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At least 379 records · Page 21

Understanding the Drivers of Mobility during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Florida, USA Using a Machine Learning Approach

As of March 2021, the State of Florida, U.S.A. had accounted for approximately 6.67% of total COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus disease) cases in the U.S. The main objective of this research is to analyze mobility patterns during a three month period in summer 2020, when COVID-19 case numbers were very high for three Florida counties, Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties. To investigate patterns, as well as drivers, related to changes in mobility across the tri-county region, a random forest regression model was built using sociodemographic, travel, and built environment factors, as well as COVID-19 positive case data. Mobility patterns declined in each county when new COVID-19 infections began to rise, beginning in mid-June 2020. While the mean number of bar and restaurant visits was lower overall due to closures, analysis showed that these visits remained a top factor that impacted mobility for all three counties, even with a rise in cases. Our modeling results suggest that there were mobility pattern differences between counties with respect to factors relating, for example, to race and ethnicity (different population groups factored differently in each county), as well as social distancing or travel-related factors (e.g., staying at home behaviors) over the two time periods prior to and after the spike of COVID-19 cases.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

Investigating a Renewable-Resource-Targeting Mobile Aquaculture System Using Route Optimization Based on Optimal Foraging Theory

Aquaculture systems require careful consideration of location, which determines water conditions, pollution impacts, and hazardous conditions. Mobility may be able to address these factors while also supporting the targeting of renewable energy sources such as wind, wave, and solar power throughout the year. In this paper, a purpose-built mobile aquaculture ship is identified and modeled with a combination of renewable energy harvesting capabilities as a case study with the objective of assessing the potential benefits of targeting high renewable energy potentials to power aquaculture operations. A route optimization algorithm is created and tuned to simulate the mobility of the aquaculture platform and cost-basis comparisons are made to a stationary system. The small spatial variability in renewable energy potential when combining multiple resources significantly limits the benefits of a mobile, renewable-targeting aquaculture system. On the other hand, the consistent energy harvest from a blend of renewable energy types (13 kW installed wind capacity, 661 m 2 installed solar, and 1 m characteristic width wave-energy converter) suggests that the potential benefits of a mobile platform for offshore aquaculture (mitigation of environmental and social concerns, any potential positive impact on yields, hazard avoidance, etc.) can likely be pursued without significant increases in energy harvester costs.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗

PAX Mobility

Pax Mobility is a Wicked Wild Discovery activity under the Convergent Aeronautics Solutions (CAS) project. It is intended to cut down the end-to-end travel time and friction for people and goods (referred to as passengers) through: (1) A passenger-oriented paradigm to enable faster mobility that is accessible by all people, end to end (rather than port to port), and that is also safer, more efficient, and sustainable. (2) A total mobility paradigm that integrates modes of mobility to achieve end-to-end passenger objectives. (3) Digital transformation that establishes an agile research and development process to reduce the time to reach end-to-end mobility solutions.

Passenger-oriented total mobility↗

Typology of Cities for Systems and Modeling for Accelerated Research in Transportation (SMART) Mobility Consortium

Mobility patterns, technology adoption and associated energy outcomes vary tremendously across settlement types. This poster discusses how a highly geographically resolved exploration of the social, economic, techno-infrastructural and environmental domains is key to understanding observed variations in transportation technology adoption and associated mobility and energy outcomes. Current socioeconomic and mobility data sets at the census block group level are integrated in a hierarchical clustering approach to show how variations in mobility and energy outcomes are shaped by these domains - which may enhance progress on investments, or effectively inform planning and other decisions for state-wide goals. In a pilot analysis in New York, the clustering produces four settlement types to predict dependent variables of electric vehicle (EV) adoption rates, commute mode, vehicle fuel economy, and vehicles per household. This typology shows EV adoption rates among the core urban population, which is wealthy and highly-educated, are high - 3 EVs/1,000 vehicles versus 1 EV/1,000 vehicles among the urban working class. Commuting mode is closely linked with population and employment density - more than 90% of core urbanites use transit or active modes, compared with only 22% of suburbanites and 17% of rural residents. Household vehicle ownership also varies, with two vehicles per household in rural areas and only 0.5 in core urban settings.Important findings on differences among the rural, suburban, urban, and urban core settlement types suggest a need to explore how best to manage and anticipate very different types of services that may be supportive in achieving energy-efficient and affordable mobility systems state-wide.

