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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 505 records · Page 28
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2020

Testing of UV Oxidation Process for Acetonitrile Destruction

The Hanford Site Effluent Treatment Facility (ETF) currently treats aqueous waste streams that include condensates from the 242-A evaporator, leachate from the Environmental Restoration Disposal Facility (ERDF), as well as laboratory wastes and, in the future, will treat liquid effluents from the Hanford Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) and Integrated Disposal Facility (IDF) leachate. Liquid effluents from the WTP will have significant concentrations of acetonitrile. Acetonitrile is formed by reaction of nitrates and sugar in the WTP low activity waste (LAW) melters and is prevalent in the submerged bed scrubber (SBS) and wet electrostatic precipitator (WESP) liquid effluents from WTP off-gas treatment. When these liquids are concentrated in the WTP Effluent Management Facility (EMF) evaporator in the direct feed low activity waste (DFLAW) flow-sheet, testing has shown that the majority of the acetonitrile partitions to the evaporator condensate. Since the evaporator condensate is directed to the ETF, this creates a potential issue with the ETF waste acceptance criteria and, specifically, the ETF Delisting Modification treatability envelope limits. Consequently, there is a need to assess possible mitigation approaches, one of which involves identification and assessment of potential treatment processes to destroy the acetonitrile, which is the subject of the present report.

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NASA NTRS1999

Chemical Sensors Based on IR Spectroscopy and Surface-Modified Waveguides

Sol-gel processing techniques have been used to apply thin porous films to the surfaces of planar infrared (IR) waveguides to produce widely useful chemical sensors. The thin- film coating serves to diminish the concentration of water and increase the concentration of the analyte in the region probed by the evanescent IR wave. These porous films are composed of silica, and therefore, conventional silica surface modification techniques can be used to give the surface a specific functional character. The sol-gel film was surface-modified to make the film highly hydrophobic. These sensors were shown to be capable of detecting non-polar organic analytes, such as benzonitrile, in aqueous solution with detection limits in the ppb range. Further, these porous sol-gel structures allow the analytes to diffuse into and out of the films rapidly, thus reaching equilibrium in less than ten seconds. These sensors are unique because of the fact that their operation is based on the measurement of an IR absorption spectrum. Thus, these sensors are able to identify the analytes as well as measure concentration with high sensitivity. These developments have been documented in previous reports and publications. Recently, we have also targeted detection of the polar organic molecules acetone and isopropanol in aqueous solution. Polar organics are widely used in industrial and chemical processes, hence it is of interest to monitor their presence in effluents or decontamination process flows. Although large improvements in detection limits were expected with non-polar organic molecules in aqueous solutions using very hydrophobic porous sol-gel films on silicon attenuated total reflectance (Si ATR) waveguides, it was not as clear what the detection enhancements might be for polar organic molecules. This report describes the use of modified sol-gel-coated Si ATR sensors for trace detection and quantitation of small polar organic molecules in aqueous solutions. The detection of both acetone and isopropanol molecules in aqueous solution has been previously reported for chalcogenide fiber optic sensors. The sol-gel film was produced using a mixture of ethyltriethoxysilane and tetraethoxysilane and the surface modification was carried out using trimethylchlorosilane. We have demonstrated that this film concentrates the target polar analytes from aqueous solution in the region probed by the evanescent wave to improve detection limits by as much as a factor of 450.

Lopez, Gabriel P.↗
DOE OSTI2024

Alternative Hanford ETF Grout Evaluation Report

The Hanford Effluent Treatment Facility (ETF) ammonia tolerant grout waste form was developed by the Vitreous State Laboratory (VSL) to stabilize ammonium and thereby prevent emission of ammonia vapor during processing of a final cementitious waste form. This ETF evaporator bottom waste is a concentrated sodium sulfate aqueous solution that also contains dissolved ammonium. The VSL waste form was produced in a two-step process in which struvite (MgNH 4 PO 4.6 H 2 O) is precipitated and then the resulting slurry is solidified in a cementitious matrix. SRNL researchers were tasked to evaluate the effect of compositional and struvite stability in simulated ETF evaporator brine. In 2022 to 2023, samples prepared by SRNL experienced significant expansion (up to 20 volume %) which was not observed by VSL.

