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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

Performance and wake flow characterization of a 1:8.7-scale reference USDOE MHKF1 hydrokinetic turbine to establish a verification and validation test database

As hydrokinetic turbine technologies continue to advance towards commercialization, public datasets on the performance characteristics for these devices and their flow field effects are invaluable to advance our understanding of these technologies and to validate analytical and numerical models. The Applied Research Laboratory at The Pennsylvania State University (ARL Penn State) collaborated with Sandia National Laboratories and the University of California at Davis to design, fabricate (at a 1:8.7 scale), and experimentally test a novel hydrokinetic turbine rotor design to provide an open platform and dataset for further study and development. The water tunnel test of this three-bladed, horizontal-axis rotor recorded power production, blade loading, the near-wake flow, cavitation effects, and noise generation. These state-of-the-art measurements demonstrate much of the complex physics associated with the flow through an unducted, horizontal-axis turbine, and they elucidate the performance characteristics and flow field effects at an unprecedented fidelity, accuracy and resolution. Measurements of powering coefficients (power, torque and thrust) as a function of tip-speed-ratio were performed. The dataset also includes unsteady measurements of driveshaft loading, blade strain, tower pressures, and radiated noise. Detailed flow mapping using laser Doppler velocimetry, and planar and stereo particle image velocimetry includes measurements of mean velocity and Reynolds stresses. Although the wake measurements are limited to less than half a diameter, they reveal the complex flow patterns in the near-wake structure of the rotor. The full database, available at the United States Department of Energy’s marine and hydrokinetic data repository, includes tunnel and model Computer Aided Design geometry files and inflow data sufficient for a “Model-the-Test” computational Verification and Validation study.

13 HYDRO ENERGY↗

Experimental Verification of Ir 5d Orbital States and Atomic Structures in Highly Active Amorphous Iridium Oxide Catalysts

In iridium oxide catalysts, the electronic states whose energies are in the range of energetics and charge transfer kinetics of the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) originate from the Ir 5d orbital states. However, the understanding of the atomic structures and orbital states underlying catalytic reactivity in amorphous iridium oxide oxygen evolving catalysts (Ir-OECs) is incomplete compared to that of crystalline oxides, owing to a lack of direct experimental verification. Here, we present experimental approaches using resonant inelastic X-ray scattering (RIXS) to directly access Ir 5d orbital excitations at the Ir L 3 edge and atomic pair distribution function (PDF) measurements to characterize electronic and coordination structures at the atomic scale. The so-called iridium blue layer (IrBL) and IrO x were formed from the organometallic precursor complex [Cp*Ir(H 2 O) 3 ]SO 4 and the inorganic precursor IrCl 3 , respectively. Ex situ IrBL and IrO x films for RIXS and PDF measurements were prepared by conditioning electrodeposited films at a low voltage. The incident energy RIXS profile of IrO x exhibited extra weak resonantly enhanced excitation below 2 eV energy loss. The feature was clearly different from a single high-energy excitation above 3 eV of IrBL related to the interband transition between π- and σ-antibonding states. The atomic structure refinement based on PDF measurements revealed the atomic structure domains to have edge- and corner-shared IrO 6 octahedra with trigonal-type distortion. Furthermore, density functional theory calculations guided by the refined atomic structures shed light on the electronic structure corresponding to experimental results, including insulating and metallic phases in ex situ IrBL and IrO x films, respectively. Our study establishes different Ir 5d orbital states and atomic structures in two amorphous Ir oxide OER catalysts in their reduction states.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Vision and Development of a Design, Implementation, and Verification Automation (DIVA) Software Platform for DNA Construction

Abstract DNA construction, while a prerequisite to many biological endeavors, is often a time-consuming distraction from an individual’s primary research objectives. We envisioned that with the right software infrastructure and cultural mindset, a single person could execute in parallel the batched DNA construction tasks of an entire research institute, at scales realizing efficiency gains through process and laboratory automation. In pursuit of this vision, we developed the Design, Implementation, and Verification Automation (DIVA) software platform. DIVA’s web interface enables researchers to design DNA constructs (using visual biological computer-aided design tools and biological parts repositories), submit designs for construction to dedicated staff, and track DNA construction as it progresses. DIVA supports the dedicated staff through the DNA construction process and records both successful and unsuccessful attempts toward improving the overall process. The platform is publicly available at public-diva.jbei.org and its open-source code through github.com/JBEI/DIVA.

