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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 91 records · Page 5
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2011

Seismic Analysis Issues in Design Certification Applications for New Reactors

The licensing framework established by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission under Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) Part 52, “Licenses, Certifications, and Approvals for Nuclear Power Plants,” provides requirements for standard design certifications (DCs) and combined license (COL) applications. The intent of this process is the early reso- lution of safety issues at the DC application stage. Subsequent COL applications may incorporate a DC by reference. Thus, the COL review will not reconsider safety issues resolved during the DC process. However, a COL application that incorporates a DC by reference must demonstrate that relevant site-specific de- sign parameters are within the bounds postulated by the DC, and any departures from the DC need to be justified. This paper provides an overview of several seismic analysis issues encountered during a review of recent DC applications under the 10 CFR Part 52 process, in which the authors have participated as part of the safety review effort.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2014

Building America Case Study: Meeting DOE Challenge Home Program Certification, Chicago, Illinois; Denver, Colorado; Devens, Massachusetts (Fact Sheet)

The purpose of this project was to evaluate integrated packages of advanced measures in individual test homes to assess their performance with respect to Building America Program goals, specifically compliance with the DOE Challenge Home Program. BSC consulted on the construction of five test houses by three Cold Climate production builders in three separate US cities. BSC worked with the builders to develop a design package tailored to the cost-related impacts for each builder. Therefore, the resulting design packages do vary from builder to builder. BSC provided support through this research project on the design, construction and performance testing of the five test homes. Overall, the builders have concluded that the energy related upgrades (either through the prescriptive or performance path) represent reasonable upgrades. The builders commented that while not every improvement in specification was cost effective (as in a reasonable payback period), many were improvements that could improve the marketability of the homes and serve to attract more energy efficiency discerning prospective homeowners. However, the builders did express reservations on the associated checklists and added certifications. An increase in administrative time was observed with all builders. The checklists and certifications also inherently increase cost due to: 1. Adding services to the scope of work for various trades, such as HERS Rater, HVAC contractor. 2. Increased material costs related to the checklists, especially the EPA Indoor airPLUS and EPA WaterSense Efficient Hot Water Distribution requirement.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2023

2022 Small Turbine Certification Awardee: NPS Solutions

Inverters convert the direct current power generated by wind turbines into the alternating current needed to serve local loads and feed onto the electricity grid. Although distributed wind systems typically supply electricity for homes and businesses near the turbines, these systems can also provide clean power to strengthen grid resilience. Certification to UL 1741 SA ensures that inverters will enable distributed wind turbines to provide grid support services and stay online when the grid experiences stability issues. Small companies often find the electrical listing process too complex and expensive to undertake on their own, so few distributed wind turbine inverters are certified to this standard. A U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Competitiveness Improvement Project (CIP) award is helping NPS Solutions (NPS) secure this critical certification for the inverter in its 100-kilowatt NPS 100C wind turbine, which is optimized for on-site generation at farms, businesses, schools, hospitals, and remote locations.

CIP↗
DOE OSTI2023

Sodium Components Maintenance Shop (SCMS) Carbonation Vessel – Partial HWMA/RCRA Closure Certification Report

This report documents the Hazardous Waste Management Act (HWMA)/ Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) Partial Closure Certification of the Sodium Components Maintenance Shop (SCMS) Carbonation Vessel. The HWMA/RCRA Closure followed the multi step review and evaluation closure process identified in the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) Materials and Fuels Complex (MFC) HWMA/RCRA Partial Permit Closure Plan, October 1, 2015. This closure certification report documents that the SCMS Carbonation Vessel was removed from the SCMS, packaged as hazardous waste and stored for future treatment and disposal, and therefore has met the closure performance standards in accordance with the Department of Energy Idaho National Laboratory Materials and Fuels Complex HWMA/RCRA Partial Permit Closure Plan (EPA No. ID4890008952, October 1, 2015).

