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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 1,045 records · Page 58

A review on protection challenges of Transmission Lines connected to Inverter Based Resources

The increased penetration of inverter-based resources (IBRs) connected to transmission grids is challenging how traditional electric power systems operate. Such systems were originally designed based on the dominant presence of synchronous generators. Some main challenges include the increased concerns about system stability due to the reduced system inertia caused by IBRs and the reduced protection reliability caused by the non-deterministic fault current response of IBRs. The protection relays’ algorithms have been designed and validated based on well-known fault current characteristics of synchronous generations, while the short-circuit responses of IBRs heavily depend on their vendor-specific control schemes, which are mainly set to protect inverter semiconductor switches and DC components. The magnitude of short current that IBRs contribute is typically between 1.1–1.5 times the rated current that may behave unstably and incoherently with the voltages. The control scheme of the IBRs also controls the active (P) and reactive (Q) support during system voltage sag and swell conditions. These characteristics challenge not only protective relay schemes but also existing short-circuit software tools to correctly model IBRs for fault studies and protection coordination analyses.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

Evaluating The Impact Of Connected Vehicle Technology On Heavy Duty Vehicle Emissions

Vehicles with advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) like adaptive cruise control (ACC) could use connected (V2X) data to improve fuel economy  Eco driving generates an energy efficient speed profile by minimizing acceleration events  SwRI demonstrated a 7% reduction in energy consumption for fully loaded class 8 trucks by using nearby vehicle and traffic signal information  How does eco driving impact vehicle emissions and aftertreatment (AT) systems?

Gankov, Stanislav↗

CONNECT Neutronics Initial Report

This report represents the first status update from the Creation of Next-generation Nuclear Energy Computational Technology (CONNECT) effort within the Nuclear Energy Advanced Modeling and Simulation (NEAMS) Program and is intended to satisfy the reporting requirements of the following milestones: • M3MS-24OR0101321: Assess needs, requirements and opportunities for high-fidelity neutronics and transport as used in DOE-NE program. • M3MS-24AN0101301: Generate a community report on the needs, requirements, and opportunities for high-fidelity neutronics and transport as used in DOE-NE programs and industry. • M3MS-24OR0202433: Implement and assess numerical strategies leveraging Monte Carlo neutron transport on GPUs for production analysis. In particular, Sections 1, 2, and 3 detail the assessment of the current state of practice and the landscape of the broader advanced computing world to meet the objectives of M3MS-24OR0101321 and M3MS-24AN0101301, while Sections 4 and 5 describe new work during FY24 to extend current GPU Monte Carlo capabilities in areas relevant to active NEAMS development to satisfy M3MS-24OR0202433. Section 6 offers some thoughts about the potential future impact of Monte Carlo neutronics on NEAMS and the nuclear industry.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗

Connectivity, Centrality, and Bottleneckedness: On Graph Theoretic Methods for Power Systems

This report provides an introduction to selected graph theoretic topics with pertinence to the structural analysis of electric power grid and communication systems. We focus on methodologies for defining, scoring, and identifying connectivity, spectral, and bottleneckeness properties in graphs, as well as vertex and edge importance measures such as centrality. We apply these measures to power systems and communications graph data, discuss and visualize the results, and comment on computational aspects of these methods. We show that graph theoretic methods can provide useful insights into grid and communication network structure, leading to tools and methods that could be used by electric utility engineers to improve key grid and communication network characteristics, such as resilience and scalability.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

Validation of Simulation Models for Wall-Connected Scrape off Layer Currents during MHD Activity in the HBT-EP Tokamak

This is the final report for the DOE award DE-SC0021657, titled “Validation of Simulation Models for Wall-Connected Scrape off Layer Currents during MHD Activity in the HBT-EP Tokamak” for the period September 1, 2020 – April 30, 2025. This award is part of a broader collaborative project, which supported training of a PhD student at Columbia University under the joint supervision of Dr. Levesque and Dr. Hansen (on award DE-SC0021325). The award supported research into computational models for plasma and 3D conducting structures in the vicinity relevant to tokamak disruptions and other mode activity (eg. RWMs) using the NIMROD and PSI-Tet codes. Additional detail on progress in support of these tasks is provided below.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Emerald Connections Weatherization Plus Health Pilot Program

