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Aircraft Technology Pathways to Quieter and Sustainable Airports

Outline - Propulsion Airframe Aeroacoustics and Aircraft System Noise - Pathways for Source Noise Reduction Implementation - Challenges - Successful innovative examples - NASA Advanced Concept Studies - Essentials to noise prediction progress - Example noise reduction roadmaps and findings - Prospects for electrification impact - Summaries - Results and progress - Recommendations for increasing implementation of noise reduction

Aircraft noise↗

DOE OSTI2018

Solar Market Pathways Final Report

The Solar Market Pathways program supported the development of successful and replicable solar deployment plans and strategies, and inspired and helped others across the country initiate or improve their own solar strategies based on lessons learned and promising practices. This report shares how the Institute for Sustainable Communities (ISC), as the national coordinator, created and fostered a strong peer network that enabled the transfer of ideas, peer support, and lessons learned between Solar Market Pathways projects. This network accelerated learning and allowed awardees to advance their innovations—building on each other’s successes and mistakes, and effectively streamlining resource use. Within this report, we document the project results and impacts of Solar Market Pathways, which are broad reaching and include jump-starting the community solar market in the Chicago region, creating comprehensive deployment plans in nascent markets in Duluth and Utah, facilitating regional market development in the northeast, and using solar+storage to build community resilience in cities like New York and San Francisco.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2018

Analysis Insights: The Key Role Analysis Plays in R&D

Over the last two decades, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has been applying its analytical expertise to help guide and advance renewable energy technology research and development (R&D). Working shoulder-to-shoulder with world-class researchers - at NREL, other national laboratories, and universities - and industry partners, NREL analysts continue to search for answers to emerging energy challenges every day. Our objective methodologies and tools are now helping stakeholders assess and prioritize R&D efforts as fast as new innovative technologies transition from concept to commercial application. Throughout that journey, NREL's analyses highlight key technical barriers, compare tradeoffs among proposed technology development pathways, track progress toward performance and cost targets, and illuminate the impacts of proposed innovations. This edition of NREL's Analysis Insights takes a deeper look at the role analysis has played in guiding renewable energy innovation at our laboratory, and beyond. In doing so, the report substantiates what we have known for 20 years - that informed analyses must remain at the leading edge of future R&D efforts.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗

DOE OSTI2024

Artificial Intelligence-Aided Wind Plant Optimization for Nationwide Evaluation of Land Use and Economic Benefits of Wake Steering

If clean energy pathways are to harness massive increases in wind power, innovations with broad geographic viability will be needed to support buildout in diverse locations. However, geodiversity in impact potential is seldom captured in technology assessment. Here we propose a scalable approach to plant-level optimization using artificial intelligence to evaluate land sparing and economic benefits of wake steering at more than 6,800 plausible onshore wind locations in the USA. This emerging controls strategy optimizes plant energy production by directing turbine wakes. On the basis of estimates from our artificial intelligence model trained on engineering wind flow simulations, co-optimizing plant layouts with wake steering can reduce land requirements by an average of 18% per plant (site-specific benefits range from 2% to 34%), subject to errors and uncertainties in the flow model, wind resource estimates, buildout scenario and geographic factors. According to model estimates, wake steering is predicted to increase power production during high-value (relatively low wind) periods, boosting the annual revenue of individual plants by up to US$3.7 million (equivalent to US$13,000 MW-1 yr-1) but producing negligible gains in some settings. Consideration of wake steering’s geographic potential reveals divergent nationwide prospects for improved economics and siting flexibility.

deployment↗

DOE OSTI2016

Economically sustainable scaling of photovoltaics to meet climate targets

To meet climate targets, power generation capacity from photovoltaics (PV) in 2030 will have to be much greater than is predicted from either steady state growth using today's manufacturing capacity or industry roadmaps. Analysis of whether current technology can scale, in an economically sustainable way, to sufficient levels to meet these targets has not yet been undertaken, nor have tools to perform this analysis been presented. Here, we use bottom-up cost modeling to predict cumulative capacity as a function of technological and economic variables. We find that today's technology falls short in two ways: profits are too small relative to upfront factory costs to grow manufacturing capacity rapidly enough to meet climate targets, and costs are too high to generate enough demand to meet climate targets. We show that decreasing the capital intensity (capex) of PV manufacturing to increase manufacturing capacity and effectively reducing cost (e.g., through higher efficiency) to increase demand are the most effective and least risky ways to address these barriers to scale. We also assess the effects of variations in demand due to hard-to-predict factors, like public policy, on the necessary reductions in cost.Lastly, we review examples of redundant technology pathways for crystalline silicon PV to achieve the necessary innovations in capex, performance, and price.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2026

