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DOE OSTI2013

Criteria for the accuracy of small polaron quantum master equation in simulating excitation energy transfer dynamics

The small polaron quantum master equation (SPQME) proposed by Jang et al. [J. Chem. Phys. 129, 101104 (2008)] is a promising approach to describe coherent excitation energy transfer dynamics in complex molecular systems. To determine the applicable regime of the SPQME approach, we perform a comprehensive investigation of its accuracy by comparing its simulated population dynamics with numerically exact quasi-adiabatic path integral calculations. We demonstrate that the SPQME method yields accurate dynamics in a wide parameter range. Furthermore, our results show that the accuracy of polaron theory depends strongly upon the degree of exciton delocalization and timescale of polaron formation. Finally, we propose a simple criterion to assess the applicability of the SPQME theory that ensures the reliability of practical simulations of energy transfer dynamics with SPQME in light-harvesting systems.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

NASA NTRS1999

Simulated Surface Energy Budgets Over the Southeastern US: The GHCC Satellite Assimilation System and the NCEP Early Eta

A technique has been developed for assimilating GOES-derived skin temperature tendencies and insolation into the surface energy budget equation of a mesoscale model so that the simulated rate of temperature change closely agrees with the satellite observations. A critical assumption of the technique is that the availability of moisture (either from the soil or vegetation) is the least known term in the model's surface energy budget. Therefore, the simulated latent heat flux, which is a function of surface moisture availability, is adjusted based upon differences between the modeled and satellite-observed skin temperature tendencies. An advantage of this technique is that satellite temperature tendencies are assimilated in an energetically consistent manner that avoids energy imbalances and surface stability problems that arise from direct assimilation of surface shelter temperatures. The fact that the rate of change of the satellite skin temperature is used rather than the absolute temperature means that sensor calibration is not as critical. An advantage of this technique for short-range forecasts (0-48h) is that it does not require a complex land-surface formulation within the atmospheric model. As a result, we can avoid having to specify land surface characteristics such as vegetation resistances, green fraction, leaf area index, soil physical and hydraulic characteristics, stream flow, runoff, and the vertical and horizontal distribution of soil moisture.

Lapenta, William M.↗

DOE OSTI2015

Radiation and ionization energy loss simulation for the GDH sum rule experiment in Hall-A at Jefferson Lab

The radiation and ionization energy loss are presented for single arm Monte Carlo simulation for the GDH sum rule experiment in Hall-A at Jefferson Lab. Radiation and ionization energy loss are discussed for $^{12}C$ elastic scattering simulation. The relative momentum ratio $\frac{\Delta p}{p}$ and $^{12}C$ elastic cross section are compared without and with radiation energy loss and a reasonable shape is obtained by the simulation. The total energy loss distribution is obtained, showing a Landau shape for $^{12}C$ elastic scattering. This simulation work will give good support for radiation correction analysis of the GDH sum rule experiment.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗

DOE OSTI2022

Integration of Thermoelectric Modules to Vapor Compression Systems

This paper describes the technology of a thermoelectric (TE) integrated heat pump. It uses a TE heat pump to subcool the refrigerant liquid before entering the evaporator to enlarge the evaporating capacity; and elevate the heat in the refrigerant flow to a supplemental heating coil and discharge the capacity to the indoor air flow. Using the DOE/ORNL Heat Pump Design Model, four system configurations were modelled on a baseline two-speed heat pump, the baseline heat pump with adding a supplemental coil, the TE integrated heat pump having one stage TE heating to control a 20R liquid refrigerant temperature drop; and having two stages TE heating to control up to 40R temperature drop. The system models were used to produce performance curves for EnergyPlus building energy simulations. We selected template residential buildings, poorly insulated: pre-1990 buildings, and well-insulated: IECC2021 buildings; in five cold climate zones: 5A, 5B, 6A, 6B, 7. The building energy simulations demonstrated energy saving potentials, utility cost reductions and estimated payback periods.