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DOE OSTI2022

Electrical sensing, tracking, and actuation of droplets

Devices, techniques, and processes are disclosed that use electrical impedance to detect of the presence and contents of droplets including cells, nucleic acids, proteins, or solute concentrations in an array of retrievable, trackable, trapped droplets in a fluidic system. Electrodes may be positioned underneath individual droplet traps in a microchannel to assay droplet contents and/or actuating droplets for the release of the droplets from corresponding traps. The disclosed technology may be used for detection of the results of solvent extraction processes including time-dependent quantification of metal ion concentration in the aqueous and organic phases, for wastewater treatment, heavy metal detection, pharmaceutical industry, and/or biotechnology, or for environmental monitoring of wastewater for toxic metal, monitoring of biological cell viability and proliferation, monitoring of extraction processes used in heavy metal mining, monitoring of extraction processes used in nuclear fuel processing, monitoring kinetics of enzyme processes, and/or assessing pharmacodynamics and drug efficacy.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
NASA NTRS2019

Oxidation of the Mantle Wedge by H+ in Aqueous Fluids: A New Interdisciplinary Approach

The observation that arc magmas are the most oxidized on Earth have led petrologists to question whether the subduction process might cause oxidation of the sub-arc mantle source. A strong correlation between the input of slab-derived aqueous fluid and Fe3(+)/ΣFe in arc magmas has led to the hypothesis that slab fluids may facilitiate the transfer of redox potential from oxidized slab material to mantle wedge and subsequently to primary arc melts. Despite this intuitive link, identifying an efficient and ubiquitous chemical process to transfer oxidation state in slab fluids has been challenging. Pure H2O alone is an inefficient oxidizer in the mantle, necessitating another oxidant within the fluid. Commonly invoked components include S or C, which are likely heterogeneously distributed within subducting slabs, and direct transfer of Fe3(+), which is only possible in very solute-rich fluids. Here we present a new mechanism to explain the oxidation of the sub-arc mantle by slab-derived aqueous fluid, wherein dissolved H(+)(aq) is reduced to H2(aq). Redox equilibrium is satisfied by electron transfer from Fe2(+)(s), which is oxidized in the rock to Fe3(+)(s) in the reaction: 2Fe2(+)(s) + 2H(+)(aq) = 2Fe3(+)(s) + H2(aq). This simple reaction was previously overlooked due to the assumption that all H must be bound by H2O molecules (i.e., no dissolved H), applicable to a pure H2O fluid, but not one with a solute load as addressed here. The application of thermodynamic modeling tools from aqueous geochemistry (DEW, EQ3/6) to mantle petrology predicts this reaction between mantle rock and slab fluid with our own experimentally constrained chemistry and fO2 (QFM+2). Mass transfer model results show an increase in Fe3(+)/ΣFe in mantle rock from MORB- like (0.15) to arc-like (0.2–0.3) values at reasonable fluid fluxes, co-incident with increasing H2 activity in the fluid. This can explain the stark correlation between slab fluid input into the mantle wedge and the observed fO2 of arc magmas. Moreover, it does not require diffusion of hydrogen out of the system. Instead, H2 remains dissolved in fluid in equilibrium with oxidized mantle rock.

Iacovino, Kayla↗
DOE OSTI2026

Mark-18A Target Material Recovery Program: Initial Hot Startup

The Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) has been tasked by the National Nuclear Security Administration to recover highly valued isotopes from irradiated Mark-18A (Mk-18A) targets. The Savannah River Site (SRS) has sixty-five Mk-18A targets available for the recovery of the high valued materials. The Mk-18A targets were manufactured with Pu-242 then irradiated under high neutron flux in K-Reactor at the SRS from 1968 to 1978. The sixty-five Mk-18A targets are currently stored in the SRS L-Area Basin and will be removed one at a time and individually transported to SRNL. Upon receipt at SRNL, the Mk-18A target material will be removed from the confinement, dissolved, chemically separated, and calcined to a stable oxide. The flowsheet is designed to recover the plutonium as well as the trivalent actinides. The original targets were manufactured with varying quantities of Pu-242, ranging from 5.2 grams to 121.5 grams. Taking a graded approach to process start up, the lowest loaded target (FT-80-03) was selected as the first target to be received and processed at SRNL. As operational experience and knowledge is gained from processing targets, higher loaded targets will be selected for processing to increase the quantities of valuable isotopes recovered. Due to dose concerns, the receipt and processing of the Mk-18A targets is performed in the SRNL Shielded Cells Facility. The targets are stored in a double J-can confinement in the L-Area Basin. A specially designed cask was procured for transport of the targets from L-Area to SRNL. Once received at SRNL, the targets are loaded into the back of Cell 7 and resized as they enter the cell. The resized targets (1/4 length) are then processed one at a time through the following processes: caustic dissolution and filtration, acidic dissolution and filtration, elutable Reillex anion exchange, diglycolamide (DGA) resin extraction, and DGA calcination. This processing results in two product streams. The first is an aqueous plutonium solution which is removed from the shielded cells and taken to a glovebox for further purification and conversion to an oxide. The second is a calcined oxide product containing the Am and Cm as well as other lanthanide fission products which is removed from the shielded cells using a bagless transfer system. Both materials are packaged for shipment to Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). This paper will discuss the operating experience, lessons learned, and results from initial process hot startup.

