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DOE OSTI2022

A Hybrid DC Fault Primary Protection Algorithm for Multi-Terminal HVdc Systems

Protection against dc faults is one of the main technical hurdles faced when operating converter-based HVdc systems. Protection becomes even more challenging for multi-terminal dc (MTdc) systems with more than two terminals/converter stations. In this paper, a hybrid primary fault detection algorithm for MTdc systems is proposed to detect a broad range of failures. Sensor measurements, i.e., line currents and dc reactor voltages measured at local terminals, are first processed by a top-level context clustering algorithm. For each cluster, the best fault detector is selected among a detector pool according to a rule resulting from a learning algorithm. The detector pool consists of several existing detection algorithms, each performing differently across fault scenarios. The proposed hybrid primary detection algorithm: i) offers superior performance compared to an individual detector through a data-driven approach; ii) detects all major fault types including pole-to-pole (P2P), pole-to-ground (P2G), and external dc faults; iii) identifies faults with various fault locations and impedances; iv) is more robust to noisy sensor measurements compared to existing methods; v) does not require exhaustive simulation and sampling for training the model. Performance and effectiveness of the proposed algorithm are evaluated and verified based on time-domain simulations in the PSCAD/EMTDC software environment. The results confirm satisfactory operation, accuracy, and detection speed of the proposed algorithm under various fault scenarios.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

NASA NTRS1999

Metallurgical Evaluations of Depainting Processes on Aluminum Substrate

In December 1993, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Emission Standards Division and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA's) Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) signed an Interagency Agreement (IA) initiating a task force for the technical assessment of alternative technologies for aerospace depainting operations. The United States Air Force (USAF) joined the task force in 1994. The mandates of the task force were: (1) To identify available alternative depainting systems that do not rely on methylene chloride or other ozone-depleting, chlorinated, and volatile organic carbon solvents. (2) To determine the viability, applicability, and pollution prevention potential of each identified alternative. (3) To address issues of safety, environmental impact, reliability, and maintainability. Through a Technical Implementation Committee (TIC), the task force selected and evaluated eight alternative paint stripping technologies: chemical stripping, carbon dioxide (CO2) blasting, xenon flashlamp and CO2 coatings removal (FLASHJET(R)), CO2 laser stripping, plastic media blasting (PMB), sodium bicarbonate wet stripping, high-pressure water blasting (WaterJet), and wheat starch abrasive blasting (Enviro-Strip(R)). (The CO2 blasting study was discontinued after the first depainting sequence.) This final report presents the results of the Joint EPA/NASA/USAF Interagency Depainting Study. Significant topics include: (1) Final depainting sequence data for the chemical stripping, PMB, sodium bicarbonate wet stripping, and WaterJet processes. (2) Strip rates for all eight technologies. (3) Sequential comparisons of surface roughness measurements for the seven viable depainting technologies. (4) Chronological reviews of and lessons learned in the conduct of all eight technologies. (5) An analysis of the surface roughness trends for each of the seven technologies. (6) Metallurgic evaluations of panels Summaries of corrosion and hydrogen embrittlement evaluations of chemical stripping panels, detailed descriptions of which appear in previous reports. Because the requirements for alternative systems are diverse, as are initial setup, training, and on-going operational considerations, this study does not recommend a particular product or process. Users of this study will draw their own conclusions from the data presented herein.

McGill, Preston↗

DOE OSTI2016

International Safeguards and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Established in 1965, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s (PNNL) strong technical ties and shared heritage with the nearby U.S. Department of Energy Hanford Site were central to the early development of expertise in nuclear fuel cycle signatures, separations chemistry, plutonium chemistry, environmental monitoring, modeling and analysis of reactor systems, and nuclear material safeguards and security. From these Hanford origins, PNNL has grown into a multi-program science and engineering enterprise that utilizes this diversity to strengthen the international safeguards regime. Today, PNNL supports the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in its mission to provide assurances to the international community that nations do not use nuclear materials and equipment outside of peaceful uses. PNNL also serves in the IAEA’s Network of Analytical Laboratories (NWAL) by providing analysis of environmental samples gathered around the world. PNNL is involved in safeguards research and development activities in support of many U.S. Government programs such as the National Nuclear Security Administration’s (NNSA) Office of Research and Development, NNSA Office of Nonproliferation and Arms Control, and the U.S. Support Program to IAEA Safeguards. In addition to these programs, PNNL invests internal resources including safeguards-specific training opportunities for staff, and laboratory-directed research and development funding to further ideas that may grow into new capabilities. This paper and accompanying presentation highlight some of PNNL’s contributions in technology development, implementation concepts and approaches, policy, capacity building, and human capital development, in the field of international safeguards.

