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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
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1991

Designing for cost

Parametric cost analysis is presently defined as the generation and application of equations to cost analysis; equations defining cost as a function of system-design parameters, performance parameters, or engineering process parameters, constitute a valuable tool for design-to-cost efforts. Cost sensitivity is expressed through the partial derivatives of these functions, furnishing insight into the magnitude and direction of cost change for given parameter changes. The robust design method thus obtained is a systematic and efficient approach for determining the near-optimum set of design parameters for cost, which highlights important factors affecting operation and performance as well as cost.

Dean, Edwin B.↗
DOE OSTI2025

A quality-agnostic combinatoric cost estimation model for large-format directed energy deposition metal additive manufacturing

Directed energy deposition (DED) additive manufacturing (AM) processes are amenable to synergistic combination into multi-process AM systems due to similar requirements for automation and energy sources. This work analyzes the economic performance of such DED AM systems from a quality-agnostic combinatoric standpoint with a model that calculates lowest-cost system combinations based on part geometry and process performance metrics. Common DED AM systems research focuses on a single process and does not consider the process, system, and application in the context of all possible system combinations (e.g., the combined set of process selection(s), motion system(s), and process hardware), leading to limited applicability of the resulting DED AM systems to cost-sensitive components such as those found in energy generation applications. The model developed herein incorporates the capital, material, and energy costs associated with DED AM system combinations into a predictive tool for estimating part and system cost, the output of which is intended to guide deployment of finite research and development resources towards DED AM system combinations with the lowest costs and greatest likelihood of economic impact. The DED AM systems identified by this framework may enable domestic production of the large conventionally cast and forged components necessary for energy generation.

Shanafield, Alexandra [ORNL]↗
NASA NTRS1976

Design study of wind turbines 50 kW to 3000 kW for electric utility applications. Volume 1: Summary report

Wind turbine configurations that would lead to generation of electrical power in a cost effective manner were considered. All possible overall system configurationss, operating modes, and sybsystem concepts were evaluated for both technical feasibility and compatibility with utility networks, as well as for economic attractiveness. A design optimization computer code was developed to determine the cost sensitivity of the various design features, and thus establish the configuration and design conditions that would minimize the generated energy costs. The preliminary designs of both a 500 kW unit and a 1500 kW unit operating in a 12 mph and 18 mph median wind speed respectively, were developed. The rationale employed and the key findings are summarized.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS1976

Design study of wind turbines 50 kW to 3000 kW for electric utility applications. Volume 2: Analysis and design

All possible overall system configurations, operating modes, and subsystem concepts for a wind turbine configuration for cost effective generation of electrical power were evaluated for both technical feasibility and compatibility with utility networks, as well as for economic attractiveness. A design optimization computer code was developed to determine the cost sensitivity of the various design features, and thus establish the configuration and design conditions that would minimize the generated energy costs. The preliminary designs of both a 500 kW unit and a 1500 kW unit operating in a 12 mph and 18 mph median wind speed respectively, were developed. The various design features and components evaluated are described, and the rationale employed to select the final design configuration is given. All pertinent technical performance data and component cost data is included. The costs of all major subassemblies are estimated and the resultant energy costs for both the 500 kW and 1500 kW units are calculated.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS1982

ID wafering technology

Improvements in ID saws leading to lower costs for producing silicon wafers for solar cells are described. The relationships between crystal size and blade size and between the length of time it takes to slice a wafer and wafer thickness are discussed. The influence of ingot production methods on wafering performance is considered. A cost sensitivity analysis of slicing a 10 cm square ingot and economic analyses of slicing a four inch and a six inch ingot are presented. A wafering cost model based on the IPEG 2 is given.

Aharonyan, P.↗
NASA NTRS1971

Computer simulation of the thermal environment of large-scale integrated circuits - Computer time-saving techniques.

This paper is concerned with the computer costs for both the steady-state and transient thermal responses of large-scale integrated circuits (LSI) when metal is present within the substrate. For the more cost-sensitive transient case, an extrapolation technique for computer time savings is compared with the accuracy loss in this study. This approach could be useful for design-cost planning.

Thompson, R. R.↗
NASA NTRS1991

An activity-based methodology for operations cost analysis

This report describes an activity-based cost estimation method, proposed for the Space Exploration Initiative (SEI), as an alternative to NASA's traditional mass-based cost estimation method. A case study demonstrates how the activity-based cost estimation technique can be used to identify the operations that have a significant impact on costs over the life cycle of the SEI. The case study yielded an operations cost of $101 billion for the 20-year span of the lunar surface operations for the Option 5a program architecture. In addition, the results indicated that the support and training costs for the missions were the greatest contributors to the annual cost estimates. A cost-sensitivity analysis of the cultural and architectural drivers determined that the length of training and the amount of support associated with the ground support personnel for mission activities are the most significant cost contributors.