Sapphire Substrate Trenching to Advance Superconducting High-Coherence Quantum Devices

Achieving longer coherence times in superconducting qubits is essential for advancing quantum information processing and enabling scalable quantum computing. This work presents an innovative fabrication strategy focused on sapphire trenching of the substrate of superconducting high-coherence quantum devices, developed by the SQMS Nanofabrication Taskforce in collaboration with the materials characterization team. In this talk, we present a method to efficiently and consistently trench into the sapphire substrate, without compromising the surface roughness or profile of the etched sapphire. In the literature, trenching in the substrate has been shown to decrease losses, unwanted coupling and thermal stress. Sapphire’s strong covalent bonds make it harder to etch compared to silicon, yet it is more favorable for high-coherence quantum devices due to its lower dielectric losses. This innovative technique opens new possibilities for superconducting qubit fabrication: we fabricated high coherence qubit chips on sapphire substrates with trenching, to demonstrate that it will help pushing towards higher coherence times. By integrating this work with ongoing junction process optimization, design innovation, materials characterization and exploration, we outline a clear pathway toward transmon coherence times reaching millisecond scales and beyond.

Garattoni, S. [Fermilab]↗

DOE OSTI2026

Sapphire Substrate Trenching to Advance Superconducting High-Coherence Quantum Devices

Garattoni, S. [Fermilab]↗

NASA NTRS2010

Oscillation of Angiogenesis and Vascular Dropout in Progressive Human Vascular Disease

When analyzed by VESsel GENeration Analysis (VESGEN) software, vascular patterns provide useful integrative read-outs of complex, interacting molecular signaling pathways. Using VESGEN, we recently discovered and published our innovative, surprising findings that angiogenesis oscillated with vascular dropout throughout progression of diabetic retinopathy, a blinding vascular disease. Our findings provide a potential paradigm shift in the current prevailing view on progression and treatment of this disease, and a new early-stage window of regenerative therapeutic opportunities. The findings also suggest that angiogenesis may oscillate with vascular disease in a homeostatic-like manner during early stages of other inflammatory progressive diseases such as cancer and coronary vascular disease.

Parsons-Wingerter, Patricia↗

DOE OSTI2018

Preliminary AMAFT Commercialization Strategy

The Additive Manufacturing as an Alternative Fabrication Technique (AMAFT) for nuclear fuel (AMAFT) technology is being developed by Idaho National Laboratory (INL) and Westinghouse Electric Company (WEC). To support the technology development and evaluate the commercialization strategy, the AMAFT project was enrolled in the 2017 fifth cohort of the Department of Energy (DOE) Energy I-Corps Project. The Energy I-Corps program is managed by the DOE National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and allows DOE researchers and industry mentors to create market pathways and customer discovery. This allows DOE investment and innovations to improve long-term U.S. energy industry competitiveness.

42 ENGINEERING↗

DOE OSTI2023

Search for High-Pressure Silicon Phases: Reaching the Extreme Conditions with High-Intensity Laser Irradiation

Controlling electronic and optical properties of semiconducting materials could substantially expand their functionality and enable new pathways for the formation of ‘smart’ materials for emerging innovative applications. An emerging new path for the synthesis of exotic silicon (Si) polymorphs is irradiation of bulk diamond-cubic Si by ultrashort laser pulses at relativistic intensity above 1019 W/cm2. Exotic polymorphs are formed due to interaction with MeV-energy electrons generated in laser-produced high-temperature plasma state. The unusual Si structures are found in the form of 5–10 nm nanoparticles confined deep in the bulk of 500-μm-thick Si samples. Raman spectroscopy, electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction studies provide an unequivocal evidence of exotic Si phase formation. A key advantage of such relativistic irradiation lies thereby in the fact that large quantities of such exotic Si is synthesised embedded within the bulk diamond-cubic Si and that further the formed Si polymorphs are stable at ambient temperature and pressure. They are thus available for further studies for electronic applications in selective band gap engineering.

