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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 433 records · Page 24
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2023

Natural Gas Combined Cycle (NGCC) Power Plants with Carbon Capture and Exhaust Gas Recycle (EGR)

The purpose of this study is to determine the cost and performance of natural gas combined cycle (NGCC) power plants using state-of-the-art gas turbines with post combustion carbon capture and recycle streams designed to increase the CO 2 concentration in the inlet to the capture system. Increasing the inlet CO 2 concentration by exhaust gas recycle (EGR) is expected to improve the efficiency of the capture system and reduce its costs. Primary results indicate that adding EGR to NGCC plants with CO 2 capture results in minimal improvement to the cost of electricity. The addition of 50 percent EGR in NGCC plants with CO 2 capture reduces the LCOE by 2 percent over the LCOE of the same design without EGR as reference. Including the EGR ductwork and cooler in a greenfield plant design could still be prudent since there is some cost advantage to EGR and it would allow more flexibility for taking advantage of future improvements in the technology.

20 FOSSIL-FUELED POWER PLANTS↗
DOE OSTI2025

A knowledge-informed large language model framework for U.S. nuclear power plant shutdown initiating event classification for probabilistic risk assessment

Identifying and classifying shutdown initiating events (SDIEs) is critical for developing shutdown probabilistic risk assessment for nuclear power plants. Existing computational approaches cannot achieve satisfactory performance due to the challenges of unavailable large, labeled datasets, imbalanced event types, and label noise. To address these challenges, we propose a hybrid pipeline that integrates a knowledge-informed machine learning model to prescreen non-SDIEs and a large language model (LLM) to classify SDIEs into four types. In the prescreening stage, we proposed a set of 44 SDIE text patterns that consist of the most salient keywords and phrases from six SDIE types. Text vectorization based on the SDIE patterns generates feature vectors that are highly separable by using a simple binary classifier. The second stage builds Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers (BERT)-based LLM, which learns generic English language representations from self-supervised pretraining on a large dataset and adapts to SDIE classification by fine-tuning it on an SDIE dataset. The proposed approaches are evaluated on a dataset with 10,928 events using precision, recall ratio, F 1 score, and average accuracy. In conclusion, the results demonstrate that the prescreening stage can exclude more than 97% non-SDIEs, and the LLM achieves an average accuracy of 95.1% for SDIE classification.

99 - GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗
DOE OSTI2026

Exploring the fusion power plant design space: comparative analysis of positive and negative triangularity tokamaks through optimization

The optimal configuration choice between positive triangularity (PT) and negative triangularity (NT) tokamaks for fusion power plants hinges on navigating different operational constraints rather than achieving specific plasma performance metrics. This study presents a systematic comparison using constrained multi-objective optimization with the integrated FUsion Synthesis Engine (FUSE) framework. Over 200 000 integrated design evaluations were performed exploring the trade-offs between capital cost minimization and operational reliability (maximizing q 95 ) while satisfying engineering constraints including 250 ± 50 MW net electric power, tritium breeding ratio > 1.1, power exhaust limits and an hour flattop time. Both configurations achieve similar cost-performance Pareto fronts through contrasting design philosophies. PT, while demonstrating resilience to pedestal degradation (compensating for up to 40% reduction), are constrained to larger machines (R 0 > 6.5 m) by the narrow operational window between L–H threshold requirements and the research-established power exhaust limit (P sol /R < 15 MW m –1 ). This forces optimization through comparatively reduced magnetic field (∼8 T). NT configurations exploit their freedom from these constraints to access compact, high-field designs (R 0 ~ 5.5 m, B 0 >12 T), creating natural synergy with advancing HTS technology. Sensitivity analyses reveal that PT’s economic viability depends critically on uncertainties in L–H threshold scaling and power handling limits. Notably, a 50% variation in either could eliminate viable designs or enable access to the compact design space. These results suggest configuration selection should be risk-informed: PT offers the lowest-cost path when operational constraints can be confidently predicted, while NT is robust to large variations in constraints and physics uncertainties.

