REopt Lite Tutorial: Advanced Utility Rate Inputs
This tutorial gives an overview of the advanced utility rate inputs in the REopt Lite™ web tool.
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This tutorial gives an overview of the advanced utility rate inputs in the REopt Lite™ web tool.
This tutorial gives an overview of the advanced utility rate inputs in the REopt Lite™ web tool.
Coal-fired utility boilers are being increasingly used as variable electricity generation to resolve the imbalance in the energy market from the expansion of intermittent renewable energy. The frequent transient operation required to meet residual energy demand has created a challenge for coal-fired units to operate efficiently. This work utilizes an advanced sensor network (ASN) to calculate net unit heat rate (NUHR) of a coal-fired boiler in real time through combustion calculations and statistical correlations to provide the tools for optimizing dynamic operation. Real-time heating values that were necessary to determine fuel input energy to calculate accurate NUHR were found using both fundamental and data-driven methods. Real-time NUHR shows distinct shifts that reflect changes in process conditions that will improve the ability to optimize transient operation. Data-driven heating value correlations had 24% lower root mean square error (RMSE) than the fundamental combustion calculation approach when compared to daily retrospective proximate analysis. Furthermore, the data-driven method RMSE improved by 7% with the inclusion of ASN data. Future work is to validate by comparing unit performance with and without the inclusion of NUHR as a control parameter for the dynamic neural network.
A radiation-hard transponder was developed utilizing submicron/nanotechnology from IBM. The device consumes low power and has a low fabrication cost. This device utilizes a Plug-and-Play concept, and can be integrated into intra-satellite networks, supporting SpaceWire and Gigabit Ethernet I/O. A space-qualified, 100-pin package also was developed, allowing space-qualified (class K) transponders to be delivered within a six-month time frame. The novel, optical, radiation-tolerant transponder was implemented as a standalone board, containing the transponder ASIC (application specific integrated circuit) and optical module, with an FPGA (field-programmable gate array) friendly parallel interface. It features improved radiation tolerance; high-data-rate, low-power consumption; and advanced functionality. The transponder utilizes a patented current mode logic library of radiation-hardened-by-architecture cells. The transponder was developed, fabricated, and radhard tested up to 1 MRad. It was fabricated using 90-nm CMOS (complementary metal oxide semiconductor) 9 SF process from IBM, and incorporates full BIT circuitry, allowing a loop back test. The low-speed parallel LVCMOS (lowvoltage complementary metal oxide semiconductor) bus is compatible with Actel FPGA. The output LVDS (low-voltage differential signaling) interface operates up to 1.5 Gb/s. Built-in CDR (clock-data recovery) circuitry provides robust synchronization and incorporates two alarm signals such as synch loss and signal loss. The ultra-linear peak detector scheme allows on-line control of the amplitude of the input signal. Power consumption is less than 300 mW. The developed transponder with a 1.25 Gb/s serial data rate incorporates a 10-to-1 serializer with an internal clock multiplication unit and a 10-1 deserializer with internal clock and data recovery block, which can operate with 8B10B encoded signals. Three loop-back test modes are provided to facilitate the built-in-test functionality. The design is based on a proprietary library of differential current switching logic cells implemented in the standard 90-nm CMOS 9SF technology from IBM. The proprietary low-power LVDS physical interface is fully compatible with the SpaceWire standard, and can be directly connected to the SFP MSA (small form factor pluggable Multiple Source Agreement) optical transponder. The low-speed parallel interfaces are fully compatible with the standard 1.8 V CMOS input/output devices. The utilized proprietary annular CMOS layout structures provide TID tolerance above 1.2 MRad. The complete chip consumes less than 150 mW of power from a single 1.8-V positive supply source.
