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At least 469 records · Page 26
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2022

Characterizing the effect of incrementally increasing dry bulb temperature on linear and nonlinear measures of heart rate variability in nonpregnant, mid-gestation, and late-gestation sows

Abstract Characterizing the sow physiological response to an increased heat load is essential for effective heat stress mitigation. The study objective was to characterize the effects of a 400-min heating episode on sow heart rate variability (HRV) at different reproductive stages. HRV is a commonly used noninvasive proxy measure of autonomic function. Twenty-seven sows were enrolled in the study according to their gestation stage at time of selection: 1) nonpregnant (NP; n = 7), 2) mid-gestation (MID; 57.3 ± 11.8 d gestation; n = 11), and 3) late-gestation (LATE; 98.8 ± 4.9 d gestation; n = 8). The HRV data utilized in the study were collected from each pig as the dry bulb temperature in the room increased incrementally from 19.84 ± 2.15 °C to 35.54 ± 0.43 °C (range: 17.1–37.5 °C) over a 400-min period. After data collection, one 5-min set of continuous heart rate data were identified per pig for each of nine temperature intervals (19–20.99, 21–22.99, 23–24.99, 25–26.99, 27–28.99, 29–30.99, 31–32.99, 33–34.99, and 35–36.99 °C). Mean inter-beat interval length (RR), standard deviation of r-r intervals (SDNN), root mean square of successive differences (RMSSD), high frequency spectral power (HF), sample entropy (SampEn), short-term detrended fluctuation analysis (DFAα1), and three measures (%REC, DET, LMEAN) derived from recurrence quantification analysis were calculated for each data set. All data were analyzed using the PROC GLIMMIX procedure in SAS 9.4. Overall, LATE sows exhibited lower RR than NP sows (P < 0.01). The standard deviation of r–r intervals and RMSSD differed between each group (P < 0.01), with LATE sows exhibiting the lowest SDNN and RMSSD and NP sows exhibiting the greatest SDNN and RMSSD. Late-gestation sows exhibited lower HF than both MID and NP sows (P < 0.0001), greater DFA values than NP sows (P = 0.05), and greater DET compared to MID sows (P = 0.001). Late-gestation also sows exhibited greater %REC and LMEAN compared to MID (P < 0.01) and NP sows (all P < 0.01). In conclusion, LATE sows exhibited indicators of greater autonomic stress throughout the heating period compared to MID and NP sows. However, temperature by treatment interactions were not detected as dry bulb increased. Future studies are needed to fully elucidate the effect of gestational stage and increasing dry bulb temperature on sow HRV.

Agriculture↗
DOE OSTI2015

Adhesive interactions of geckos with wet and dry fluoropolymer substrates

Fluorinated substrates like Teflon® (poly(tetrafluoroethylene); PTFE) are well known for their role in creating non-stick surfaces. Previously, we showed that even geckos, which can stick to most surfaces under a wide variety of conditions, slip on PTFE. Surprisingly, however, geckos can stick reasonably well to PTFE if it is wet. In an effort to explain this effect, we have turned our attention to the role of substrate surface energy and roughness when shear adhesion occurs in media other than air. In this study, we removed the roughness component inherent to commercially available PTFE and tested geckos on relatively smooth wet and dry fluoropolymer substrates. We found that roughness had very little effect on shear adhesion in air or in water and that the level of fluorination was most important for shear adhesion, particularly in air. Surface energy calculations of the two fluorinated substrates and one control substrate using the Tabor–Winterton approximation and the Young–Dupré equation were used to determine the interfacial energy of the substrates. Using these interfacial energies we estimated the ratio of wet and dry normal adhesion for geckos clinging to the three substrates. Consistent with the results for rough PTFE, our predictions show a qualitative trend in shear adhesion based on fluorination, and the quantitative experimental differences highlight the unusually low shear adhesion of geckos on dry smooth fluorinated substrates, which is not captured by surface energy calculations. Our work has implications for bioinspired design of synthetics that can preferentially stick in water but not in air.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2018