FUSE framework↗
DOE OSTI2022

Radiation-Induced Changes in Single Crystal Calcite and Dolomite: Mineral Analogues of Light Water Reactor, Nuclear Power Plant Concrete Aggregates

Two analogues of aggregates (calcite and dolomite) found in nuclear power plant (NPP) concrete have been neutron irradiated to fluences up to 2 × 10 20 n/cm 2 at 52 °C and 4 × 10 19 n/cm 2 at 95 °C (E > 0.1 MeV). X-ray diffraction studies showed that these aging conditions affected crystallography of both calcite and dolomite, with both showing a growth in their unit cells compared to that of the unirradiated samples. Only dolomite samples showed a continuous increase of its lattice parameters with the increase in irradiation. In calcites, the lattice growth with irradiation dissipated after a fluence of 5 × 10 18 n/cm 2 . Radiation-induced disordering of the crystal structure was observed in both materials, while a healing effect of irradiation temperature was mainly observed in calcites. Dislocation densities calculated by using XRD data also supported these observations. Insights made into the unit cells of both minerals by using Fourier synthesis showed that the Mg sites are more prone to the neutron irradiation than the Ca sites, resulting in larger radiation effects and higher disruption in the crystal structure of dolomite than that of calcite. Furthermore, other than the polycrystalline characteristics observed by using TEM, these minerals did not show complete amorphization or significant structural decomposition at the studied irradiation fluences.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
NASA NTRS1977

Piping design considerations in a solar-Rankine power plant

Two of the main parameters in sizing the piping of a solar power plant are the working pressure of the vapor leaving the solar collectors, and the type of working fluid used. Numerical examples for each case are given using the graphical Moody friction charts and the analytical Darcy-Weisbach equation. Different working pressures of steam vapor in the solar collector-turbine pipe connection indicate their major role in the design. The size variation was found not to be in linear proportion to vapor density variations. On the other hand, high molecular weight organic fluids such as R-11 and R-113, when compared with water, show insignificant changes in piping sizes.

Lansing, F. L.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Manual of phosphoric acid fuel cell power plant cost model and computer program

Cost analysis of phosphoric acid fuel cell power plant includes two parts: a method for estimation of system capital costs, and an economic analysis which determines the levelized annual cost of operating the system used in the capital cost estimation. A FORTRAN computer has been developed for this cost analysis.

Lu, C. Y.↗
DOE OSTI2022

Research to Develop Flood Barrier Testing Strategies for Nuclear Power Plants

This report presents results of research performed by Idaho National Laboratory (INL) for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to identify and develop strategies for testing nuclear power plant (NPP) flood barriers. This research project began with a literature review that documented the results of previous NRC-funded research, work performed by other government agencies, reports generated by industry organizations, NRC licensee submittals, information from testing facilities, and information from commercial firms engaged in NPP decommissioning. This literature review was then used to develop a simplified flood protection categorization scheme and related glossaries. Using this categorization scheme and glossaries, a survey of currently used flood barriers was conducted, focusing on both permanent and temporary flood barriers. External flood barriers such as levees and berms were outside the scope of this survey. This research project also assessed the current state of NPP decommissioning for potential flood barrier harvesting opportunities, surveyed capabilities of domestic and international flood testing facilities, and explored technical challenges to harvesting and testing of flood barriers. Other factors that should be considered in developing flood barrier testing strategies were also explored and are documented in this report (e.g., selection of flood barriers for testing, codes and standards for flood barrier testing, potential alternatives to harvesting such as in-situ testing, testing performance criteria, and testing parameters).

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2020

A Multi-Criteria Impact Evaluation Methodology Applied to FLEX Strategies in Nuclear Power Plants

As responses to Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear accident, several advanced, near-term technologies have been or are being introduced to enhance safety of operating nuclear power plants (NPPs) as well as improving their sustainability. Examples include Accident-Tolerant Fuel designs, Diverse and Flexible Coping Strategies (FLEX), and passive cooling system designs. The combinations of these technologies, coupled with enhancements to plant components and systems and improved fuel cycle efficiency, constitute a concept of Enhanced Resilient Plant Systems, which is proposed and being explored by Idaho National Laboratory (INL) under the Risk-Informed Systems Analysis Pathway of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Light Water Reactor Sustainability Program. To decide if introducing a technology is necessary or worthy, the impacts of this technology on NPPs should be evaluated, preferably in a quantitative manner, and provided to decision makers. This paper summarizes an on-going work conducted by the authors on developing a multi-criteria impact evaluation methodology. This methodology is expected to be applicable to evaluate a variety of technologies, while FLEX strategy is adopted as a case study for this paper.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Investigation of Cycling Coal-Fired Power Plants Using High-Fidelity Models

