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Unified feature association networks through integration of transcriptomic and proteomic data

High-throughput multi-omics studies and corresponding network analyses of multi-omic data have rapidly expanded their impact over the last 10 years. As biological features of different types (e.g. transcripts, proteins, metabolites) interact within cellular systems, the greatest amount of knowledge can be gained from networks that incorporate multiple types of -omic data. However, biological and technical sources of variation diminish the ability to detect cross-type associations, yielding networks dominated by communities comprised of nodes of the same type. We describe here network building methods that can maximize edges between nodes of different data types leading to integrated networks. We systematically rank several network inference methods and demonstrate that, in many cases, using a random forest method, GENIE3, produces the most integrated networks. This increase in integration does not come at the cost of accuracy as GENIE3 produces networks of approximately the same quality as the other network inference methods tested here. Using GENIE3, we also infer networks representing antibody-mediated Dengue virus cell invasion and receptor-mediated Dengue virus invasion. A number of functional pathways showed centrality differences between the two networks including genes responding to both GM-CSF and IL-4, which had a higher centrality value in an antibody-mediated vs. receptor-mediated Dengue network. Because a biological system involves the interplay of many different types of molecules, incorporating multiple data types into networks will improve their use as models of biological systems. The methods explored here are some of the first to specifically highlight and address the challenges associated with how such multi-omic networks can be assembled and how the greatest number of interactions can be inferred from different data types. The resulting networks can lead to the discovery of new host response patterns and interactions during viral infection, generate new hypotheses of pathogenic mechanisms and confirm disease associated mechanisms of disease.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

Technology Case Studies: Retrofit Integrated Space and Water Heating - Field Assessment

Better insulation and tighter envelopes are reducing space heating loads for new and existing homes. For many homes, decreased space heating loads make it possible for both space and domestic water heating loads to be provided with a single heating plant. This project analyzed combined condensing water heaters or boilers and hydronic air coils to provide high efficiency domestic hot water and forced air space heating. Called 'Combi' systems, they provided similar space and water heating performance less expensively than installing two condensing appliances. These systems can also eliminate safety issues associated with natural draft appliances through the use of one common sealed combustion vent.

boiler based combi systems↗

Sub-GLE Solar Particle Events and the Implications for Lightly-Shielded Systems Flown During an Era of Low Solar Activity

Many of the large space missions must be very rigorous in their designs to reduce risk from radiation damage as much as possible. Some ways of reducing this risk have been to build in multiple redundancies, purchase/develop radiation hardened electronics parts, and plan for worst case radiation environment scenarios. These methods work well for these ambitious missions that can afford the costs associated with these meticulous efforts. However, there have been more small spacecraft and CubeSats with smaller duration missions entering the space arena, which can take some additional risks, but cannot afford to implement all of these risk-reducing methods. Therefore, one way to quantify the radiation exposure risk for these smaller spacecraft would be to investigate the radiation environment pertinent to the mission to better understand these radiation exposures, rather than always designing to the infrequent, worst-case environment. In this study, we have investigated 34 historical solar particle events (1974-2010) that occurred during a time period when the sun spot number (SSN) was less than 30. These events contain Ground Level Events (GLE), sub-GLEs, and sub-sub-GLEs(sup 1-3). GLEs are extremely energetic solar particle events (SPEs) having proton energies often extending into the several GeV range and producing secondary particles in the atmosphere, mostly neutrons, observed with ground station neutron monitors. Sub-GLE events are less energetic, extending into the several hundred MeV range, but without producing detectable levels of secondary atmospheric particles. Sub-sub GLEs are even less energetic with an observable increase in protons at energies greater than 30 MeV, but no observable proton flux above 300 MeV. The spectra for these events were fitted using a double power law fit in particle rigidity, called the Band fit method. The differential spectra were then input into the NASA Langley Research Center HZETRN 2005, which is a high-energy particle transport/dose code, to determine the dose in various thicknesses of aluminum, representing the spacecraft. This paper will detail the absorbed dose results of each of these environments, as well as analyze the data to better understand the doses over small thicknesses that are more relevant to small spacecraft and satellites, such as CubeSats. In addition, we will discuss the implications of these data and provide some recommendations that may be useful to spacecraft designers of these smaller spacecraft/CubeSat-type missions.