Partial flocculation for spray drying of spherical mixed metal oxide particles

Abstract Particles are an important design consideration for many proposed solar thermochemical water splitting reactor concepts. These particles must maintain physical integrity and chemical performance at very high temperatures (>900°C) while flowing within a system. Spray drying is a commonly used, scalable method to produce solid spherical particles that have the best opportunity to meet these requirements. Spray drying is used to produce hercynite (FeAl 2 O 4 ) particles using pH ‐modification of a charge‐stabilized sol. This process involves inducing partial flocculation in nanoparticle suspensions to yield larger particles that are spherical and structurally robust. A commercial boehmite suspension is characterized along with a mixture of the boehmite suspension with an iron oxide suspension. Zeta potential near zero and peak yield stress measurements at the same pH indicate flocculation, but associated sedimentation behavior is not observed. The behavior of both the boehmite‐only and mixed suspensions both seem to be driven by the behavior of the boehmite suspension alone. Spray dried particles from the mixed suspension at the critical pH gave significantly larger and more spherical particles, which also indicates flocculation. This relatively simple technique shows promise for new mixed‐metal material formulations and scalable applications.

Ehrhart, Brian D.↗
DOE OSTI2026

Engineering Microstructure in Dry-Processed Cathodes Via Calendering

Calendering serves as a multifunctional step in dry electrode processing that not only densifies the electrode but also induces polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) fibrillation and reorganizes the microstructure. These coupled effects are essential for achieving electrical connectivity and sufficient cohesion, yet they also introduce trade-offs, such as active material particle fracture, pore collapse, and excessive porosity loss, that can hinder ionic transport. This research systematically maps the calendering parameter space for LiNi0.6Mn0.2Co0.2O2 (NMC622) dry cathodes with a target thickness of ∼100 µm and porosity of ∼30% by varying roll gaps, roll temperature, roll speed, and the number of passes. A practical processing window for this formulation and electrode architecture is identified that achieves sufficient PTFE fibrillation and strong interfacial contact while minimizing particle fracture and preserving the porosity required for efficient ionic transport. In particular, gradual-gap calendering with moderate per-pass compression mitigates fracture and pore collapse while still reaching the target thickness with reasonable throughput, and slower roll speeds with modest roll temperatures further reduce mechanical damage. These results provide actionable guidance for scaling NMC622-based thick dry-processed cathodes.

Park, Hyunji↗
DOE OSTI2015

Combined wet and dry cleaning of SiGe(001)

Combined wet and dry cleaning via hydrofluoric acid (HF) and atomic hydrogen on Si{sub 0.6}Ge{sub 0.4}(001) surface was studied at the atomic level using ultrahigh vacuum scanning tunneling microscopy (STM), scanning tunneling spectroscopy (STS), and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy to understand the chemical transformations of the surface. Aqueous HF removes native oxide, but residual carbon and oxygen are still observed on Si{sub 0.6}Ge{sub 0.4}(001) due to hydrocarbon contamination from post HF exposure to ambient. The oxygen contamination can be eliminated by shielding the sample from ambient via covering the sample in the HF cleaning solution until the sample is introduced to the vacuum chamber or by transferring the sample in an inert environment; however, both processes still leave carbon contaminant. Dry in-situ atomic hydrogen cleaning above 330 °C removes the carbon contamination on the surface consistent with a thermally activated atomic hydrogen reaction with surface hydrocarbon. A postdeposition anneal at 550 °C induces formation of an atomically flat and ordered SiGe surface observed by STM. STS verifies that the wet and dry cleaned surface has an unpinned Fermi level with no states between the conduction and valence band edge comparable to sputter cleaned SiGe surfaces.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2021

Using block-copolymer nanolithography as a tool to sensitively evaluate variation in chemical dry etching rates of semiconductor materials with sub-5 nm resolution

