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DOE OSTI2022

Fiberboard Properties and Degradation Rates for Storage of 9975 Shipping Package in KAC (2022 Status Report)

Thermal, mechanical, and physical properties have been measured on fiberboard samples following accelerated aging for up to 17 years. The aging environments include elevated temperature up to 250 °F (the maximum allowed service temperature for fiberboard in 9975 packages) and elevated humidity. Accelerated aging results have been analyzed and used to build aging models. Correlations relating several properties (thermal conductivity, energy absorption, weight, dimensions, and density) to their rate of change in potential storage environments have been developed. Combined with an estimate of the actual conditions the fiberboard experiences in K-Area Complex (KAC), these models allow development of service life predictions. KAC completed calculations that supported extending the service life of 9975 packages with 3013 containers in storage from 20 years to 40 years. These calculations addressed the potential for degraded fiberboard properties following 40 years in storage using degradation models developed previously. Due to differences in containers, 9975 packages with non-3013 containers are only approved for 20 years of storage. The updated degradation models developed in this report have been compared to the assumptions in those calculations, and the current results for fiberboard dimensions, density, radial thermal conductivity, and energy absorption remain consistent with those calculations. The axial thermal conductivity degradation rate slightly exceeds calculations estimate of 0.5% per year between 130 and 160 °F. Additional data will continue to be collected to permit future refinements to the models and assumptions. Some of the predicted degradation rates presented in this report are extreme. However, these relate to environments that do not exist within KAC or would be postulated only as upset conditions that would not likely persist for an extended period. For a typical package stored in KAC with approximately 10-12 watts internal heat load or less, and ambient temperatures below 90 °F, the fiberboard assemblies experience storage conditions less severe than any of the aging environments. Fiberboard in conforming packages with lower internal heat loads should experience little or no degradation and is expected to provide a service life beyond the currently approved 40 year storage period. Packages with higher internal heat loads may not continue to perform their required safety functions beyond 40 years. Ultimately, service life will be determined by the cumulative effect of degradation from all the conditions these packages might encounter. The results and model predictions presented in this report are applicable to 9975 packages with cane or softwood fiberboard overpack assemblies. These degradation models do not address the effects of non-conforming conditions such as the presence of excess moisture and mold or beetle infestations.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

DOE OSTI2025

2025 Status Report - Fiberboard Properties and Degradation Rates for Storage of 9975 Shipping Package in KAC

Fiberboard assemblies in the 9975 package were identified as susceptible to aging and degradation under long-term storage conditions. Thermal, mechanical, and physical properties have been measured on fiberboard samples aging for up to 20 years at accelerated conditions. The aging environments include elevated temperature up to 250 ºF (the maximum allowed service temperature for fiberboard in 9975 packages) and elevated humidity. Accelerated aging results have been analyzed and used to build aging models. Correlations relating several properties (thermal conductivity, energy absorption, weight, dimensions, and density) to their rate of change in potential storage environments have been developed. Combined with an estimate of the actual conditions the fiberboard experiences in K-Area Complex (KAC), these models allow development of service life predictions. KAC completed calculations that supported extending the service life of 9975 packages with 3013 containers in storage from 20 years to 40 years. These calculations addressed the potential for degraded fiberboard properties following 40 years in storage using degradation models. The 40 year storage evaluations assumed the degradation rates from initial values for density, dimensional, and thermal properties were 0.5% per year (i.e., after 40 years, the density, dimensional, and thermal properties of fiberboard were 80% of its initial values). The updated degradation models developed in this report were compared to the assumptions in those calculations, and the current results for fiberboard dimensions, density, axial and radial thermal conductivities, and energy absorption remain consistent with those calculations. Additional data will continue to be collected to permit future refinements to the models and assumptions. Some of the predicted degradation rates presented in this report are purposely high to accelerate aging. These rates relate to environments that do not exist within KAC or are postulated to only occur as upset conditions that are unlikely to persist for an extended period. For a typical package stored in KAC with approximately 10-12 watts internal heat load or less, and ambient temperatures below 90 ºF, the fiberboard assemblies experience storage conditions less severe than any of the aging environments (i.e., under 125 °F) used in this study. Fiberboard in conforming packages with lower internal heat loads should experience little or no degradation and is expected to provide a service life beyond the currently approved 40 year storage period. Packages with higher internal heat loads may not continue to perform their required safety functions beyond 40 years. Ultimately, service life will be determined by the cumulative effect of degradation from all the conditions these packages might encounter. The results and model predictions presented in this report are applicable to 9975 packages with cane or softwood fiberboard overpack assemblies. These degradation models do not address the effects of nonconforming conditions such as the presence of excess moisture and mold or beetle infestations.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

