The Systems ?Vee? Model: A way of looking at the engineering work to drive consistency and completeness in technical programs.
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Presents the results of a theoretical and empirical analysis conducted to estimate the impact of using variable renewable resources on the duration and frequency of customer reported power system disruptions.
Presentation for DICE conference
Global Storm Resolving Models (GSRMs) provide a way to understand weather and climate events across scales for better-informed climate impacts. In this work, we apply the recently developed and validated CAM (Community Atmosphere Model)—MPAS (Model for Prediction Across Scales) modeling framework, based on the open-source Community Earth System Model (CESM2), to examine the tropical convection features at the storm resolving scale over the Maritime Continent region at 3 km horizontal spacing. We target two global numerical experiments during the winter season of 2018 for comparison with observation in the region. Here we focus on the investigation of the representations of the convective systems, precipitation statistics, and tropical cyclone behaviors. We found that regional-refined experiments show more accurate precipitation distributions, diurnal cycles, and better agreement with observations for tropical cyclone features in terms of intensity and strength statistics. We expect the exploration of this work will further advance the development and use of the storm-resolving model in precipitation predictions across scales.
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Wave energy, if all been harvested along the U.S. coastline, can power around 65% of the energy consumption in U.S.. Comparing to other renewable energy sources like solar or wind, ocean wave can provide up to 90% of steady uptime. With the high energy density (2-3 kW/m 2 ), it can produce more energy with the same amount of installation area comparing to the energy density of wind turbine (0.6 kW/m 2 ) and solar panel(0.2 kW/m 2 ). The predictability of wave provides advantages like planning installation, power dispatching, and maintenance activities. Although with all these advantages, wave energy converter system is still in the research stage due to its high system cost per electricity production. One of the challenges that need to be solved is the irregularity from the wave motion that leads to high instantaneous peak power into the wave energy converter, which usually reaches up to 10 - 20 times of the average power. The high peak power will not only bring high mechanical/electrical stress but also result in an overrating design of the components in the system. Another obstacle that prevents the wave energy system from moving forward is the high testing cost from the validations in wave-energy-test sites or tank-test sites. A high-fidelity multi-disciplinary system model, including hydrodynamics, mechanical dynamics, electromagnetics, and power electronics, is needed to predict the behavior of the system and reduce the cost of design validation.
The overarching goal of this research is to produce a skill-assessed tide-estuary representation, including BGC (biogeochemistry) components of the ecosystem, into the MPAS-O global climate modeling system. Specifically, in the original proposal we proposed one-way nesting, into global MPAS-O, of a high-resolution model for TES (tidal and estuary systems) including the coupling of the BGC components. We have completed the proposed tasks during the past 4 years. Specifically, after extensive consultation with the MPAS-O group during the first year, we have decided to go beyond the original proposal and to two-way nest SCHISM into MPAS-O. As a result, SCHISM-CoSiNE (with CoSiNE being the BGC model) is now fully integrated into MPAS-O as a subroutine (more precisely, an analysis member) and can be invoked as MPAS-O is running with two-way exchange of information between the TES and global models (with proper spatial interpolation done on the fly). As originally proposed, we have also developed the new finite-volume (FV) model MPAS-OI (aka ELCIRC-sub) for TES. We have conducted several tests using the coupled MPAS-SCHISM- CoSiNE model and also MPAS-OI for Columbia River, San Francisco Bay and Chesapeake Bay. Four journal publications have been produced so far as the result of the project and 1 is under review (cf. Publication section). With these achievements, we will be ready to conduct fully coupled simulations of TES and global ocean anywhere, as soon as some missing capabilities in MPAS-O (e.g. tides, improved ability to handle the boundary conditions, and streamlining of the global BGC model) are worked out. The significance of the outcome of this project cannot be overstated. It marks the first time, as far as we know, that a global climate model is tightly coupled to a bona fide nearshore and terrestrial model (SCHISM system); in fact SCHISM is the first bona fide compound flooding model that seamlessly covers the coastal ocean, estuaries, rivers and watersheds (Ye et al. 2020; Zhang et al. 2020). The coupled model will reduce the errors and uncertainties of the MPAS-O global climate model system. It also complements and extends on-going E3SM project, as the latter seeks in the long-term to include components required to simulate impacts of sea-level change and storm surge on coastal regions, including wave models and focusing resolution in coastal and storm-track regions, as an important component of the Cryosphere-ocean system. Note that a spectral wave model (the unstructured-grid version of Wave Watch III, aka Wind Wave Model) is already incorporated inside the SCHISM system and is therefore directly accessible in the coupled system.
