Search NASA⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search NASA

Results for “Feasibility”

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.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 217 records · Page 12
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2025

Feasibility of carbon foam-based sorbents for the abatement of gaseous mercury and iodine

The U.S. Department of Energy Hanford Site in Washington State is in the process of commissioning the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant to process a portion of the 54 million gallons of radioactive and chemical waste from cold war weapon production. Technologies for the capture of volatile species of concern are still being assessed, and new methods and materials are developed as operational and flowsheet mission risks are identified. One such area still being assessed is the abatement efficacy of the Carbon Adsorber units to retain gaseous mercury and 129 I released during processing. It is challenging to predict the mercury chemistry due to the variability of the feed, and different methods/materials are required for the capture of gaseous Hg 0 and Hg II compounds. In this study, the feasibility of using developmental carbon foam (CF) sorbents for the capture of iodine and mercury was assessed using static and dynamic flow testing and compared against a commercially available sorbent, BATII-37. Both CF and CF functionalized with bismuth particles (CF-Bi) chemisorbed iodine, and CF-Bi had similar mercury capture performance to BATII-37 in dynamic flow tests. While species loading concentrations were measurable, limitations in achieving a mass balance prevented a full evaluation of capture efficacy. Nonetheless, the results serve as an important first step in demonstrating the potential for simultaneous iodine and mercury capture.

Hanford site↗
DOE OSTI2025

Equitable Urban Electric Vehicle Charging: Feasibility and Benefits of Streetlight Charging in Kansas City Right-of-Way

With an increasing global emphasis on sustainability, electric vehicles (EVs) play a crucial role in reducing urban pollution and carbon emissions. For EVs to be widely adopted, equitable and convenient access to charging infrastructure is essential. Equity in this paper refers to the proactive engagement with the community to ensure that the benefits of streetlight charging are distributed equitably across diverse neighborhoods in Kansas City, providing fair charging opportunities and resources to all community members. This research explores the potential of utilizing streetlights—ubiquitous elements of urban electrical infrastructure—as low-cost, equitable EV charging solutions. Compared with conventional chargers, streetlight charging offers several notable advantages, including proximity to roadways, potential boosts to the local economy, and easier usage due to city ownership. These chargers also leverage existing power setups to minimize costs and maximize efficiency by reutilizing existing structures. In this manuscript, we introduce a systematic framework to develop, analyze, and evaluate a scalable and cost-effective streetlight charging solution. Initially, we employ a two-tiered site selection framework that accounts for both charging demand and equity considerations to identify optimal locations for streetlight chargers. We then assess the feasibility of these chargers through observational data from 23 units installed in Kansas City, Missouri, comparing their performance with traditional chargers. Here, our evaluation extends to the environmental impact, comparing reduced gasoline consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductions between streetlights and regular charging stations. Our findings reveal that streetlight charging stations offer faster charging speeds than conventional stations, validating their viability for EV charging. Additionally, the duration of stay at streetlight chargers tends to be shorter, likely due to parking constraints or associated costs. Furthermore, streetlight-powered chargers demonstrate considerable environmental advantages, achieving 11.94% greater avoided gasoline consumption and 11.24% higher GHG reductions compared with regular charging stations, highlighting their substantial environmental benefits.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2024

Feasibility and performance of the staged Z-pinch: A one-dimensional study with FLASH and MACH2

Z-pinch platforms constitute a promising pathway to fusion energy research. Here, we present a one-dimensional numerical study of the staged Z-pinch (SZP) concept using the FLASH and MACH2 codes. We discuss the verification of the codes using two analytical benchmarks that include Z-pinch-relevant physics, building confidence on the codes' ability to model such experiments. Then, FLASH is used to simulate two different SZP configurations: a xenon gas-puff liner (SZP1*) and a silver solid liner (SZP2). The SZP2 results are compared against previously published MACH2 results, and a new code-to-code comparison on SZP1* is presented. Using an ideal equation of state and analytical transport coefficients, FLASH yields a fuel convergence ratio (CR) of approximately 39 and a mass-averaged fuel ion temperature slightly below 1 keV for the SZP2 scheme, significantly lower than the full-physics MACH2 prediction. For the new SZP1* configuration, full-physics FLASH simulations furnish large and inherently unstable CRs (>300) but achieve fuel ion temperatures of many kilo-electron volts. While MACH2 also predicts high temperatures, the fuel stagnates at a smaller CR. The integrated code-to-code comparison reveals how magnetic insulation, heat conduction, and radiation transport affect platform performance and the feasibility of the SZP concept.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2024

