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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2018

Experience by BAM in the Transport Package Safety Assessment of German Waste Containers - 18469

Transport and storage containers for low and mid-level radioactive waste are getting more and more of relevance due to the nuclear phase out decision in 2011. For higher activities Type B(U) approved waste containers will be needed for the shut down and dismantling phases of NPPs. It is expected that large quantities are required in the near future. German waste containers are generally approved for transport and interim storage and are also intended for the final disposal in the Konrad repository. BAM is involved in the authority licensing of transport package designs in Germany. In this context, BAM is responsible for the assessment of safe containment, mechanical, thermal and quality management issues. BAM also operates test facilities and performs drop as well as thermal tests during package licensing procedures. This paper summarizes our experience in the transport package design assessment of Type B(U) waste containers. A general overview of the approval process, the requirements and approaches BAM applies are described. Some examples are used to illustrate different aspects and technical issues we are addressing during the package assessment. In the first part of the paper the specific design aspects of German waste containers are described. Here, a general overview is given e.g. about closure systems, impact limiter designs, and the handling concepts. Furthermore, the wide range of radioactive content and their physical behavior including the impact on the packages assessment are described. The second part is focused on questions about the licensing and assessment process of German waste containers from the BAM authority point of view. The general approaches for the strategy of demonstration are outlined on the basis of the test conditions according to IAEA Regulations SSR-6. Furthermore, particular issues of the mechanical and thermal assessment with respect to the specific test conditions are discussed. For accident conditions of transport, aspects to be mentioned are e.g. the assessment of the lid bolts, the axial gap applied between content and lid, and the thermal behavior of the wood filled impact limiter after the fire test. However, issues of the assessment for routine and normal conditions of transport are addressed in this paper, too. The intention of this paper is introduce recent approval procedure experience in Germany, describing technical evaluation issues and so reduce rounds of questions during applications. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2015

Rapid systematic assessment of the detection and attribution of regional anthropogenic climate change

Despite being a well-established research field, the detection and attribution of observed climate change to anthropogenic forcing is not yet provided as a climate service. One reason for this is the lack of a methodology for performing tailored detection and attribution assessments on a rapid time scale. Here we develop such an approach, based on the translation of quantitative analysis into the “confidence” language employed in recent Assessment Reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. While its systematic nature necessarily ignores some nuances examined in detailed expert assessments, the approach nevertheless goes beyond most detection and attribution studies in considering contributors to building confidence such as errors in observational data products arising from sparse monitoring networks. When compared against recent expert assessments, the results of this approach closely match those of the existing assessments. Where there are small discrepancies, these variously reflect ambiguities in the details of what is being assessed, reveal nuances or limitations of the expert assessments, or indicate limitations of the accuracy of the sort of systematic approach employed here. Deployment of the method on 116 regional assessments of recent temperature and precipitation changes indicates that existing rules of thumb concerning the detectability of climate change ignore the full range of sources of uncertainty, most particularly the importance of adequate observational monitoring.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2015

Building a sustained climate assessment process

The leaders and authors of the Third US National Climate Assessment (NCA3) developed new modes of engaging academia, the private sector, government agencies and civil society to support their needs for usable, rigorous, and timely information and better connect science and decision-making. A strategic vision for assessment activities into the future was built during the NCA3 process, including recommendations on how to establish a sustained assessment process that would integrate evolving scientific understanding into decision making to manage the risks of climate change over time. This vision includes a collaborative assessment process that involves partnerships across a diverse and widely distributed set of non-governmental and governmental entities. The new approach to assessments would produce timely, scientifically sound climate information products and processes, rather than focusing on the production of single quadrennial synthesis reports. If properly implemented, a sustained assessment would be more efficient and cost-effective, avoiding the painful and time-consuming process of beginning the assessment process anew every 4 years. This ongoing assessment would also encourage scientific and social innovations and explore new insights and opportunities, building the capacity to advance the development and delivery of climate information to meet societal requirements and benefit from scientific opportunities.