Recent research has validated the proposal to add a separate set of antennas for 5G coverage in the air, while the conventional set of antennas continues to provide coverage on the ground, for a nationwide drone corridor for 5G cellular drones. More importantly, this drone corridor can be made secure and reliable by adapting the drone trajectories to avoid interference and security attacks, and with advanced precoding and physical layer security. Energy efficiency can also be improved with low-resolution massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) systems that utilize low resolution digital to analog converters. This paper describes additional research findings to further support the creation of this nationwide drone corridor. We design optimal drone trajectory within the drone corridor to improve safety for pedestrians and vehicles on the ground. We derive the optimum antenna uptilt angle to minimize outage probability for a given drone corridor. We also study the placement of intelligent reflector surfaces in an urban drone corridor in order to improve the multi-path scattering and hence the spatial multiplexing gains for serving drones. We calculate trajectories to maximize data rate in the presence of smart interference when drones are used as relays and each drone may be deployed in the paths of data flows from multiple BSs to multiple UEs. Next we demonstrate how the use of the additional set of antennas along with the 3GPP standard based subframe blanking method can minimize the interference from ground reflection of the radio frequency (RF) radiation from the downtilted antennas. The paper concludes with plans to continue with experimental studies to advance this work further.
Drilling activities account for 30% to 57% of the cost to develop and install a geothermal plant. Therefore, an accurate representation of the cost to drill a well is paramount in techno-economic analysis to determine the feasibility of a geothermal power project. In 2022, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) endeavored to revise the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) GeoVision baseline drilling cost curves due to extensive improvement in drilling rates at the Utah Frontier Observatory Research in Geothermal Energy (FORGE) demonstration site. That effort did not culminate in the recommendation of new curves because the actual project costs did not match the reported performance improvements and were at or above the GeoVision baseline. The need for another iteration of this analysis has arisen from industry record drilling performance reported by recent commercial field-scale and demonstration projects, including Fervo Energy’s Cape Station, the Utah FORGE 16B(78)-32 demonstration and the Geysers Power Company’s GDC-36 demonstration. Therefore, in this work, we have estimated the resulting industry average rate of penetration (ROP) and bit life and applied these parameters as inputs to the Well Cost Simplified model used in the GeoVision analysis. The resulting revised cost curves show a significant decline from the GeoVision baseline. For vertical wells, the magnitude of cost decline ranges between 12% and 24% while for deviated wells, cost reductions between 18% and 26% are estimated. The revised cost curves are in good agreement with actual cost data and therefore, quantify the economic impact of the utilization of (and advances in) polycrystalline diamond compact (PDC) bit technology and the application of physics-based methodologies that optimize mechanical specific energy.
The primary goal of this development project, planned to be 36 months in duration, was to create a 500kW utility-scale string inverter, demonstrating an advanced hybrid architecture that would achieve unprecedented high power density, and bring the inverter to the stage of production readiness. Specific key objectives for the 500kW utility-scale string inverter were: Create a 500kW 3-phase 600Vac inverter that was similar in overall size to the existing 250kW string inverters in the market, thereby demonstrating dramatically increased power density; Achieve a cost of goods, including all manufacturing-related costs and overheads, at or below 2.5¢/Wac ($12,500); Demonstrate full-power operation at a 45-50C ambient temperature with no power de-rating; Accommodate a PV array DC input of up to 1MWdc, aka a DC/AC Ratio of 2.0; Demonstrate peak efficiency greater than 99% at any operating dc voltage, and a CEC weighted average efficiency greater than or equal to 98.5%. The motivation for this project was to leapfrog the competition by creating the world’s most powerful string inverter, utilizing an innovative topology and achieving a step change increase in power density. Achieving the goals of the project would have enabled Yaskawa Solectria Solar to demonstrate its technology leadership, manufacture the utility-scale string inverter in the company’s facilities in Illinois, and bring to the market a highly-differentiated and compelling product to help the company grow its share in the large and growing utility market segment. During the course of this project, BREK Electronics’ hybrid architecture inverter was taken from an early-stage 125kW prototype, to a more mature and successfully demonstrated power stage at twice the power. Two 250kW power stages were planned to build the 500kW inverter. Significant progress was made in the inverter controls, achieving a clean AC sinewave and closed-loop operation into the grid, and improved efficiency by control of the high-speed switching. Further, the updated 250kW power stage was on track to achieve full power operation at an ambient temperature of 50C. At the time of the project’s closure in September 2022, global semiconductor supply remained limited, with shortages creating dramatic swings in both availability and price. Given this situation, our ability to predict cost-of-goods two years out with any accuracy or confidence was limited. As a result, the probability of attaining the target cost of 2.5¢/Wac for the 500kW inverter remained uncertain at the closure of the project. This project successfully demonstrated the potential for the advanced hybrid architecture inverter that emerged from a decade of university research on Si IGBTs and SiC mosfets, leading to this unique inverter topology. The team has taken the first steps toward an evolutionary advancement in inverter technology that remains to be fully realized.