The project delivers a well-integrated and validated simulation platform for cycling operation analysis in coal-fired power plant. Two critical mechanical components of the boiler island were analyzed through mechanical integrity assessment and economic benefit analysis. The current phase of the project focuses on the development of the integrated simulation infrastructure and prove its feasibility and effectiveness using two typical use cases. This integrated platform can help save a lot of engineering efforts for model development and simulation analysis. Through the real simulation scenarios in this document, it was demonstrated that using this platform, an analysis can be completed in approximately 2 days, while it could cost several weeks before using this platform. Going forward, the platform built in this project can be used for more boiler service applications, and it can be further enhanced with more functions/features to maximize its usage and benefits. 1) Extend component-level analysis with more use cases to cover all the major critical components of boiler island under cycling operations. A library of critical components can be developed and validated for typical pulverized coal-fired subcritical boiler units. 2) Develop predictive maintenance features based on the integrated models (Digital Twins) and engineering analysis procedures. Predictive maintenance enables each asset to be serviced based on forecast on life consumption and cost profile for replacing/welding the critical mechanical parts of the boiler. This minimizes the chance of unscheduled shutdowns and emergency services at much higher costs and prevent the fatal accidents in unit operations. 3) Develop and maintain a standard library for critical component analysis under flexible plant operations, which will include libraries of: process models, MI models for typical pressure parts, and economic models with typical plant operating data and ISO power trade data.

01 COAL, LIGNITE, AND PEAT↗
DOE OSTI2021

A Redundancy-Guided Approach for the Hazard Analysis of Digital Instrumentation and Control Systems in Advanced Nuclear Power Plants

We report digital instrumentation and control (I&C) upgrades are a vital research area for the nuclear industry. Despite their performance benefits, deployment of digital I&C in nuclear power plants (NPPs) has been limited. Digital I&C systems exhibit complex failure modes including common cause failures (CCFs), which can be difficult to identify. This paper describes the development of a redundancy-guided application of the Systems-Theoretic Process Analysis and fault tree analysis for the hazard analysis of digital I&C in advanced NPPs. The resulting Redundancy-Guided Systems-Theoretic Hazard Analysis (RESHA) is applied for the case study of a representative state-of-the-art digital reactor trip system. The analysis qualitatively and systematically identifies the most critical CCFs and other hazards of digital I&C systems. Ultimately, the RESHA can help researchers make informed decisions for how, and to what degree, defensive measures such as redundancy, diversity, and defense in depth can be used to mitigate or eliminate the potential hazards of digital I&C systems.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2025

Real-Time Dispatcher for a Distributed Energy Resource Power Plant to Provide Grid Services [SWR-25-17]

This software dispatches the aggregated power of a distributed energy resource (DER) plant located on an electrical distribution network. It is designed to provide the following services to the grid in real-time: (i) voltage support of the distribution network, (ii) virtual power plant at the substation with power factor support, and (iii) operating reserves for automatic generator control for the transmission system. This dispatcher integrates with the local power plant controller and utilizes the battery energy storage system (BESS) to smooth the volatile net power output from the DERs. It can also integrate with a day-ahead scheduler to strategically charge and discharge.

Comden, Joshua [National Renewable Energy Laborato↗
DOE OSTI2020

Cost and Performance Baseline for Fossil Energy Plants Supplement: Sensitivity to CO 2 Capture Rate In Coal-Fired Power Plants

The cost and performance of various plants designed to meet a range of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emission limits are evaluated in this report by varying the CO 2 capture rate. The base cases for these designs are the supercritical (SC) pulverized coal (PC) plant and the General Electric Power (GEP) integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) plant from the Department of Energy (DOE) National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) report “Cost and Performance Baseline for Fossil Energy Plants, Volume 1: Bituminous Coal and Natural Gas to Electricity, Revision 4” (“Bituminous Baseline”).

