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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 757 records · Page 42
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2021

Modelling dust transport in DIII-D with DTOKS-Upgrade

Comprehensive upgrades to the dust transport code Dust in TOKamaks (DTOKS) that extend the plasma-dust interaction model are presented and compared with recent measurements of dust transport in DIII-D. Simulations incorporating variation in physical properties of graphite dust with temperature and size in a stationary plasma background suggest a substantial decrease in lifetimes due principally to thermal expansion. The trajectories of 53 dust grains identified from analysis of visible camera data taken across two similar shots were used to measure the dust particle velocity distributions. Dust tracks terminated mostly at the outer divertor strike point having a mean observation time of 2.1 ± 0.4 ms. Stochastic modelling of 200 graphite dust particles in the DIII-D tokamak performed with DTOKS-U using plasma simulations generated by OEDGE found similar behaviour, with particles ablating rapidly after acquiring a positive charge in the region close to the outer strike point, creating an acute source of neutral carbon atoms. The simulated mean lifetime, 11 ± 2 ms, showed approximate agreement with experimental observation when corrected by accounting for dust visibility and ignoring the longest trajectories 1.5 ± 0.2 ms. Synthetic diagnostic data generated from coupling the results of DTOKS-U with the visualisation software Calcam offers a powerful new tool for validation of simulations and predictive calculations of dust dynamics.

Physics↗
DOE OSTI2023

Predeployment progress of the Canister Deposition Field Demonstration

This report updates the high-level test plan for evaluating surface deposition on three commercial 32PTH2 spent nuclear fuel (SNF) canisters inside NUTECH Horizontal Modular Storage (NUHOMS) Advanced Horizontal Storage Modules (AHSMs) from Orano (formerly Transnuclear Inc.) and provides a summary of the surface sampling activities that have been conducted to date. The details contained in this report represent the best designs and approaches explored for testing as of this publication. Given the rapidly developing nature of this test program, some of these plans may change to accommodate new objectives or requirements. One goal of this testing is to collect defensible and detailed dust deposition measurements from the surface of dry storage canisters in a marine coastal environment to guide chloride-induced stress corrosion cracking (CISCC) research. Another goal is to provide data for the validation of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) based deposition modeling. To facilitate surface sampling, the otherwise highly prototypic dry storage systems will not contain SNF but rather will be electrically heated to mimic the decay heat and thermal hydraulic environment. Test and heater design is supported by detailed CFD modeling. Instrumentation throughout the canister, storage module, and environment will provide extensive information about the thermal-hydraulic behavior of horizontal dry cask storage systems. Manual sampling over a comprehensive portion of the canister surface at regular time intervals will offer detailed quantification and composition of the deposited particulates from a realistic storage environment. Discussions of a potential host site for the Canister Deposition Field Demonstration (CDFD) are ongoing. Until a host site is chosen, testing of key CDFD hardware components including the heater assemblies, power skid, and remote data acquisition system will continue. Functional testing of the finalized heater assemblies and test apparatus started this fiscal year. These initial heater tests have shown the assemblies are performing within design specifications. Staged surface sampling of a mockup of a canister outside the AHSM on a transfer skid was also performed. Refinements to the sampling procedures and techniques were captured from observation of these activities and lessons-learned debriefs. These updated sampling procedures and techniques are planned to be tested again in the field using the mockup in order to assure personnel are using the most accurate and repeatable methods possible prior to deployment for actual CDFD testing.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2021

CFD/FEA Co-Simulation Framework for Analysis of the Thermal Barrier Coating Design and Its Impact on the HD Diesel Engine Performance

Thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) have been investigated both experimentally and through simulation for mixing controlled combustion (MCC) concepts as a method for reducing heat transfer losses and increasing cycle efficiency, but it is still a very active research area. Early studies were inconclusive, with different groups discovering obstacles to realizing the theoretical potential. Nuanced papers have shown that coating material properties, thickness, microstructure, and surface morphology/roughness all can impact the efficacy of the thermal barrier coating and must be accounted for. Adding to the complexities, a strong spatial and temporal heat flux inhomogeneity exists for mixing controlled combustion (diesel) imposed onto the surfaces from the impinging flame jets. In support of the United States Department of Energy SuperTruck II program goal to achieve 55% brake thermal efficiency on a heavy-duty diesel engines, this study sought to develop a deeper insight into the inhomogeneous heat flux from mixing controlled combustion on thermal barrier coatings and to infer concrete guidance for designing coatings. To that end, a co-simulation approach was developed that couples high-fidelity computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modeling of in-cylinder processes and combustion, and finite element analysis (FEA) modeling of the thermal barrier-coated and metal engine components to resolve spatial and temporal thermal boundary conditions. The models interface at the surface of the combustion chamber; FEA modeling predicts the spatially resolved surface temperature profile, while CFD develops insights into the effect of the thermal barrier coating on the combustion process and the boundary conditions on the gas side. The paper demonstrates the capability of the framework to estimate cycle impacts of the temperature swing at the surface, as well as identify critical locations on the piston/thermal barrier coating that exhibit the highest charge temperature and highest heat fluxes. In addition, the FEA results include predictions of thermal stresses, thus enabling insight into factors affecting coating durability. An example of the capability of the framework is provided to illustrate its use for investigating novel coatings and provide deeper insights to guide future coating design.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2021

A proton beam energy modulator for rapid proton therapy

We present the design for a rapid proton energy modulator with radiofrequency accelerator cavities, which can deliver the proton radiation dose to varied depth in human tissues much faster than traditional mechanical beam energy degraders. The proton energy modulator is designed as a multi-cell 1-m long accelerator working at 2.856 GHz. Each individual accelerator cavity is powered by a 400 kW compact klystron to provide an accelerating/decelerating gradient of 30 MV/m. The high gradient is enabled by the individual power coupling regime, which provides a high shunt impedance. Beam dynamics simulations were performed, showing that the energy modulator can provide ±30 MeV of beam energy change for a 150 MeV, 7 mm long (full length) proton bunch, and the total energy spread of 3 MeV is satisfactory to clinical needs. A prototype experiment of a single cell has been built and tested, and the low-power microwave measurement results agree very well with simulations. The energy modulator is optimized for the 150 MeV cyclotron proton beam, while this approach can work with different beam energies.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
DOE OSTI2024

Hydrodynamic fluctuations near a Hopf bifurcation: Stochastic onset of vortex shedding behind a circular cylinder

Here, we investigate hydrodynamic fluctuations in the flow past a circular cylinder near the critical Reynolds number Re c for the onset of vortex shedding. Starting from the fluctuating Navier-Stokes equations, we perform a perturbation expansion around Re c to derive analytical expressions for the statistics of the fluctuating lift force. Molecular-level simulations using the direct simulation Monte Carlo method support the theoretical predictions of the lift power spectrum and amplitude distribution. Notably, we have been able to collect sufficient statistics at distances Re ⁡/ Re c – 1 = O ⁡(10 –3 ) from the instability that confirm the appearance of non-Gaussian fluctuations, and we observe that they are associated with intermittent vortex shedding. These results emphasize how unavoidable thermal-noise-induced fluctuations become dramatically amplified in the vicinity of oscillatory flow instabilities and that their onset is fundamentally stochastic.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2021

Performance Improvements for the Griffin Transport Solvers

Griffin is a Multiphysics Object-Oriented Simulation Environment based reactor multiphysics analysis application jointly developed by Idaho National Laboratory and Argonne National Laboratory. Griffin includes a variety of deterministic radiation transport solvers for fixed source, k-eigenvalue, adjoint, and subcritical multiplication, as well as transient solvers for point-kinetics, improved quasi-static, and spatial dynamics. A code assessment performed in FY-20 identified two significant issues with the transport solvers in Griffin: first, the primary heterogeneous SN (discrete ordinates) transport solver based on continuous finite element methods required significant mesh refinement and higher memory usage compared to solvers based on the method of characteristic for equivalent accuracy. Second, the homogeneous PN (spherical harmonics expansion) transport solver did not adequately support polynomial refinement, which is a feature usually required for problems with spatial homogenization and pronounced streaming, typical in fast or gas-cooled reactor systems. To address the first issue, the development effort focused on the more promising discontinuous finite element method (DFEM)-based SN transport solver in Griffin. The addition of an asynchronous parallel transport sweeper and coarse mesh finite difference (CMFD) acceleration have rendered a superior heterogeneous SN transport capability for multiphysics problems that requires far less computing resources in terms of both CPU time and memory usage. This is demonstrated with typical thermal- and fast-spectrum reactor benchmark problems, including 2D Transient Reactor Test, 3D Advanced Burner Test Reactor (ABTR), and 2D and 3D Empire microreactor. For the second issue, the development effort focused on a new transport solver based on the hybrid finite element PN method (HFEM-PN), equivalent to the variational nodal method, as well as a new diffusion solver based on HFEM-Diffusion. This solver is intended for homogenized domains with multiphysics coupling (i.e., supports mesh displacement, seamless temperature feedback, etc.). Initial calculations with the HFEM-Diffusion implementation show very good parallel efficiency for the residual evaluations with the 2D ABTR benchmark. A future development effort will be centered on further improvements to the CMFD, HFEM-PN, and DFEM diffusion solvers to ensure Griffin meets performance and software quality assurance requirements for advanced reactor design and analysis.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Pilgrim : A thermal rate constant calculator and a chemical kinetics simulator

