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DOE OSTI2023

Marine energy converters: Potential acoustic effects on fishes and aquatic invertebrates

The potential effects of underwater anthropogenic sound and substrate vibration from offshore renewable energy development on the behavior, fitness, and health of aquatic animals is a continuing concern with increased deployments and installation of these devices. Initial focus of related studies concerned offshore wind. However, over the past decade, marine energy devices, such as a tidal turbines and wave energy converters, have begun to emerge as additional, scalable renewable energy sources. Because marine energy converters (MECs) are not as well-known as other anthropogenic sources of potential disturbance, their general function and what is known about the sounds and substrate vibrations that they produce are introduced. Furthermore, while most previous studies focused on MECs and marine mammals, this paper considers the potential of MECs to cause acoustic disturbances affecting nearshore and tidal fishes and invertebrates. In particular, the focus is on particle motion and substrate vibration from MECs because these effects are the most likely to be detected by these animals. Finally, an analysis of major data gaps in understanding the acoustics of MECs and their potential impacts on fishes and aquatic invertebrates and recommendations for research needed over the next several years to improve understanding of these potential impacts are provided.

16 TIDAL AND WAVE POWER↗

DOE OSTI2024

Williston Basin CORE-CM Initiative Final Report

The University of North Dakota Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC) is leading the Williston Basin Carbon Ore, Rare Earth, and Critical Minerals (CORE-CM) Initiative to drive the expansion and transformation of coal and coal-based resource usage within the Williston Basin to produce rare-earth elements (REEs), CMs, and nonfuel carbon-based products (CBPs). This project is the first phase in a long-term program and set the stage for future work by assessing resource, market, technology, and infrastructure knowledge; identifying knowledge gaps; developing a series of plans to be carried out in future work; and initiating stakeholder engagement. Composed of several tasks, the project sought to identify, characterize, and assess several necessary aspects vital to make this future work a reality. The project’s fundamental task was to characterize the Williston Basin CORE-CM resources. Over 2500 samples from multiple sources were utilized to begin the assessment. Several locations were identified in western North Dakota where sample analysis identified the total REE (TREE) concentration as being over 500 parts per million (ppm), which is at a concentration level that would be suitable to consider for mining and extraction. Current operating coal mines have sufficient concentrations of TREEs for consideration. However, the current data across the basin are still not adequate to fully characterize REE and CM content nor give reliable estimates of the total resource potential. Waste stream reuse was also considered, and several streams were identified which ranged from potential energy sources to chemicals to material wastes. This includes streams that result from oil and gas production. These streams are not fully characterized, and further data are needed before they can be accurately assessed. Infrastructure within the Williston Basin is suitable for expansion of a new industry to mine, extract, and concentrate REEs and CMs. The development of this industry will not only preserve many existing jobs in the coal-mining industry but produce many new jobs. The supply chain for REEs and CMs is currently controlled outside of the United States in nations such as China, but the potential to develop the supply chain within the basin is considered possible. Processing of the mined materials for REEs and CMs needs further research. The technology and knowhow exist outside of the United States, and within the country much of the knowledge has been lost and must be regained. To develop the supply chain and regain lost processing technology, the creation of technology innovation centers (TICs) is crucial. The Williston Basin contains several similar centers and entrepreneurial assistance for other industries that can be applied in the development of REE and CM innovation centers. Education to develop the new skill sets required is also needed. Outreach is important for the development of the REE and CM industry within the basin. Understanding throughout federal and state governments, state agencies, industry, and resource end users is vital for the industry to form and grow. Through this project these groups have been contacted through bulletins, presentations, webinars, and annual symposiums. The report is a summary of the work conducted and throughout refers to a series of appendixes which contain more thorough and specific information about each section.

01 COAL, LIGNITE, AND PEAT↗

DOE OSTI2025

Effect of Time Window and Spectral Measurement Options on Empirical Green’s Function Analysis Using DAS Array and Seismic Stations

The recorded seismic waveform is a convolution of event source term, path term, and station term. Removing high-frequency attenuation due to path effect is a challenging problem. Empirical Green’s function (EGF) method uses nearly collocated small earthquakes to correct the path and station terms for larger events recorded at the same station. However, this method is subject to variability due to many factors. Here, we focus on three events that were well recorded by the seismic network and a rapid response distributed acoustic sensing (DAS) array. Using a suite of high-quality EGF events, we assess the influence of time window, spectral measurement options, and types of data on the spectral ratio and relative source time function (RSTF) results. Increased number of tapers (from 2 to 16) tends to increase the measured corner frequency and reduce the source complexity. Extended long time window (e.g., 30 s) tends to produce larger variability of corner frequency. The multitaper algorithm that simultaneously optimizes both target and EGF spectra produces the most stable corner-frequency measurements. The stacked spectral ratio and RSTF from the DAS array are more stable than two nearby seismic stations, and are comparable to stacked results from the seismic network, suggesting that DAS array has strong potential in source characterization.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2022