DOE OSTI2025

Software Validation Work With The ZPPR-15 Data

The analysis activities for fast reactors involve using many different pieces of software that are relied upon for their predictive capabilities. For this software to be considered reliable, documented proof that the predictions of the software are accurate is required. In this manuscript, the validation work that covers some of the Argonne software used in fast reactor design activities is discussed and displayed. This validation work includes neutron and gamma flux distributions, reaction rate distributions, and reactivity worth. In an ideal world, a reactor development program would have access to a comprehensive set of experimental facilities to help inform the design aspects of the reactor itself. While thermal-hydraulics experiments, and to a limited degree mechanical experiments, can be carried out today for validation needs, neutronics related experimental facilities are rather impractical because of the lack of experimental facilities. Given the desired time table for construction of new reactors, the reconstitution or creation of new neutronic experimental facilities is untenable and thus those reactor development programs must rely upon any available experimental measurements that are qualitatively similar to the design. While a methodology has been proposed to assess the similarity between the past experimental measurements and the reactor itself, that aspect is beyond the scope of this manuscript. In this manuscript, the focus is entirely placed on the analysis results for a series of experiments carried out at the ZPPR facility in Idaho in the mid-1980s. In this regard, this manuscript only shows the validation of the stated neutronics software for specific loadings of the ZPPR reactor. Because of the fuel form, its proposed enrichment, and the material content of the reactor core, the ZPPR-15 experiments were identified as potential validation data for the reactor. The ZPPR-15 experiments were intended as mockups of a 330 MWe Integral Fast Reactor program which was a follow on program to the Clinch River Breeder Reactor. In the ZPPR-15 series of experiments, measurements of the neutron spectrum, control rod worth, sodium void worth, foil reaction rate distributions, Doppler worth of heated samples, gamma dose, and axial expansion worth were all carried out and published. In many cases, these reactivity coefficients are good candidates to validate the reactivity coefficient calculation scheme used by the analysis software and included in the safety analysis activities of fast reactor development projects today. This manuscript discusses the modeling methodology and accuracy of the calculated experimental results using the LANL software MCNP and the ANL software package ARC (Argonne Reactor Codes). As will be shown, for many of the experimental measurements, the two software packages are found to be good predictive analysis tools for those experiments. In other cases, problems with the analysis methodology or underlying cross section data are exposed which indicates where predictive analysis is not as reliable. Finally, in some of the measurements the conclusion is reached that the experimental measurement cannot be reproduced with the analysis software as it is simply too difficult.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗

DOE OSTI2026

Software Validation Work With The ZPPR-15 Data

Aliberti, Gerardo↗

DOE OSTI2021

Implementation and Verification of Cable Bending Stiffness in MoorDyn

The relatively large motions experienced by floating wind turbines and wave energy converters pose a challenge for power cables, whose internal components provide significant bending resistance and are sensitive to deformation. The behavior and associated design considerations of power cables in these highly dynamic applications make coupled analysis relevant for design. Bending stiffness capabilities have recently been added to the lumped-mass mooring dynamics model MoorDyn to enable simulation of dynamic power cables. MoorDyn is a common modeling choice for floating wind energy simulation (often coupled with OpenFAST) and floating wave energy converter simulation (often coupled with WEC-Sim) but the model’s previous line elasticity formulation only considered axial stiffness. To properly capture the dynamics of power cables, a bending stiffness model has been added that approximates cable curvature based on the difference in tangent vectors of adjacent elements. The resulting bending moment is realized by applying forces on adjacent nodes, enabling cable modeling while leaving the underlying lumped-mass formulation unchanged. In this paper, the new bending stiffness implementation is verified in static conditions against analytical solutions and then in a dynamic power cable scenario in comparison with the commercial simulator OrcaFlex. The dynamic scenario uses prescribed motions and includes wave loadings on the cable. Results indicate correct implementation of bending stiffness and show close agreement with OrcaFlex.

