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Data-Driven Art

In Fall 2023, Katie Baldwin (UAH) and Helen Parache (NASA) will follow up on their pilot activity from the spring that focused on collaboration between the arts and sciences at the UAH Art Department. Ms. Parache will present on open access data and artists that incorporate scientific data in their work, e.g. Tali Weinberg and Sarah Bryant (University of Alabama). Ms. Baldwin will demonstrate printmaking and mark making techniques. The students in Ms. Baldwin’s Book Arts class will participate in a series of generative activities and engage with data to develop content. The focus on the Art Department stems from the importance of Art as a cultural pillar. Tapping into the communication and social relevance of art could be an avenue to pursue Environmental Justice goals of interest to NASA. A creative perspective on data can bring about creative questions and solutions. The workshop incorporates changes based on feedback from the spring workshop.

data science↗

DOE OSTI2021

Increasing Diversity in Energy Efficiency Professions: JUMP into STEM

A long-term approach to achieving equity in the energy efficiency industry is to increase the overall diversity of the professionals who work in the field. Building science professionals have a direct impact on energy efficiency policy and programs, as many become leaders within the industry. Buildings are used every day by almost all members of U.S. society, so diversity in building science professionals is critical to better understanding the behaviors and needs of the full spectrum of building occupants. Many groups of people, including minorities and women, are underrepresented in the industry. The industry needs to attract a wide range of current college and university students to careers in building science, so that many perspectives are included in the clean energy transition. The JUMP into STEM student competition addresses this need by inspiring students from diverse backgrounds to use creative ideation to solve real-world building science problems. Student teams - comprising an interdisciplinary mix of majors and underrepresented groups in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) - respond to one of three buildings-related challenges. Diversity is encouraged through challenge design, competition guidelines, and evaluation criteria for the submission. Winners of the competition are awarded paid building science internships, a gateway to a career in this field. The competition has an advisory panel of diversity experts and a professor team that includes representation from minority-serving institutions. This paper presents the JUMP into STEM approach to fostering diversity and creative ideation on technical challenges and discusses outcomes from the 2019 and 2020 competitions.

buildings↗

DOE OSTI2021

Defect–Concentration–Mediated T–Nb 2 O 5 Anodes for Durable and Fast–Charging Li–Ion Batteries

Metastable orthorhombic niobium pentoxide (T-Nb 2 O 5 ) is a promising anode to fulfill the requirements for high-rate Li-ion batteries (LIBs). Stoichiometric T-Nb 2 O 5 is plagued by low electric conductivity and particle pulverization after repeated charge/discharge processes. In this work, oxygen vacancies are implanted into T-Nb 2 O 5 particles via acid immersion of Nb 2 O 5 ·nH 2 O with the formation of Lewis acid sites. The multiple characterizations and simulations reveal the lengthening of Nb–O bonds, and the transformation from NbO 7 pentagonal bipyramids and NbO 6 tetragonal bipyramids in T-Nb 2 O 5–x . The enrichment of oxygen vacancies endows T-Nb 2 O 5–x with higher electric conductivity, better electrochemical kinetics, larger pseudocapacitive contribution. O-doped graphitic C 3 N 4 is creatively proposed as a trace oxygen pump to repair excessive oxygen vacancies, and it also serves as a sacrifice template for Nb 2 O 5–x growth to construct a porous and monolithic electrode network. Defect-modulated Nb 2 O 5–x displays extraordinary cycling stability (164 mAh g –1 at 5 C after 1100 cycles), high capacity retention (104 mAh g –1 ) at an ultrahigh rate (25 C), and large areal capacity (0.74 mAh cm –2 ) under high mass loading (4 mg cm –2 ). The practical prospect is proved by Nb 2 O 5–x /LiNi 0.8 Co 0.1 Mn 0.1 O 2 full cells with high average platform (2.12 V) and high specific capacity (229 mAh g –1 ). Finally, the oxygen-defect modulation strategy on oxide anodes provides an alternative solution to fast-charging and durable LIBs.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗

DOE OSTI2023

Engineering In Situ Catalytic Cleaning Membrane Via Prebiotic-Chemistry-Inspired Mineralization

Pressure-driven membrane separation promises a sustainable energy-water nexus but is hindered by ubiquitous fouling. Natural systems evolved from prebiotic chemistry offer a glimpse of creative solutions. Herein, a prebiotic-chemistry-inspired aminomalononitrile (AMN)/Mn 2+ -mediated mineralization method is reported for universally engineering a superhydrophilic hierarchical MnO 2 nanocoating to endow hydrophobic polymeric membranes with exceptional catalytic cleaning ability. Green hydrogen peroxide catalytically triggered in-situ cleaning of the mineralized membrane and enabled operando flux recovery to reach 99.8%. The mineralized membrane exhibited a 9-fold higher recovery compared to the unmineralized membrane, which is attributed to active catalytic antifouling coupled with passive hydration antifouling. Electron density differences derived from the precursor interaction during mediated mineralization unveiled an electron-rich bell-like structure with an inner electron-deficient Mn core. This work paves the way to construct multifunctional engineered materials for energy-efficient water treatment as well as for diverse promising applications in catalysis, solar steam generation, biomedicine, and beyond.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

DOE OSTI2025

Semi‐Continuous Ex Situ Carbon Dioxide Mineralization in Produced Water for Calcite Production

ABSTRACT The mineralization of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) to stable carbonate products is a desirable process for carbon capture utilization and storage (CCUS). However, improving the process economics through creative use of available reactants is necessary to develop a scalable mineralization process. This study details the development of a semi‐continuous CO 2 mineralization process that uses flue gas as a point CO 2 source, produced water (PW) as an alkaline source of Ca 2+ , and NaOH effluent (potentially sourced from integration with the chlor‐alkali process. Operating at a controlled pH allowed for both complete reaction of available Ca 2+ (100% carbonation potential or 9.9 g CO 2 .L –1 PW brine) and for reproducible control of the produced calcium carbonate (CaCO 3 ) product. A full factorial design of experiments was implemented to study the effects of reaction temperature, pH, and gaseous CO 2 concentration on the mineralization and CO 2 capture rates as well as product crystalline structure and morphology. A maximum CO 2 capture rate of 0.315 ± 0.007 kg.L –1 .d –1 was achieved at 25°C and 25% CO 2 . CO 2 gas to liquid phase mass transport is believed to be the rate limiting step. With improved reactor design and optimization, the proposed semi‐continuous mineralization process shows promise for scaling to a pilot scale CO 2 capture technology.

Bennett, Quinn [Institute for Sustainable Energy &↗

DOE OSTI2025

A Systems Thinking Approach to Nuclear Pedagogy and Workforce Development

Nuclear technology's controversial status has been shaped by its early use in military applications, fear driven by high-profile accidents, and unresolved waste management challenges. There have, on the other hand, been periodic claims that a “nuclear renaissance” is imminent, driven by different dynamics at different times, most recently related to growing energy demands and increasing concern over carbon emissions. In this article, we respond to urgent calls for more nuclear engineers, resulting from the latest rallying cry around nuclear energy, by reframing the problem using a systems thinking approach that illuminates new pathways for nuclear workforce development via interdisciplinary pedagogies. By building nuclear education into a wide variety of disciplines, we argue, the nuclear workforce could become more resilient to ebbs and flows in energy markets and public opinion. Widening nuclear education beyond nuclear engineers could also reduce the isolation and compartmentalization that has limited the possibilities of nuclear technology. We show how growing and diversifying the overall nuclear workforce could create a wide variety of career opportunities outside STEM and enable greater specialization within STEM, since nuclear engineers and other specialists could be freed up to focus on technological and infrastructural innovations. We argue that interventions into nuclear education should establish new connections and applications of the nuclear sciences in diverse areas of expertise to develop a broad range of professionals who can contribute to a more stable nuclear workforce, bringing what we call “critical and creative nuclear energy literacies” to long-standing and systemic challenges around nuclear energy.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