Plahar, Hector [DOE Agile BioFoundry , , ,; DOE Jo↗

Theoretical Prediction and Experimental Verification of IrO x Supported on Titanium Nitride for Acidic Oxygen Evolution Reaction

Reducing iridium (Ir) catalyst loading for acidic oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is a critical strategy for large-scale hydrogen production via proton exchange membrane (PEM) water electrolysis. However, simultaneously achieving high activity, long-term stability, and reduced material cost remains challenging. To address this challenge, we develop a frame-work by combining density functional theory (DFT) prediction using model surfaces and proof-of-concept experimental ver-ification using thin films and nanoparticles. DFT results predict that oxidized Ir monolayers over titanium nitride (IrO x /TiN) should display higher OER activity than IrO x while reducing Ir loading. Further, this prediction is verified by depositing Ir monolayers over TiN thin films via physical vapor deposition. The promising thin film results are then extended to commercially viable powder IrO x /TiN catalysts, which demonstrate a lower overpotential and higher mass activity than commercial IrO 2 , and a long-term stability of 250 hours to maintain a current density of 10 mA cm -2 . The superior OER performance of IrO x /TiN is further confirmed using proton exchange membrane water electrolyzer (PEMWE), which shows a lower cell voltage than commercial IrO 2 to achieve a current density of 1 A cm -2 . Both DFT and in situ X-ray absorption spectroscopy reveal that the high OER performance of IrO x /TiN strongly depends on the IrO x - TiN interaction via direct Ir-Ti bonding. This study highlights the importance of close interaction between theoretical prediction based on mechanistic understanding and experimental verification based on thin film model catalysts to facilitate the development of more practical powder IrO x /TiN catalysts with high activity and stability for acidic OER.

08 HYDROGEN↗

Efficient verification of anticoncentrated quantum states

I present a method for estimating the fidelity F(μ, τ) between a preparable quantum state μ and a classically specified pure target state τ=|τ> <τ|, using simple quantum circuits and on-the-fly classical calculation (or lookup) of selected amplitudes of |τ>. The method is sample efficient for anticoncentrated states (including many states that are hard to simulate classically), with approximate cost 4ϵ –2 (1 – F)dpcoll where ϵ is the desired precision of the estimate, d is the dimension of the Hilbert space, and pcoll is the collision probability of the target distribution. Furthermore, this scaling is exponentially better than that of any method based on classical sampling. I also present a more sophisticated version of the method that uses any efficiently preparable and well-characterized quantum state as an importance sampler to further reduce the number of copies of μ needed. Though some challenges remain, this work takes a significant step toward scalable verification of complex states produced by quantum processors.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Verification of a fully implicit particle-in-cell method for the <!--${MathJax: TeX-AMS-MML_HTMLorMML}--> v &#x2225; -formalism of electromagnetic gyrokinetics in the XGC code

A fully implicit particle-in-cell method for handling the v ∥ -formalism of electromagnetic gyrokinetics has been implemented in XGC. By choosing the v ∥ -formalism, here we avoid introducing the nonphysical skin terms in Ampère's law, which are responsible for the well-known “cancellation problem” in the p ∥ -formalism. The v ∥ -formalism, however, is known to suffer from a numerical instability when explicit time integration schemes are used due to the appearance of a time derivative in the particle equations of motion from the inductive component of the electric field. Here, using the conventional δf scheme, we demonstrate that our implicitly discretized algorithm can provide numerically stable simulation results with accurate dispersive properties. We verify the algorithm using a test case for shear Alfvén wave propagation in addition to a case demonstrating the ion temperature gradient-kinetic ballooning mode (ITG-KBM) transition. The ITG-KBM transition case is compared to results obtained from other δf gyrokinetic codes/schemes, whose verification has already been archived in the literature.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Verification of a Monte Carlo binary collision model for simulating elastic and inelastic collisions in particle-in-cell simulations