Korsmeyer, David↗
DOE OSTI2026

Technoeconomic Design Optimization for Fast Reactors. Part II: Impact of Technoeconomic Constraints on Optimal Design

There is a current drive toward optimizing reactors, particularly small/micro reactors to minimize cost and maximize performance. Previous work has investigated the development of technoeconomic workflows for the design optimization of pool-type fast reactors that aim to deploy into district energy grids. Initial scoping studies verified that the workflow was capable of capturing design trends throughout a variety of design configurations and problem formulations while remaining sufficiently flexible. In this paper, this methodology is applied to understand how cost functions and technoeconomic constraints can drive optimal reactor design. Specifically, the UPu10Zr-fueled fast reactor model from Part I is adapted to include changes in the fissile content limits, control rod worth limits, control rod drive cost, and assumed fuel form. In the case of constraint relaxation at fixed power (fissile content and control rod worth limits), cost sensitivities of 5% to 10% were uncovered. Multi-objective optimization at varying reactor power levels with individualized control rod drives for each assembly (as opposed to one operational and one safety drive) increased cost by $\$10$ to $\$25$ million and substantially altered the optimal core geometry, favoring geometries with substantially fewer control rod placements relative to baseline optimization. Finally, a multi-objective optimization was performed at varying power levels with the fuel form overhauled to metallic, high-assay low-enriched uranium–based U10Zr with more refined fuel cost models. In the case of uranium fueling, the costs increased by at least $50 million relative to the baseline case. Furthermore, economic fuel zoning and lower reactivity swing cores were recovered. Each case serves to demonstrate the value of applying technoeconomic workflows to initial reactor design scoping studies to better understand the trade-off for a proposed concept between different design options.

Argonne Reactor Computation (ARC) codes↗
NASA NTRS1977

An information matrix approach for aircraft parameter-insensitive control

The Fisher Information Matrix provides the nucleus of a design procedure for obtaining parameter-insensitive feedback gains in Linear-Quadratic-Gaussian problems. The procedure minimizes a sum of performance and closed-loop sensitivity costs, the latter being related to the information content of the system response. Analytical expressions for the appended cost functional and its gradient with respect to the feedback gains are derived. These derivatives serve as the basis of a computationally efficient iterative algorithm that finds the optimal gains. Application of the technique is made to determine low sensitivity feedback gains for a C-5A wing loading alleviation system that has 15 states and three uncertain parameters.

Kleinman, D. L.↗
NASA NTRS1975

Simulation of on-orbit maintenance cycle for LST

A maintenance simulation model of the Large Space Telescope has been developed to assess the operational cost sensitivity to system configuration options. The model lends itself to equipment-level selections for various subsystem alternatives. Maintenance decisions include considerations for LST spacecraft on-orbit service or retrieval. Tradeoffs are identified in terms of on-orbit maintenance for specific design concepts, with Space Shuttle revisit costs balanced against retrieval and ground-facility operations. Simulation output is in the form of computer plots of cost, availability, time to first maintenance, and a cost-effective Shuttle revisit frequency.

Donnelly, J. A.↗
DOE OSTI2026

A Unified Scaling Framework for Comparative Analysis of Major Electrical Machine Topologies

This paper presents a unified framework for comparing major electrical machine topologies under identical output and thermal constraints, with emphasis on supply-chain-aware selection among rare-earth-intensive, reduced-rare-earth, and rare-earth-free solutions. Using power factor and air-gap flux density as the principal descriptors, the framework links topology choice to relative size, copper demand, magnet dependence, cost sensitivity, and inertia. To support robust early-stage screening, the deterministic scaling model is combined with uncertainty representation, Monte Carlo scenario propagation, and hesitationaware ranking. The results show that rare-earth-rich machines remain compact and dense, whereas reduced-rare-earth and rare-earth-free alternatives become more attractive under specific material-risk and cost scenarios.

Kumar, Praveen [ORNL] (ORCID:0000000291877857)↗
NASA NTRS2026

Spacecraft Disposal Rosetta Stone: Parametric Tool for Orbital Lifetime, Disposal, and Cost Assessment

This Technical Memorandum documents a simplified, parametric method for evaluating spacecraft orbital lifetime, disposal compliance, and disposal-related cost impacts during early mission formulation and preliminary design. The method captures the dominant drivers of orbital decay—effective ballistic coefficient, operating altitude, and solar-cycle variability—using conservative bounding assumptions. Solar maximum conditions are used to bound achievable mission lifetime, while solar minimum conditions are used to bound disposal timelines and compliance with orbital debris requirements. A single tabulated dataset provides orbital lifetime under both solar-cycle extremes together with representative disposal ΔV required to ensure compliant disposal, enabling rapid assessment of disposal feasibility, cost sensitivity, and system-level impacts prior to committing to higher-fidelity analyses.