Buizer, James L.↗
DOE OSTI2014

A state-impact-state methodology for assessing environmental impact in land use planning

The implementation of land use planning (LUP) has a large impact on environmental quality. There lacks a widely accepted and consolidated approach to assess the LUP environmental impact using Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA). In this paper, we developed a state-impact-state (SIS) model employed in the LUP environmental impact assessment (LUPEA). With the usage of Matter-element (ME) and Extenics method, the methodology based on the SIS model was established and applied in the LUPEA of Zoucheng County, China. The results show that: (1) this methodology provides an intuitive and easy understanding logical model for both the theoretical analysis and application of LUPEA; (2) the spatial multi-temporal assessment from base year, near-future year to planning target year suggests the positive impact on the environmental quality in the whole County despite certain environmental degradation in some towns; (3) besides the spatial assessment, other achievements including the environmental elements influenced by land use and their weights, the identification of key indicators in LUPEA, and the appropriate environmental mitigation measures were obtained; and (4) this methodology can be used to achieve multi-temporal assessment of LUP environmental impact of County or Town level in other areas. - Highlights: • A State-Impact-State model for Land Use Planning Environmental Assessment (LUPEA). • Matter-element (ME) and Extenics methods were embedded in the LUPEA. • The model was applied to the LUPEA of Zoucheng County. • The assessment shows improving environment quality since 2000 in Zoucheng County. • The method provides a useful tool for the LUPEA in the county level.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2015

A method to assess social sustainability of capture fisheries: An application to a Norwegian trawler

Social sustainability assessment of capture fisheries is, both in terms of method development and measurement, not well developed. The objective of this study, therefore, was to develop a method consisting of indicators and rubrics (i.e. categories that articulate levels of performance) to assess social sustainability of capture fisheries. This method was applied to a Norwegian trawler that targets cod and haddock in the northeast Atlantic. Based on previous research, 13 social sustainability issues were selected. To measure the state of these issues, 17 process and outcome indicators were determined. To interpret indicator values, rubrics were developed for each indicator, using standards set by international conventions or data retrieved from national statistics, industry agreements or scientific publications that explore rubric scales. The indicators and rubrics were subsequently used in a social sustainability assessment of a Norwegian trawler. This assessment indicated that overall, social sustainability of this trawler is relatively high, with high rubric scores, for example, for worker safety, provisions aboard for the crew and companies' salary levels. The assessment also indicated that the trawler could improve on healthy working environment, product freshness and fish welfare during capture. This application demonstrated that our method provides insight into social sustainability at the level of the vessel and can be used to identify potential room for improvement. This method is also promising for social sustainability assessment of other capture fisheries. - Highlights: • A method was developed for social sustainability assessment of capture fisheries. • This method entailed determining outcome and process indicators for important issues. • To interpret indicator values, a rubric was developed for each indicator. • Use of this method gives insight into social sustainability and improvement options. • This method is promising for social sustainability assessment of capture fisheries.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2015

A critical review of environmental assessment tools for sustainable urban design

Cities are responsible for the depletion of natural resources and agricultural lands, and 70% of global CO{sub 2} emissions. There are significant risks to cities from the impacts of climate change in addition to existing vulnerabilities, primarily because of rapid urbanization. Urban design and development are generally considered as the instrument to shape the future of the city and they determine the pattern of a city's resource usage and resilience to change, from climate or otherwise. Cities are inherently dynamic and require the participation and engagement of their diverse stakeholders for the effective management of change, which enables wider stakeholder involvement and buy-in at various stages of the development process. Sustainability assessment of urban design and development is increasingly being seen as indispensable for informed decision-making. A sustainability assessment tool also acts as a driver for the uptake of sustainable pathways by recognizing excellence through their rating system and by creating a market demand for sustainable products and processes. This research reviews six widely used sustainability assessment tools for urban design and development: BREEAM Communities, LEED-ND, CASBEE-UD, SBTool{sup PT}–UP, Pearl Community Rating System (PCRS) and GSAS/QSAS, to identify, compare and contrast the aim, structure, assessment methodology, scoring, weighting and suitability for application in different geographical contexts. Strengths and weaknesses of each tool are critically discussed. The study highlights the disparity in local and international contexts for global sustainability assessment tools. Despite their similarities in aim on environmental aspects, differences exist in the relative importance and share of mandatory vs optional indicators in both environmental and social dimensions. PCRS and GSAS/QSAS are new incarnations, but have widely varying shares of mandatory indicators, at 45.4% and 11.36% respectively, compared to 30% in BREEAM Community. Considerations of economic and cultural aspects are only marginal in the reviewed sustainability assessment tools. However, the newly developed sustainability assessment tools such as GSAS/QSAS and PCRS diverge from their predecessors in their consideration of cultural aspects. - Highlights: • Reviews six urban sustainability assessment methods: LEED-ND, BREEAM Communities, CASBEE-UD, SBTool{sup PT}-UP, PCRS, GSAS/QSAS. • Reviewed methods are biased more towards the environmental, followed by social and economic dimensions of sustainability. • Water issues are highlighted in the Middle East but natural hazards are emphasized only in CASBEE and BREEAM Communities. • SBTool{sup PT}-UP, the most recent of the groups puts more weight (7.32%) on cultural aspects. • Share of mandatory indicators is highest (45.4%) in the Pearl Community Rating System (PCRS)

