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

Regional Inertia Estimation Using Actual Event Measurements: Florida Case

As inverter-based resources’ integration in power grids increases, their uneven distribution across the electrical network leads to the formation of local regions that are weakly coupled to the larger interconnection. This signifies the necessity of regional frequency dynamics investigation and analyzing various inertia metrics. This paper presents a practical methodology for estimating regional rate-of-change of frequency (RoCoF) using actual event recordings, which is then used to evaluate regional inertia. Florida (FL) is selected as the region of interest due to its distinct regional frequency dynamics and the rising levels of solar generation. We identify and analyze confirmed events from 2017 to 2024 that occurred in FL. The results indicate that FL contributes about 14% to the total inertia of the US Eastern Interconnection, which approximately matches its share of generation capacity. Results also highlight seasonal fluctuations in energy generation, which play a significant role in influencing inertia and thus the RoCoF levels. This emphasizes the importance of estimating regional inertia to enhance grid operations for a future that focuses on distributed generation.

Dulal, Saurav [University of Tennessee, Knoxville ↗
DOE OSTI2020

Resilient Microgrid Scheduling Considering Multi-Level Load Priorities

In this paper, we propose a novel resilient microgrid scheduling model considering the multi-level load priorities. The resiliency of the microgrid is guaranteed by quickly adjusting the output of committed local resources and shedding the loads with low priorities when the power supply from the main grid is interrupted. Considering the uncertainty of renewable energy resources and loads as well as exchanged power at PCC, the probability of successful islanding (PSI) is used to quantify the resiliency of electricity supply for various loads with different priorities. Then, the multi-level priorities are enforced through chance constrains. Results of numerical simulation validate the proposed resilient scheduling model. In addition, the impacts of resiliency requirement of loads with high priority on the resiliency of loads with low priority are analyzed as well.

Liu, Guodong↗
DOE OSTI2022

The Economic Impact of Battery Degradation Modelling Uncertainty

Battery energy storage systems (BESS) are used for a variety of applications, with their economic benefit often being the decisive factor for deployment. A multitude of physico-chemical aging mechanisms lead to capacity fade over a BESS life cycle. The models that are used to describe this capacity fade are prone to inherent model errors. Through a holistic techno-economic modelling approach, we investigate the impact of battery degradation modelling uncertainty on the economic benefit of representative BESS applications. Here, it is shown how improved parameter fit quality can reduce the resulting economic uncertainty. Furthermore, we highlight that the consideration of degradation modelling uncertainty is especially crucial when: (i) the cash flow highly depends on the available battery capacity, (ii) a fixed, e.g. warranty mandated, state of health limit acts as the threshold for battery end-of-life, (iii) long evaluation periods and low discount rates are the focus of economic evaluation.

aging↗
DOE OSTI2024

CNN-Based Phase Fault Classification in Real and Simulated Power Systems Data

This study proposes a convolutional neural network (CNN)–based two-step phase fault detection and identification method to classify anomalies in the power grid signal. Specifically, the first step checks the fault’s existence and determines the need for the second step. Subsequently, in the case of anomalies in the power grid signal, the second step identifies the type of fault, including line-to-line, single-line-to-ground, double-line-to-ground, and triple-line. Accordingly, the CNN architecture is both designed for the classification layers and trained with simulated data. To provide maximum prediction accuracy with minimum processing time, this study investigates the combinations of various feature extraction (FE) techniques, such as fast Fourier transform (FFT), amplitude and phase (AP), auto-correlation function, power spectral density, and wavelet transform (WT). Consequently, simulated and real-world results demonstrate that the proposed two-step method outperforms conventional one-step techniques, with the best performance obtained by using the combination of AP-AP, AP-WT, FFT-AP, and FFT-WT–based FE methods.