Pilgrim is a program written in Python and designed to use direct dynamics in the calculation of thermal rate constants of chemical reactions by the variational transition state theory (VTST), based on electronic structure calculations for the potential energy surface. Pilgrim can also simulate reaction mechanisms using kinetic Monte Carlo (KMC). For reaction processes with many elementary steps, the rate constant of each of these steps can be calculated by means of conventional transition state theory (TST) or by using VTST. In the current version, Pilgrim can evaluate thermal rates using the canonical version of reaction-path VTST, which requires the calculation of the minimum energy path (MEP) associated with each elementary step or transition structure. Multi-dimensional quantum effects can be incorporated through the small-curvature tunneling (SCT) approximation. These methodologies are available both for reactions involving a single structure of the reactants and the transition state and also for reactions involving flexible molecules with multiple conformations of the reactant and/or of the transition state. For systems with many conformers, the program can evaluate each of the elementary reaction rate constants by multipath canonical VTST or multi-structural VTST. Moreover, the reactant can be unimolecular or bimolecular. Torsional anharmonicity can be incorporated through either the MSTor or the Q2DTor programs. Dual-level calculations are also available in Pilgrim: automatic high-level single-point energies can be used to correct the energy of reactants, transition states, products, and MEP points using the interpolated single-point energies (ISPE) algorithm. When the rate constants of all the chemical processes of interest are known, by means of their calculation using Pilgrim or alternatively through analytical fits to the rate constants as functions of temperature, it is possible to simulate a multistep mechanism under specified laboratory conditions using KMC. Finally, this algorithm allows performing a kinetic simulation to monitor the evolution of each chemical species with time and obtain the product yields.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2022

Twisted A-D-A Type Acceptors with Thermally-Activated Delayed Crystallization Behavior for Efficient Nonfullerene Organic Solar Cells

We report that molecular aggregation and crystallization during film coating play a crucial role in the realization of high-performing organic photovoltaics. Strong intermolecular interactions and high solid-state crystallinity are beneficial for charge transport. However, fast crystallization during thin-film drying often limits the formation of the finely phase-separated morphology required for efficient charge generation. Herein, the authors show that twisted acceptor-donor-acceptor (A-D-A) type compounds, containing an indacenodithiophene (IDT) electron-rich core and two naphthalenediimide (NDI) electron-poor units, leads to formation of mostly amorphous phases in the as-cast film, which can be readily converted into more crystalline domains by means of thermal annealing. This design strategy solves the aforementioned conundrum, leading to an optimal morphology in terms of reduced donor/acceptor domain-separation sizes (ca. 13 nm) and increased packing order. Solar cells based on these acceptors with a PBDB-T polymer donor show a power conversion efficiency over 10% and stable morphology, which results from the combined properties of desirable excited-state dynamics, high charge mobility, and optimal aggregation/crystallization characteristics. These results demonstrate that the twisted A-D-A motif featuring thermally-induced crystallization behavior is indeed a promising alternative design approach toward more morphologically robust materials for efficient organic photovoltaics.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2022

Implementation of a Model Predictive Control Strategy to Regulate Temperature Inside Plug-Flow Solar Reactor With Countercurrent Flow