Olsen, Khris B.↗

DOE OSTI2024

Nanoporous Materials Genome Center Final Technical Report

Nanoporous materials (NPMs), including zeolites/zeotypes, metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), covalent organic frameworks, polymers with intrinsic microporosity, and molecular cages, possess enormous potential in diverse areas relevant to the DOE Office of Science Basic Energy Sciences (BES) mission and objectives. The Nanoporous Materials Genome Center (NMGC) has developed exascale-ready software, computational/theoretical chemistry methods, and data-driven science approaches that enable (i) the de-novo design of functional NPMs for chemical separation and catalysis tasks of increasing complexity, (ii) the discovery of the most promising functional NPMs from databases of synthesized and hypothetical adsorbent structures and the optimization of process conditions for specific applications, and (iii) the microscopic-level understanding of the fundamental interactions underlying the function of NPMs including hierarchical architectures, composite materials, responsive frameworks that may undergo phase transitions or post-synthetic modifications, and materials containing defects, partial disorder, or interfaces. A pivotal part of the NMGC project has been a tight collaboration between leading experimental groups for synthesis and characterization of NPMs and of computational groups that allowed for iterative feedback. The NMGC project has resulted in the publication of more than 290 research and review articles including more than 60 publications in high-impact journals and more than 15 journal covers. NMGC publications have already received more than 20,000 citations (with more than 3,000 citations per year in 2021, 2022, and 2023) and contribute to an h-index of more than 72. The NMGC award has supported collaborative research involving 28 research groups and contributed to the training of more than 40 postdocs, more than 60 graduate students, and more than 20 undergraduate students with broad expertise in data-driven science approaches, computational chemistry methods, and high-performance computing, in addition to the skills to thrive in an integrated experimental and computational research environment.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

NASA NTRS1991

Measurement and modification of the EEG and related behavior

Electrophysiological changes in the sensorimotor pathways were found to accompany the effect of rhythmic EEG patterns in the sensorimotor cortex. Additionally, several striking behavioral changes were seen, including in particular an enhancement of sleep and an elevation of seizure threshold to epileptogenic agents. This raised the possibility that human seizure disorders might be influenced therapeutically by similar training. Our objective in human EEG feedback training became not only the facilitation of normal rhythmic patterns, but also the suppression of abnormal activity, thus requiring complex contingencies directed to the normalization of the sensorimotor EEG. To achieve this, a multicomponent frequency analysis was developed to extract and separate normal and abnormal elements of the EEG signal. Each of these elements was transduced to a specific component of a visual display system, and these were combined through logic circuits to present the subject with a symbolic display. Variable criteria provided for the gradual shaping of EEG elements towards the desired normal pattern. Some 50-70% of patients with poorly controlled seizure disorders experienced therapeutic benefits from this approach in our laboratory, and subsequently in many others. A more recent application of this approach to the modification of human brain function in our lab has been directed to the dichotomous problems of task overload and underload in the contemporary aviation environment. At least 70% of all aviation accidents have been attributed to the impact of these kinds of problems on crew performance. The use of EEG in this context has required many technical innovations and the application of the latest advances in EEG signal analysis. Our first goal has been the identification of relevant EEG characteristics. Additionally, we have developed a portable recording and analysis system for application in this context. Findings from laboratory and in-flight studies suggest that we will be able to detect appropriate changes in brain function, and feed this information to on-board computers for modification of mission requirements and/or crew status.

