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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2023

USAID Colombia Young Leaders Workforce Training Program Action Plans: Regulatory Road Map for Distributed Energy Resource (DER) Interconnection and Interoperability

As part of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)-National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) Young Leaders Workforce Training Program in Colombia, participants from Colombia's Energy and Gas Regulatory Commission (CREG) leveraged their training and professional experience to develop a regulatory roadmap for the interconnection and interoperability of increasing integration of distributed energy resources (DERs). CREG was one of four teams selected by the training program development team to receive continued technical assistance and strategic advisory support from the USAID-NREL Partnership for action plan development and implementation. This case study provides an overview of the key activities and outcomes of the technical assistance provided by NREL on the CREG Action Plan, and key next steps for implementation of Colombia's DER Integration Regulatory Roadmap.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗
DOE OSTI2022

Young Leaders Workforce Training Program Overview and Impact

To support the Government of Colombia's plans to transform its power sector, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has assembled a cross-organizational team to develop and deliver a comprehensive workforce training program for young energy sector leaders in Colombia designed to enhance the efficient integration of growing volumes of variable renewable energy (VRE) to the energy sector. The team - which includes USAID's Colombia Mission, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), USAID's Scaling Up Renewable Energy (SURE) program implemented by Tetra Tech, and the U.S. Energy Association (USEA) - collaboratively developed a series of seven capacity building modules designed to ready Colombia's energy sector workforce to participate in the construction, operation, and grid integration of VRE projects, such as wind and solar. This brochure highlights the program's objectives, results, and impacts to date.

Colombia↗
DOE OSTI2023

USAID Colombia Young Leaders Workforce Training Program Action Plans: Forecasting Distributed Photovoltaic Adoption in Barranquilla, Colombia

As part of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)-National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) Young Leaders Workforce Training Program in Colombia, the Association of Renewable Energies Colombia (SER) participants leveraged their training and professional experience to develop an action plan for modeling the projected adoption of distributed solar photovoltaics (PV) out to 2050 for the city of Barranquilla, Colombia. This case study provides an overview of the key activities and outcomes of the Distributed Generation Market Demand Model (dGen™) Colombia project.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2023

USAID Colombia Young Leaders Workforce Training Program Action Plans: Planning for Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure in Bogotá

As part of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)-National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) Young Leaders Workforce Training Program in Colombia, the Grupo Energía Bogotá (GEB) participants leveraged their training and professional experience to develop an action plan for modeling and evaluating Bogotá's projected electric vehicle (EV) charging needs to meet future demand. This case study summarizes the collaboration between USAID-NREL, GEB, and the Bogotá Department of Transportation Mobility Secretariat (SDM) to estimate EV charging station needs to meet projected future EV sales in the city of Bogotá and determine high-priority locations within the greater Bogotá metropolitan area for planning and applying EVSE investment and installation.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2023

USAID Colombia Young Leaders Workforce Training Program Action Plans: Early Adopters Work to Accelerate Electric Vehicle Transitions in Boyacá, Colombia

As part of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)-National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) Young Leaders Workforce Training Program in Colombia, Empresa de Energía de Boyacá (EBSA) participants leveraged their training and professional experience to develop an electric mobility and transition action plan for their organization. This case study provides and overview of the technical assistance that USAID-NREL provided to EBSA to inform their fleet transition decision making process.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2025

BOPTest As a Platform for Building Controls and Grid-Interactive Buildings Workforce Training

Building automation and controls are becoming increasingly complex with the emergence of Grid Integrated Efficient Buildings (GEBs) as well as new highly efficient sequences of operation and data-driven control schemes. However, there remains a significant gap in hands-on training opportunities for building operators and technicians to gain practical experience with advanced control systems in a low-risk environment. This paper presents BOPTEST (Building Optimization Performance Test) as a suitable platform for workforce training in building controls and GEB technologies. BOPTEST provides a suite of standardized building simulation test cases with a REST API, real-time control interfaces through BACnet, semantic models connecting users to building data, and built-in calculation of control metrics and performance indicators. The platform enables trainees to interact with virtual buildings using industry-standard protocols while learning how to implement and innovate control strategies. The training platform is designed to offer a structured and interactive learning experience for building engineers, helping them effectively develop, learn, and retain skills in fault identification, troubleshooting, and correction. The workflow is divided into three main phases: 1) Setup, 2) Exercise, and 3) Review, each comprising specific activities performed by either the instructor or the student. Initial pilot training sessions have yielded positive feedback from instructors and participants and demonstrates that BOPTEST effectively fills an industry need for a low-risk training resource via simulation of real building control systems, allowing trainees to gain practical experience before working in the field. The platform's ability to provide immediate performance feedback while maintaining familiar industry interfaces makes it particularly suitable for workforce development programs. This work provides a replicable model for leveraging building simulation in control education and training.