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2017

Towards a framework for the assessment of saltwater intrusion in coastal aquifers

Saltwater intrusion (SWI) represents a threat to coastal aquifers worldwide by rendering groundwater quality not viable for its intended purposes. Therefore, understanding SWI impacts is indispensable for informed decision-making on aquifer management. Despite advances in methods to assess the impact of SWI, it remains challenging to select appropriate methods that are effective, timely, and affordable under the influence of a range of factors including aquifer characteristics, hydro-geochemical dynamics, shoreline geomorphology, biochemical reactions, and data availability among others. This study examines commonly used methods that assess the impact of SWI towards the development of an assessment framework in coastal aquifers underlying densely populated urban areas. The methods were selected using complexity-functionality criteria and then tested at a pilot aquifer by coupling Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) and Multi-Attribute Decision Making (MADM) analyses to evaluate the effectiveness of the methods and identify elements of the framework. The framework proved functional in synthesizing parametric results, assessing the dynamics of SWI and quantifying its potential impact, as well as providing an effective platform for informed impact assessment and planning for sustainable exploitation of coastal aquifers. - Highlights: •Assessing hydrogeochemical indices and geostatistical analysis to evaluate SWI •Coupling SWOT and MADM analysis to evaluate alternative SWI assessment methods •Developing an impact assessment framework for SWI in coastal aquifers •Testing of SWI framework in a heterogeneous aquifer along the Eastern Mediterranean.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2018

Are current effectiveness criteria fit for purpose? Using a controversial strategic assessment as a test case

Highlights: • The effectiveness framework of Bond et al. (2015) is tested on a case study. • The strategic assessment of the proposed Browse LNG Precinct is evaluated. • The effectiveness framework is modified as a result of the analysis. • “Legitimacy” encompasses both pluralism and normative effectiveness. • Substantive effectiveness should include consideration of unintended consequences. - Abstract: The aim of this paper is to test the broader utility of the sustainability assessment effectiveness framework of Bond et al. (2015) by applying it to a controversial strategic assessment case study. The effectiveness framework comprises six dimensions: procedural effectiveness, substantive effectiveness, transactive effectiveness, normative effectiveness, pluralism, and knowledge and learning. It was originally developed to evaluate sustainability assessment at a system-wide level and it has not been previously applied to a specific case study. The analysis was conducted through document review and the first-hand experience of two of the authors who were involved in the case study in different capacities. The case study selected was the strategic assessment of the proposed Browse Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Precinct in Western Australia, which was conducted over the period 2007–2015 under the strategic assessment provisions of both the Western Australian and Australian Commonwealth environmental legislation. The framework provided a useful structure within which this complex case study could be explored, its strengths and weaknesses brought to light, and the interactions between the dimensions highlighted. We also found opportunities for refinement of the framework. As a result of this analysis we propose to replace the final three dimensions of the framework with legitimacy, where a legitimate process is one which all stakeholders agree is fair and which delivers an acceptable outcome for all parties, though we acknowledge the need for further conceptualisation of this dimension. We also suggest that the concept of substantive effectiveness should be expanded to incorporate the unintended consequences of impact assessment. Our research thus makes both a useful addition to the literature already published on the Browse case study, as well as to the literature on impact assessment effectiveness.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2013

Hierarchical Marginal Land Assessment for Land Use Planning

Marginal land provides an alternative potential for food and bioenergy production in the face of limited land resources; however, effective assessment of marginal lands is not well addressed. Concerns over environmental risks, ecosystem services and sustainability for marginal land have been widely raised. The objective of this study was to develop a hierarchical marginal land assessment framework for land use planning and management. We first identified major land functions linking production, environment, ecosystem services and economics, and then classified land resources into four categories of marginal land using suitability and limitations associated with major management goals, including physically marginal land, biologically marginal land, environmental-ecological marginal land, and economically marginal land. We tested this assessment framework in south-western Michigan, USA. Our results indicated that this marginal land assessment framework can be potentially feasible on land use planning for food and bioenergy production, and balancing multiple goals of land use management. We also compared our results with marginal land assessment from the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) and land capability classes (LCC) that are used in the US. The hierarchical assessment framework has advantages of quantitatively reflecting land functions and multiple concerns. This provides a foundation upon which focused studies can be identified in order to improve the assessment framework by quantifying high-resolution land functions associated with environment and ecosystem services as well as their criteria are needed to improve the assessment framework.