Orbital debris mitigation↗
NASA NTRS1980

New technologies for solar energy silicon - Cost analysis of BCL process

New technologies for producing polysilicon are being developed to provide lower cost material for solar cells which convert sunlight into electricity. This article presents results for the BCL Process, which produces the solar-cell silicon by reduction of silicon tetrachloride with zinc vapor. Cost, sensitivity, and profitability analysis results are presented based on a preliminary process design of a plant to produce 1000 metric tons/year of silicon by the BCL Process. Profitability analysis indicates a sales price of $12.1-19.4 per kg of silicon (1980 dollars) at a 0-25 per cent DCF rate of return on investment after taxes. These results indicate good potential for meeting the goal of providing lower cost material for silicon solar cells.

Yaws, C. L.↗
DOE OSTI2026

A unifying equation for fermentation sustainability across the titer-rate-yield landscape

Industrial fermentation is central to the sustainable production of fuels and chemicals, yet commercial viability of emerging technologies hinges on improving fermentation titer, rate, and yield (TRY). How these metrics shape system cost remains difficult to generalize due to complex interactions among feedstocks, fermentation, separations, catalytic upgrading, waste management, and facility design. Here, we systematically map theoretical fermentation performance spaces (formed by all potential TRY combinations) for 32 representative biomanufacturing facilities—spanning distinct choices for feedstocks, fermentation regimes and products, separations, and catalytic upgrading—by simulating and evaluating them (via techno-economic analysis, TEA) under uncertainty (600,000 Monte Carlo simulations) and across TRY combinations (7500 TRY combinations for each of 32 configurations). Across this wide design and thermodynamic simulation space, we find the relationship between fermentation TRY and system cost is captured by a simple, generalizable mathematical equation (R 2 of 0.992 − 1.000 across our simulations; 0.954 − 1.000 when validated against prior studies that used different tools). We use this equation to elucidate key drivers that shape cost sensitivity to fermentation performance, generating widely applicable insights. By demonstrating a unifying relationship governs the impact of fermentation on biomanufacturing economics, this work establishes a foundation for agile, holistically predictive, resource-efficient strategies to prioritize fermentation research and development needs and accelerate commercialization of emerging biomanufacturing technologies.

applied mathematics↗
DOE OSTI2026

Deep Gaussian process-based cost-aware batch Bayesian optimization for complex materials design campaigns

The accelerating pace and expanding scope of materials discovery demand optimization frameworks that efficiently navigate vast design spaces with complex response surfaces while judiciously allocating limited evaluation resources. We present a cost-aware, batch Bayesian optimization scheme powered by deep Gaussian process (DGP) surrogates and a heterotopic querying strategy. Our DGP surrogate, formed by stacking GP layers, models complex hierarchical relationships among high-dimensional compositional features and captures correlations across multiple target properties, propagating uncertainty through successive layers. We integrate evaluation cost into an upper-confidence-bound acquisition extension, which, together with heterotopic querying, proposes small batches of candidates in parallel, balancing exploration of under-characterized regions with exploitation of high-mean, low-variance predictions across correlated properties. Applied to refractory high-entropy alloys for high-temperature applications, our framework converges to optimal formulations in fewer iterations with cost-aware queries than conventional GP-based BO, highlighting the value of deep, uncertainty-aware, cost-sensitive strategies in materials campaigns.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2024

Cooled Gas Turbine and Combined Cycle Analysis for NH 3 -CH 4 Fuel Mixes (Up to 100% NH 3 )

In this study, a cooled gas turbine (GT) analysis was conducted for varying levels of ammonia (NH 3 ) blends with methane. The ultimate goal is to have a gas turbine design that can be used for all the fuel blends (including 100% NH 3 ) without any changes to the system. The technological developments in the cooling system, gas turbine design, and materials that will be required for NH 3 combustion were identified and analyzed in this study to develop an advanced gas turbine design for NH 3 fuels. The study includes a combined cycle performance analysis with the NH 3 fuel blends using the advanced gas turbine design developed in this study. A techno-economic analysis was conducted for analyzing the impact of the NH 3 fuels on the levelized cost of electricity and cost sensitivities to fuel price and capacity factor.

20 FOSSIL-FUELED POWER PLANTS↗
NASA NTRS1974

An application of queueing theory to the design of channel requirements for special purpose communications satellites

Special purpose satellites are very cost sensitive to the number of broadcast channels, usually will have Poisson arrivals, fairly low utilization (less than 35%), and a very high availability requirement. To solve the problem of determining the effects of limiting C the number of channels, the Poisson arrival, infinite server queueing model will be modified to describe the many server case. The model is predicated on the reproductive property of the Poisson distribution.

Hein, G. F.↗