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This project, in completion of the Illinois Institute of Technology’s Professional Masters of Health Physics program, represents a two part independent study wherein (1) a Statistical Analysis is performed on a new data process implemented at a Los Alamos National Laboratory facility and (2) a Project Management Plan is designed for the successful implementation of this new radiation protection management process.
This simple Microgrid Design Toolkit (MDT) use case will provide you an example of a basic microgrid design. It will introduce basic principles of using the MDT islanded mode optimization by modifying a baseline microgrid design and performing an analysis of the results. Please reference the MDT User Guide (SAND2020-4550) for detailed instructions on how to use the tool.
Current inverter technologies used in electric vehicles (EVs) are bulky, heavy, and expensive. The performance of the inverter is also limited by the traditional Si-based semiconductor and packaging technology. These constraints are responsible for extra weight and volume in the vehicle that reduces the driving range along with usable space within the vehicle. Moreover, operating temperature restrictions, and boundaries on the inverter location within the vehicle drastically reduces the inverter performance. Thus an improved inverter design is required for next generation electric vehicles. The objective of this project was to research, develop and demonstrate a highly integrated WBG power module targeting the next generation of plugin hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs). This power module needed to be functionally and mechanically optimized for General Motors (GM) traction inverter architecture. General Motors was the prime contractor, led the project, and oversaw the design, build, and test of the integrated power module. Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (VT) performed modeling and simulation tasks as well as power module design support. Monolith Semiconductor, Inc provided SiC dies and consulted on devices for the inverter. Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) performed power module technology evaluations, design evaluations of interconnect options, and performed material analysis and cross-sectioning of die activities.
The samples were microwave digested to accomplish complete dissolution needed to perform quantitative analysis of their iron content. The diamond and Para B4 C samples did not dissolve during the microwave digestion and they were filtered. The supernatant was analyzed. The resulting solutions were analyzed by ICP-OES for the major cation content and by ICP-MS for trace element content.
Market conditions are forcing fossil electricity generation facility owners and operators to implement advanced digital technologies. These technologies enable efficiencies, operational flexibility, operations and maintenance efficiencies, and adapting to a transitioning workforce. These digital technologies, however, can increase the cybersecurity attack surface. The purpose of this research was to develop a holistic cybersecurity risk reduction framework for fossil generation facilities. The framework begins with assessing how cyber risk changes across facility life cycles, including plant, system, vendor, and business life cycles. The next phase performs consequence analysis to prioritize high consequence events. Focusing on high consequence events allows owners to use a graded, risk-informed approach to prioritize cybersecurity efforts. The final phase identifies the digital asset attack surface in sensors and instrumentation and control equipment. After the vulnerabilities are identified, the owner selects mitigating cybersecurity control measures (or countermeasures) based on the risk analysis from the previous phases. This report describes the current industry cybersecurity best practices in fossil generation that are based on the first principles for cybersecurity engineering. The report is divided into five sections that describe the implementation of the risk reduction framework and present identified research, methodological, and technology gaps that were identified through this course of research and development.
Our paradigm-shifting framework will apply machine learning and perform physical analysis of contemporary volcanoes to develop sound forecasts of extreme eruptions in the 21stcentury and their abrupt drying and cooling impacts on the warming climate. We will also bridge climate data driven regression models and earth system model output to trace teleconnections that exacerbate regional impacts such as Arctic amplification and western US droughts.
Focal Areas: Our paradigm-shifting framework will apply machine learning and perform physical analysis of contemporary volcanoes to develop sound forecasts of extreme eruptions in the 21st century and their abrupt drying and cooling impacts on the warming climate. We will also bridge climate data driven regression models and earth system model output to trace teleconnections that exacerbate regional impacts such as Arctic amplification and western US droughts.
Sodium void worth and control rod worth were measured in Phases A, B, C and D of the ZPPR15 experimental program. Sodium voiding was simulated by replacing stainless steel cans containing sodium by empty stainless steel cans of the same sizes. The control rod worth measurements were measurements of simulated control rods (CRs) and simulated empty control rod positions (CRPs). A CRP consisted of a 2 x 2 array of drawers filled with sodium plates. A CR consisted of a 2 x 2 array of drawers containing alternating columns of boron carbide plates and sodium plates in the front 18 inches and just sodium plates in the back 18 inches. The ZPPR staff published the measured sodium void worths and control rod worths and the statistical uncertainties in the measured values. In reality, the published uncertainty for each of these measurements is only one component of the total uncertainty. There are additional contributions from uncertainties related to measurement technique, plate compositions and reproducibility. However, the dominant uncertainty for the sodium void worth and control rod worth measurements is the uncertainty in βeff which is required to convert from the natural measurement units, cents, to the calculation units, pcm or Δ/k 1 k 2 . A full uncertainty analysis was performed for the sodium void worth and control rod worth measurements. The significant uncertainties were quantified, and a total uncertainty was derived for each sodium void worth or control rod worth measurement. The ZPPR-15 experimental records were used to create detailed as-built Monte Carlo models of the sodium void worth and control rod worth configurations. These models were used to compute the sodium void worths and control rod worths. (C/E – 1) and the related uncertainty in (C/E – 1) were derived for the measured worths.