Armstrong, Christopher [Savannah River National La↗
DOE OSTI2026

3-Hydroxypropionic acid recovery from fermentation broth through novel downstream processing: Technoeconomic analysis

This study develops and validates a simplified, fully solvent-free downstream processing (DSP) strategy for high-purity recovery of 3-hydroxypropionic acid (3-HP) from real fermentation broth containing 62.3 g/L of 3-HP. Optimized activated carbon treatment achieved 98% color removal, while Amberlite IRA-67 was operated at pH 4.5 and 30 °C to minimize product loss. This is the first integrated demonstration of a fully solvent-free DSP enabling recovery of bio-based 3-HP as both a solid sodium salt and a concentrated aqueous solution, supported by techno-economic analysis. At lab scale, the process achieved 77.3% recovery of sodium 3-HP with 83.2% (w/w) purity and produced a 30% (w/v) aqueous solution. Techno-economic analysis yielded minimum selling prices of $0.551/kg for the solution and $0.892/kg for the salt, both below target thresholds for cost-competitive bio-acrylic acid production. Overall, these results demonstrate an efficient, scalable, and economically viable industrial pathway for 3-HP recovery.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Thermodynamic Modeling of Aqueous LiCl, LiBr, LiI, and LiNO 3 Solutions

Thermodynamic models are essential to facilitate the advancement of process design, optimization, and operation of electrolyte systems. In this work, a comprehensive thermodynamic framework based on the Electrolyte Nonrandom Two-Liquid model is developed to calculate phase equilibria behavior and salt solubility of aqueous LiCl, LiBr, LiI, and LiNO 3 solutions. The model describes the non-ideality of the electrolyte solutions by using two binary interaction parameters for each electrolyte-molecule pair in the system. Each binary interaction parameter is further expressed with up to three temperature coefficients which are regressed from experimental data. To take into account the hydration of lithium ion, two separate chemistries for the dissociation of lithium salts are investigated. In the first case, the lithium ion is considered as a bare ion, Li + , while in the second case hydration of the lithium ion from Li + to Li(H 2 O) + is considered. Here, the calculated thermodynamic properties compare adequately with the experimental data for both sets of chemistries for concentrations up to saturation and temperatures from 273.15 K up to 623.15 K. Moderate to significant improvements are observed with the incorporation of the hydration chemistry for aqueous LiCl, LiBr, and LiI solutions when compared to the non-hydrated lithium ion model results.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2025

Developing aqueous solubilizing agents as an alternative to solvent extraction

Here, advancing separations science is important for the entire field of chemistry. One partitioning technique that would benefit from improvement is solvent extraction. Despite its effective and widespread use, the method suffers from some problems: generation of flammable organic waste, lengthy process times, and safety concerns associated with contacting organic solvents with acidic aqueous solutions. We developed an alternative separation method inspired by solvent extraction that side-steps those issues. Toward this end, we identified that the functionality of an extractant (an agent used in solvent extraction to pull analytes from the aqueous phase into the organic phase) would change if it was modified for water solubility. In this alternative scenario, the extractant transforms into an “aqueous solubilizing agent.” We discovered that adding this aqueous solubilizing agent alongside a precipitating agent caused the contaminants to precipitate, but not the analyte. This separation concept was demonstrated within the bounds of one of the most difficult partitioning problems, separating minor actinides (Am 3+ ) from lanthanides (Ln 3+ ). We discovered that the (HSO 3 Ph) 4 BTP (aq) aqueous solubilizing agent prevented Am 3+ (aq) from precipitating with Ln 3+ (aq) when f-element precipitating agents (NaF (aq) or HF (aq) ) were added. This separation boasts impressive Am 3+ (aq) recovery yield (90 ± 2 %), near quantitative Ln 3+ (aq) removal, and high separation factors [>3000, Am 3+ (aq) vs. Nd 3+ (aq) ]. It seems likely – given the large number of candidate extractants that could be modified for aqueous solubility and the numerous combinations of existing solubilizing and precipitating agents – that this alternative approach could be used broadly in place of solvent extraction and solve other important separation problems.