30 DIRECT ENERGY CONVERSION↗

Mobility, Energy, and Electric Vehicle Typology for New York State

Mobility patterns, technology adoption and associated energy outcomes vary tremendously across settlement types. This paper explores how a highly geographically resolved exploration of the social, economic, techno-infrastructural and environmental domains of New York State is key to understanding observed variations in transportation technology adoption and associated mobility and energy outcomes. Current socioeconomic and mobility data sets at the census block group level are integrated in a hierarchical clustering approach to show how variations in mobility and energy outcomes are shaped by these domains - which may enhance progress on investments, or effectively inform planning and other decisions for state-wide goals. The clustering produces four settlement types to predict dependent variables of electric vehicle (EV) adoption rates, commute mode, vehicle fuel economy, and vehicles per household. This typology shows EV adoption rates among the core urban population, which is wealthy and highly-educated, are high - 3 EVs/1000 vehicles versus 1 EV/1000 vehicles among the urban working class. Commuting mode is closely linked with population and employment density - more than 90% of core urbanites use transit or active modes, compared with only 22% of suburbanites and 17% of rural residents. Household vehicle ownership also varies, with 2 vehicles per household in rural areas and only 0.5 in core urban settings. Important findings on differences among the rural, suburban, urban, and urban core settlement types suggest a need to explore how best to manage and anticipate very different types of services that may be supportive in achieving energy-efficient and affordable mobility systems state-wide.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

Developing an Interactive Landscape for Mobility Resources: Preprint

As the world continues to be increasingly driven by data, the ways researchers and professionals sort and collect this data is critical. In the world of mobility data, new levels of data from public transportation systems, location services, and other means are being lost due to how little organization exists. Much of the data is proprietary, and there are few if any de jure or even de facto standards connecting data. There is also little knowledge about the gaps that exist in the data. In this project, we created an interactive landscape where mobility resources are categorized and organized in an easy to use, living document. We made this landscape with open-source code from the CNCF Cloud Native Landscape and repurposed it to the mobility data's needs. Additionally, unlike previous sources that organize mobility data, this document can be updated through GitHub by those in the field to keep its sources relevant. Following the creation of a beta version of the landscape, we conducted several interviews with industry researchers and professionals to ensure the landscape would be useful. The result is an online hub where mobility researchers and resource creators can easily access research and collaborate.

ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗

A fast integrated mobility spectrometer for rapid measurement of sub-micrometer aerosol size distribution, Part I: Design and model evaluation

This study discusses, a fast integrated mobility spectrometer (FIMS) was previously developed to characterize submicron aerosol size distributions at a frequency of 1 Hz and with high size resolution and counting statistics. However, the dynamic size range of the FIMS was limited to one decade in particle electrical mobility. It was proposed that the FIMS dynamic size range can be greatly increased by using a spatially varying electric field. This electric field creates regions with drastically different field strengths in the separator, such that particles of a wide diameter range can be simultaneously classified and subsequently measured. A FIMS incorporating this spatially varying electric field is developed. This paper describes the theoretical frame work and numerical simulations of the FIMS with extended dynamic size range, including the spatially varying electric field, particle trajectories, activation of separated particles in the condenser, and the transfer function, transmission efficiency, and mobility resolution. The influences of the particle Brownian motion on FIMS transfer function and mobility resolution are examined. The simulation results indicate that the FIMS incorporating the spatially varying electric field is capable of measuring aerosol size distribution from 8 to 600 nm with high time resolution. As a result, the experimental characterization of the FIMS is presented in an accompanying paper.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

FY2017 Energy Efficient Mobility Systems Annual Progress Report

During fiscal year 2017 (FY 2017), the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Vehicle Technologies Office (VTO) created the Energy Efficient Mobility Systems (EEMS) Program to understand the range of mobility futures that could result from these disruptive technologies and services, and to create solutions that improve mobility energy productivity, or the value derived from the transportation system per unit of energy consumed. Increases in mobility energy productivity result from improvements in the quality or output of the transportation system, and/or reductions in the energy used for transportation.