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗
DOE OSTI2012

Upgrade and Certification of the Los Alamos National Laboratory SHENC 2011 - 12270

Nondestructive assay measurements of Transuranic (TRU) waste at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) required the addition of a standard waste box (SWB) assay system. A Super High Efficiency Neutron Counter (SHENC) located at Hanford was identified to be relocated to LANL. After careful evaluation of waste streams at LANL, it was determined that the current configuration of the SHENC was not sufficient to quantify certain waste streams. At LANL, there is still a large amount of waste that needs to be retrieved and repackaged within SWB's to meet agreements with the State of New Mexico. Prior to relocating the SHENC, the only assay systems available were High Efficiency Neutron Counters having only a 55-gallon drum capacity. Further analyses indicated that the SHENC system should be capable of quantitative gamma measurements that are to be linked, and combined, with the neutron measurements. The SHENC system was therefore augmented with a new high-resolution gamma spectroscopy system using BE5030 detectors and upgraded gamma electronics. The neutron side of the system was also upgraded with an advanced shift register (JSR-15), an improved Programmable Logic Controller and NDA-2000 software. This report will include calibration of both the neutron and gamma modalities of the SHENC system and how the modality results are combined to produce a single assay result. Preliminary performance results will be discussed based on both mock and real waste measurements. Discussions will also include a complete description of the adjustable parameters as well as the calibration plan, techniques and validations including calibration confirmation based on the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant Waste Acceptance Criteria (WIPP-WAC). The SHENC was successfully upgraded to efficiently measure the complex waste streams at Los Alamos National Laboratory. A new PLC was successfully added to the system for Add-A-Source control. A new shift register was added to the SHENC (JSR-15) which provides more flexibility if replacement is required. The addition of the density based calibration on the gamma modality of the system increases the effectiveness of the SHENC for high alpha-n producing waste. Upgrading the system to new software also helped to standardize the program at Los Alamos. Only one new procedure was initiated for the integration of the SHENC. Add-A-Source measurements were effectively integrated with the system based on the confirmation results and positive results during two Department of Energy Performance Demonstration Program Box Cycles. Total measurement uncertainty estimates were completed for both the gamma modality and the neutron modality of the system. The SHENC was reviewed by both the Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency in 2011. The certification letter for the SHENC was issued on November 16, 2011. With the certification letter issued to the Central Characterization Project the SHENC can perform waste measurements on SWB's at Los Alamos for shipment to WIPP. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2023

2022 Small Turbine Certification Awardee: Ryse Energy LLC - Americas

To meet the growing demands of the distributed wind market and comply with current U.S. standards, Ryse Energy LLC-Americas (Ryse Energy, formerly Primus Wind Power) plans to update all six products in its AIR Range family of micro wind turbines. A new, more cost-effective circuit board will be paired with other hardware upgrades, advanced control algorithms, and a Bluetooth function that allows users to more easily program and control the turbine. This Competitiveness Improvement Project (CIP) award will fund certification testing of the new circuit board to make sure it meets American National Standards Institute/American Clean Power Association (ANSI/ACP) and UL Federal Communications Commission (FCC) safety and quality standards. Primus Wind Power developed the prototype for the new circuit board with an earlier round of CIP funding, and Primus has received CIP awards supporting other certification and optimization projects.

CIP↗
DOE OSTI2016

University of Nevada, Reno Graduate Certificate in Nuclear Packaging

This paper describes a new Graduate Certificate in Nuclear Packaging (GCNP). Nuclear materials are currently used for large-scale production of electricity without greenhouse gas generation, advanced medical treatments, food sterilization, and sophisticated measurement technologies. In order to benefit from these uses, nuclear materials packaging must be developed, manufactured, inspected, and maintained for storage, transfer, transport, and disposal that protect the public and the environment. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Packaging Certification Program (PCP) originally offered the following ten, one-day to ten-day training courses. 1. Methods for Reviewing Safety Analysis Reports for Packages and Performing Confirmatory Analysis; 2. Welding Criteria for Shipping Containers; 3. Structural Analysis and Acceptance Criteria; 4. Quality Assurance (QA) for Radioactive Material Packaging Training; 5. Application of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Code to Radioactive Material Transportation Packaging; 6. ARG-US Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) System for Management of Nuclear and Radioactive Materials; 7. Packaging Operations and Maintenance; 8. Packaging Leakage Test Training; 9. Management of SARP Preparation; 10. Transport Security of Radioactive Material. These courses were designed in accordance with DOE standards. They were taught at a rigorous graduate-university level by experienced technical staff who are coordinated by Argonne, Lawrence Livermore, and Savannah River National Laboratories. The courses were taught at these Laboratories or nearby locations. The PCP courses are attended by personnel from government agencies, national laboratories, and the nuclear industry, from both inside and outside the United States. Students in these classes have generally earned undergraduate or higher degrees. These courses are designed to assist student with specialized job duties, and may provide them a competitive advantage when seeking employment or promotion in the nuclear packaging and other related fields. (authors)

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2012

Editorial: Time for green certification for all hydropower?

