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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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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2025

Characterizing the surface compositions of supported bimetallic PtSn clusters: Effects of cluster-support interactions and surface adsorbates

PtSn bimetallic clusters on TiO2(110) and highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) surfaces have been characterized by scanning tunneling microscopy, low energy ion scattering (LEIS), Xray photoelectron spectroscopy, and temperature programmed desorption (TPD); density functional theory (DFT) calculations have also been performed to better understand adsorption of CO and D2 on the PtSn surfaces. On TiO2 at coverages of 2 ML of Pt and 2 ML of Sn, exclusively bimetallic clusters are formed for both orders of deposition because clusters of the first metal completely cover the surface such that all atoms of the second metal are incorporated into the existing clusters. In contrast, on HOPG, the high mobility and weak cluster-support interactions on HOPG result in much larger 2 ML monometallic clusters (~30 Å high) that do not completely cover the surface, and deposition of the second metal produces larger clusters as well as smaller ones. Despite the difference in cluster morphologies for the different orders of deposition and supports, the LEIS experiments demonstrate that in all cases, the PtSn clusters are rich in Sn at the surface, as expected based on the lower surface free energy for Sn compared to Pt. Furthermore, the +0.2 eV shift in the Sn(3d5/2) binding energy observed on all surfaces in the presence of Pt is consistent with PtSn alloy formation. Deposition of 2 ML of Sn on TiO2 produces two-dimensional clusters with oxidation of Sn and reduction of titania at the clustersupport interface, but addition of Pt to the Sn clusters causes Sn to diffuse away from this interface, leaving Sn in the metallic state. TPD experiments on 2 ML Pt/TiO2 with increasing coverages of Sn show that the number of adsorption sites for D2 sharply decreases to nearly zero at 0.5 ML, while CO adsorption decreases to zero only at much higher Sn coverages of 2 ML. DFT studies for Sn modified Pt surfaces and bulk structures demonstrate that for CO adsorption at low Sn coverages (<0.25 ML), the strong Pt-CO interactions induce diffusion of Pt to the cluster surface and the formation of a bulk Pt3Sn alloy, whereas D2 adsorption does not lead to interactions with the Pt surface that are strong enough to induce alloy formation. A single Sn adatom prevents D2 adsorption on four neighboring Pt atoms via site-blocking and the donation of electron density to Pt.

Li, Fangliang↗
DOE OSTI2022

Effect of Support on Oxygen Reduction Reaction Activity of Supported Iron Porphyrins

In this work, we report the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) activity in acid of an Fe porphyrin on different supports. While the activity is high (E 1/2 = 0.34 V vs RHE with n = 3.8) when the Fe porphyrin is adsorbed on XC72 (a graphitic carbon), this activity is much lower when the porphyrin is adsorbed on either MoS 2 (E 1/2 = -0.15 V vs RHE with n = 2.2) or g-C 3 N 4 (E 1/2 = -0.24 V vs RHE with n = 3.1). Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR), X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS), and magnetometry measurements show the electronic structure around the Fe center is the same for all three supports. Only the Fe porphyrin supported on XC72 exhibits a pH dependence in its ORR activity. This observation, coupled with the increased hydrophilicity of XC72 relative to the other supports, suggests that the support-electrolyte interaction controls the ORR activity. Modification of MoS 2 to increase its hydrophilicity results in a more active ORR catalyst.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2024

A Model-Based Systems Engineering Approach for Effective Decision Support of Modern Energy Systems Depicted with Clean Hydrogen Production