50 EE - Wind and Water Power Program - Water (EE-4↗

DOE OSTI2020

EGS Collab Experiment 2: 4100 Foot Level Elastic Property Data

Static and dynamic elastic properties (Young's modulus, Shear Modulus, P-wave Modulus, and Poisson's Ratio) of amphibolites and rhyolites from the TV4100 and TH4100 boreholes at the Sanford Underground Research Laboratory (SURF). Elastic properties include Young's modulus, Poisson's ratio, shear modulus, and p-wave modulus. Raw data from the experiments and slides describing the experimental procedure and a summary of results are included, along with a readme file with additional definitions and information.

15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2021

A Modular Mechanism for Downhole Weight-on-Bit and Torque Reaction in Small Diameter Boreholes

Drilling systems that use downhole rotation must react torque either through the drill-string or near the motor to achieve effective drilling performance. Problems with drill-string loading such as buckling, friction, and twist become more severe as hole diameter decreases. Therefore, for small holes, reacting torque downhole without interfering with the application of weight-on-bit, is preferred. In this paper, we present a novel mechanism that enables effective and controllable downhole weight on bit transmission and torque reaction. This scalable design achieves its unique performance through four key features: (1) mechanical advantage based on geometry, (2) direction dependent behavior using rolling and sliding contact, (3) modular scalability by combining modules in series, and (4) torque reaction and weight on bit that are proportional to applied axial force. As a result, simple mechanical devices can be used to react large torques while allowing controlled force to be transmitted to the drill bit. We outline our design, provide theoretical predictions of performance, and validate the results using full-scale testing. The experimental results include laboratory studies as well as limited field testing using a percussive hammer. These results demonstrate effective torque reaction, axial force transmission, favorable scaling with multiple modules, and predictable performance that is proportional to applied force.

15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2023

Development of a 300 MWe Utility Scale Oxy-Fuel sCO2 Turbine

A 300 MWe direct-fired supercritical carbon dioxide (sCO2) oxy-fuel turbine is being developed that will burn natural gas-fired, coal syngas and even hydrogen mixtures capable of 1,150ºC turbine inlet temperature at 300 bar. This design will significantly improve the state-of-the-art for thermal efficiency and results in a high-pressure stream of CO2 with 98%+ carbon capture, making the power plant near emission-free and more efficient than Natural Gas Combined Cycle (NGCC) plants with carbon capture. This power plant will be capable of burning coal through gasification and cleanup of the synthesis gas (syngas). sCO2 power cycles are a transformational technology for the energy industry, providing higher efficiency heat source energy conversion for conventional and alternative energy sources. This novel cycle significantly reduces capital costs because of smaller equipment footprints, design modularity, and allows for rapid cyclic load and source following to balance solar and wind energy power swings. Oxy-fuel sCO2 cycles take these advantages even further, utilizing higher firing temperatures, improved efficiency, and simpler carbon capture strategies. This turbine will require cooled turbine nozzles and blades as well as advanced thermal management systems to accommodate these high temperatures. The cooled blade heat transfer correlations required new test programs at higher Reynolds number than air-breathing gas turbines for impingement, serpentine, and pin-fin regions. Novel blade optimization was performed to maximize aerodynamic efficiency, while minimizing cooling flows. A turbine layout was generated utilizing individual combustor cans with cooled liners feeding into a 6-stage axial flow turbine with cooled stator nozzles and turbine blades. The case design and thermal management preliminary design will be described.