Feasibility of an experiment on clumping induced by the Crow instability along a shocked cylinder

The growth of three-dimensional perturbations subject to the Crow instability along a vortex dipole resulting from the passage of a shock wave through a heavy gaseous cylinder is examined numerically. A linear stability analysis is performed based on geometric parameters extracted from two-dimensional simulations to determine the range of unstable wavenumbers, which is found to extend from 0.0 to 1.3 when normalized by the core separation distance. The analysis is then verified by comparison to three-dimensional simulations, which clearly show the development of the instability and the pinch-off of the vortex dipole into isolated vortex rings, which manifest as clumps of the original cylinder material. A scaling law is developed to determine the relevant spatiotemporal scales of the instability development, which is then used to assess the feasibility of a high-energy-density experiment visualizing clump formation. Specifically, a shocked cylinder with an initial diameter of 100 μm consisting of a perturbation of approximate wavelength and amplitude of 600 and 10 μm, respectively, is expected to form clumps resulting from the Crow instability approximately 40 ns after it is shocked, with dynamics which can be readily visualized on the Omega EP laser facility.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2025

Feasibility of Recycling Discharged Microreactor Heavy Metal in Light Water and Sodium-Cooled Fast Reactors: A Neutronics Analysis

Nuclear microreactors (MRs) offer unique advantages, such as rapid deployment, potability, low maintenance requirements, and operational flexibility. Their compact size makes them a promising solution for decentralized power generation, particularly in remote areas, military bases, and disaster-stricken regions. However, MRs face challenges, including unutilized fissile material at the end of life, economic inefficiency, increased heavy metal (HM) waste complicating disposal, and the accumulation of plutonium (Pu) with high 239 Pu concentrations raising proliferation risks. Here, this study investigated the neutronics feasibility of a novel three-stage fuel cycle where discharged HM from MRs is recycled and burned in light water reactors and sodium-cooled fast reactors. This approach converts discharged HM into valuable fuel, enhancing the efficiency of MR deployments while improving the safeguardability of their final waste products. Neutronics analysis demonstrated that the safety characteristics of reactor designs in each stage were minimally impacted by the proposed cycle. For two representative MR designs, a fast-spectrum MR with solid pellet fuel and a thermal-spectrum MR with TRISO (TRi-structural-ISOtropic) fuel compacts, the proposed fuel cycle reduced the uranium disposal mass flow rate by ~60%, decreased the 235 U enrichment of the discharge fuel to ~1 wt%, eliminated plutonium disposal, and increased the cumulative fuel burnup to ~580 gigawatt-day per metric ton of initial heavy metal (GWd/t-iHM) or 60% fissions per initial metal atom. Despite the significant differences between the two MR designs, the performance and infrastructure requirements of the developed fuel cycles were remarkably similar, indicating its generalizability to a broader class of MRs.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2026

Stacked reverberation mapping of high-redshift quasars in DESI. I. Feasibility analysis

The broad-line region of quasars has long been probed by reverberation mapping techniques that measure time lags between continuum and broad emission-line variations. Stacked reverberation mapping has been proposed as a less observationally expensive alternative to traditional methods. This ensemble approach also reduces biases from small-number statistics. The Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) is conducting the most extensive spectroscopic survey of quasars to date. We create mock light curves emulating expected DESI quasar observations at redshifts $1.48\lt z\lt 5.2$ and luminosities $44.68 \le \log \lambda L_{1350 \mathring{\rm A}{}} / \mathrm{erg\, s^{-1}} \le 45.99$ to test stacked reverberation mapping feasibility using sparse spectroscopic data paired with well-sampled photometric data. The pipeline, using the lag estimation code JAVELIN (Just Another Vehicle for Estimating Lags In Nuclei), successfully recovers the simulated C IV lags within 1σ of the true values using spectroscopic light curves composed of only a few spectral epochs (2–10) with irregular cadences. We investigate how observational factors, including C IV flux error magnitude, number of stacked quasars, and spectral epoch count, affect performance. This work motivates a pathway for future stacked reverberation mapping projects with large-scale spectroscopic surveys of quasars having $\ge 2$ spectroscopic observations. Our results suggest an economical alternative for constraining and extending the radius–luminosity relation to higher redshifts and luminosities. Subsequently, this relation can be employed more reliably in single-epoch black hole mass measurements and quasar cosmology in these distant regimes.