Shen, Bo↗

DOE OSTI2016

Multiyear Plan for Validation of EnergyPlus Multi-Zone HVAC System Modeling using ORNL's Flexible Research Platform

This document describes the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) multiyear experimental plan for validation and uncertainty characterization of whole-building energy simulation for a multi-zone research facility using a traditional rooftop unit (RTU) as a baseline heating, ventilating, and air conditioning (HVAC) system. The project’s overarching objective is to increase the accuracy of energy simulation tools by enabling empirical validation of key inputs and algorithms. Doing so is required to inform the design of increasingly integrated building systems and to enable accountability for performance gaps between design and operation of a building. The project will produce documented data sets that can be used to validate key functionality in different energy simulation tools and to identify errors and inadequate assumptions in simulation engines so that developers can correct them. ASHRAE Standard 140, Method of Test for the Evaluation of Building Energy Analysis Computer Programs (ASHRAE 2004), currently consists primarily of tests to compare different simulation programs with one another. This project will generate sets of measured data to enable empirical validation, incorporate these test data sets in an extended version of Standard 140, and apply these tests to the Department of Energy’s (DOE) EnergyPlus software (EnergyPlus 2016) to initiate the correction of any significant deficiencies. The fitness-for-purpose of the key algorithms in EnergyPlus will be established and demonstrated, and vendors of other simulation programs will be able to demonstrate the validity of their products. The data set will be equally applicable to validation of other simulation engines as well.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

DOE OSTI2026

Global energy balance simulations of shattered pellet injection

The dynamics of shattered pellet injection (SPI) shutdowns are simulated using a time-dependent global energy balance model, based on a modification of the KPRAD framework. The new SPI particle source in the model calculates the ablation of individual pellet fragments that enter the plasma as a temporally resolved plume, thus capturing the effects of earlier fragments on the ablation of those that follow, which has a significant impact on the overall assimilation. Despite the reduced physics and the global averaging of all quantities, results from a large number of DIII-D, KSTAR, and JET experiments are well reproduced, including the plasma cooling timescales, particle assimilation, and current quench (CQ) rates. Cooling timescales and CQ rates are in good agreement for pellets containing as little as ∼1% neon, while particle assimilations are most accurate for neon fractions above ∼15% by number of atoms. Below this, the assimilation tends to be overestimated due to the lack of radial transport in the particle balance, which becomes important in the low-Z limit. Predictive simulations of mixed-composition dual-SPI shutdowns in ITER are compared against those with the 3D non-linear magnetohydrodynamic code JOREK and are found to reproduce overall trends observed in the higher-fidelity modeling across a range of injection scenarios. The general success of the model points to the critical role of energy balance in determining SPI particle assimilation and the subsequent disruption dynamics and highlights the value of these simulations for experimental interpretation and for optimizing the deployment of computationally expensive, higher-fidelity models.

energy balance model↗

DOE OSTI2019

Validation of Simulated Wave Energy Converter Responses to Focused Waves for CCP-WSI Blind Test Series 2: Preprint

Increasingly, focused waves are used as a design method to predict extreme loads for offshore structures, such as wave energy converters (WECs). However, the ability of computational methods to accurately simulate the prescribed focused waves and resulting wave structure interactions are not well-validated. As a participant in the Collaborative Computational Project in Wave Structure Interaction Blind Test Series 2, this study uses two computational fluid dynamics methods, WEC-Sim and STAR-CCM+, to evaluate three focused waves on two WEC-like bodies. WEC-Sim is a computationally efficient, midfidelity model based on linearized potential flow theory. STAR-CCM+ is a high-fidelity, three-dimensional, unsteady, Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes-based model. The two geometries considered are a hemispherical buoy and a cylindrical moon pool. The experimentally measured focused waves are reproduced in both codes, and the simulated displacements and mooring loads are obtained for each of the hydrodynamic bodies. The resulting STAR-CCM+ generated focused waves have approximately the same accuracy, in comparison to the analytic solution, as the experimentally generated focused waves. And, the WEC-Sim and STAR-CCM+ simulated displacements and mooring loads are, on average, within 5% of each other.

16 TIDAL AND WAVE POWER↗

NASA NTRS2001

Impact Test and Simulation of Energy Absorbing Concepts for Earth Entry Vehicles

Nonlinear dynamic finite element simulations have been performed to aid in the design of an energy absorbing concept for a highly reliable passive Earth Entry Vehicle (EEV) that will directly impact the Earth without a parachute. EEV's are designed to return materials from asteroids, comets, or planets for laboratory analysis on Earth. The EEV concept uses an energy absorbing cellular structure designed to contain and limit the acceleration of space exploration samples during Earth impact. The spherical shaped cellular structure is composed of solid hexagonal and pentagonal foam-filled cells with hybrid graphite- epoxy/Kevlar cell walls. Space samples fit inside a smaller sphere at the center of the EEV's cellular structure. Comparisons of analytical predictions using MSC,Dytran with test results obtained from impact tests performed at NASA Langley Research Center were made for three impact velocities ranging from 32 to 40 m/s. Acceleration and deformation results compared well with the test results. These finite element models will be useful for parametric studies of off-nominal impact conditions.

