primarily to the combination of a co-current adsorption system with a fluidized bed for regeneration, a combination which did not provide an adequate driving force to maintain an acceptable working CO{sub 2} capacity. In addition, because sorbent R consisted of a polymeric amine coated on a silica substrate, it was believed that the 50% amine loaded resulted in mass diffusion limitations related to the CO{sub 2} uptake rate. Three additional supported amine materials, sorbents AX, F, and BN, were selected for evaluation using the 1 kW pilot at Sherco. Sorbent AX was operated in batch mode and performed similarly to sorbent R (i.e. could achieve up to 90% removal when given adequate regeneration time). Sorbent BN was not expected to be subject to the same mass diffusion limitations as experienced with sorbent R. When sorbent BN was used in continuous mode the steady state CO{sub 2} removal was approximately double that of sorbent R, which highlighted the importance of sorbents without kinetic limitations.
01 COAL, LIGNITE, AND PEAT↗
Solar Technology Acceleration Center (SolarTAC): Cooperative Research and Development Final Report, CRADA Number CRD-07-259
This agreement allowed NREL to serve as an advisor on SolarTAC - a collaborative effort between Xcel Energy, NREL, and the University of Colorado at Boulder. The collaboration was formed to accelerate pre-commercial and early commercial solar energy technologies to the marketplace. Through this CRADA, NREL participated in the deployment of solar energy generation technologies and related solarequipment for research, testing, validation, and demonstration purposes.
14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
Electric Vehicle Grid Interaction Exploration: Cooperative Research and Development Final Report, CRADA Number CRD-11-431
Under this agreement NREL plans to collect, analyze, and share with Xcel Energy data regarding the driving and charging performance of plug-in electric vehicles. NREL will research activities critical to energy storage, electric propulsion, and the emerging issues surrounding the integration of vehicles into the current and future grid. It will provide NREL with access to one of the firstall-electric vehicles available in the market as part of NREL's Advanced Technology Vehicle Fleet (ATVF).
25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
Model Improvement for ADMS Deployment
The objective of this research is to evaluate the performance of the advanced distribution management system (ADMS) Volt/VAR Optimization (VVO) application for different levels of model quality and different levels of measurement density -- using 4 different load days VVO optimized for conservative voltage regulation (CVR) and six feeders from Xcel Energy.
24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗
Prairie Island Nuclear Station Spent Filter Processing for Direct Disposal - 12333
This paper will discuss WMG's filter processing experience within the commercial nuclear power industry, specifically recent experience processing high activity spent filters generated by Xcel Energy's Prairie Island Nuclear Station (Prairie Island), located in Welch, MN. WMG processed for disposal eighty-four 55-gallon drums filled with varying types of high activity spent filters. The scope of work involved characterization, packaging plan development, transport to the WMG's Off-Site Processing location, shredding the filter contents of each drum, cement solidifying the shredded filter material, and finally shipping the solidified container of shredded filter material to Clive, Utah where the container was presented to EnergySolutions Disposal site for disposal in their Containerised Waste Facility. This sequence of events presented in this paper took place a total of nine (9) times over a period of four weeks. All 1294 filters were successfully solidified into nine (9) -WMG 142 steel liners, and each was successfully disposed of as Class A Waste at EnergySolutions Disposal Site in Clive, Utah. Prairie Island's waste material was unique in that all its filters were packaged in 55-gallon drums; and since the station packaged its filters in drums it was much easier to develop packaging plans for such a large volume of legacy filters. For this author, having over 20-years of waste management experiences, storing and shipping waste material in 55-gallon drums is not immediately thought of as a highly efficient method of managing its waste material. However, Prairie Island's use of 55-gallon drums to store and package its filters provided a significant advantage. Drums could be mixed and matched to provide the most efficient processing method while still meeting the Waste Class A limits required for disposal. (author)
12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
Colorado Residential Resiliency and Managed Charging
Validate and model impacts of electric vehicle (EV) home charging on service transformers; analyze diverse grid locations and configurations to determine 'risk factors'; finalize/deliver new design tools and typical EV load curves; improve/issue new construction standards for transformers, secondaries, and services. To ensure residential charging equity, smart charge management strategies will be studied and analyzed with the goal of creating affordable demand charges for customers.