Rapp, Ludovic↗

DOE OSTI2023

Cell Free and Immobilization Technologies (CFIT)

Today, several key factors negatively impact the production of fuels and chemicals from renewable sources. Common hindrances in the biological production of biochemicals are: (1) end-product or intermediate toxicity to the microbial biocatalyst, (2) the diversion of carbon to biomass formation, and (3) co-production of undesired byproducts. A particularly attractive alternative is to eliminate the biocatalyst entirely and instead operate the desired metabolic pathways in isolation, thus circumventing the roadblocks of biological toxicity, lower yields, and lack of specificity. However, cell-free enzyme systems still suffer from low productivities owing in part to the effects of free diffusion of intermediates, lack of long term enzyme stability, cofactor cost or inefficient recycling rates, and finally, the cost of enzyme production/purification. This project represents a new effort to propose innovative and cost competitive routes to producing biochemicals from a variety of feedstocks using cell free approaches. These routes will help reduce the current risk and cost associated with classical cell free production. Cell free technologies show promise for application to the production of toxic/inhibitory products or products difficult to separate from microbial growth media and can help reduce the production barriers in multiple areas of biological conversion of feedstocks to biochemicals. More specifically, we are developing new technologies and routes that could be used to produce high value biochemicals such as 2,3 BDO and terpenes (among many others) from biomass derived C5/C6 sugars or lignin but also from waste byproducts such as glycerol. This project will lead to significant innovation and also lead to new concepts and rational design of pathways and enzymes. Within this project, we will develop new metabolic enzyme cascades that will represent natural or artificial combinations of enzymes to produce the desired biochemicals from a variety of feedstocks. We are also developing basic design principals for constructing synthetic metabolons, using fusion proteins and synthetic protein scaffolds, to promote substrate channeling and stability while conserving peak activity. Additionally, our efforts include a techno economic analysis (TEA) of cell free approaches to provide the sensitivities of the process to enzyme loading, activity, pH, reactor volumes, cofactor recycling rates. Finally, we are focusing on further increasing stability, operating lifetime and efficiency of the pathway enzymes by immobilization on support surfaces. We are also focus on immobilizing pathway enzymes or combinations of enzymes on several different conducting polymers and evaluate the effect on stability and operating lifetime. As more combinations become available we will conduct a more systematic study of the means of immobilizing these enzymes. This preliminary work will enable the in-depth study of cofactor recycling at these interfaces using mediators for electron transfer. Taken together, these approaches will enable process intensification, continuous operation, lower capital and separations costs and end-product flexibility, and thus has the potential to contribute significantly to BETO's goals of cost competitive biofuels and bioproducts. To date we have demonstrated 1) the conversion of pyruvate to 2,3 BDO (4 enzymes with cofactor recycling, no additional cofactors needed) at >100g/L (>3g/L/h) using our enzyme tethering approach, 2) Generated mutants of a key redox enzyme with >180- fold improvement in NADH utilization over WT to >85% of NADPH utilization. 3) Produced mevalonate at >10g/L from glucose, limonene at >10g/L from mevalonate and more than >5g/L from glucose with crude enzyme preparations and complete cofactor recycling. 4) successfully generated fully active cross-linked aggregates (CLEAs) of NOX, a cofactor-regenerating water-forming oxidase that is key to our process with increased stability 5) Engineered and identified enzymes able to use the biomimetic cofactor NMN and synthesized new synthetic cofactors.

biocatalysis↗

NASA NTRS2017

The Pathway to a Safe and Effective Medication Formulary for Exploration Spaceflight

PURPOSE: Exploration space missions pose several challenges to providing a comprehensive medication formulary designed to accommodate the size and space limitations of the spacecraft; while addressing the individual medications needs and preferences of the Crew; the negative outcome of a degrading inventory over time, the inability to resupply before expiration dates; and the need to properly forecast the best possible medication candidates to treat conditions that will occur in the future. METHODS: The Pharmacotherapeutics Discipline has partnered with the Exploration Medical Capabilities (ExMC) Element to develop and propose a research pathway that is comprehensively focused on evidence-based models and theories, as well as on new diagnostic tools and treatments or preventive measures aimed at closure of the Med02 “Pharmacy” Gap; defined in the Human Research Program’s (HRP) risk-based research strategy. The Med02 Gap promotes the challenge to identify a strategy to ensure that medications used to treat medical conditions during exploration space missions are available, safe, and effective. It is abundantly clear that pharmaceutical intervention is an essential component of risk management planning for astronaut healthcare during exploration space. However, the quandary still remains of how to assemble a formulary that is comprehensive enough to prevent or treat anticipated medical events; and is also chemically stable, safe, and robust enough to have sufficient potency to last for the duration of an exploration space mission. In cases where that is not possible, addressing this Gap requires exploration of novel drug development techniques, dosage forms, and dosage delivery platforms that enhance chemical stability as well as therapeutic effectiveness. RESULTS: The proposed research pathway outlines the steps, processes, procedures, and a research portfolio aimed at identifying a capability that will provide a safe and effective pharmacy for any specific exploration Design Reference Mission (DRM). The proposed approach to building this research portfolio is to seek research projects that concentrate on four major focus areas; (1) Formulary selection, (2) Formulary potency and shelf life, (3) Formulary safety and toxicity, and (4) Novel technology and innovation such as portable real-time chemical analysis innovative drug therapies and dosage and delivery platforms. CONCLUSION: The research pathway has been completed and presented to the HRP. In spring 2017, it is scheduled to be reviewed by a panel of pharmaceutical and clinical experts that will evaluate the scientific merit and operational feasibility of the research pathway, as well as make suggestions for any warranted additions or improvements. Once finalized, the ExMC Element will proceed with the execution of this research pathway with the goal of gathering as much data, and learning as much as possible, to provide a safe and effective pharmaceutical formulary for use during exploration missions.