When simulating vegetation dynamics, photosynthesis accounts for a large fraction of the computational cost in most Earth System Models (ESMs). This is largely since photosynthesis is represented as a system of nonlinear equations, and the solution requires the use of an initial guess followed by many iterations of the numerical solver to obtain a solution. We use machine learning (ML) to replicate the response surface of the model’s numerical solver to improve the choice of initial guess, therefore requiring fewer iterations to obtain a final solution. We implemented this test on the leaf-level calculations as well as at the canopy scale, and for both we observed fewer iterations of the photosynthesis solver when a ML-based initial guess was implemented. The model tested here is the Energy Exascale Earth System Model - Land Model (ELM). The ML-based algorithms used here are trained on simulations from the model itself and used only to improve the initial guess for the solver; therefore, the model maintains its own set of physics to obtain the final solution. This work shows novel ways to utilize ML-based methods to improve the performance of numerical solvers in ESMs.
We reviewed the present studies on the vulnerability and resilience of the energy ecosystem (most parts of the energy ecosystem), considering extreme climate events. This study revealed that the increased interactions formed during the transformation of the energy landscape into an ecosystem could notably increase the vulnerability of the energy infrastructure. Such complex ecosystem cannot be assessed using the present state of the art models used by the energy system modelers. Therefore, this study introduces a novel analogy known as the COVID analogy to understand the propagation of disruption within and beyond the energy ecosystem and organized the present state of the art based on the COVID analogy. The analogy helps to categorize the vulnerability of the energy infrastructure into three stages. The study revealed that although there are many publications covering the vulnerability and resilience of the energy infrastructure, considering extreme climate events, the majority are focused on the direct impact of extreme climate on the energy ecosystem. In addition, most of the studies do not consider the impact of future climate variations during this assessment. The propagation of disruptions was assessed mainly for wildfires and hurricanes. Further, there is a clear research gap in considering vulnerability assessment for interconnected energy infrastructure. Here, the transformation of energy systems into a complex ecosystem notably increases the complexity, making it difficult to assess vulnerability and resilience. A shift from a centralized to decentralized modeling architecture could be beneficial when considering the complexities brought by that transformation. Hybrid models consisting of both physical and data-driven machine learning techniques could also be beneficial in this context.
Molecular dynamics simulations in the microcanonical ensemble are performed to study the collapse of a bubble in liquid water using the single-site mW and the four-site TIP4P/2005 water models. To study system size effects, simulations for pure water systems are performed using periodically replicated simulation boxes with linear dimensions, L, ranging from 32 to 512 nm with the largest systems containing 8.7 × 10 6 and 4.5 × 10 9 molecules for the TIP4P/2005 and mW water models, respectively. The computationally more efficient mW water model allows us to reach converging behavior when the bubble dynamics results are plotted in reduced units, and the limiting behavior can be obtained through linear extrapolation in L –1 . Qualitative differences are observed between simulations with the mW and TIP4P/2005 water models, but they can be explained by the models’ differences in predicted viscosity and surface tension. Although bubble collapse occurs on time scales of only hundreds of picoseconds, the system sizes used here are sufficiently large to obtain bubble dynamics consistent with the Rayleigh–Plesset equation when using the models’ thermophysical properties as input. For the conditions explored here, extreme heating of the interfacial water molecules near the time of collapse is observed for the larger mW water systems (but the model underpredicts the viscosity), whereas heating is less pronounced for the TIP4P/2005 water systems because its larger viscosity contribution slows the collapse dynamics. The presence of nitrogen within the bubble only starts to affect bubble dynamics near the very end of the initial collapse, leading to an incomplete collapse and strong rebound for the mW water model. Although nitrogen is non-condensable at 300 K, it becomes highly compressed and reaches a liquid-like density near the collapse point. We find that the dissolution of nitrogen is much slower than the movement of the collapsing water front, and the re-expansion of the dense nitrogen droplet gives rise to bubble rebound. The incompatibility of the collapse and dissolution time scales should be considered for continuum-scale modeling of bubble dynamics. Finally, we also confirm that the diffusion coefficient for dissolved nitrogen is insensitive to pressure as the liquid transitions from a compressed to a stretched state.
Idaho National Laboratory continues to be at the forefront of advanced reactor systems and integrated energy systems research. Through the Thermal Energy Distribution System (TEDS) and Microreactor Agile Non-nuclear Test Bed (MAGNET) experiments in the Dynamic Energy Transport and Innovation Laboratory (DETAIL) within the Engineering Systems Laboratory, a mix of digital and physical testing systems can explore the operation of thermally and electrically integrated systems. Modeling of these systems has been done using the HYBRID modeling repository of the Integrated Energy Systems program. DETAIL also contains high temperature steam electrolysis (HTSE) units to produce hydrogen and generate the load imposed on MAGNET and TEDS. The dynamic modeling capabilities within the IES program describe the DETAIL components as-built and can be used to evaluate controls, process flows, and overall system conditions.