quasars: general, quasars: supermassive black hole↗
DOE OSTI2026

Toward virtual thin-beam 𝜈 cross-section measurements: A feasibility study of 𝜈-Ar interaction analysis with DUNE-PRISM

Neutrino-nucleus cross section measurements are critical for future neutrino oscillation analyses. However, our models to describe them require further refinement, and a deeper understanding of the underlying physics is essential for future neutrino oscillation experiments to realize their ambitious physics goals. Current neutrino cross section measurements provide clear deficiencies in neutrino interaction modeling, but almost all are reported averaged over broad neutrino fluxes, rendering their interpretation challenging. Using the concept of deep underground neutrino experiment-precision reaction independent spectrum measurement (DUNE-PRISM)—a movable near detector that samples multiple off axis positions—neutrino interaction measurements can be used to construct narrow virtual fluxes (less than 100 MeV wide). These fluxes can be used to extract charged-current neutrino-nucleus cross sections as functions of outgoing lepton kinematics within specific neutrino energy ranges. Based on a dedicated simulation with realistic event statistics and flux-related systematic uncertainties, but assuming an almost-perfect detector, we run a feasibility study demonstrating how DUNE-PRISM data can be used to measure muon neutrino charged-current integrated and differential cross sections over narrow fluxes. We find that this approach enables a largely model-independent reconstruction of powerful observables, including energy transfer, typically accessible only in electron scattering measurements, but that large exposures may be required for differential cross section measurements with few-percentage statistical uncertainties.

Neutrino interactions↗
DOE OSTI2024

Simulated Feasibility of 3-D Lightning Mapping From Space

In addition to the awe it inspires, lightning can illuminate the microphysical processes hidden away within deep convection. The current generation of space-based lightning mapping uses mostly 2-D optical imaging to connect overall flash characteristics to their parent storm dynamics, but are missing a dimension’s worth of information. With lightning now classified as an essential climate variable, future spaceborne mappers will need improved capabilities to take advantage of the 3-D structure of lightning flashes to support meteorological and climate modeling. We report here on a study of the feasibility of high-resolution 3-D lightning mapping using a radio frequency (RF)-based network of satellites from low-Earth orbit (LEO). Lightning sources are simulated using existing lightning mapping array (LMA) tools, modified for orbital detection, and spatially reconstructed using a Levenberg–Marquardt geolocation algorithm to assess sources of uncertainty in these solutions. We analyze the benefits and limitations of this approach compared to existing orbital and ground-based methods. Results of this study show that lightning can be mapped in 3-D with a vertical location accuracy better than 2 km using as few as five satellites in LEO capable of measuring the time-of-arrival of impulsive RF signals in the very high-frequency (VHF) band. The consequence of this study is that high-resolution, spaceborne 3-D mapping of lightning is achievable across most of the globe, having crucial implications for our understanding of not only lightning, but also severe weather development, climate science, and more.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
DOE OSTI2024

Technoeconomic feasibility of photovoltaic recycling

Abstract Photovoltaic (PV) modules are a key technology to aid the imminent transition from carbon‐based energy. End‐of‐life crystalline silicon PV modules produce a waste stream that is predominantly landfilled due to the recycling challenges associated with PV reuse economics. Current practices recycle the aluminum frame and repurpose the junction box but landfill the rest of the module. The primary challenge in recycling the remaining module is finding a technoeconomically viable method for separating the silicon and glass from the ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) layers. This issue will rapidly expand with time as it is estimated that flat glass production for solar panels is currently unable to meet the demand for PV. Current literature suggests that chemical, thermal, and mechanical delamination offer economically feasible solutions under ideal circumstances. In this work we evaluate these methods using end‐of‐life panels and assess the economic viability. The technoeconomic study presented here suggests the most economically viable option for disposing of end‐of‐life solar panels, given current technology, is landfilling. Thermal delamination may offer an alternative route in the future. Financial incentives, which can be quantified with this work, may be required to kickstart PV recycling to help bridge externalities around environmental impact.