Abstract Solar-driven thermochemical energy storage systems are proven to be promising energy carriers (solar fuels) to utilize solar energy by using reactive solid-state pellets. However, the production of solar fuel requires a quasi-steady-state process temperature, which represents the main challenge due to the transient nature of solar power. In this work, an adaptive model predictive controller (MPC) is presented to regulate the temperature inside a tubular solar reactor to produce solid-state solar fuel for long-term thermal storage systems. The solar reactor system consists of a vertical tube heated circumferentially over a segment of its length by concentrated solar power, and the reactive pellets (MgMn2O4) are fed from the top end and flow downwards through the heated tube. A countercurrent flowing gas supplied from the lower end interacts with flowing pellets to reduce it thermochemically at a temperature range of 1000—1500 °C. A low-order physical model was developed to simulate the dynamics of the solar reactor including the reaction kinetics, and the proposed model was validated numerically by using a 7-kW electric furnace. The numerical model then was utilized to design the MPC controller, where the control system consists of an MPC code linked to an adaptive system identification code that updates system parameters online to ensure system robustness against external disturbances (sudden change in the flow inside the reactor), model mismatches, and uncertainty. The MPC controller parameters are tuned to enhance the system performance with minimum steady-state error and overshoot. The controller is tested to track different temperature ranges between 500 °C and 1400 °C with different particles/gas mass flowrates and ramping temperature profiles. Results show that the MPC controller successfully regulated the reactor temperature within ± 1 °C of its setpoint and maintained robust performance with minimum input effort when subjected to sudden changes in the amount of flowing media and the presence of chemical reaction.

Engineering↗
DOE OSTI2020

Evaluation of Nuclear Spent Fuel Disposal in Clay-Bearing Rock - Process Model Development and Experimental Studies

The DOE R&D program under the Spent Fuel Waste Science Technology (SFWST) campaign has made key progress in modeling and experimental approaches towards the characterization of chemical and physical phenomena that could impact the long-term safety assessment of heat-generating nuclear waste disposition in deep clay/shale/argillaceous rock. International collaboration activities such as heater tests and postmortem analysis of samples recovered from these have elucidated key information regarding changes in the engineered barrier system (EBS) material exposed to years of thermal loads. Chemical and structural analyses of sampled bentonite material from such tests has as well as experiments conducted on these are key to the characterization of thermal effects affecting bentonite clay barrier performance and the extent of sacrificial zones in the EBS during the thermal period. Thermal, hydrologic, and chemical data collected from heater tests and laboratory experiments has been used in the development, validation, and calibration of THMC simulators to model near-field coupled processes. This information leads to the development of simulation approaches (e.g., continuum vs. discrete) to tackle issues related to flow and transport at various scales of the host-rock and EBS design concept. Consideration of direct disposal of large capacity dual-purpose canisters (DPCs) as part of the back-end SNF waste disposition strategy has generated interest in improving our understanding of the effects of elevated temperatures on the EBS design. This is particularly important for backfilled repository concepts where temperature plays a key role in the EBS behavior and long-term performance. This report describes multiple R&D efforts on disposal in argillaceous geologic media through development and application of coupled THMC process models, experimental studies on clay/metal/cement barrier and host-rock (argillite) material interactions, molecular dynamic (MD) simulations of water transport during (swelling) clay dehydration, first-principles studies of metaschoepite (UO 2 corrosion product) stability, and advances in thermodynamic plus surface complexation database development. Drift-scale URL experiments provides key data for testing hydrological-chemical (HC) model involving strong couplings of fluid mixing and barrier material chemical interactions. The THM modeling focuses on heater test experiments in argillite rock and gas migration in bentonite as part of international collaboration activities at underground research laboratories (URLs). In addition, field testing at an URL involves in situ analysis of fault slip behavior and fault permeability. Pore-scale modeling of gas bubble migration is also being investigated within the gas migration modeling effort. Interaction experiments on bentonite samples from heater test under ambient and elevated temperatures permit the evaluation of ion exchange, phase stability, and mineral transformation changes that could impact clay swelling. Advances in the development, testing, and implementation of a spent nuclear fuel (SNF) degradation model coupled with canister corrosion focus on the effects of hydrogen gas generation and its integration with Geologic Disposal Safety Assessment (GDSA). GDSA integration activities includes evaluation of groundwater chemistries in shale formations.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2026