The aerodynamic design of an inlet stage for a two-stage, 10/1 pressure ratio, 2 lb/sec flow rate compressor is discussed. Initially a performance comparison was conducted for an axial, mixed flow and centrifugal second stage. A modified mixed flow configuration with tandem rotors and tandem stators was selected for the inlet stage. The term conical flow compressor was coined to describe a particular type of mixed flow compressor configuration which utilizes axial flow type blading and an increase in radius to increase the work input potential. Design details of the conical flow compressor are described.
Direct air capture (DAC) technology has been developing at an accelerated rate. Independent, comprehensive, and transparent techno-economic analyses (TEAs) of DAC technologies are required to inform future development. NETL is publishing an update to the 2022 sorbent-based DAC case study report. This manuscript highlights select TEA results that will be presented in the upcoming NETL report. The analysis considers three sorbent-based DAC system configurations (direct steam temperature swing, indirect steam temperature swing, and direct steam temperature/vacuum swing) and two scenarios for providing the required electricity and steam (stand-alone system with a combined heat and power plant generating the required steam and electricity, and a purchased power case utilizing an electric boiler). Detailed sensitivity analyses are included and highlight the impact of external market factors, sorbent performance, and economies of scale. The potential for cost reductions by opting for temperature vacuum swing adsorption is highlighted. More detailed background and TEA results will be presented in the upcoming NETL report titled “Direct Air Capture Case Studies: Sorbent System (Revision 1)”.
Drilling activities account for 30% to 57% of the cost to develop and install a geothermal plant. Therefore, an accurate representation of the cost to drill a well is paramount in techno-economic analysis to determine the feasibility of a geothermal power project. In 2022, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) endeavored to revise the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) GeoVision baseline drilling cost curves due to extensive improvement in drilling rates at the Utah Frontier Observatory Research in Geothermal Energy (FORGE) demonstration site. That effort did not culminate in the recommendation of new curves because the actual project costs did not match the reported performance improvements and were at or above the GeoVision baseline. The need for another iteration of this analysis has arisen from industry record drilling performance reported by recent commercial field-scale and demonstration projects, including Fervo Energy's Cape Station, the Utah FORGE 16B(78)-32 demonstration and the Geysers Power Company's GDC-36 demonstration. Therefore, in this work, we have estimated the resulting industry average rate of penetration (ROP) and bit life and applied these parameters as inputs to the Well Cost Simplified model used in the GeoVision analysis. The resulting revised cost curves show a significant decline from the GeoVision baseline. For vertical wells, the magnitude of cost decline ranges between 12% and 24% while for deviated wells, cost reductions between 18% and 26% are estimated. The revised cost curves are in good agreement with actual cost data and therefore, quantify the economic impact of the utilization of (and advances in) polycrystalline diamond compact (PDC) bit technology and the application of physics-based methodologies that optimize mechanical specific energy.