Moore, Jeffrey↗

DOE OSTI2020

Local measurements of the spatial magnetic field distribution in a z-pinch plasma during and near stagnation using polarization spectroscopy

We present here the detailed measurements of radial distribution of the magnetic field in a gas-puff z-pinch plasma at the final stages of the implosion phase and at stagnation. While the measurements are chordal, the radial distribution of different charge states was utilized to measure the magnetic field locally for certain radii, so that unlike chordal measurements in general, the magnetic field radial distribution was obtained with no need for the Abel inversion of the data. The distribution was measured using the Zeeman effect via a novel spectroscopic technique, at several axial locations, and demonstrates striking features such as the peak field remaining at a radius much larger than the stagnation radius at all times. Furthermore, while the distribution observed is sometimes monotonic with respect to the radius, it is often not, a behavior that can be linked to 2D features in the plasma column resulting from the Rayleigh–Taylor instability. The current flowing through the stagnating plasma was found to be a small fraction of the total current, resulting in clearly insufficient magnetic pressure to balance the plasma pressure at stagnation. The magnetic field data, taken over several axial positions, are used to obtain the true inductance in the imploding plasma for the first time; it is found that the data cannot explain the current turnover at stagnation. A simulation with the MACH2-Tabular Collisional-Radiative Equilibrium magnetohydrodynamics code in the r–z plane shows that the peak of the magnetic field pinches to a much smaller radius than is observed in the spectroscopic data. Furthermore, the depth of the computed current turnover at stagnation is smaller than the measured one. The two observed features of a radially extended magnetic field at stagnation together with a deep current turnover are a challenge to match in simulations. Various calculations and estimates of the inductive and resistive load voltages are examined to ascertain if they are responsible for the observed current notch. Lastly, the results demonstrate that the knowledge of the true inductance in the driven load requires such magnetic-field-distribution measurements and that imaging data or electrical measurements are insufficient.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

DOE OSTI2026

Characteristics of Fluid‐Solid Interaction Constitutive Models Within Poroelastodynamics at Higher Strain‐Rates and Large Deformations Implemented in 1D

The large deformation, mixed formulation, finite element (FE) modeling approach presented in Irwin et al. 2024 is extended herein to include improved constitutive models for representing dynamic solid-fluid interactions at higher strain rates (𝒪⁢(1⁢0 2 −1⁢0 3 )⁢s −1 ) and larger overpressure magnitudes (𝒪⁡(1⁢0 2 )⁢kPa) within a biphasic soft porous material using Theory of Porous Media (TPM) at finite strain. Specifically, these constitutive modeling improvements are the following: (i) a more physically robust constitutive model for pore fluid seepage velocity via inclusion of pore fluid viscous stress, and (ii) a modified deformation-dependent-permeability model and updated hyperelastic constitutive model better suited for handling larger volumetric compressions and extensions. The novelty of the present work is mainly the contribution (i): inclusion of pore fluid viscous stress at higher strain-rate and large deformations, which requires 𝐶 1 continuity in the weak formulation, accomplished by employing Hermite cubic interpolation functions within a mixed nonlinear poromechanical finite element formulation. In (ii), the model is updated to weakly enforce solid phase incompressibility, such that this assumption is not violated numerically, which provides improved numerical stability for achieving larger overpressure magnitudes on 𝒪⁡(1⁢0 2 ) kPa, which were not achievable with the previous Kozeny–Carman model in Irwin et al. 2024. Also in (ii), the volumetric part of the solid skeleton free energy function is modified to ensure proper bounds on the solid skeleton Jacobian of deformation 𝐽 s related to incompressibility of the solid phase. Uniaxial strain, unidirectional flow examples at higher strain rates (𝒪⁢(1⁢0 2 −1⁢0 3 )⁢s −1 ) and larger deformations (up to 0.2 (or 20%) nominal axial strain) demonstrate the improved physical representation—and numerical stability—of these constitutive model improvements.

