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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 235 records · Page 13

MPI-FAUN: An MPI-Based Framework for Alternating-Updating Nonnegative Matrix Factorization

Non-negative matrix factorization (NMF) is the problem of determining two non-negative low rank factors W and H, for the given input matrix A, such that A≈WH. NMF is a useful tool for many applications in different domains such as topic modeling in text mining, background separation in video analysis, and community detection in social networks. Despite its popularity in the data mining community, there is a lack of efficient parallel algorithms to solve the problem for big data sets. The main contribution of this work is a new, high-performance parallel computational framework for a broad class of NMF algorithms that iteratively solves alternating non-negative least squares (NLS) subproblems for W and H. It maintains the data and factor matrices in memory (distributed across processors), uses MPI for interprocessor communication, and, in the dense case, provably minimizes communication costs (under mild assumptions). The framework is flexible and able to leverage a variety of NMF and NLS algorithms, including Multiplicative Update, Hierarchical Alternating Least Squares, and Block Principal Pivoting. Our implementation allows us to benchmark and compare different algorithms on massive dense and sparse data matrices of size that spans from few hundreds of millions to billions. We demonstrate the scalability of our algorithm and compare it with baseline implementations, showing significant performance improvements. The code and the datasets used for conducting the experiments are available online.

2D↗

A Bayesian Approach to Real-Time Dynamic Parameter Estimation Using Phasor Measurement Unit Measurement

Here, we develop a polynomial-chaos-expansion (PCE)-based approach for decentralized dynamic parameter estimation through Bayesian inference. Using this approach, the non-Gaussian distribution of the inverted parameters is obtained. More specifically, we first represent the decentralized generator model with the PCE-based surrogate. This surrogate allows us to efficiently evaluate the time-consuming dynamic solver at parameter values through Metropolis-Hastings (M-H)-based Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC). Then, we propose a two-stage hybrid Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) to recover a posteriori distribution of the decentralized generator model parameters. In the first stage, we use the gradient-enhanced Langevin MCMC algorithm to characterize an intermediate posterior parameter distribution. This algorithm is computationally scalable to the high-dimensional parameter space. Based on the intermediate posterior distribution, during the second stage, we use the adaptive MCMC algorithm to fine-tune the strong correlations between the parameters. Finally, the fully recovered a posterior distribution is obtained in the end. The simulation results show that the proposed PCE-based hybrid MCMC algorithm can accurately and efficiently estimate the high-dimensional generator dynamic model parameters with full probabilistic distribution provided.

42 ENGINEERING↗

Petascale Hierarchical Modeling VIA Parallel Execution

The research allows more effective model building. By allowing researchers to fit complex models to large datasets in a scalable manner, our algorithms and software enable more effective scientific research. In the new area of “big data,” it is often necessary to fit “big models” to adjust for systematic differences between sample and population. For this task, scalable and efficient model-fitting tools are needed, and these have been achieved with our new Hamiltonian Monte Carlo algorithm, the no-U-turn sampler, and our new C++ program, Stan. In layman’s terms, our research enables researchers to create improved mathematical modes for large and complex systems.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

Smart Monitoring and Diagnostic System (SMDS) for Packaged Air Conditioners and Heat Pumps for Small/Medium Commercial Buildings: Preparation for Commercialization: CRADA 478 [Abstract only]

This project will enable Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) and industry partner, mCloud Technologies, to work collaboratively to ready the Smart Monitoring and Diagnostic System (SMDS) for commercial deployment and validate its performance under real-world conditions at field sites. This project will specifically focus on 1) implementing the SMDS algorithms in a scalable cloud-based software architecture, 2) designing new, innovative, complimentary commercial services based on the SMDS, 3) enhancing the SMDS energy and cost impact algorithms to reduce uncertainty in estimates, 4) determining the lower limits on SMDS performance degradation detection, 5) validating algorithm performance and default values of adjustable thresholds with existing data from controlled physical testing and from customer packaged air conditioners and heat pumps (commonly referred to as rooftop units or RTUs), 6) field testing to validate the system on multiple customer buildings in diverse environments, and 7) expanding field deployment to a larger set of mCloud’s customer buildings. Project results by validating, enhancing, and quantifying the performance of the SMDS will position mCloud, and potential future licensees, to implement the SMDS in commercial offerings that encourage and enable use of condition-based and predictive maintenance, leading to significant reductions in energy use and greenhouse gas emissions associated with space conditioning by RTUs. Furthermore, these enhancements will increase the value of the SMDS for users and increase the potential market for its use and impacts.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

A De-centralized Scheduling and Load Balancing Algorithm for Heterogeneous Grid Environments

In the past two decades, numerous scheduling and load balancing techniques have been proposed for locally distributed multiprocessor systems. However, they all suffer from significant deficiencies when extended to a Grid environment: some use a centralized approach that renders the algorithm unscalable, while others assume the overhead involved in searching for appropriate resources to be negligible. Furthermore, classical scheduling algorithms do not consider a Grid node to be N-resource rich and merely work towards maximizing the utilization of one of the resources. In this paper, we propose a new scheduling and load balancing algorithm for a generalized Grid model of N-resource nodes that not only takes into account the node and network heterogeneity, but also considers the overhead involved in coordinating among the nodes. Our algorithm is decentralized, scalable, and overlaps the node coordination time with that of the actual processing of ready jobs, thus saving valuable clock cycles needed for making decisions. The proposed algorithm is studied by conducting simulations using the Message Passing Interface (MPI) paradigm.