The Emerald Connections Weatherization Plus Health Pilot Program (Healthy Homes Pilot or the pilot), delivered 97 comprehensive energy retrofits to low-income households in two underserved communities: Lynn, Massachusetts (57) and the Beacon Hill neighborhood in Seattle, Washington (40). Designed by Emerald Cities Collaborative (ECC) and funded via a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) Enhancement and Innovation (E&I) grant, ECC created the pilot to expand the reach and range of services typically available to participating WAP households.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗

On the connection between least squares, regularization, and classical shadows

Classical shadows (CS) offer a resource-efficient means to estimate quantum observables, circumventing the need for exhaustive state tomography. Here, we clarify and explore the connection between CS techniques and least squares (LS) and regularized least squares (RLS) methods commonly used in machine learning and data analysis. By formal identification of LS and RLS ``shadows'' completely analogous to those in CS---namely, point estimators calculated from the empirical frequencies of single measurements---we show that both RLS and CS can be viewed as regularizers for the underdetermined regime, replacing the pseudoinverse with invertible alternatives. Through numerical simulations, we evaluate RLS and CS from three distinct angles: the tradeoff in bias and variance, mismatch between the expected and actual measurement distributions, and the interplay between the number of measurements and number of shots per measurement. Compared to CS, RLS attains lower variance at the expense of bias, is robust to distribution mismatch, and is more sensitive to the number of shots for a fixed number of state copies---differences that can be understood from the distinct approaches taken to regularization. Conceptually, our integration of LS, RLS, and CS under a unifying ``shadow'' umbrella aids in advancing the overall picture of CS techniques, while practically our results highlight the tradeoffs intrinsic to these measurement approaches, illuminating the circumstances under which either RLS or CS would be preferred, such as unverified randomness for the former or unbiased estimation for the latter.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Real-Time On-Ramp Merging Control of Connected and Automated Vehicles using Pseudospectral Convex Optimization

Highway on-ramp merging can be a challenging task for human drivers due to the complex vehicle negotiations and interactions in limited time and space. Connected and automated vehicles (CAVs) have great potential to address the problem and offer many benefits in terms of safety, traffic efficiency, and fuel economy. However, real-time optimal control of CAVs still faces many challenges, including nonlinear dynamics, complex inter-vehicle interactions, and a highly dynamic and uncertain traffic environment. To address these challenges, we develop a novel control approach that balances the solution optimality and computational efficiency to determine optimal merging speed profiles in real time. Specifically, by employing a pseudospectral method and a sequential convex programming approach, two algorithms are proposed and implemented within the model predictive control (MPC) framework to enable real-time generation of optimal solutions for potential on-vehicle applications. The convergence and optimality of the proposed algorithms are validated by comparing with a general-purpose solver under different traffic scenarios.

Shi, Yang↗

A novel islanding detection technique for grid connected photovoltaic system

Islanding detection is the major issue in Grid Connected Photovoltaic (PV) System and still it remains a challenge for researchers to interconnect the PV system with the Grid. The algorithms which are listed in the literature are failed to identify the Islanding phenomena for the several source configuration. In this paper a novel islanding detection technique is presented to reduce the non-detection zone (NDZ) at the point of common coupling (PCC) and it can be widely used for various renewable energy system configurations. The simulations have been carried out in Matlab/Simulink for several test conditions. The simulations results are presented to confirm the effectiveness of the proposed method.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

Grid connection management of distributed generators on the basis of renewable energy sources

The concept of distributed energy of renewable energy sources is becoming increasingly popular. It is not simply supplementary but a real alternative to the conventional power supply from centralized power grids. Distributed electricity generators integrated into the Unified Energy System are a complex system in which the relationship between the observed parameters and the system state is ambivalent and ambiguous. Therefore, the approach to management in automatic control systems based on control of the output parameters is inappropriate in nature. In this case, the elaboration of a control action should be carried out on the basis of data on the current state of the object of control. Issues of the grid connection of distributed generators and control of their process parameters are considered.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

A Novel Deep Reinforcement Learning Approach to Traffic Signal Control with Connected Vehicles

