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At least 955 records · Page 53

Considerations for Corridor and Community DC Fast Charging Complex System Design

The Idaho National Laboratory (INL), a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) national laboratory located in Idaho Falls, Idaho, has been DOE’s lead laboratory for the field testing of light-duty plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs), charging infrastructure, and other alternative vehicle technologies for 25 years. INL has tested and collected data from more than 17,000 charging stations, documenting efficiencies, charge profiles, and PEV drivers’ behaviors when using charging infrastructure. Based on the experience of INL staff and support personnel, DOE requested that INL perform three tasks: • Identify pertinent lessons learned from previous direct current (DC) fast charger (DCFC) deployment and data collection activities in order to perform an analysis of the experience to date with DC fast charging systems • Establish the criteria for siting DC fast charging systems, including access to current or future sizeable penetrations of PEVs and existing power, the potential to be used by local (intracity) as well as pass-through (intercity) PEV drivers, expandability, and accessible to the federal highway system • Develop a draft system specification that lists the components that will be incorporated in a DC fast charging complexes.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗

Incorporating Pump-and-Treat Performance Assessment Into Hanford Remedy Documents

Performance assessment of a pump-and-treat (P&T) system to support a decision about whether it is appropriate to shut down the system can be facilitated by using a structured approach that included consideration of decision elements. Decision elements involve assessment of contaminant concentrations and trends; contaminant mass discharge from source areas; the attenuation capacity of the aquifer; estimated future plume behavior; and P&T system design, operational, and cost information to identify an appropriate condition for transitioning from P&T remediation. It is also important to consider site-specific factors. Thus P&T system performance assessment for the Hanford Site should be specific to the plumes, environmental setting, and design/operational approaches for Hanford Site P&T systems. In fiscal year 2017, PNNL worked with 200-ZP-1 operable unit (OU) and 100-HR-3 OU staff in preparing OU documents associated with implementation of P&T remedies. In these efforts, elements of a structured approach to P&T decisions and Hanford-specific factors were incorporated into the documents. Because the 200-ZP-1 and 100-HR-3 OU documents are still in a draft stage at the time this report was written, the information provided here serves only as an example of how to map P&T decision elements to performance monitoring and work plans for P&T systems. Final remedy documentation for these OUs should be consulted for specific information on OU plans and activities.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Prototype Ceramic High Efficiency Particulate Air Filter Testing and Filter Media Development for Nuclear Facility Ventilation

This report summarizes recent and past related Ceramic HEPA Filter activity for this NNSA NSR&D project and on-going plans for FY18 and FY19 work as presently planned. Prior work has evaluated concepts for a ceramic HEPA filter including ceramic support materials, filter media including electrospun filter media, and metal housing designs to accommodate the conservative temperature performance target of up to 500°C. This has been supported by modelling efforts discussed with nuclear facility system engineers and their management. The temperature and time-at-temperature are based on conservative, bounding temperatures from fire analysis presented as a draft EFCOG best practice paper for nuclear facility safety analysis. The overall goal is to improve safety of DOE nuclear facilities during fire scenarios by developing improved filtration technology including increasing performance while reducing pressure drop. Ceramic filtration technology can provide robust, passive mitigation against radiological releases. The goal of the ceramic HEPA filter is to provide a robust HEPA filter that provides increased temperature performance in an equivalent form factor (size and shape) that is similar to existing conventional HEPA filters used in facilities. Once qualified for use in facilities, the benefit of a ceramic HEPA filters could simplify and reduce safety and support system costs, as well as considerably lower life-cycle costs. Installation, monitoring, and maintenance of active fire suppression systems, as well as other related systems, are a considerable on-going cost to nuclear facilities. Reducing the level of dependence on Safety Class and Safety Significant fire alarm and fire suppression systems could allow significant cost savings. At present we are continuing research and development efforts towards the goal of a ceramic filter design, including improved ceramic filter media, that could reduce total operation cost for facilities utilizing HEPA filters.