Ion implantation is a robust and established method to customize the electronic properties of Si. However, fabricating doped, ultrafine semiconductor nanostructures can be challenging. Ion implantation has well-established effects on the dry etch rates of Si, which becomes increasingly consequential as the target dimension shrinks below a few tens of nanometers. While dry etching arrays of block copolymer-templated nanoscale holes (pitch = 37.5 nm, diameter ~25 nm) into p-type, n-type, and undoped Si, we observed that the lateral etch rate was notably larger for the n-type regions than p-type or undoped regions. By doing image analyses on high resolution electron micrographs of the nanostructured hole arrays, we were able to extract the porosity and average radii of the holes with subnanometer sensitivity and compare the relative etch rates between different doping conditions. We found that degenerately doped n-type silicon consistently etches between approximately 17% and 27% faster in the lateral direction than p-type Si, resulting in significantly larger porosity and, consequently, less mechanical stability. Here, we demonstrate that top-down dimensional analysis of a densely packed porous nanostructure is a robust method for assessing extremely small differences in the lateral, chemical etch rate of doped Si to a degree of sensitivity that was previously unachievable. The minute, dense-packed nature of block copolymer self-assembled nanostructures is shown to be ideal for this application. This proposed method could be useful for designing fabrication processes for heterogeneous nanostructures, as slight dry etch rate variations that may be within process tolerance at the micrometer-scale appear to have nontrivial consequences at the nanometer scale.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2022

A Hybrid Bulk Algorithm to Predict Turbulent Fluxes over Dry and Wet Bare Soils

Measurements made in the Columbia River basin (Oregon) in an area of irregular terrain during the second Wind Forecast Improvement Project (WFIP2) field campaign are used to develop an optimized hybrid bulk algorithm to predict the surface turbulent fluxes from readily measured or modeled quantities over dry and wet bare or lightly vegetated soil surfaces. The hybrid (synthetic) algorithm combines (i) an aerodynamic method for turbulent flow, which is based on the transfer coefficients (drag coefficient and Stanton number), roughness lengths, and Monin–Obukhov similarity; and (ii) a modified Priestley–Taylor (P-T) algorithm with physically based ecophysiological constraints, which is essentially based on the surface energy budget (SEB) equation. Soil heat flux in the latter case was estimated from measurements of soil temperature and soil moisture. In the framework of the hybrid algorithm, bulk estimates of the momentum flux and the sensible heat flux are derived from a traditional aerodynamic approach, whereas the latent heat flux (or moisture flux) is evaluated from a modified P-T model. Direct measurements of the surface fluxes (turbulent and radiative) and other ancillary atmospheric/soil parameters made during WFIP2 for different soil conditions (dry and wet) are used to optimize and tune the hybrid bulk algorithm. The bulk flux estimates are validated against the measured eddy-covariance fluxes. We also discuss the SEB closure over dry and wet surfaces at various time scales based on the modeled and measured fluxes. Although this bulk flux algorithm is optimized for the data collected during the WFIP2, a hybrid approach can be used for similar flux-tower sites and field campaigns.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2018

A Scale-Adaptive Turbulent Kinetic Energy Closure for the Dry Convective Boundary Layer

Abstract A pragmatic scale-adaptive turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) closure is proposed to simulate the dry convective boundary layer for a variety of horizontal grid resolutions: from 50 m, typical of large-eddy simulation models that use three-dimensional turbulence parameterizations/closures, up to 100 km, typical of climate models that use one-dimensional turbulence and convection parameterizations/closures. Since parameterizations/closures using the TKE approach have been frequently used in these two asymptotic limits, a simple method is proposed to merge them with a mixing-length-scale formulation for intermediate resolutions. This new scale-adaptive mixing length naturally increases with increasing grid length until it saturates as the grid length reaches mesoscale-model resolution. The results obtained using this new approach for dry convective boundary layers are promising. The mean vertical profiles of potential temperature and heat flux remain in good agreement for different resolutions. A continuous transition (in terms of resolution) across the gray zone is illustrated through the partitioning between the model-resolved and the subgrid-scale transports as well as by documenting the transition of the subgrid-scale TKE source/sink terms. In summary, a natural and continuous transition across resolutions (from 50 m to 100 km) is obtained, for dry convection, using exactly the same atmospheric model for all resolutions with a simple scale-adaptive mixing-length formulation.