33 ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗

FY2019 Energy Efficient Mobility Systems Annual Progress Report

EEMS Program activities during FY 2019 focused on analytical research to understand the impacts that new mobility technologies and services will have at the vehicle, traveler, and overall transportation system-level. This research included the development of vehicle and transportation system simulation models and tools to evaluate the complex interactions among the various actors within the mobility landscape, analysis of empirical data to characterize which solutions may provide the largest benefits, and development of new control systems and algorithms that use vehicle connectivity and automation to improve the performance and efficiency of individual vehicles as well as the overall traffic system. This document presents a brief overview of the EEMS Program and documents progress and results for projects within four of the five EEMS activity areas: (1) the SMART (Systems and Modeling for Accelerated Research in Transportation) Mobility Lab Consortium, (2) High Performance Computing and Big Data Solutions for Mobility Data, (3) Advanced R&D Projects conducted by industry and academia, and (4) Core Modeling, Simulation, and Evaluation, Similarly, the remaining EEMS activity area – (5) Living Labs (managed under VTO’s Technology Integration Program). Each of the individual progress reports provide a project overview and highlights of the technical results.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

Synergistic Use of Pyridine and Selenophene in a Diketopyrrolopyrrole‐Based Conjugated Polymer Enhances the Electron Mobility in Organic Transistors

Abstract To achieve semiconducting materials with high electron mobility in organic field‐effect transistors (OFETs), low‐lying energy levels (the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) and the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO)) and favorable molecular packing and ordering are two crucial factors. Here, it is reported that the incorporation of pyridine and selenophene into the backbone of a diketopyrrolopyrrole (DPP)‐based copolymer produces a high‐electron‐mobility semiconductor, PDPPy‐Se. Compared with analogous polymers based on other DPP derivatives and selenophene, PDPPy‐Se features a lower LUMO that can decrease the electron transfer barrier for more effective electron injection, and simultaneously a lower HOMO that, however, can increase the hole transfer barrier to suppress the hole injection. Combined with thermal annealing at 240 °C for thin film morphology optimization to achieve large‐scale crystallite domains with tight molecular packing for effective charge transport along the conducting channel, OFET devices fabricated with PDPPy‐Se exhibit an n‐type‐dominant performance with an electron mobility (μ e ) as high as 2.22 cm 2 V −1 s −1 and a hole/electron mobility ratio (μ h /μ e ) of 0.26. Overall, this study demonstrates a simple yet effective approach to boost the electron mobility in organic transistors by synergistic use of pyridine and selenophene in the backbone of a DPP‐based copolymer.

Liu, Qian↗

Bound and mobile soil water isotope ratios are affected by soil texture and mineralogy, whereas extraction method influences their measurement

Questions persist about interpreting isotope ratios of bound and mobile soil water pools, particularly relative to clay content and extraction conditions. Interactions between pools and resulting extracted water isotope composition are presumably related to soil texture, yet few studies have manipulated the bound pool to understand its influence on soil water processes. Using a series of drying and spiking experiments, we effectively labelled bound and mobile water pools in soils with varying clay content. Soils were first vacuum dried to remove residual water, which was then replaced with heavy isotope-enriched water prior to oven drying and spiking with heavy isotope-depleted water. Water was extracted via centrifugation or cryogenic vacuum distillation (at four temperatures) and analysed for oxygen and hydrogen isotope ratios via isotope ratio mass spectrometry. Water from centrifuged samples fell along a mixing line between the two added waters but was more enriched in heavy isotopes than the depleted label, demonstrating that despite oven drying, a residual pool remains and mixes with the mobile water. Soils with higher clay + silt content appeared to have a larger bound pool. Water from vacuum distillation samples have a significant temperature effect, with high temperature extractions yielding progressively more heavy isotope-enriched values, suggesting that Rayleigh fractionation occurred at low temperatures in the vacuum line. By distinctly labelling bound and mobile soil water pools, we detected interactions between the two that were dependent on soil texture. Although neither extraction method appeared to completely extract the combined bound and mobile (total water) pool, centrifugation and high temperature cryogenic vacuum distillations were comparable for both δ 2 H and δ 18 O of soil water isotope ratios.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Spatial Ion Peak Compression and its Utility in Ion Mobility Spectrometry