42 ENGINEERING↗

Report on the ASME design code development effort for Composite Core Components for High Temperature Reactors

This report summarizes the activities and status of the ASME design code development effort for Composite Core Components for High Temperature Reactors during Fiscal Year 2018. The subsection drafts develop for ASME BPVC Division 5 Section III, namely Subsection HA Subpart B and Subsection HH Subpart B, are near publication. It is likely that Subsection HH Subpart B will be accepted during the next ASME review meeting. Subsection HA Subpart B may have to continue through more review iterations before final acceptance. Two new standards for fiber-reinforced advanced ceramic composites have been published and a report on the technology gap for Molten Salt Reactor applications of SiC/SiC composites was completed.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗

Solar-Centered Grid Project Final Technical Report

This final technical Report for the Solar-Centered Grid project examines interactions of barriers to high levels of solar penetration at the Balancing Authority level and explores approaches to solutions to several such barriers. Results of a study to pool ACE variability and responsibility among disparate neighboring BAs are presented, as well as a methodology and results of a study for predicting ACE and frequency deviations in the sub-10-minute timeframe to serve as the underpinning for operational tools for managing fast solar ramps at the BA level. An example of approximate methods for cost-benefit analysis for probabilistic control center tools is presented, followed by a draft guide of best practices for such analysis.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

Preclosure Risk Assessment for Deep Borehole Disposal

This report presents a preclosure radiological safety assessment for deep borehole disposal (DBD) of nuclear wastes. The primary purpose of the safety assessment is to identify risk factors for disposal operations, to aid in design for an engineering demonstration of technology for DBD. The assessment is based on a conceptual design for disposal packages and borehole systems that was developed previously. It considers operational steps that could be used for actual DBD, with internal and external initiating off-normal events, to develop insights that can be applied to an engineering demonstration that would be performed without using any form of nuclear waste. This research was performed as part of the deep borehole field test (DBFT). Based on revised U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) priorities in mid-2017, the DBFT and other research related to a DBD option was discontinued; ongoing work and documentation were closed out by the end of fiscal year (FY) 2017. This report was initiated as part of the DBFT and documented as an incomplete draft at the end of FY 2017. The report was finalized by Sandia National Laboratories in FY2018 without DOE funding, subsequent to the termination of the DBFT, and published in FY2019. iii

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

Deep Borehole Laboratory and Borehole Testing Strategy: Generic Drilling and Testing Plan

This report presents a generic (i.e., site-independent) preliminary plan for drilling, testing, sampling, and analyzing data for a deep characterization borehole drilled into crystalline basement for the purposes of assessing the suitability of a site for deep borehole disposal (DBD). This research was performed as part of the deep borehole field test (DBFT). Based on revised U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) priorities in mid-2017, the DBFT and other research related to a DBD option was discontinued; ongoing work and documentation were closed out by the end of fiscal year (FY) 2017. This report was initiated as part of the DBFT and documented as an incomplete draft at the end of FY 2017. The report was finalized by Sandia National Laboratories in FY2018 without DOE funding, subsequent to the termination of the DBFT, and published in FY2019. This report presents a possible sampling, testing, and analysis campaign that could be carried out as part of a future project to quantify geochemical, geomechanical, geothermal, and geohydrologic conditions encountered at depths up to 5 km in crystalline basement.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

Deep Borehole Disposal Safety Case

This report describes the current status of the safety case for the deep borehole disposal (DBD) concept. It builds on the safety case presented in Freeze et al. (2016), presenting new information and identifying additional information needs for specific safety case elements. At this preliminary phase of development, the DBD safety case focuses on the generic feasibility of the DBD concept. It is based on potential system designs, waste forms, engineering, and geologic conditions; however, no specific site or regulatory framework exists. Updated information is provided for the following safety case elements: (1) pre-closure basis and safety analysis, (2) post-closure basis and performance assessment, and (3) confidence enhancement. This research was performed as part of the deep borehole field test (DBFT). Based on revised U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) priorities in mid-2017, the DBFT and other research related to a DBD option was discontinued; ongoing work and documentation were closed out by the end of fiscal year (FY) 2017. This report was initiated as part of the DBFT and documented as an incomplete draft at the end of FY 2017. The report was finalized by Sandia National Laboratories in FY2018 without DOE funding, subsequent to the termination of the DBFT, and published in FY2019.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