DOE OSTI2020

SERS and the scientific career of Richard P. Van Duyne (1945–2019)

This article describes the scientific career of our dear friend Richard P. Van Duyne. Rick was the discoverer of surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS), and over the period from the mid-1970s until his death in 2019, he served as both the intellectual leader of the field, and the technical genius who pushed the field forward through his numerous inventions and discoveries. Rick's work went through many phases, and even involved a significant period of inactivity that Rick was able to break out of, but especially after 2000, there was a period of incredible creativity that ultimately led to a detailed understanding of what the SERS enhancement factor is all about and also led to fabrication techniques for making optimum SERS substrates such that applications of SERS to a wide variety of real-world problems in sensing became possible. In addition, Rick's SERS work spawned numerous related technologies, including index of refraction sensing based on localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) measurements, and the extension of SERS to its tip-enhanced cousin TERS, to electrochemical versions of SERS and TERS, and to ultrafast nonlinear techniques. The practical applications he pursued included diagnostics for diseases such as cancer, hand-held glucose sensing, and SERS studies related to art conservation. Furthermore, Rick's legacy will probably be best known through the numerous students, postdocs, and collaborators that passed through his lab and who are now active researchers in areas related to SERS at universities and industrial labs around the world.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗

DOE OSTI2020

Toward controlled functional sequencing and hierarchical structuring in imidazolium ionenes

This focused mini-review highlights recent advances related to the design and applications of imidazolium ionenes and forward-looking perspectives. Creative strategies which employ established synthetic approaches and utilize the modularity of the imidazole moiety unlock great potential for tailoring both functional and structural features arising from precise spacing of ionic groups within the polymer backbone. Here, as imidazolium ionenes draw more interest, increased sophistication of chemical modifications and material processing is occurring, with a corresponding shift toward more demanding applications. Synthetic routes for placement and sequencing of ionic content are discussed, in addition to recent approaches to control structure and self-assembly or tune behaviors of imidazolium ionenes and composites.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

DOE OSTI2022

Mind the gaps! Climate scientists should heed lessons in collaborative storytelling from William Shakespeare

Abstract To co‐produce locally relevant climate knowledge, climate scientists are engaging in new collaborations—with stakeholders and with scholars in the humanities, arts, and social sciences. In our work as a Shakespeare scholar‐turned‐public‐humanist and a climate scientist, we have created a methodology that allows researchers and communities to co‐produce knowledge by co‐producing narratives. We combine principles from emerging climate “storylines” research with collaborative storytelling inspired by William Shakespeare's plays and theatrical practices. Shakespeare's plays spark collaborations and interpretations, in part, because of how Shakespeare leaves gaps in the narrative. These gaps allow others to enter as collaborators, creating a “cognitive ecology” that fosters knowledge and action among all engaged. Integrating these methods into climate storyline‐making offers a radical paradigm: it upends the scientist's role as the focal storyteller and expert, and fosters, instead, partnership, equity, and a co‐exploration of multiple uncertainties. It is time for researchers to cede control to a cognitive ecology of collaborative action. This article is categorized under: Trans‐Disciplinary Perspectives > Humanities and the Creative Arts