Crespo, Beatrice↗
DOE OSTI2024

A Preliminary Feasibility Study on Multi-Cavity Cryomodule Integration for the Electron Ion Collider Energy Recover Linac Cooler

The Electron-Ion Collider (EIC) is a state-of-the-art accelerator designed for collisions between highly polarized electrons and ions. To achieve optimal luminosity, the ion beam is cooled using an electron beam sourced from an energy recovery linac (ERL). In the current ERL baseline design, one BNL type RF cavity is used per cryomodule, leading to spatial and cost challenges. This study examines the feasibility of using more compact PERLE (Powerful Energy Recovery Linac for Experiments) type cavities, which can house multiple cavities within a single cryomodule, by evaluating their Beam Breakup (BBU) instability performance. Higher Order Modes (HOM) parameters were obtained through frequency scaling, assuming constant quality factor Q_L, R/Q, and linearly scaling HOM frequencies. To predict the BBU threshold current and ensure accuracy, two different BBU tracking simulations are used for cross-verification. Although the reduced footprint of PERLE-type cavities is advantageous, maintaining sufficient damping of HOMs remains crucial. Finally, we compare the HOM damping efficiency of both cavity types and suggest a pathway forward.

Deitrick, K.↗
DOE OSTI2024

Review of Feasibility and Cost Drivers for Floating Offshore Wind Energy in Washington State

The state of Washington must double its clean electricity supply by 2050 to meet its clean energy goals and comply with the Clean Energy Transformation Act. With more than 6.6 GW of technical resource potential in federal waters where Bureau of Ocean Energy Management has leasing authority, offshore wind energy could play an important role in diversifying Washington State's clean energy mix, reducing dependence on out-of-state energy sources, and helping meet state decarbonization goals. Decision makers need technology-specific information to assist with long-term energy system planning, so the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management requested that the National Renewable Energy Laboratory provide an overview of several drivers of offshore wind energy feasibility and cost in Washington. This study summarizes some of the existing engagement efforts and perspectives on offshore wind energy in the region and quantifies the offshore wind resources in Washington as well as technology costs and performance of potential projects. Furthermore, this report reviews existing grid and port infrastructure and discusses infrastructure needs along with information gaps. This study also explores opportunities and barriers to Washington entities supporting the broader floating offshore wind energy supply chain along the U.S. West Coast. Note that this study is not part of a formal project planning process or official engagement effort, nor does it assess environmental or economic impacts from potential offshore wind energy development.

17 WIND ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2024

Energy Clusters Offshore: A Technology Feasibility Review

Globally, governments, companies, and other organizations have committed to achieving net-zero emissions targets in the coming decades. To achieve decarbonization at the scale and pace required to meet these targets, future energy systems will need renewable energy to serve 100% of the existing direct electricity demand, support additional electrification, and decarbonize the wider economy. An energy cluster offshore (ECO) is a concept that seeks to meet this challenge by integrating and optimizing large-scale renewable electricity generation, storage, and fuel production technologies and pairing them with other complementary uses, such as carbon capture or water desalination. This research project explores the techno-economic feasibility of ECO concepts by taking a holistic view of complex, multidisciplinary hybrid plant designs while considering different configurations and objectives. We will outline the most promising technology combinations and configurations, their functional requirements, and opportunities for optimization.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2025

Feasibility of an Accelerometer-Based Structural Health Monitoring System for the LANL Blast Tube

A modeling- and simulation-based study was conducted on the feasibility of implementing an accelerometer-based SHM system on the Los Alamos National Laboratory blast tube. A blast tube experiment was modeled using the Abaqus explicit finite element solver. A custom user subroutine was written to apply test-like pressure loading to the inside surface of the blast tube. The subroutine applies analytically defined pressure loads derived from tracer output taken from a Compressible Flow Computational Fluid Dynamics Solver model of the blast tube. Five unique versions of the model were created: an undamaged reference model at 65°F was used as the baseline and compared to equivalent models at 10°F and 100°F. These three models were compared to models with small damage at the reference temperature. The two types of damage considered were a radial (circumferential) crack in the main tube body and a longitudinal crack in the supports. Acceleration outputs were extracted from accelerometer bodies included in the model and were post processed using a variety of standard SHM techniques. Different potential features signaling failure were extracted and compared using statistical methods in the time and frequency domains. A method was identified that clearly shows that differences in structural response resulting from the modeled damage can be differentiated from the structural response resulting from changing environmental conditions. However, the amount of damage applied to create observable differences in the accelerometer data was so large that simpler methods of damage detection would be more cost effective in locating damage.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2025

Final Technical Report of a Feasibility Investigation of a Hydropower Flexibility Upgrade Kit

