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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 865 records · Page 48
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2020

Testing of Crystalline Silicotitanate to Support Tank-Side Cesium Removal System Operations - 20458

The direct feed of waste from the Hanford tank farms to the Low-Activity Waste Facility at the Hanford Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant requires an intermediate treatment step that prepares the waste for vitrification. Washington River Protection Solutions (WRPS) selected a near-tank treatment system known as the Tank-Side Cesium Removal (TSCR) system to perform the required intermediate treatment functions. The approach in the TSCR system is to filter waste supernatant with a sintered metal dead-end filter and then use a series of ion exchange columns to remove cesium; this system has several similarities to the Tank Closure Cesium Removal system that has been deployed on the Savannah River Site. The ion exchange media proposed for use is crystalline silicotitanate (CST), which is a non-elutable media with a high affinity for cesium. Because the media is non-elutable, loaded columns will be blown down with compressed air, moved into interim storage, and replaced with new columns when cesium capacity is reached. The assumed extent and rate of drying that could be achieved in the TSCR column geometry lacked confirmation by experimental data. In addition, once the columns are loaded with cesium, they generate flammable gases (primarily hydrogen) via radiolysis acting on any resident liquids, i.e., moisture, remaining in the media bed. An assessment of available information on CST concluded that gas generation data that bounds expected operational conditions were needed to support the TSCR system safety basis and planned operations. Working with WRPS, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) designed and conducted testing with CST media to address the need for (a) representative in-column drying data, and (b) bounding flammable gas generation data. Drying testing was performed using a full-height column with a diameter of approximately 2 inches with injected air at temperatures of 18 deg. C and 30 deg. C. Gas generation testing was conducted in an engineered bunker that allowed simultaneous irradiation of up to eight samples at a time. These two experimental approaches used at PNNL for the CST testing are summarized and the major outcomes are presented. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2020

Laboratory-Scale Melter Systems for Simulated and Real AP-107 Tank Waste - 20483

The Hanford Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) will process and stabilize waste that is stored in underground tanks on the Hanford Site. At the WTP, the tank waste will be combined with glass-forming and modifying additives to form an aqueous and solid mixture called melter feed, which will then be vitrified in joule-heated melters. A small-scale melter system, the continuous laboratory-scale melter (CLSM), is designed to operate with a continuous feeding process while periodically pouring glass product and collecting off-gas. Two CLSMs were constructed: one in a non-radioactive environment for processing waste simulants and another in a fume hood capable of handling radioactive material for processing actual Hanford tank waste. The waste sample received for vitrification in the CLSM was from Hanford tank 241-AP-107. Approximately 12 liters of melter-feed slurry was vitrified into 7 kilograms of glass product over the course of 10 hours of charging to the CLSM. The partitioning of technetium-99 in the product streams was used to calculate the technetium-99 recovery and help determine when the vitrification process had reached a steady state. The average single-pass retention of technetium-99 in the glass product was then calculated for the processing of AP-107 waste in the CLSM system. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2016

Failure Diagnosis for the Holdup Tank System via ISFA

This paper discusses the use of the integrated system failure analysis (ISFA) technique for fault diagnosis for the holdup tank system. ISFA is a simulation-based, qualitative and integrated approach used to study fault propagation in systems containing both hardware and software subsystems. The holdup tank system consists of a tank containing a fluid whose level is controlled by an inlet valve and an outlet valve. We introduce the component and functional models of the system, quantify the main parameters and simulate possible failure-propagation paths based on the fault propagation approach, ISFA. The results show that most component failures in the holdup tank system can be identified clearly and that ISFA is viable as a technique for fault diagnosis. Since ISFA is a qualitative technique that can be used in the very early stages of system design, this case study provides indications that it can be used early to study design aspects that relate to robustness and fault tolerance. (authors)

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2021

CalWave - TEAMER UMaine 2021 Tank Testing

This is the data submission to the teamer report for RFTS1 during which tank testing at UMaine W2 tank occurred. This submission includes the relevant information and recorded data of CalWave's UMaine wave tank testing conducted under TEAMER Request for Support Round 1. During the testing CalWave assessed an autonomous control approach for changing PTO gain parameters based on "on board" sea state detection. The data submitted includes an overview of normalized PTO gains based on sea state values and for a set of 8 relevant sea states the WEC motion. All data was collected on CalWave's SCADA system and UMaine's motion tracking system. The data submitted suffices the creation of figures as shown in the PDF report submitted alongside the data and the submission includes excel sheets (parameter gains), MATLAB structures (absorber motion), and the mentioned PDF report.