Sterman, M. B.↗

DOE OSTI2017

Safety analysis report for packaging shielding and nuclear criticality safety courses developed and conducted by Oak Ridge National Laboratory

The US Department of Energy (DOE) Packaging Certification Program, Office of Packaging and Transportation, is offering Safety Analysis Report for Packaging (SARP) Shielding and Nuclear Criticality Safety (NCS) courses for SARP generalists and analysts. The SARP generalist course is designed for project managers, supervisors, NCS/shielding subject matter experts (SME), and SMEs in non-NCS/shielding technical areas (e.g., structural, thermal, package design) who need to better understand how NCS/shielding analyses fit into the broader body of SARP documentation. The generalist course provides an overview of the regulations and guidelines for the criticality and shielding analyses for a SARP and illustrates how the NCS/shielding chapters integrate with the other parts of the SARP. After course material is presented, students in the generalist course will review an actual SARP document to examine key elements of the shielding and criticality analyses. The analyst course provides detailed instructions on the radioactive material package shielding analyses and NCS evaluation fundamentals needed by analysts/practitioners (i.e., safety analysts and/or technical reviewers) to prepare and/or review technical analyses for the SARP documentation. The analyst course also provides an overview of regulations and guidelines, in addition to detailed in-class exercises associated with package shielding and NCS analyses. Analysis teams will be faced with staged SARP examples in which several important decision processes in the generation of a SARP will be demonstrated and discussed. The courses are offered at Oak Ridge National Laboratory's National Transportation Research Center. (authors)

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

DOE OSTI2019

The Algae Testbed Public Private Partnership -ATP 3 (Final Closeout Report)

The Algae Testbed Public Private Partnership (ATP3) was proposed in response to the ADVANCEMENTS IN SUSTAINABLE ALGAL PRODUCTION (ASAP) FUNDING OPPORTUNITY NUMBER: DE-FOA-0000615 TOPIC AREA 2-DEVELOPMENT OF REGIONAL ALGAL FEEDSTOCK TESTBED (RAFT) PARTNERSHIPS in 2012. For six years, from 2013 through 2019, ATP 3 was operated as a multi-institutional effort funded by the Department of Energy to establish a network of operating testbeds that brought together world-class scientists, engineers and business executives whose goal it was to increase stakeholder access to high quality facilities by making available an unparalleled array of outdoor cultivation, downstream equipment, and laboratory facilities to the algal R&D community. ATP 3 utilized the same powerful combination of facilities and technical expertise to support TEA, LCA and resource modeling and analysis activities, helping to close critical knowledge gaps and inform robust analyses of the state of technology for algal based biofuels and bioproducts. ATP 3 included testbed facilities at Arizona State University’s (ASU) Arizona Center for Algae Technology and Innovation (AzCATI), and augmented by university and commercial facilities in Hawaii (Cellana), California (Cal Poly San Luis Obispo), Georgia (Georgia Institute of Technology), and Florida (Florida Algae), in addition to partners at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratories, Valicor Renewables (Michigan), University of Texas at Austin (Texas), Commercial Algae Management (Georgia), Harmon Consulting (Hawaii), Evodos (Netherlands), and Litree (China).

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Results from NASA Agile Teams Study

In order to meet the demands of the current global economy, a study of agile teams at NASA was conducted by the NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC) to explore how the Agency can become more adaptable and flexible due to several influences, including the maturity and availability of digital tools and NASA’s increased reliance on commercial providers. NESC Technical Discipline Teams (TDTs) perform annual studies to understand the needs of their stakeholders, establish a state of the discipline, and inform strategic planning efforts. As part of the 2022 interview series, the Systems Engineering TDT utilized the dissertation work of Dr. Jackelynne Silva-Martinez that focused on NASA agile teams. The Systems Engineering TDT partnered with the Software and Human Factors TDTs on the formulation of interview questions and subsequent solicitation of customer inputs, which helped attract diverse agile teams across the Agency. 34 participants were interviewed, including civil servants and contractors, with open-ended questions related to their teams’ adoption and transition to agile. Participants were also questioned about their perceptions of the implementation of agile approaches across the Agency. Results showed a consistent framing of agile as incremental knowledge growth, a way of showing progress, and as the incorporation of frequent customer feedback. However, participants emphasized a lack of a common understanding of agile across the Agency, which sometimes caused managers and engineers to be reluctant to accept and support them. Results also showed the most successful agile teams had formal training with over five years of agile experience, used retrospectives, and tailored their agile processes for their specific situation and needs. This paper provides details of the interview responses gathered in the study and suggests actions for NASA to become more agile.

