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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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2024 AIChE Annual Meeting conference presentation detailing the analysis of legacy solids concentration measure data taken via optical fiber probe in NETL's 12-inch Cold Flow Circulating Fluidized Bed (CFCFB), including discussion of the variation in statistical and chaotic parameters as a function of different fluidization regimes.
The differences between molten salt reactors (MSRs) and light water reactors (LWRs) has required modification of previous approaches to model reactor accident progression. Part of this is related to the different chemical phenomenology of these reactors as their fuel is not as contained and can react with their surroundings. MELCOR is a reactor simulation tool that has implemented methods and models to model MSRs. However, additional development of MELCOR for modeling MSRs is required. Although understanding the chemistry surrounding MSRs is important to general MSR licensing and operation, only a subset of reactions and phenomenology are required to model beyond design basis incidents and therefore to be captured by MELCOR. This report is intended to guide the chemical phenomenology to improve MELCOR MSR accident modeling and discusses phenomenology models that are in development.
This AOI covers a land area of approximately 67 square miles. The seven sitewide watershed boundaries are shown in Figure 1, which also shows the hydro-enforced DEM rendered as a shaded relief image.
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The objectives of this project were to quantify, assess, and plan to enable the transformation of Uinta Basin earth resources, such as coal, oil shale, resin, rare earth elements, and critical minerals into high value metal, mineral, and carbon-based products. The specific major goals were 1) basinal assessments and initial planning (Task 2), 2) basinal assessment for waste stream reuse with associated plan development (Task 3), 3) basinal strategies development for infrastructure, industries, and business (Task 4), 4) technology assessment, development, and field-testing plan (Task 5), 5) technology innovation center plan (Task 6), and 6) stakeholder outreach and education plan (Task 7).
Understanding the biogeography and timing of microbial metabolic activity is a key priority for microbial ecologists. With such knowledge, the cumulative biogeochemical contributions of microbial communities become more predictable, and our ability to both understand the effects of environmental change on microbial activity and build synthetic communities with desired functions will increase substantially. In this project, we advanced this broad, ambitious goal in two substantial ways: we developed a multiplexed Fluorescence In Situ Hybridization (FISH) approach that links microbial identity with metabolic function, and we established a novel Bio-Orthogonal Non-Canonical Amino acid Tagging (BONCAT) technique that can resolve the timing of anabolic activity, providing new resolution of when microbial constituents are growing. We deployed both of these techniques in multiple environmental settings to demonstrate their versatility. At the Little Sippewissett Salt Marsh, we combined a novel dual-BONCAT technique with fluorescence activated cell sorting to determine which population of cells was metabolically active during the day and which was active during the night. We found that Methylobacterium was active during daylight hours, potentially feeding on carbon-rich molecules released from plant roots. Sulfur-cycling microbes dominate the population active during the dark night-time hours. Overall, the work conducted under the auspices of this project developed two promising new techniques for identifying the “hot spots” and “hot moments” of microbial activity in complex communities with taxonomic and functional resolution. We focused largely on a salt marsh sediment context, but are confident that microbial ecologists seeking to understand the microbial role in biogeochemical cycles in a wide range of settings will find our newly developed techniques useful in future work.
The Shirokoff Line-Intensity Mapper (SPT-SLIM) is a mm-wavelength, superconducting on-chip spectrometer observing redshifted CO in the 2mm atmospheric window using the 10-meter South Pole Telescope (SPT). The instrument was recently deployed for the first time during the 2024-2025 austral summer season at South Pole, where it conducted a short two-week observing campaign. We will present an overview of the SPT-SLIM instrument and project, discuss early results from its initial deployment, and preview the prospects for a longer survey using upgraded instrumentation in the 2025-2026 austral summer.
This report provides a brief overview of the Hexagonal Hierarchical Geospatial Indexing System (H3) and its benefits and use cases; a comparison of population estimates of various H3 resolutions with administrative boundaries (county, zip code, etc.); and H3 resolution recommendations for electric outage data reporting for US states considering optimal balance between accuracy, computational efficiency, and privacy preservation.
The Mission Innovation (MI) Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) Mission, Technical Track on Biomass Carbon Dioxide Removal and Storage (BiCRS), has produced a biomass resource database for its members. In parallel, Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) developed the International Feedstock Reporting data portal—herein referred to as the CEM Biofuture-KDF data—on behalf of the Clean Energy Ministerial Biofuture Initiative (CEM Biofuture), as a specific task under Biofuture’s 2024–25 Action Plan. This work was conducted at the request of CEM Biofuture and funded by the U.S. Department of Energy in support of that initiative, and it is hosted within DOE’s Knowledge Discovery Framework (KDF).