42 ENGINEERING↗

DOE OSTI2023

A Study of Wake Characteristics of Marine Turbine Arrays: Preprint

As the marine energy industry continues to develop and installations grow from single turbines to small arrays and larger farms, understanding and predicting wake behavior using modeling tools is necessary for array design and optimization. The wake characteristics of upstream turbines, including velocity deficit, wake swirling, tip vortices, wake shape and direction, and flow recovery, influence the inflow conditions experienced by downstream turbines in an array and, subsequently, affect the individual turbine loading and power generated by the array. These wake characteristics are influenced by many factors, including site geography, inflow shear profile, turbulence, waves, the strength of the current resource, gravitational forces, storm surges, and seasonal effects like temperature and wind conditions. Efficient array modeling tools that capture these wake effects and resulting turbine-to-turbine interactions need to be developed to optimize farm layouts and design individual turbines for operation within arrays. Unlike the wind industry, the marine energy research community is largely limited to the use of either numerical tools or tank/flume testing to understand marine turbine wake interactions. This paper will investigate recent advances in numerical and experimental marine turbine wake modeling, with a focus on recent publications and on both axial-flow and cross-flow marine turbines. A summary of recent research on these topics is provided. Additionally, a demonstration of turbine wake interactions using computational fluid dynamics is presented.

marine hydrokinetic turbine↗

DOE OSTI2020

ZPPR-15 Criticality Measurements

A reference critical configuration was established for each phase of the ZPPR-15 experimental program. The reference critical configuration for each phase corresponds to a configuration in which the measured excess reactivity was adjusted to a standard set of reporting conditions with an average reactor temperature of 293 K, a zero interface gap and all operational control rods parked 30 inches from the axial centerline of the core. The ZPPR staff published the measured excess reactivity and the statistical uncertainty in the measurement. In reality, the published uncertainty for each reference critical configuration is only a small component of the total uncertainty for that configuration. Additional uncertainties related measurement technique, configuration geometry and material compositions exist. The geometry and material composition uncertainties are the dominant uncertainties for ZPPR-15. A full uncertainty analysis was performed for each ZPPR-15 reference critical configuration. The significant uncertainties related to measurement technique, configuration geometry and material compositions were quantified, and a total uncertainty was derived for each reference critical configuration. The ZPPR-15 experimental records were used to create detailed as-built Monte Carlo models for the reference critical configurations established in ZPPR-15A loading 15, ZPPR-15B loading 88, ZPPR-15C loading 166 and ZPPR-15D loading 185. The as-built models neglect the small, non-uniform gap between matrix halves at full closure, any structures outside the matrix tubes and minor components, e.g., impurities, in some materials. The biases associated with the neglected items were quantified. The experimental value of keff and its associated uncertainty for each reference critical configuration were adjusted to account for biases introduced by items that are neglected in the as-built model for that configuration.

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗

DOE OSTI2023

Water-Weakening and Time-Dependent Deformation of Organic-Rich Chalks

Abstract The Ghareb Formation is a shallowly buried porous chalk in southern Israel that is being considered as a host rock for a geologic nuclear waste repository. Setup and operation of a repository will induce significant mechanical, hydrological and chemical perturbations in the Ghareb. Developing a secure repository requires careful characterization of the rock behavior to different loads. To characterize hydromechanical behavior of the Ghareb, several short- and long-term deformation experiments were conducted. Hydrostatic loading tests were conducted both dry and water-saturated, using different setups to measure elastic properties, time-dependent behavior, and permeability. A set of triaxial tests were conducted to measure the elastic properties and rock strength under differential loading at dry and water-saturated conditions. The hydrostatic tests showed the Ghareb began to deform inelastically around 12–15 MPa, a relatively low effective pressure. Long-term permeability measurements demonstrated that permeability declined with increasing effective pressure and was permanently reduced by ~ 1 order of magnitude after unloading pressure. Triaxial tests showed that water saturation significantly degrades the rock properties of the Ghareb, indicating water-weakening is a significant risk during repository operation. Time-dependent deformation is observed during hold periods of both the hydrostatic and triaxial tests, with deformation being primarily visco-plastic. The rate of deformation and permeability loss is strongly controlled by the effective pressure as well. Additionally, during holds of both hydrostatic and triaxial tests, it is observed that when water-saturated, radial strain surpassed axial strain when above effective pressures of 13–20 MPa. Thus, deformation anisotropy may occur in situ during operations even if the stress conditions are hydrostatic when above this pressure range.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2022