NASA↗

NASA NTRS1993

(abstract) Formal Inspection Technology Transfer Program

A Formal Inspection Technology Transfer Program, based on the inspection process developed by Michael Fagan at IBM, has been developed at JPL. The goal of this program is to support organizations wishing to use Formal Inspections to improve the quality of software and system level engineering products. The Technology Transfer Program provides start-up materials and assistance to help organizations establish their own Formal Inspection program. The course materials and certified instructors associated with the Technology Transfer Program have proven to be effective in classes taught at other NASA centers as well as at JPL. Formal Inspections (NASA tailored Fagan Inspections) are a set of technical reviews whose objective is to increase quality and reduce the cost of software development by detecting and correcting errors early. A primary feature of inspections is the removal of engineering errors before they amplify into larger and more costly problems downstream in the development process. Note that the word 'inspection' is used differently in software than in a manufacturing context. A Formal Inspection is a front-end quality enhancement technique, rather than a task conducted just prior to product shipment for the purpose of sorting defective systems (manufacturing usage). Formal Inspections are supporting and in agreement with the 'total quality' approach being adopted by many NASA centers.

certified instructors Formal Inspections↗

DOE OSTI2023

Support for Students, Postdoctoral Fellows and Trainees to Attend Radiochemistry-Related Symposia at Pacifichem 2020

This project was undertaken to help meet the need for training personnel who will be involved in professional careers requiring knowledge of radiochemistry, such as those working in radionuclide production, and in biological, industrial, medical and environmental fields that use radionuclides in their work. The goal of the project was to provide financial assistance to students and trainees from US academic and government institutions to attend selected radiochemistry related symposia at the Pacifichem 2020 meeting, which was to be held in Honolulu, Hawaii in December 2020. The funding, meant to provide a portion of an awardee’s travel cost, was specifically directed at awardees attendance to the following symposia: #190, Advancements in Isotope production-Providing Important Materials for Research and Applications; #180, Advancements in the Chemistry of Targeted Alpha Therapy, and #178, The Chemistry of 18 F, 11 C and Radiometal-based Probes for Molecular Imaging & Precision Medicine. It was/is believed that attendance of students/postdocs at the meeting would point out the critical role radiochemistry and radionuclides can have in the development of future diagnostic and therapeutic agents which would stimulate student interest in radiochemistry, and thus, provide support for making, or an impetus to make, this technical area a career choice.

38 RADIATION CHEMISTRY, RADIOCHEMISTRY, AND NUCLEA↗

NASA NTRS1994

Locomotion in a rotating space station: a synthesis of new data with established concepts

Despite technical problems associated with designing a rotating space station it is still thought that such a device may provide a more tolerable work environment and prevent some of the physiological changes that currently pose a threat to long-duration space missions. In the present analysis four case studies are presented and the results show that centrifugal and Coriolis effects could hinder one's ability to walk or run in a natural way in such an environment. In a rotating station that has a nominal 'G-level' equal to that on earth it can be shown that a person running at 3.8 m s -1 could experience foot 'heaviness' effects that range from 1 to 3 g and fore-aft foot 'forces' that range fom -0.5 to +0.5 g. In contrast the hip region could sense a relatively constant 'force' equal to 2 g. With regard to the body as a whole there would be 'weight changes' that depended on the direction of gait. While these conditions imply that locomotion in a rotating space station would be different from normal gait, it is likely that given sufficient training, astronauts could learn optimal strategies to account for centrifugal and Coriolis effects on individual body segments. The learning process would also entail developing strategies on which route to take when moving from one location to another, since in many cases the shortest route would not be the least energy consuming. Such training would be justified if it were shown that artificial gravity was an effective countermeasure to the problems of muscle atrophy and bone loss.