Paul, Lazlo↗
DOE OSTI2025

BOPTEST as a Platform for Building Controls and Grid-Interactive Buildings Workforce Training

Building automation and controls are becoming increasingly complex with the emergence of Grid Integrated Efficient Buildings (GEBs) as well as new highly efficient sequences of operation and data-driven control schemes. However, there remains a significant gap in hands-on training opportunities for building operators and technicians to gain practical experience with advanced control systems in a low-risk environment. This paper presents BOPTEST (Building Optimization Performance Test) as a suitable platform for workforce training in building controls and GEB technologies. BOPTEST provides a suite of standardized building simulation test cases with a REST API, real-time control interfaces through BACnet, semantic models connecting users to building data, and built-in calculation of control metrics and performance indicators. The platform enables trainees to interact with virtual buildings using industry-standard protocols while learning how to implement and innovate control strategies. The training platform is designed to offer a structured and interactive learning experience for building engineers, helping them effectively develop, learn, and retain skills in fault identification, troubleshooting, and correction. The workflow is divided into three main phases: 1) Setup, 2) Exercise, and 3) Review, each comprising specific activities performed by either the instructor or the student. Initial pilot training sessions have yielded positive feedback from instructors and participants and demonstrates that BOPTEST effectively fills an industry need for a low-risk training resource via simulation of real building control systems, allowing trainees to gain practical experience before working in the field. The platform's ability to provide immediate performance feedback while maintaining familiar industry interfaces makes it particularly suitable for workforce development programs. This work provides a replicable model for leveraging building simulation in control education and training.

Paul, Lazlo↗
DOE OSTI2026

Lessons learned from the development and implementation of a workforce training curriculum for advanced controls for high performance HVAC systems

Over the past decade, academic research on advanced controls has slowly transitioned into new software platforms, giving rise to various companies developing and deploying these innovative products, including solutions for light commercial HVAC systems. However, the current workforce remains widely unprepared to install, maintain and operate these systems, particularly complex software-based control platforms, as most workforce training programs still focus on traditional building automation for large commercial buildings. This paper presents the development and piloting of curriculum for three key types of professionals: ● Technicians (trade-level): installing and maintaining modern high-performance HVAC systems and controls ● Programmers (undergrad-level): developing and implementing advanced controls ● Engineers and energy professionals (undergrad/grad-level): managing and evaluating system performance We share details of the material developed including training videos, open-source software, instruction manuals. We also present the results of a pilot implementation of the training materials with real students.

Casillas, Armando↗
DOE OSTI2023

Advancing Energy Efficiency Through Workforce Training

This Final Technical Report summarizes the work done on to develop and implement the Energy Basics Training Tool with industry partners and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. This project leveraged existing infrastructure and content developed by DOE in the Building America Solution Center (BASC) and Building Science Education Solution Center (BSESC) to design model content sets for use in entry-level construction programs at the high school certificate, boot camp, and other entry level training programs.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2025

The Institute for Nuclear Science to Inspire the next Generation of a Highly Trained workforce (INSIGHT) at FRIB

The proposed INSIGHT Center at FRIB has two objectives: (1) provide a center to support and coordinate a nationwide traineeship effort; and (2) offer traineeships at FRIB by leveraging its scientific opportunities. This will provide an environment to: (i) recruit and retain undergraduate students in (nuclear) physics and sustain and/or increase their interest, confidence, and enthusiasm in this field; (ii) provide participants with a toolset to become effective independent researchers who pursue further research opportunities as undergraduates; and (iii) encourage participants to pursue graduate studies and potential careers in nuclear science, or related STEM fields.

07 ISOTOPE AND RADIATION SOURCES↗
DOE OSTI2026

Cybersecurity Workforce Training for SMR Integration into Distribution Grids: A Competency Framework and Containerized Hands-On Lab for the SMR/DER/Microgrid Boundary