A holistic approach to decision-making in modern energy systems is vital due to their increase in complexity and interconnectedness. However, decision makers often rely on narrowly-focused strategies, such as economic assessments, for energy system strategy selection. The approach in this paper helps considers various factors such as economic viability, technological feasibility, environmental impact, and social acceptance. By integrating these diverse elements, decision makers can identify more economically feasible, sustainable, and resilient energy strategies. While existing focused approaches are valuable since they provide clear metrics of a potential solution (e.g., an economic measure of profitability), they do not offer the much needed system-as-a-whole understanding. This lack of understanding often leads to selecting suboptimal or unfeasible solutions, which is often discovered much later in the process when a change may not be possible. This paper presents a novel evaluation framework to support holistic decision-making in energy systems. The framework is based on a systems thinking approach, applied through systems engineering principles and model-based systems engineering tools, coupled with a multicriteria decision analysis approach. The systems engineering approach guides the development of feasible solutions for novel energy systems, and the multicriteria decision analysis is used for a systematic evaluation of available strategies and objective selection of the best solution. The proposed framework enables holistic, multidisciplinary, and objective evaluations of solutions and strategies for energy systems, clearly demonstrates the pros and cons of available options, and supports knowledge collection and retention to be used for a different scenario or context. The framework is demonstrated in case study evaluation solutions for a novel energy system of clean hydrogen generation.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2025

Empirical Assessment of Interregional Coordination to Support Resource Adequacy [Slides]

This study examines where interregional transmission could most effectively support resource adequacy in the contiguous United States. We use hourly load, renewable generation, and real-time price data from 2016–2023 for 18 planning subregions to identify periods of elevated adequacy risk, defined as the top 100 annual hours of net load and wholesale prices in each region. We then measure the temporal coincidence of these peak periods between adjacent regions and compare price patterns to assess the potential for capacity sharing. Results show that NorthernGrid West, a winter-peaking region, has low coincidence of peak net load with its summer-peaking neighbors, indicating high potential for interregional support. In contrast, regions in the Northeast have highly coincident peak periods, suggesting limited adequacy benefits from additional transmission. Price-based analysis shows peak-hour differences in the Midwest and between ERCOT and neighboring regions, indicating potential economic benefits from increased transfers. The findings provide an empirical screening of where transmission may offer the greatest reliability benefits without adding new generation capacity.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗
DOE OSTI2020

Bulk vs Intrinsic Activity of NiFeO x Electrocatalysts in the Oxygen Evolution Reaction: The Influence of Catalyst Loading, Morphology, and Support Material

We used a combination of ultrahigh vacuum surface science techniques, X-ray spectroscopy, electrochemistry, and density functional theory (DFT), to characterize the influence of catalyst morphology, loading/coverage, and substrate material on the bulk (all atoms) and intrinsic (electrochemically accessible atoms) activity of NiFeO x electrocatalysts in the oxygen evolution reaction (OER). NiFeO x catalysts were grown on both Au(111) and highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) electrodes. DFT predicted Fe edge-site atoms at the NiFeO x /Au(111) interface to be the most thermodynamically favorable reaction center, and X-ray absorption spectroscopy data indicated small NiFeO x catalyst particles on Au(111) contained a high population of OER active Fe edge-site atoms. However, restructuring of the Au(111) surface due to repeated oxidation and reduction cycles of the OER CV measurements encapsulated small NiFeO x nanoparticles at catalyst loadings below ~1.5 nmol metal /cm 2 , passivated catalyst edges and reduced bulk OER activity of Au-supported NiFeO x compared with HOPG-supported ones. Analysis of intrinsic activity revealed that the Au(111) support strongly benefited electrochemically accessible NiFeO x atoms, and we observed a 2–3 fold activity enhancement compared with HOPG-supported catalysts for loadings above ~1 nmol metal /cm 2 . Overall, evaluating bulk vs intrinsic activity and identifying loading/coverage-dependent support effects is important for accurately probing fundamental interfacial chemistry, choosing suitable catalyst loadings and supports, and optimizing system parameters to maximize the performance of electrocatalyst systems.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2025

Controlling Selective C–O and C–H Bond Scission of Methanol by Supporting Pt on TiN and Mo 2 N Model Surfaces and Powder Catalysts