Arora, Manish↗

Distributed-Memory Parallel Symmetric Nonnegative Matrix Factorization

We develop the first distributed-memory parallel implementation of Symmetric Nonnegative Matrix Factorization (SymNMF), a key data analytics kernel for clustering and dimensionality reduction. Our implementation includes two different algorithms for SymNMF, which give comparable results in terms of time and accuracy. The first algorithm is a parallelization of an existing sequential approach that uses solvers for non symmetric NMF. The second algorithm is a novel approach based on the Gauss-Newton method. It exploits second-order information without incurring large computational and memory costs. We evaluate the scalability of our algorithms on the Summit system at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, scaling up to 128 nodes (4,096 cores) with 70% efficiency. Additionally, we demonstrate our software on an image segmentation task.

Eswar, Srinivas↗

Exploiting Redundancy and Application Scalability for Cost-Effective, Time-Constrained Execution of HPC Applications on Amazon EC2

The use of clouds to execute high-performance computing (HPC) applications has greatly increased recently. Clouds provide several potential advantages over traditional supercomputers and in-house clusters. The most popular cloud is currently Amazon EC2, which provides fixed-cost and variable-cost, auction-based options. The auction market trades lower cost for potential interruptions that necessitate checkpointing; if the market price exceeds the bid price, a node is taken away from the user without warning. We explore techniques to maximize performance per dollar given a time constraint within which an application must complete. Specifically, we design and implement multiple techniques to reduce expected cost by exploiting redundancy in the EC2 auction market. We then design an adaptive algorithm that selects a scheduling algorithm and determines the bid price. We show that our adaptive algorithm executes programs up to seven times cheaper than using the on-demand market and up to 44 percent cheaper than the best non-redundant, auction-market algorithm. We extend our adaptive algorithm to incorporate application scalability characteristics for further cost savings. In conclusion, we show that the adaptive algorithm informed with scalability characteristics of applications achieves up to 56 percent cost savings compared to the expected cost for the base adaptive algorithm run at a fixed, user-defined scale.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

Parallel k-means++ for Multiple Shared-Memory Architectures

In recent years k-means++ has become a popular initialization technique for improved k-means clustering. To date, most of the work done to improve its performance has involved parallelizing algorithms that are only approximations of k-means++. In this paper we present a parallelization of the exact k-means++ algorithm, with a proof of its correctness. We develop implementations for three distinct shared-memory architectures: multicore CPU, high performance GPU, and the massively multithreaded Cray XMT platform. We demonstrate the scalability of the algorithm on each platform. In addition we present a visual approach for showing which platform performed k-means++ the fastest for varying data sizes.

data clustering↗

Advanced Dynamically Adaptive Algorithms for Stochastic Simulations on Extreme Scales

The focus of the project is the development of mathematical methods and high-performance com- putational tools for stochastic simulations, with a particular emphasis on computations on extreme scales. The core of the project revolves around the design of highly e cient and scalable numer- ical algorithms that can adaptively and accurately, in high dimensional spaces, resolve stochastic problems with limited smoothness, even containing discontinuities.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

A FETI approach to domain decomposition for meshfree discretizations of nonlocal problems

We propose a domain decomposition method for the efficient simulation of nonlocal problems. Our approach is based on a multi-domain formulation of a nonlocal diffusion problem where the subdomains share “nonlocal” interfaces of the size of the nonlocal horizon. This system of nonlocal equations is first rewritten in terms of minimization of a nonlocal energy, then discretized with a meshfree approximation and finally solved via a Lagrange multiplier approach in a way that resembles the finite element tearing and interconnect method. Specifically, we propose a distributed projected gradient algorithm for the solution of the Lagrange multiplier system, whose unknowns determine the nonlocal interface conditions between subdomains. Several two-dimensional numerical tests on problems as large as 191 million unknowns illustrate the strong and the weak scalability of our algorithm, which outperforms the standard approach to the distributed numerical solution of the problem. Finally, this work is the first rigorous numerical study in a two-dimensional multi-domain setting for nonlocal operators with finite horizon and, as such, it is a fundamental step towards increasing the use of nonlocal models in large scale simulations.

