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At least 199 records · Page 11

Schema Elements for Granta Annual Report: FY2024

Granta: Materials Intelligence (Granta: MI) is a commercial database software distributed by Ansys, Inc. that is utilized by the Nuclear Security Enterprise (NSE) to organize and store relevant materials data. Lack of standard and well-documented database schema is the primary obstacle to an NSE materials data management solution, so the objective of this project is to create and document such a schema. In FY21, an approach for designing, documenting, and managing a standard database schema was described based on the creation of schema elements (collections of attributes used to describe particular aspects of the data) to be used as building blocks for creating various database tables without duplication. In FY22, these methods were applied through a multi-site collaboration to create and document the schema elements necessary to build a thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) testing table. In FY23 the schema was expanded to include elements for a differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) table, along with schema for supporting metadata tables including Instruments, Projects, Documents, and Testing Series. In FY24 the following progress was made, again through multi-site collaboration: • The existing schema elements were modified to accommodate thermomechanical analysis (TMA) data, and a table, Test Data: TMA, was created for managing TMA data. • The elements necessary for the following additive manufacturing (AM) data tables (directed at data specific to selective laser sintering AM technology) were created: • AM Builds • AM Processes • AM Part Designs • Built AM Parts • AM Feedstock Materials • AM Feedstock Material Batches • The elements necessary for creating a Calibrated Material Models table were created, and the Calibrated Material Models table was created. In FY25 the existing schema will be deployed on the production enterprise Granta instance on the enterprise secure network. Schema elements will be appended, and new elements created as necessary, to allow the creation of tables specifically to support materials testing, AM process development, and design and analysis for modernization programs.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

2024 Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Annual Report

This report provides an overview of the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) user facility and a sample of achievements for fiscal year 2024 (FY2024). Strong collaborations between nine DOE national laboratories enable ARM to successfully operate in remote locations around the world. This unique partnership supports the DOE mission to provide for the energy security of the nation. Without the support of the following laboratories, ARM would not be the state-of-the-art facility that it is today. ARM is a multi-laboratory, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science user facility and a key contributor to national and international atmospheric and climate research efforts. ARM offers scientists cutting-edge, ground-based observatories, aerial observation capabilities, and high-performance computing. ARM’s capabilities have enabled more than 30 years of continuous measurements of cloud and aerosol properties and their effects on Earth’s energy balance.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Weapon Material Program: FY24 Annual Report

The Weapon Material Program (WMP) framework was started in July of Fiscal Year (FY) 2022, along with other Mission Support organizations. The first year was about building the organization with the right people, identifying needs, and developing a vision for expectations. It was also a year to move forward with new equipment and technology for weapon material processes. With numerous improvements, WMP is building world-class systems for production, warehousing, and analytical testing. FY 2023 was a year of development. The WMP was a new organization defining its identity, its focus, and its mission. At the end of FY 2023, WMP evaluated its current position and its immediate needs along with its future goals. The entire organization set out on this FY 2024 journey to success. The lack of funding, staffing, and visibility dramatically impacted weapon material operations, testing, and qualifications. This neglect required numerous areas to be addressed and improvement plans to be developed and implemented. WMP processes, procedures, and overall business operations were dramatically in need of updating, revision, and formal documentation. This included all areas: technology, equipment, facility modifications/upgrades, and testing improvements. To ensure organizational improvement and forward momentum in FY 2024, WMP executed a multi-faceted strategic vision. Action items included the following: • Filling open positions with capable personnel who would contribute to a more robust organization • Establishing more formal operations and problem-solving techniques • Improving departmental procedures to align with expanding scope • Improving training • Establishing collaboration meetings with other departments/organizations • Focusing on the importance of identifying and mitigating concerns with At-Risk Materials (@RM) • Leading modernization eff orts for Blending and Packaging (B&P) We are on the verge of a transformational improvement in all of our processes in support of the mission. The following area achievements outlined in this report reflect the hard work toward achieving the goal of “being the material Subject Matter Experts in the nuclear enterprise”.