Atwell, William↗

New Insights into the Heterogeneity of the Tagish Lake Meteorite: Soluble Organic Compositions of Variously Altered Specimens

The Tagish Lake carbonaceous chondrite exhibits a unique compositional heterogeneity that may be attributed to varying degrees of aqueous alteration within the parent body asteroid. Previous analyses of soluble organic compounds from four Tagish Lake meteorite specimens (TL5b, TL11h, TL11i, TL11v) identified distinct distributions and isotopic compositions that appeared to be linked to their degree of parent body processing (Herd et al. 2011; Glavin et al. 2012; Hilts et al. 2014). In the present study, we build upon these initial observations and evaluate the molecular distribution of amino acids, aldehydes and ketones, monocarboxylic acids, and aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons, including compound‐specific δ13C compositions, for three additional Tagish Lake specimens: TL1, TL4, and TL10a. TL1 contains relatively high abundances of soluble organics and appears to be a moderately altered specimen, similar to the previously analyzed TL5b and TL11h lithologies. In contrast, specimens TL4 and TL10a both contain relatively low abundances of all of the soluble organic compound classes measured, similar to TL11i and TL11v. The organic‐depleted composition of TL4 appears to have resulted from a relatively low degree of parent body aqueous alteration. In the case of TL10a, some unusual properties (e.g., the lack of detection of intrinsic monocarboxylic acids and aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons) suggest that it has experienced extensive alteration and/or a distinct organic‐depleted alteration history. Collectively, these varying compositions provide valuable new insights into the relationships between asteroidal aqueous alteration and the synthesis and preservation of soluble organic compounds.

Tagish Lake↗

DuraMAT: Building a Consortium to Accelerate the Photovoltaic Module Reliability Learning Cycle

Durable and reliable photovoltaic (PV) modules are critical to enabling an efficient transition to sustainable energy generation. The rate at which new module designs and materials are developed and deployed currently outpaces the rate at which we can identify failure mechanisms and understand degradation rates. Increasing the service life of PV modules, and our ability to predict performance over time, requires more durable materials and designs, better durability testing, more extensive material characterization, robust modeling, and methods to cross-examine historical performance data to extract meaningful results. This is a multidisciplinary challenge that requires expertise from a broad range of fields and, therefore, benefits significantly from a collaborative approach. In this Perspective, we outline the approach taken by the Durable Module Materials Consortium (DuraMAT), present a few case studies where our approach was successful, and provide an outlook on where this approach might be applied as the PV technology landscape continues to rapidly evolve. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

Developing occupant archetypes within urban low-income housing: A case study in Mumbai, India

Rapid urbanization pressure and poverty have created a push for affordable housing within the global south. The design of affordable housing can have consequences on the thermal (dis)comfort and behaviour of the occupants, hence requiring an occupant-centric approach to ensure sustainability. This paper investigates occupant behaviour within the urban poor households of Mumbai, India and its impact on their thermal comfort and energy use. This study is a first-of-its-kind attempt to explore the socio-demographic characteristics and energy-related behaviour of low-income occupants within Indian context. Three occupant archetypes, Indifferent Consumers; Considerate Savers; and Conscious Conventionals, were identified from the behavioural and psychographic characteristics gathered through a transverse field survey. A two-step clustering approach was adopted for occupant segmentation that highlighted considerable diversity in occupants’ adaptation measures, energy knowledge, energy habits, and their pro-environmental behaviour within similar socio-economic group. Building energy simulation of the representative archetype behaviour estimated up to 37% variations for air-conditioned and up to 8% variation for fan-assisted naturally ventilated housing units during peak summer months. The results from this study establish the significance of occupant factors in shaping energy demand and thermal comfort within low-income housing and pave way for developing occupant-centric building design strategies to serve this marginalized population. The developed low-income occupant archetypes would be useful for architects and energy modelers to generate realistic energy use profiles and improve building performance simulation results.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

Linking the singularities of cosmological correlators

Much of the structure of cosmological correlators is controlled by their singularities, which in turn are fixed in terms of flat-space scattering amplitudes. An important challenge is to interpolate between the singular limits to determine the full correlators at arbitrary kinematics. This is particularly relevant because the singularities of correlators are not directly observable, but can only be accessed by analytic continuation. In this paper, we study rational correlators — including those of gauge fields, gravitons, and the inflaton — whose only singularities at tree level are poles and whose behavior away from these poles is strongly constrained by unitarity and locality. We describe how unitarity translates into a set of cutting rules that consistent correlators must satisfy, and explain how this can be used to bootstrap correlators given information about their singularities. We also derive recursion relations that allow the iterative construction of more complicated correlators from simpler building blocks. In flat space, all energy singularities are simple poles, so that the combination of unitarity constraints and recursion relations provides an efficient way to bootstrap the full correlators. In many cases, these flat-space correlators can then be transformed into their more complex de Sitter counterparts. As an example of this procedure, we derive the correlator associated to graviton Compton scattering in de Sitter space, though the methods are much more widely applicable.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Engaging stakeholders to assess landscape sustainability