In addition to measuring the worth of sodium voiding and the worth of simulated control rods, the ZPPR staff measured the Doppler worth of four standard samples, the worth of axial expansion and the worth of radial bowing in ZPPR-15. Doppler sample worths were measured in ZPPR-15A, ZPPR-15B and ZPPR-15D. The Doppler samples were natural UO 2 , depleted uranium metal, depleted U-10Zr alloy and 33% enriched UO 2 . These samples were placed in a sample capsule in the inner core of ZPPR-15 and heated to various temperatures between 300 K and 1100 K. The resulting changes in reactivity relative to the reference configuration were measured to determine the Doppler worths of the samples. Special segmented drawers were constructed to measure the worth of axial expansion in ZPPR15. The segments were connected to each other, and the back segment was connected to a spring-loaded cable. Pulling the cable introduced small gaps between drawer segments to simulate axial expansion, and releasing the cable eliminated those gaps. The worth of this simulated axial expansion was measured in ZPPR-15A, ZPPR-15B and ZPPR-15D. The worth of radial bowing was measured in ZPPR-15, but the experimenters regarded the result as unsatisfactory. Radial bowing was measured by two methods in ZPPR-17A, so the ZPPR-17A bowing measurements were analyzed in place of the unpublished ZPPR-15 radial bowing measurement. The first ZPPR-17A measurement consisted of rearranging the plates in 96 core drawers at the core-radial blanket boundary to simulate outward motion of the fuel during bowing. The second ZPPR-17A measurement used a new bowing oscillator to move the core plates a small distance vertically in a special drawer. The published uncertainties for the Doppler worth, axial expansion worth and radial bowing worth measurements are the statistical uncertainties in the measurements. In reality, the published uncertainty for each of these measurements is just one component of the total uncertainty. There are additional uncertainties specific to each measurement and a common uncertainty related to conversion from the natural measurement units, cents, to pcm for calculations. A full uncertainty analysis was performed for each measurement. The significant uncertainties were quantified, and a total uncertainty was determined for each measurement. The ZPPR-15 and ZPPR-17A experimental records were used to create detailed as-built Monte Carlo models of the Doppler worth, axial expansion and radial bowing measurement configurations.
Small metal foils were irradiated in ZPPR-15 to measure distributions for 239 Pu(n,f), 235 U(n,f), 238 U(n,f), 238 U(n,γ), 115 In(n,n’) and 115 In(n,γ) reaction rates in ZPPR-15. The measured data were reported as basic reaction rate distributions for individual foils, cell-averaged reaction rate distributions and spectral indices or reaction rate ratios. All of the measured data were analyzed and tabulated in such a manner that the data can be readily compared with computed values. The published uncertainties for ZPPR-15 the reaction rate measurements include the statistical uncertainties in the measurements, reproducibility uncertainty and small uncertainties related to corrections for items such as foil compositions and post-irradiation decay between reactor shutdown and foil measurement. There are additional uncertainty components related to detector calibration that are not included in the published uncertainties. A full uncertainty analysis was performed for each foil measurement and for quantities derived from the basic foil measurements. The significant uncertainties were quantified, and a total uncertainty was derived for each measured value. The ZPPR-15 experimental records were used to create detailed as-built Monte Carlo models for the foil reaction rate measurements in ZPPR-15 loadings 123, 134 and 203 and for the fission chamber measurements of 237 Np and 242 Pu fission rates in ZPPR-15 loading 141. Because there were many foils distributed in the ZPPR-15 assembly and because an individual foil occupies a negligible volume in the ZPPR-15 assembly, direct Monte Carlo calculations of the measured foil reaction rates would require an impractical computational effort. The as-built Monte Carlo models and related files were prepared for conversion to deterministic models that can be calculated with realistic computational effort.