45 MILITARY TECHNOLOGY, WEAPONRY, AND NATIONAL DEF↗

Electric Drive Technologies Research: ELT223 Component Modeling, Co-Optimization, and Trade-Space Evaluation Annual Report

This project is intended to support the development of new traction drive systems that meet the targets of 100 kW/L for power electronics and 50 kW/L for electric machines with reliable operation to 300,000 miles. To meet these goals, new designs must be identified that make use of state-of-the-art and next-generation electronic materials and design methods. Designs must exploit synergies between components, for example converters designed for high-frequency switching using wide band gap (WBG) devices and ceramic capacitors. This project included: (1) a survey of available technologies; (2) investigating new technologies, that for example, reduce volume of thermal management or magnetic components; (3) the development of computer aided design tools that consider the converter volume, reliability, and electrical performance; (4) exercising the design software to evaluate performance gaps and predict the impact of certain technologies and design approaches, i.e. GaN semiconductors, ceramic capacitors, ceramic thermal management components, and select topologies; (5) building and testing hardware prototypes to validate models and concepts. The design tools enable co-optimization of the power module and passive elements and provide some design guidance. At the end of the project, new advanced computing methods, such as machine learning approaches, were considered.

33 ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗

RESEARCH Laboratory Directed Research & Development FY24 Annual Report

Sandia is a federally funded research and development center (FFRDC) focused on developing and applying advanced science and engineering capabilities to mitigate national security threats. This is accomplished through the exceptional staff leading research at the Labs and partnering with universities and companies. Sandia’s LDRD program aims to maintain the scientific and technical vitality of the Labs and to enhance the Labs’ ability to address future national security needs. The program funds foundational, leading-edge discretionary research projects that cultivate and utilize core science, technology, and engineering (ST&E) capabilities. Per Congressional intent (P.L. 101-510) and Department of Energy (DOE) guidance (DOE Order 413.2C, Chg 1), Sandia’s LDRD program is crucial to maintaining the nation’s scientific and technical vitality.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗

Investigation of encapsulin nanocompartment systems as a scaffold for biomaterials synthesis in Rhodococcus species (Annual Report 2025)

Engineered protein compartmentalization systems hold significant promise to enhance reaction efficiencies through co-localization, concentration, and sequestration of biosynthetic pathways. As such, they have the potential to enable the bioproduction of next generation bioproducts and biomaterials in genetically engineered microbes in support of DOE’s mission to build a strong bioeconomy. Among systems of particular interest are protein nanocompartment systems called encapsulins that are natively produced by a variety of bacteria including those with a high potential for bioproduction. This ECRP project is focused on understanding how encapsulins can be used to enhance the biosynthesis of next-generation biomaterials in Rhodococcus species. Specifically, we seek: (1) to probe the mechanistic basis for how these compartments are regulated, biosynthesized, and maintained, and (2) to engineer these systems to achieve new biosynthetic functions (e.g., alkene, inorganic nanoparticle biosynthesis). We anticipate that this work will establish encapsulin compartmentalization systems as a means of improving yields and enabling biosynthetic routes toward new biomaterials, thus advancing the U.S. bioeconomy.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Annual Report for CY2024: Regulation for Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Gas-Insulated Equipment

This report is in response to the “Regulation for Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Gas Insulated Equipment (GIE),” Section 95355, Title 17, California Code of Regulations. This report includes GIE at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Site 200, located in Livermore, CA, and Site 300, located 10 miles west of the City of Tracy, in San Joaquin County.

42 ENGINEERING↗

2024 Second Half Semi Annual Report: Modeling plasticity-mediated flow in metals with pressurized cavities

The objective is to better predict the bulk-scale mechanical behavior of porous metals that have over pressurized cavities (e.g., irradiated metals with helium bubbles) by quantifying the complex coupling among cavity aspects (e.g., size distribution, inhomogeneous overpressure values, spatial arrangement) and metal properties (e.g., rate-dependency, crystallographic lattice). This requires up-scaling local mechanical fields from the single crystal scale and will be accomplished using a homogenization approach that combines full-field numerical simulations, analytical formalisms, and physics-informed machine learning to produce symbolically-defined constitutive equations (e.g., gauge functions). These equations will satisfy the objective because they enable computationally efficient predictions that approach the accuracy of computationally expensive full-field numerical simulations, abide by theoretical requirements (e.g., conservation of energy, work conjugacy), and retain the transparency of analytical models.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

2024 Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) Annual Report

This summary report provides an overview of all LDRD projects at Argonne National Laboratory that concluded in Fiscal Year 2024. Many projects are funded for multiple years, the fiscal year for each project is indicated by the first four digits of the LDRD project number.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗

Electric Grid Security (EGS) FY24 Annual Report

Sandia’s Electric Grid Security program advances a national vision of a secure, resilient, and affordable electric system for all users. Our achievements reflect a strategic approach combining technology development; modeling, simulation, and data analytics; and partnered demonstrations and outreach to further the adoption of advanced grid and storage technologies. Our FY24 efforts leverage the strengths of our partnerships—spanning Sandia’s core science and technology competencies as well as external technology leaders—to develop the solutions today which enable the grid of tomorrow. Key accomplishments in this report that support our strategy span our technical program areas and include: • The advancement of energy storage technologies, including creation of a national Long Duration Energy Storage Consortium; • Applications of artificial intelligence and machine learning to enhanced grid operations and planning; • Development of solid-state power conversion technologies and a new medium-voltage research lab; • New technologies to assess wildfire vulnerabilities and mitigate potential impacts; • Advanced applications of new cybersecurity technologies with industry partners; • Contributions to understanding the impacts of electromagnetic pulses and geomagnetic disturbances on grid components; and • Digital twin development for hybrid microgrids with multiple generators, storage, and loads.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

2025 Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Annual Report

ARM is a multi-laboratory, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science user facility and a key contributor to atmospheric research efforts. For more than 30 years, ARM has supported the DOE and Office of Science missions by providing atmospheric observations to enable scientific discovery, transform our understanding of the atmosphere, and evaluate and improve the accuracy of atmospheric models. ARM’s cutting-edge capabilities for scientists include continuously operating ground-based observatories, aerial observation platforms, and high performance computing.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Annual Report on NCSP Technical Support task in BNL during FY25

This work reports on the investigations done during FY 25 in collaboration with one 2025 Summer undergraduate intern through the DOE SULI program. These efforts were partially funded by the Nuclear Criticality Safety Program through the Technical Support Succession Plan task. This project, developed by Matthew Molnar, aimed to apply the BNL’s machine-learning code to correct spin mis-assignments in neutron resonances, the Bayesian Resonance Reclassifier (BRR), to the odd-even nucleus 143 Nd. For this, the handling of spingroup classification had to be further investigated and improved.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

LDRD 2024 Annual Report: Laboratory Directed Research and Development Program Activities

One fundamental question underlying all living organisms is the need to understand their hierarchical organizations and physical changes with the necessary spatial and temporal resolutions under physiological or pathological conditions. This is a multi-scale challenge requiring imaging from sub-nanometers to micrometers in a cellular context. While individual imaging techniques are available, there is a critical need to integrate them into a workflow capability. Our objective is to develop an integrated multi-disciplinary and multi-scale bioimaging capability at Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL). The capability expands BNL’s existing facility operation program in bioimaging and positions BNL in a leadership position in bioimaging research. The capability also addresses the grand challenges of the Department of Energy (DOE) science programs for national bioenergy sustainability and security.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗

A&L Annual Report: GRM-MAPS

Exploding Bridge Wire (EBW) is an important design for initiating detonators relevant to several LLNL systems. In such designs, a metal bridge wire is in direct contact with a porous secondary high explosive (HE), typically pressed to around 50% of its crystalline density. Initiation is believed to occur through shock waves generated when the bridge wire is made to explode via the rapid passing of a strong current pulse. Permeametry is an important characterization tool for the porous powdered HE (PETN, HMX, etc.) component in such devices. Such powders are well known to coarsen with age, with an accompanying deterioration in performance, which includes increased function time and sensitivity. Among various material characteristics, one that has been shown to correlate the most with such performance parameters is the flow-permeable surface area (FSSA), measured using air-permeametry. Commercially available permeametry apparatuses, such as that from Fisher Scientific or a more modern version from Micromeritics suffer from a few drawbacks, most notably as related to monitoring age-related changes in FSSA. This is because it requires re-compaction of the aged powder into the permeametry tube, which in most cases leads to an unwanted increase in FSSA. To address this and a few other shortcomings, we have been developing a modern version of the permeameter, Gee-Reinstein-Maiti Modern Air-Permeametry System (GRM-MAPS). In this report, we summarize progress made in FY25 toward perfecting and calibrating the instrument, which we aim at deploying within surveillance in FY26.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

A&L Annual Report: Kapton Strength

Exploding Foil Initiator (EFI) systems function by launching a polymer flyer (often referred to as a slapper) at a high explosive (HE) pellet, which is intended to shock-initiate the HE. Flyer characteristics (e.g., shape, planarity, etc.) are extremely important in this respect, governing their ability to initiate the HE. Polymer models currently used in these systems are largely unvalidated, potentially compromising the integrity of magneto-hydrodynamic (MHD) predictions of EFI function. An improved EFI MHD modelling capability is expected to: (1) expedite optimization of EFI-based initiation system design, (2) enable consideration of EFI-related aging and corresponding lifetime predictions, and (3) potentially minimize the number of costly experiments required to certify EFI designs. To address this knowledge gap, several years ago we began a computational project to develop a higher-fidelity model for Kapton, a Polyimide copolymer most commonly employed as the flyer material in EFI devices.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