Kang, Shujiang↗
DOE OSTI2019

Fluorescent Tissue Assessment of Colorectal Cancer Liver Metastases Ablation Zone: A Potential Real-Time Biomarker of Complete Tumor Ablation

Background: This study aimed to evaluate whether rapid fluorescent tissue examination immediately after colorectal cancer liver metastasis (CLM) ablation correlates with standard pathologic and immunohistochemical (IHC) assessments. Methods: This prospective, National Institutes of Health-supported study enrolled 34 consecutive patients with 53 CLMs ablated between January 2011 and December 2014. Immediately after ablation, core needle sampling of the ablation zone was performed. Tissue samples were evaluated with fluorescent viability (MitoTracker Red) and nuclear (Hoechst) stains. Confocal microscope imaging was performed within 30 min after ablation. The same samples were subsequently fixed and stained with hematoxylin and eosin (H&E). Identified tumor cells underwent IHC staining for proliferation (Ki67) and viability (OxPhos). The study pathologist, blinded to the H&E and IHC assessment, evaluated the fluorescent images separately to detect viable tumor cells. Sensitivity, specificity, and overall concordance of the fluorescent versus H&E and IHC assessments were calculated. Results: A total of 63 tissue samples were collected and processed. The overall concordance rate between the immediate fluorescent and the subsequent H&E and IHC assessments was 94% (59/63). The fluorescent assessment sensitivity and specificity for the identification of tumor cells were respectively 100% (18/18) and 91% (41/45). Conclusions: The study showed a high concordance rate between the immediate fluorescent assessment and the standard H&E and IHC assessment of the ablation zone. Given the documented prognostic value of ablation zone tissue characteristics for outcomes after ablation of CLM, the fluorescent assessment offers a potential intra-procedural biomarker of complete tumor ablation.

62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE↗
DOE OSTI2020

DPSIR-ESA Vulnerability Assessment (DEVA) Framework: Synthesis, Foundational Overview, and Expert Case Studies

Land resources are central to understanding the relationship between humans and their environment. We broadly define a land resource to include all the ecological resources of climate, water, soil, landforms, flora, and fauna, and all the socioeconomic systems that interact with agriculture, forestry, and other land uses within some system boundary. Understanding the vulnerability of land resources to changes in land management or climate forcing is critical to developing sustainable land management strategies. Vulnerability assessments are complex given the multiple uses of the assessments, the multi-disciplinary nature of the problem, limited understanding, the dynamic structure of vulnerability, scale issues, and problems with identifying effective vulnerability indicators. Here, we propose a novel conceptual framework for vulnerability assessments of land resources that combines the driver– pressure–state–impact–response (DPSIR) framework adopted by the European Environment Agency to describe interactions between society and the environment, and the exposure-sensitivity-adaptive capacity (ESA) framework used by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change to assess impacts of climate change. The DPSIR-ESA Vulnerability Assessment (DEVA) framework operationalizes the process of assessing the vulnerability of a target system to external stressors. The DEVA framework includes the following elements: 1) Definition of the target system (Land resource), 2) Description of internal characteristics of the target system (State), 3) Description of target system vulnerability indicators (Adaptive capacity, Sensitivity), 4) Description of stressor characteristics (Drivers, Pressures), 5) Description of stressor vulnerability indicators (Exposure), 6) Description of target system response to stressors (Impacts), and 7) Description of modifications to target systems or stressors (Responses). In stating that they have “applied the DEVA framework”, analysts acknowledge that they have (a) considered the full breadth of each DEVA element, (b) have made conscious decisions to limit the scope and complexity of certain elements, and (c) can communicate both the rationale for these decisions and the impact of these decisions on the vulnerability assessment results and recommendations. The DEVA framework was refined during invited presentations and follow-up discussions from a series of Special Sessions with leading experts at two successive ASABE Annual International Meetings. Six case studies drawn from the sessions elaborate upon the DEVA framework and provide concrete examples of the key concepts. The DEVA approach gives engineers, planners, and analysts a new, flexible framework to apply a broad array of useful tools toward assessment of land resource system vulnerability.