16 TIDAL AND WAVE POWER↗
DOE OSTI2015

Thermal model development and validation for rapid filling of high pressure hydrogen tanks

This paper describes the development of thermal models for the filling of high pressure hydrogen tanks with experimental validation. Two models are presented; the first uses a one-dimensional, transient, network flow analysis code developed at Sandia National Labs, and the second uses the commercially available CFD analysis tool Fluent. These models were developed to help assess the safety of Type IV high pressure hydrogen tanks during the filling process. The primary concern for these tanks is due to the increased susceptibility to fatigue failure of the liner caused by the fill process. Thus, a thorough understanding of temperature changes of the hydrogen gas and the heat transfer to the tank walls is essential. The effects of initial pressure, filling time, and fill procedure were investigated to quantify the temperature change and verify the accuracy of the models. In this paper we show that the predictions of mass averaged gas temperature for the one and three-dimensional models compare well with the experiment and both can be used to make predictions for final mass delivery. Furthermore, due to buoyancy and other three-dimensional effects, however, the maximum wall temperature cannot be predicted using one-dimensional tools alone which means that a three-dimensional analysis is required for a safety assessment of the system.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2019

Refueling-station costs for metal hydride storage tanks on board hydrogen fuel cell vehicles

Refueling costs account for much of the fuel cost for light-duty hydrogen fuel-cell electric vehicles. We estimate cost savings for hydrogen dispensing if metal hydride (MH) storage tanks are used on board instead of 700-bar tanks. Here, we consider a low-temperature, low-enthalpy scenario and a high-temperature, high-enthalpy scenario to bracket the design space. The refueling costs are insensitive to most uncertainties. Uncertainties associated with the cooling duty, coolant pump pressure, heat exchanger (HX) fan, and HX operating time have little effect on cost. The largest sensitivities are to tank pressure and station labor. The cost of a full-service attendant, if the refueling interconnect were to prevent self-service, is the single largest cost uncertainty. MH scenarios achieve 0.71–0.75/kg-H 2 savings by reducing compressor costs without incurring the cryogenics costs associated with cold-storage alternatives. Practical refueling station considerations are likely to affect the choice of the MH and tank design.

08 HYDROGEN↗
DOE OSTI2014

Transient thermal analysis for radioactive liquid mixing operations in a large-scaled tank

A transient heat balance model was developed to assess the impact of a Submersible Mixer Pump (SMP) on radioactive liquid temperature during the process of waste mixing and removal for the high-level radioactive materials stored in Savannah River Site (SRS) tanks. The model results will be mainly used to determine the SMP design impacts on the waste tank temperature during operations and to develop a specification for a new SMP design to replace existing longshaft mixer pumps used during waste removal. The present model was benchmarked against the test data obtained by the tank measurement to examine the quantitative thermal response of the tank and to establish the reference conditions of the operating variables under no SMP operation. The results showed that the model predictions agreed with the test data of the waste temperatures within about 10%.

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

Thermographic inspection of pipes, tanks, and containment liners

Nuclear power plants are required to operate at a high level of safety. Recent industry and license renewal commitments aim to further increase safety by requiring the inspection of components that have not traditionally undergone detailed inspected in the past, such as tanks and liners. NEI 09-14 requires the inspection of buried pipes and tanks while containment liner inspections are required as a part of license renewal commitments. Containment liner inspections must inspect the carbon steel liner for defects - such as corrosion - that could threaten the pressure boundary and ideally, should be able to inspect the surrounding concrete for foreign material that could be in contact with the steel liner and potentially initiate corrosion. Such an inspection requires a simultaneous evaluation of two materials with very different material properties. Rapid, yet detailed, inspection results are required due to the massive size of the tanks and containment liners to be inspected. For this reason, thermal NDE methods were evaluated to inspect tank and containment liner mockups with simulated defects. Thermographic Signal Reconstruction (TSR) was utilized to enhance the images and provide detailed information on the sizes and shapes of the observed defects. The results show that thermographic inspection is highly sensitive to the defects of interest and is capable of rapidly inspecting large areas.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2018