Billings, Marcus D.↗

DOE OSTI2020

Update of ASHRAE Standard 140 Section 5.2 and Related Sections (BESTEST Building Thermal Fabric Test Cases)

This report documents new work intended to update the current building thermal fabric software-to-software comparative test specifications and example results of ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 140-2017, Sections 5.2.1, 5.2.2, 5.2.3, and related supporting sections. The Building Energy Simulation Test and Diagnostic Method (BESTEST) test specification and example results that provide the basis for these Standard 140 sections were originally published in 1995. The state of the art in building energy simulation modeling has advanced since then. Additionally, comments on the test specification over the years highlighted ambiguities, further necessitating the update to the original work. This new work was conducted for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) by Argonne National Laboratory (Argonne) and National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), in collaboration with a working group of international experts associated with the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) Standing Standard Project Committee (SSPC) 140. SSPC 140 is responsible for ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 140. The new work, presented in this report, defined the test cases and specifications such that building energy simulation programs with time steps of one hour or less can perform the tests. Revisions to the test specification and update of example results follow the vetting process of iterative field trials established for previous BESTEST work that has been adapted for ASHRAE Standard 140.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

DOE OSTI2013

PHYSICS OF A PARTIALLY IONIZED GAS RELEVANT TO GALAXY FORMATION SIMULATIONS-THE IONIZATION POTENTIAL ENERGY RESERVOIR

Simulation codes for galaxy formation and evolution take on board as many physical processes as possible beyond the standard gravitational and hydrodynamical physics. Most of this extra physics takes place below the resolution level of the simulations and is added in a ''sub-grid'' fashion. However, these sub-grid processes affect the macroscopic hydrodynamical properties of the gas and thus couple to the ''on-grid'' physics that is explicitly integrated during the simulation. In this paper, we focus on the link between partial ionization and the hydrodynamical equations. We show that the energy stored in ions and free electrons constitutes a potential energy term which breaks the linear dependence of the internal energy on temperature. Correctly taking into account ionization hence requires modifying both the equation of state and the energy-temperature relation. We implemented these changes in the cosmological simulation code GADGET2. As an example of the effects of these changes, we study the propagation of Sedov-Taylor shock waves through an ionizing medium. This serves as a proxy for the absorption of supernova feedback energy by the interstellar medium. Depending on the density and temperature of the surrounding gas, we find that up to 50% of the feedback energy is spent ionizing the gas rather than heating it. Thus, it can be expected that properly taking into account ionization effects in galaxy evolution simulations will drastically reduce the effects of thermal feedback. To the best of our knowledge, this potential energy term is not used in current simulations of galaxy formation and evolution.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2021

A Flexible and Generic Functional Mock-up Unit Based Threat Injection Framework for Grid-interactive Efficient Buildings: A Case Study in Modelica

Grid-interactive efficient buildings (GEBs) have been considered as an important asset to support the power grid reliability by utilizing the demand flexibility offered by GEBs. GEBs are enabled by advances in sensors and controls, and the communication between building equipment, whole buildings, and the grid. The integration of different building technologies and network-based communication system makes GEBs vulnerable to passive threats such as equipment failure and active threats such as cyber-attacks. Modeling and simulation is an effective way to evaluate the impact of threats on the system performance. This paper proposes a generic and flexible threat injection framework for commonly-used building energy simulators such as EnergyPlus and Modelica to support threat modeling and evaluation. This framework leverages functional mock-up unit (FMU) to develop a general modeling interface for threat injection and simulation. A numerical case study using Modelica as a building energy simulator is conducted to demonstrate the capability of the framework for supporting single/multiple-order threat modeling and simulation of a GEB. Four threats and their combinations are injected on a Modelica-based threat-free building energy and control system, including operating supply fan at its full speed, remotely cycling the chiller on and off, blocking the chiller from receiving the chilled water supply temperature setpoints, and hijacking the global zone air temperature setpoint. Simulation results show that the cyber-attack that leads to short-term signal blocking has small effects on the system operation due to the "self-healing" feature of the heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) interactive control system. The threat that takes control of resetting the global zone air temperature setpoints has the most adverse impact on the system energy use, peak power demand, thermal comfort and the provision of demand flexibility. The combination of four threats have aggregative effects on the system but the effects are less than the additive effects of the individual threat.