Integrated Approach to Fluoride High Temperature Reactor Technology and Licensing Challenges (FHR-IRP)

This document constitutes progress made on this project by the Georgia Tech led Integrated Approach to Fluoride High Temperature Reactor Technology and Licensing Challenges (FHR-IRP). This is the first draft of the project final report. Chapter 3 is focused on Tritium management. Tritium management in Fluoride-salt High-temperature Reactors (FHRs) presents a major operational concern and a significant challenge. Tritium is generated via multiple pathways including various interactions in fuel and structural materials, as well as coolant (primarily interaction with lithium and beryllium), leading to a complex evolution and spatial distribution of tritium generation rate. FHR generates orders of magnitude more tritium than in LWRs, and has potential for a significant release, via permeation through structural materials (due to high temperature), and through heat exchanger(s). Therefore, accurate estimate is necessary. For that purpose relevant tritium production pathways were identified. A methodology to obtain space-time dependent tritium generation rate was developed and implemented, employing SCALE and MCNP codes. Detailed models of the reference Advanced High Temperature Reactor (AHTR) design were developed. A multi-parametric metrics was introduced to capture relevant tritium production indicators, including the instantaneous tritium production rate, total tritium production (neglecting subsequent decay), and accumulated tritium production (accounting for the decay). The obtained results will inform tritium management, including the sizing of the components, and to gain insight on the impact of the core design parameters on tritium generation rates. Research effort on Liquid Salt Impurity Removal, Redox and Corrosion Control is discussed in Chapter 4. Section 4.1 is an introduction chapter. Based on the current available knowledge and operation experience on previous MSRs and other types of nuclear reactors, the report identifies the major impurities that are related to either material compatibility, salt properties or radioactive source terms, and the potential contamination sources of these impurities, their transport in the primary coolant loop and available cleanup methodologies for a particular group of impurity. In section 4.2, the available purification methods were discussed, including the liquid/liquid extraction using liquid Bi-Li which has been applied in MSBR and electrochemical purification which is developed based on Pyroprocessing. In this section, the new multi-stage and multi-salt-component was developed and discussed. Section 4.3 discussed the redox potential control for salt chemistry and corrosion mitigation, including the control theory and the soluble/soluble buffer control method. The section also developed method on how to analyze soluble/soluble redox reaction in a molten salt system and designed an electrochemical sensor for redox potential control. Corrosion models were also reported in this section. Section 4.4 focused on how to measure the fundamental properties in a molten salt. As an example, the section focused on La fluoride in the molten salt. The section developed methods on how analyze electrochemical measurement data to obtain the fundamental properties including the redox potential, diffusion coefficient and exchange current density. All these fundamental information is important for salt purification system development. Section 4.5 focused on measurements of corrosion products in the salts. Because of the different behaviors between Cr and La in the salt, new analysis method for Cr fluorides in the salt was developed. Some results for Fe fluoride in the salt and corrosion measurements were also reported. Section 4.6 demonstrated the separation of oxide from the salt. This section also measured the solubility of La 2 O 3 in the salt as function of temperature. Section 4.7 focused on the separation of La and Ce from the molten salt. These two elements were selected because La was found to be separated by using inert electrode, while for separation of Ce, reactive electrode must be selected. Section 4.8 demonstrated the separation iodine ions from the molten salt. Two kinds of working electrode materials (metal W and graphite) were investigated. Section 4.9 focused on the fundamental data of fission products and actinides in liquid Bi. The chapter reviewed the available data, then based a CALPHAD model, the available data were broadened to the concentration-dependent cases.