We present the development and verification of a Monte Carlo binary collision model for simulating elastic and inelastic collisions in particle-in-cell simulations. We apply the corrected binary collision model originally developed for charged-particles collisions to all considered scattering channels, including Coulomb collisions, elastic neutral–neutral and charged–neutral collisions, ionization, excitation, and fusion. The model's implementation is described and verified through a series of simulations, including charged- and neutral-particle thermal equilibration, slowing of electrons in warm solid-density aluminum, collisional damping of a Langmuir wave, helium gas breakdown in an applied electric field, and thermonuclear and beam–target fusion. Then, we demonstrate the model within simulations of hydrogen plasma formation in the Princeton Field-Reversed Configuration as well as of the burning of aneutronic fusion fuel p-11B. The latter includes measurement of the fusion power density in a low-density plasma and fusion production due to the stopping of a proton ignitor beam in a compressed boron target.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Verification of electromagnetic simulation capabilities in global gyrokinetic particle-in-cell code GTS

Recently, the numerical scheme presented by Mishchenko et al. enabled explicit gyrokinetic simulations of low-frequency electromagnetic instabilities in tokamaks at experimentally relevant values of plasma β⁠. This scheme resolved the long-standing cancellation problem that previously hindered gyrokinetic particle-in-cell code simulations of magnetohydrodynamic phenomena with inherently small parallel electric fields. Moreover, the scheme did not employ approximations that eliminate critical tearing-type instabilities. Here, we report on the implementation of this numerical scheme in the global gyrokinetic particle-in-cell code GTS. This implementation allows for a more complete and accurate picture of interaction between small scale turbulence and MHD modes in tokamaks. Additionally, we present a comprehensive set of verification simulations of numerous electromagnetic instabilities relevant to present-day tokamaks. These simulations encompass the kinetic ballooning mode, the internal kink mode, the tearing mode, the micro-tearing mode, and the toroidal Alfven eigenmode destabilized by energetic ions, which are all instrumental in understanding tokamak physics. We will also showcase the preliminary nonlinear simulations of kinetic ballooning instabilities and (2,1) island formation due to tearing mode instability. These simulations validate the accuracy of the scheme implementation and pave the way for studying how these instabilities affect plasma confinement and performance.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Verification of the Shafranov shift in free-boundary VMEC, DESC, and SPEC calculations with elliptical geometry

Here, given a set of current-carrying filaments that create a magnetic field with rotating elliptical flux surfaces, we present verification calculations using the VMEC, DESC, and SPEC free-boundary magnetohydrostatic equilibrium codes for both the “vacuum” equilibrium, for which there is no plasma pressure and no plasma currents, and for a non-zero pressure, zero toroidal current equilibrium. For the vacuum case, these codes are quantitatively compared to the magnetic field produced by the coils. For the non-zero pressure case, they are compared to each other. As the stepped pressure profile used in SPEC approaches the continuous profile used in VMEC and DESC, the SPEC magnetic axis approaches the VMEC and DESC axes. To within an error given by the difference between the pressure profiles, the VMEC, DESC, and SPEC calculations give the same pressure-induced geometric shift of the magnetic axis, known as the Shafranov shift.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Simulations of muon imaging with the LANL GMT detector for spent nuclear fuel cask content verification

Atmospheric muons are typically high energy, highly penetrating charged particles. They interact with matter primarily through multiple Coulomb scatterings. Muon scattering intensities can be used to characterize the density and atomic number of the matter that they pass through. Previously, the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) muon tomography team performed muon imaging of the partially filled MC-10 spent nuclear fuel (SNF) cask at Idaho National Laboratory (INL). This experiment demonstrated the feasibility of muon imaging for the verification of spent fuel container contents. That original effort used the mini muon tracker array, consisting of two arrays of drift tubes on either side of the SNF cask. The reconstructed image quality was limited by statistics, largely due to low muon flux at high zenith angles. A LANL led team will perform new measurements with a larger array, the Giant Muon Tracker (GMT), to improve data collection rates and statistics. In this work, simulations were performed with the GMT near the partially filled INL MC-10 cask. For more general fuel diversion detection, a full MC-10 cask and casks with a singular missing fuel bundle were also simulated. To understand minimum measurement times needed for missing bundle identification, 100 000 to millions of tracked muons (corresponding to 1.4 days to several weeks measurement time) were analyzed. Simulated images were then analyzed visually and numerically to explore techniques designed to minimize the collection time needed to identify the diversion of fuel in each scenario.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

Verification of an energy-conserving semi-implicit electrostatic particle-in-cell scheme for modeling high-density plasma at scale

A verification study of a semi-implicit energy-conserving electrostatic particle-in-cell algorithm is presented. The algorithm relaxes the time-step and mesh-size constraints that require resolution of the plasma period and Debye length associated with traditional explicit momentum-conserving particle-in-cell algorithms. Physical implications and applicability of using the semi-implicit scheme for modeling high-density plasmas are discussed. Where possible, numerical results are compared against analytical solutions. The simulation results indicate that the algorithm is stable at time steps larger than twice the inverse plasma frequency and cell sizes larger than the Debye length. It is found that the algorithm gives adequate results, provided that the distribution function and the spatiotemporal scales dictating the physics of the problem are resolved. As such, the algorithm may provide a robust method for kinetic modeling of high-density plasmas at scale.