Kurowski, Marcin J.↗
DOE OSTI2015

Evaluation of the response of tritium-in-air instrumentation to HT in dry and humid conditions and to HTO vapor

Nuclear plant operators (power generation, decommissioning and reprocessing operations) are required to monitor releases of tritium species for regulatory compliance and radiation protection purposes. Tritium monitoring is performed using tritium-in-air gas monitoring instrumentation based either on flow-through ion chambers or proportional counting systems. Tritium-in-air monitors are typically calibrated in dry conditions but in service may operate at elevated levels of relative humidity. The NPL (National Physical Laboratory) radioactive gas-in-air calibration system has been used to study the effect of humidity on the response to tritium of two tritium-in-air ion chamber based monitors and one proportional counting system which uses a P10/air gas mixture. The response of these instruments to HTO vapour has also been evaluated. In each case, instrument responses were obtained for HT in dry conditions (relative humidity (RH) about 2%), HT in 45% RH, and finally HTO at 45% RH. Instrumentation response to HT in humid conditions has been found to slightly exceed that in dry conditions. (authors)

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Dry heat sterilization as a method to recycle N95 respirator masks: The importance of fit

In times of crisis, including the current COVID-19 pandemic, the supply chain of filtering facepiece respirators, such as N95 respirators, are disrupted. To combat shortages of N95 respirators, many institutions were forced to decontaminate and reuse respirators. While several reports have evaluated the impact on filtration as a measurement of preservation of respirator function after decontamination, the equally important fact of maintaining proper fit to the users’ face has been understudied. In the current study, we demonstrate the complete inactivation of SARS-CoV-2 and preservation of fit test performance of N95 respirators following treatment with dry heat. We apply scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM/EDS), X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements, Raman spectroscopy, and contact angle measurements to analyze filter material changes as a consequence of different decontamination treatments. We further compared the integrity of the respirator after autoclaving versus dry heat treatment via quantitative fit testing and found that autoclaving, but not dry heat, causes the fit of the respirator onto the users face to fail, thereby rendering the decontaminated respirator unusable. Our findings highlight the importance to account for both efficacy of disinfection and mask fit when reprocessing respirators to for clinical redeployment.

77 NANOSCIENCE AND NANOTECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2022

Lead isotopic compositions of airborne particulates collected from snow and from dry deposition in the East River Watershed, Colorado and at the Southern Sierra Critical Zone Observatory, California

The data set consists of lead (Pb) isotopic ratios (206Pb/207Pb and 208Pb/207Pb, as well as 206Pb/204Pb, 207Pb/204Pb, 208Pb/204Pb) for particulate samples collected from snow and dry deposition. This was part of a study (O’Day et al. 2020) that was looking at the speciation of phosphorous in splits of these samples to evaluate the flux and bio-availability of phosphorous to the mountain sites in the study. The Pb isotopic data allow sourcing of long-range transported Pb, specifically the fraction of Pb sourced in Asia, and so a comparison of the relative distances of PM sources between the high and low elevation sites. Samples were collected at the East River Watershed, CO (dry deposition collected over Sept.-Oct. 2016, show sampling winter 2017) and at the Southern Sierra Critical Zone Observatory (dry deposition collected over Sept-Nov 2016, July-Sept 2017, June-July 2017). The data includes Pb concentration data, as well as calculated fraction of the Pb sourced in Asia. This data set was published in part in O’Day et al. (2020) Phosphorus Speciation in Atmospherically Deposited Particulate Matter and Implications for Terrestrial Ecosystem Productivity. ES&T, https://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.9b06150

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2021

AmeriFlux MX-Aog Alamos Old-Growth tropical dry forest

This is the AmeriFlux version of the carbon flux data for the site MX-Aog Alamos Old-Growth tropical dry forest. Site Description - This tower is located at a patch of remnant old growth tropical dry forest where the dominant vegetation are leguminous trees and a notorious presence of the genus Brusera. The site is at about 18 km from the municipality of Alamos Sonora Mexico within a private ranch managed by the NGO Nature Culture International. The area is also within a federally protected land named “Area de Proteccion de Flora y Fauna Sierra de Alamos Rio-Cuchijaqui" in the catalog of the “Comision Nacional de Areas Naturales Protegidas (CONANP-Mexico)”. The preserved ranch is surrounded by a mosaic of forest patches with different successional stages of tropical dry forest, and some places that are used for local agriculture and livestock. This ecosystem lies in a highly seasonal region under the influence of the North American Monsoon that brings about 70% of the rains from July to September.

