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At least 1,765 records · Page 98

FAST-1.0 Software Release Document

The purpose of this document is to detail the release of FAST-1.0 and the documents that accompany the development and testing of FAST-1.0. Design requirements were for FAST-1.0 developed in the NRC Statement of Work (SOW) for NRC Agreement Number NRC-HQ-25-14-D-001 and are transcribed to this document as part of the Software Quality Assurance Plan for the FAST Code System, PNNL-28767. FAST 1.0 represents the merger of the FRAPCON and FRAPTRAN codes and as such FAST-1.0 performs steady state and transient fuel performance calculations described below. FAST-1.0 calculates the steady state response of light-water reactor fuel rods during long-term burnup. The code calculates temperature, pressure, and deformation of a fuel rod as functions of time-dependent fuel rod power and coolant boundary conditions. The phenomena modeled by the code include: 1) heat conduction through fuel and cladding to the coolant; 2) cladding elastic and plastic deformation; 3) fuel-cladding mechanical interaction; 4) fission gas release from the fuel and rod internal pressure; and 5) cladding oxidation. FAST is used to perform independent calculations for regulatory evaluations of fuel performance under normal operation and anticipated operational occurrences (AOOs).

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗

OEDI—Solar Grid Integration Data and Analytics Library

As a part of the Open Energy Data Initiative, this effort aims to develop and demonstrate novel distribution state estimation, control optimization, and transient analysis as well as provide access to data, data integration, and mapping information. More specifically, the focus of the effort will be on physics-based distribution system state estimation, hybrid (physics-based and machine learning) distribution optimal power flow, and event detection/analysis for solar integration and analytics. This work will enable reproducible, robust, replicable, and generalizable R&D in simulation and emulation of solar system integration. These test models and datasets will provide an integrated library for developing and testing power system operation technologies. To make the library user-friendly, this project will provide data curation tools such as data translators, mapping scripts and APIs, database schemas and metadata, interfaces and user dashboard, source code for the reference algorithms, description of the use-cases/scenarios, and comprehensive information on all the assumptions.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

Gearbox and Drivetrain Models to Study Dynamic Effects of Modern Wind Turbines: Preprint

Wind turbine drivetrains consist of components that directly convert kinetic energy from the wind to electrical energy. Guaranteeing robust and reliable drivetrain designs is therefore important to minimize turbine downtime. Current drivetrain models often lack the ability to model both the impacts of electrical transients as well as wind turbulence and shear in one package. In this work, thecapability of the FAST wind turbine computer-aided engineering tool, developed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, is enhanced through integration of a dynamic model of the drivetrain. The dynamic drivetrain model is built using Simscape in the MATLAB/Simulink environment and incorporates detailed electrical generator models. This model can be used in the future to test advanced controlschemes to extend life of the gearbox.

17 WIND ENERGY↗

Long-term Performance of Engineered Barrier Systems (PEBS) - An International EURATOM Project on the Study and Testing of Engineered Barriers for the Final Disposal of HAW Using PEBS as an Example - 13299

The main aim of the PEBS project is to evaluate the sealing and barrier performance of the EBS over time, through development of a comprehensive approach involving experiments, model development, and consideration of the potential impacts on long-term safety functions. The experiments and models cover the full range of conditions, from initial emplacement of wastes (high heat generation and EBS re-saturation) through to later stage establishment of near steady state conditions, i.e. full re-saturation and thermal equilibrium with the host rock. These aspects will be integrated in a manner that will lead to greater certainty and thus greater confidence regarding the development from the initial transient state of the EBS to its long-term state, which provides the required isolation of the wastes. The work proposed within the project builds on existing knowledge and experience generated during recent years and supported by ongoing national and EC research programs. The project aims to provide a more complete description of the THM and THMC (thermo-hydro-mechanical- chemical) evolution of the EBS system, a more quantitative basis for relating the evolutionary behavior to the safety functions of the system, and a further clarification of the significance of residual uncertainties for long-term performance assessment. The importance of uncertainties arising from potential disagreement between the process models and the laboratory and in-situ experiments to be performed within PEBS, and their implications for an extrapolation of the results, will be reviewed, with particular emphasis on possible impacts on safety functions. In addition to the scientific-technical aims, the consortium will disseminate the basic findings to the broad scientific community within the EU, China and Japan, use expertise gained for public information purposes, and promote knowledge and technology transfer through training. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

Discovery of a Hybrid System for Photocatalytic CO 2 Reduction via Attachment of a Molecular Cobalt-Quaterpyridine Complex to a Crystalline Carbon Nitride