Transition metal nitrides (TMNs) have been explored as effective supports for Pt due to their Pt-like electronic properties. However, there is a lack of fundamental understanding regarding the behavior of Pt on different TMNs (Pt/TMN). Herein two TMNs, Mo 2 N and TiN, were modified with Pt and compared using methanol decomposition as a probe reaction via both ultrahigh vacuum (UHV) studies on thin films and ambient-pressure batch reactor studies of powder catalysts. Temperature-programmed desorption (TPD) and high-resolution electron energy loss spectroscopy (HREELS) measurements were conducted under UHV conditions with Mo 2 N and TiN thin films. Mo 2 N was shown to favor C–H bond scission to form CO with a 56.2% selectivity, while TiN favored C–O bond scission to form CH 4 with a 74.5% selectivity. The addition of 0.9 monolayers (MLs) of Pt increased C–H bond scission selectivity to 89.7% and 49.2% for Mo 2 N and TiN respectively. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations on model surfaces revealed that the binding energy of O (BE *O ) was significantly reduced on Pt/TMNs, from −4.02 eV on Mo 2 N to −1.31 eV on Pt/Mo 2 N and −4.74 eV on TiN to −1.37 eV on Pt/TiN. As a result, C–O bond scission pathways were suppressed, leading to the preferential C–H bond scission that was observed experimentally. The C–O and C–H bond scission trends observed on thin films were then extended to powder catalysts, which demonstrated similar trends toward methanol decomposition. In conclusion, results from the current study establish that by combining UHV studies and DFT calculations over model surfaces, one can effectively predict the catalytic behavior of realistic TMN powder catalysts.

08 HYDROGEN↗
DOE OSTI2023

Decision-Making Framework to Evaluate Opportunities for Recovery of Rare Earth Elements and Critical Minerals in Produced Water Networks

Oil and gas development activities require a significant amount of water. Given the environmental impacts associated with high consumption and subsequent disposal of this water, there is a need for strategies to support effective reuse of, treatment of, and/or resource recovery from this produced water. These streams can contain appreciable concentrations of rare earth elements (REE) and critical minerals (CM) (e.g., Lithium), which are critical for many important applications in electronics, technology, manufacturing, energy, and medicine [1]. Along with REE/CM present in produced water, other waste streams such as fly ash from coal-fired power plants and acid mine discharge present other potential sources for recovery of REE/CM [2-4]. And with increases in demand for REE/CM, the need for recovery from wastewater streams is becoming even more important. There is a need to develop effective decision-making tools to evaluate the economic and environmental potential for REE/CM recovery from produced water networks while supporting the needs of drilling and hydraulic fracturing activities. In this work, we present our progress in developing a decision-making framework to efficiently design and operate produced water networks for REE/CM recovery. Our approach considers REE/CM recovery from produced water streams alongside other potential wastewater sources. The models consider the location and capacity of storage and decentralized treatment processes as well as the design and operation of pipeline and transportation networks to connect different sources and effectively schedule inventories, reuse, and recovery opportunities. We focus on the evaluation of opportunities for REE/CM recovery with treatment constraints on composition and flow. We demonstrate this framework with an illustrative case study that features diverse production sites, storage facilities, transportation, and treatment sites. This proposed framework will be deployed in an open-source software package that is compatible with the PARETO framework to deliver analysis and decision-making tools that allow stakeholders to quantitatively evaluate potential opportunities for REE/CM recovery in produced water networks.

Pulsipher, Joshua↗
DOE OSTI2021

Monolayer Support Control and Precise Colloidal Nanocrystals Demonstrate Metal-Support Interactions in Heterogeneous Catalysts

We report that electronic and geometric interactions between active and support phases are critical in determining the activity of heterogeneous catalysts, but metal-support interactions are challenging to study. Here, it is demonstrated how the combination of the monolayer-controlled formation using atomic layer deposition (ALD) and colloidal nanocrystal synthesis methods leads to catalysts with sub-nanometer precision of active and support phases, thus allowing for the study of the metal-support inter-actions in detail. The use of this approach in developing a fundamental understanding of support effects in Pd-catalyzed methane combustion is demonstrated. Uniform Pd nanocrystals are deposited onto Al2O 3 /SiO 2 spherical supports prepared with control over morphology and Al 2 O 3 layer thicknesses ranging from sub-monolayer to a ≈4 nm thick uniform coating. Dramatic changes in catalytic activity depending on the coverage and structure of Al 2 O 3 situated at the Pd/Al 2 O 3 interface are observed, with even a single monolayer of alumina contributing an order of magnitude increase in reaction rate. By building the Pd/Al 2 O 3 interface up layer-by-layer and using uniform Pd nanocrystals, this work demonstrates the importance of controlled and tunable materials in determining metal-support interactions and catalyst activity.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2025