Yepez, Enrico A.↗
DOE OSTI2013

Evaluation of Dry Sorbent Injection Technology for Pre-Combustion CO{sub 2} Capture

This document summarizes the work performed on Cooperative Agreement DE-FE0000465, “Evaluation of Dry Sorbent Technology for Pre-Combustion CO{sub 2} Capture,” during the period of performance of January 1, 2010 through September 30, 2013. This project involves the development of a novel technology that combines a dry sorbent-based carbon capture process with the water-gas-shift reaction for separating CO{sub 2} from syngas. The project objectives were to model, develop, synthesize and screen sorbents for CO{sub 2} capture from gasified coal streams. The project was funded by the DOE National Energy Technology Laboratory with URS as the prime contractor. Illinois Clean Coal Institute and The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign were project co-funders. The objectives of this project were to identify and evaluate sorbent materials and concepts that were suitable for capturing carbon dioxide (CO{sub 2}) from warm/hot water-gas-shift (WGS) systems under conditions that minimize energy penalties and provide continuous gas flow to advanced synthesis gas combustion and processing systems. Objectives included identifying and evaluating sorbents that efficiently capture CO{sub 2} from a gas stream containing CO{sub 2}, carbon monoxide (CO), and hydrogen (H{sub 2}) at temperatures as high as 650 °C and pressures of 400-600 psi. After capturing the CO{sub 2}, the sorbents would ideally be regenerated using steam, or other condensable purge vapors. Results from the adsorption and regeneration testing were used to determine an optimal design scheme for a sorbent enhanced water gas shift (SEWGS) process and evaluate the technical and economic viability of the dry sorbent approach for CO{sub 2} capture. Project work included computational modeling, which was performed to identify key sorbent properties for the SEWGS process. Thermodynamic modeling was used to identify optimal physical properties for sorbents and helped down-select from the universe of possible sorbent materials to seven that were deemed thermodynamically viable for the process. Molecular modeling was used to guide sorbent synthesis through first principles simulations of adsorption and regeneration. Molecular dynamics simulations also modeled the impact of gas phase impurities common in gasified coal streams (e.g., H{sub 2}S) on the adsorption process. The role of inert dopants added for mechanical durability to active sorbent materials was also investigated through molecular simulations. Process simulations were conducted throughout the project to help determine the overall feasibility of the process and to help guide laboratory operating conditions. A large component of the program was the development of sorbent synthesis methods. Three different approaches were used: mechanical alloying (MA), flame spray pyrolysis (FSP), and ultrasonic spray pyrolysis (USP). Sorbents were characterized by a host of analytical techniques and screened for SEWGS performance using a thermogravimetric analyzer (TGA). A feedback loop from screening efforts to sorbent synthesis was established and used throughout the project lifetime. High temperature, high pressure reactor (HTPR) systems were constructed to test the sorbents at conditions mimicking the SEWGS process as identified through process modeling. These experiments were conducted at the laboratory scale to examine sorbents for their CO{sub 2} capacity, conversion of CO to CO{sub 2}, and impacts of adsorption and regeneration conditions, and syngas composition (including impurities and H2O:CO ratio). Results from the HTPR testing showed sorbents with as high as 0.4 g{sub CO{sub 2}}/g{sub sorbent} capacity with the ability to initially shift the WGS completely towards CO{sub 2}/H{sub 2}. A longer term experiment with a simple syngas matrix and N{sub 2}/steam regeneration stream showed a USP sorbent to be stable through 50 adsorption-regeneration cycles, though the sorbent tested had a somewhat diminished initial capacity. The program culminated in a technoeconomic assessment in which two different approaches were taken; one approach was intended to be technically conservative while the second required several key engineering challenges to be met in order to succeed. The project team is confident that, with the proper support, those challenges could be met. The second approach relies on a slipstream of H{sub 2} from the shifted syngas and O{sub 2} from an air separation unit (ASU) to be combusted in the presence of the sorbent for regeneration; termed a regenerating boiler. The approach also makes use of the heat of adsorption to generate >400 MW of turbine quality steam; total plant gross energy output as high as 1 GW was estimated for an IGCC with an initial gross energy output of 737 MW, without any additional coal usage. The regenerating boiler concept could benefit further from additional heat integration, but the results of this effort show a COE of $97.50 per MWh for a rational combination of operating parameters and sorbent lifetime as well as conservative estimates for steam turbines, gas turbine, and ASU. If the COE of CO{sub 2} transmission, storage and monitoring ($5.60 / MWh) is added to the base case for an IGCC ($81.30 / MWh for Case 5 from the DOE Bituminous Coal Report), the cost of CO{sub 2} capture for the regenerating boiler was only $10.60 / MWh; other regenerating boiler cases are as low $6.90 / MWh. The project met all agreed upon milestones and was completed within budget, more than 25% cost share provided by the project team. Results from the program showed that the SEWGS process has great promise, and with further study and evaluation could become a component of a comprehensive carbon capture program. SEWGS requires a paradigm shift in the traditional approach to carbon capture because the regenerating boiler concept is not a ‘back-end’ solution to CO{sub 2} mitigation. Rather, it is an integral part of the plant operations and is responsible for generating more electricity than the IGCC itself. Schemes could be envisioned where the H{sub 2} production is used exclusively to regenerate the sorbent, with any excess sold as a commodity, and the heat of adsorption serving as the primary driver for power generation. Further work with sorbent evaluation, process modeling and heat integration, and scale-up would be needed to more fully vet SEWGS, but the culmination of this program indicates that additional study is warranted.