Alaca, Ozgur↗
DOE OSTI2024

Historical Power Outages of the United States and the Social Vulnerability Index

Several works have been documented in the literature to study the societal effect of power outages and to analyze their correlation with the Social Vulnerability Index (SVI). Because the SVI is calculated based on the summed rank of multiple vulnerability factors for environmental hazards, it can include factors irrelevant to power outages caused by extreme events. This work performs a detailed correlation analysis for social vulnerability and power outages by considering different SVI themes (e.g., socioeconomic status, household composition, racial and ethnic minority status, and housing and transportation) and power outages with and without a threshold for extreme weather events. Although there is some relation between specific themes and aspects of power outages and the SVI in the results, there is no strong distinction between power outage durations and low vs. high SVI values. These results point to the need for further research that grounds the specific factors and methods used to develop SVI and related indices to energy services and power systems disruptions.

Bhusal, Narayan↗
DOE OSTI2025

Distributed Control and Optimization of Virtual Inertia in Power Systems

The integration of renewable energy sources into power grids through inverter-based resources (IBRs) reduces system inertia, leading to faster frequency dynamics and potential grid instability. This paper proposes a distributed, consensus-based approach for the real-time control and optimization of inertia sources during system disturbances, enhancing both system stability and economic performance. Furthermore, we integrate this approach with the traditional inertia placement problem, demonstrating its suitability for existing frameworks. We validate its effectiveness in a 4-bus test system and a two-area 8-bus test system, showcasing its potential for scalable, dynamic inertia management in low-inertia grids.

Yadav, Ajay [ORNL] (ORCID:000000016111881X)↗
DOE OSTI2024

Analysis of Historical Power Outages of the United States and the National Risk Index

Several works have been documented in the literature to study the societal effect of power outages and to analyze their correlation with the Social Vulnerability Index (SVI). However, the relationship between National Risk Index (NRI) and power outages is yet to be explored. This work analyzes the NRI indices such as Risk, Expected Annual Loss, Social Vulnerability, and Community Resilience with several resilience metrics such as event duration, impact duration, recovery duration, impact level, impact rate, recovery rate, recovery to impact ratio, and area under the outage curves to see the correlation of NRI indices with the resilience metrics. The results show that NRI indices such as Risk and Expected Annual Loss increase with the increase of event duration, impact duration, and recovery duration. All Other metrics are indifferent to the change in the Risk and EAL ratings. The results also show that there is no strong relationship between all the metrics and community resilience and social vulnerability. This work also performed the sensitivity analysis of the extreme event selection process. This sensitivity analysis reveals that the way of identifying extreme events has a significant impact on the evaluation of the events.

Bhusal, Narayan↗
DOE OSTI2024

Impact Study of Thunderstorms on the US Power Grid Using Publicly Available Datasets

This work analyzes the impact of thunderstorms on the US power grid based on publicly available data. Since thunderstorms can bring lightning, heavy precipitation, and wind storms, analyzing their impact on the power system provides a combined correlation of lightning strikes, floods, and wind storms on power outages. This paper leverages publicly available thunderstorm datasets from the National Weather Service (NWS) and power outage datasets from Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Environment for Analysis of Geo-Located Energy Information (EAGLE-I) to study the correlation between thunderstorms and power outages. This work is analyzing the patterns of thunderstorms from 2013-2022, which shows that the thunderstorms are not slowing down and will seem to continue their impact on human life in the future. This work also analyzes the monthly and yearly pattern of the impact of thunderstorms on power systems at the national, state, and county level.

Bhusal, Narayan↗
DOE OSTI2026

Understanding Regional Inertia Dynamics in CAISO from Real Grid Disturbances

The shift from synchronous generators to inverter-based resources has caused power system inertia to be unevenly distributed across power grids. As a result, certain grid regions are more vulnerable to high rate-of-change of frequency (RoCoF) during disturbances. This paper presents a measurement-based framework for estimating grid inertia in CAISO (California Independent System Operator) region using real disturbance-driven frequency data from the Frequency Monitoring Network (FNET/GridEye). By analyzing confirmed disturbances from 2013 to 2024, we identify trends in regional inertia and frequency dynamics, highlighting their relationship with renewable generation and the evolving duck curve. Regional RoCoF values were up to six times higher than interconnection-wide values, coinciding with declining inertia. Recent recovery in inertia is attributed to the increased deployment of battery energy storage systems with synthetic inertia capabilities. These findings underscore the importance of regional inertia monitoring, strategic resource planning, and adaptive operational practices to ensure grid reliability amid growing renewable integration.