Daniels, V. R.↗

NASA NTRS2002

Interactions between gravitropism and phototropism in plants

To receive adequate light and nutrients for survival, plants orient stems and stem-like organs toward light and away from the gravity vector and, conversely, orient roots into the soil, away from light toward the direction of gravity. Therefore, both gravity and light can influence the differential growth of plant organs. To add to the complexity of the interactions between gravity and light, each stimulus can enhance or reduce the effectiveness of the other. On earth, the constant presence of gravity makes it difficult to determine whether plant growth and development is influenced by gravity or light alone or the combination of the two stimuli. In the past decade, our understanding of the gravity and light transduction pathways has advanced through the use of mutants in either gravitropic or phototropic responses and the use of innovative techniques that reduce the effects of one stimulus on the other. Thus, both unique and common elements in the transduction pathways of the gravitropic and phototropic responses have been isolated. This article is focused on the interactions between the light- and gravity-transduction pathways and describes methods used to separate the influences of these two environmental stimuli.

NASA Discipline Plant Biology↗

NASA NTRS2024

Enhancing Metal Additive Manufacturing Training with the Advanced Vision Language Model: A Pathway to Immersive Augmented Reality Training for Non-Experts

This paper introduces an innovative training system for the Renishaw AM400 metal printer, leveraging the synergy of the advanced Vision Language Model (VLM) with Augmented Reality (AR) within the Digital Twins (DT) framework. Aimed at overcoming the limitations of conventional training methods in metal additive manufacturing (AM), our system integrates AR to provide an immersive learning environment, enhancing the real-world experience with interactive digital overlays. The core of the system lies in its use of VLM, which, pre-trained on diverse datasets, excels in processing multi-modal data, thereby offering nuanced and contextually relevant guidance for trainees. Key experiments demonstrate the system’s effectiveness, particularly highlighting the usage of VLM as an Artificial Intelligence (AI) agent to integrate external tools like YOLO-v7 for valve state classification and CRAFT for control panel text recognition. This approach significantly improves recognition accuracy, operational understanding, and human–machine interaction, especially for non-expert users, making complex metal AM operations more accessible. The research not only showcases the potential of AR and VLM in industrial training but also sets a new standard for smart manufacturing practices, indicating broader applications in various industrial domains.

Metal additive manufacturing↗

DOE OSTI2025

Refinery Integration Analysis: Pathways, Challenges, and Opportunities

Integrating biomass-derived intermediates into traditional petroleum refineries presents unique challenges and opportunities, requiring innovative analysis approaches that account for biofuel producers and refiners. Consequently, teams within the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) have developed a comprehensive refinery integration analysis framework that combines experimental data, detailed techno-economic analyses of bio-conversion pathways, and economic projections within refinery linear programming (LP) optimization models. These models enable the identification of promising bio-integration strategies tailored to specific refinery configurations, economic conditions, and production goals. They also capture upstream and downstream impacts, highlighting critical bottlenecks and research opportunities for increasing the share of biogenic feedstocks in traditional refining operations. Refinery models are also packaged into a broader bio-economy optimization framework which enables biofuel supply chain optimization with standalone biofuel production and refinery co-processing/repurposing options. This presentation discusses promising refinery bio-integration strategies along with key challenges and opportunities identified using NREL's refinery and bio-economy optimization frameworks.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗

DOE OSTI2020

Superlattice-Structured Films by Magnetron Sputtering as New Era Electrodes for Advanced Lithium-ion Batteries

