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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 487 records · Page 27
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2025

VOLTTRON/volttron-pnnl-aems

The Autonomous Energy Management Software (AEMS) system will continuously optimize the operations of the distributed energy resources in the small and medium size commercial building by minimizing energy consumption and cost, while providing a solution for maximizing decarbonization benefits from electrification of buildings. Initially, AEMS system will manage rooftop air conditioners and heat pumps but it can be extended in the future to manage, hot water heaters, storage (battery and thermal), electric vehicle charging and monitoring solar photovoltaic. AEMS support both energy efficiency and grid service features.

Bleeker, Amelia [Pacific Northwest National Labora↗
DOE OSTI2020

Pumped Storage Hydropower FAST Commissioning Technical Analysis

This report was developed in tandem with the Furthering Advancements to Shorten Time (FAST) to Commissioning PSH Challenge and represents the underlying technical analysis that informed the competition. Lead by Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the report is designed to address barriers and solutions to PSH development by establishing baseline project development knowledge, defining key aspects of project development, and identifying opportunities to reduce project timelines, costs, and risks. The document’s scope includes post-licensing activities and excludes factors related to permitting or licensing.

13 HYDRO ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2020

Multi-Functional Distributed Fiber Sensors for Pipeline Monitoring and Methane Detections. Final Report

As an abundant and cheap fossil energy source, natural gas has become a significant energy supply to support the United States’ economy. However, the large-scale extraction and utilization of natural gas also impose significant challenges on methane leakage. This problem is exacerbated by aging gas utility delivery systems, including interstate high-pressure pipelines, storage, and transmission facilities. This project aims to develop a cost-effective fiber optical sensing method that can perform multi-parameter real-time measurements of natural gas pipelines across long interrogation distances up to 100 km with 1-meter spatial resolution. This sensing tool can evaluate overall pipeline efficiency and reduce methane emissions for mid-stream methane infrastructures. To accomplish this objective, research and development efforts funded by this project have resulted in the following accomplishments: This project successfully has developed new functional sensory polymer materials using Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs) that can be coated on optical fiber through the reel-to-reel coating process. Functional polymer-coated optical fibers can perform sensitive methane detection through evanescence wave interaction and strain-based measurements to achieve 1% detection sensitivities. The new sensors fibers support both distributed measurements and multiplexed fiber sensors array for multi-point measurements. This project developed and optimized a new multi-core optical fiber that supports simultaneous and distributed measurements of strain and temperatures with 1-meter spatial resolutions across up to 100-km interrogation distance. This new fiber, combined with sensory polymercoated fiber, could perform both distributed temperature and methane detections. This project developed a new artificial intelligence big data algorithm approach that can effectively analyze high-resolution data harnessed by distributed fiber sensors to protect natural gas pipelines against external threats and detect internal defects induced by corrosion. Working with our industry partner, this project developed new optical fibers that support fiber sensor fabrications through polymer coating after the fibers are drawn. These new fibers eliminate the need for direct sensor fabrication when the fiber is fabricated on a fiber draw tower, which drastically expands fiber sensors' applicability. This research project has significantly advanced the distributed fiber sensing technology. It will dramatically increase the applicability and adaptability of distributed fiber sensors for a wide array of applications in energy, sustainability, and environmental science, including structural health monitoring of natural gas pipelines, oil infrastructures, hydrogen facilities, and environmental monitoring of carbon storage sites, water supply systems, and others.

03 NATURAL GAS↗
DOE OSTI2025

Voices from Rural Electric Cooperatives: A Call for a DER Integration Playbook for Rural and Agricultural Income & Savings from Renewable Energy (RAISE)

Rural-serving electric utilities (RSEUs)—including electric cooperatives, municipal systems, and small investor-owned utilities—are essential players in the evolving energy landscape. These community-focused entities are increasingly being asked to consider distributed energy resources (DERs) such as rooftop and ground-mounted solar, wind, battery storage, smart water heaters, and demand response programs (NRECA 2025; Lenhart et al. 2020). Yet the path to DER adoption is far from straightforward in the rural context. This report is based on in-depth interviews with managers of rural electric cooperatives across the United States. These conversations offer a grounded, unvarnished look at how DERs are perceived, what barriers exist, and what conditions might enable integration and adoption. While the utilities interviewed vary in geography, size, and DER experience, several clear and common themes emerged across electric cooperatives such that the report recommends the development of a DER Integration Runbook to help utilities assess readiness, define local use cases, engage stakeholders, pilot projects, and iterate, expanding over time.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
NASA NTRS1972

Automatic water inventory, collecting, and dispensing unit

Two cylindrical tanks with piston bladders and associated components for automatic filling and emptying use liquid inventory readout devices in control of water flow. Unit provides for adaptive water collection, storage, and dispensation in weightlessness environment.