NASA Discipline Musculoskeletal↗

DOE OSTI2018

Analysis of the Current and Future Impacts of the AECOM Early Career Technical Exchange - 18497

As the average age of the engineering workforce approaches retirement, early career professionals are hired to supplement the decreasing workforce. Their transition is challenging to implement because new hires typically lack the experience that DOE's nuclear waste facilities have come to rely on. AECOM-partnered corporations have developed the Early Career Professionals Technology Exchange (ECPTE) program to facilitate new hire transitions. This program includes semi-annual workshops that develop both soft and technical skills through extensive networking opportunities, technical presentations, facility tours, and workshop preparation. Early career participants develop reliable peer networks that support their technical collaboration. AECOM's Facility Area Coordination Team (FACT) supports the program by participating during their workshops, which are been scheduled to coincide with ECPTE workshops, allowing early career professionals the opportunity to network with management and technical experts in addition to peers. Early career professionals conduct technical presentations on topics associated with their facilities and projects, developing technical communication skills utilized in professional settings. Early career leadership at the hosting facility prepares tours of local projects for interested attendees. By attending these presentations and tours, attendees gain an understanding of facilities and projects in the U. S. Department of Energy nuclear complex. Since the initiation of the ECPTE, an increasing number of AECOM-partnered corporations have begun to participate in the program. Based on participant interviews and program reviews, this paper discusses the expanding ECPTE program and its impacts on the participants, the facility, and the AECOM-partnered corporations. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

DOE OSTI2026

Advancing Artificial Intelligence with Liquid Argon Neutrino Experiments (Technical Report)

The grant allowed two main contributions: 1) The development of a first successful demonstration of the employment of Optimal Transport in liquid argon time projection chamber neutrino detectors. Optimal Transport, used in other contexts and specifically with LHC calorimetric data, was adapted to address a key particle identification challenge in LArTPCs: the separation of pi0 backgrounds from single-electrons produced in charged-current electron neutrino interactions. The work, leveraging ML methods such as k-nearest-neighbor (kNN) and support-vector-machine (SVM), showed an increase in background rejection of a factor of two or more. Work is now ongoing to incorporate this development in physics analyses for LArTPC experiments and more broadly expand the use of OT in LArTPC detectors including DUNE. This work was done in collaboration with the phenomenology group led by Nathaniel Craig at UCSB. 2) The deployment of NuGraph2, a graph neural network developed for LArTPC reconstruction, in the MicroBooNE experiment. NuGraph2 uses novel graph-neural-network methods on the rather simple LArTPC inputs of reconstructed hits, greatly simplifying the workflow compared to the use of waveform or signal-deconvolved wire ROIs. The network performed particle classification and was shown to address many challenging problems in LArTPC imaging including track-shower separation and the identification of protons and charged pions from primary muons. Our group collaborated with Giuseppe Cerati (FNAL scientist) who is one of the core developers of NuGraph2 to integrate this tool in MicroBooNE’s analysis framework. This consisted in tow key contributions: a) Studying performance on real data, which came with several months of iterations because the MC-trained version of the network was found to show significant bias that our group investigated and addressed. b) Integrating the output hit labeling of NuGraph2 into the existing particle tracking and shower reconstruction code. As a result of this work led by our team NuGraph2 is now enabling a suite of new analyses which benefit from enhanced capabilities and thus broader physics reach. The grant supported primarily the salary of UCSB graduate student Chuyue “Michaelia” Fang as well as partial summer salary support for PI Caratelli. Some funds were used for travel by Michaelia to ML related schools and conferences.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2022

Reduced diffusion and enhanced retention of multiple radionuclides from pore structure characterization of barrier materials for enhanced repository performance