Sustaining sound structures in Si-based anodes is extremely challenging because of the high volumetric expansion that occurs upon cycling. To maintain high capacities over cycles, new designs rely on engineering-specific hierarchical geometries and/or optimized composite compositions such that at least one of the multiple elements serves as buffer and/or electron conductive pathways in the electrodes. In this paper, we report an innovative design in which alternating layers of periodic atomic structures involving multiple elements form a new anode material for lithium-ion batteries. In this work, a superlattice-structured amorphous film made using Si, Mo, and Cu is fabricated by a simple and scalable magnetron sputtering process for the first time. This continuous and repetitive superlattice formation along the film thickness provides a homogeneous stress-strain distribution. The Mo-Cu layer in the superlattice acts as an inactive-conductive layer and as a backbone to handle the volume expansion of active Si upon cycling. This nano-functional superlattice approach enables harnessing the high energy density of Si while maintaining its structural stability. As a result, the electrode exhibits high specific capacity and capacity retention even at high cycling rates. The possible use of the film in a full cell is also evaluated by cycling it vs. the LiMn 1.5 Ni 0.5 O 4 cathode. The full cell maintains a stable capacity of about 900 mAh g anode -1 over 150 cycles, at ~600 mA g -1 rate. The remarkable performance of this nano-functional superlattice film is found to be promising as anodes for applications that require high energy, long calendar life, and excellent abuse tolerance such as electric vehicle batteries.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗

DOE OSTI2018

Solid Oxide Based Electrolysis and Stack Technology with Ultra-High Electrolysis Current Density (>3A/cm 2 ) and Efficiency

Hydrogen, a valuable commodity gas, is increasingly recognized as an important fuel and energy storage pathway of the future. This project aims to develop an innovative solid oxide based electrolysis cell and stack technology with ultra-high steam electrolysis current (>3A/cm 2 ) for potentially ultra-low-cost, highly efficient hydrogen production from diverse renewable sources. In this project, solid oxide based high power density cells (HiPoD cells) were developed. Those cells demonstrated capability of operating at ultra-high electrolysis current density of 6 A/cm 2 at 1.67V. During a long term steady state electrolysis test, a HiPoD cell was operated for more than 1000 hours at 3 A/cm 2 with a low degradation rate of 1.8% per 1000 hours. A 20-cell electrolysis stack was built using HiPoD cells and an ultra-compact, low-cost stack design platform. This stack was used to explore the boundaries of high current density electrolysis operation and achieved an incredible stack current density of 3 A/cm 2 with an average cell voltage of only 1.493 V. The stack was further operated in steady-state electrolysis at 2 A/cm 2 for more than 1000 hours with an overall degradation of 0.57% per 1000 hours. With an improved understanding of electrolysis operation at ultra-high current density, a new compact stack architecture (CSA) design with scalability up to 55 kW (or 38 kg H 2 per day) was tested. A number of 45-cell CSA stack was built and demonstrated 10 kW and 245 g/hr hydrogen production at 1.8 A/cm 2 electrolysis current density. In addition to cell and stack development, a preliminary system design was developed by integrating the inputs from electrochemistry, cell/stack performance data, and system level implications of configuration and operational parameters. A module design was created based on a circular array of six stacks surrounded in a cool pressure vessel. Further architectural and controls strategies such as stack power control and instrumentation were determined through the development of the module. A comprehensive techno-economic study of an ultra-high current density SOEC system integrated with renewable energy sources has been conducted. To determine the estimated cost of hydrogen for the system, the H2A Current Distributed Hydrogen Production Model version 3.101 was applied. Annual system production cases at both commercial and industrial electricity rates as per the H2A model was analyzed. The option of meeting DOE 2020 Advanced Electrolysis Technologies targets were discussed. Feedstock electricity represents the bulk of projected hydrogen cost with either electricity rate. At an annual production volume of 250 units, H2A hydrogen cost of $2.3/kg can be achieved at electricity cost around 3.5¢/kWh.

08 HYDROGEN↗

DOE OSTI2021

Rapid QSTS Simulations for High-Resolution Comprehensive Assessment of Distributed PV

The rapid increase in penetration of distributed energy resources on the electric power distribution system has created a need for more comprehensive interconnection modeling and impact analysis. Unlike conventional scenario-based studies, quasi-static time-series (QSTS) simulations can realistically model time-dependent voltage controllers and the diversity of potential impacts that can occur at different times of year. However, to accurately model a distribution system with all its controllable devices, a yearlong simulation at 1-second resolution is often required, which could take conventional computers a computational time of 10 to 120 hours when an actual unbalanced distribution feeder is modeled. This computational burden is a clear limitation to the adoption of QSTS simulations in interconnection studies and for determining optimal control solutions for utility operations. The solutions we developed include accurate and computationally efficient QSTS methods that could be implemented in existing open-source and commercial software used by utilities and the development of methods to create high-resolution proxy data sets. This project demonstrated multiple pathways for speeding up the QSTS computation using new and innovative methods for advanced time-series analysis, faster power flow solvers, parallel processing of power flow solutions and circuit reduction. The target performance level for this project was achieved with year-long high-resolution time series solutions run in less than 5 minutes within an acceptable error.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