A reference critical configuration was established for each phase of the ZPPR-15 experimental program. The reference critical configuration for each phase corresponds to a configuration in which the measured excess reactivity was adjusted to a standard set of reporting conditions with an average reactor temperature of 293 K, a zero interface gap and all operational control rods parked 30 inches from the axial centerline of the core. The ZPPR staff published the measured excess reactivity and the statistical uncertainty in the measurement. In reality, the published uncertainty for each reference critical configuration is only a small component of the total uncertainty for that configuration. Additional uncertainties related measurement technique, configuration geometry and material compositions exist. The geometry and material composition uncertainties are the dominant uncertainties for ZPPR-15. A full uncertainty analysis was performed for each ZPPR-15 reference critical configuration. The significant uncertainties related to measurement technique, configuration geometry and material compositions were quantified, and a total uncertainty was derived for each reference critical configuration. The ZPPR-15 experimental records were used to create detailed as-built Monte Carlo models for the reference critical configurations established in ZPPR-15A loading 15, ZPPR-15B loading 88, ZPPR-15C loading 166 and ZPPR-15D loading 185. The as-built models neglect the small, non-uniform gap between matrix halves at full closure, any structures outside the matrix tubes and minor components, e.g., impurities, in some materials. The biases associated with the neglected items were quantified. The experimental value of keff and its associated uncertainty for each reference critical configuration were adjusted to account for biases introduced by items that are neglected in the as-built model for that configuration.
This project seeks to exploit volumetric absorption of concentrated solar irradiation in a thin, high-temperature, thermally conductive medium. High efficiency thermal conversion is achieved by volumetric absorption of both incoming solar irradiation (short wavelength) and emitted irradiation (long wavelength), demonstrating a volumetrically absorbing thermally insulating (VATI) effect. The thermalized energy is conducted to the back wall, enclosing the working fluid (molten salt or supercritical CO 2 ). Reliance on conductive thermal transport requires a thermally conductive medium, in the absence of which large temperature gradients drive losses due to emission. The project’s outcomes are important to realize a cost-effective approach to reduce optical and thermal losses from CSP receivers at high temperatures (720°C). High-temperature stable and commercially available porous SiC structures (open-cell foams) were explored as a volumetrically absorbing and thermally insulating layer. To the best of our knowledge, the current state-of-the-art for industrially deployed coatings is Pyromark. However, Pyromark suffers degradation at 700+°C and diurnal temperature changes. This necessitates periodic recoating, and the downtime increases the overall levelized cost of energy (LCOE) production. On the other hand, contemporary research activities have generated significant advances in the development of selective emitter coatings, which present challenges with costs, scalability, and stability. The pursued approach alleviates these concerns by developing a receiver that utilizes the inherent structure of high-temperature stable porous materials to enable robust and cost-effective receivers which require no periodic maintenance downtimes. The overall goal of the project is to experimentally demonstrate a figure of merit (FOM) of 0.92 at a temperature of 720°C and solar irradiation of 1000x concentration with porous receivers. The relevant crystallographic (phase) optical and thermal properties of porous SiC were first characterized. Second, the 3-D geometry of the porous SiC was analyzed using micro-X-ray tomography and converted to CAD data using image processing analysis. Utilizing this 3-D geometry and relevant optical/thermal properties, Monte Carlo- Ray Tracing (MCRT) analysis was performed to extract important parameters governing solar-thermal energy conversion such as extinction coefficient (β, 1/m), scattering albedo (ω) and the scattering phase function (Φ). These properties were then integrated into an in-house radiative and conduction transport model to solve for temperature and transport fluxes characterizing the solar-thermal energy conversion. This model was utilized to predict the FOM for various SiC porous geometries and to identify the highest possible FOM. Testing of the optimized porous structures will be accomplished with a custom-built high-accuracy (< ±4%) FOM measurement test-stand and a 1000x solar concentrator. When neglecting convective losses and resistance at the open boundary and the back wall, the optimized SiC foam leads to a FOM of 0.84. This FOM does not surpass the performance of Pyromark 2500. Yet, conversely to Pyromark 2500, SiC is stable at high temperatures and does not degrade over time. Also, it is possible to boost the FOM of SiC by engineering its effective thermal conductivity and its scattering albedo. A FOM of 0.92 is predicted for an optimized foam by accounting for convective losses and resistance at the open boundary and the back wall. This largely exceeds the FOM of Pyromark 2500 (~0.86) predicted by neglecting convective losses and resistance. Therefore, further engineering of the foam could lead to unprecedented FOMs.