Recent works exploring deep learning application to dynamical systems modeling have demonstrated that embedding physical priors into neural networks can yield more effective, physically-realistic, and data-efficient models. However, in the absence of complete prior knowledge of a dynamical system's physical characteristics, determining the optimal structure and optimization strategy for these models can be difficult. In this work, we explore methods for discovering neural state space dynamics models for system identification. Starting with a design space of block-oriented state space models and structured linear maps with strong physical priors, we encode these components into a model genome alongside network structure, penalty constraints, and optimization hyperparameters. Demonstrating the overall utility of the design space, we employ an asynchronous genetic search algorithm that alternates between model selection and optimization and obtains accurate physically consistent models of three physical systems: an aerodynamics body, a continuous stirred tank reactor, and a two tank interacting system.
Abstract Prediction systems to enable Earth system predictability research on the subseasonal time scale have been developed with the Community Earth System Model, version 2 (CESM2) using two configurations that differ in their atmospheric components. One system uses the Community Atmosphere Model, version 6 (CAM6) with its top near 40 km, referred to as CESM2(CAM6). The other employs the Whole Atmosphere Community Climate Model, version 6 (WACCM6) whose top extends to ∼140 km, and it includes fully interactive tropospheric and stratospheric chemistry [CESM2(WACCM6)]. Both systems are utilized to carry out subseasonal reforecasts for the 1999–2020 period following the Subseasonal Experiment’s (SubX) protocol. Subseasonal prediction skill from both systems is compared to those of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration CFSv2 and European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) operational models. CESM2(CAM6) and CESM2(WACCM6) show very similar subseasonal prediction skill of 2-m temperature, precipitation, the Madden–Julian oscillation, and North Atlantic Oscillation to its previous version and to the NOAA CFSv2 model. Overall, skill of CESM2(CAM6) and CESM2(WACCM6) is a little lower than that of the ECMWF system. In addition to typical output provided by subseasonal prediction systems, CESM2 reforecasts provide comprehensive datasets for predictability research of multiple Earth system components, including three-dimensional output for many variables, and output specific to the mesosphere and lower-thermosphere (MLT) region from CESM2(WACCM6). It is shown that sudden stratosphere warming events, and the associated variability in the MLT, can be predicted ∼10 days in advance. Weekly real-time forecasts and reforecasts with CESM2(CAM6) and CESM2(WACCM6) are freely available. Significance Statement We describe here the design and prediction skill of two subseasonal prediction systems based on two configurations of the Community Earth System Model, version 2 (CESM2): CESM2 with the Community Atmosphere Model, version 6 [CESM2(CAM6)] and CESM 2 with Whole Atmosphere Community Climate Model, version 6 [CESM2(WACCM6)] as its atmospheric component. These two systems provide a foundation for community-model based subseasonal prediction research. The CESM2(WACCM6) system provides a novel capability to explore the predictability of the stratosphere, mesosphere, and lower thermosphere. Both CESM2(CAM6) and CESM2(WACCM6) demonstrate subseasonal surface prediction skill comparable to that of the NOAA CFSv2 model, and a little lower than that of the ECMWF forecasting system. CESM2 reforecasts provide a comprehensive dataset for predictability research of multiple aspects of the Earth system, including the whole atmosphere up to 140 km, land, and sea ice. Weekly real-time forecasts, reforecasts, and models are publicly available.
In this work, an intercomparison of raindrop mean diameter frequency distribution (RDFD) is performed for numerical simulations of precipitating cloud systems using an array of models and microphysics schemes. This includes results from the Regional Atmospheric Modeling System (RAMS) double-moment microphysics, the Hebrew University Cloud Model bin microphysics (HUCM) interfaced to the RAMS parent model, and the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) Model with the Thompson, Morrison, double-moment 6-class (WDM6), and National Severe Storms Laboratory (NSSL) double-moment schemes. Simulations are examined with respect to the raindrop size distribution (DSD) volume-number mean diameter (D m ) and intercept parameter (N w ). When compared to a suite of disdrometer observations, the RDFD resulting from each microphysics scheme exhibits varying degrees of mean drop size constraints and peaks in the frequency distribution of D m . A more detailed investigation of the peaked RDFD from the RAMS simulations suggests that the parameterization of raindrop collisional breakup can impose strong limitations on the evolution of simulated drop growth. As such, a summary and comparison of the drop breakup parameterizations among the aforementioned microphysics schemes is presented. While some drop breakup parameterizations are adjusted toward the observations by modifying the threshold diameter for the onset of breakup, this study explores the use of a modified maximum breakup efficiency. This method permits the parameterization to retain its threshold breakup diameter, while limiting the strength of drop breakup and permitting a broader range of drop sizes. As a result, the simulated mean drop sizes are in better agreement with observations.