Dulal, Saurav [University of Tennessee, Knoxville ↗
DOE OSTI2023

Detection of Grid-Signal Distortions Using the Spectral Correlation Function

This study proposes a novel method for signal detection and feature extraction based on the spectral correlation function, enabling improved characterization of grid-signal distortions. Our approach differs from existing treatments of signal distortion in its analysis of the varied spectral content of signals observed in real-world scenarios. The method we propose has state-of-the-art discriminative power that provides meaningful and understandable characterizations of various grid events and anomalies. In conclusion, to validate the approach, we use real world data from the Grid Event Signature Library, which is maintained jointly by Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗
DOE OSTI2024

The auxin efflux carrier PIN1a regulates vascular patterning in cereal roots

Barley (Hordeum vulgare) is an important global cereal crop and a model in genetic studies. Despite advances in characterising barley genomic resources, few mutant studies have identified genes controlling root architecture and anatomy, which plays a critical role in capturing soil resources. Our phenotypic screening of a TILLING mutant collection identified line TM5992 exhibiting a short-root phenotype compared with wild-type (WT) Morex background. Outcrossing TM5992 with barley variety Proctor and subsequent SNP array-based bulk segregant analysis, fine mapped the mutation to a cM scale. Exome sequencing pinpointed a mutation in the candidate gene HvPIN1a, further confirming this by analysing independent mutant alleles. Detailed analysis of root growth and anatomy in Hvpin1a mutant alleles exhibited a slower growth rate, shorter apical meristem and striking vascular patterning defects compared to WT. Expression and mutant analyses of PIN1 members in the closely related cereal brachypodium (Brachypodium distachyon) revealed that BdPIN1a and BdPIN1b were redundantly expressed in root vascular tissues but only Bdpin1a mutant allele displayed root vascular defects similar to Hvpin1a. We conclude that barley PIN1 genes have sub-functionalised in cereals, compared to Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), where PIN1a sequences control root vascular patterning.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2023

Quantitative Systems Modeling for Critical Infrastructure Predictions in Climate Change: A National Defense Framework

Any national defense is dependent on the efficacy of the available physical infrastructure. Whatever degrades infrastructure, structurally, physically, architecturally, or esthetically, is of interest to the nation. Climate change is now a major significant factor of interest impinging on national critical infrastructure. The devastating effects of climate change have increasing pervasiveness throughout the world. The impact on critical infrastructure is of particular interest to researchers. In consonance with ASCE-ASME's special issue on critical infrastructure protection and resilience, this paper presents a systems-modeling approach for critical infrastructure and predictions in relation to climate change agreements in COP26. The paper addresses high-level critical systems-based assessment of the social, legal, economic, and technical nuances impinging on the viability of COP26 agreements. The paper was written using a multinational collaboration approach. In conclusion, the specific focus of national defense is used as the backdrop for the methodology of the paper.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2022

Performance and characterization of the SPT-3G digital frequency-domain multiplexed readout system using an improved noise and crosstalk model