A Two-Stage Approach for PV Inverter Engagement in Power Factor Correction and Voltage Regulation

The rapid integration of distributed energy resources, like solar photovoltaics (PVs), can lead to overvolt-age challenges due to reverse power flow and a noticeable decrease in power factor at the substation interface. While existing literature extensively explores utilizing smart inverter capabilities for reactive power flexibility using a volt-var curve (VVC), obtaining time-varying operating points of such curves in real-time is challenging due to computational demands and communication requirements. Similarly, employing optimization-based approaches for reactive power control and active voltage regulation in large-scale distribution feeders is difficult due to the complexity of the problem and the challenges in effectively engaging customer-owned resources. This paper proposes a two-stage strategy to harness smart inverters for reactive power support. The first stage formulates short-term planning by optimally designing VVCs (on a daily or hourly basis) for large-scale solar PVs based on projected system needs and communicating optimal curves to smart inverters in advance. Subsequently, the second stage employs a transactive-based method to involve customer-owned PVs for reactive power support, effectively enhancing overall system performance and addressing real-time demands. In conclusion, the efficacy of this approach will be demonstrated using real-world distribution circuits provided by Vermont Electric Power Company (VELCO) and Vermont Electric Cooperative (VEC).

Poudel, Shiva [Pacific Northwest National Laborato↗
DOE OSTI2023

Data Reliability in BIM and Performance Analytics: A Survey of Contemporary AECO Practice

As awareness around building energy consumption increases, practitioners are encouraged to consider performance aspects regarding the built environment more closely and find ways to improve its efficiency. Improvements in building information modeling (BIM) and building performance simulation (BPS) tools present opportunities to facilitate information communication with a wider range of stakeholders. The building sector can benefit from the integration of performance informatics; however, there has been limited success in utilizing available technologies that promote data integration and management in favor of enriching our knowledge and understanding of buildings as artifacts of information. This phenomenon was investigated by conducting a survey, together with a review of relevant literature, to depict the relevant challenges and opportunities for the architecture, engineering, construction, and owner-operated (AECO) industry, as it undergoes digital transformation, as well as the working practices that have formed around them. It is argued that the current tools available to practitioners do not support effective data serialization between design and analytics processes, affecting the collaboration between team members. Lastly, a series of functional goals are proposed to support a higher level of reliability in the ways information is mobilized, by rethinking the technologies and methods for organizing information systems.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2025

Partial PdAu nanoparticle embedding into TiO 2 support accentuates catalytic contributions from the Au/TiO 2 interface

Despite the broad catalytic relevance of metal–support interfaces, controlling their chemical nature, the interfacial contact perimeter (exposed to reactants), and consequently, their contributions to overall catalytic reactivity, remains challenging, as the nanoparticle and support characteristics are interdependent when catalysts are prepared by impregnation. Here, we decoupled both characteristics by using a raspberry-colloid-templating strategy that yields partially embedded PdAu nanoparticles within well-defined SiO 2 or TiO 2 supports, thereby increasing the metal–support interfacial contact compared to nonembedded catalysts that we prepared by attaching the same nanoparticles onto support surfaces. Between nonembedded PdAu/SiO 2 and PdAu/TiO 2 , we identified a support effect resulting in a 1.4-fold higher activity of PdAu/TiO 2 than PdAu/SiO 2 for benzaldehyde hydrogenation. Notably, partial nanoparticle embedding in the TiO 2 raspberry-colloid-templated support increased the metal–support interfacial perimeter and consequently, the number of Au/TiO 2 interfacial sites by 5.4-fold, which further enhanced the activity of PdAu/TiO 2 by an additional 4.1-fold. Theoretical calculations and in situ surface-sensitive desorption analyses reveal facile benzaldehyde binding at the Au/TiO 2 interface and at Pd ensembles on the nanoparticle surface, explaining the connection between the number of Au/TiO 2 interfacial sites (via the metal–support interfacial perimeter) and catalytic activity. Our results demonstrate partial nanoparticle embedding as a synthetic strategy to produce thermocatalytically stable catalysts and increase the number of catalytically active Au/TiO 2 interfacial sites to augment catalytic contributions arising from metal–support interfaces.