Anandhi, Aauvadi↗
DOE OSTI2022

NRAP-Open-IAM: NRAP Open Source Integrated Assessment Model

Note: This is the last version (a2.6.1) of NRAP-Open-IAM released during NRAP Phase II in 2022. The latest version of NRAP-Open-IAM is available here: https://edx.netl.doe.gov/dataset/phase-iii-nrap-open-iam NRAP-Open-IAM is an open-source software product that enables quantification of containment effectiveness and leakage risk at storage sites in the context of system uncertainties and variability. NRAP-Open-IAM represents the next-generation in a line of systems-based computational models developed for quantitative geological carbon storage (GCS) risk assessment. The model comprises a set of reduced-order and analytical models of various components of the GCS system, potential leakage pathways, receptors of concern including impact to groundwater resources and the atmosphere, a framework to support stochastic simulation, time stepping, uncertainty quantification, other analytical functionality for scenario and risk-performance evaluation, and a basic graphical user interface to support scenario development, data input simulation definition, and basic post-processing and results display. As the NRAP Open-IAM functionality continues to evolve, we continue to add to its capability to develop quantitative, probabilistic, and time-dependent profiles of the evolution of risk at a GCS site and evaluate the influence of uncertain parameters on uncertainty in predicted risk. It can be used to quantify the dynamics of reservoir saturation plume and pressure-affected area, for evaluation of the area of potential groundwater impact (i.e., Area of Review) and monitoring requirements to support cost and regulatory analysis, and for consideration of different post-injection site care and closure scenarios. This submission contains the current version of NRAP-Open-IAM available for evaluation and testing. To use the NRAP-Open-IAM, download the source code (https://edx.netl.doe.gov/dataset/08f396c8-bc5f-44ad-a028-6e98a6ea6d70/resource/4c24a3da-3b40-4ffe-9892-c807ae9f8760) then open the NRAP-Open-IAM user's guide (https://edx.netl.doe.gov/dataset/08f396c8-bc5f-44ad-a028-6e98a6ea6d70/resource/8b27335a-343c-4836-b8a3-3ad0bdc9e669) to read more about the tool. Installation instructions for Windows, Mac, and Linux can be found in the "installers" folder of the extracted NRAP-Open-IAM folder and describe setup of environment (e.g., Python libraries) needed for proper work of the tool. Test of installation can be done by running "python openiam_setup_tests.py" in the "setup" folder. The installation test also runs a test suite to see if the NRAP-Open-IAM has been installed correctly. To run the test suite separately, run "python iam_test.py" in the "test" folder. User's guide: https://edx.netl.doe.gov/dataset/08f396c8-bc5f-44ad-a028-6e98a6ea6d70/resource/8b27335a-343c-4836-b8a3-3ad0bdc9e669 Developer's guide: https://edx.netl.doe.gov/dataset/08f396c8-bc5f-44ad-a028-6e98a6ea6d70/resource/3bc6ee7d-609d-4eb6-80ba-fa6130ee0313 Reservoir simulation data used in some examples distributed with NRAP-Open-IAM: - Kimberlina: https://edx.netl.doe.gov/dataset/08f396c8-bc5f-44ad-a028-6e98a6ea6d70/resource/eb62cece-61b2-4037-9b6d-32407dde2ab8 - Kimberlina (compartmentalized): https://edx.netl.doe.gov/dataset/08f396c8-bc5f-44ad-a028-6e98a6ea6d70/resource/366f9530-3b32-4b84-affe-ab2df1d9a8b5 - FutureGen 2.0: https://edx.netl.doe.gov/dataset/futuregen-2-0-1008-simulation-reservoir-lookup-table NRAP-Open-IAM GitLab repository: https://gitlab.com/NRAP/OpenIAM Related publications: - Bacon, D., Yonkofski, C., Brown, C., Demirkanli, D. and Whiting, J., 2019. Risk-based post injection site care and monitoring for commercial-scale carbon storage: Reevaluation of the FutureGen 2.0 site using NRAP-Open-IAM and DREAM. International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control 90: 102784. - Bacon, D. Demirkanli, D., and White, S., 2020. Probabilistic risk-based Area of Review (AoR) determination for a deep-saline carbon storage site. International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control 102: 103153. - Harp, D., Oldenburg, C., and Pawar, R., 2019. A metric for evaluating conformance robustness during geologic CO2 sequestration operations. International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control 85: 100-108. - Lackey, G., Vasylkivska, V., Huerta, N., King, S., and Dilmore, R., 2019. Managing well leakage risks at a geologic carbon storage site with many wells, International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, 88 :182-194. - Vasylkivska, V., Dilmore, R., Lackey, G., Zhang, Y., King, S., Bacon, D., Chen, B., Mansoor, K., and Harp, D., 2021. NRAP-Open-IAM: A flexible open-source integrated assessment model for geologic carbon storage risk assessment and management, Environmental Modelling & Software, 143: 105114. Presentations: - Chen, B., Harp, D., and Pawar, R., A data assimilation approach (ES-MDA) coupling with NRAP-Open-IAM for quantifying uncertainty reduction in geological CO2 sequestration. AGUFM 2019: T44A-02. - Chen, B., and Harp, D., Improving risk analysis precision for geologic CO2 sequestration by quantifying the uncertainty reduction before and after acquiring monitoring data. 14th Greenhouse Gas Control Technologies Conference, Melbourne, Australia, 2018, pp. 21-26. - Harp, D., National Risk Assessment Partnership Task 2: Containment Assurance. No. LA-UR-19-28654, Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States), 2019. - Vasylkivska, V., King, S., Bacon, D., Harp, D., Chen, B., Mansoor, K., Onishi, T., Yang, Y., Zhang, Y., and Keating, E., NRAP-Open-IAM: An open-source integrated assessment model, poster, Mastering the Subsurface Through Technology Innovation, Partnerships and Collaboration: Carbon Storage and Oil and Natural Gas Technologies Review Meeting, Pittsburgh, PA, August 13-16, 2018. - Vasylkivska, V., Lackey, G., King, S., Wentworth, A., Huerta, N., Creason, C., DiGiulio, J., Yang, Y., and Dilmore, R., Long-term risk analysis of a geologic CO2 storage project during the post-injection period, SIAM Conference on Computational Science and Engineering, Spokane, WA, February 25-March 1, 2019. - Vasylkivska, V., Overview of the NRAP-Open-IAM tool for carbon storage (beta release), 2019 Annual NRAP Tool Users Meeting, Pittsburgh, PA, August 27, 2019. - Vasylkivska, V., Bacon, D., Chen, B., Dilmore, R., Harp, D., King, S., Lackey, G., Lindner, E., Liu, G., Mansoor, K. and Zhang, Y., NRAP-Open-IAM: A new, open-source code for integrated assessment of geologic carbon storage containment effectiveness and leakage risk, poster, American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting 2020 (virtual meeting), December 2020. - Vasylkivska, V., NRAP open-source integrated assessment model and relevant application, oral presentation, NRAP workshop "NRAP Tools for Geologic Carbon Storage Risk-Based Decision Making" held in conjunction with Groundwater Protection Council (GWPC) 2021 Annual Forum (virtual meeting), Salt Lake City, UT, September 2021. - Vasylkivska, V., NRAP-Open-IAM: open-source integrated assessment model, digital poster/demonstration, software demonstration session, 2022 Carbon Management Project Review Meeting, August 16, 2022