The advent of connected vehicle (CV) technology offers new possibilities for a revolution in future transportation systems. With the availability of real-time traffic data from CVs, it is possible to more effectively optimize traffic signals to reduce congestion, increase fuel efficiency, and enhance road safety. The success of CV-based signal control depends on an accurate and computationally efficient model that accounts for the stochastic and nonlinear nature of the traffic flow. Without the necessity of prior knowledge of the traffic system’s model architecture, reinforcement learning (RL) is a promising tool to acquire the control policy through observing the transition of the traffic states. In this paper, we propose a novel data-driven traffic signal control method that leverages the latest in deep learning and reinforcement learning techniques. By incorporating a compressed representation of the traffic states, the proposed method overcomes the limitations of the existing methods in defining the action space to include more practical and flexible signal phases. The simulation results demonstrate the convergence and robust performance of the proposed method against several existing benchmark methods in terms of average vehicle speeds, queue length, wait time, and traffic density.

42 ENGINEERING↗

Connecting Global Modes of Variability to Climate in High Mountain Asia

Oscillations in global modes of variability (MoVs) form global teleconnections that affect regional climate variability and modify the potential for severe and damaging weather conditions. Understanding the link between certain MoVs and regional climate can improve the ability to more accurately predict environmental conditions that impact human life and health. In this study, we explore the connection between different MoVs, including the Arctic oscillation (AO), Eurasian teleconnection, Indian Ocean dipole (IOD), North Atlantic oscillation (NAO), and El Niño southern oscillation (Nino34), with winter and summer climates in the High Mountain Asia (HMA) region, including geopotential height at 250 hPa (z250), 2 m air temperature (T2M), total precipitation (PRECTOT), and fractional snow cover area (fSCA). Relationships are explored for the same monthly period between the MoVs and the climate variables, and a lagged correlation analysis is used to investigate whether any relationship exists at different time lags. We find that T2M has a negative correlation with the Eurasian teleconnection in the Inner Tibetan Plateau and central China in both winter and summer and a positive correlation in western China in summer. PRECTOT has a positive correlation with all MoVs in most regions in winter, especially with the IOD, and a negative correlation in summer, especially with the Eurasian teleconnection. Snow cover in winter is positively correlated with most indices throughout many regions in HMA, likely due to wintertime precipitation also being positively correlated with most indices. Generally, the AO and NAO show similar correlation patterns with all climate variables, especially in the winter, possibly due to their oscillations being so similar. Furthermore, the AO and NAO are shown to be less significant in explaining the variation in HMA climate compared to other MoVs such as the Eurasian teleconnection. Overall, our results identify different time windows and specific regions within HMA that exhibit high correlations between climate and MoVs, which might offer additional predictability of the MoVs as well as of climate and weather patterns in HMA and throughout the globe.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Anomaly Detection in Connected and Autonomous Vehicle Trajectories Using LSTM Autoencoder and Gaussian Mixture Model

Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (CAVs) technology has the potential to transform the transportation system. Although these new technologies have many advantages, the implementation raises significant concerns regarding safety, security, and privacy. Anomalies in sensor data caused by errors or cyberattacks can cause severe accidents. To address the issue, this study proposed an innovative anomaly detection algorithm, namely the LSTM Autoencoder with Gaussian Mixture Model (LAGMM). This model supports anomalous CAV trajectory detection in the real-time leveraging communication capabilities of CAV sensors. The LSTM Autoencoder is applied to generate low-rank representations and reconstruct errors for each input data point, while the Gaussian Mixture Model (GMM) is employed for its strength in density estimation. The proposed model was jointly optimized for the LSTM Autoencoder and GMM simultaneously. The study utilizes realistic CAV data from a platooning experiment conducted for Cooperative Automated Research Mobility Applications (CARMAs). The experiment findings indicate that the proposed LAGMM approach enhances detection accuracy by 3% and precision by 6.4% compared to the existing state-of-the-art methods, suggesting a significant improvement in the field.