20 FOSSIL-FUELED POWER PLANTS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Managing Aging Effects on Dry Cask Storage Systems for Extended Long-Term Storage and Transportation of Used Fuel (Rev. 2)

At present, the United States does not have a designated disposal site for used nuclear fuel — the nation therefore faces the prospect of extended long‐term storage (i.e., >60 years) and deferred transportation of used fuel at operating and decommissioned nuclear power plant sites. Under current U.S. federal regulations contained in Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 72.42, the initial license term for an Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation (ISFSI) must not exceed 40 years from the date of issuance (20 years before the rule change in 2010 that became effective in 2011). The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) may renew licenses at the expiration of the license term upon application by the licensee for a period not to exceed 40 years. Applications for ISFSI license renewals must include the following: 1. Time‐limited aging analyses (TLAAs) that demonstrate that structures, systems, and components (SSCs) important to safety will continue to perform their intended function for the requested period of extended operation and 2. A description of the aging management program (AMP) for the management of issues associated with aging that could adversely affect SSCs important to safety. In addition, the application must include design basis information as documented in the most recently updated final safety analysis report, as required by 10 CFR 72.70. Information contained in previous applications, statements, or reports filed with the Commission under the license may be incorporated by reference, provided that these references are clear and specific. The NRC has issued the “Standard Review Plan for Renewal of Spent Fuel Dry Cask Storage System Licenses and Certificates of Compliance,” NUREG‐1927, under which NRC may renew a specific license or a Certificate of Compliance (CoC) for a term not to exceed 40 years. Both the license and the CoC renewal applications must contain revised technical requirements and operating conditions (fuel storage, surveillance and maintenance, and other requirements) for the ISFSI and dry cask storage system (DCSS) that address aging effects that could affect the safe storage of the used fuel. The information contained in the license and CoC renewal applications will require NRC review to verify that the aging effects on the SSCs in DCSSs/ISFSIs are adequately managed for the requested period of extended operation. To date, all of the ISFSIs across the United States with more than 1,500 dry casks loaded with used fuel have initial license terms of 20 years — three ISFSIs (Surry, H.B. Robinson, and Oconee) have received their renewed licenses for 40 years, and two other ISFSIs (Calvert Cliffs and Prairie Island) have applied for license renewal for 40 years. In addition, renewal of the CoC for the VSC‐24 system is pending approval from NRC.