Hydrogen Sensor for Parabolic Trough Expansion Tanks

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Acciona Energy North America are developing and implementing a process that addresses the issue of hydrogen buildup in parabolic trough power plants. We are pursuing a method that selectively removes hydrogen from the expansion tanks of the power plant to control hydrogen levels in the circulating heat-transfer fluid. As part of this effort, we are developing a sensor that measures hydrogen partial pressure in the expansion-tank headspace gas. During previous work, we demonstrated that our sensor design measures hydrogen levels over a wide partial pressure range from 1.33 mbar down to 0.003 mbar with an accuracy of +/-20%. We acquired these results under limited conditions because we measured hydrogen partial pressure in gas mixtures of hydrogen and nitrogen only. In this paper, we report our most recent results in which we measured hydrogen partial pressures in gas mixtures that contain hydrogen, nitrogen, biphenyl, and diphenylether. Our results for this gas mixture were essentially the same as those obtained for the hydrogen/nitrogen mixture only, and they also had the same accuracy of +/-20%. This level of accuracy is sufficient to evaluate the performance of a hydrogen mitigation process because hydrogen partial pressure in the expansion tank decreases more than an order of magnitude when the mitigation process is operating. We examined the palladium/silver membrane after completing these measurements and did not observe any signs of membrane deterioration or contamination due to exposure to biphenyl and diphenylether at 405 degrees C. The membrane for these tests was 25 um thick. For the next sensor design that we are developing in 2018, we are using a membrane that is 127 um thick. This thickness is required for the membrane to withstand the 150 psi pressure drop across the membrane when exposed to actual headspace gas from the expansion tank. We performed initial tests in which we exposed a 127-um-thick palladium alloy membrane to 400 degrees C and 150 psi pressure drop and observed no signs of failure or gas leakage. Finally, we developed a transient model that accounts for hydrogen transport mechanisms within the sensor when measurements are made. Our model accounted for hydrogen diffusion through the boundary layer that is adjacent to the membrane and for hydrogen permeation across the membrane and into the permeate volume. Our modeling results agreed very closely with our experimental data when we assumed a boundary-layer thickness of 0.2 cm. This thickness is within the range of expected thicknesses for this gas composition, temperature, and pressure at minimum flowrate. Our model results showed that hydrogen diffusion through the boundary layer adjacent to the membrane is the rate-determining step for the transient pressure response when measuring hydrogen partial pressure.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2020

Elemental characterization of crystalline silicotitanate following Hanford tank waste processing

To expedite vitrification of low activity waste at the Hanford Site, a Tank-Side Cesium Removal system is being evaluated. This method utilizes an inorganic ion exchange (IX) media, crystalline silicotitanate (CST), to remove 99.9% of the 137Cs from tank waste supernate. Laboratory scale testing of the ion exchange process has been conducted by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory to evaluate Cs removal with CST in supernates collected from Hanford tanks 241-AP-107 and 241-AW-102 under prototypic plant operating conditions. In an effort to understand the selectivity and partitioning of other analytes toward CST, specifically Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) hazardous metals, selected +2 cations, and transuranic elements, a method for the complete dissolution of CST and Cs removal from the digestate was applied to the spent CST post-processing Hanford tank waste. The CST was shown to adsorb a relevant fraction of Ca, Cd, Pb, Sr, and potentially Fe by IX and/or other mechanisms. The spent CST also adsorbed actinides, including U, Pu, Np, and Am. This work discusses digestion of CST and removal of Cs from the digestate allowing effective analysis and provides insight as to what analytes may be competing for IX sites on the CST media.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2021

Power Generation and Oxygen Transfer Analyses for Micro Hydro-Turbine Installed in Wastewater Treatment Aeration Tank

This study targets one of the major energy consumers in the U.S. It suggests a new mechanical system that can recover a portion of the energy in Wastewater Treatment Plants (WWTPs). The proposed system entails a hydro-turbine installed above the air diffuser in the aeration tank to extract the water-bubble current’s kinetic energy and converts it to electricity. Observing the optimum location of the turbine required multiple experiments where turbine height varies between 35% and 95% (water height percentages above the diffuser), while varying the airflow between 1.42 L/s (3 CFM) and 2.12 L/s (4.5 CFM) with a 0.24 L/s (0.5 CFM) increment. Additionally, three water heights of 38.1 cm (15*), 53.4 cm (21*), and 68.6 cm (27*) were considered to study the influence of the water height. It was noticed that the presence of the system has an adverse effect on the standard oxygen transfer efficiency (SOTE). Therefore, a small dual-blade propeller was installed right above the diffuser to directly mix the water in the bottom of the tank with the incoming air to enhance the SOTE. The results showed that the maximum reclaimed power was obtained where the hydro-turbine is installed at 65–80% above the diffuser. A reduction of up to 7.32% in SOTE was observed when the setup was placed inside the tank compared to the tank alone. The addition of the dual-blade propeller showed an increase in SOTE of 7.27% with a power loss of 6.21%, ensuring the aeration process was at its standards.