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗

Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe Investment Grade Audit for Service Performance Contracting: First Steps Toward Developing Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency on Tribal Lands

The Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe (Band) performed an investment grade audit (IGA) to identify energy conservation measures to increase energy efficiency in 22 of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe’s worst performing government buildings. With this IGA the Band identified energy control measures to reduce our energy use by 2,728,278 kW/year. The funding also provided for the drafting and printing of the Band’s Sustainability Energy Portfolio.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗

A Grid Modernization Approach for Community Resilience: Application to New Orleans, LA

This report describes the application of an approach for determining grid modernization investments that can best improve the resilience of communities. Under the direction of the US Department of Energy's Grid Modernization Laboratory Consortium, Sandia National Laboratories (Sandia) and Los Alamos National Laboratory (Los Alamos) collaborated with community stakeholders in New Orleans, Louisiana on grid modernization strategies for resilience. Past disruptions to the electric grid in New Orleans have contributed to an inability to provide citizens with adequate access to a wide range of infrastructure services. Using a performance-based resilience metric, Sandia and Los Alamos performed analysis on how to improve access to infrastructure services across New Orleans after a major disruption using a system of resilience nodes. Resilience nodes rely on a combination of urban planning with grid investment planning for resilience in order to design clustered infrastructure assets with highly resilient electrical supply. Results of the analysis led to suggestion of 22 draft resilience node locations that can provide a wide range of infrastructure services equitably to New Orleans citizens. This report serves as a proof-of-concept for the Urban Resilience Planning Process, and describes several gaps that should be overcome in order to integrate resilience planning between electric utilities and local governments.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

Furnace and Water Heater Venting Field Demonstration

A field demonstration was performed to evaluate the venting performance of the M&G DuraVent FasNSeal 80/90 venting system. The venting system uses a unique pipe within a pipe design to vent a condensing furnace and an natural-draft water heater, and can enable a condensing furnace to be installed in a home in which a condensing furnace could not otherwise be installed due to venting constraints. The field demonstration found that the FasNSeal 80/90 venting system successfully vented the orphaned water heater in each of the 16 demonstration homes and that the venting performance of the FasNSeal 80/90 venting system is generally comparable to the performance of venting systems initially installed in the 16 homes.

42 ENGINEERING↗

2018 fourth quarter report to NA-22 on Particle Classifier

This was the final quarter of the third and final year of this project. The team prepared and submitted this project’s final report to NA-22. Work during this quarter included responding to reviewer requests for the unsupervised statistical model paper for the American Statistical Association journal, and completing and submitting the paper about the semi-supervised statistical model to NIMA. We received the report from our North Carolina State University collaborators from the NA-22-sponsored CNEC Consortium, Professor Wilson and student Allen. The report describes their investigation of Dirichlet Process (DP) Gaussian Mixture Models based on pulse shape data from this project. The report is an appendix to this project’s final report, and may be converted into a journal paper in the coming year. Work was performed on the user interface to the Struck firmware. The project team submitted a draft workplan to NA-22 regarding additional work to diffuse improved PSD methods through the NA-22 fast neutron detection community.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

TTR Sub-Area Plan: Overview & Summary

The TTR Sub-Area Plan is currently under development and is significantly influenced by National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) decisions about permitting and environmental regulatory compliance issues. The sub-area plan will build upon previous draft master plans, F&I revitalization plans, and building studies. Planning concepts under consideration are: Continue to use and preserve large tracts of land for large-scale mission-related testing; Identify investments to protect, sustain, and recapitalize infrastructure, facilities, and equipment assets; Identify opportunities to dispose of obsolete facilities and consolidate common functions in order to reduce operating costs.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗

Thermal Analysis of Simulated Nitrate Salt and sWheat Scoop ® Mixtures

The Department of Energy (DOE) Environmental Management Los Alamos Field Office (EM-LA) is examining options for managing its transuranic (TRU) waste currently in interim storage at the Waste Control Specialists LLC (WCS) facility located near Andrews, Texas. As part of this examination, a Draft Engineering Evaluation and Initial Feasibility Study, collectively referred to as the Feasibility Study, is being implemented to investigate the feasibility of different options and methodologies for preparing the waste for transport and disposal at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP). To support the needs identified in the Feasibility Study, the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) has been requested to pursue the characterization and assess the classification of inappropriately treated Remediated Nitrate Salt (RNS) wastes generated at the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). Previous results from experimentation conducted at SRNL showed that both reaction time and water content had an observable effect on the exothermicity of a remediated waste surrogate under conditions mimicking the SW-846 Method 1050 test for spontaneous combustion. To further elucidate parameters that may contribute to the propensity for spontaneous combustion, SRNL designed and performed additional benchscale testing on simulated wastes targeting the compositions of six remediated drums of similar material previously sampled and characterized at LANL. Differential scanning calorimetry analysis displayed a general decrease in reactivity with increasing age and triethanolamine addition. Review of heat generation data versus analyzed compositions indicate that regardless of salt composition, water content, or age, no substantial combustion was witnessed for any mixture tested that contained at least 50 wt% of organic material.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