Neuromorphic computers are hardware systems that mimic the brain’s computational process phenomenology. This is in contrast to neural network accelerators, such as the Google TPU or the Intel Neural Compute Stick, which seek to accelerate the fundamental computation and data flows of neural network models used in the field of machine learning. Neuromorphic computers emulate the integrate and fire neuron dynamics of the brain to achieve a spiking communication architecture for computation. While neural networks are brain-inspired, they drastically oversimplify the brain’s computation model. Neuromorphic architectures are closer to the true computation model of the brain (albeit, still simplified). Neuromorphic computing models herald a 1000x power improvement over conventional CPU architectures. Sandia National Labs is a major contributor to the research community on neuromorphic systems by performing design analysis, evaluation, and algorithm development for neuromorphic computers. Space-based remote sensing development has been a focused target of funding for exploratory research into neuromorphic systems for their potential advantage in that program area; SNL has led some of these efforts. Recently, neuromorphic application evaluation has reached the NA-22 program area. This same exploratory research and algorithm development should penetrate the unattended ground sensor space for SNL’s mission partners and program areas. Neuromorphic computing paradigms offer a distinct advantage for the SWaP-constrained embedded systems of our diverse sponsor-driven program areas.
An interpretation of Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) data gathered at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) on various SEBS triblock copolymers is offered. A discussion of the complexity of these transitions as well as potential pitfalls that might be encountered when performing an analysis of a triblock copolymer is also given. Lastly, a look into the importance of SEBS triblock copolymers in the literature as well as current developments in their research is summarized.
The main goal of this activity is to test the dynamic coupling of the SAS4A/SASSYS-1 (SAS) and CFD models, using a recently patched version of the SAS code intended to address an undocumented limitation that hindered the Versatile Test Reactor (VTR) simulation efforts in FY21. As described in previous VTR calculation reports, the undocumented limitation in SAS v5.4 does not allow the user to activate the CFD coupling option during restart calculations. Since the analysts were unaware of this limitation, prior SAS-CFD simulation results for the protected station blackout (PSBO) transient were erroneous. Root-cause analysis was performed to determine the cause of this undocumented limitation in SAS v5.4, the SAS software was updated in a new patch, and the SAS-CFD simulations were repeated with this patched software. The results of the SAS-CFD simulations documented in this report show that the software patch does address the cited issue, and that the patched software indeed supports the activation of the CFD coupling model in restart calculations. The SAS development team will determine the schedule for implementing the patch in an official software release. This report documents updated SAS-CFD simulations of the PSBO transient response in the VTR. The hot pool is modeled with the CFD code STAR-CCM+, which is coupled at the flow boundaries to the SAS model of the primary heat transport system. SAS computes the mass flow rate and temperature at each core subassembly outlet, the thermal insulation cavity bypass, and the IHX inlet windows. CFD in turn computes the absolute pressure and temperature at each of these boundaries. The SAS code will ignore the temperature data at flow boundaries where flow is directed into the hot pool, i.e., at the core subassembly outlets unless flow reversal occurs. Similarly, CFD will ignore temperature data at boundaries where the flow is directed out of the hot pool, i.e., at the IHX inlets except under flow reversal. The focus of this work is to ensure that the SAS software patch addresses the undocumented limitation described in prior VTR calculation reports, rather than the accurate assessment of thermal stratification in the VTR during protected transients. This motivates the development of a new, simplified CFD model with a coarser mesh to accelerate the testing process. The updated model, and simplifying assumptions, are documented in this report. In future work, the thermal stratification assessment should be performed in more detail. The simplified CFD model can be improved by performing grid convergence studies sensitivity studies of turbulence parameters (e.g., Prandtl number, turbulence production and dissipation parameters) on temperature distributions and thermal stratification.
Municipal wastewater contains valuable resources including water, energy, and nutrients that often enter and leave wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) without being captured. Currently, plants are increasingly seeking to recover resources and reuse them in a sustainable way. Therefore, the purpose of this project was to assess the potential for recovery and reuse of water and products from municipal wastewater treatment plants across the United States and to examine how this potential varies by region. To accomplish this, three main tasks were set: first, to characterize wastewater treatment plants; second, to characterize technologies and pathways used to recover energy, nutrients, and water from treatment plants; third, to assess the demand for reclaimed resources and products at a regional level by performing spatial analysis. These three tasks were then synthesized to present key findings in this report and a geospatial dataset with the hope of guiding the increased use of resource recovery technologies in the U.S.
Abstract not provided.
The 800-MeV proton linac at LANSCE consists of a drift-tube linac, which brings the beam to 100 MeV, followed by a coupled-cavity linac (CCL). Each of 44 CCL modules contain multiple tanks, and it is fed by a single 805-MHz klystron. CCL tanks are multi-cell blocks of identical re-entrant sidecoupled cavities, which are followed by drifts with magnetic quadrupole doublets. Bridge couplers – special cavities displaced from the beam axis – electromagnetically couple CCL tanks over such drifts. We have developed 3D CST models of CCL tanks of the LANSCE linac. Their electromagnetic analysis is performed using MicroWave Studio. Beam dynamics is modeled with Particle Studio for bunch trains with realistic beam distributions using the CST calculated RF fields and quadrupole magnetic fields to determine the output beam parameters.