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2024

The Data Mine model for accessible partnerships in data science

Abstract The Data Mine at Purdue University is a pioneering experiential learning community for undergraduate and graduate students of any background to learn data science. The first data‐intensive experience embedded in a large learning community, The Data Mine had nearly 1300 students in academic year (AY) 2022–2023 and nearly 1700 students for AY 2023–2024. The Data Mine embodies data‐infused education, research, and collaboration. Students learn Python, R, SQL, and shell‐scripting, while working on weekly projects within a high‐performance computing (HPC) cluster. In the Corporate Partners cohort, students work on teams of 5–15 students, led by a paid student team leader. Each cohort follows an Agile approach, working on data‐intensive projects provided by industry partners and mentored by company employees. Students develop professional and data skills throughout the academic year, from August through April. Many students return in subsequent years to the program, increasing their tenure with a Corporate Partner. Student teams are inherently interdisciplinary; students from 133 different majors are involved in the program, ranging from new incoming students through PhD level students. These interdisciplinary teams of students bring new perspectives to challenging problems in which data science is a key part of the solution. The interdisciplinary teams foster an environment of synthesis with ideas and solutions. Students come together with different life experiences, different levels of technical skill, but also varying ways they navigate paths to solutions because of the variety of majors represented, resulting in a more creative and robust solution than a traditional data science program. This article is categorized under: Applications of Computational Statistics > Education in Computational Statistics

Betz, Margaret A.↗

DOE OSTI2022

CubeSats for Gamma-Ray Astronomy [Book Chapter]

After many years of flying in space primarily for educational purposes, CubeSats – tiny satellites with form factors corresponding to arrangements of “1U” units, or cubes, each 10 cm on a side – have come into their own as valuable platforms for technology advancement and scientific investigations. CubeSats offer comparatively rapid, low-cost access to space for payloads that can be built, tested, and operated by relatively small teams, with substantial contributions from students and early career researchers. Continuing advances in compact, low-power detectors, readout electronics, and flight computers have now enabled X-ray and gamma-ray sensing payloads that can fit within the constraints of CubeSat missions, permitting in-orbit demonstrations of new techniques and innovative high-energy astronomy observations. Gamma-ray-sensing CubeSats are certain to make an important contribution in the new era of multi-messenger, time-domain astronomy by detecting and localizing bright transients such as gamma-ray bursts, solar flares, and terrestrial gamma-ray flashes; however, other astrophysical science areas requiring long observations in a low-background environment, including gamma-ray polarimetry, studies of nuclear lines, and measurement of diffuse backgrounds, will likely benefit as well. Here we present the primary benefits of CubeSats for high-energy astronomy, highlight the scientific areas currently or soon to be studied, and review the missions that are currently operating, under development, or proposed. A rich portfolio of CubeSats for gamma-ray astronomy already exists, and the potential for a broad range of creative and scientifically productive missions in the near future is very high.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2022

It’s Not What You Take Up, It’s What You Keep: How Discoveries from Diverse Disciplines Directed the Development of the FDG PET/CT Scan

Although imaging glucose metabolism with positron emission tomography combined with X-ray CT (FDG-PET/CT) has become a standard diagnostic modality for the discovery and surveillance of malignant tumors and inflammatory processes, its origins extend back to more than a century of notable discoveries in the fields of inorganic and organic chemistry, nuclear physics, mathematics, biochemistry, solute transport physiology, metabolism, and imaging, accomplished by pioneering and driven investigators, of whom at least ten were recipients of the Nobel Prize. These tangled and diverse roots eventually coalesced into the FDG-PET/CT method, that through its many favorable characteristics inherent in the isotope used ( 18 F), the accurate imaging derived from coincidence detection of positron annihilation radiation combined with computed tomography, and the metabolic trapping of 2-deoxy-2-[ 18 F] fluoro-d-glucose (FDG) in tissues, provides safety, sensitivity, and specificity for tumor and inflammation detection. Here, the authors hope that this article will increase the appreciation among its readers of the insight, creativity, persistence, and drive of the many investigators who made this technique possible. This article is followed by a review of the many applications of FDG-PET/CT to the gastrointestinal tract and hepatobiliary system (Mandelkern in Dig Dis Sci 2022)

2-DG↗

DOE OSTI2020

Preface to the special issue: photosynthesis-inspired biohybrid and biomimetic systems