Fu, Yanyang↗

DOE OSTI2013

Transforming BIM to BEM: Generation of Building Geometry for the NASA Ames Sustainability Base BIM

Typical processes of whole Building Energy simulation Model (BEM) generation are subjective, labor intensive, time intensive and error prone. Essentially, these typical processes reproduce already existing data, i.e. building models already created by the architect. Accordingly, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) developed a semi-automated process that enables reproducible conversions of Building Information Model (BIM) representations of building geometry into a format required by building energy modeling (BEM) tools. This is a generic process that may be applied to all building energy modeling tools but to date has only been used for EnergyPlus. This report describes and demonstrates each stage in the semi-automated process for building geometry using the recently constructed NASA Ames Sustainability Base throughout. This example uses ArchiCAD (Graphisoft, 2012) as the originating CAD tool and EnergyPlus as the concluding whole building energy simulation tool. It is important to note that the process is also applicable for professionals that use other CAD tools such as Revit (“Revit Architecture,” 2012) and DProfiler (Beck Technology, 2012) and can be extended to provide geometry definitions for BEM tools other than EnergyPlus. Geometry Simplification Tool (GST) was used during the NASA Ames project and was the enabling software that facilitated semi-automated data transformations. GST has now been superseded by Space Boundary Tool (SBT-1) and will be referred to as SBT-1 throughout this report. The benefits of this semi-automated process are fourfold: 1) reduce the amount of time and cost required to develop a whole building energy simulation model, 2) enable rapid generation of design alternatives, 3) improve the accuracy of BEMs and 4) result in significantly better performing buildings with significantly lower energy consumption than those created using the traditional design process, especially if the simulation model was used as a predictive benchmark during operation. Developing BIM based criteria to support the semi-automated process should result in significant reliable improvements and time savings in the development of BEMs. In order to define successful BIMS, CAD export of IFC based BIMs for BEM must adhere to a standard Model View Definition (MVD) for simulation as provided by the concept design BIM MVD (buildingSMART, 2011). In order to ensure wide scale adoption, companies would also need to develop their own material libraries to support automated activities and undertake a pilot project to improve understanding of modeling conventions and design tool features and limitations.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

DOE OSTI2015

Star/galaxy separation at faint magnitudes: application to a simulated Dark Energy Survey

We address the problem of separating stars from galaxies in future large photometric surveys. We focus our analysis on simulations of the Dark Energy Survey (DES). In the first part of the paper, we derive the science requirements on star/galaxy separation, for measurement of the cosmological parameters with the gravitational weak lensing and large-scale structure probes. These requirements are dictated by the need to control both the statistical and systematic errors on the cosmological parameters, and by point spread function calibration. We formulate the requirements in terms of the completeness and purity provided by a given star/galaxy classifier. In order to achieve these requirements at faint magnitudes, we propose a new method for star/galaxy separation in the second part of the paper. We first use principal component analysis to outline the correlations between the objects parameters and extract from it the most relevant information. We then use the reduced set of parameters as input to an Artificial Neural Network. This multiparameter approach improves upon purely morphometric classifiers (such as the classifier implemented in SExtractor), especially at faint magnitudes: it increases the purity by up to 20 per cent for stars and by up to 12 per cent for galaxies, at i-magnitude fainter than 23.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2013

Star/galaxy separation at faint magnitudes: Application to a simulated Dark Energy Survey

We address the problem of separating stars from galaxies in future large photometric surveys. We focus our analysis on simulations of the Dark Energy Survey (DES). In the first part of the paper, we derive the science requirements on star/galaxy separation, for measurement of the cosmological parameters with the Gravitational Weak Lensing and Large Scale Structure probes. These requirements are dictated by the need to control both the statistical and systematic errors on the cosmological parameters, and by Point Spread Function calibration. We formulate the requirements in terms of the completeness and purity provided by a given star/galaxy classifier. In order to achieve these requirements at faint magnitudes, we propose a new method for star/galaxy separation in the second part of the paper. We first use Principal Component Analysis to outline the correlations between the objects parameters and extract from it the most relevant information. We then use the reduced set of parameters as input to an Artificial Neural Network. This multi-parameter approach improves upon purely morphometric classifiers (such as the classifier implemented in SExtractor), especially at faint magnitudes: it increases the purity by up to 20% for stars and by up to 12% for galaxies, at i-magnitude fainter than 23.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2019