Multiphysics Analyses of the Bottom Components of the 3D Printed Transformational Challenge Reactor

This research presents multi-physics analyses on the bottom components of the Transformational Challenge Reactor (TCR) facility. These components include the bottom axial reflector and the steel exit cone. The bottom axial reflector is made of pure silicon carbide elements hosting helium cooling channels These elements are 3D printed and therefore can host any arbitrary shape of the helium cooling channels. The design of the bottom reflector considers the neutronics and thermo-fluid dynamics performances as well as the manufacturing process optimization. More precisely, the best design of the bottom reflector reduces neutron leakage by avoiding straight cylindrical helium channels that facilitate neutron leakage, minimizes the helium flow pressure drop, and reduces the number of 3D printed silicon carbide pieces. The exit cone steel structure collects the hot helium from the bottom fuel assemblies and channels the cold helium to the top of the fuel assemblies. The steel simultaneous contact with hot and cold helium flows sets a large thermal gradient. Different designs of the exit cone are proposed to reduce the steel equivalent stress from the helium thermal load. The multi-physics analyses have been performed using Ansys Fluent, Ansys Mechanical, STAR-CCM+, and Serpent computer programs.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗

DOE OSTI2025

Assessment of irradiation embrittlement effect on fatigue life of a pressurized-water reactor pressure vessel using the fracture toughness master curve approach

The reactor pressure vessel (RPV) is a critical structural component in pressurized-water reactors, and it is designed to withstand extreme conditions, such as high pressures, elevated temperatures, and prolonged radiation exposure. Ensuring RPV integrity is essential for the safe and reliable long-term operation of nuclear power plants, especially as aging mechanisms such as fatigue and irradiation embrittlement pose increased risks. Fatigue, caused by cyclic thermal and mechanical loading, can lead to crack initiation in localized high-stress regions. Simultaneously, neutron irradiation, particularly in the beltline region, progressively reduces fracture toughness, increasing susceptibility to brittle fracture. These combined effects of fatigue and irradiation embrittlement potentially impact the RPV structural integrity, necessitating fitness-for-service assessments. This study applies the fracture toughness master curve approach to evaluate the impact of irradiation embrittlement on RPV fatigue life. A coupled thermo-mechanical stress analysis identifies critical stress locations under normal service transients, pinpointing regions most vulnerable to fatigue crack initiation and growth. Stress intensity factors for postulated flaws at these locations are calculated, enabling an assessment of fatigue life under irradiated and unirradiated conditions. The results indicate that neutron irradiation embrittlement accelerates the conditions in which a critical crack can form and lead to failure, particularly at lower temperatures. The failure occurs where reduced fracture toughness limits the material’s resistance to crack growth. Axial cracks at nozzle corners are the most life limiting without irradiation, while circumferential cracks demonstrate longer fatigue lives. The findings highlight the importance of incorporating irradiation effects into fatigue life predictions to ensure the long-term structural integrity of RPVs.

22 - GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗

DOE OSTI2022

Hybrid Hydraulic-Electric Architecture (HHEA) for Mobile Machines (Final Report)