Cyclotron resonance↗

Verification and Validation of Spectral Element Code for Supercritical CO2 Flow in Vertical Heated Tubes

The investigation of heat transfer in supercritical CO2 (sCO2) has garnered considerable attention in recent decades, given sCO2's potential as a promising working fluid for advanced power conversion cycles. Despite previous research efforts, there are still gaps in our understanding of sCO2 heat transfer, particularly in conditions associated with heat transfer deterioration. To delve into sCO2 heat transfer more comprehensively, we propose employing the high-fidelity computational fluid dynamics code NekRS to simulate sCO2 flow using the large eddy simulation technique. Through graphics processing unit acceleration, NekRS achieves a higher computational speed than traditional CPU-based systems. However, before using NekRS in practical applications involving sCO2, it is imperative to perform verification and validation. Here, this paper presents our efforts to verify and validate the NekRS code's capability for simulating sCO2 using heated vertical tubes, where heat transfer deterioration usually happens. To accommodate the unique properties of sCO2, we have modified the NekRS code by integrating third-party property modules, such as REFPROP and PROPATH. Our simulations are compared with experimental and numerical data from the literature, instilling confidence in leveraging NekRS for future engineering applications. Our simulations also reveal that the accuracy of the property module significantly impacts the results, with REFPROP outperforming PROPATH for sCO2 properties. Additionally, we observed that, depending on the flow direction, buoyancy can either enhance or suppress turbulence in sCO2 flow. In upward flow, under certain conditions, the suppressed turbulence leads to heat transfer deterioration, resulting in elevated wall temperatures.

NekRS↗

Orthogonality broadcasting and quantum position verification

The no-cloning theorem leads to information-theoretic security in various quantum cryptographic protocols. However, this security typically derives from a possibly weaker property that classical information encoded in certain quantum states cannot be broadcast. To formally capture this property, we introduce the study of ‘orthogonality broadcasting.’ When attempting to broadcast the orthogonality of two different qubit bases, we establish that the power of classical and quantum communication is equivalent. However, quantum communication is shown to be strictly more powerful for broadcasting orthogonality in higher dimensions. We then relate orthogonality broadcasting to quantum position verification and provide a new method for establishing error bounds in the no pre-shared entanglement model that can address protocols previous methods could not. Our key technical contribution is an uncertainty relation that uses the geometric relation of the states that undergo broadcasting rather than the non-commutative aspect of the final measurements.

quantum cryptography↗

Verification of a quasi-linear model for gyrokinetic turbulent transport

The verification and calibration of a new quasi-linear transport model with a large database of gyrokinetic turbulence simulations is presented in this paper. In a previous paper (Staebler et al 2020 Plasma Phys. Control. Fusion 63 015013), a model for the saturated spectrum of electric potential fluctuations was developed based on the properties of the non-linear 3D spectrum. In this paper, a modification to the overall multiplicative factor in this model is found to be necessary to improve the fit to scans of the temperature and density gradients. The error in the fit of the quasi-linear fluxes of electron and ion energy fluxes is significantly better than for previous saturation models. The spectral shift model for the impact of equilibrium E × B velocity shear (Staebler et al 2013 Phys. Rev. Lett. 110 055003) and the zonal flow mixing model for electron-scale turbulence (Staebler et al 2016 Phys. Plasmas 23 062518) are both revised to be compatible with this new model. Furthermore, the models for the loss of bounce averaging and electron collisions in the TGLF reduced linear equations (Staebler et al 2005 Phys. Plasmas 12 102508) are also changed to improve the linear eigenmodes.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Verification and validation of linear gyrokinetic and kinetic-MHD simulations for internal kink instability in DIII-D tokamak