A novel concept for ion spatial peak compression is described, and discussed primarily in the context of ion mobility spectrometry (IMS). Using theoretical and numerical methods, the effects of using non-constant (e.g., linearly varying) electric fields on ion distributions (e.g., an ion mobility peak) is evaluated both in the physical and temporal domains. The application of linearly decreasing electric field in conjunction with conventional drift field arrangements is shown to lead to a reduction in IMS physical peak width. When multiple ion packets in a selected mobility window are simultaneously subjected to such fields, there is ion packet compression, i.e., a reduction in peak widths of all species. This peak compression occurs with a modest reduction of resolution, but which can be quickly recovered as ions drift in a constant field after the compression event. Compression also yields a significant increase in peak intensities. In addition, approaches for peak compression in traveling wave IMS are also discussed. Ion mobility peak compression can be particularly useful for mitigating diffusion driven peak spreading over very long path length separations (e.g., in cyclic multi-pass arrangements), and for achieving higher S/N and IMS resolution over a selected mobility range.

Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory↗

Elucidating the contribution of mobile hydrogen-deformation interactions to hydrogen-induced intergranular cracking in polycrystalline nickel

Uniaxial mechanical testing conducted at room temperature (RT) and 77 K on hydrogen (H)-exposed nickel was coupled with targeted microscopy to evaluate the influence of deformation temperature, and therefore mobile H-deformation interactions, on intergranular cracking in nickel. Results from interrupted tensile tests conducted at cryogenic temperatures (77 K), where mobile H-deformation interactions are effectively precluded, and RT, where mobile H-deformation interactions are active, indicate that mobile H-deformation interactions are not an intrinsic requirement for H-induced intergranular fracture. Moreover, an evaluation of the true strain for intergranular microcrack initiation for testing conducted at RT and 77 K suggests that H which is segregated to grain boundaries prior to the onset of straining dominates the H-induced fracture process for the prescribed H concentration of 4000 appm. Lastly, recent experiments suggesting that H-induced fracture is predominately driven by mobile H-deformation interactions, as well as the increased susceptibility of coherent twin boundaries to H-induced crack initiation, are re-examined in light of these new results.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Energy-efficient multimodal mobility networks in transportation digital twins: Strategies and optimization

The study proposes a comprehensive Transportation Mobility (TransitMo) framework covering conceptual design, model formulation, optimization, simulation, and impact analysis of the transportation mobility system. TransitMo is composed of a transportation digital twin developed in Simulation of Urban MObility (SUMO) and an Intelligent Traffic Management and Control Center (ITMCC) that identifies the best ways to improve the movement of people within urban areas using various modes of transportation. This study encompasses advanced modeling techniques, algorithms, and strategic testing to optimize energy efficiency and mobility in a multimodal shared mobility network. TransitMo’s practical applications are exemplified through a city-scaled simulation network in Chattanooga, TN, employing demographic data to analyze historical traffic patterns and forecast future demands. Central to this methodology are three models: the User Preference Model (UP), the Energy Consumption Model (EC), and the System Optimization Model (SO). These models work in concert to iteratively devise the optimal travel incentives and minimize the total system cost in a real-time manner. In conclusion, test results verified that the proposed adaptive incentive program and optimized bus scheduling can improve network performance by increasing public transit ridership.

42 ENGINEERING↗

Field experiments of surface water to groundwater recharge to characterize the mobility of uranium and vanadium at a former mill tailing site

Characterizing the mobility of uranium and vanadium in groundwater with a hydraulic connection to surface water is important to inform the best management practices of former mill tailing sites. In this study, the recharge of river water to the unsaturated and saturated zones of a uranium-contaminated alluvial aquifer was simulated in a series of forced-gradient single- and multi-well injection-extraction tests. The injection fluid (river water) was traced with natural and artificial tracers that included halides, fluorobenzoates, lithium, and naphthalene sulfonate to characterize the potential mass transport mechanisms of uranium and vanadium. The extraction fluid (river water/groundwater mixture) was analyzed for the tracers, uranium, and vanadium. The results from the tracers indicated that matrix diffusion was likely negligible over the spatiotemporal scales of the tests as evident by nearly identical breakthrough curves of the halides and fluorobenzoates. In contrast, the breakthrough curves of lithium and naphthalene sulfonate indicated that sorption by cation exchange and sorption to organic matter, respectively, were potential mass transport mechanisms of uranium and vanadium. Uranium was mobilized in the saturated zone containing gypsum (gypsum-rich zone), the vadose zone (vadose-rich zone), and the saturated zone containing organic carbon (organic-rich zone) whereas vanadium was mobilized only in the saturated gypsum-rich zone. The mechanisms responsible for the mobilization of uranium and vanadium were likely dissolution of uranium- and vanadium-bearing minerals and/or desorption from the gypsum-rich zone, flushing of uranium from the vadose-rich zone, and desorption of uranium from the organic-rich zone due to the natural contrast in the geochemistry between the river water and groundwater. The experimental design of this study was unique in that it employed the use of multiple natural and artificial tracers coupled with a direct injection of native river water to groundwater. Here, these results demonstrated that natural recharge and flooding events at former mill tailing sites can mobilize uranium, and possibly vanadium, and contribute to persistent levels of groundwater contamination.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