AoR↗
DOE OSTI2011

American Samoa Initial Technical Assessment Report

This document is an initial energy assessment for American Samoa, the first of many steps in developing a comprehensive energy strategy. On March 1, 2010, Assistant Secretary of the Interior Tony Babauta invited governors and their staff from the Interior Insular Areas to meet with senior principals at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). Meeting discussions focused on ways to improve energy efficiency and increase the deployment of renewable energy technologies in the U.S. Pacific Territories. In attendance were Governors Felix Camacho (Guam), Benigno Fitial (Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands), and Togiola Tulafono, (American Samoa). This meeting brought together major stakeholders to learn and understand the importance of developing a comprehensive strategic plan for implementing energy efficiency measures and renewable energy technologies. For several decades, dependence on fossil fuels and the burden of high oil prices have been a major concern but never more at the forefront as today. With unstable oil prices, the volatility of fuel supply and the economic instability in American Samoa, energy issues are a high priority. In short, energy security is critical to American Samoa's future economic development and sustainability. Under an interagency agreement, funded by the Department of Interior's Office of Insular Affairs, NREL was tasked to deliver technical assistance to the islands of American Samoa. Technical assistance included conducting an initial technical assessment to define energy consumption and production data, establish an energy consumption baseline, and assist with the development of a strategic plan. The assessment and strategic plan will be used to assist with the transition to a cleaner energy economy. NREL provided an interdisciplinary team to cover each relevant technical area for the initial energy assessments. Experts in the following disciplines traveled to American Samoa for on-island site assessments: (1) Energy Efficiency and Building Technologies; (2) Integrated Wind-Diesel Generation; (3) Transmission and Distribution; (4) Solar Technologies; and (5) Biomass and Waste-to-Energy. In addition to these core disciplines, team capabilities also included expertise in program analysis, project financing, energy policy and energy planning. The intent of the technical assessment was to provide American Samoa with a baseline energy assessment. From the baseline, various scenarios and approaches for deploying cost effective energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies could be created to meet American Samoa's objectives. The information provided in this energy assessment will be used as input in the development of a draft strategic plan and the development of scenarios and strategies for deploying cost-effective energy efficiency and renewable products.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Consideration of liners and covers in performance assessments