(HSO3Ph)4BTP(aq)↗
DOE OSTI2025

Prediction of hydration energies of adsorbates at Pt(111) and liquid water interfaces using machine learning

Aqueous phase heterogeneous catalysis is important to various industrial processes, including biomass conversion, Fischer–Tropsch synthesis, and electrocatalysis. Accurate calculation of solvation thermodynamic properties is essential for modeling the performance of catalysts for these processes. Explicit solvation methods employing multiscale modeling, e.g., involving density functional theory and molecular dynamics have emerged for this purpose. Although accurate, these methods are computationally intensive. This study introduces machine learning (ML) models to predict solvation thermodynamics for adsorbates on a Pt(111) surface, aiming to enhance computational efficiency without compromising accuracy. In particular, ML models are developed using a combination of molecular descriptors and fingerprints and trained on previously published water–adsorbate interaction energies, energies of solvation, and free energies of solvation of adsorbates bound to Pt(111). These models achieve root mean square error values of 0.09 eV for interaction energies, 0.04 eV for energies of solvation, and 0.06 eV for free energies of solvation, demonstrating accuracy within the standard error of multiscale modeling. Feature importance analysis reveals that hydrogen bonding, van der Waals interactions, and solvent density, together with the properties of the adsorbate, are critical factors influencing solvation thermodynamics. Furthermore, these findings suggest that ML models can provide rapid and reliable predictions of solvation properties. This approach not only reduces computational costs but also offers insights into the solvation characteristics of adsorbates at Pt(111)–water interfaces.

Adsorption↗
NASA NTRS1995

Is the U-B color sufficient for identifying water of hydration on solar system bodies?

The U-B color has been suggested as a predictor of the presence of water of hydration on asteroids. Photometry from the Eight-Color Asteroid Survey (ECAS) was used to test this concept. An overlap in U-B color prevents this magnitude difference from distinguishing between surface material that was thermally processed at higher temperatures and surface material that was aqueously altered. Two tests of the presence of water of hydration using visible spectral region photometry failed to flag those few higher albedo M- and E-class asteroids having photometry that shows a 3.0-micrometers water of hydration absorption. These asteroids probably contain little or no oxidized iron in their surface material.

Vilas, Faith↗
NASA NTRS1999

Mineralogy of the Solar System

The coming decade will witnesses the first sample return missions from solar system bodies in 30 years. These samples will all be very small, some missions return only a few milligrams of total mass. Fortunately, the capability of modem methods to characterize ultra-small samples is well established from analysis of interplanetary dust particles (IDPs), interstellar grains recovered from meteorites, and other materials requiring ultra-sensitive analytical capabilities. Powerful analytical techniques are available that require, under favorable circumstances, single particles of only a few nanograms for entire suites of fairly comprehensive characterizations. A returned sample of greater than 1,000 particles with total mass of just one microgram permits comprehensive quantitative geochemical measurements that are impractical to can-y out in situ by flight instruments. With the Galileo flybys of Gaspra and Ida, it is now recognized that even very small airless bodies have indeed developed a particulate regolith. Acquiring a sample of the bulk regolith, a simple sampling strategy, provides two critical pieces of information about the body. Regolith samples are excellent bulk samples since they normally contain all the key components of the local environment, albeit in particulate form. Furthermore, since this fine fraction dominates remote measurements, regolith samples also provide information about surface alteration processes and are a key link to remote sensing of other bodies. Studies indicate that a statistically significant number of nanogram-sized particles should be able to characterize the regolith of a primitive asteroid, although the presence of larger components within even primitive meteorites (e.g.. Murchison), e.g. chondrules, CAI, large crystal fragments, etc., points out the limitations of using data obtained from nanogram-sized samples to characterize entire primitive asteroids. However, most important asteroidal geological processes have left their mark on the matrix, since this is the finest-grained portion and therefore most sensitive to chemical and physical changes. Thus, the following information can be learned from this fine grain size fraction alone: (1) mineral paragenesis; (2) regolith processes, (3) bulk composition; (4) conditions of thermal and aqueous alteration (if any); (5) relationships to planets, comets, meteorites (via isotopic analyses, including oxygen; (6) abundance of water and hydrated material; (7) abundance of organics; (8) history of volatile mobility, (9) presence and origin of presolar and/or interstellar material.