42 ENGINEERING↗

Robust Localization of an Arbitrary Distribution of Radioactive Sources for Aerial Inspection - 18094

Radiation source detection has seen various applications in the past decade, ranging from the detection of dirty bombs in public places to scanning critical nuclear facilities for leakage or flaws, and in the autonomous inspection of nuclear sites. Despite the success in detecting single point sources, or a small number of spatially separated point sources, most of the existing algorithms fail to localize sources in complex scenarios with a large number of point sources or non-trivial distributions and bulk sources. Even in simpler environments, most existing algorithms are not scalable to larger regions and/or higher dimensional spaces. For effective autonomous inspection, we not only need to estimate the positions of the sources, but also the number, distribution and intensities of each of them. In this paper, we present a novel algorithm for the robust localization of an arbitrary distribution of radiation sources using multi-layer sequential Monte Carlo methods coupled with suitable clustering algorithms. We achieve near-perfect accuracy, in terms of F1-scores (> 0.95), while allowing the algorithm to scale, both to large regions in space, and to higher dimensional spaces (5 tested). (authors)

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

Accelerated Voltage Regulation in Multi-Phase Distribution Networks Based on Hierarchical Distributed Algorithm

Here, we introduce a hierarchical distributed algorithm to solve optimal power flow (OPF) problems that aim at dispatching controllable distributed energy resources (DERs) for voltage regulation at minimum cost. The proposed algorithm highlights unprecedented scalability to large multi-phase distribution networks by jointly exploring the tree/subtrees structure of a large radial distribution network and the structure of the linearized distribution power flow (LinDistFlow) model to derive a hierarchical, distributed implementation of the primal-dual gradient algorithm that solves OPF. The proposed implementation significantly reduces the computation loads compared to the centrally coordinated implementation of the same primal-dual algorithm without compromising optimality. Numerical findings on a 4,521-node test feeder show that the designed algorithm achieves more than 10-fold acceleration in the speed of convergence compared to the centrally coordinated primal-dual algorithm through reducing and distributing computational loads.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

Network-Level Optimization for Unbalanced Power Distribution System: Approximation and Relaxation

The nonlinear programming (NLP) problem to solve distribution-level optimal power flow (D-OPF) poses convergence issues and does not scale well for unbalanced distribution systems. The existing scalable D-OPF algorithms either use approximations that are not valid for an unbalanced power distribution system, or apply relaxation techniques to the nonlinear power flow equations that do not guarantee a feasible power flow solution. In this paper, we propose scalable D-OPF algorithms that simultaneously achieve optimal and feasible solutions by solving multiple iterations of approximate, or relaxed, D-OPF subproblems of low complexity. The first algorithm is based on a successive linear approximation of the nonlinear power flow equations around the current operating point, where the D-OPF solution is obtained by solving multiple iterations of a linear programming (LP) problem. The second algorithm is based on the relaxation of the nonlinear power flow equations as conic constraints together with directional constraints, which achieves optimal and feasible solutions over multiple iterations of a second-order cone programming (SOCP) problem. Finally, it is demonstrated that the proposed algorithms are able to reach an optimal and feasible solution while significantly reducing the computation time as compared to an equivalent NLPD-OPF model for the same distribution system.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

Variable Time-Step Implementation for Rapid Quasi-Static Time-Series (QSTS) Simulations of Distributed PV

Distribution system analysis with high penetrations of distributed PV require quasi-static time-series (QSTS) analysis to model the variability introduced on the distribution system, but current QSTS algorithms are prohibitively burdensome and computationally intensive. This paper proposes a variable timestep algorithm to calculate the critical time periods when QSTS simulations should be solved at higher or lower time-resolution and to backtrack for any critical periods that were missed. This variable time-step solver is a new method of performing timeseries simulations with high accuracy while performing the simulation more than 50 times faster. The scalability of the algorithm is demonstrated using a real utility distribution system model with thousands of buses.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

A Dissimilarity Measure for Clustering High- and Infinite Dimensional Data that Satisfies the Triangle Inequality

The cosine or correlation measures of similarity used to cluster high dimensional data are interpreted as projections, and the orthogonal components are used to define a complementary dissimilarity measure to form a similarity-dissimilarity measure pair. Using a geometrical approach, a number of properties of this pair is established. This approach is also extended to general inner-product spaces of any dimension. These properties include the triangle inequality for the defined dissimilarity measure, error estimates for the triangle inequality and bounds on both measures that can be obtained with a few floating-point operations from previously computed values of the measures. The bounds and error estimates for the similarity and dissimilarity measures can be used to reduce the computational complexity of clustering algorithms and enhance their scalability, and the triangle inequality allows the design of clustering algorithms for high dimensional distributed data.

Socolovsky, Eduardo A.↗