Chopra, O. K.↗
DOE OSTI2015

Advanced SMRs Using S-CO2 Power Conversion with Dry Cooling

This report concludes the LDRD entitled "Advanced SMRs using S-CO2 Power Conversion with Dry Cooling." The goal of this project was to demonstrate the feasibility of using sCO 2 as the working fluid in a dry-cooled natural circulation loop. The reason for doing this is to demonstrate that such a loop could be utilized in small modular reactors (SMRs) as a method for (a) passively removing decay heat from the reactor and (b) cooling the reactor without using the copious amounts of water needed for wet-cooled reactors. The dry-cooling aspect of this work is possible due to the working conditions of a sCO 2 Brayton power conversion cycle. The loop was designed, built, and operated over the three-year life of the LDRD project. This report outlines some of the key accomplishments and some of the future work that we are continuing to try to complete in the future. A more comprehensive report will be completed and submitted in the Fall of 2015.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2017

Materials and Dimensional Reference Handbook for the Boiling Water Reactor Dry Cask Simulator.

The performance of commercial nuclear spent fuel dry storage casks is evaluated through detailed analytical modeling of the system’s thermal performance. A recent investigation has been completed that produced a data set that can be used to test the validity of the modeling presently used to determine cladding temperatures in modern vertical dry casks. To produce these data sets under well-controlled boundary conditions, the dry cask simulator (DCS) was built to study the thermal-hydraulic response of fuel under a variety of heat loads, internal vessel pressures, and external configurations [Durbin and Lindgren, 2017]. The experiments were conducted in Albuquerque, New Mexico where the local ambient atmospheric pressure is typically 83 kPa. The purpose of this handbook is to document the pertinent geometric and material property information needed to perform model validation efforts.

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Technology Development for Aluminum-clad Spent Nuclear Fuel for Extended Dry Storage (Status Report)

A task group under the Spent Nuclear Fuel Working Group of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Offices of Environmental Management (EM) and Nuclear Energy (NE) identified technical challenges (“information gaps"’) to the ability to provide for safe extended (>50 years) dry storage of Aluminum-Clad Spent Nuclear Fuel (ASNF) in a report issued in 2017, An Action Plan was developed, and a task- based program was launched under the sponsorship of DOE-EM, Office of Technology Development (EMTD) in October 2018 to close the gaps and complete the technical information set needed to implement extended dry storage with confidence. This interim status report summarizes the work to date of this EMTD program to complete the technical bases and demonstrate that extended dry storage is safe and viable.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Ageing Management for Extended Long-Term Dry Storage of Spent Nuclear Fuel and Transportation

The principal objectives of the Coordinated Research Project (CRP) and CRADA were to (1) investigate how ageing effects leading to degradation of materials used in the spent fuel dry storage systems could be managed by ageing management programs (AMPs) and (2) using existing AMPs as a basis, establish guidance on how to develop, generate, and maintain AMPs for dry storage systems of spent nuclear fuel (SNF) that can be accomplished in various ways. The PI (Dr. Liu) is an internationally recognized expert on ageing management for license renewal of nuclear power plants and independent spent fuel dry storage installations. Dr. Liu was invited by IAEA to participate in this CRP and served as Chair of the Working Group, supporting the IAEA CRP Lead, with other members from Argentina, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Hungary, Japan, Pakistan, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom, and the United States of America. Argonne’s scope of work in the CRADA for the CRP included (1) ageing management guidance documents developed by Argonne for DOE and used by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and industry and (2) research leveraged from the DOE Office of Nuclear Energy on the mechanical properties of high-burnup fuel cladding and the ARG-US remote monitoring systems technology developed for the DOE Packaging Certification Program, Office of Packaging and Transportation, Office of Environmental Management.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