20 FOSSIL-FUELED POWER PLANTS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Autonomous Navigation and Control of UGVs' in Nuclear Power Plants - 20381

The purpose of the husky A200 ground robot is to autonomously navigate through the places where it is very hazardous for human beings to reach and operate, like nuclear power plants, chemical industries. The aim is to navigate the ground robot autonomously with an Arm mounted on the robot along with the different sensors as camera, and Lidar. The autonomous motion of the robot is controlled by the controller which uses path planner for trajectory generation of the robot. The mission planner uses the current position of the husky A200, given the way points of the initial and the destination it would extract a best possible route based on the current events provided using GMapping. The global reference frame is used for planning the way points. Creating the appropriate path and the actions required to follow the path are given by the motion planner. The motion planner depends on the active sensor data such as obstacles, lanes, based on the sensor data feasible path is generated. Feasibility of the path is determined by the dynamics of the husky and a series of points generated with certain velocity and acceleration profile. The controller adjusts the lateral, longitudinal and yaw motion of the husky to command the behaviors. The kinematic model is developed for kinematic motion of the husky and the dynamic model is developed for transient and steady state characteristics. The images and other type of data captured by the camera are processed through the computational framework used to build machine learning models. TensorFlow will be used for deep learning and to identify and classify different objects around the husky. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2023

Creep-Resistant Ferritic-Martensitic Steels for Power Plant Applications

Creep-resistant ferritic-martensitic steels are essential materials used in power plants for electricity generation. The efficiency and emissions of the plant are closely related to the operating temperature. Materials used in the hottest sections are one of the main limiting factor for plant operation at 650 °C. This review describes the recent development of creep-resistant ferritic-martensitic steels from a large dataset of in-house research. The findings are tied to available literature for discussion. A first steel, CPJ-7, was developed with an operating temperature approaching 650 °C, and a refined design, JMP, showed the potential to operate at 650 °C. Approximately fifty different ingots, each weighing ~ 7 kg, were vacuum induction melted and processed. Overall, wrought and cast versions of CPJ-7 present superior creep properties when compared to wrought and cast versions of COST alloys for steam turbine and P91/92 for boiler applications. The prolonged creep life was attributed to slowing down the process of the destabilization of the MX and M 23 C 6 precipitates at 650 °C. The cast version of CPJ-7 also revealed superior mechanical performance, above commercially available cast 9% Cr martensitic steel or derivatives. Following the work on CPJ-7, the JMP steels were designed with higher Co for increased solid solution strengthening, Si for oxidation resistance and increased W for matrix strength and stability. The JMP steels showed increases in creep life compared to CPJ-7 between 118 and 150% at 650 °C for testing at various stresses between 138 and 207 MPa. On a Larson–Miller plot, the performance of the JMP steels surpasses that of state-of-the-art MARBN steel. The influence of various elements within the composition of the alloys on the microstructure and mechanical properties is discussed. This review presents approximately 420,000 h of in-house creep testing, the equivalent of almost 50 years of cumulative creep tests.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2026

Dielectric properties of neutron and proton irradiated polymeric nanocomposite insulation for superconducting magnets of fusion power plants

Studies on radiation-resistant electrical insulation for superconducting magnets of nuclear fusion power plants are discussed. Metal oxide nanoparticle-incorporated organic polymer composite (MONAP) insulation films were manufactured and studied for their dielectric breakdown strength after exposure to neutrons and proton radiation at varying levels. Samples with up to 5 wt% of nanoparticles (NPs) of SiO 2 , MgO, and ZrO 2 were studied. The samples were exposed to radiation of up to 2 × 10 16 neutrons/cm 2 and 200 Mrad of protons. The addition of the nanoparticles improved the radiation resistance of the MONAP, and the performance depended on the type of NPs and the radiation exposure. Dielectric breakdown measurements at 77 K showed little degradation. Enhancement of dielectric strength was observed in some instances.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