Fluid flow and chemical transport in porous media are the macroscopic consequences of pore structure, which integrates geometry (e.g., pore size and surface area, pore-size distribution) and topology (e.g., pore connectivity). Low-permeability geological media whose pores are poorly interconnected will exhibit the characteristics of anomalous diffusion and sample size-dependent effective porosity, which will strongly impact long-term net diffusion and retention of radionuclides in geological repository settings involving different host rocks and barrier materials. A suite of innovative and complementary experimental approaches is utilized to study the microscopic pore structure and macroscopic fluid flow & chemical transport for a range of host rocks and barrier materials, in addition to standard clay minerals and reference rocks. With a particular focus on quantifying the presence and magnitude of “isolated” pores for a reduced effective porosity in low-permeability geomedia, the integrated methodologies for basic properties and pore structure characterization of these geomedia include X-ray diffraction, thin section petrography, grain size distribution, water immersion porosimetry after vacuum-pulling for full saturation, mercury intrusion porosimetry, nitrogen physisorption, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray computed tomography, and (ultra-)small angle neutron (X-ray) scattering. In addition, custom-designed gas diffusion, tracer recipe involving a range of anionic and cationic chemicals with subsequent analyses by laser ablation and inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry, along with batch sorption, column transport, and imbibition tests were conducted for coupled effects of pore structure and chemical retention/transport. From the perspectives of pore structure in conjunction with multiple and complementary approaches to examining a range of sample sizes under different observational scales, we find that the poor pore connectivity is prevalent in low-permeability media (mudstone and crystalline rock) that is related to geological processes (e.g., compaction, diagenesis and thermal maturation). For example, the deep and organic matter-rich mudstones have a much smaller effective porosity than the total porosity (as a result of poor pore connectivity) and associated diffusion coefficient, and the effective porosity & diffusion coefficients are also dependent upon the sample sizes used in the measurement. Similarly, most of the pore space in the shallow mudstone is also controlled by pore-throat diameters in the 5-50 nm range of intergranular pore types from its fine-grained nature, but with an overall good pore connectivity. However, the nm-sized pore space (physically pore-network architecture) and strong sorption capacities (chemical retention from clay minerals) of both shallow and deep mudstones lead to the synergistic retention of cationic radionuclides and their utilities as effective host rocks and barrier materials. Our unique approaches of studying how the micro-scale pore structure affect macro-scale fluid flow, diffusion & retention, and chemical transport produce improved mechanistic understanding, and realistic quantification, of diffusion and retention of typical radionuclides in a range of generic host rocks and barrier materials (clay/shale, salt, crystalline rock, and tuff), with the overall results leading to scientifically-based understanding of enhanced isolation (from both diffusion and retention) of radionuclides and improved confidence on the long-term performance of geological repository to store high-level radioactive wastes. In addition to the training of 25 undergraduates, graduates, and postdocs of UTA, the scientists (organizations) involved in performing this work (e.g., discussion, sample sharing, and operation of SANS and SAXS instruments) include Ed Matteo, Yifeng Wang, and Kristopher Kuhlman (Sandia National Laboratories), Jens Birkholzer, Liange Zheng, Tim Kneafsey, and Sharon Borglin (Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory), Mavrik Zavarin (Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory), Yukio Tachi and Yuta Fukatsu (Japan Atomic Energy Agency), Mieke de Craen (Euridice, Belgium), Markus Bleuel (NIST), Wei-Ren Chen, Gergely Nagy, Changwoo Do, William Heller, Larry Anovitz, and Kenneth Littrell (ORNL), as well as Jan Illvsky, Ivan Kuzmenko, Ju-Sang Park and Jon Almers (ANL). Key deliverables include a total of 13 peer-reviewed journal articles (nine published and three under review), 23 presentations at scientific conferences (AAPG, AAPG Southwest Section, AGU, Asian Clay Conference, GSA, GSA South-Central Section, IHLRWM, InterPore, International Conference on Chemistry and Migration Behavior of Actinides and Fission Products in the Geosphere, International Conference on Coupled Processes in Fractured Geological Media: Observation, Modeling and Application), and academic institutions (UTA, New Mexico State University; University of Poitiers, France; University of Helsinki, Finland; Uppsala University, Sweden; Istanbul Technical University, Turkey) and other organizations (Andra, France; Posiva Oy, Finland).