While recent reports have demonstrated the attachment of molecular catalysts to amorphous, graphitic carbon nitrides (g-CN) for light-driven CO 2 reduction, approaches to the utilization of crystalline carbon nitrides have remained undiscovered. Herein, a functional hybrid photocatalyst system has been found using a crystalline carbon nitride semiconductor, poly(triazine imide) lithium chloride (PTI-LiCl), with a surface-attached CoCl 2 (qpy-Ph-COOH) catalyst for CO 2 reduction. The molecular catalyst attaches to PTI-LiCl at concentrations from 0.10 to 4.30 wt % and exhibits ∼96% selectivity for CO production in a CO 2 -saturated, aqueous 0.5 M KHCO 3 solution. Optimal loadings were found to be within 0.42–1.04 wt % with rates between 1,400 and 1,550 μmol CO/g·h at an irradiance of 172 mW/cm 2 (λ = 390 nm) and apparent quantum yields of ∼2%. This optimized loading is postulated to represent a balance between maximal turnover frequency (TOF; 300+ h –1 ) and excess catalyst that can limit excited-electron lifetimes, as probed via transient absorption spectroscopy. An increase in the incident irradiance yields a concomitant increase in the TOFs and CO rates only for the higher catalyst loadings, reaching up to 2,149 μmol CO/g·h with a more efficient use of the catalyst surface capacity. The lower catalyst loadings, by comparison, already function at maximal TOFs. Higher surface loadings are also found to help mitigate deactivation of the molecular catalysts during extended catalytic testing (>24 h) owing to the greater net surface capacity for CO 2 reduction, thus representing an effective strategy to extend lifetime. The hybrid particles can be deposited onto an FTO substrate to yield ∼60% Faradaic efficiency for photoelectrochemical CO production at −1.2 V vs Ag/AgCl bias. In conclusion, these results demonstrate the synergistic combination of a crystalline carbon nitride with a molecular catalyst that achieves among the highest known rates in carbon-nitride systems for the light-driven CO 2 reduction to CO in aqueous solution with >95% selectivity.

CO2 reduction↗

Solution-processed single-walled carbon nanotube field effect transistors and bootstrapped inverters for disintegratable, transient electronics

This paper presents materials, device designs, and physical/electrical characteristics of a form of nanotube electronics that is physically transient, in the sense that all constituent elements dissolve and/or disperse upon immersion into water. Studies of contact effects illustrate the ability to use water soluble metals such as magnesium for source/drain contacts in nanotube based field effect transistors. High mobilities and on/off ratios in transistors that use molybdenum, silicon nitride, and silicon oxide enable full swing characteristics for inverters at low voltages (∼5 V) and with high gains (∼30). Dissolution/disintegration tests of such systems on water soluble sheets of polyvinyl alcohol demonstrate physical transience within 30 min.

77 NANOSCIENCE AND NANOTECHNOLOGY↗

The Virtual Test Bed (VTB) repository: a library of multiphysics reference reactor models using NEAMS tools

With the next generation of nuclear reactors under development, modeling and simulation (MS) tools are being developed by the Nuclear Energy Advanced Modeling and Simulation (NEAMS) program in order to support their design, licensing, and future operation. Mirroring the physical test beds currently under construction (i.e., EBR-II and ZPPR), the Virtual Test Bed (VTB) was launched by the National Reactor Innovation Center (NRIC) in collaboration with NEAMS to support the advanced reactor community. This collaborative effort, which involves multiple teams at both Idaho National Laboratory and Argonne National Laboratory aims to use NEAMS tools to model a wide range of reactor designs. Those models are automatically tested to ensure their continued functionality as the tools are further developed. Examples are extensively documented, each acting as a tutorial for applying the relevant NEAMS tools to that reactor design. Currently, five advanced reactor types (with a total of eight specific design variants) are simulated by a variety of different models. These models range from steady-state, core multiphysics simulations to integrated plant analysis during loss-of flow transients. (authors)

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗

Be It Unresolved: Measuring Time Delays from Lensed Supernovae

Gravitationally lensed Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) may be the next frontier in cosmic probes, able to deliver independent constraints on dark energy, spatial curvature, and the Hubble constant. Measurements of time delays between the multiple images become more incisive due to the standardized candle nature of the source, monitoring for months rather than years, and partial immunity to microlensing. While currently extremely rare, hundreds of such systems should be detected by upcoming time domain surveys. Others will have the images spatially unresolved, with the observed lightcurve a superposition of time-delayed image fluxes. We investigate whether unresolved images can be recognized as lensed sources given only lightcurve information, and whether time delays can be extracted robustly. We develop a method that we show can identify these systems for the case of lensed SNe Ia with two images and time delays exceeding ten days. When tested on such an ensemble, without microlensing, the method achieves a false-positive rate of ≲5%, and measures the time delays with a completeness of ≳93% and with a bias of ≲0.5% for Δt fit ≳ 10 days. Since the method does not assume a template of any particular type of SN, the method has the (untested) potential to work on other types of lensed SNe systems and possibly on other transients as well.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