Hall, J. B., Jr.↗
NASA NTRS1976

An inexpensive economical solar heating system for homes

A low-cost solar home heating system to supplement existing warm-air heating systems is described. The report is written in three parts: (1) a brief background on solar heating, (2) experience with a demonstration system, and (3) information for the homeowner who wishes to construct such a system. Instructions are given for a solar heating installation in which the homeowner supplies all labor necessary to install off-the-shelf components estimated to cost $2,000. These components, which include solar collector, heat exchanger, water pump, storage tank, piping, and controls to make the system completely automatic, are available at local lumber yards, hardware stores, and plumbing supply stores, and are relatively simple to install. Manufacturers and prices of each component used and a rough cost analysis based on these prices are included. This report also gives performance data obtained from a demonstration system which was built and tested at the Langley Research Center.

Allred, J. W.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Solar heated office complex--Greenwood, South Carolina

Report contains thorough docuumentation of project meeting 85 percent of building heat requirements. System uses roof mounted recirculating water solar panels and underground hot water energy storage. Aluminum film reflectors increase total solar flux captured by panels.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS1981

Solar space-heating system--Yosemite National Park, California

A 12 months performance of Visitors Center installation suffered from low insolation, high energy dissipation, and equipment breakdown. System has 980 square feet of liquid flat-plate collectors, water energy storage, 4-mode control, heat exchangers, pumps, and plumbing. Design expected system to supply over 50 percent of annual heating demand, but only 109 million Btu were conserved.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS1983

Heat recovery subsystem and overall system integration of fuel cell on-site integrated energy systems

The best HVAC (heating, ventilating and air conditioning) subsystem to interface with the Engelhard fuel cell system for application in commercial buildings was determined. To accomplish this objective, the effects of several system and site specific parameters on the economic feasibility of fuel cell/HVAC systems were investigated. An energy flow diagram of a fuel cell/HVAC system is shown. The fuel cell system provides electricity for an electric water chiller and for domestic electric needs. Supplemental electricity is purchased from the utility if needed. An excess of electricity generated by the fuel cell system can be sold to the utility. The fuel cell system also provides thermal energy which can be used for absorption cooling, space heating and domestic hot water. Thermal storage can be incorporated into the system. Thermal energy is also provided by an auxiliary boiler if needed to supplement the fuel cell system output. Fuel cell/HVAC systems were analyzed with the TRACE computer program.

Mougin, L. J.↗
NASA NTRS1987

Ring furrows - Inversion of topography in Martian highland terrains

Viking Orbiter images showing ring furrows (as defined by De Hon, 1984) and related structures on the Martian highlands are presented and analyzed. It is pointed out that ring furrows occur only on modified or dissected plains and plains within hilly or cratered terrain, that all ring furrows are breached in some way, and that they appear to arise at the same time as nearby valley systems (although they do not contain small valleys themselves). A number of features with some similarities to ring furrows are discussed, and it is suggested that the furrows arise as a result of a sequence of processes including crater formation on a plains surface, partial burial by plains-forming materials, and preferential water/ice erosion of the exposed rim. The presence of significant ground-water/ice storage systems near ring furrows is inferred.

De Hon, Rene A.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Soil moisture needs in earth sciences

The author reviews the development of passive and active microwave techniques for measuring soil moisture with respect to how the data may be used. New science programs such as the EOS, the GEWEX Continental-Scale International Project (GCIP) and STORM, a mesoscale meteorology and hydrology project, will have to account for soil moisture either as a storage in water balance computations or as a state variable in-process modeling. The author discusses future soil moisture needs such as frequency of measurement, accuracy, depth, and spatial resolution, as well as the concomitant model development that must proceed concurrently if the development in microwave technology is to have a major impact in these areas.

Engman, Edwin T.↗
NASA NTRS2003

Observing the Global Water Cycle from Space

This paper presents an approach to measuring all major components of the water cycle from space. The goal of the paper is to explore the concept of using a sensor-web of satellites to observe the global water cycle. The details of the required measurements and observation systems are therefore only an initial approach and will undergo future refinement, as their details will be highly important. Key elements include observation and evaluation of all components of the water cycle in terms of the storage of water-in the ocean, air, cloud and precipitation, in soil, ground water, snow and ice, and in lakes and rivers-and in terms of the global fluxes of water between these reservoirs. For each component of the water cycle that must be observed, the appropriate temporal and spatial scales of measurement are estimated, along with the some of the frequencies that have been used for active and passive microwave observations of the quantities. The suggested types of microwave observations are based on the heritage for such measurements, and some aspects of the recent heritage of these measurement algorithms are listed. The observational requirements are based on present observational systems, as modified by expectations for future needs. Approaches to the development of space systems for measuring the global water cycle can be based on these observational requirements.