Indonesia’s current energy system modeling is heavily focused on the supply side, but emissions reductions in the demand sector have a significant impact on advancing Indonesia’s ambitious emissions reductions goals. To address the gap, we develop a new modeling tool DREAM Indonesia based on a bottom-up, technology-rich demand side framework and formulate projections of demand-side emissions reductions in Indonesia in 2020–2060. We find that demand-side energy efficiency and electrification can halve the growth rate of final energy demand to 1.4% annually over 2020–2060 and reverse the growing trend of emissions. The feasibility of full electrification by 2060, coupled with rapid adoption of existing technologies, positions the building sector as a model for achievable decarbonization and a cornerstone of Indonesia’s emissions reductions ambitions. In the industrial sector, extensive emissions reductions of 87% by 2060 (compared to business-as-usual) are achievable through energy efficiency improvements, alongside enhanced material efficiency measures including optimized material usage, low-carbon substitutions, innovative technologies, and increased circularity. In the transportation sector, balancing final energy demand by incorporating energy efficiency improvements across all transport modes, along with electrification particularly in road transportation, could decrease the emissions by up to 82% in 2060 compared to business-as-usual. This study provides insights and modeling approaches for rapidly growing Asian economies as well as other developing countries facing combined development and decarbonization challenges.
This project aims to develop multi-scale building energy data, potentially improving the representation of the U.S. buildings sector in GCAM-USA, an U.S.-focused human-energy-Earth systems model. Existing building energy datasets are typically limited to national or regional levels, which constrains the ability of models to capture fine-scale human-energy-Earth systems interactions and reduces their relevance for decision-making on issues such as energy security, resilience, and energy planning. By leveraging AI and advanced data integration methods, this work fuses multiple existing datasets to enhance the physical and geographic representation of both residential and commercial building energy use. So far, progress includes processing residential building data, designing the data structure for commercial buildings, and testing AI approaches for integrating datasets and addressing spatial-temporal gaps. This effort can not only advances GCAM-USA’s capability in modeling the buildings sector but also supports broader DOE missions, such as developing digital testbeds, enhancing grid resilience analysis, and improving building–energy system modeling at decision-relevant scales.
Land surface relative humidity (RH) is a key variable in the coupled land–atmosphere system that profoundly influences terrestrial hydroclimate and ecosystems. Yet historical changes in land RH are not well understood due to limited observations, biased reanalyses, and the lack of a framework for interpreting RH changes under multiple influencing factors. Here, we show that the spatiotemporal variability of land RH and its distinct historical trends among observations, reanalyses, and Earth system models are captured by a simple index based on the ratio of precipitation (P) to a modified potential evapotranspiration formulated independently of RH (PET°). The index provides a physical calibration of biased land RH in reanalyses and a quantitative framework for interpreting land RH changes. Over 1973–2024, land RH has decreased substantially, owing to the intrinsic rise in PET° with temperature and little increase in land precipitation. Reanalyses overestimate the observed RH decrease, consistent with exaggerated surface warming and precipitation decline. The index captures this coherent bias and enables a calibration using observed precipitation and temperature. Models simulate a wide range of land RH trends, but nearly all runs underrepresent the historical drying. The index captures the model spread and discrepancy and attributes them to contributions of precipitation and PET°. Weaker land RH decreases in models arise mainly from weaker subtropical precipitation declines, linked to muted intensification of subtropical highs and biased subtropical climatology. The model–observation discrepancy is unlikely explained by internal variability, implying model underestimation of forced RH decrease and a drier land future than current projections.
This is the Final Report of our 4-year Energy Exascale Earth System Model (E3SM) project (3 years for the original project + 1-year no-cost extension). The overall objective of our project is to improve the interface processes in the E3SM. Two overarching questions have been addressed: 1) What are the major deficiencies of the (land-atmosphere, ocean-atmosphere, land-ocean, and snow-sea ice) interface processes in E3SM? 2) How can we improve the treatment of these deficiencies in E3SM? Four tasks have been carried out: to evaluate and improve the land–atmosphere coupling in E3SM; to evaluate and improve the ocean–atmosphere coupling in E3SM; to evaluate and improve the land–ocean coupling in E3SM; and to evaluate and improve the snow–sea ice coupling in E3SM.