Lim, Kang Rui Garrick (ORCID:0000000321599844)↗
DOE OSTI2023

Risk Analysis of Various Design Architectures for High Safety-significant Safety-related Digital Instrumentation and Control Systems of Nuclear Power Plants during Accident Scenarios

This report documents the plus-up activities performed by Idaho National Laboratory (INL) during Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Light Water Reactor Sustainability (LWRS) Program, Risk Informed Systems Analysis (RISA) Pathway, digital instrumentation and control (DI&C) risk assessment project. In FY 2019, the RISA Pathway initiated a project to develop a risk assessment strategy for delivering a strong technical basis to support effective, licensable, and secure DI&C technologies for digital upgrades/designs. An integrated risk assessment technology for the DI&C systems was proposed for this strategy, which aims to (1) provide a best-estimate, risk-informed capability to quantitatively and accurately estimate the safety margin obtained from plant modernization, especially for the high safety-significant safety-related (HSSSR) DI&C systems, (2) support and supplement existing advanced risk-informed DI&C design guides by providing quantitative risk information and evidence, (3) offer a capability of design architecture evaluation of various DI&C systems to support system design decisions and diversity and redundancy applications, (4) assure the long-term safety and reliability of HSSSR DI&C systems, and (5) reduce uncertainty in costs and support integration of DI&C systems in the plant. To achieve these technical goals and deal with the expensive licensing justifications from regulatory insights, the LWRS-developed framework instructs nuclear vendors and utilities on how to effectively lower the costs associated with digital compliance and speed industry advances by: (1) defining an integrated risk-informed analysis process for DI&C upgrade, including hazard analysis, reliability analysis, and consequence analysis, (2) applying systematic and risk-informed tools to address common cause failures (CCFs) and quantify corresponding failure probabilities for DI&C technologies, particularly software CCFs, (3) evaluating the impact of digital failures at the component level, system level, and plant level, and (4) providing insights and suggestions on designs to manage the risks, thus to support the development, licensing, and deployment of advanced DI&C technologies on nuclear power plant (NPPs). Adding diversity within system or components is the main means to eliminate and mitigate CCFs, but diversity also increases plant complexity and errors and may not address all sources of systematic failures. How to optimize the diversity and redundancy applications for the safety-critical DI&C systems remains a challenge. To deal with the technical issues in addressing potential software CCFs in HSSSR DI&C systems of NPPs and supporting relevant design optimization, the framework provides: ? An integrated best-estimate, risk-informed capability to address new technical digital issues quantitatively, accurately, and efficiently in plan modernization progress, such as software CCFs in HSSSR DI&C systems of NPPs ? A common and a modularized platform for DI&C designers, software developers, cybersecurity analysts, and plant engineers to efficiently predict and prevent risk in the early design stage of DI&C systems ? Technical bases and risk-informed insights to assist U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and industry to address and fulfill the risk-informed alternatives for evaluation of CCFs in HSSSR DI&C systems of NPPs ? An integrated risk-informed tool that offers a capability of design architecture evaluation of various DI&C systems to support system design decisions in diversity and redundancy applications. The plus-up research and development efforts of this project in FY 2022 are focused on methodology improvement of software CCF modeling and estimation, prevention analysis, importance analysis and risk analysis of various design architectures of HSSSR DI&C systems. This work greatly enhances the capability of the LWRS-developed framework for the risk assessment and design optimization of safety-critical DI&C systems. It should be noted that all the analyses are performed for the demonstration of the LWRS-developed framework, not for the evaluation of relevant systems. Results are obtained based on very limited design information and testing data.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Adaptive Site Management Strategies for the Hanford Central Plateau Groundwater