Hildebrand, Peter H.↗
NASA NTRS2014

Initial in Situ Measurements of Perennial Meltwater Storage in the Greenland Firn Aquifer

A perennial storage of water in a firn aquifer was discovered in southeast Greenland in 2011. We present the first in situ measurements of the aquifer, including densities and temperatures. Water was present at depths between approx. 12 and 37m and amounted to 18.7 +/- 0.9 kg in the extracted core. The water filled the firn to capacity at approx. 35m. Measurements show the aquifer temperature remained at the melting point, representing a large heat reservoir within the firn. Using model results of liquid water extent and aquifer surface depth from radar measurements, we extend our in situ measurements to the Greenland ice sheet. The estimated water volume is 140 +/- 20 Gt, representing approx. 0.4mm of sea level rise (SLR). It is unknown if the aquifer temporary buffers SLR or contributes to SLR through drainage and/or ice dynamics.

measurements↗
NASA NTRS2016

A Review of Recent Updates of Sea-Level Projections at Global and Regional Scales

Sea-level change (SLC) is a much-studied topic in the area of climate research, integrating a range of climate science disciplines, and is expected to impact coastal communities around the world. As a result, this field is rapidly moving, and the knowledge and understanding of processes contributing to SLC is increasing. Here, we discuss noteworthy recent developments in the projection of SLC contributions and in the global mean and regional sea-level projections. For the Greenland Ice Sheet contribution to SLC, earlier estimates have been confirmed in recent research, but part of the source of this contribution has shifted from dynamics to surface melting. New insights into dynamic discharge processes and the onset of marine ice sheet instability increase the projected range for the Antarctic contribution by the end of the century. The contribution from both ice sheets is projected to increase further in the coming centuries to millennia. Recent updates of the global glacier outline database and new global glacier models have led to slightly lower projections for the glacier contribution to SLC (7-17 cm by 2100), but still project the glaciers to be an important contribution. For global mean sea-level projections, the focus has shifted to better estimating the uncertainty distributions of the projection time series, which may not necessarily follow a normal distribution. Instead, recent studies use skewed distributions with longer tails to higher uncertainties. Regional projections have been used to study regional uncertainty distributions, and regional projections are increasingly being applied to specific regions, countries, and coastal areas.

glaciers↗
DOE OSTI2020

Alternative Treatment of Defense Waste Processing Facility Recycle via Reuse of Existing Liquid Waste Facilities - 20097

The Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF) at Savannah River Site (SRS) has been immobilizing high level waste since 1996. The chemical process within DWPF generates a large volume of condensate, which is recycled to the SRS H-Area Tank Farm. The recycle stream includes a small quantity of sludge solids, as well as soluble cesium that is volatilized during melter operation. The recycle waste is currently received into a large, underground waste tank that separates insoluble solids via decanting. The supernate is treated by an evaporator with a concentrate stream that is stored for future processing. The evaporator overheads are collected and sent to the Effluent Treatment Project (ETP) for final polishing and testing prior to discharge to local surface water. Recycle storage and treatment as described above complicates the overall mission within the tank farms, which are primarily engaged in waste retrieval and preparation activities that support sludge and salt disposition, as well as tank characterization and closure. The need to devote a portion of available storage space to recycle treatment limits operational flexibility, and ultimately the DWPF recycle stream must be diverted to fully close all the SRS waste tanks. An alternative treatment process is being explored to decouple the recycle stream from the tank farm. The proposed treatment process will accomplish solids separation via crossflow filtration and will utilize a wiped film evaporator to volume-reduce the filtrate stream. Evaporator overheads will continue to be further processed in ETP while the solids stream and evaporator concentrate stream will be returned for reprocessing with the DWPF and Salt Waste Processing Facility (SWPF). This process will utilize existing facilities within DWPF and the tank farm that were previously dedicated to Interim Salt Disposition (ISD), but no longer have an identified mission with the startup of SWPF. The reuse of these facilities will remove several constraints from the current Liquid Waste (LW) System Plan without expanding the current footprint of Department of Energy Environmental Management (EM) infrastructure within LW. (authors)

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

The MOOSE fluid properties module

The fluid properties module in MOOSE~\cite{lindsay2022moose} serves a variety of fluid simulation applications based on MOOSE, including the MOOSE Navier Stokes module~\cite{moose_ns}, Pronghorn~\cite{pgh}, the MOOSE thermal hydraulics module, SAM~\cite{sam}, RELAP-7~\cite{relap7}, Sockeye~\cite{sockeye}, Pronghorn-subchannel~\cite{subchannel} and the MOOSE porous flow module~\cite{porous}. These applications are used to solve coarse mesh multi-dimensional thermal-hydraulics~\cite{pgh}, 1D systems analysis~\cite{sam,relap7} in nuclear reactor analysis, heat pipe modeling~\cite{sockeye} and porous flow simulations~\cite{porous} for underground gas storage and water seepage. The use of consistent fluid properties across fluid flow applications facilitates coupled flow simulations~\cite{anl_sam_pgh,osti_1889653}. Each application has historically driven the implementation of several fluid properties, which were later extended to be compatible with other applications. The unique diversity of applications of the module, due to its presence in MOOSE, has driven its expansion to new fluids, such as advanced nuclear reactor coolants and, more recently, arbitrary functions or tables-based property definitions, as detailed in section~\ref{content}, as well as numerous thermophysical properties and variable sets, as detailed in subsection~\ref{sec:prop}. The need for different discretizations of flow equations based on the compressibility of the fluid has motivated support for both primitive (pressure- and temperature-based) and conservative (internal energy- and specific volume-based) flow variables in the module. Thermodynamic relations are used to convert between these two formulations, as needed. The module serves a dual purpose of providing fluid properties for direct use in flow simulations and facilitating the implementation of user-specific fluid properties. Contributions of new properties for existing fluids or new fluids are strongly encouraged.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