Traditionally, off-road mobile machines such as excavators and wheel loaders are primarily powered by hydraulics, and throttling valves are used to control their work circuits. In recent years, two general trends are towards more energy efficient systems and electrification. With electrification, both efficiency and control performance can be improved by the elimination of throttling losses and the use of high-bandwidth inverter control. Electrification is generally accomplished with Electro-hydraulic actuators (EHA) but they are limited to lower powered systems due to the high cost of electric machines capable of high power or high torque. This project proposes a new system architecture for off-road vehicles - Hybrid Hydraulic Electric Architecture (HHEA) to improve efficiency and control performance without requiring large electric machines. The widely applicable architecture combines hydraulic power and electric power in such a way that the majority of power is provided hydraulically while electric drives are used to modulate this power. In particular, HHEA utilizes multiple common pressure rails to transmit the majority of power and small electric machines to modulate the power. The energy-saving potential of the the HHEA has been validated for the work circuits of a variety of mobile machines, from small 5-ton excavators to medium sized 20-ton excavators and wheel loaders, and representative duty cycles to reduce energy input by 50-80% compared to the commercial state-of-art load-sensing systems. In addition, the corner power requirements of the electrical machines can be downsized by 85% compared to the EHA approach. Various tradeoff studies have also been conducted, including sensitivities to individual components performances, controllers, accumulator sizes, and variations of the system architecture etc. A control strategy has been developed to maintain or exceed the motion control precision compared to current systems. The motion control strategy consists of a nominal controller, based on a passivity-based backstepping design, and a transition controller, based on least-norn feedforward design. The nominal controller is used in between common pressure rail switches whereas the transition controller compensates for any disturbance that common pressure rail switchings inflict on the system. The control strategy has been experimentally validated on both a medium pressure (200bar) hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) testbed and a high pressure (300+bar) HIL testbed. An efficient and power-dense integrated electric-hydraulic machine consisting of an axial flux electric machine and a radial hydrostatic piston hydraulic machine has been designed, constructed and tested. The machine has an active material power density of 6.1kW/kg, a rated speed of 12500 RPM, and a design efficiency of 85%. This is among the highest power density electric machines using conventional materials. While the integrated machine was designed for modulating the hydraulic power within the HHEA, it can also be used in other applications.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

DOE OSTI2025

Structured light approaches in laser-based plasma diagnostics

There is a growing demand for plasma diagnostics suitable for industrial plasma reactors employed in semiconductor nanofabrication, especially relevant to microelectronics and quantum information systems. Such reactors typically have limited optical access and pose considerable diagnostic challenges, including intense background emission, significant thermal loads, and contamination of optical viewports. In this study, we outline research into structured light techniques (laser beams with tailored spatial, temporal, or phase characteristics) that effectively overcome these issues using laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) as an example. The focus of presented diagnostics is on ion kinetics analysis within an industrial plasma source, although this approach is broadly applicable to other plasma systems and diagnostic contexts. We present a confocal LIF implementation using an axicon-generated Bessel annular beam, achieving spatial resolutions of approximately 5 mm at a focal distance of 300 mm, with potential improvements to about 1 mm. This approach matches conventional orthogonal LIF performance but requires only one optical port. Wavelength-modulation LIF employs nonlinear laser wavelength tuning to measure spectral line derivatives, suppressing background emission and enhancing details of spectral line shape. Additionally, we present new results on applying vortex beams (laser beams carrying orbital angular momentum, OAM) for LIF measurements in an industrial plasma device. These measurements enable simultaneous axial and tangential velocity determination using a single laser beam and have been tested with xenon ion transition. Initial quantification of results was performed. Together, these structured-light approaches provide robust, background-resilient, multi-dimensional diagnostics for complex plasma environments.

Romadanov, Ivan [Princeton Plasma Physics Laborato↗

DOE OSTI2021

In-situ effect in cross-ply laminates under various loading conditions analyzed with hybrid macro/micro-scale computational models

In this article, multi-scale finite element analyses based on three-dimensional (3D) hybrid macro/micro-scale computational models subjected to various loading conditions are carried out to examine the in-situ effect imposed by the neighboring plies on the failure initiation and propagation of cross-ply laminates. A detailed comparative study on crack suppression mechanisms due to the effect of embedded laminar thickness and adjacent ply orientation is presented. Furthermore, we compare the results of in-situ transverse failure strain and strength between the computational models and analytical predictions. Good agreements are generally observed, indicating the constructed computational models are highly accurate to quantify the in-situ effect. Subsequently, empirical formulas for calculating the in-situ strengths as a function of embedded ply thickness and different ply angle between embedded and adjacent plies are developed, during which several material parameters are obtained using a reverse fitting method. Finally, a new set of failure criteria for σ 22 -τ 12 , σ 22 -τ 23 , and σ 11 -τ 12 accounting for the in-situ strengths are proposed to predict laminated composites failure under multi-axial stress states. This study demonstrates an effective and efficient computational technique towards the accurate prediction of the failure behaviors and strengths of cross-ply laminates by including the in-situ effects.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