Small modular reactors (SMRs) and microreactors are entering the U.S. distribution grid as synchronous generation on feeders designed for loads and inverter-based distributed energy resources (DERs). No existing cybersecurity training program addresses this intersection of nuclear operations, DER management, and operational technology security. As subcontractor to Iowa State University on the CyDERMS Center, Argonne analyzed the relevant standards and training landscape, translated the resulting gaps into a twelve-objective competency framework across distribution-operator and graduate-analyst role tracks, and built a containerized training lab using a ∼400-bus composite grid model behind a realistically simulated Modbus TCP SCADA stack. The analysis isolates the balance-of-plant / energy-management-system (BOP/EMS) boundary as the critical jurisdictional seam where, as of March 2026, neither NRC nor NERC CIP cleanly claims cybersecurity responsibility for distribution-connected SMRs. The framework maps each objective across NIST CSF 2.0, ISA/IEC 62443, NIST NICE Task–Knowledge–Skill statements, and NRC RG 5.71 awareness-and-training controls. The training lab implements operator-recognition assessment scenarios spanning grid-side disturbances and telemetry-layer anomalies.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2026

Shaping the FutureWorkforce: Challenges and Lessons Learned in HPC Education from National Labs and Computing Centers

Workforce training at national laboratories and computing centers is essential and typically falls into two categories: foundational training for newcomers and advanced training for experienced users. Foundational topics—such as version control, build systems, and basic HPC usage—are largely transferable across institutions, while cluster-specific training varies due to differences in hardware, job schedulers, and local workflows. Training on emerging technologies is split between hardware-specific content and broadly applicable programming paradigms. Here, to reduce redundancy and increase impact, national labs, computing centers, and vendors are collaborating through initiatives like the HPC Training Working Group to share best practices, co-develop materials, and broaden outreach. These coordinated efforts aim to make HPC training more accessible, scalable, and consistent across the community.

HPC↗
NASA NTRS2003

Aerospace Workforce Development: The Nebraska Proposal; and Native View Connections: A Multi-Consortium Workforce Development Proposal

The NASA Nebraska Space Grant Consortium (NSGC) continues to recognize the necessity of increasing the quantity and quality of highly skilled graduates and faculty involved with NASA. Through NASA Workforce Development funds awarded in 2002, NSGC spearheaded customer- focused workforce training and higher education, industry and community partnerships that are significantly impacting the state s workforce in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) competencies. NSGC proposes to build upon these accomplishments to meet the steadily increasing demand for STEM skills and to safeguard minority representation in these disciplines. A wide range of workforce development activities target NASA s need to establish stronger connections among higher education, industry, and community organizations. Participation in the National Student Satellite Program (NSSP), Community Internship Program, and Nebraska Science and Technology Recruitment Fair will extend the pipeline of employees benefiting NASA as well as Nebraska. The diversity component of this proposal catapults from the exceptional reputation NSGC has built by delivering geospatial science experiences to Nebraska s Native Americans. For 6 years, NSGC has fostered and sustained partnerships with the 2 tribal colleges and 4 reservation school districts in Nebraska to foster aeronautics education and outreach. This program, the Nebraska Native American Outreach Program (NNAOP), has grown to incorporate more than educational institutions and is now a partnership among tribal community leaders, academia, tribal schools, and industry. The content focus has broadened from aeronautics in the school systems to aerospace technology and earth science applications in tribal community decision-making and workforce training on the reservations. To date, participants include faculty and staff at 4 Nebraska tribal schools, 2 tribal colleges, approximately 1,000 Native American youth, and over 1,200 community members. This Native American Initiative of the NSGC addresses Nebraska workforce development and serves as a model to others. Following a structured evaluation process, NSGC proposes to sustain delivery of the training funded by NASA in 2002 to tribal entities through partnerships linking academic programs and industry leaders.

Bowen, Brent D.↗
DOE OSTI2022

Solar Ready Wisconsin

Through the Solar Ready Wisconsin project, the MREA was able to facilitate collaboration between Wisconsin’s leading technical college training programs, increase student work experience opportunities, and facilitate workforce training on high impact/high visibility PV installations in Wisconsin communities. The workforce development partnership offered credit-bearing advanced installation trainings at WI technical colleges, allowing students to participate in hands on installation training opportunities. Students also participated in internships with a network of PV contractors developed through MREA’s regional network of members, contracted instructors, and program partners.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2025