Multifunctional electrochemical memory stabilized by phase coexistence

Our growing computing needs, especially in applications that heavily rely on artificial intelligence (AI), motivate a search for new components that could substantially augment the performance of general-purpose digital computers. Beyond ON/OFF switching, new components with linear multistate analog resistive tuning, nonlinear volatile switching, spiking, oscillatory, stochastic and other complex functionalities could enable highly efficient neuromorphic computing schemes for AI information processing. Compared to the extreme multifunctionality of biological neurons, realizing all the above characteristics in a single, scalable analog component remains a grand challenge. Here we investigate electrochemical gating combined with localized thermal activation to program and switch a single, vertically integrated and dimensionally scaled electrothermal chemical random access memory (ETCRAM) with a channel and reservoir composed of phase-separated vanadium oxide. Closely related to electrochemical RAM (ECRAM), ETCRAM uses an integrated gate-heater electrode to overcome kinetic barriers that help retain states at ambient temperatures. In addition to synapse-like stable and programmable analog resistance states arising from redox-tunable phase coexistence, a single component exhibits neuron-like nonlinear conductance switching with a tunable threshold and self-driven dynamics owing to the thermally driven metal-insulator phase transition in vanadium dioxide. More broadly, we demonstrate that electrochemically stabilized phase coexistence could unlock analog electronics with novel functionality, stability, reconfigurability, and scalability.

Oh, Sangheon [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-CA), Liver↗
DOE OSTI2021

Thermal loading analysis of the ring injection dump for the Spallation Neutron Source facility

The ring injection dump (RID) is the largest beam dump in the Spallation Neutron Source facility at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and accepts a fraction of the beam from the ring that is not captured in the ring during injection. Thermo-fluid modeling of the RID components was performed during the initial design by using the software ANSYS CFX to characterize the power rating for the RID. From the calculations, the power rating was lowered from 200 kW to 150 kW, at 1.3 GeV beam energy due to concerns regarding the heating of the concrete structure. The Proton Power Upgrade project scope included reevaluating the power limit to the RID in anticipation that increasing it would provide more operational flexibility. The focus was on the shielding because it was the limiting factor, and data collected from thermocouples installed on the structure were used to benchmark the analysis. A three-stage process was adopted in the latest study. First, the already existing steady-state calculations were validated and extended with the latest Monte Carlo N-Particle source term calculations. Second, transient calculations were conducted to capture the dynamic state of the system in response to the energy dumped to the RID during the following operational period of the beam from 2005–2019 (14 years), and sensitivity analyses of crucial parameters were performed to benchmark the model with reasonable accuracy. Finally, an idealized transient cycle analysis was conducted with realistic duty factors to predict the temperature distribution at higher beam powers. Overall, the results confirmed the accuracy of the original steady state model but allowed the development of a new validated transient model with higher accuracy for future analyses.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2022

Approach and Model Used to Represent a Timeline Analysis for Security Design Enhancements

Next-generation reactors will be able to use risk to inform and performance base the licensing of many aspects of the reactor, facility, and site design, including attributes of physical security. There are several factors related to security, including site topography, reactor design, and physical protection system components, to consider when designing the physical protection system into the overall facility design and plan of operation. With the versatility of advanced reactors, especially micro reactors, methods are needed to simplify and quickly evaluate potential timelines for designing a site configuration. This report describes an approach to generate qualitative and quantitative insights using a risk-informed simulation. The modeling process is described in detail, focusing on three aspects: (1) the facility mission time (the time required to control the plant until safe), (2) the attacker timeline (the time to potential sabotage), and (3) the response timeline (the time to counter the facility attack). The modeling capabilities also are extended to include facility physical phenomena such as thermal-hydraulics and heat transfer to capture realistic representation of dynamic changes to a facility. While the plant models and examples are hypothetical and do not represent a real facility, these modeling approaches could be used for future security-by-design engineering in advanced reactors. The outputs and insights from the modeling approach may be used to modify and optimize the security posture of a facility by efficiently making modifications to the model and seeing the overall impact from the modification. Lastly, use of the approach described in this report can also provide the technical basis for a physical protection program, describing how the facility and security strategy will cope with off-normal events.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Dynamic energy system modeling using hybrid physics-based and machine learning encoder–decoder models

