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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 397 records · Page 22
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2022

A Structural engineering Graduate Degree Program with specialization in structural health monitoring & non-destructive evaluation [Slides]

The promotional presentation discusses the graduate degree program at the University of California, San Diego, Jacobs School of Engineering, related to structural engineering. Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) encompasses the integration of a broad range of technologies from sensing/actuating, data interrogation, and statistical modeling to enable system-level or component-level health assessment and predictive modeling. The course is available via distance learning to Los Alamos National Laboratory engineers.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2020

Multimodal Instrument Platform for High-Pressure MAS-NMR and IR Spectroscopic Interrogation

This project developed and tested a high-pressure (HP) flow-through instrument platform that combines HP- magic angle spinning nuclear magnetic resonance (MAS-NMR) spectroscopy for interrogating reactivity at interfaces between solid materials and HP fluids with HP- infrared (IR) spectroscopy for measuring fluid composition. Solid-fluid interfacial reactivity is usually dependent on concentrations of species within the fluid; thus, knowledge of the fluid composition measured by IR is critical to understanding solid-fluid interfacial reactivity probed by NMR. This new system adds to PNNL’s core capabilities in Chemical and Material Sciences to support fundamental programs in catalysis, interfacial molecular science, and geosciences, as well as in Earth and Biological Sciences to support energy production and storage, efforts to mitigate the impacts energy production systems, attenuation of contaminant plumes, and design of subsurface engineered systems for energy production and waste disposal.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2021

Systems Engineering Approach for Design and Implementation of a Gas Breech for Actinide Experiments at the JASPER Facility

The Joint Actinide Shock Physics Experimental Research (JASPER) Facility is located approximately 65 miles north of Las Vegas, Nevada at the Nevada National Security Site (NNSS). The primary mission is to conduct shock physics research on actinide materials in support of NNSA’s Stockpile Stewardship Program. JASPER experiment uses a two-stage light gas gun to accelerate projectiles into targets at velocities up to 8 km/s (17,000 mph). The first stage uses an ignited propellent to drive a piston to compress gas in the pump tube. At the second stage, the gas compression exceeds a specified pressure and a rupture valve at the end of the pump tube opens. This launches a projectile to impact the target. The target is housed inside the target assembly and the debris field is contained inside the primary target chamber (PTC). The PTC is placed inside the secondary confinement chamber (SCC) as an added protection against possible contamination. These major components are illustrated in Figure 1.JASPER is capable of generating and measuring data on the properties of radioactive chemical elements at high shock pressures, temperatures, and strain rates approximating the conditions in nuclear weapons by using a two-stage gas gun. The data is used to determine material equations-of-state and validate computer models of material response. The work advances predictive capability, thus ensuring confidence in the nuclear stockpile.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2016

High-Penetration PV Integration Handbook for Distribution Engineers

This handbook has been developed as part of a five-year research project which began in 2010. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Southern California Edison (SCE), Quanta Technology, Satcon Technology Corporation, Electrical Distribution Design (EDD), and Clean Power Research (CPR) teamed together to analyze the impacts of high-penetration levels of photovoltaic (PV) systems interconnected onto the SCE distribution system. This project was designed specifically to leverage the experience that SCE and the project team would gain during the significant installation of 500 MW of commercial scale PV systems (1-5 MW typically) starting in 2010 and completing in 2015 within SCE’s service territory through a program approved by the California Public Utility Commission (CPUC).

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2018

Technique for Optimization Design of the Flow Path of a Main Oil Pump

A method for the design of the flow path of a main oil pump by means of which the geometry of the flow path may be optimized to achieve maximum energy efficiency of the pump is given. The method is based on mathematical simulation of the hydrodynamic processes that occur in the flow path of a pump using the ANSYS system of finite-element analysis combined with methods of nonlinear programming.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2020

Full loop thermodynamic corrosion inhibition and sensing in molten chloride systems. Final report

The objective of this project is to increase the lifetime of Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) systems by identifying corrosion mitigation methods for heat transfer loops in the temperature range of 500 - 800 °C. Coupling of experimental data with CFD modeling has provided greater insight into corrosion mitigation methods and how they will be applied in molten salt systems with convective flows. The overall goal of the program is to demonstrate techniques that control corrosion while having limited impact on system alloys.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2022

Performance Assessment of High Efficiency Variable Speed Air-Source Heat Pump in Cold Climate Applications