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

DOE OSTI2020

KENO-VI Primer: Performing Calculations using SCALE’s Criticality Safety Analysis Sequence (CSAS6) with Fulcrum

The SCALE code system developed at Oak Ridge National Laboratory is widely used and accepted around the world for criticality safety analysis. The well-known KENO-VI three-dimensional Monte Carlo criticality computer code is one of the primary criticality safety analysis tools in SCALE. The KENO-VI primer is designed to help a new user understand and use the SCALE/KENO-VI Monte Carlo code for nuclear criticality safety analysis. It assumes that the user has a college education in a technical field. There is no assumption of familiarity with Monte Carlo codes in general or with SCALE/KENO-VI in particular. The primer is designed to teach by example, with each example illustrating two or three features of SCALE/KENO-VI that are useful in criticality analysis. The primer is based on SCALE 6.2 and 6.3, which includes the Fulcrum graphical user interface. Each example uses Fulcrum to provide the framework for preparing input data and viewing output results. Starting with a Quickstart section, the primer gives an overview of the basic requirements for SCALE/KENO-VI input and allows the user to quickly run a simple criticality problem with SCALE/KENO-VI. Each following section begins with a list of basic objectives identifying the goal of the section and the individual SCALE/KENO-VI features covered in detail in the section’s sample problems. Upon completion of the primer, a new user should be comfortable using Fulcrum to set up criticality problems in SCALE/KENO-VI. The primer provides a starting point for the criticality safety analyst who uses SCALE/KENO-VI. Complete descriptions are provided in the SCALE/KENO-VI manual. Although the primer is self-contained, it is intended as a companion volume to the SCALE/KENO-VI training and documentation. The SCALE manual and training schedule are available at https://scale.ornl.gov. The primer provides specific examples of using SCALE/KENO-VI for criticality analysis; the SCALE/KENO-VI manual provides information on the use of SCALE/KENO-VI and all its modules. The primer also contains an appendix with sample input files. In addition, this primer, its errata, and sample inputs are also available at https://code.ornl.gov/scale/primers/kenovi/.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2021

Argonne Leadership Computing Facility: 2021 Operational Assessment Report

This Operational Assessment Report describes how the Argonne Leadership Computing Facility (ALCF) met or exceeded every one of its goals for calendar year (CY) 2021 as an advanced scientific computing center. In CY 2021, the ALCF operated its production resource, Theta, an Intel-based Cray XC40 system (11.7-petaflops) augmented with 24 NVIDIA DGX A100-based nodes (3.9-petaflops) that supports diverse workloads, integrating data analytics with artificial intelligence (AI) training and learning in a single platform. In 2021, we began deploying Polaris, our newest 40- petaflops system, and augmented this powerful testbed system with an additional 28 nodes to support the integration of real-time experiments and HPC resources. We also deployed our two largest storage systems yet, named Grand and Eagle, that will bring new services to our users and will power data-driven research for years to come. Last year, Theta delivered a total of 20.8 million node-hours to 16 Innovative and Novel Computational Impact on Theory and Experiment (INCITE) projects and 7.2 million node-hours to ASCR Leadership Computing Challenge (ALCC) projects (32 awarded during the 2020–2021 ALCC year and 17 awarded during the 2021–2022 ALCC year), as well as substantial support to Director’s Discretionary (DD) projects (5.5 million node-hours). As Table ES.1 shows, Theta performed exceptionally well in terms of overall availability (95.1 percent), scheduled availability (99.4 percent), and utilization (98.1 percent; Table 2.1). As of the submission date of this document, ALCF’s user community has published 249 papers in high-quality, peer-reviewed journals and technical proceedings. At the 2021 International Conference for High Performance Computing, Networking, Storage and Analysis (SC’21), Argonne researchers won two HPCwire Readers’ Choice Awards and were part of a Gordon Bell Prize finalist team recognized for developing an AI-enabled, multi-resolution simulation framework for studying complex biomolecular machines. Their framework was used to observe the SARS-CoV-2 replication-transcription machinery in action, by directly integrating experimental data. ALCF also provided a comprehensive program of high-performance computing (HPC) support services to help our community make productive use of the facility’s diverse and growing collection of resources. We are now entering the exascale era, with exascale machines being planned for national laboratories across the country, including Aurora at Argonne National Laboratory (Argonne) in 2023. ALCF researchers have been leading and guiding numerous strategic activities that will push the boundaries of what’s possible in computational science and engineering and allow us to deliver science on day one.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

DOE OSTI2025

Novel Concepts for High Gradient Acceleration (Final Technical Report)