Adaptive site management (ASM) is a systematic and iterative management approach that can be used to expedite the remediation of large and/or complex sites. ASM is defined as a formal and systematic project or site management approach centered on rigorous site planning and a firm understanding of site conditions and uncertainties, using science and technology to routinely re-evaluate and prioritize site remedial actions and characterization activities. The goal of the approach is to create a framework of structured and continuous planning, implementation, and assessment processes that accommodates new information and changing site conditions to develop effective and efficient cleanup approaches that achieves the required outcome(s) while optimizing costs, cleanup timeframe, and performance. Central to ASM is an evolving conceptual site model (CSM). Over time, incremental reductions in uncertainty associated with the CSM will occur, while supporting continued progress toward site cleanup and closure through remedy optimization and evaluation. ASM has the potential to expedite cleanup for the Central Plateau area at Hanford through a planned and systematic approach for reducing uncertainty with targeted characterization activities, while continuing remediation activities that advance cleanup for key risk-driving contaminants. A core component of cleanup within the Central Plateau is the 200 West Pump-and-Treat (P&T) system. Even with an active P&T remedy, uncertainty exists with respect to plume distributions, total mass in the aquifer, and currently known continuing sources. Additional uncertainty is associated with multiple contaminant source locations in the vadose zone, which have the potential to create new groundwater plumes in the absence of any source control measures, although not all contaminant fluxes to groundwater will result in contaminant concentrations above cleanup levels. Collectively, these uncertainties need to be addressed in the CSM to support effective and efficient site progress toward cleanup goal(s). Other nontechnical factors that may warrant an ASM approach at the Hanford Central Plateau are associated with the formation of operable units (OUs) used to manage cleanup. With the exception of the 200-ZP-1 OU, the three remaining groundwater OUs only have interim action records of decision. Nine vadose zone source area OUs are also in the early stages of the remedial investigation and feasibility study process, with pending characterization and technology identification activities. A set of proposed site objectives for the Central Plateau are provided in this document as an initial consideration/example and basis for discussion for ASM implementation. These example site objectives were selected with the goal of maintaining protectiveness at the Columbia River through confinement of contaminant plumes within an administratively controlled area below existing surface waste sites and waste disposal facilities. Although site decision makers and regulators need to provide concurrence, these site objectives are used in this document to describe the elements of an ASM approach, including selection of interim objectives and a long-term adaptive management plan. Interim objectives are also defined to yield measurable incremental progress toward the overall site goals. This document identifies initial technical considerations for developing an ASM framework for the Central Plateau cleanup decisions. These considerations are intended to facilitate more specific decisions, such as objectives, near- and long-term actions, and performance metrics, to develop an overall approach that maintains protectiveness but recognizes the uncertainty, long timeframe, and technical challenges that need to be considered in selecting, implementing, and managing remediation at the Hanford Central Plateau.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2021

Quantitative Risk Analysis of High Safety Significant Safety-related Digital Instrumentation and Control Systems in Nuclear Power Plants using IRADIC Technology

This report documents the activities performed by Idaho National Laboratory (INL) during fiscal year (FY) 2021 for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Light Water Reactor Sustainability (LWRS) Program, Risk Informed Systems Analysis (RISA) Pathway, digital instrumentation and control (DI&C) Risk Assessment project. In FY-2019, the RISA Pathway initiated a project to develop a risk assessment strategy for delivering a strong technical basis to support effective, licensable, and secure DI&C technologies for digital upgrades/designs. An integrated risk assessment technology for the DI&C systems (IRADIC technology) was proposed for this strategy, which aims to (1) provide a best-estimate risk-informed capability to quantitatively and accurately estimate the safety margin obtained from plant modernization, especially for the High Safety Significant Safety-related (HSSSR) DI&C systems, (2) develop an advanced risk assessment technology to support transition from analog to DI&C technologies for nuclear industry, (3) assure the long-term safety and reliability of vital HSSSR DI&C systems, (4) reduce uncertainty in costs and support integration of DI&C systems in the plant. To achieve these technical goals and deal with the expensive licensing justifications from regulatory insights, the IRADIC technology is instructive for nuclear vendors and utilities to effectively lower the costs associated with digital compliance and speed industry advances by: (1) defining an integrated risk-informed analysis process for DI&C upgrade, including hazard analysis, reliability analysis, and consequence analysis, (2) applying systematic and risk-informed tools to address common cause failures (CCFs) and quantify responding failure probabilities for DI&C technologies, particularly software CCFs, (3) evaluating the impact of digital failures at the individual level, system level, and plant level, (4) providing insights and suggestions on designs to manage the risks; thus, to support the development, licensing, and deployment of advanced DI&C technologies on nuclear power plant (NPPs). In this report, an approach for performing software CCF analysis, given limited data, is developed and demonstrated using a case study of a highly redundant digital reactor trip system. Consequence analysis is also performed based on different accident scenarios. Results indicate that plant modernization including the improvement of HSSSR DI&C systems will make great benefits to plant safety by providing more safety margins to accident management. In addition, a novel approach is proposed in this report for the quantification of software hazards when sufficient operational and testing data available. The method incorporates software development quality as well as strong analysis techniques to identify and link software defects to potential failure modes. The approach includes both semantic and test-based analysis to detect failures that can exist in different stages of the software development life cycle. This method is applied to an advanced human system interface relevant to reactor trip safety developed from the APR 1400 design.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2024