Quantum Computing Strategy 2026

Quantum computing (QC) is a rapidly maturing technology with the potential for revolutionary impacts on stockpile stewardship science and national security. Recent developments in fault-tolerant architectures have compressed vendor roadmaps, and predictions of a production-ready quantum computer by the mid-2030s are becoming increasingly credible. This strategy provides a roadmap for integrating QC into the Advanced Simulation and Computing (ASC) program by investing in four strategic focus areas: 1. Develop Capabilities in Mission-Relevant Quantum Applications: ASC will prioritize developing quantum-ready applications in mission areas that have shown significant promise for quantum advantage, including simulations of materials in extreme environments, nuclear dynamics, solving linear and nonlinear partial differential equations, and uncertainty quantification. These applications directly support stockpile stewardship science and modernization objectives. 2. Conduct R&D in Algorithms, Software, and Hardware: Sustained research into quantum algorithms, robust software tools, and quantum hardware is essential. ASC will develop efficient quantum algorithms; invest in quantum compilers, debuggers, and performance tools; and explore specialized quantum hardware tailored to NNSA’s unique requirements. 3. Engage with Vendors and Partners: Early and active collaboration with commercial quantum hardware vendors and academic partners is critical. Through testbeds, co-design agreements, and quantum demonstration facilities, ASC will influence hardware design, gain early access to emerging technologies, and ensure that quantum platforms evolve to meet mission needs. 4. Build Knowledge, Experience, and Workforce: Expanding and upskilling the quantum-trained workforce is essential to long-term success. This includes hiring, internal training, university outreach, and postdoctoral support to ensure ASC maintains the expertise required to operate, program, and integrate quantum systems as they become available. While quantum computing will never replace classical computing, it has the potential to solve certain problems with speed and accuracy that would be unachievable using any conceivable classical high-performance computing (HPC) system. By investing strategically in QC, ASC will help propel the emergent QC industry, maintain U.S. technological leadership, ensure mission readiness, and position itself to rapidly adopt quantum technologies as they mature.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
DOE OSTI2022

Weatherization Updates From the National Renewable Energy Laboratory

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) provides technical assistance and research to support high-quality work and highly qualified workers in the weatherization and home performance industry. NREL staff will provide updates on their work on the Standard Work Specifications, Home Energy Professional Certifications, Continuous Improvement Workshops, workforce training and research, and other topics.

continuous improvement↗
NASA NTRS2002

[Advanced Composites Technology Initiatives]

This final report closes out the W02 NASA Grant #NCC5-646. The FY02 grant for advanced technology initiatives through the Advanced Composites Technology Institute in Bridgeport, WV, at the Robert C. Byrd Institute (RCBI) Bridgeport Manufacturing Technology Center, is complete; all funding has been expended. RCBI continued to expand access to technology; develop and implement a workforce-training curriculum; improve material development; and provide prototyping and demonstrations of new and advanced composites technologies for West Virginia composites firms. The FY 02 efforts supported workforce development, technical training and the HST development effort of a super-lightweight composite carrier prototype and expanded the existing technical capabilities of the growing aerospace industry across West Virginia to provide additional support for NASA missions. Additionally, the Composites Technology and Training Center was awarded IS0 9001 - 2000 certification and Cleanroom Class 1000 certification during this report period.

Mark R. Julian↗
DOE OSTI2025

Construction Methodology Transformation for the Benefit of Workforce Development

Construction is a key economic engine driving both national and global economies. While manual, onsite construction methods dominate the U.S. construction industry, a major shift towards offsite methods has been underway due to its efficiency, speed, and potential cost savings. The workforce necessary for offsite construction growth does not exist in its current form because of the focus on onsite methodologies and the lack of exposure to offsite building methods at all levels of a student’s learning journey. The growth of the U.S. construction industry and competitiveness in an increasingly global construction market over the coming decades can only be supported by a dramatic increase in the use of offsite methods, which requires ramping up workforce training for certain skillsets. The goal of Construction Methodology Transformation for the Benefit of Workforce Development was to understand the opportunities and barriers in both education and industry and to identify best practices for offering curriculum and training to educators, industry, and students that would support skills needed for careers in offsite construction. Our team proposed combining three offsite construction workforce development needs: content development, exposure and training, and job placement - under a single Platform model that would increase experience and career opportunities for students and help match them with potential industry members. Through our proposed solution we expected to see: developed offsite curriculum being utilized by educators and students; an increase in the identification of construction technology and offsite construction methods; an average increase in knowledge gain of at least 25% after participation in pilots; better equipped candidates who are prepared for jobs in offsite construction; and a beta workforce development platform that helps build more pathways for students looking for careers in offsite construction. The two pilots included almost 250 students and resulted in an average knowledge gain of 37 percent. Our research has identified areas of opportunity, for both education and industry to make collaborative training programs more efficient and successful. The chosen techniques for this program are extremely effective when both the school and factory have solid processes and cultures in place to accept students into training programs. This project serves as an important stepping stone to industrywide collaboration to move workforce development for offsite construction forward across the country. With continued collaboration programs like this can provide much needed early exposure and training in offsite construction and we can begin to fill important positions for the future of construction.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