There is widespread consensus about the need for landscape sustainability but little agreement about how to define or measure it. Objectives: The aim of the paper is to present a systematic approach for measuring progress toward landscape sustainability goals. Methods: The approach was developed based on existing literature and our experiences in applying the approach to support more sustainable agricultural landscapes. Examples applying this approach are summarized for case studies in the United States (U.S.) and Mexico. Results: The approach has six steps: the scope and objectives of the assessment are determined based on the particular context; indicators that alert pending concerns are selected and prioritized based on utility and relevance; baselines and targets are established for each indicator, and scenarios for consideration are determined; the indicator values are obtained and evaluated; trends in and tradeoffs among indicator values are analyzed; and good practices are developed, applied, and assessed. Conclusions: Insights gained from applying this approach suggest that designing sustainable landscapes depends on stakeholder engagement, effective communication, transparency and trust, timely monitoring, and continual improvement. Iterative application of the assessment approach builds capacity and promotes continual improvements in management practices, thus enabling timely responses to changing conditions while still progressing toward a set of locally defined goals.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Exascale granular microstructure reconstruction in 3D volumes of arbitrary geometries with generative learning

Reconstructing 3D granular microstructures within volumes of arbitrary geometries from limited 2D image data is crucial for predicting the material properties, as well as performances of structural components accounting for material microstructural effects. We present a novel generative learning framework that enables exascale reconstruction of granular microstructures within complex 3D geometric volumes. Building upon existing transfer learning techniques using pre-trained convolutional neural networks (CNN), we introduce several key innovations to overcome the difficulties inherent in arbitrary geometries. Our framework incorporates periodic boundary conditions using circular padding techniques, ensuring continuity and representativeness of the reconstructed microstructures. We also introduce a novel seamless transition reconstruction (STR) method that creates statistically equivalent transition zones to integrate multiple pre-existing 3D microstructure volumes. Based on STR, we propose a cost-effective strategy for reconstructing microstructures within complex geometric volumes, minimizing computational waste. Validation through numerical experiments using kinetic Monte Carlo simulations demonstrates accurate reproduction of grain statistics, including grain size distributions and morphology. A case study involving the reconstruction of a 4-blade propeller microstructure illustrates the method’s capability to efficiently handle complex geometries. In conclusion, the proposed framework significantly reduces computational demands while maintaining high reconstruction quality, paving the way for scalable microstructure reconstruction in materials design and analysis.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Alaska's Rural Building Stock: a Validation Study Using ResStock and Field Data

The availability of accurate national data on demographics, building stock, and energy use is vital for modeling residential buildings and evaluating decarbonization strategies. However, rural and Indigenous populations, including those in rural Alaska, are typically underrepresented in these datasets. These communities face unique challenges due to their remote locations, severe weather conditions, and limited access to resources, resulting in high energy burden. This report examines how rural Alaskan communities are underrepresented in the ResStock housing model and highlights the need for improved data to address their unique housing and energy challenges. Thus, this report examines the representation of rural Alaskan communities within the national housing stock model, ResStock. A validation study was conducted, considering ResStock, Field Data and Aerial and 3D-view data collection (A3DDC) datasets. The validation process started by using the down selecting approach on the ResStock building stock dataset. For the purpose of this study, only the rural Alaska Boroughs and Census areas located in ASHRAE IECC Climate Zone 8 were considered to ensure a more accurate and fair comparison with the field data, which was collected in rural areas located in climate zone 8, specifically within the Nome Census area. While ResStock may accurately represent several characteristics of the building stock for rural Alaska, some differences between modeled, field data, and aerial and 3D-view data collection datasets were identified. The following building characteristics have a high impact on modeled energy consumption and demonstrated large differences: Revisit heating setpoints and consider a substantially higher setpoint distribution, it could potentially address "missing loads" if this is the case. Develop and include Toyo heating in future modeling for ResStock and EnergyPlus. Remove natural gas as a water heater fuel type outside of North Slope County. Foundation type updated to have more crawlspaces rather than basements. Infiltration rates need reexamination for a larger distribution toward higher infiltration rates. Include more vinyl and less brick in exterior wall type and revise wall color for greater proportion of light rather than dark color. Roof material revised from majority shingles to majority metal. Update number of occupants to higher number of occupant count. Building orientation represents a higher proportion of south facing buildings rather than relatively equal. The findings suggest that updating ResStock's probability logic could better represent rural Alaskan buildings. ResStock can be utilized to identify the best upgrades or energy efficiency and energy efficiency improvements, helping community leaders in making more informed decisions.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