This report documents the first collective attempt at developing and applying capabilities to quantify uncertainties, assess parametric sensitivities, and optimize multiple parameters and metrics in fuel cycle simulations generated by the SA&I Campaign. To do this, external codes that were designed to perform sensitivity analysis and uncertainty quantification (SA&UQ) needed to be coupled to the SA&I Campaign’s nuclear fuel cycle simulators (NFCS). In FY20, two approaches were pursued: 1) coupling Cyclus to an ORNL-internal code called MOT (Metaheuristic Optimization Tool) and 2) coupling DYMOND to the opensource SA&UQ tool kit Dakota. The primary objective of having these NFCS/SA&UQ coupled capabilities is to better inform DOE-NE and other stakeholders on the results generated from the NFCS. For a given set of fuel cycle strategies, policies, and technology assumptions that make up a fuel cycle scenario, these NFCS have traditionally been used by the SA&I Campaign to provide quantitative answers in terms of year-by-year mass flows, infrastructure requirements, costs, etc. With these newly developed coupled capabilities, the SA&I Campaign can now efficiently simulate hundreds or thousands of these scenarios, sample large ranges of parameters and assumptions, and use the unique features of the SA&UQ tools to process the data. This enables providing answers with known and propagated uncertainties, determining the sensitivity of important metrics to different parameters and assumptions, quantifying how much fuel cycle and technology parameters impact each other, and producing optimized fuel cycle strategies for single and multiple variables. To demonstrate these new capabilities, the Cyclus/MOT was used to model several scenarios ranging from simple fleet retirements to transitions to advanced reactors. Specifically, for a transition scenario from LWRs to SFRs and advanced LWRs, uncertainty quantification, sensitivity analysis, and optimization studies were applied to cases involving single and multiple parameter (input) and single and multiple metric (output) variations. In addition, a similar transition scenario was modeled to demonstrate how to optimize the reprocessing capacity parameter to minimize two performance metrics while taking into account uncertainties from two other parameters. Lastly, a depletion module based on SCALE/ORIGEN was added in Cyclus to simulate the third scenario that was designed to quantify the impact of the modeling assumption that all LWR used nuclear fuel have the same burnup. The newly developed DYMOND/Dakota capability was also applied to a transition scenario from the existing fleet to small modular reactors and fast reactors. This particular scenario involves not only explicit isotopic depletion via ORIGEN-2, but also includes multirecycling and utilizing the criticality search feature to determine the fresh fuel composition of recycled fuel, a feature unique to the DYMOND NFCS. A large database of simulations were run with 4 main parameters that were sampled: start date of reprocessing, reprocessing capacity, energy demand growth rate, and advanced reactor share of the fleet. The 4 main metrics were uranium consumption, enrichment requirements, waste generation, and levelized cost of electricity using data from the Cost Basis Report. The demonstrated SA&UQ results include those that inform on how to choose parameters to avoid “failed” scenarios, Sobol’ indices that inform on the importance of various parameters individually and synergistically, and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) studies that decompose parameter ranges into groups and informs on whether variations are statistically significant.
This report describes the basic design considerations for perspective air traffic control displays. A software framework has been developed for manual viewing parameter setting (MVPS) in preparation for continued, ongoing developments on automated viewing parameter setting (AVPS) schemes. Two distinct modes of MVPS operations are considered, both of which utilize manipulation pointers imbedded in the three-dimensional scene: (1) direct manipulation of the viewing parameters -- in this mode the manipulation pointers act like the control-input device, through which the viewing parameter changes are made. Part of the parameters are rate controlled, and part of them position controlled. This mode is intended for making fast, iterative small changes in the parameters. (2) Indirect manipulation of the viewing parameters -- this mode is intended primarily for introducing large, predetermined changes in the parameters. Requests for changes in viewing parameter setting are entered manually by the operator by moving viewing parameter manipulation pointers on the screen. The motion of these pointers, which are an integral part of the 3-D scene, is limited to the boundaries of the screen. This arrangement has been chosen in order to preserve the correspondence between the spatial lay-outs of the new and the old viewing parameter setting, a feature which contributes to preventing spatial disorientation of the operator. For all viewing operations, e.g. rotation, translation and ranging, the actual change is executed automatically by the system, through gradual transitions with an exponentially damped, sinusoidal velocity profile, in this work referred to as 'slewing' motions. The slewing functions, which eliminate discontinuities in the viewing parameter changes, are designed primarily for enhancing the operator's impression that he, or she, is dealing with an actually existing physical system, rather than an abstract computer-generated scene. The proposed, continued research efforts will deal with the development of automated viewing parameter setting schemes. These schemes employ an optimization strategy, aimed at identifying the best possible vantage point, from which the air traffic control scene can be viewed for a given traffic situation. They determine whether a change in viewing parameter setting is required and determine the dynamic path along which the change to the new viewing parameter setting should take place.
