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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 1,009 records · Page 56
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2020

The domestic and international implications of future climate for U.S. agriculture in GCAM

Agriculture yields are susceptible to changes in future temperature, precipitation, and other Earth system factors. Future changes to these physical Earth system attributes and their effects on agricultural yields are highly uncertain. United States agricultural producers will be affected by such changes whether they occur domestically or internationally (via international commodity markets). How important to U.S. agriculture are domestic changes due to climate compared to those occurring externally? Here we show that potential direct impacts to United States agriculture have financial impacts on U.S. producers that are roughly similar in magnitude but opposite in sign to impacts on U.S. producers due to changes in other parts of the world. This finding is robust across application of a wide range of potential future crop yield impacts applied to a multi-sector global integrated assessment model. Therefore, when examining country-specific impacts, it is necessary to model both the domestic and international impacts.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2024

Using spatio-temporal graph neural networks to estimate fleet-wide photovoltaic performance degradation patterns

Accurate estimation of photovoltaic (PV) system performance is crucial for determining its feasibility as a power generation technology and financial asset. PV-based energy solutions offer a viable alternative to traditional energy resources due to their superior Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE). A significant challenge in assessing the LCOE of PV systems lies in understanding the Performance Loss Rate (PLR) for large fleets of PV systems. Estimating the PLR of PV systems becomes increasingly important in the rapidly growing PV industry. Precise PLR estimation benefits PV users by providing real-time monitoring of PV module performance, while explainable PLR estimation assists PV manufacturers in studying and enhancing the performance of their products. However, traditional PLR estimation methods based on statistical models have notable drawbacks. Firstly, they require user knowledge and decision-making. Secondly, they fail to leverage spatial coherence for fleet-level analysis. Additionally, these methods inherently assume the linearity of degradation, which is not representative of real world degradation. To overcome these challenges, we propose a novel graph deep learning-based decomposition method called the Spatio-Temporal Graph Neural Network for fleet-level PLR estimation (PV-stGNN-PLR). PV-stGNN-PLR decomposes the power timeseries data into aging and fluctuation components, utilizing the aging component to estimate PLR. PV-stGNN-PLR exploits spatial and temporal coherence to derive PLR estimation for all systems in a fleet and imposes flatness and smoothness regularization in loss function to ensure the successful disentanglement between aging and fluctuation. We have evaluated PV-stGNN-PLR on three simulated PV datasets consisting of 100 inverters from 5 sites. Experimental results show that PV-stGNN-PLR obtains a reduction of 33.9% and 35.1% on average in Mean Absolute Percent Error (MAPE) and Euclidean Distance (ED) in PLR degradation pattern estimation compared to the state-of-the-art PLR estimation methods.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2021

GEOPHIRES files for DDU techno-economic simulations

During 2017-2019, the U.S. Department of Energy funded six geothermal deep direct-use (DDU) projects to investigate feasibility of DDU for heating, cooling and thermal storage in the United States. In a follow-on study conducted at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), findings of these six projects were reviewed and analyzed, and additional simulations were conducted using the simulator GEOPHIRES to explore technical performance and cost-competitiveness of DDU. The results of the NREL study were published in the paper "Evaluating the Feasibility of Geothermal Deep Direct-Use in the United States." The GEOPHIRES files developed in that study are included in this submission. The reference for the paper under review is below: Beckers KF, Kolker A, Pauling H, McTigue JD, and Kesseli D (2021) ?Evaluating the Feasibility of Geothermal Deep Direct-Use in the United States?, Submitted to Energy Conversion and Management, Under Review.

15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2011

NREL's System Advisor Model Simplifies Complex Energy Analysis (Fact Sheet)

The energy market is diversifying. In addition to traditional power sources, decision makers can choose among solar, wind, and geothermal technologies as well. Each of these technologies has complex performance characteristics and economics that vary with location and other project specifics, making it difficult to analyze the viability of such projects. But that analysis is easier now, thanks to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2011

Boston, Massachusetts: Solar in Action (Brochure)

This brochure provides an overview of the challenges and successes of Boston, MA, a 2007 Solar America City awardee, on the path toward becoming a solar-powered community. Accomplishments, case studies, key lessons learned, and local resource information are given.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2011

Building Energy Simulation Test for Existing Homes (BESTEST-EX) [Slides]

This presentation discusses the goals of NREL Analysis Accuracy R&D; BESTEST-EX goals; what BESTEST-EX is; how it works; 'Building Physics' cases; 'Building Physics' reference results; 'utility bill calibration' cases; limitations and potential future work.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2012

Weatherization Innovation Pilot Program: Program Overview and Philadelphia Project Highlight [Fact Sheet]

The Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) recently launched the Weatherization Innovation Pilot Program (WIPP) to accelerate innovations in whole-house weatherization and advance DOE’s goal of increasing the energy efficiency and health and safety of homes of low-income families. Since 2010, WIPP has helped weatherization service providers as well as new and nontraditional partners leverage non-federal financial resources to supplement federal grants, saving taxpayer money. WIPP complements the Weatherization Assistance program (WAP), which operates nation-wide, in U.S. territories and in three Native American tribes.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2011

A Guide to Performance Contracting with ESCOs

An energy services company (ESCO) can identify energy improvements, provide the capital required and installs improvements, offers turn-key installation services, and guarantees energy savings. Companies pay the ESCO back over a period of years from the energy cost savings generated from the project. Hiring an ESCO is a proven strategy for identifying and implementing energy saving capital improvements, while managing risks inherent in such projects.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2012