The next generation virgo cluster survey. XX. Redgold background galaxy cluster detections

We build a background cluster candidate catalog from the Next Generation Virgo Cluster Survey (NGVS) using our detection algorithm RedGOLD. The NGVS covers 104 deg{sup 2} of the Virgo cluster in the u{sup ∗},g,r,i,z-bandpasses to a depth of g ∼ 25.7 mag (5σ). Part of the survey was not covered or has shallow observations in the r band. We build two cluster catalogs: one using all bandpasses, for the fields with deep r-band observations (∼20 deg{sup 2}), and the other using four bandpasses (u{sup ∗},g,i,z) for the entire NGVS area. Based on our previous Canada–France–Hawaii Telescope Legacy Survey W1 studies, we estimate that both of our catalogs are ∼100% (∼70%) complete and ∼80% pure, at z ≤ 0.6 (z ≲ 1), for galaxy clusters with masses of M ≳ 10{sup 14} M {sub ⊙}. We show that when using four bandpasses, though the photometric redshift accuracy is lower, RedGOLD detects massive galaxy clusters up to z ∼ 1 with completeness and purity similar to the five-band case. This is achieved when taking into account the bias in the richness estimation, which is ∼40% lower at 0.5 ≤ z < 0.6 and ∼20% higher at 0.6 < z < 0.8, with respect to the five-band case. RedGOLD recovers all the X-ray clusters in the area with mass M {sub 500} > 1.4 × 10{sup 14} M {sub ⊙} and 0.08 < z < 0.5. Because of our different cluster richness limits and the NGVS depth, our catalogs reach lower masses than the published redMaPPer cluster catalog over the area, and we recover ∼90%–100% of its detections.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

REopt: Enabling Renewable Energy, Storage, and Combined Heat and Power

Deployment of distributed energy resources including combined heat and power (CHP), photovoltaics (PV), and battery storage is growing as building and campus owners seek to reduce energy costs and increase resilience to grid outages. While deployment of a single technology is widespread, integrated systems of multiple technologies are also becoming more common to provide maximum economic and resilience benefits. To accelerate deployment, decision makers require tools to evaluate the technical and economic feasibility of these integrated systems. This paper presents a framework for optimizing the size and dispatch strategy of CHP with PV and battery storage to minimize life-cycle cost of energy. The modeling methodology is presented, with a particular focus on the linearization of cost and performance metrics required for implementation in a mixed integer linear program. A case study is used to examine the technical and economic viability of integrated CHP, PV, and battery systems, compared to CHP-only or PV+battery storage systems. In the case study we show how the integrated systems can provide increased economic and resilience benefits compared to single technologies on their own. The case study presented shows the combined CHP, PV, and battery system resulted in a 7% lower life cycle cost than CHP only, and a 22% lower life cycle cost than PV+battery storage. The life cycle emissions for CHP, PV, and battery storage resulted in a 24% reduction than CHP only and a 17% increase than PV+battery storage.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

The many-body expansion for aqueous systems revisited: II. Alkali metal and halide ion – water interactions

We present a detailed study of the Many-Body Expansion (MBE) for alkali metal and halide ion-water interactions and quantify the effect of these ions on the strength of the surrounding aqueous hydrogen bonding environment. Building on our previous work on neutral water clusters [J. P. Heindel and S. S. Xantheas, J. Chem. Theor. Comput. 16 (11), 6843–6855 (2020)], we carry out the complete MBE for ion-water clusters, Z+/-(H2O)9, where Z = Li+, K+, Cs+, Cl-, Br-, I- and compare with the results for (H2O)10. The 2-B ion-water (I-W) interaction represents a larger percentage of the total cluster binding energy compared to a pure water cluster of the same size with the total 3-B term being smaller and of opposite sign (repulsive) whereas higher order terms are essentially negligible. The same oscillating behavior around zero for MBE terms higher than the 5-B with basis set that was reported for water clusters is also observed for the ion-water clusters considered with Basis Set Superposition Error (BSSE) corrections amending this like in the water cluster case. A remarkable, linear anti-correlation between the total 2-B ion-water and the total 2-B and 3-B water-water interactions is found, quantifying the effect of the different ions in disrupting and altering (weakening) the neighboring hydrogen bonded water network. Our results suggest a universal behavior of the two different families of ions (alkali metals and halides) for both the correlations of the various components of the total binding energies as well as the estimate of the 2-B BSSE correction which is reported to follow a common profile for ion-water and water-water interactions when cast in terms of reduced distances and energies. We expect our insights into the nature of BSSE will be important for future ab initio based, many-body molecular dynamics studies.