W.A. Parish Post-Combustion CO 2 Capture and Sequestration Demonstration Project (Final Technical Report)

The Petra Nova Project (Project) is a commercial scale post-combustion carbon capture project developed by a joint venture between NRG Energy, Inc. (NRG) and JX Nippon Oil Exploration (EOR) Limited (JX). The Project is designed to separate and capture carbon dioxide (CO2) from an existing coal-fired unit’s flue gas slipstream at NRG’s W.A. Parish Electric Generating Station (WAP) located southwest of Houston, Texas. The captured CO2 is dried, compressed, and transported via an 81-mile pipeline to the West Ranch oilfield (West Ranch) in Jackson County, Texas, where it is injected to boost oil production. The Project, which is partially funded by a grant (Grant) from the United States (U.S.) Department of Energy (DOE) under the Clean Coal Power Initiative (CCPI) Round 3, uses the Kansai Mitsubishi Carbon Dioxide Recovery advanced amine-based CO 2 absorption technology (KM-CDR Process®), which was jointly developed by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) and the Kansai Electric Power Co. Inc., to treat and capture at least ninety percent (90%) of the CO 2 from a 240-megawatt equivalent (MWe) flue gas slipstream off of Unit 8 at WAP. When operating at full capacity, the Project captures approximately 5,200 short tons of CO 2 per day, which would otherwise be emitted into the atmosphere, representing the largest commercial scale deployment of post-combustion CO2 capture technology at a coal power plant to date. Under the Grant, the Project was managed in 3 phases: (1) Phase 1: Project Definition / Front End Engineering Design (FEED) (2) Phase 2: Detailed Engineering, Procurement & Construction (3) Phase 3: Demonstration and Monitoring. On December 29, 2016, commercial operation of the Project was achieved, ending Phase 2 and starting Phase 3, a 3-year demonstration period running from January 1, 2017 through December 31, 2019. The key objectives of Phase 3 were to (a) demonstrate the specific advanced technologies constructed during Phase 2 and (b) monitor the injected CO 2 at West Ranch to demonstrate technologies and protocols for monitoring, verification, and accounting (MVA). As of the end of Phase 3, Petra Nova captured 3,904,978 short tons of CO 2 (3,542,537 metric tons) that was transported to West Ranch. To support the DOE obligation to monitor, verify, and account for the sequestered CO 2 at West Ranch, Petra Nova contracted with the Bureau of Economic Geology (in the Jackson School of Geosciences at The University of Texas at Austin) to (a) design a monitoring program, (b) draft an MVA Plan for DOE review and approval, and (c) working with Petra Nova and the operator of West Ranch to manage and report on the MVA activity. This report discussed the technical aspects of the project during each of the 3 phases of the project as identified above.

01 COAL, LIGNITE, AND PEAT↗

Access Innovation (Final)

Over the past two years, with the support of the Department of Energy, Powerhouse developed and launched Access Innovation, a partnership program to better connect clean energy startups with industry and investors for partnership. The program has successfully exceeded the objectives of the grant to pilot and validate successful methods of facilitating partnerships between early stage clean energy companies and industry and investors, secure follow on partnerships for early stage clean energy startups in the form of investment, pilot projects, new advisors, customer agreements, and joint development agreements and to track metrics, analyze, draft findings and distribute lessons on what models are most effective in forming partnerships to inform other organizational best practices.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗

WANDA: AI/ML for Nuclear Data

A draft summary of the Workshop on Applied Nuclear Data Activities 2020 is presented.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