COUPLED GRIFFIN AND PRONGHORN SIMULATION OF THE MOLTEN SALT FAST REACTOR (MSFR) FOR THE VIRTUAL TEST BED

The Virtual Test Bed (VTB) repository hosts a wide range of challenge problems to showcase modeling and simulation capabilities to support advanced reactor demonstration. An overview of a coupled multiphysics model for Molten Salt Reactors (MSR) is presented here. The analysis leverages MOOSE-based tools (notably Griffin and Pronghorn) for neutronic and thermal hydraulic simulation. Neutron precursor drifting capability is showcased, along with some initial turbulence models. Both steady-state and transient coupled multiphysics results for an MSR concept are discussed.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗

20 Channel Quench Detector

A multi-channel quench detector is useful for troubleshooting of prototype HTC superconducting magnets with current lead connections and imbedded splices. There are commercially available quench detectors, but not with as many channels, or with the particular functionality of this unit. This unit was designed specifically for cold testing of a superconducting sextupole prototype, which is wound with many turns of HTC ribbon. Associated with the current lead connections and the imbedded splices are 18 voltage taps, thus 17 quench detection channels are required to monitor the condition of the magnet. Of the 20 differential input channels in this quench detection unit, 19 are configured in a ladder network. The 20th channel is isolated and can be connected across any pair of voltage taps. This quench detector is designed to be used to monitor the condition of a series-connected superconducting magnet powered by a unipolar supply, and therefore the polarity and sequence of the voltage taps must be observed. There are 20 toggle switches and 20 red LEDs on the front panel of the unit which are associated with the 20 quench detection channels. There are also 2 green LEDs to indicate the state of the +5 V and +25 V internal supplies. Channel input impedance is ~10 kΩ. The input lines are diode protected against negative voltage transients and can tolerate up to +25 V, which is greater than the compliance of supplies typically used to power superconducting magnets. The front panel switches are used to enable or disable individual channels. If a channel is not used it is disabled. There are 20 pots on the quench detector PCB. They provide adjustment for the sensitivity of each of the 20 channels. There is an onboard reference to facilitate channel sensitivity calibration. The detection sensitivity range is from ~27 mV to ~700 mV. Typically all channels are set for the same sensitivity. The response time is ~20 μs, but the time constant can be increased if desired by adding a single capacitor to each channel. When the magnet under test is cooled to the superconducting state and the supply current to the windings is slowly ramped up to the set point, if there is a voltage rise across a pair of voltage taps which exceeds the quench detection limit of a given channel, then the front panel LED for that channel illuminates and all other channels are disabled within ~25 ns. Thus only the first quench is detected for the channels which are enabled. A pushbutton switch on the front panel is used to reset a quench detection. A 25 pin D-subminiature connector on the back of the unit is used for the channel inputs. TTL level ‘quench’ and ‘quench-not’ signals, and DPDT relay contacts, are provided through a 9 pin D-subminiature connector on the back to indicate a detected quench condition, which could be used to disable the power supply and engage an energy absorber.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗

Modeling the high-energy electronic state manifold of adenine: Calibration for nonlinear electronic spectroscopy

Pump-probe electronic spectroscopy using femtosecond laser pulses has evolved into a standard tool for tracking ultrafast excited state dynamics. Its two-dimensional (2D) counterpart is becoming an increasingly available and promising technique for resolving many of the limitations of pump-probe caused by spectral congestion. The ability to simulate pump-probe and 2D spectra from ab initio computations would allow one to link mechanistic observables like molecular motions and the making/breaking of chemical bonds to experimental observables like excited state lifetimes and quantum yields. From a theoretical standpoint, the characterization of the electronic transitions in the visible (Vis)/ultraviolet (UV), which are excited via the interaction of a molecular system with the incoming pump/probe pulses, translates into the determination of a computationally challenging number of excited states (going over 100) even for small/medium sized systems. A protocol is therefore required to evaluate the fluctuations of spectral properties like transition energies and dipole moments as a function of the computational parameters and to estimate the effect of these fluctuations on the transient spectral appearance. In the present contribution such a protocol is presented within the framework of complete and restricted active space self-consistent field theory and its second-order perturbation theory extensions. The electronic excited states of adenine have been carefully characterized through a previously presented computational recipe [Nenov et al., Comput. Theor. Chem. 1040–1041, 295-303 (2014)]. A wise reduction of the level of theory has then been performed in order to obtain a computationally less demanding approach that is still able to reproduce the characteristic features of the reference data. Foreseeing the potentiality of 2D electronic spectroscopy to track polynucleotide ground and excited state dynamics, and in particular its expected ability to provide conformational dependent fingerprints in dimeric systems, the performances of the selected reduced level of calculations have been tested in the construction of 2D electronic spectra for the in vacuo adenine monomer and the unstacked adenine homodimer, thereby exciting the L{sub b}/L{sub a} transitions with the pump pulse pair and probing in the Vis to near ultraviolet spectral window.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Characterization of the human oncogene SCL/TAL1 interrupting locus (Stil) mediated Sonic hedgehog (Shh) signaling transduction in proliferating mammalian dopaminergic neurons