On-site disposal cells are in use and being considered at several United States Department of Energy (USDOE) sites as the final disposition for large amounts of waste associated with cleanup of contaminated areas and facilities. These disposal cells are typically regulated by States and/or the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) in addition to having to comply with requirements in DOE Order 435.1, Radioactive Waste Management due to the radioactive waste. The USDOE-Environmental Management Office of Site Restoration formed a working group to foster improved communication and sharing of information for personnel associated with these CERCLA disposal cells and work towards more consistent assumptions, as appropriate, for technical and policy considerations related to CERCLA risk assessments and DOE Order 435.1 performance assessments in support of a Record of Decision and Disposal Authorization Statement, respectively. One of the issues considered by the working group, which is addressed in this report, was how to appropriately consider the performance of covers and liners/leachate collections systems in the context of a DOE Order 435.1 performance assessment (PA). This same information may be appropriate for consideration within CERCLA risk assessments for these facilities. These OSDCs are generally developed to meet hazardous waste (HW) disposal design standards under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) as well as the DOE Order 435.1 performance based standards for disposal of radioactive waste. To meet the standards for HW, the facilities typically include engineered covers and liner/leachate collection systems. Thus, when considering such facilities in the context of a DOE Order 435.1 PA, there is a need to address the evolution of performance of covers and liner/leachate collection systems in the context of meeting a performance standard considering time frames of 1,000 years for compliance and potentially thousands of years based on the wastes to test the robustness of the system. Experience has shown that there are a range of expectations and perspectives from the different regulators involved at different sites when reviewing assumptions related to cover and liner/leachate collection system performance. However for HW disposal alone under RCRA the design standards are typically considered sufficient by the regulators without a requirement to assess long-term performance thus avoiding the need to consider the details addressed in this report. This report provides suggestions for a general approach to address covers and liners/leachate collection systems in a DOE Order 435.1 PA and how to integrate assessments with defense-in-depth considerations such as design, operations, and waste acceptance criteria to address uncertainties. The emphasis is on water balances and management in such assessments. Specific information and references are provided for details needed to address the evolution of individual components of cover and liner/leachate collection systems. This information was then synthesized into suggestions for best practices for cover and liner system design and examples of approaches to address the performance of covers and liners as part of a performance assessment of the disposal system. Numerous references are provided for sources of information to help describe the basis for performance of individual components of cover and liner systems.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2017

Initial Verification and Validation Assessment for VERA

The Virtual Environment for Reactor Applications (VERA) code suite is assessed in terms of capability and credibility against the Consortium for Advanced Simulation of Light Water Reactors (CASL) Verification and Validation Plan (presented herein) in the context of three selected challenge problems: CRUD-Induced Power Shift (CIPS), Departure from Nucleate Boiling (DNB), and Pellet-Clad Interaction (PCI). Capability refers to evidence of required functionality for capturing phenomena of interest while capability refers to the evidence that provides confidence in the calculated results. For this assessment, each challenge problem defines a set of phenomenological requirements against which the VERA software is assessed. This approach, in turn, enables the focused assessment of only those capabilities relevant to the challenge problem. The evaluation of VERA against the challenge problem requirements represents a capability assessment. The mechanism for assessment is the Sandia-developed Predictive Capability Maturity Model (PCMM) that, for this assessment, evaluates VERA on 8 major criteria: (1) Representation and Geometric Fidelity, (2) Physics and Material Model Fidelity, (3) Software Quality Assurance and Engineering, (4) Code Verification, (5) Solution Verification, (6) Separate Effects Model Validation, (7) Integral Effects Model Validation, and (8) Uncertainty Quantification. For each attribute, a maturity score from zero to three is assigned in the context of each challenge problem. The evaluation of these eight elements constitutes the credibility assessment for VERA.

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗
DOE OSTI2018

Updated Verification and Validation Assessment for VERA

The Virtual Environment for Reactor Applications (VERA) code suite is assessed in terms of capability and credibility against the Consortium for Advanced Simulation of Light Water Reactors (CASL) Verification and Validation Plan (presented herein) in the context of three selected challenge problems: CRUD-Induced Power Shift (CIPS), Departure from Nucleate Boiling (DNB), and Pellet-Clad Interaction (PCI). Capability refers to evidence of required functionality for capturing phenomena of interest while credibility refers to the evidence that provides confidence in the calculated results. For this assessment, each challenge problem defines a set of phenomenological requirements against which the VERA software is assessed. This approach, in turn, enables the focused assessment of only those capabilities relevant to the challenge problem. The evaluation of VERA against the challenge problem requirements represents a capability assessment. The mechanism for assessment is the Sandia-developed Predictive Capability Maturity Model (PCMM) that, for this assessment, evaluates VERA on 8 major criteria: (1) Representation and Geometric Fidelity, (2) Physics and Material Model Fidelity, (3) Software Quality Assurance and Engineering, (4) Code Verification, (5) Solution Verification, (6) Separate Effects Model Validation, (7) Integral Effects Model Validation, and (8) Uncertainty Quantification. For each attribute, a maturity score from zero to three is assigned in the context of each challenge problem. The evaluation of these eight elements constitutes the credibility assessment for VERA.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2018