On the mobility of defect clusters and their effect on microstructure evolution in fcc Ni under irradiation

Here, µs-scale molecular dynamics studies of vacancy and interstitial clusters in fcc Ni revealed three- and one- dimensional (3-D and 1-D) modes of the cluster motion. The 1-D mobility of interstitial defects is known to enhance swelling rate. The theoretical analysis performed here suggests two novel mechanism by which the 3-D mobile clusters affect microstructure evolution under irradiation. First, the mobility of vacancy clusters hinders nucleation of stable voids due to recombination with interstitial-type loops and edge dislocations. Second, the capture efficiency of dislocations is higher for 3-D mobile vacancy and interstitial clusters than single defects, with the combined effect depending on relative fractions of clustered vacancies and interstitials produced in cascades. The observed differences in radiation damage of most fcc and bcc metals is attributed to the difference in cascade-produced vacancy defects: immobile SFTs and loops in fcc metals and mobile clusters in bcc metals. In this context, fcc Ni is similar to bcc metals due to its high stacking fault energy.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Achieving High Resolution Ion Mobility Separations Using Traveling Waves in Compact Multiturn Structures for Lossless Ion Manipulations

We report on ion mobility separations (IMS) achievable using traveling waves in a Structures for Lossless Ion Manipulations (TW-SLIM) module having a 44-cm path length and sixteen 90º turns. The performance of the TW-SLIM module was evaluated for ion transmission, and ion mobility separations with different RF, TW parameters and SLIM surface gaps in conjunction with mass spectrometry. In this work TWs were created by the transient and dynamic application of DC potentials. The TW-SLIM module demonstrated highly robust performance and the ion mobility resolution achieved even with sixteen close spaced turns was comparable to a similar straight path TW-SLIM module. We found an ion mobility peak capacity of ~ 31 and peak generation rate of 780 s-1 for TW speeds of <210 m/s using the current multi-turn TW-SLIM module. The separations achieved for isomers of peptides and tetrasaccharides were found to be comparable to those from a ~ 0.9-m drift tube-based IMS-MS platform operated at the same pressure (4 torr). The combined attributes of flexible design, low voltage requirements and lossless ion transmission through multiple turns for the present TW-SLIM module provides a basis for SLIM devices capable of achieving much greater ion mobility resolutions via greatly extended ion path lengths and compact serpentine designs that do not significantly impact the instrumentation profile, a direction described in a companion manuscript.

Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory↗

Tuning the Mobility of Indacenodithiophene-Based Conjugated Polymers via Coplanar Backbone Engineering

Conjugated polymers based on indacenodithiophene-benzothiadiazole (IDT-BT) have attracted great interest due to their high charge carrier mobilities while being low crystallinity (i.e. near-amorphous.) They represent a promising design strategy to achieve both excellent stretchability and electrical performance. Here, we describe an approach on structural modifications of IDT-BT, namely by introducing non-covalent interactions and substituting building blocks to promote extended coplanar backbones. We systematically investigated the effects of structural modifications on backbone conformation, polymer aggregations, and charge carrier mobilities. Among the investigated polymers, the fluorinated derivative IDT-FBT demonstrated the highest charge carrier mobility of 5.19 cm 2 /Vs, along with low activation energy and Urbach energy indicating its low energy disorder level. The high mobility was attributed to the higher backbone planarity reinforced by S···F and H···F non-covalent interactions and improved interchain interactions through strong aggregation. In conclusion, our findings indicate that increasing backbone coplanarity may further improve mobility in low crystallinity conjugated polymers.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