Three model configurations are presented for multi-step time series predictions of the heat absorbed by the water and steam in a thermal power plant. The models predict over horizons of 2, 4, and 6 steps into the future, where each step is a 5-minute increment. The evaluated models are a pure machine learning model, a novel hybrid machine learning and physics-based model, and the hybrid model with an incomplete dataset. The hybrid model deconstructs the machine learning into individual boiler heat absorption units: economizer, water wall, superheater, and reheater. Each configuration uses a gated recurrent unit (GRU) or a GRU-based encoder–decoder as the deep learning architecture. Mean squared error is used to evaluate the models compared to target values. The encoder–decoder architecture is over 11% more accurate than the GRU only models. The hybrid model with the incomplete dataset highlights the importance of the manipulated variables to the system. The hybrid model, compared to the pure machine learning model, is over 10% more accurate on average over 20 iterations of each model. Automatic differentiation is applied to the hybrid model to perform a local sensitivity analysis to identify the most impactful of the 72 manipulated variables on the heat absorbed in the boiler. The models and sensitivity analyses are used in a discussion about optimizing the thermal power plant.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2022

Isotherm Modeling and Techno-Economic Analysis of Contactor Technologies for New Tetraamine-Appended MOF for NGCC Applications

Recently, a family of tetraamine-functionalized metal-organic frameworks (MOF) has been reported as promising sorbent materials for capturing CO2 from flue gas conditions relevant to natural gas combined cycle (NGCC) applications. The main advantages of these materials are their two-step cooperative CO2 adsorption, which gives rise to unusual two step-shaped CO2 adsorption profiles and their high thermal stability. This work presents the modelling of the two-transition isotherm of the tetraamine-appended MOF, N,N'-bis(3-aminopropyl)-1,4-diaminobutane (3-4-3)-appended Mg2(dobpdc), and the techno-economic analysis (TEA) of carbon capture processes utilizing this sorbent. Due to the unusual isotherm shapes of the experimental CO2 adsorption data for tetraamine-appended Mg2(dobpdc) and the strong nonlinearity of CO2 loading with respect to temperature and pressure, we tested two different models which use logistic functions for representing the different isotherm behaviors in the different pressure ranges. The first model uses the quadratic isotherm model in the low-pressure region, the Langmuir isotherm model in the middle pressure range, and the dual site Langmuir isotherm model in the high-pressure range. To model the transition between regions we used the arctangent functions independent of temperature and the thermal effect was accounted by using the Clausius-Clapeyron relation]. The second model is an extension of the weighted dual-site Langmuir isotherm model presented by Hughes et al.. In this extended model, the dual-site Langmuir isotherm is employed in the three transition regions, using temperature-dependent logistic functions to activate or deactivate the isotherm model in the low, middle, and high-pressure ranges. Both models fit the experimental data quite well with root mean squared errors (RMSE’s) of 0.41 and 0.17 for model 1 and model 2, respectively. Since model 2 resulted in a lower RMSE, it was leveraged for the development of the gas/solid contactor models used by the TEA. Specifically, two different contactor models, an axial-flow fixed bed and moving bed contactor, were developed as part of this work. These models are dynamic, pressure-driven, and consist of mass, energy, and momentum conservation equations. A kinetic model was also developed by performing parameter estimation using experimental fixed bed breakthrough data. These models are then used to simulate CO2 capture processes from the flue gas generated from a ~600 gross MW NGCC power plant. A cost model was developed which considers the capital cost of the reactors and the significant operating costs such as steam and electricity. Using NETL’s Framework for the Optimization and Quantification of Uncertainty of Uncertainty and Surrogates tool (FOQUS), which has the capability of linking models built using numerous modelling platforms with derivative-free optimization solvers, a techno-economic optimization of the carbon capture processes was performed which minimizes the cost of capture.

Caballero, Daison↗
DOE OSTI2025

Technical Assessment of Off-Gas System Technologies for Potential Use in Molten Salt Reactors