This project was part of an effort by ComEd's emerging technology program to evaluate the energy saving potential of new energy efficiency technologies. The focus of this technology assessment was to determine energy and peak demand savings potentials of a high efficiency variable speed, air-source, split system heat pump designed for cold climate applications. The results of this technology assessment will be used by CLEAResult to develop a new energy efficiency measure for Commonwealth Edison Company's incentive programs. The project utilized the National Renewable Energy Laboratory's (NREL) Thermal Test Facility to experimentally characterize cooling and heating performance of a high efficiency heat pump split system under varying outdoor climate conditions. The selected climate conditions represented summer and low temperature winter conditions in ComEd's service territory. The laboratory experimentation results were used to develop equipment performance curves required by EnergyPlus hourly simulation engine. Using typical meteorological year 3 weather data for the Chicago O'Hare airport, hourly building simulations (using the EnergyPlus engine) was utilized to estimate the annual energy savings of the high efficiency heat pump in comparison to a standard efficiency unit in the following U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) building codes program energy prototypes: Single-family residence; Strip mall; and Low-rise office.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2021

Retaining Systems Engineering Model Meaning Through Transformation: Demo 2

Digital engineering strategies typically assume that digital engineering models interoperate seamlessly across the multiple different engineering modeling software applications involved, such as model- based systems engineering (MBSE), mechanical computer-aided design (MCAD), electrical computer-aided design (ECAD), and other engineering modeling applications. The presumption is that the data schema in these modeling software applications are structured in the familiar flat- tabular schema like any other software application. Engineering domain-specific applications (e.g., systems, mechanical, electrical, simulation) are typically designed to solve domain-specific problems, necessarily excluding explicit representations of non-domain information to help the engineer focus on the domain problems (system definition, design, simulation). Such exclusions become problematic in inter-domain information exchange. The obvious assumptions of one domain might not be so obvious to experts in another domain. Ambiguity in domain-specific language can erode the ability to enable different domain modeling applications to interoperate, unless the underlying language is understood and used as the basis for translation from one application to another. The engineering modeling software application industry has struggled for decades to enable these applications to interoperate. Industry standards have been developed, but they have not unified the industry. Why is this? The authors assert that the industry has relied on traditional database integration methods. The basic issue prohibiting successful application integration then is that traditional database-driven integration does not consider the distinct languages of each domain. An engineering models meaning is expressed through the underlying language of that engineering domain. In essence, traditional integration methods do not retain the semantic context (meaning) of the model. The basis of this research stems from the widely held assumption that systems engineering models are (or can be) structured according to the underlying semantic ontology of the model. This assumption can be imagined from two thoughts. 1) Digital systems engineering models are often represented using graph theory (the graph of a complex systems model can contain millions of nodes and edges). When examining the nodes one at a time and following the outbound edges of each node one by one, one can end up with rudimentary statements about the model (i.e., node A relates to node B), as in a semantic graph. 2) Likewise, from the study of natural languages, a sentence can be structured into unambiguous triples of subject-predicate-object within formal and highly expressive semantic ontologies. The rudimentary statements about a systems model discerned with graph theory closely mimic the triples used in the ontologies that try to structure natural languages. In other words, a systems models semantic graph can be (or is) structured into an ontology. Additionally, it is well established in industry that through natural language processing (NLP), which provides the means to create language structures, that computers can interpret ontological graphs. Therefore, the authors hypothesized that if the integrity of the underlying semantic structure of a systems model is retained, the contextual meaning of the model is retained. By structuring system models into the triples of the underlying ontology during the transformation from one MBSE application to another, the authors have provided a proof of the concept that the meaning of a system model can be retained during transformation. The authors assert that this is the missing ingredient in effective systems model-to-model interoperability. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The authors would like to thank the FY19 Model Interoperability team members who provided a solid foundation for the FY20 team to leverage: John McCloud, for the work he did to guide us toward the right use of technology that will appropriately discover and manipulate ontologies. Carlos Tafoya, for the work he did to develop an application programming interface (API)/Adapter that would export ontology-based data from GENESYS. Peter Chandler, for the work he did to architect our overall integration solution, with an eye toward the future that would influence a large-scale federated production-level systems engineering digital model ecosystem.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2016

Radiation Effects Science: Advancing the Frontiers of Science and Engineering

Recent improvements in the radiation effects science capability at Sandia have achieved the following: Record gamma-ray outputs at HERMES enable qualification for Life Extension Programs (LEPs) and evaluation of electromagnetic pulse (EMP) effects on electric grid elements; Completed blind comparison for model validation of cavity system generated EMP in advanced computer simulations; For the first time, new diagnostics provide a high resolution photon energy spectrum on Z (Grand Challenge LDRD); ACRR completed record number of operations, two years in a row, to support design and qualification; Installed the nation’s largest GHz electromagnetic test chamber for design and qualification.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2024