The third-generation South Pole Telescope camera (SPT-3G) improves upon its predecessor (SPTpol) by an order of magnitude increase in detectors on the focal plane. The technology used to read out and control these detectors, digital frequency-domain multiplexing (DfMUX), is conceptually the same as used for SPTpol, but extended to accommodate more detectors. A nearly 5× expansion in the readout operating bandwidth has enabled the use of this large focal plane, and SPT-3G performance meets the forecasting targets relevant to its science objectives. However, the electrical dynamics of the higher-bandwidth readout differ from predictions based on models of the SPTpol system due to the higher frequencies used and parasitic impedances associated with new cryogenic electronic architecture. To address this, we present an updated derivation for electrical crosstalk in higher-bandwidth DfMUX systems and identify two previously uncharacterized contributions to readout noise, which become dominant at high bias frequency. The updated crosstalk and noise models successfully describe the measured crosstalk and readout noise performance of SPT-3G. These results also suggest specific changes to warm electronics component values, wire-harness properties, and SQUID parameters, to improve the readout system for future experiments using DfMUX, such as the LiteBIRD space telescope.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2024

Observation of time-reversal symmetry breaking in the band structure of altermagnetic RuO 2

Altermagnets are an emerging elementary class of collinear magnets. Unlike ferromagnets, their distinct crystal symmetries inhibit magnetization while, unlike antiferromagnets, they promote strong spin polarization in the band structure. The corresponding unconventional mechanism of time-reversal symmetry breaking without magnetization in the electronic spectra has been regarded as a primary signature of altermagnetism but has not been experimentally visualized to date. We directly observe strong time-reversal symmetry breaking in the band structure of altermagnetic RuO 2 by detecting magnetic circular dichroism in angle-resolved photoemission spectra. Our experimental results, supported by ab initio calculations, establish the microscopic electronic structure basis for a family of interesting phenomena and functionalities in fields ranging from topological matter to spintronics, which are based on the unconventional time-reversal symmetry breaking in altermagnets.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2024

Attosecond impulsive stimulated X-ray Raman scattering in liquid water

We report the measurement of impulsive stimulated x-ray Raman scattering in neutral liquid water. An attosecond pulse drives the excitations of an electronic wavepacket in water molecules. The process comprises two steps: a transition to core-excited states near the oxygen atoms accompanied by transition to valence-excited states. Thus, the wavepacket is impulsively created at a specific atomic site within a few hundred attoseconds through a nonlinear interaction between the water and the x-ray pulse. We observe this nonlinear signature in an intensity-dependent Stokes Raman sideband at 526 eV. Our measurements are supported by our state-of-the-art calculations based on the polarization response of water dimers in bulk solvation and propagation of attosecond x-ray pulses at liquid density.

Science & Technology - Other Topics↗
DOE OSTI2023

Tracking C–H activation with orbital resolution

Transition metal reactivity toward carbon–hydrogen (C–H) bonds hinges on the interplay of electron donation and withdrawal at the metal center. Manipulating this reactivity in a controlled way is difficult because the hypothesized metal-alkane charge-transfer interactions are challenging to access experimentally. Using time-resolved x-ray spectroscopy, we track the charge-transfer interactions during C–H activation of octane by a cyclopentadienyl rhodium carbonyl complex. Changes in oxidation state as well as valence-orbital energies and character emerge in the data on a femtosecond to nanosecond timescale. The x-ray spectroscopic signatures reflect how alkane-to-metal donation determines metal-alkane complex stability and how metal-to-alkane back-donation facilitates C–H bond cleavage by oxidative addition. Furthermore, the ability to dissect charge-transfer interactions on an orbital level provides opportunities for manipulating C–H reactivity at transition metals.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2023

Time-resolved crystallography captures light-driven DNA repair

Photolyase is an enzyme that uses light to catalyze DNA repair. To capture the reaction intermediates involved in the enzyme’s catalytic cycle, we conducted a time-resolved crystallography experiment. We found that photolyase traps the excited state of the active cofactor, flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD), in a highly bent geometry. This excited state performs electron transfer to damaged DNA, inducing repair. We show that the repair reaction, which involves the lysis of two covalent bonds, occurs through a single-bond intermediate. The transformation of the substrate into product crowds the active site and disrupts hydrogen bonds with the enzyme, resulting in stepwise product release, with the 3′ thymine ejected first, followed by the 5′ base.

Science & Technology - Other Topics↗