While accrediting a large hydropower facility is intrinsically more complex and potentially controversial, it is time to review the progress made in understanding the environmental impacts of large hydropower and the development of environmentally friendly hydropower systems. Over the last two decades, many in-field, laboratory, and modeling technologies have been developed or improved to better understand the mechanisms of fish injury and mortality and to identify turbine design and operation alternatives to reduce such impacts. In 2010, representatives of DOE and the US Department of Interior, and USACE signed a memorandum of understanding to work more closely to develop sustainable hydropower. One of their major objectives is to increase hydropower generation using low-impact and environmentally sustainable approaches. Given the recent scientific and technological advances that have decreased the environmental impact of hydropower and the need to aggressively facilitate development of low impact hydropower, we think it is indeed time to initiate a science-based green certification program that includes rigorous criteria for environmental protection but does not exclude hydropower based on size only.

13 HYDRO ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2017

Progressing quality control in environmental impact assessment beyond legislative compliance: An evaluation of the IEMA EIA Quality Mark certification scheme

The effectiveness of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) systems is contingent on a number of control mechanisms: procedural; judicial; evaluative; public and government agency; professional; and development aid agency. If we assume that procedural and judicial controls are guaranteed in developed EIA systems, then progressing effectiveness towards an acceptable level depends on improving the performance of other control mechanisms over time. These other control mechanisms are either absent, or are typically centrally controlled, requiring public finances; this we argue is an unpopular model in times of greater Government austerity. Here we evaluate a market-based mechanism for improving the performance of evaluative and professional control mechanisms, the UK Institute of Environmental Management and Assessments' EIA Quality Mark. We do this by defining dimensions of effectiveness for the purposes of our evaluation, and by identifying international examples of the approaches taken to delivering the other control measures to validate the approach taken in the EIA Quality Mark. We then evaluate the EIA Quality Mark, when used in combination with legal procedures and an active judiciary, against the effectiveness dimensions and use time-series analysis of registrant data to examine its ability to progress practice. We conclude that the EIA Quality Mark has merit as a model for a market-based mechanism, and may prove a more financially palatable approach for delivering effective EIA in mature systems in countries that lack centralised agency oversight. It may, therefore, be of particular interest to some Member States of the European Union for ensuring forthcoming certification requirements stemming from recent amendments to the EIA Directive. - Highlights: • Quality control mechanisms in EIA are identified. • Effectiveness of EIA is conceptualised for evaluation purposes. • The UK IEMA EIA Quality Mark is introduced as a market-based mechanism. • The EIA Quality Mark is found to progress quality in many, but not all, areas.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2018

Certification of Control Gas Mixtures Using Modern Spectroscopy: an Approach and Application

The possibility of using the available spectroscopic databases for high-precision measurements of spectral parameters of gases has been studied. A new approach to measuring concentrations of gaseous components (НCl, CO, NO, SO{sub 2}) in gas mixtures employing the HITRAN or GEISA spectroscopic databases has been proposed. A certification method of control gas mixtures using Fourier-transform IR spectroscopy has been developed to transfer the mole-fraction units to working standards in order to reduce the required number of reference standards and improve the accuracy of measurements.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2011

Role of Renewable Energy Certificates in Developing New Renewable Energy Projects

For more than a decade, renewable energy certificates (RECs) have grown in use, becoming a common way to track ownership of the renewable and environmental attributes of renewable electricity generation. In recent years, however, questions have risen about the role RECs play in the decision to build new renewable energy projects. Information from a variety of market participants suggests that theimportance of RECs in building new projects varies depending on a number of factors, including electricity market prices, the cost-competitiveness of the project, the presence or absence of public policies supportive of new projects, contract duration, and the perspective of different market participants. While there is no single answer to the role that RECs play, there are situations in whichREC revenues are essential to project economics, as well as some where REC revenues may have little impact. To strengthen the role RECs play in both compliance and voluntary markets, there are a number of options that could be considered. In compliance markets, lawmakers or regulators would have to adopt measures that strengthen the role of RECs in the development of new projects, while involuntary markets, it would be up to program leaders and market participants themselves to implement measures.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2011

Status and Trends in U.S. Compliance and Voluntary Renewable Energy Certificate Markets (2010 Data)