This report describes the basic design considerations for perspective Air Traffic Control displays. A software framework has been developed for manual viewing parameter setting (MVPS) in preparation for continued, ongoing developments on automated viewing parameter setting (AVPS) schemes. Two distinct modes of MVPS operations are considered, both of which utilize manipulation pointers imbedded in the three-dimensional scene: (1) direct manipulation of the viewing parameters; in this mode the manipulation pointers act like the control-input device, through which the viewing parameter changes are made. Part of the parameters are rate controlled, and part of them position controlled. This mode is intended for making fast, iterative small changes in the parameters. (2) indirect manipulation of the viewing parameters. This mode is intended primarily for introducing large, predetermined changes in the parameters. Requests for changes in viewing parameter setting are entered manually by the operator by moving viewing parameter manipulation pointers on the screen. The motion of these pointers, which are an integral part of the 3-D scene, is limited to the boundaries of screen. This arrangement has been chosen, in order to preserve the correspondence between the spatial lay-outs of the new and the old viewing parameter setting, a feature which contributes to preventing spatial disorientation of the operator. For all viewing operations, e.g. rotation, translation and ranging, the actual change is executed automatically by the system, through gradual transitions with an exponentially damped, sinusoidal velocity profile, in this work referred to as 'slewing' motions. The slewing functions, which eliminate discontinuities in the viewing parameter changes, are designed primarily for enhancing the operator's impression that he, or she, is dealing with an actually existing physical system, rather than an abstract computer-generated scene, The proposed, continued research efforts will deal with the development of automated viewing parameter setting schemes. These schemes employ an optimization strategy, aimed at identifying the best possible vantage point, from which the Air Traffic Control scene can be viewed for a given traffic situation. They determine whether a change in viewing parameter setting is required and determine the dynamic path along which the change to the new viewing parameter setting should take place.
Abstract A real-time detection of the plasma confinement regime can enable new advanced plasma control capabilities for both the access to and sustainment of enhanced confinement regimes in fusion devices. For example, a real-time indication of the confinement regime can facilitate transition to the high-performing wide-pedestal (WP) quiescent H-mode, or avoid unwanted transitions to lower confinement regimes that may induce plasma termination. To demonstrate real-time confinement regime detection, we use the 2D beam emission spectroscopy (BES) diagnostic system to capture localized density fluctuations of long wavelength turbulent modes in the edge region at a 1 MHz sampling rate. BES data from 330 discharges in either L-mode, H-mode, quiescent H (QH)-mode, or WP QH-mode were collected from the DIII-D tokamak and curated to develop a high-quality database to train a deep-learning classification model for real-time confinement detection. We utilize the 6×8 spatial configuration with a time window of 1024 µ s and recast the input to obtain spectral-like features via fast Fourier transform preprocessing. We employ a shallow 3D convolutional neural network for the multivariate time-series classification task and utilize a softmax in the final dense layer to retrieve a probability distribution over the different confinement regimes. Our model classifies the global confinement state on 44 unseen test discharges with an average F 1 score of 0.94, using only ∼1 ms snippets of BES data at a time. This activity demonstrates the feasibility for real-time data analysis of fluctuation diagnostics in future devices such as ITER, where the need for reliable and advanced plasma control is urgent.