33 ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗

Development and Evaluation of Velocity Predictive Optimal Energy Management Strategies in Intelligent and Connected Hybrid Electric Vehicles

In this study, a thorough and definitive evaluation of Predictive Optimal Energy Management Strategy (POEMS) applications in connected vehicles using 10 to 20 s predicted velocity is conducted for a Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV). The presented methodology includes synchronous datasets gathered in Fort Collins, Colorado using a test vehicle equipped with sensors to measure ego vehicle position and motion and that of surrounding objects as well as receive Infrastructure to Vehicle (I2V) information. These datasets are utilized to compare the effect of different signal categories on prediction fidelity for different prediction horizons within a POEMS framework. Multiple artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) algorithms use the collected data to output future vehicle velocity prediction models. The effects of different combinations of signals and different models on prediction fidelity in various prediction windows are explored. All of these combinations are ultimately addressed where the rubber meets the road: fuel economy (FE) enabled from POEMS. FE optimization is performed using Model Predictive Control (MPC) with a Dynamic Programming (DP) optimizer. FE improvements from MPC control at various prediction time horizons are compared to that of full-cycle DP. All FE results are determined using high-fidelity simulations of an Autonomie 2010 Toyota Prius model. The full-cycle DP POEMS provides the theoretical upper limit on fuel economy (FE) improvement achievable with POEMS but is not currently practical for real-world implementation. Perfect prediction MPC (PP-MPC) represents the upper limit of FE improvement practically achievable with POEMS. Real-Prediction MPC (RP-MPC) can provide nearly equivalent FE improvement when used with high-fidelity predictions. Constant-Velocity MPC (CV-MPC) uses a constant speed prediction and serves as a “null” POEMS. Results showed that RP-MPC, enabled by high-fidelity ego future speed prediction, led to significant FE improvement over baseline nearly matching that of PP-MPC.

33 ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗

Neuroevolution Application to Collaborative and Heuristics-Based Connected and Autonomous Vehicle Cohort Simulation at Uncontrolled Intersection

Artificial intelligence is gaining tremendous attractiveness and showing great success in solving various problems, such as simplifying optimal control derivation. This work focuses on the application of Neuroevolution to the control of Connected and Autonomous Vehicle (CAV) cohorts operating at uncontrolled intersections. The proposed method implementation’s simplicity, thanks to the inclusion of heuristics and effective real-time performance are demonstrated. The resulting architecture achieves nearly ideal operating conditions in keeping the average speeds close to the speed limit. It achieves twice as high mean speed throughput as a controlled intersection, hence enabling lower travel time and mitigating energy inefficiencies from stop-and-go vehicle dynamics. Low deviation from the road speed limit is hence continuously sustained for cohorts of at most 50 m long. This limitation can be mitigated with additional lanes that the cohorts can split into. The concept also allows the testing and implementation of fast-turning lanes by simply replicating and reconnecting the control architecture at each new road crossing, enabling high scalability for complex road network analysis. The controller is also successfully validated within a high-fidelity vehicle dynamic environment, showing its potential for driverless vehicle control in addition to offering a new traffic control simulation model for future autonomous operation studies.

Jacquelin, Frederic (ORCID:0000000183154344)↗

ROTATION PERIODS FOR COOL STARS IN THE 4 Gyr OLD OPEN CLUSTER M67, THE SOLAR–STELLAR CONNECTION, AND THE APPLICABILITY OF GYROCHRONOLOGY TO AT LEAST SOLAR AGE

We report rotation periods for 20 cool (FGK) main sequence member stars of the 4 Gyr-old open cluster M67 (=NGC 2682), obtained by analyzing data from Campaign 5 of the K2 mission with the Kepler Space Telescope . The rotation periods delineate a sequence in the color–period diagram (CPD) of increasing period with redder color. This sequence represents a cross-section at the cluster age of the surface P = P ( t , M ), suggested in prior work to extend to at least solar age. The current Sun is located marginally (approximately 1 σ ) above M67 in the CPD, as its relative age leads us to expect, and lies on the P = P ( t , M ) surface to within measurement precision. We therefore conclude that the solar rotation rate is normal as compared with cluster stars, a fact that strengthens the solar–stellar connection. The agreement between the M67 rotation period measurements and prior predictions further implies that rotation periods, especially when coupled with appropriate supporting work such as spectroscopy, can provide reliable ages via gyrochronology for other similar FGK dwarfs from the early main sequence to solar age and likely until the main sequence turnoff. The M67 rotators have a rotational age of 4.2 Gyr with a standard deviation of 0.7 Gyr, implying that similar field stars can be age-dated to precisions of ∼17%. The rotational age of the M67 cluster as a whole is therefore 4.2 Gyr, but with a lower (averaged) uncertainty of 0.2 Gyr.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