This report documents the status and trends of 'compliance'--renewable energy certificate (REC) markets used to meet state renewable portfolio standard (RPS) requirements--and 'voluntary' markets--those in which consumers and institutions purchase renewable energy to match their electricity needs on a voluntary basis. Today, 29 states and the District of Columbia have an RPS, more than half ofall U.S. electricity customers have an option to purchase some type of green power product directly from a retail electricity provider, and all consumers have the option to purchase RECs. This report documents REC activities and trends in the United States. The compliance REC market analysis includes analysis of REC trading, regional REC markets, REC tracking systems, types of compliance RECs,compliance REC pricing trends, and an overview of compliance with RPS polices. The voluntary REC analysis presents data and analysis on voluntary market sales and customer participation, products and premiums, green pricing marketing and administrative expenses, voluntary REC pricing, and the voluntary carbon offsets market. The report concludes with a discussion of upcoming guidance from theFederal Trade Commission on green marketing claims, the emergence of community solar programs, and the potential impact of Dodd-Frank regulations on the REC market.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2011

Status and Trends in U.S. Compliance and Voluntary Renewable Energy Certificate Markets (2010 Data)

The "voluntary" or "green power" market is that in which consumers and institutions voluntarily purchase renewable energy to match all or part of their electricity needs. Voluntary action provides a revenue stream for renewable energy projects and raises consumer awareness of the benefits of renewable energy. There are numerous ways consumers and institutions can purchase renewable energy. Historically, the voluntary market has consisted of three market sectors: (1) utility green pricing programs (in states with regulated electricity markets), (2) competitive suppliers (in states with restructured electricity markets), and (3) unbundled renewable electricity certificate (REC) markets, where RECs are purchased by consumers separately from electricity ("unbundled").

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2026

Cybersecurity Standards, Certification, and Best Practices for DERs

Distributed energy resources (DERs) are becoming increasingly important to the electric grid, including solar energy systems. However, DERs also introduce new cybersecurity risks, including those posed by cloud computing. Standards harmonization is essential for ensuring that DERs are secure and can be safely integrated into the grid. This panel will discuss cyber standards harmonization for solar security. The panel will feature experts from the S2G Program, National Labs and Industry who will discuss the following topics: the cybersecurity risks and future benefits posed by ubiquitous solar energy systems, the development and implementation of cloud-based security solutions for DERs, including solar energy systems, the challenges and opportunities for harmonizing DER cybersecurity standards, and Cyber Informed Engineering and the solar security implementations The panel will also discuss the following specific initiatives: the S2G Program's DER Cybersecurity Framework, UL's DER Cybersecurity Certification Program, and IEEE 1547 Updates. The panel will conclude with a discussion of the future of standards harmonization for DER cybersecurity.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2012

Packaging Certification program Methodology for Determining Dose Rates for Small Gram Quantities in Shipping Packagings

The Small Gram Quantity (SGQ) concept is based on the understanding that small amounts of hazardous materials, in this case radioactive materials (RAM), are significantly less hazardous than large amounts of the same materials. This paper describes a methodology designed to estimate an SGQ for several neutron and gamma emitting isotopes that can be shipped in a package compliant with 10 CFR Part 71 external radiation level limits regulations. These regulations require packaging for the shipment of radioactive materials, under both normal and accident conditions, to perform the essential functions of material containment, subcriticality, and maintain external radiation levels within the specified limits. By placing the contents in a helium leak-tight containment vessel, and limiting the mass to ensure subcriticality, the first two essential functions are readily met. Some isotopes emit sufficiently strong photon radiation that small amounts of material can yield a large dose rate outside the package. Quantifying the dose rate for a proposed content is a challenging issue for the SGQ approach. It is essential to quantify external radiation levels from several common gamma and neutron sources that can be safely placed in a specific packaging, to ensure compliance with federal regulations. The Packaging Certification Program (PCP) Methodology for Determining Dose Rate for Small Gram Quantities in Shipping Packagings provides bounding shielding calculations that define mass limits compliant with 10 CFR 71.47 for a set of proposed SGQ isotopes. The approach is based on energy superposition with dose response calculated for a set of spectral groups for a baseline physical packaging configuration. The methodology includes using the MCNP radiation transport code to evaluate a family of neutron and photon spectral groups using the 9977 shipping package and its associated shielded containers as the base case. This results in a set of multipliers for 'dose per particle' for each spectral group. For a given isotope, the source spectrum is folded with the response for each group. The summed contribution from all isotopes determines the total dose from the RAM in the container.

42 ENGINEERING↗