Research of Photosynthetic-Inspired Biohybrid and Biomimetic Systems has gained significant momentum in recent years as an approach to both study and use solar energy in new photon-to-fuels schemes that mimic photosynthesis. This intense interest arises from the incredible opportunity that photosynthetic-inspired biohybrids provide, which is to harness the optimal qualities of both artificial and natural photosynthetic systems byusing evolvedprotein architectures from biology to address synthetic challenges,and by incorporatingsynthetic molecules to creatively probe and utilize Nature’s mechanisms.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

DOE OSTI2021

Viral Inhibitors Derived from Macroalgae, Microalgae, and Cyanobacteria: A review of antiviral potential throughout pathogenesis

Viruses are abiotic obligate parasites utilizing complex mechanisms to hijack cellular machinery and reproduce, causing multiple harmful effects in the process. Viruses represent a growing global health concern; at the time of writing, COVID-19 has killed at least two million people around the world and devastated global economies. Lingering concern regarding the virus’ prevalence yet hampers return to normalcy. While catastrophic in and of itself, COVID-19 further heralds in a new era of human-disease interaction characterized by the emergence of novel viruses from natural sources with heretofore unseen frequency. Due to deforestation, population growth, and climate change, we are encountering more viruses that can infect larger groups of people with greater ease and increasingly severe outcomes. The devastation of COVID-19 and forecasts of future human/disease interactions call for a creative reconsideration of global response to infectious disease. There is an urgent need for accessible, cost-effective antiviral (AV) drugs that can be mass-produced and widely distributed to large populations. Development of AV drugs should be informed by a thorough understanding of viral structure and function as well as human biology. To maximize efficacy, minimize cost, and reduce development of drug-resistance, these drugs would ideally operate through a varied set of mechanisms at multiple stages throughout the course of infection. Due to their abundance and diversity, natural compounds are ideal for such comprehensive therapeutic interventions. Promising sources of such drugs are found throughout nature; especially remarkable are the algae, a polyphyletic grouping of phototrophs that produce diverse bioactive compounds. While not much literature has been published on the subject, studies have shown that these compounds exert antiviral effects at different stages of viral pathogenesis. In this review, we follow the course of viral infection in the human body and evaluate the AV effects of algae-derived compounds at each stage. Specifically, we examine the AV activities of algae-derived compounds at the entry of viruses into the body, transport through the body via the lymph and blood, infection of target cells, and immune response. We discuss what is known about algae-derived compounds that may interfere with the infection pathways of SARS-CoV-2; and review which algae are promising sources for AV agents or AV precursors that, with further investigation, may yield life-saving drugs due to their diversity of mechanisms and exceptional pharmaceutical potential.

Algae, antiviral, SARS-CoV-2, seaweed, cyanobacter↗

DOE OSTI2021

MADLens, a python package for fast and differentiable non-Gaussian lensing simulations

Here, we present MADLens a python package for producing non-Gaussian lensing convergence maps at arbitrary source redshifts with unprecedented precision. MADLens is designed to achieve high accuracy while keeping computational costs as low as possible. A MADLens simulation with only particles produces convergence maps whose power agrees with theoretical lensing power spectra up to within the accuracy limits of HaloFit. This is made possible by a combination of a highly parallelizable particle-mesh algorithm, a sub-evolution scheme in the lensing projection, and a machine-learning inspired sharpening step. Further, MADLens is fully differentiable with respect to the initial conditions of the underlying particle-mesh simulations and a number of cosmological parameters. These properties allow MADLens to be used as a forward model in Bayesian inference algorithms that require optimization or derivative-aided sampling. Another use case for MADLens is the production of large, high resolution simulation sets as they are required for training novel deep-learning-based lensing analysis tools. We make the MADLens package publicly available under a Creative Commons License

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2023

From lab to table: Expanding gastronomic possibilities with fermentation using the edible fungus Neurospora intermedia