ion-water interactions, water-water interaction, m↗

Assessing the use of portable air cleaners for reducing exposure to airborne diseases in a conference room with thermal stratification

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the need for strategies that mitigate the risk of aerosol disease transmission in indoor environments with different ventilation strategies. It is necessary for building operators to be able to estimate and compare the relative impacts of different mitigation strategies to determine suitable strategies for a particular situation. Using a validated CFD model, this study simulates the dispersion of exhaled contaminants in a thermally stratified conference room with overhead heating. The impacts of portable air-cleaners (PACs) on the room airflow and contaminant distribution were evaluated for different PAC locations and flow rates, as well as for different room setups (socially distanced or fully occupied). To obtain a holistic view of a strategy's impacts under different release scenarios, we simultaneously model the steady-state distribution of aerosolized virus contaminants from eight distinct sources in 18 cases for a total of 144 release scenarios. The simulations show that the location of the source, the PAC settings, and the room set-up can impact the average exposure and PAC effectiveness. For this studied case, the PACs reduced the room average exposure by 31%-66% relative to the baseline case. Some occupant locations were shown to have a higher-than-average exposure, particularly those seated near the airflow outlet, and occupants closest to sources tended to see the highest exposure from said source. We found that these PACs were effective at reducing the stratification caused by overhead heating, and also identified at least one sub-optimal location for placing a PAC in this space.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

Minimizing Ground Risk in Cellular-Connected Drone Corridors With mmWave Links

Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UASs) have been receiving significant interest and support from academia, industry, and regulatory bodies over the past decade due to their various use cases. To safely integrate UAS operations into the national airspace, particularly overpopulated regions, the risk posed to ground users, buildings, and vehicles due to unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) flight should be minimized. This risk can be represented by a numerical metric, which we refer to in this article as the “ground risk.” Many UAS applications also depend on the presence of a reliable wireless communication link between the UAV and a control station for the transmission of UAV position, surveillance video, UAV payload commands, and other mission-related data. Such wireless communication requirements also need to be considered in the design of UAS operations. In this article, we consider both these aspects and study the design of nonintersecting trajectories for UAS operations to minimize ground risk, subject to constraints on the wireless signal strength and geometry of the trajectory, specified in terms of: 1) an enclosing cylinder within which the trajectory must lie and 2) an integrated angular change along the UAV's trajectory. The performance of a computationally expensive optimal algorithm is compared with that of a computationally faster heuristic approach within the dense urban environment of Manhattan, NY, USA. Performance evaluation using ray-tracing simulations shows that the heuristic approach performs close to the optimal algorithm at a reduced computation cost. In conclusion, this research can be utilized to make UAS operations safe and reliable and accelerate their adoption.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗

Evaluation of Interior Cellular Shades in a Residential Building

Windows are major contributors to energy demand in residential homes because of their inferior thermal resistance compared with the opaque envelope and sometimes from unwanted solar heat gain. Window attachments can help to mitigate this demand by controlling the solar heat gains and enhancing the thermal resistance of the windows. In this study, the energy savings potential of cellular shades in residential homes is studied using experimental testing and energy simulations. The energy performance of the shading devices was experimentally tested during the heating season from December 2019 to May 2020 with a focus on cellular shades. Five shading devices—three single and two double cellular/cell-in-cell shades—were used to compare the performance with generic horizontal (venetian) blinds using two nearly identical sideby-side rooms in a residential building with their exterior window facing east. Another objective of the experimental testing was to evaluate any impact of the side-channel of the shading device on energy savings. To observe the impact of the side-channels on energy savings, from shades in two of the test cases, cellular shades with side-channels were used. From the experimental testing, daily energy savings in the range of 9% to 23% were observed by considering data from 6 p.m. until 6 a.m. of the next day.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