Knowing a detailed operating cycle is critical for developing and testing equipment. Operating cycles can be separated by two clear distinctions: (1) regulatory or non-regulatory and (2) application at the engine-only or full machine level. The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Nonroad Transient Cycle (NRTC) may be a good representation of engine use in many types of equipment, but there is a gap in standardized and validated drive cycles specifically for nonroad material handlers. Lacking a standardized drive cycle makes it difficult to accurately benchmark machine performance and validate new powertrain technologies. The objective of this investigation is to illustrate the development of a custom drive cycle augmented with real-world customer use data that serves multiple purposes: (1) understand the range of operation and utilization that formulated inputs for electrified architecture analysis and (2) develop a repetitive and consistent maneuver to establish baseline energy consumption enabling equivalent comparison to future electrified prototype builds. This article presents a solution specifically for a 23-ton nonroad material handler in which material handling, machine transport, and extended idle were homologated to form representative short cycles defined by machine velocity and hydraulic cylinder position. The most intensive material handling short cycles had a load factor of 40% and an average fuel rate of 16 L/h. Combined with a visual aid, the short cycles exhibited low variability, having less than 5% root mean square (RMS) error in lift and reach position with respect to the average. The machine’s performance on these short cycles at the Advanced Power Systems Research Center (APSRC) was compared to results from two real-world customer locations operating the instrumented test machine in a cyclical manner, and for similar ground conditions were found to be comparable in fuel consumption.
As nuclear fuel burn-up increases, its thermal conductivity degrades due to the accumulation of defects that lead to increased phonon scattering rates. This results in a rise in the centerline temperature of the fuel rod, whereby heat generation must be decreased to avoid undesired behavior such as fuel melting and extensive fission gas release. Fuel performance codes are utilized to optimize the fuel's operational conditions; while they are based on established physical principles, their empirical nature limits their predictive capabilities. Recently, an effort has been made to develop predictive fuel performance codes for commonly used nuclear fuels, as well as accelerated qualification of advanced nuclear fuels. In this report, we elaborate on the importance of careful analysis of point defects’ impact on thermal conductivity in fuel performance analysis. Further, a model is presented where point defect concentration is estimated based on Rate Theory modeling and used as input to the Klemens-Callaway model to calculate their contribution to the degradation of thermal conductivity in UO 2 under prototypical irradiation conditions. This analysis suggests that point defect concentration is significant at the rim of the fuel pellet and neglecting this leads to underestimation of the centerline temperature, which may have consequences on fission gas behavior.
Ride-hailing electrification is made challenging by a variety of factors, including limited driver access to overnight charging and a nascent network of public direct-current fast charging (DCFC). This article projects the DCFC infrastructure needed to electrify ride-hailing across 384 cities in the United States. Research leveraging a novel infrastructure projection tool, Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Tool for On-Demand Mobility Services model (EVI-OnDemand), estimates that 25,400 DCFC ports capable of charging vehicles at a mean power of 150 kW are required to electrify 1.45 million ride-hailing vehicles in the baseline scenario. Results show that ride-hailing vehicles require 17.5 DCFC ports per 1000 vehicles, three times that of personal electric vehicles (EVs). Infrastructure demand is also shown to vary across cities; 63% more DCFC ports are needed to support 1000 battery EVs in Chicago versus Miami. The analysis also includes sensitivity studies that explore variation in charging demand across input assumptions, finding that charging power, vehicle class, overnight charging access rates, and port utilization influence the network size needed. Projections vary from 18,600 to 41,300 DCFC ports across sensitivity scenarios, indicating that ride-hailing electrification will require significant expansion of access to fast charging even in the most optimistic scenarios, and investments into supporting assets can reduce the scale of the public charging expansion needed.
A prototype system was implemented to demonstrate that CCD's can be applied advantageously to the problem of low power digital storage and particularly to the problem of interfacing widely varying data rates. 8K-bit CCD shift register memories were used to construct a feasibility model 128K-bit buffer memory system. Peak power dissipation during a data transfer is less than 7 W., while idle power is approximately 5.4 W. The system features automatic data input synchronization with the recirculating CCD memory block start address. Descriptions are provided of both the buffer memory system and a custom tester that was used to exercise the memory. The testing procedures and testing results are discussed. Suggestions are provided for further development with regards to the utilization of advanced versions of CCD memory devices to both simplified and expanded memory system applications.