Here, verification and linear validation of the internal kink instability in tokamak have been performed for both gyrokinetic (GTC) and kinetic-MHD codes (GAM-solver, M3D-C1-K, NOVA, XTOR-K). Using realistic magnetic geometry and plasma profiles from the same equilibrium reconstruction of the DIII-D shot #141216, these codes exhibit excellent agreement for the growth rate and mode structure of the internal kink mode when all kinetic effects are suppressed. The simulated radial mode structures, obtained from linear simulations, are in reasonable agreement with the normalised electron cyclotron emission measurement after adjusting, within the experimental uncertainty, the safety factor q = 1 flux-surface location in the equilibrium reconstruction. Compressible magnetic perturbations strongly destabilize the kink, while poloidal variations of the equilibrium current density reduce the growth rate of the kink. Furthermore, kinetic effects of thermal ions are found to decrease the kink growth rate in kinetic-MHD simulations, but increase the kink growth rate in gyrokinetic simulations, due to the additional drive of the ion temperature gradient and parallel electric field. Kinetic thermal electrons are found to have negligible effects on the internal kink instability.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Verification of global gyrokinetic simulation of low frequency mode excited by thermal plasma in spherical tokamak

A low frequency Alfven eigenmode in the ST40 spherical tokamak (ST) is found to be resonantly excited by thermal ions from global gyrokinetic GTC simulations. The analyses of phase-space resonances and wave-particle energy exchanges show that the Beta-induced Alfvén-Acoustic Eigenmode (BAAE) is primarily driven unstable by thermal ions, but is stabilized by energetic particles (EPs). When all kinetic effects are artificially suppressed, GTC simulations in the ideal magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) limit confirm the existence of the MHD eigenmode with a frequency in the BAAEs gap, as previously found by the ideal MHD code NOVA. The kinetic effects of thermal ions induce a frequency downshift compared to the stable BAAE in the MHD simulations. These results support the verification for global gyrokinetic simulations of the BAAE in the ST. However, the simulations do not explain the experimental observations of the BAAE in the ST40, possibly owing to the limitation of the collisionless gyrokinetic Monte Carlo model for the EPs.

Alfvén eigenmode↗

Arrayed in vivo barcoding for multiplexed sequence verification of plasmid DNA and demultiplexing of pooled libraries

Sequence verification of plasmid DNA is critical for many cloning and molecular biology workflows. To leverage high-throughput sequencing, several methods have been developed that add a unique DNA barcode to individual samples prior to pooling and sequencing. However, these methods require an individual plasmid extraction and/or in vitro barcoding reaction for each sample processed, limiting throughput and adding cost. Here, we develop an arrayed in vivo plasmid barcoding platform that enables pooled plasmid extraction and library preparation for Oxford Nanopore sequencing. This method has a high accuracy and recovery rate, and greatly increases throughput and reduces cost relative to other plasmid barcoding methods or Sanger sequencing. We use in vivo barcoding to sequence verify >45 000 plasmids and show that the method can be used to transform error-containing dispersed plasmid pools into sequence-perfect arrays or well-balanced pools. In vivo barcoding does not require any specialized equipment beyond a low-overhead Oxford Nanopore sequencer, enabling most labs to flexibly process hundreds to thousands of plasmids in parallel.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

Exclusion and Verification of Remote Nuclear Reactors with a 1-kiloton Gd -Doped Water Detector

To date, antineutrino experiments built for the purpose of demonstrating a nonproliferation capability have typically employed organic scintillators situated as close to the core as possible (typically at a distance of a few meters to tens of meters) and have not exceeded a few tons in size. One problem with this approach is that proximity to the reactor core requires accommodation by the host facility. Water Cherenkov detectors located offsite, at distances of a few kilometers or greater, may facilitate nonintrusive monitoring and verification of reactor activities over a large area. As the standoff distance increases, the detector target mass must scale accordingly. This paper quantifies the degree to which a kiloton-scale gadolinium-doped water Cherenkov detector can exclude the existence of undeclared reactors within a specified distance, and remotely detect the presence of a hidden reactor in the presence of declared reactors, by verifying the operational power and standoff distance using a Feldman-Cousins-based likelihood analysis. A 1-kton scale (fiducial) water Cherenkov detector can exclude gigawatt-scale nuclear reactors up to tens of kilometers within a year. In conclusion, when attempting to identify the specific range and power of a reactor, the detector energy resolution is not sufficient to delineate between the two.

42 ENGINEERING↗