Keweenaw Bay Indian Community Weatherization Training Project Final Report

The objective of the project is to train the appropriate staff, both new and existing from various KBIC Departments in the core competencies needed to develop a comprehensive Tribal community weatherization program. The goal of the project was to build the staff capacity to enable the KBIC to establish a Tribal weatherization program that promotes energy sufficiency throughout the Tribal community. The project addresses the needs identified in the 2008 KBIC Strategic Energy Plan to build the staff capacity and increase the knowledge base within the Tribal Departments and to implement an energy efficiency program through community education and financial assistance incentives.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗
DOE OSTI2012

The Impact of Financial Structure on the Cost of Solar Energy

To stimulate investment in renewable energy generation projects, the federal government developed a series of support structures that reduce taxes for eligible investors--the investment tax credit, the production tax credit, and accelerated depreciation. The nature of these tax incentives often requires an outside investor and a complex financial arrangement to allocate risk and reward among the parties. These financial arrangements are generally categorized as 'advanced financial structures.' Among renewable energy technologies, advanced financial structures were first widely deployed by the wind industry and are now being explored by the solar industry to support significant scale-up in project development. This report describes four of the most prevalent financial structures used by the renewable sector and evaluates the impact of financial structure on energy costs for utility-scale solar projects that use photovoltaic and concentrating solar power technologies.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2012

Technical Qualifications for Treating Photovoltaic Assets as Real Property by Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs)

It has been proposed that Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) have the potential to lower the cost and increase the adoption of photovoltaic systems (PV) by offering a more attractive source of capital. The purpose of this paper is to explain the fundamental physical characteristics of PV and compare them to the characteristics of 'real' property, to help determine whether REITs can own PVsystems.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2013

Feasibility Study of Economics and Performance of Geothermal Power Generation at the Lakeview Uranium Mill Site in Lakeview, Oregon

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in accordance with the RE-Powering America's Land initiative, selected the Lakeview Uranium Mill site in Lakeview, Oregon, for a feasibility study of renewable energy production. The EPA contracted with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to provide technical assistance for the project. The purpose of this report is to describe an assessment of the site for possible development of a geothermal power generation facility and to estimate the cost, performance, and site impacts for the facility. In addition, the report recommends development pathways that could assist in the implementation of a geothermal power system at the site.

15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2014

U.S. Department of Energy Energy Efficiency Conservation Block Grant (Better Buildings Neighborhood Program Report) [Slides]

The Wisconsin Energy Efficiency (WE2) Program delivered residential and commercial programming for the City of Milwaukee (Me2) and the City of Madison (Green Madison) as well as commercial only programming for the City of Racine (Re2). Direct incentives and loan products for homeowners and business owners were offered, with the goal to achieve at least 15 percent in energy savings. At the time of this report, there were more than 2,000 residential energy efficiency upgrades completed and more than 300 commercial energy efficiency upgrades completed. The average energy savings for the WE2 Program’s portfolio of residential and commercial projects exceeds 15 percent and is closer to 30 percent energy savings. Combined energy savings of both residential and commercial activities were: 20,937,369 kWh; 1,018,907 Therms; and 31,655 gallons of heating oil; or at least 332,788 MMBTUs; or at least $\$3,444,828$ in estimated energy costs saved. Conservative economic impact estimates include the employment of more than 100 residential auditors and contractors, more than 90 commercial contractors, and more than $\$41$ million in total project costs expended in the targeted communities.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗
DOE OSTI2013

Clean Energy Program_SLC-SELF (Final Technical Report)

This is the Final Technical Report for DOE's Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant, Award No. DE-EE0003813, submitted by St. Lucie County, FL (prime recipient) and the Solar and Energy Loan Fund (SELF), the program's third-party administrator. SELF is a 501(c)(3) and a certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI). SELF is a community-based lending organization that operates the Clean Energy Loan Program, which focuses on improving the overall quality of life of underserved populations in Florida with an emphasis on home energy improvements and cost-effective renewable energy alternatives.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2014

Energy Impact Illinois (Final Technical Report)

Energy Impact Illinois (EI2) is an alliance of government organizations, nonprofits, and regional utility companies led by the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP) that is dedicated to helping communities in the Chicago metropolitan area become more energy efficient. Originally organized as the Chicago Region Retrofit Ramp-Up (CR3), EI2 became part of the nationwide Better Buildings Neighborhood Program (BBNP) in May 2010 after receiving a $25 million award from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) authorized through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). The program’s primary goal was to fund initiatives that mitigate barriers to energy efficiency retrofitting activities across residential, multifamily, and commercial building sectors in the seven-county CMAP region and to help to build a sustainable energy efficiency marketplace. The EI2 Final Technical Report provides a detailed review of the strategies, implementation methods, challenges, lessons learned, and final results of the EI2 program during the initial grant period from 2010-2013. During the program period, EI2 successfully increased direct retrofit activity in the region and was able to make a broader impact on the energy efficiency market in the Chicago region. As the period of performance for the initial grant comes to an end, EI2’s legacy raises the bar for the region in terms of helping homeowners and building owners to take action on the continually complex issue of energy efficiency.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2013

Office of the Chief Financial Officer 2012 Annual Report

Fiscal Year 2012 was a year of progress and change in the Office of the Chief Financial Officer (OCFO) organization. The notable accomplishments outlined below strengthened the quality of the OCFO’s stewardship and services in support of the scientific mission of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL). Three strategies were key to this progress: organizational transformation aligned with our goals; process redesign and effective use of technology to improve efficiency, and innovative solutions to meet new challenges. Over the next year we will continue to apply these strategies to further enhance our contributions to the Lab’s scientific mission. What follows is the budget, funding and costs for the office for FY 2012.

2012↗