Fermentation is a powerful tool for enhancing flavor, improving sustainability, and expanding creative possibilities in the kitchen. However, most fermentations done in gastronomic contexts are restricted to a small set of readily available microbial species. Expanding beyond this limited biological diversity holds promise to unlock new gastronomic innovation. Here, we explore novel culinary applications of Neurospora intermedia, an edible fungus traditionally used in Java, Indonesia to produce the fermented food oncom. Our work demonstrates that N. intermedia can be readily used in the production of oncom-like meat alternatives with non-traditional substrates, as well as in the production of enzymes for starch-to-sugar conversion. As an example, we harness secreted N. intermedia starch-degrading enzymes to produce an amazake that has a distinct volatile aroma composition compared to traditional amazake produced with Aspergillus oryzae. In addition to providing texture and flavor, N. intermedia can be used to add an orange color to dishes due to the development of brightly colored spores and aerial mycelia. This property, along with its secreted enzymes, was utilized to create a dish for fine-dining restaurant Alchemist in Copenhagen, Denmark. Overall, the novel foods produced in this study were rated favorably in consumer trials, indicating a broad sensory appeal of N. intermedia across different culinary applications and cultural contexts. The protocols and approaches presented in this study represent a new addition to the chef's toolbox that hold promise to expand gastronomic possibilities with fermentation in restaurants and beyond.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2020

Life cycle greenhouse gas emissions and energy use of polylactic acid, bio-derived polyethylene, and fossil-derived polyethylene

Bioplastics recently have become an attractive, viable, and popular alternative to conventional petroleum-based plastics, with the hope that replacing fossil-derived plastics with renewable alternatives will reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and fossil energy consumption (FEC). The bioplastic industry is encouraging creative designs and enhanced properties such as biodegradability, which is considered a sustainable solution for waste plastic management. However, biodegradability also means that carbon in the product is emitted to the atmosphere as GHG emissions. In this paper, a life cycle analysis (LCA) of biodegradable polylactic acid (PLA) and bio-polyethylene (bio-PE) plastics was conducted to understand the environmental effects of these bioplastics from feedstock production to product end-of-life (EOL). In particular, emissions from biodegradability (EOL emissions) are accounted for. The results were compared to those of conventional fossil-based plastics such as high-density polyethylene (HDPE) and low-density polyethylene (LDPE). Results showed that the lowest GHG emissions (-1.0 and 1.7 kg CO 2 e per kg for bio-PE and PLA with no biodegradation, respectively) and FEC (29 and 46 MJ per kg of bio-PE and PLA, respectively) were achieved with bio-derived plastics, particularly bio-PE plastic. However, despite the benefits of biogenic carbon uptake, when landfill and composting emissions were considered for the PLA pathway, the life cycle emissions of PLA increase significantly, from 16% to 163% depending on the biodegradation condition, compared to the case where there is no degradation in the landfill. This study also contributed to understand the effects on the GHG emissions of biodegradability in landfill and composting scenarios, regional electricity mix, and plastics manufacturing technologies. (C) 2020 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

DOE OSTI2021

Autonomous experimentation systems for materials development: A community perspective

Solutions to many of the world's problems depend upon materials research and development. However, advanced materials can take decades to discover and decades more to fully deploy. Humans and robots have begun to partner to advance science and technology orders of magnitude faster than humans do today through the development and exploitation of closed-loop, autonomous experimentation systems. This review discusses the specific challenges and opportunities related to materials discovery and development that will emerge from this new paradigm. Our perspective incorporates input from stakeholders in academia, industry, government laboratories, and funding agencies. We outline the current status, barriers, and needed investments, culminating with a vision for the path forward. We intend the article to spark interest in this emerging research area and to motivate potential practitioners by illustrating early successes. We also aspire to encourage a creative reimagining of the next generation of materials science infrastructure. To this end, we frame future investments in materials science and technology, hardware and software infrastructure, artificial intelligence and autonomy methods, and critical workforce development for autonomous research.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