Solving k –SAT problems with generalized quantum measurement

We generalize the projection–based quantum measurement–driven k –SAT algorithm of Benjamin, Zhao, and Fitzsimons to arbitrary strength quantum measurements, including the limit of continuous monitoring. In doing so, we clarify that this algorithm is a particular case of the measurement–driven quantum control strategy elsewhere referred to as “Zeno dragging”. We argue that the algorithm is most efficient with finite time and measurement resources in the continuum limit, where measurements have an infinitesimal strength and duration. Moreover, for solvable k -SAT problems, the dynamics generated by the algorithm converge deterministically towards target dynamics in the long–time (Zeno) limit, implying that the algorithm can successfully operate autonomously via Lindblad dissipation, without detection. We subsequently study both the conditional and unconditional dynamics of the algorithm implemented via generalized measurements, quantifying the advantages of detection for heralding errors. These strategies are investigated first in a computationally–trivial 2-qubit 2-SAT problem to build intuition, and then we consider the scaling of the algorithm on 3-SAT problems encoded with 4–10 qubits. We numerically investigate the scaling of 3-SAT with respect to algorithmic runtime and find that the optimized time to solution scales with qubit number n as λ n , where λ is slightly larger than $\sqrt{2}$ for unconditional dynamics and less than $\sqrt{2}$ for conditional dynamics. We assess the implications for using this analog measurement–driven approach to quantum computing in practice.

quantum information↗

CarbonSAFE Phase I: Integrated CCS Pre-Feasibility – Northwest Gulf of Mexico (Final Research Performance Progress Report)

Offshore storage achieves two major objectives for the US commercial large scale CCS deployment: 1. Adding large capacity to serve local regional, and potentially broader objectives 2. Lowering risk by providing storage with one public owner, away from population, with no conflict with water resources and reduced concern about induced seismicity. A high-concentration CO 2 source was identified as the top candidate for the project and going forward with the CarbonSAFE Phase II proposal. The top-rated source is the NET Power facility in Houston (La Porte), Texas. A manuscript based on analysis of results from the two-stage survey conducted in eight selected Texas counties was submitted to the International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control on August 21, 2018. A primary confining interval (seal) is associated with MFS9 (biochronozone Amphistegina B) which can reach a thickness of up to 250 m. However, the Amphistegina B confining interval thins considerably in the onshore direction. Consequently, the most suitable portion of the Miocene section for future CO 2 sequestration in the study area is considered to be the offshore area where Amphistegina B is thickest. Based on three models for capacity assessment, the study proposes a base case for the High Island 10-L Field in which 9 wells operated for 12 years each completed into 4 zones will emplace a total of 150MMT of CO 2 with wells placed in the water leg where all the plume will slowly migrate into the structural trap is feasible in terms of geology and engineering. The 10-L Field was assessed in more detail than other examined oil and gas fields in the study area in order to look at some specifics about how initial future CCS projects might be accomplished in the favorable GoM of the US region and expand the sites to a larger set to experiment with matching all the possible sources to sinks. The 10-L site is large enough to accept CO 2 from multiple sinks; the expanded sinks are estimated to be large enough to accept all the CO 2 from the region plus some from outside the region. A number of uncertainties were identified. The largest and most consequential uncertainty is the cost of offshore pipelines in the study setting, which impacts the conditions where CO 2 transport would be by ship versus the cases where pipeline would be preferred. Ships are preferred for small volumes and short durations; pipelines for larger volumes and long duration. Additional work is needed to advance the maturity of multiple sinks available, to continue outreach to industries and the public, and to develop realistic source opportunities. The study demonstrates that industrial source clusters connected to a transport hub delivering CO 2 to a nearby storage complex is the most cost-effective and improved way to de-carbonize industrial activities, particularly, in an expected low-carbon and increasing carbon price environmental. The feasibility of the new business models should be based on the best use of the existing infrastructure and strategically build on new supporting infrastructure to drive down the costs of large-scale CCS deployment. Assessing the pre-feasibility of the commercial implementation of a CCS cluster and hub in the GoM energy ecosystem, our study links these elements successfully through an optimized combination (minimum cost) of CO 2 sources on land with offshore storage. Offshore storage achieves two major objectives for the US commercial large scale CCS deployment: 1. Adding large capacity to serve local regional, and potentially broader objectives 2. Lowering risk by providing storage with one public owner, away from population, with no conflict with water resources and reduced concern about induced seismicity.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