We have conducted an intensive, pioneering program to demonstrate novel concepts for achieving high gradient acceleration at frequencies from the conventional microwave bands up to the millimeter wave /THz bands. High gradient accelerators hold the promise of smaller and less costly accelerators for applications ranging from the largest scale accelerators used for discovery science down to the smallest accelerators used for industrial, homeland security and medical applications. The research consisted of two major research thrusts: 1.) Structure-based wakefield accelerator (SWFA) research in collaboration with the Argonne Wakefield Accelerator research group and 2.) Millimeter Wave / THz high gradient acceleration in collaboration with SLAC. The specific goals of the research program were: Design novel metallic metamaterial structures that increase the beam-wave coupling for the accelerator mode and reduce the effect of high order modes; test novel metamaterial structures to achieve higher output power, > 1 GW at X-Band (11.7 GHz), in test at the Argonne Wakefield Accelerator (AWA); determine the experimental breakdown threshold for nanosecond-scale pulses at X-Band in testing at the AWA; test a 110 GHz accelerator structure with a field emission electron gun, built at SLAC, using pulses from a 1 MW, 110 GHz gyrotron; design, build and test a 110 GHz quasi-optical, resonant-ring pulse compressor to compress microsecond pulses from the 1 MW gyrotron into > 20 MW, 5 ns output pulses for accelerator structure testing. The proposed research program built on our successes in our research program including: Generation of 510 MW, 2.1 ns (FWHM) pulses at 11.7 GHz from a metallic metamaterial structure in test at the Argonne Wakefield Accelerator using a train of eight 65 MeV electron bunches spaced at 1.3 GHz with a total charge of 280 nC. The metamaterial structure consisted of 100 copper unit cells each consisting of a “wagon-wheel” plate and a spacer plate with a total structure length of 0.2 m. The 510 MW pulse generated an on-axis wakefield of 130 MV/m that could be used to accelerate a trailing witness bunch. Demonstration of coupling of an unprecedented rf power level of 575kW into a 110 GHz accelerator structure using a quasi-optical setup. The standing structure consisted of a central copper cavity located between two matching cavities fed by a TM01 mode. The 6 ns input pulses were sliced from 3 microsecond pulses from the gyrotron using a laser-driven silicon switch. We obtained an unprecedented high gradient up to 230MV/m corresponding to a peak surface electric field of more than 520 MV/m.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗

DOE OSTI2016

Collaborative Research Programme in Decommissioning, Immobilisation and Storage Solutions for Nuclear Waste Inventories (DISTINCTIVE) - 16466

The UK government remains committed to nuclear power as an important part of the energy generation capacity over the next 30-50 years and possibly beyond, with aspirations for both new-build power stations and lifetime extension of the existing fleet. A central component of public acceptance for any new-build programme is the need to demonstrate our ability to safely manage and dispose of high- and intermediate-level wastes from legacy nuclear operations. Clear milestones associated with the needs of waste management and decommissioning have been provided by the UK government, and most rely on further research and technical developments being delivered over the next 10-20 years. The DISTINCTIVE (Decommissioning, Immobilisation and Storage Solutions for Nuclear Waste Inventories) consortium is carrying out research that addresses the broad area of nuclear waste and decommissioning, bringing together key industry partners and leading academic researchers from 10 of the UK's leading research intensive universities. The research being carried out is multi-disciplinary and covers both fundamental and applied topics, with research projects clustered in four major themes: AGR, Magnox and exotic spent fuels; PuO{sub 2} and fuel residues; legacy ponds and silo wastes; and structural integrity. The consortium builds upon and consolidates the work of previous Research Councils' UK Energy Programme-funded projects in the same field although, importantly, this new project draws in researchers from a larger group of universities and increases the multi-disciplinary nature of the group. All participating research groups have a strong track-record of supporting the nuclear industry through basic and applied research as well as consultancy activities. Key aims of the consortium are to extend and develop a relevant academic skill base in the UK associated with the needs of the nuclear waste management industry, to train the next generation of UK researchers, equipping them with skills and experiences relevant to nuclear waste management and decommissioning issues, and to carry out cutting-edge research that has the potential to provide new and innovative pathways to better management of both legacy and future nuclear wastes. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