This report presents the work completed under the DOE iM4 project for the development of a methane emission monitoring system for detection, location, and quantification of methane in oil and gas industries. The task was divided into four main areas including: 1) Sensors and Input, 2) Centralized Cloud Information Center, 3) Algorithms, and 4) Testing and Validation. Task 1 focused on researching and developing an understanding of the current, or soon to be, available methane sensing technologies. Task 2 consisted of developing the architecture, selecting hardware, software and elements for the methane monitoring system. Task 3 focused on the algorithms used for the complex inverse model of going from measured methane signatures to the detection, localization, and quantification of sources that are desired. Finally, Task 4 focused on the methods of testing and validating the operation of the system. Attention was also given to the development method and cost breakdown of the system.
Objectives: (i). To deploy a large-scale experimental drought trial for up to 1000 unique genotypes of Populus equipping the sites with controlled irrigation and drought treatments that are fully automated and monitored. FULLY COMPLETED (ii) To test the hypothesis that a suite of traits identified for drought tolerance in P. nigra can be measured in drought and control treatments in the wide germplasm collection of P. trichocarpa. FULLY COMPLETED (iii) To use established and novel GWAS model approaches to identify gene loci linked to drought tolerance traits on interest in P. trichocarpa. FULLY COMPLETED (iv) To undertake comparative analysis of GWAS results for drought tolerance traits in P. nigra and P. trichocarpa. PARTIALLY COMPLETED – remains active (v) Using RNAseq in P. trichocarpa, in droughted and control treatments to identify cis- and trans-regulated eQTN. FULLY COMPLETED (vi) Validate up to 50 cis-QTNs, from network hubs using transient protoplast assays. FULLY COMPLETED (vii) To establish Agrobacterium-based gene editing protocols in Populus. FULLY COMPLETED (viii) To utilize early leads from previous research to investigate at least 6 candidate genes for drought tolerance in Populus. FULLY COMPLETED (ix) To validate up to 20 candidate genes for drought tolerance in P. trichocarpa refined from the long-list tested in the transient assays for cis-acting hub gene targets. PARTIALLY COMPLETED- remains active.
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Poster for CCN
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The Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies Program is focused on accelerating the development of advanced materials and components fabricated via additive manufacturing, and is using laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) of 316H stainless steel as an initial case study. In the previous fiscal year, miniature high-throughput specimens were printed on multiple LPBF systems to provide initial processing windows to minimize porosity and limit epitaxial grain growth during prints. This fiscal year, scaled builds were completed on three different LPBF systems at ORNL: a GE Concept Laser M2, a Renishaw AM400, and an EOS M290. Builds on the Concept Laser were conducted on multiple powder lots and processing parameter ranges to provide microstructure effects on time-independent and time-dependent mechanical properties. Builds on the Renishaw were produced using Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL)-optimized printing parameters and Argonne National Laboratory (ANL)-optimized printing parameters to compare outcomes of parallel process optimization efforts at different national laboratories on the same LPBF system. Similarly, the build completed on the EOS M290 replicated the processing parameters of builds completed at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). Optical microscopy and electron backscatter diffraction characterization was completed on all builds. In addition to the general round robin characterization, this work-package generated time-independent data, including tensile and fracture toughness test data on scaled Concept Laser builds as a function of processing parameters and post-build heat treatment. This analysis is complimentary to work in parallel work packages aiming to establish heat treatment and processing effects on time-dependent properties. It was found that although the stress-relief heat treatment provides the highest strength at lower-temperatures, tensile strength begins to converge at higher temperatures regardless of heat treatment condition. In addition, the more rigorous solution annealing and hot-isostatic pressing post-build heat treatments result in higher fracture toughness than the stress-relieved condition. The root-causes of the lower fracture toughness of the stress-relieved LPBF 316H material was informed via a stress-relief optimization study on a scaled concept laser print, where it was found that although dislocation recovery was largely complete after only a couple hours at 650°C, the extended hold of the current 24h heat treatment employed on scaled builds likely caused increased carbide volume fractions along the LPBF 316H grain boundaries, thereby deteriorating crack propagation resistance. This trend was seen to become more deleterious with additional increases of stress-relief temperature to 750°C or 850°C. These results have helped inform a new optimal stress-relief annealing condition for LPBF 316H for future campaign testing (650°C for 2h).