Zolensky, Michael E.↗
NASA NTRS2017

Oriented Mineral Transformation in a Dark Inclusion from the Leoville Meteorite

Dark inclusions (DIs) in chondrites and achondrites are dark gray to black fragments that include a wide variety of materials that have experienced very different petrologic histories. Based on the law of inclusions, they are rocks that accreted prior to and are older than their host meteorites and possibly rep-resent an earlier generation of material. The origin of these inclusions and their relationship to their host meteorites is not always clear. They are interesting in that they represent lithologies that experienced different parent body histories than their host meteorites and are either exotic components or originated from different regions of the meteorite parent body. In many cases, DIs in CV chondrites have been altered to greater degrees than their host meteorites suggesting pre accretionary alteration [e.g., 1,2,3]. There is debate concerning whether or not these DIs record an earlier era of aqueous alteration and subsequent thermal metamorphism, and how these processes may have also affected the host CV materials. The present study is a description of a dark inclusion found in the Leoville meteorite (specifically, thin section USNM 3535-1). This inclusion has some interesting features that have considerable relevance for this discussion.

Buchanan, P. C.↗
NASA NTRS2021

An evolutionary system of mineralogy, Part V: Aqueous and thermal alteration of planetesimals (~4565 to 4550 Ma)

Part V of the evolutionary system of mineralogy explores phases produced by aqueous alteration, metasomatism, and/or thermal metamorphism—relicts of ancient processes that affected virtually all asteroids and that are preserved in the secondary mineralogy of meteorites. We catalog 166 historical natural kinds of minerals that formed by alteration in the parent bodies of chondritic and non-chondritic meteorites within the first 20 Ma of the solar system. Secondary processes saw a dramatic increase in the chemical and structural diversity of minerals. These phases incorporate 41 different mineral-forming elements, including the earliest known appearances of species with essential Co, Ge, As, Nb, Ag, Sn, Te, Au, Hg, Pb, and Bi. Among the varied secondary meteorite minerals are the earliest known examples of halides, arsenides, tellurides, sulfates, carbonates, hydroxides, and a wide range of phyllosilicates.

Robert M. Hazen↗
DOE OSTI2020

Robust Method to Identify Groundwater Affected By Redox Conditions at Los Alamos National Laboratory Legacy Cleanup Site - 20497

To facilitate the mission of the Department of Energy's (DoE's) Environmental Management Program at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), a significant number of groundwater monitoring wells with depths ranging from 152-396 meter were completed for characterization and monitoring. Groundwater at Los Alamos tends to be oxygen saturated with very low concentrations of organic matter. Drilling fluids can introduce residual carbon causing an increase in microbial activity and local reducing conditions around the well, potentially impacting representativeness of groundwater data quality for redox sensitive constituents. We assert that the redox state of the wells can robustly be identified by aqueous solution concentrations of iron and manganese. An automated review process has been built into a computer-based data management system enabling an efficient screening process for identifying reducing conditions that are not caught using standard data-validation protocol, and ensures that important data quality issues are thoroughly identified and addressed in an efficient and timely manner. (authors)

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DOE OSTI2021

Saltstone Waste Characterization Analysis - Salt Waste Processing Facility (SWPF) Waste Stream (Q4 CY2020)

The Saltstone Production and Disposal Facility is designed and permitted by the state of South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (SCDHEC) to treat and dispose of low-level radioactive and hazardous liquid waste (salt solution) remaining from the processing of radioactive material at the Savannah River Site (SRS). Low-level waste (LEW) aqueous streams from the Effluent Treatment Project (ETP) and decontaminated solutions from the Tank Closure Cesium Removal Unit (TCCR) and the Salt Waste Processing Facility (SWPF) are stored in Tank 50 until the LEW can be transferred to the Saltstone Facility for treatment and disposal. In the past, decontaminated solution from the Modular Caustic Side Solvent Extraction Unit (MCU) was stored in Tank 50 until the LEW could be transferred to the Saltstone Facility for treatment and disposal. MCU is currently in a suspended operations state. LEW that meets the Waste Acceptance Criteria (WAC) can be transferred, stored, and treated in the Saltstone Production Facility (SPF) for subsequent disposal as saltstone grout in the Saltstone Disposal Facility (SDF). Sampling will be conducted as new waste streams are identified for treatment and disposal at the Saltstone Industrial Wastewater Treatment Facility (IWTF) and Z-Area Industrial Solid Waste Landfill (ISWLF), Facility ID# 025500-1603, General Condition B.9 or every six years in accordance with South Carolina (SC) Regulation 61-107.19 Parti C, “Solid Waste Management: Solid Waste Landfills and Structural Fill - General Requirements.”

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