Energy & Fuels↗
DOE OSTI2016

TH-CD-201-05: Characterization of a Novel Light-Collimating Tank Optical-CT System for 3D Dosimetry

Purpose: Comprehensive 3D dosimetry is highly desirable for advanced clinical QA, but costly optical readout techniques have hindered widespread implementation. Here, we present the first results from a cost-effective Integrated-lens Dry-tank Optical Scanner (IDOS), designed for convenient 3D dosimetry readout of radiochromic plastic dosimeters (e.g. PRESAGE). Methods: The scanner incorporates a novel transparent light-collimating tank, which collimates a point light source into parallel-ray CT geometry. The tank was designed using an in-house Monte-Carlo optical ray-tracing simulation, and was cast in polyurethane using a 3D printed mould. IDOS spatial accuracy was evaluated by imaging a set of custom optical phantoms, with comparison to x-ray CT images. IDOS dose measurement performance was assessed by imaging PRESAGE dosimeters irradiated with simple known dose distributions (e.g., 4 field box 6MV treatment with Varian Linac). Direct comparisons were made to images from our gold standard DLOS scanner and calculated dose distributions from a commissioned Eclipse planning system. Results: All optical CT images were reconstructed at 1mm isotropic resolution. Comparison of IDOS and x-ray CT images of the geometric phantom demonstrated excellent IDOS geometric accuracy (sub-mm) throughout the dosimeter. IDOS measured 3D dose distribution agreed well with prediction from Eclipse, with 95% gamma pass rate at 3%/3mm. Cross-scanner dose measurement gamma analysis shows >90% of pixels passing at 3%/3mm. Conclusion: The first prototype of the IDOS system has demonstrated promising performance, with accurate dosimeter readout and negligible spatial distortion. The use of optical simulations and 3D printing to create a light collimating-tank has dramatically increased convenience and reduced costs by removing the need for expensive lenses and large volumes of refractive matching fluids.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2022

A Tanks-in-Series Approach to Estimate Parameters for Lithium-Ion Battery Models

Advanced Battery Management Systems (BMS) play a vital role in monitoring, predicting, and controlling the performance of lithium-ion batteries. BMS employing sophisticated electrochemical models can help increase battery cycle life and minimize charging time. However, in order to realize the full potential of electrochemical model-based BMS, it is critical to ensure accurate predictions and proper model parameterization. The accuracy of the predictions of an electrochemical model is dependent on the accuracy of its parameters, the values of which might change with battery cycling and aging. Parameter estimation for an electrochemical model is generally challenging due to the nonlinear nature and computational complexity of the model equations. To this end, this work utilizes the recently proposed Tanks-in-Series model for Li-ion batteries (J.Electrochem. Soc., 167, 013534 (2020)) to perform parameter estimation. The Tanks-in-Series approach allows for substantially faster parameter estimation compared to the original pseudo two-dimensional (p2D) model. The objective of this work is thus to demonstrate the gain in computational efficiency from the Tanks-in-Series approach. A sensitivity analysis of model parameters is also performed to benchmark the fidelity of the Tanks-in-Series model.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
DOE OSTI2023

Investigation into Na and Cs activity coefficients in high salt solutions to support Cs removal in Hanford tank waste

The treatment of Hanford tank waste is one of the most technically challenging environmental cleanup activities for the U.S. Department of Energy to date. To expedite the processing of liquid waste stored in underground tanks in southeastern Washington state, it is necessary to remove the significant dose contributor, 137 Cs. Toward this effort, ion exchange with crystalline silicotitanate (CST) has been employed as part of the Tank Side Cesium Removal system. The model used to predict Cs exchange onto CST was developed using activity coefficients calculated from the Bromley equation. A series of batch contact tests that varied in [Na] were conducted to look at the impact of Na concentration on Cs distribution. Experimental distribution ratios ( K d ) were compared to the distribution ratios predicted using three different activity coefficient models: (1) commercially available HSC software, (2) the Bromley equation, and (3) a simplified approach adapted from Marcos-Arroyo et al. Ultimately, the Bromley method underpredicted the effect of ionic strength on the Na activity coefficient ( γ Na+ ), HSC overestimated the impact of ionic strength on the expected performance due to the Cs activity coefficient ( γ Cs+ ), but the simplified approach predicted the experimental K d values quite well in a binary matrix. In conclusion, expansion of this approach in complex matrices is necessary for application to Hanford tank waste.