Highlights: • Stil is a human oncogene that is conserved in vertebrate species. • Stil functions in the Shh pathway in mammalian cells. • The expression of Stil is required for mammalian dopaminergic cell proliferation. - Abstract: The human oncogene SCL/TAL1 interrupting locus (Stil) is highly conserved in all vertebrate species. In humans, the expression of Stil is involved in cancer cell survival, apoptosis and proliferation. In this research, we investigated the roles of Stil expression in cell proliferation of mammalian dopaminergic (DA) PC12 cells. Stil functions through the Sonic hedgehog (Shh) signal transduction pathway. Co-immunoprecipitation tests revealed that STIL interacts with Shh downstream components, which include SUFU and GLI1. By examining the expression of Stil, Gli1, CyclinD2 (cell-cycle marker) and PCNA (proliferating cell nuclear antigen), we found that up-regulation of Stil expression (transfection with overexpression plasmids) increased Shh signaling transduction and PC12 cell proliferation, whereas down-regulation of Stil expression (by shRNA) inhibited Shh signaling transduction, and thereby decreased PC12 cell proliferation. Transient transfection of PC12 cells with Stil knockdown or overexpression plasmids did not affect PC12 cell neural differentiation, further indicating the specific roles of Stil in cell proliferation. The results from this research suggest that Stil may serve as a bio-marker for neurological diseases involved in DA neurons, such as Parkinson’s disease.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

Microstructural evolution and mechanical properties of maraging steel produced by wire + arc additive manufacture process

Highlights: • Wire + arc additive manufacture (WAAM) was applied to produce maraging steel structures. • Microstructure evolution of WAAM alloy was characterized and correlated with the layer-by-layer building manner. • Mechanical properties of WAAM alloy were tested and correlated with the aging response of WAAM microstructure. • Retained austenite content was measured and correlated with the tensile strength loss. - Abstract: Wire + arc additive manufacture is developed for producing large-scale metallic components. In this paper, maraging steel parts were produced, and the microstructure and mechanical properties were investigated. The microhardness and tensile strength of the as deposited alloy reduced from the bottom to the top due to the transient thermal cycling, which resulted in partial aging and non-uniform formation of intermetallic compounds along the building direction. Solutionizing, followed by 3 h aging, significantly reduced the microstructural heterogeneity and increased the mechanical properties by 24.7% through the formation of large amounts of finely distributed precipitates. The as deposited alloy possessed superior strength to the wrought alloy in solutionized condition but inferior to the later in aged condition, which was attributed to the less pronounced aging response of the low-angle columnar grains characterized microstructure and the presence of retained and reverted austenite.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Vapor generation methods for explosives detection research

The generation of calibrated vapor samples of explosives compounds remains a challenge due to the low vapor pressures of the explosives, adsorption of explosives on container and tubing walls, and the requirement to manage (typically) multiple temperature zones as the vapor is generated, diluted, and delivered. Methods that have been described to generate vapors can be classified as continuous or pulsed flow vapor generators. Vapor sources for continuous flow generators are typically explosives compounds supported on a solid support, or compounds contained in a permeation or diffusion device. Sources are held at elevated isothermal temperatures. Similar sources can be used for pulsed vapor generators; however, pulsed systems may also use injection of solutions onto heated surfaces with generation of both solvent and explosives vapors, transient peaks from a gas chromatograph, or vapors generated by s programmed thermal desorption. This article reviews vapor generator approaches with emphasis on the method of generating the vapors and on practical aspects of vapor dilution and handling. In addition, a gas chromatographic system with two ovens that is configurable with up to four heating ropes is proposed that could serve as a single integrated platform for explosives vapor generation and device testing. Issues related to standards, calibration, and safety are also discussed.