Quantum for Energy Systems and Technologies

Quantum Information Science (QIS) is expected to profoundly change the practice of science and engineering in the coming decades. QIS technology exploits quantum phenomena for performing tasks that are impossible to do today and is a rapidly progressing field, fueled by large investments from the private sector and governments. Its importance to the U.S. economy and national security is underscored by the National Quantum Initiative Act (NQIA) passed in December 2018, which creates a coordinated multiagency program to support research and training in QIS. After the NIQA signed into law, NETL has launched an initiative to apply QIS to problems encountered in energy technology development. In Jan. 2020, an Quantum for Energy Systems & Technologies (QUEST) working group was formed to establish a workforce capable of developing, reviewing, managing, and advising on QIS-related technologies for NETL and FECM. Since then, the QUEST team have been working on developing quantum sensing technology and performing quantum computing to solve energy-related problems. This poster summarized the QUEST team’s activities & accomplishments on QIS targeting energy-related applications.

Paudel, Hari P.↗
DOE OSTI2017

Traleika Glacier: A hardware-software co-designed approach to exascale computing

The move from current petascale machines to future exascale machines will need both hardware improvements and software changes. Hardware will need to evolve to focus primarily on features that lower energy consumption: near-threshold voltage operation, fine-grained power and clock management and heterogeneity. Software will also need to evolve and be able to express more parallelism, become more dynamic and adaptable in order to be able to operate on a much more variable hardware. Here, we present Traleika Glacier, an effort that seeks to evaluate radical design changes to meet the constraints, both in terms of power and cost, of exascale computing. The salient features of the hardware design presented in the work include a) a use of heterogeneous cores, b) a redesign of the memory system that centers around hierarchical scratchpads and a global address space, c) the hardware acceleration of certain memory and network operations through specialized engines and, d) very fine-grained control and monitoring capabilities. On the software side, we describe a task-based runtime system, the Open Community Runtime (OCR) which aims to express a wide range of higher-level programming models with a very limited set of core concepts: event-driven tasks for computation, events for synchronization and relocatable data-blocks for data management.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
DOE OSTI2022

Synthetic genetic circuits as a means of reprogramming plant roots

We report the shape of a plant’s root system influences its ability to reach essential nutrients in the soil and to acquire water during drought. Progress in engineering plant roots to optimize water and nutrient acquisition has been limited by our capacity to design and build genetic programs that alter root growth in a predictable manner. We developed a collection of synthetic transcriptional regulators for plants that can be compiled to create genetic circuits. These circuits control gene expression by performing Boolean logic operations and can be used to predictably alter root structure. This work demonstrates the potential of synthetic genetic circuits to control gene expression across tissues and reprogram plant growth.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2022

Combining Particle Tracking with Electromagnetic Radiation Showers: Merging GPT and Geant4 with Visualization

Field emitted electrons can seriously affect the operation of high-field, high-duty factor electron accelerators. Accelerated field emission can result in high average power beams which can radiation damage beamline components. In addition, localized losses generate thermal hot spots whose outgassing degrades the ultra-high vacuum required in photoinjectors and cryomodules. However, despite their importance, the effects of field emission are rarely included in the design and engineering of electron injectors. This work attempts to remedy this situation by combining two well-known and well-documented programs, GPT and Geant4, to track electrons and their losses in an injector beamline. This paper describes a system of programs which simulates electron paths and losses along the beamline. In addition, the tracking results can be zoomed and panned along and about the beampipe envelope using an open-source 3D CAD program. The scattering albedo calculations of the combined program, GPT-Geant4, are shown to be in good agreement with the literature albedos. The paper concludes with a dark current simulation for the LCLS-II injector from the cathode to the collimator at 1.5 m from the cathode.

Dowell, David H.↗
DOE OSTI2020

Report Documenting Activity for Second Alloy 709 Commercial Heat

SUMMARY Qualification of the advanced austenitic stainless steel material Alloy 709 for use in Section III Division 5 of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code is being pursued by the US Department of Energy Advanced Reactor Technology Program. Qualification of this alloy will allow its use in design and construction of components for elevated temperature nuclear reactor systems. Code qualification requires extensive characterization of three commercial scale heats of the alloy. This report describes progress in procuring the second of three required heats of Alloy 709 plate from ATI Flat Rolled Products.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2019

Detecting control system misbehavior by fingerprinting programmable logic controller functionality