The project studied the feasibility of a concept for a flexibility upgrade kit called h-Dynamyk to improve the flexibility of U.S. hydropower plants and assessed its potential impact on the U.S. hydropower industry. This concept addresses the growing need for grid flexibility amid rising renewable energy adoption, such as wind and solar, which often introduce intermittency. The upgrade kit is intended to address challenges posed by aging turbine designs in meeting modern grid demands for flexibility services like frequency response, voltage control, spinning reserve, and black-start capabilities. Key features of the h-Dynamyk kit include siphon turbine assemblies, medium-voltage variable frequency drives (VFDs), and smart controls integrated with plant systems to optimize operations and extend equipment life. This nine-month discovery project successfully achieved its objectives by defining a baseline design and performance metrics for the h-Dynamyk flexibility upgrade kit, analyzing this baseline, and incorporating lessons learned from this analysis into a modified set of metrics and recommendations for future design and testing, which were further guided by field site studies.

13 HYDRO ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2025

Nine Canyon Long-Duration Energy Storage: A Feasibility Study

The Nine Canyon Long Duration Energy Storage (LDES) Feasibility Study explores the technical and economic viability of deploying advanced energy storage technologies at Energy Northwest's (EN) Nine Canyon (9C) Wind Project site in Benton County, Washington. Supported by the Washington State Department of Commerce and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Electricity under its LDES Voucher Program, the study represents a collaborative effort between EN, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), and ARES North America. At the core of this effort is the development of a generalized techno-economic modeling framework and evaluation tool designed to assess the value proposition of LDES projects across a variety of contexts. The modeling tool is technology-agnostic and accommodates user-defined parameters such as rated power, energy duration, round-trip efficiency, capital and operational costs, and dispatch constraints. It also integrates economic inputs, including market prices, energy revenue structures, and financing parameters to evaluate performance through key metrics. The tool provides utilities with a transparent, adaptable platform to support decision-making, investment prioritization, and portfolio planning for various storage technologies. To guide scenario design and interpretation, the study first surveyed the LDES technology landscape, including lithium-ion batteries, flow batteries, non-hydro gravity storage, and thermo-mechanical systems, comparing cost trajectories, technical performance, safety and hazards, materials sourcing and recyclability, and spatial/siting considerations. This literature-grounded review highlights technology trade-offs and reinforces the need to align technology choice with site characteristics, use cases, and project objectives. A companion chapter examines ownership structures (EN ownership, third-party ownership, shared models) and offtake options (energy marketing, capacity/energy PPAs, time-of-use PPAs, block-delivery PPAs, and tolling), where PPAs (power purchase agreements) represent contractual arrangements for buying and selling electricity. The chapter also highlights implications for risk allocation, capital access, operational control, and revenue certainty. The study also evaluates supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) and transmission interconnection pathways, options include upgrading the existing SCADA or deploying a dedicated LDES controller, with attention to protection schemes, data telemetry, cybersecurity, and regulatory coordination with BPA. In addition, an ARES-specific geotechnical and hydrology assessment presented in the appendix screens multiple corridors for slope stability, bearing capacity, cut-and-fill magnitude, and stormwater behavior.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
DOE OSTI2025

Craig Energy Center Feasibility Study

Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association Inc. (“Tri-State”) provides wholesale electric power to its member cooperatives and public power districts that collectively deliver electricity to more than a million consumers in Colorado, Nebraska, New Mexico and Wyoming. The Craig Power Station has been an integral part of Tri-State’s dispatchable generation fleet that ensures an affordable, reliable and resilient energy supply for its members. The ownership of the Craig Station Unit 1&2 is a collaborative between Tri-State, Salt River Project Agricultural Improvement and Power District, Platte River Power Authority, PacifiCorp, and Public Service Company of Colorado and is known as the Yampa Project. Tri-State owns all of Craig Unit 3 and is the operator of all three units. All three of the Craig units have planned retirement dates that will not extend beyond 2028 and Tri-State Generation wanted to evaluate carbon-neutral emitting technologies that could provide approximately 300 megawatts (“MWs) of capacity and energy that will be lost after Unit 3 ceases operation, as well as provide a similar level of economic benefits to the Craig community. This report is to serve as a technology feasibility study constrained to the current land area available at the Craig site and was conducted based on the limitations of the region.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
DOE OSTI2025

Western Regional Direct Air Capture Hub Pre-Feasibility Study

Chevron New Energies, a division of Chevron U.S.A. Inc. (Recipient), led a multi organizational team that included direct air capture (DAC) technology companies, an engineering firm, a university, and a grant administrator to explore the feasibility of a DAC hub initially focused on Kern County, California.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