Path Forward: Materials Data Modernization for ASME Codes and Standards in the Artificial Intelligence Era

Development of the ASME Materials Properties Database was initiated in the early 2010s to support the ASME Codes and Standards. As information technologies advance at an accelerated pace with the artificial intelligence era on the horizon, the ASME Materials Properties Database must be further modernized from a database to a knowledgebase to ride the wave of digital information revolution and effectively support the ASME Codes and Standards in the new era. This paper is intended to provide an overview of the ASME Materials Properties Database and discuss a roadmap for its future development to facilitate understanding of and participation from different sectors of the Codes and Standards community. Further, it first reviews the basic concepts of data, information, knowledge, database, and database system as well as the pros and cons in different types of data management and then discusses the path forward for a desired evolution of the database into a self-explanatory and machine-readable knowledgebase that is consistent with human cognitive processes for the Codes and Standards development and, furthermore, provides resources for data processing and analysis to reach an eventual goal of streamlining the Codes and Standards development from the initial inquiry, throughout data submission, analysis, …, to Codes and Standards rule establishment for final publication.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2023

Path Forward: Materials Data Modernization for ASME Codes and Standards in the Artificial Intelligence Era

Development of the ASME Materials Properties Database was initiated in the early 2010s to support the ASME Codes and Standards. As information technologies advance at an accelerated pace with the artificial intelligence era on the horizon, the ASME Materials Properties Database must be further modernized from a database to a knowledgebase to ride the wave of digital information revolution and effectively support the ASME Codes and Standards in the new era.This paper is intended to provide an overview of the ASME Materials Properties Database and discuss a roadmap for its future development to facilitate understanding of and participation from different sectors of the Codes and Standards community. It first reviews the basic concepts of data, information, knowledge, database, and database system; as well as the pros and cons in different types of data management, and then discusses the path forward for a desired evolution of the database into a self-explanatory and machine-readable knowledgebase that is consistent with human cognitive processes for the Codes and Standards development and furthermore provides resources for data processing and analysis to reach an eventual goal of streamlining the Codes and Standards development from the initial inquiry, throughout data submission, analysis, …, to Codes and Standards rule establishment for final publication.

Ren, Weiju↗
DOE OSTI2021

Facilitating Staging-based Unstructured Mesh Processing to Support Hybrid In-Situ Workflows

In-situ and in-transit processing alleviate the gap between the computing and I/O capabilities by scheduling data analytics close to the data source. Hybrid in-situ processing splits data analytics into two stages: the data processing that runs in-situ aims to extract regions of interest, which are then transferred to staging services for further in-transit analytics. To facilitate this type of hybrid in-situ processing, the data staging service needs to support complex intermediate data representations generated/consumed by the in-situ tasks. Unstructured (or irregular) mesh is one such derived data representation that is typically used and bridges simulation data and analytics. However, how staging services efficiently support unstructured mesh transfer and processing remains to be explored. This paper investigates design options for transferring and processing unstructured mesh data using staging services. Using polygonal mesh data as an example, we show that hybrid in-situ workflows with staging-based unstructured mesh processing can effectively support hybrid in-situ workflows, and can significantly decrease data movement overheads.

data-driven↗