33 ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗
Clean Energy Cybersecurity Accelerator Cohort 1: Authentication and Authorization
In the 2023 National Cybersecurity Strategy, the Biden-Harris Administration defines the need for a "defensible, resilient digital ecosystem where it is costlier to attack systems than defend them." The strategy cites the Clean Energy Cybersecurity Accelerator (CECA) as an exemplary effort to bolster the security and resilience of clean energy generation. These efforts help "secure the clean energy grid of the future and [generate] security best practices that extend to other critical infrastructure sectors" and promise broad and far-reaching impacts to bridge the capabilities of private industry and the needs of energy production. Cohort 1 of CECA launched in the fall of 2022 with a focus on solutions that provide strong authentication and authorization for industrial control systems to mitigate attacks on the energy grid. Authentication and authorization verify that the identity (authentication) and permissions (authorization) of a user or device are aligned with their assigned roles. Weaknesses in either can have serious repercussions. To assess the strength of Cohort 1's solutions, CECA devised threat scenarios grounded in historical precedents: the CECA team reviewed exploits from real-world case studies of state-sponsored actors to match the assessment's attack paths and targets. Cohort 1 results provided the energy industry, product vendors, and related agencies valuable insights into the efficacy and applicability of solutions in common system configurations under realistic threat scenarios. The results of the assessment highlight points for interrogation and improvement in subsequent technology iterations. CECA's evaluations are part of an ongoing conversation and collaboration to bolster U.S. cyber resilience against adversaries today and in the future.
24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗
UWIG Forecasting Workshop -- Albany (Presentation)
This presentation describes the importance of good forecasting for variable generation, the different approaches used by industry, and the importance of validated high-quality data.
17 WIND ENERGY↗
Wind 2H2 Project: CRADA Final Report (Project 2)
The Xcel-NLR Wind Electrolysis R&D Project is designed to gain knowledge and insight about producing hydrogen from electricity for use as a vehicle fuel and as a "stored wind". The project will analyze producing hydrogen directly from wind as well as from the electric grid. In addition, it will look at storing hydrogen and then using it to put electricity back onto the grid.
17 WIND ENERGY↗
Wind 2H2 Project (CRADA Final Report)
The Xcel-NREL Wind Electrolysis R&D Project is designed to gain knowledge and insight about producing hydrogen from electricity for use as a vehicle fuel and as a “stored wind”. The project will analyze producing hydrogen directly from wind as well as from the electric grid. In addition, it will look at storing hydrogen and then using it to put electricity back onto the grid. Modifications were made to the original scope to also include electric vehicles integration with the electric grid. This report addresses Task 8 portion of the CRADA, focused on testing and measuring the attributes of plug-in electric vehicles.
33 ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗
2015 Summary Report on Industrial and Regulatory Engagement Activities
The Advanced Instrumentation, Information, and Control (II&C) Systems Technologies pathway of the Light Water Reactor Sustainability(LWRS) Program conducts a vigorous engagement strategy with the U.S. nuclear power industry, including the nuclear operating companies, major support organizations, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), and suppliers. The goal of this engagement strategy is to develop a shared vision and common understanding across the nuclear industry of the need for II&C modernization, the performance improvement that can be obtained, and the opportunities for collaboration to enact this vision. The primary means of engaging the nuclear operating companies is through a Utility Working Group (UWG), composed of utility representatives that participate in formal meetings and bi-monthly phone calls to provide input on nuclear plant needs and priorities for II&C technologies. Two working groups were initiated during FY 2015 to provide a means for UWG members to focus on particular technologies of interest. The Outage Improvement Working Group consists of eight utilities that participate in periodic conference calls and have access to a share-point web page for acccess to project materials developed in the Advanced Outage Control Center pilot project. In the area of computer-based procedures and automated work packages, the II&C Pathway has worked with the Nuclear Information Technology Strategic Leadership (NITSL) to set up a monthly conference call with interested utility members to discuss various aspects of mobile worker technologies. Twenty one technical and project reports were delivered to the UWG during FY 2015, reflecting the work of the II&C Pathway pilot projects during the year. Distribution of these reports is one of the primary means of transferring to the nuclear industry the knowledge and experience gained during the development of advanced II&C technologies in support of LWR sustainability. Site visits to discuss pilot project activities and future plans were made to Arizona Public Service, Exelon, Duke Energy, Pacific Gas & Electric, SCANA, Southern Nuclear, South Texas Project, STARS Alliance, Tennessee Valley Authority, and Xcel. Discussions were also held on the pathway goals and activities with major industry support organizations during FY 2102, including the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations (INPO), the Nuclear Information Technology Strategic Leadership (NITSL), the Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI), and the Electric Power Research Institute. The Advanced II&C Pathway work was presented at five major industry conferences and Informal discussions were held with key NRC managers at industry conferences. In addition, discussions were held with NRC senior managers on digital regulatory issues through participation on the NEI Digital I&C Working Group. Meetings were held with major industry suppliers and consultants, to explore opportunities for collaboration and to provide a means of pilot project technology transfer. In the international area, discussions were held with Electricite’ de France (EdF) concerning possible collaboration in the area NPP configuration control using intelligent wireless devices.
29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