Enabling immersive engagement in energy system models with deep learning

Complex ensembles of energy simulation models have become crucial components of renewable energy research in recent years. Often the increasing computational cost, high-dimensional structure, and other complexities hinder researchers from fully utilizing these data sources for knowledge building. Researchers at National Renewable Energy Laboratory have determined an immersive visualization workflow to dramatically improve user engagement and analysis capability through a combination of low-dimensional structure analysis, deep learning, and custom visualization methods. We present case studies for two energy simulation platforms.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

DOE OSTI2013

Recovery Act: Advanced Interaction, Computation, and Visualization Tools for Sustainable Building Design

Current building energy simulation technology requires excessive labor, time and expertise to create building energy models, excessive computational time for accurate simulations and difficulties with the interpretation of the results. These deficiencies can be ameliorated using modern graphical user interfaces and algorithms which take advantage of modern computer architectures and display capabilities. To prove this hypothesis, we developed an experimental test bed for building energy simulation. This novel test bed environment offers an easy-to-use interactive graphical interface, provides access to innovative simulation modules that run at accelerated computational speeds, and presents new graphics visualization methods to interpret simulation results. Our system offers the promise of dramatic ease of use in comparison with currently available building energy simulation tools. Its modular structure makes it suitable for early stage building design, as a research platform for the investigation of new simulation methods, and as a tool for teaching concepts of sustainable design. Improvements in the accuracy and execution speed of many of the simulation modules are based on the modification of advanced computer graphics rendering algorithms. Significant performance improvements are demonstrated in several computationally expensive energy simulation modules. The incorporation of these modern graphical techniques should advance the state of the art in the domain of whole building energy analysis and building performance simulation, particularly at the conceptual design stage when decisions have the greatest impact. More importantly, these better simulation tools will enable the transition from prescriptive to performative energy codes, resulting in better, more efficient designs for our future built environment.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗

DOE OSTI2018

On the Need for a Unified and Collaboratively Developed Residential Building Simulation Platform: Preprint

Residential building energy simulations are becoming ever more pervasive; they form the basis of energy efficient building design, zero energy goals, codes and standards, home certification and ratings industries, utility programs, regional/state planning, and technology assessments. And yet the residential building simulation community is highly fragmented with a patchwork of simulation engines with varying models, inputs, assumptions, and results. This inconsistency degrades confidence in these tools, increases industry-wide development and maintenance costs, and slows the availability of new efficiency technology models. The need for collaboration on an impartial, transparent, and capable residential building simulation platform has never been greater. But to develop and maintain a state-of-the-art simulation platform requires a dedicated and sustained investment. By leveraging existing resources and expertise from multiple entities/regions, a unified and collaboratively developed simulation platform can provide increased levels of energy efficiency at an accelerated pace. This paper presents the advantages and disadvantages of a unified residential building simulation platform in relationship to four real-world examples (RESNET HERS ratings, utility programs, California's Title 24, and DOE). The paper covers recent developments and improved capabilities that may move us closer to an ideal simulation platform and what challenges remain. The hope is to spur a frank and honest dialogue about how to work together towards the vision of achieving deeper and more reliable energy savings in the residential buildings industry.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

NASA NTRS1993

A nonlinear control design for energy sink simulation in the Euler-Poinsot problem

A nonlinear control design is presented for the purpose of quantitatively simulating the effects of internal damping mechanisms modeled as energy sinks on the attitude dynamics of rigid body spacecraft. Damping is important because it is often the driving mechanism behind passive attitude acquisition maneuvers. Introduction of the controller into the Euler attitude equations of motion allows for the explicit representation of damping without the introduction of additional degrees of freedom required for a physical damping mechanism. This result is significant because perturbation techniques which rely on the closed form solution of the unperturbed problem can then be used to analyze the effects of perturbations upon a damped system. The controller is designed to dissipate kinetic energy while maintaining the magnitude of the angular momentum vector. Control torques are nonlinear functions of the angular momentum components expressed in a body-fixed frame. A numerical simulation of an actual damping mechanism during a decay from minor axis spin into a flat spin is presented showing that the nonlinear controller gives a good qualitative representation and, in many instances, a good quantitative approximation of the attitude motion of a representative spacecraft containing a damping mechanism.

Kammer, Daniel C.↗