38 RADIATION CHEMISTRY, RADIOCHEMISTRY, AND NUCLEA↗
DOE OSTI2023

ParFlow Sand Tank: A tool for groundwater exploration

The ParFlow Sand Tank model is an open source application designed to allow users to interactively simulate and visualize groundwater movement through the subsurface. The app is designed for both research and education; teaching hydrogeology concepts and making it easy explore and run sophisticated groundwater simulations. Our goal is to support increased accessibility and usability of research grade hydrology tools for research and teaching. The Sand Tank application simulates groundwater and surface water fluxes as well as contaminant transport in real time using the integrated physical hydrology model ParFlow (Kollet & Maxwell, 2006; Maxwell & Miller, 2005; Osei-Kuffuor et al., 2014) and the particle tracking code EcoSlim (Maxwell et al., 2019). ParFlow is a numerical hydrology model that simulates spatially distributed groundwater and surface water flow. It is a well established research tool with more than 90 publications documenting its development use to advance our understanding of groundwater dynamics and groundwater surface water interactions from the hillslope to the continental scale e.g. (Condon et al., 2020; Condon & Maxwell, 2019; Maxwell & Condon, 2016). It is designed for efficient parallel computation and has been run on many platforms spanning from laptops to supercomputers. However, one of the challenges of ParFlow is that it requires significant training and hydrologic expertise to develop simulations. The Sand Tank application makes this model accessible to anyone for education and exploration. Our application uses ParFlow for its simulation backend and ParaView for the data loading and processing. The communication infrastructure relies on the ParaViewWeb framework. We use model templates deployed in Docker images to setup the Sand Tank framework. Users can build the application locally or interact with it through our web deployment. When interacting with a template users can interactively change model parameters like subsurface processes or pump/inject water into the subsurface and watch the system respond to their changes in real time as the simulation runs. Additionally, our template setup will allow more advanced users to build custom templates of increasing complexity for both research and educational purposes.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2011

In-Tank Elutriation Test Report And Independent Assessment

The Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Environmental Management (EM) funded Technology Development and Deployment (TDD) to solve technical problems associated with waste tank closure for sites such as Hanford Site and Savannah River Site (SRS). One of the tasks supported by this funding at Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) and Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNNL) was In-Tank Elutriation. Elutriation is the process whereby physical separation occurs based on particle size and density. This report satisfies the first phase of Task WP_1.3.1.1 In-Tank Elutriation, which is to assess the feasibility of this method of separation in waste tanks at Hanford Site and SRS. This report includes an analysis of scoping tests performed in the Engineering Development Laboratory of SRNL, analysis of Hanford's inadvertent elutriation, the viability of separation methods such as elutriation and hydrocyclones and recommendations for a path forward.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2014

Cone Penetrometer Shear Strength Measurements of Sludge Waste in Tanks 241-AN-101 and 241-AN-106

This document presents the resulting shear strength profiles for sludge waste in Tanks 241-AN-101 and 241-AN-106, as determined with a full-flow cone penetrometer. Full-flow penetrometer measurements indicate shear strength profiles that increase roughly uniformly with depth. For Tank 241-AN-101, the undrained shear strength was calculated to range from 500 Pa near the sludge surface to roughly 3,300 Pa at 15 inches above the tank bottom. For 241-AN-106, the undrained shear strength was calculated to range from 500 Pa near the sludge surface to roughly 5,000 Pa at 15 inches above the tank bottom.

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

Characterization of DWPF recycle condensate tank materials

A Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF) Recycle Condensate Tank (RCT) sample was delivered to the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) for characterization with particular interest in the concentration of I-129, U-233, U-235, total U, and total Pu. Since a portion of Salt Batch 8 will contain DWPF recycle materials, the concentration of I-129 is important to undertand for salt batch planning purposes. The chemical and physical characterizations are also needed as input to the interpretation of future work aimed at determining the propensity of the RCT material to foam, and methods to remediate any foaming potential. According to DWPF the Tank Farm 2H evaporator has experienced foaming while processing DWPF recycle materials. The characterization work on the RCT samples has been completed and is reported here. The composition of the Sludge Batch 8 (SB8) RCT material is largely a low base solution of 0.2M NaNO 2 and 0.1M NaNO 3 with a small amount of formate present. Insoluble solids comprise only 0.05 wt.% of the slurry. The solids appear to be largely sludge-like solids based on elemental composition and SEM-EDS analysis. The sample contains an elevated concentration of I-129 (38x) and substantial 59% fraction of Tc-99, as compared to the incoming SB8 Tank 40 feed material. The Hg concentration is 5x, when compared to Fe, of that expected based on sludge carryover. The total U and Pu concentrations are reduced significantly, 0.536 wt.% TS and 2.42E-03 wt.% TS, respectively, with the fissile components, U-233, U-235, Pu-239, and Pu-241, an order of magnitude lower in concentration than those in the SB8 Tank 40 DWPF feed material. This report will be revised to include the foaming study requested in the TTR and outlined in the TTQAP when that work is concluded.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