In recent years, attacks such as the Stuxnet malware have demonstrated that cyberattacks against control systems cause extensive damage. These attacks can result in physical damage to the networked systems under their control. In this paper, we discuss our approach for detecting such attacks by distinguishing between programs running on a programmable logic controller (PLC) without having to monitor communications. Using power signatures generated by an attached, high-frequency power measurement device, we can identify what a PLC is doing and when an attack may have altered what the PLC should be doing. To accomplish this, we generated labeled data for testing our methods and applied feature engineering techniques and machine learning models. The results of this research demonstrate that Random Forests and Convolutional Neural Networks classify programs with up to 98% accuracy for major program differences and 84% accuracy for minor differences. Our results can be used for both online and offline applications.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
DOE OSTI2021

Accomplishments and Year-End Performance Report; Wind Energy Program: Fiscal Year 2021

The National Wind Technology Center (NWTC), located at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE's) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) Flatirons Campus, has been a driving force in advancing wind energy technology research worldwide since its designation as a DOE national research center in 1992. Enabled by the Flatirons Campus's world-class facilities, scientists, engineers, analysts, and researchers are pushing the frontiers of science to pursue wind energy innovation. In Fiscal Year (FY) 2021, NREL continued to provide the technical expertise, research capabilities, and industry understanding to support DOE's ambitious climate action and research goals by advancing technology, addressing market and deployment barriers, and driving down costs with more efficient, reliable, and predictable wind energy systems. One of several highlights, NREL received an R&D 100 Special Recognition Award for its Thermoplastic Resin System for Wind Turbine Blades. This breakthrough in the wind turbine manufacturing process will enable the production of recyclable blades that are stronger, longer, and less expensive, while increasing energy capture, decreasing energy and transportation costs, and increasing blade reliability. In a year when the entire U.S. economy struggled to address workforce gaps, an NREL study compared wind industry needs, training programs, and hiring practices with perspectives from students and recent college graduates. Researchers hope that, by pinpointing areas of disconnect, the expectations of employers who have difficulty filling entry-level jobs can better align with the preparation of the potential applicants who find it hard to break into the field. The lab also made numerous new data and modeling resources available in FY 2021. Recent NREL releases include a modeling tool for predicting the power performance and structural loads of wind turbines within a wind farm (FAST.Farm), a computational framework for modeling golden eagle behavior near wind farms, and 20 years of offshore wind data. Updates were also made to the widely used Wind Plant Integrated Systems Design and Engineering Model (WISDEM), which couples engineering and cost models to examine system-level trade-offs. Now, bolstered by a renewed national commitment to tackle climate change and revitalize the U.S. economy through increased investment in clean energy - particularly in offshore wind energy - NREL stands poised to lead the way to a sustainable future that powers the United States with significant levels of reliable, low-cost, accessible wind energy. This report provides an overview of the achievements NREL made on behalf of DOE's Wind Energy Technologies Office (WETO) and other partners during FY 2021 (between Oct. 1, 2020, and Sept. 30, 2021).

Flatirons Campus↗
DOE OSTI2019

guideline36_conformance_test 0.1

The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) has established a set of standardized high performance sequences of operation for Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems in buildings through their "Guideline 36". In order to achieve the intended performance, these sequences must be translated and programmed accurately in the Building Automation System (BAS) controllers. Standardizing these sequences will allow for a more efficient product delivery mechanism where the sequences are programmed and tested centrally by each manufacturer, and then distributed to their dealers/engineering contractors. This approach would minimize the need for each installer to re-interpret and program the sequences, reduces risk of errors, and reduces the time required for commissioning in the field. To achieve this goal, a performance validation method is needed to provide independent confirmation that each manufacturer has programmed the Guideline 36 sequences accurately. A standardized method of test would also avoid the need for manual interpretation (and the associated human variability) that is required with typical functional testing approaches by automating the inputs and the range of expected responses. This software "guideline36_conformance_test" has been developed to conduct standardized, repeatable and manufacturer independent tests to validate that a BAS controller has been programmed in conformance with Guideline 36. Manufacturers would provide the controller (or the control program) and the software would run a suite of tests by setting a set of inputs to the controller and verifying the output signals from the controller matches the expected output as set by Guideline 36.

Pritoni, Marco↗
DOE OSTI2020

TRUST-EABM End-of-Year Report: Release FY20

The Delivery Environments (DE) program work package Testbeds to Reduce Uncertainties in Simulations and Tests (TRUST) is designed to quantify and reduce the uncertainty associated with experimental testing and numerical simulation of large engineering assemblies to support the efficient and responsive development of future systems. Because engineering assemblies contain a large number of uncertainty sources, well-characterized testbeds must be designed to isolate individual uncertainty sources. Once quantified, uncertainty sources can be compared to direct research and development funding towards the largest sources driving behavior of interest. Quantified uncertainty may also be propagated through engineering simulations to determine quantitative confidence in simulation predictions and for comparison against uncertainty in the experimental measurements.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