Molten salt reactors (MSRs) are a class of Generation IV advanced reactor technologies aimed to enhance and improve the safety, fuel utilization and cost-effectiveness of nuclear power generation. MSR concepts are based on using a molten salt mixture as a primary nuclear reactor coolant, while the fuel can be either directly dissolved in the coolant (i.e., fluid-fueled) or can be in a separate solid form (i.e., salt-cooled solid-fueled). MSRs can be operated in either thermal or fast neutron spectra, as simple fissile convertors, or breeder reactors (e.g., utilizing both fissile and fertile fuels), as well as accelerator-driven sub-critical reactors or transuranic element burners. Operation of MSRs will necessitate management and treatment of the off-gas streams released to the headspace of the reactor where, in some designs, a cover gas can be circulated to remove certain fission products and maintain an inert atmosphere. An inert MSR cover gas swept over or sparged into the salt will confine radionuclides emerging from the free surface, including radioactive noble and non-noble gases, aerosols, and volatile species. The elements and compounds of these species will have a wide range of thermochemical and physical properties, some of which will decay to different products in the off-gas stream. Therefore, system components used to manage and treat MSR off-gas streams will need to be robust under dynamic reactor and chemistry conditions to support adequate reactor performance by managing the composition and species in the salt coolant and cover gas space. Off-gas system components would perform as a radionuclide boundary to the reactor vessel and a primary means for preventing radionuclide release; therefore, they are of high safety significance for MSR operations. This report reviews various technologies and materials for potential implementation in the design of an MSR off-gas system per a general conceptual framework. The reviewed technologies operate based on scrubbing, capture, delay, or separation of species in the off-gas stream. These include molten hydroxide scrubbers, solid sorbents, delay off-gas systems, particle traps, and cryogenic distillation. Since aspects of an off-gas system will be design-specific, the approach is to provide general discussions on attributes of these technologies and materials, including target off-gas stream species, operational parameters and conditions of importance to decontamination factors, implementation maturity, system component monitoring, potential off-normal conditions and considerations for waste products. The information aims to support the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission in their safety evaluations for MSR designs.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2020

A thermodynamic analysis of hypervelocity impacts on metals

Hypervelocity impacts on solid surfaces generate and propagate shock waves and create extreme density, pressure, and temperature conditions. Understanding hypervelocity impacts requires a multi-physics approach at the intersection of fluid dynamics, solid mechanics, and quantum theory, which has the capability of spanning multiple different dominating physics regimes. These strong shock conditions found in hypervelocity impacts are studied in the context of high-speed collisions between spacecraft and meteoroids and debris. We study the problem of hypervelocity impacts on metals with the lens of understanding the processes that lead to the creation of an impact generated plasma. In order to characterize the impacting particle as well as its threat to spacecraft from the subsequent radiating plasma an analysis was performed that highlights how the kinetic energy of the impactor is deposited into a target, how the shock wave and shocked material in the target evolve, and how these effects can lead towards the creation of an impact plasma through heating. The analysis suggests that at low velocities the majority of the energy from a hypervelocity impact is stored in reversible elastic energy and does not contribute to strong heating. At higher impact velocities, nucleus and electron thermal components dominate, increasing the energy available for ionization. Overall, this work provides the complete set of state variable initial conditions for any study of hypervelocity impact plasma expansion and its effects.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2023

Dual-Purpose Canister Filling Demonstration Project Progress Report at ORNL, 2023

The US DOE Office of Nuclear Energy is investigating the feasibility of direct disposal of dual-purpose canisters (DPCs) in a hypothetical geological repository to offset the potential requirement to repackage spent nuclear fuel (SNF) from existing DPCs into smaller, disposal-ready canisters. Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) is currently evaluating the feasibility of filling void space in loaded DPCs with an engineered material to prevent a criticality event caused by groundwater/moderator intrusion. Metal alloys are being investigated as a filler material because of their relatively low viscosities when molten, which may facilitate their injection via an existing drainpipe that runs almost the full length of the DPC. ORNL’s strategy for evaluating filler viability includes simulations and physical demonstrations of filling and casting behavior, as well as evaluations of materials for compatibility in the repository environment. Filling of DPCs in this manner is expected to mitigate the risk associated with a post-closure criticality event during the repository performance assessment time frame (10,000 years or greater). Efforts in this fiscal year focused on (1) destructive analysis of experimental filler castings made in FY 2022, (2) a report outlining a conceptual design of a DPC filling facility (Fortner et al., 2023, M3SF 23OR010305044/ ORNL/SPR-2023/2921, May 31, 2023), (3) a report on affected features, events, and processes (FEPs) due to DPC filling (Price et al., 2023, M3SF-23SN010305093, issuance pending), (4) developing and testing a more practical alloy filler based upon a Sn-Al eutectic, and (5) modeling the heating and cooling dynamics of a DPC subjected to molten metal filling. The preliminary results from each of these tasks support the feasibility of filling DPCs with metal as a strategy against the possibility of criticality in the repository. The FY 2022 casting was found to penetrate even very small orifices in the mold and internal structures. Preliminary testing of the Sn-Al eutectic indicate little interaction of the melt with Zircaloy cladding. Thermal modelling shows that a filled DPC will cool to manageable temperatures within 2-3 days, which is likely manageable in a facility.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