Reliability Assessment of Remote Visual Examination

Remote visual testing (RVT) is a commonly used nondestructive examination method for inservice inspection (ISI) of reactor internals to detect cracking and gross component failures. Despite widespread use, the detection reliability of RVT and the factors that impact overall RVT performance have been unresolved issues. This report describes the results from an assessment sponsored by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission and conducted by the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, in cooperation with the Electric Power Research Institute, for evaluating the reliability of RVT methods currently being used for [reactor] in-vessel visual inspection. The goal was to assess the performance of commercially applied RVT examination procedures implemented by qualified personnel, as well as to identify and qualitatively assess enhancements to examination procedures for detecting flaws in test specimens. The assessment was performed over three phases of research, with the results of the first phase used to identify key controllable parameters impacting RVT performance and to design the next two phases (round-robin testing). Participants in the round-robin tests included teams of inspectors from commercial nuclear power ISI vendors. Participants were asked to determine if a specimen contained a crack and its approximate location, orientation, and length. The detection and location information were used to compute estimates of the probability of detection and false call probability for various scenarios such as the placement and orientation of the flaw on the specimen, team-to-team variations in detection performance, and effects of secondary review on RVT detection. Results showed that crack opening displacement (COD) is the dominant factor in the reliability of crack detection using commercially applied RVT procedures, with crack length being weakly correlated with detection probability. The implication is that RVT detection is likely heavily dependent on the contrast produced by the crack opening, with crack detection becoming less reliable as the COD decreases. Further, the results indicated RVT will be challenged when cracks are located in the vicinity of surface features such as scratches or weld ripples, or close to the edge of welds where shadowing and/or the presence of weld undercuts may complicate the ability to detect the crack. The assessment also reinforced earlier findings on the importance of lighting in flaw detection and appeared to align with other studies that find improved reliability when using multiple inspectors or analysts. Finally, the results pointed to the importance of practice with specimens that mimic conditions likely to be found in the field. Based on the findings and limitations of the assessment, a number of recommendations are made regarding best practices for improving the reliability of RVT in a field setting and for addressing remaining informational gaps. This report describes the design and noted limitations of the three phases of research, the analysis methodology for each phase, and the results of the research. The results of this assessment provide a benchmark set of data on the reliability of RVT for detecting cracking, assuming the implementation of field-like inspection procedures. The likely impact of several uncontrolled factors on RVT detection performance are discussed, and recommendations regarding the use of these results to assess field performance are provided. Finally, recent advances in RVT technology are briefly discussed and point to the potential need for continued research to evaluate the capability and effectiveness of the technique as improvements are implemented.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Performance Assessments of Demand Flexibility from Grid-Interactive Efficient Buildings: Issues and Considerations

This SEE Action Network report explains basic concepts and fundamental considerations for assessing the actual demand flexibility performance of buildings participating in demand flexibility programs and responding to time-varying retail rates. Demand flexibility is the capability of distributed energy resources (DERs) to adjust a building’s load profile across different timescales. Assessments determine the timing, location, quantity, and quality of grid services provided. The results can be used for financial settlements and to improve performance of demand flexibility, support its consideration in resource potential studies and electricity system planning, and contribute to cost-effectiveness evaluations. While practitioners and regulators regularly find opportunities to improve performance assessments of demand-related services, to a large degree current best practices are sufficient for basic service offerings as demand flexibility is implemented today. However, advances in assessment practices will be required in a future with grid-interactive efficient buildings (GEBs) that provide continuous demand flexibility by integrating multiple DERs and flexibility modes (load shed, load shift, modulate, and generate). Example practices include using new baseline constructs—including whether baselines are even required for certain building flexibility modes or configurations, deploying more advanced metering and analytics, further developing cybersecurity standards, improving communication standards for increased interoperability, and establishing performance metrics and assessment procedures for load modulation as it is more fully defined and implemented. This report provides information on prioritizing and designing performance assessment elements for demand flexibility programs and time-varying retail rates, assessment protocols, and research and development needs. Additional research sponsored by DOE’s Building Technologies Office offers more detailed technical information on assessing performance of demand flexibility, including definition of performance metrics.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