2,4-DNT↗

Dynamic Data Reconciliation and Validation of a Dynamic Model for Solvent-Based CO 2 Capture Using Pilot-Plant Data

This paper is focused on the development and validation of a dynamic model for an MEA-based CO 2 capture unit. Starting with a rigorous steady-state process model, the dynamic model is developed in Aspen Plus Dynamics ® using a modified Murphree-efficiency approach and is validated using dynamic data collected from the National Carbon Capture Center (NCCC) in Wilsonville, Alabama. The dynamic test runs were designed with due consideration of process excitation and process nonlinearities constrained by the available time to conduct the test runs and implement the experimental designs in the plant control system. The experimental data include solvent composition and loading. Since the experimental data were found to violate mass and energy balances, filtering algorithms coupled with dynamic data reconciliation techniques were used. Without adjusting any model parameters, the dynamic model satisfactorily predicted dynamic response of CO 2 capture due to step changes in the solvent flowrate, flue gas flowrate, and steam flowrates. Transient studies show that the process gain and time constants can considerably change depending on the direction of the disturbance or manipulated variables, indicating process nonlinearities. Due to a storage tank between the absorber and stripper, the time constant of the full plant can be considerably longer than the time constants of the absorber or stripper individually. Furthermore, impact of the control system on the process efficiency while following an optimal CO 2 capture schedule was also studied.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Evaluation of commercial ADC radiation tolerance for accelerator experiments

Electronic components used in high energy physics experiments are subjected to a radiation background composed of high energy hadrons, mesons and photons. These particles can induce permanent and transient effects that affect the normal device operation. Ionizing dose and displacement damage can cause chronic damage which disable the device permanently. Transient effects or single event effects are in general recoverable with time intervals that depend on the nature of the failure. The magnitude of these effects is technology dependent with feature size being one of the key parameters. Analog to digital converters are components that are frequently used in detector front end electronics, generally placed as close as possible to the sensing elements to maximize signal fidelity. We report on radiation effects tests conducted on 17 commercially available analog to digital converters and extensive single event effect measurements on specific twelve and fourteen bit ADCs that presented high tolerance to ionizing dose. We discuss mitigation strategies for single event effects (SEE) for their use in the large hadron collider environment.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Achieving algorithmic resilience for temporal integration through spectral deferred corrections

Spectral deferred corrections (SDC) is an iterative approach for constructing higher-order-accurate numerical approximations of ordinary differential equations. SDC starts with an initial approximation of the solution defined at a set of Gaussian or spectral collocation nodes over a time interval and uses an iterative application of lower-order time discretizations applied to a correction equation to improve the solution at these nodes. Each deferred correction sweep increases the formal order of accuracy of the method up to the limit inherent in the accuracy defined by the collocation points. In this paper, we demonstrate that SDC is well suited to recovering from soft (transient) hardware faults in the data. A strategy where extra correction iterations are used to recover from soft errors and provide algorithmic resilience is proposed. Specifically, in this approach the iteration is continued until the residual (a measure of the error in the approximation) is small relative to the residual of the first correction iteration and changes slowly between successive iterations. Here, we demonstrate the effectiveness of this strategy for both canonical test problems and a comprehensive situation involving a mature scientific application code that solves the reacting Navier-Stokes equations for combustion research.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

LOSS Revisited. II. The Relative Rates of Different Types of Supernovae Vary between Low- and High-mass Galaxies

In Paper I of this series, we showed that the ratio between stripped-envelope (SE) supernova (SN) and Type II SN rates reveals a significant SE SN deficiency in galaxies with stellar masses ≲10{sup 10} M{sub ⊙}. Here, we test this result by splitting the volume-limited subsample of the Lick Observatory Supernova Search (LOSS) SN sample into low- and high-mass galaxies and comparing the relative rates of various SN types found in them. The LOSS volume-limited sample contains 180 SNe and SN impostors and is complete for SNe Ia out to 80 Mpc and core-collapse SNe out to 60 Mpc. All of these transients were recently reclassified by us in Shivvers et al. We find that the relative rates of some types of SNe differ between low- and high-mass galaxies: SNe Ib and Ic are underrepresented by a factor of ∼3 in low-mass galaxies. These galaxies also contain the only examples of SN 1987A-like SNe in the sample and host about nine times as many SN impostors. Normal SNe Ia seem to be ∼30% more common in low-mass galaxies, making these galaxies better sources for homogeneous SN Ia cosmology samples. The relative rates of SNe IIb are consistent in both low- and high-mass galaxies. The same is true for broad-line SNe Ic, although our sample includes only two such objects. The results presented here are in tension with a similar analysis from the Palomar Transient Factory, especially as regards SNe IIb.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