Comparative metabolomic analysis reveals shared and unique chemical interactions in sponge holobionts

Sponges are ancient sessile metazoans, which form with their associated microbial symbionts a complex functional unit called a holobiont. Sponges are a rich source of chemical diversity; however, there is limited knowledge of which holobiont members produce certain metabolites and how they may contribute to chemical interactions. To address this issue, we applied non-targeted liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) and gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS) to either whole sponge tissue or fractionated microbial cells from six different, co-occurring sponge species. Several metabolites were commonly found or enriched in whole sponge tissue, supporting the notion that sponge cells produce them. These include 2-methylbutyryl-carnitine, hexanoyl-carnitine and various carbohydrates, which may be potential food sources for microorganisms, as well as the antagonistic compounds hymenialdisine and eicosatrienoic acid methyl ester. Metabolites that were mostly observed or enriched in microbial cells include the antioxidant didodecyl 3,3'-thiodipropionate, the antagonistic compounds docosatetraenoic acid, and immune-suppressor phenylethylamide. This suggests that these compounds are mainly produced by the microbial members in the sponge holobiont, and are potentially either involved in inter-microbial competitions or in defenses against intruding organisms. This study shows how different chemical functionality is compartmentalized between sponge hosts and their microbial symbionts and provides new insights into how chemical interactions underpin the function of sponge holobionts.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2021

A review of rare earth elements and yttrium in coal ash: Content, modes of occurrences, combustion behavior, and extraction methods

Rare earth elements and yttrium (REY) have attracted considerable attention over the last decade because of their vital roles in clean energy, consumer product, national defense and security applications, among other uses. Due to the retention of REY during coal burning, coal combustion ash is considered as potential alternative sources for REY. Understanding the content, speciation, retention and/or transformation behavior of REY during coal combustion not only expands our knowledge of the combustion behavior of the trace elements in coal, but also provides basis for modeling REY partitioning during coal combustion and for developing economically viable REY recovery technologies. This review makes a critical summary of recent progress in the study of REY in coal ash. The contents and the extraction potentials of REY in coal ash derived from 15 major coal-producing countries worldwide were summarized and evaluated. Various analytical methods for determining REY bulk contents and speciation, together with the solid sample pretreatment, analytical accuracy and precision, advantages and disadvantages were summarized and compared. Modern analytical approaches combined indirect methods (e.g., sequential extraction) shed light on the physical distribution, mineralogy, and the chemical state of REY in coal ash. Three types of REY occurrences in coal ash, including Si-Al glassy association, discrete minerals or compounds, and organic association (bound with unburned carbon) were defined in the review. The glassy association can be further divided into REY minerals closely bound to glass phases and dispersed throughout the glassy structure. REY partitioning in various emission streams, the size distribution, and their enrichment behavior in coal ash were discussed. Additionally, thermal behavior and transformation of various REY forms in coal during combustion process, including organic-associated REY, REY phosphates, REY carbonates, clay-bound REY and among others were summarized. Two possible retention mechanisms of REY by aluminosilicate glass at boiler temperature were proposed: the incorporation of the individual REY phases into the glass as inclusions and the diffusion of REY phases throughout Si-Al glass structures in the melting process. Feed coal mineral types, mineral-mineral associations, boiler conditions, and other factors control the retention process. After coal combustion, the speciation of REY in fly ash may be modified by the reactions of REY phases with flue gas components. Further, an overview of REY transformation mechanisms during coal combustion was deeply discussed. Finally, current extraction techniques for REY recovery from coal combustion ash were introduced. Future outlooks and research problems were also identified.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

DOE OSTI2022

Characterization factors and other air quality impact metrics: Case study for PM 2.5 -emitting area sources from biofuel feedstock supply

In this paper, we develop a framework and metrics for estimating the impact of emission sources on regulatory compliance and human health for applications in air quality planning and life cycle impact assessment (LCIA). Our framework is based on a pollutant's characterization factor (CF) and three new metrics: Available Regulatory Capacity for Incremental Emissions (ARCIE), Source CF Ratio, and Activity Health Impact (AHI) Ratio. ARCIE can be used to assess whether a receptor location has capacity to accommodate additional source emissions while complying with regulatory limits. We present CF as a midpoint indicator of health impacts per unit mass of emitted pollutant. Source CF Ratio enables comparison of potential new-source locations based on human health impacts. The AHI Ratio estimates the health impacts of a pollutant in relation to the utilization of the source for each unit of product or service. These metrics can be applied to any pollutant, energy source sector (e.g., agriculture, electricity), source type (point, line, area), and spatial modeling domain (nation, state, city, region). We demonstrate these metrics through a case study of fine particulate (PM 2.5 ) emissions from U.S. corn stover harvesting and local processing at various scales, representing steps in the biofuel production process. We model PM 2.5 formation in the atmosphere using a novel reduced-complexity chemical transport model called the Intervention Model for Air Pollution (InMAP). Through this case study, we present the first area-source PM 2.5 CFs that address the recommendations of several LCIA studies to establish spatially explicit CFs specific to an energy source sector or type. Overall, the framework developed in this work provides multiple new ways to consider the potential impacts of air emissions through spatially differentiated metrics.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗

DOE OSTI2024

Detection and Screening of Organic Contaminants in A Riverine System of Georgia Using Non-Targeted Analysis

Numerous organic chemicals exist within aquatic environments, yet effectively screening and prioritizing them is a huge challenge. This study provides a comprehensive investigation into the ecological dynamics of the North Oconee River within Athens-Clarke County, Georgia, with a specific focus on the distribution of 33 identified compounds, including a prominent pesticide. The research, conducted in the riverine ecosystems proximal to the Firefly trail, employs advanced analytical techniques to elucidate potential contamination sources arising from agricultural and urban runoff. Intriguingly, the study reveals North Oconee River near the Firefly Trail as a notable site for heightened pesticide contamination, warranting a meticulous exploration of its origins. Furthermore, the investigation unveils the intricate microbial degradation processes of malathion within the North Oconee River, elucidating the pivotal role played by microbial activity in river water. The detection of degradant byproducts prompts the considerations of bioavailability and toxicity, associating potential implications for the river’s overall ecological health. Ongoing research endeavors to precisely quantify environmental risks and unravel indigenous microbial degradation pathways, presenting pivotal contributions to the scientific community’s understanding of complex riverine ecosystems. This research serves as a foundational piece in informing sustainable environmental management practices and emphasizes the urgency of comprehensive stewardship in safeguarding aquatic ecosystems.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2024

Surface-active antibiotic production as a multifunctional adaptation for postfire microorganisms

Abstract Wildfires affect soils in multiple ways, leading to numerous challenges for colonizing microorganisms. Although it is thought that fire-adapted microorganisms lie at the forefront of postfire ecosystem recovery, the specific strategies that these organisms use to thrive in burned soils remain largely unknown. Through bioactivity screening of bacterial isolates from burned soils, we discovered that several Paraburkholderia spp. isolates produced a set of unusual rhamnolipid surfactants with a natural methyl ester modification. These rhamnolipid methyl esters (RLMEs) exhibited enhanced antimicrobial activity against other postfire microbial isolates, including pyrophilous Pyronema fungi and Amycolatopsis bacteria, compared to the typical rhamnolipids made by organisms such as Pseudomonas spp. RLMEs also showed enhanced surfactant properties and facilitated bacterial motility on agar surfaces. In vitro assays further demonstrated that RLMEs improved aqueous solubilization of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, which are potential carbon sources found in char. Identification of the rhamnolipid biosynthesis genes in the postfire isolate, Paraburkholderia kirstenboschensis str. F3, led to the discovery of rhlM, whose gene product is responsible for the unique methylation of rhamnolipid substrates. RhlM is the first characterized bacterial representative of a large class of integral membrane methyltransferases that are widespread in bacteria. These results indicate multiple roles for RLMEs in the postfire lifestyle of Paraburkholderia isolates, including enhanced dispersal, solubilization of potential nutrients, and inhibition of competitors. Our findings shed new light on the chemical adaptations that bacteria employ to navigate, grow, and outcompete other soil community members in postfire environments.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2020

Sensor Placement Optimization Software Applied to Site-Scale Methane-Emissions Monitoring

Advances in sensor technology have increased our ability to monitor a wide range of environments. However, even as the cost of sensors decline, only a limited number of sensors can be installed at any given site. The physical placement of sensors, along with the sensor technology and operating conditions, can have a large impact on our ability to adequately monitor environmental change. This paper introduces a new open-source Python package, called Chama, that determines optimal sensor placement and technology to improve a sensor network’s detection capabilities. Additionally, the methods are demonstrated using site-specific methane emission scenarios that capture uncertainty in wind conditions and emission characteristics. Mixed-integer linear programming formulations are used to determine sensor locations and detection thresholds that maximize detection of the emission scenarios. The optimized sensor networks consistently increase the ability to detect leaks, as compared to sensors placed near each potential emission source or along the perimeter of the site.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗

DOE OSTI2020

Geochemistry, RNA radiocarbon signature, and metatranscriptome data from Rifle, Colorado groundwater well

Understanding the different sources of carbon subsurface microbes use is highly informative yet remains challenging. The goal of this work was to develop and test a cultivation-independent method that analyzes both the radiocarbon and ribosomal RNA (rRNA) signature of unamplified RNA from the same environmental sample, and that collectively characterizes community carbon utilization under in situ conditions. The method was applied to a filtered groundwater sample from a geochemically reduced zone of a shallow alluvial aquifer near Rife, Colorado (CO), where multiple potential carbon sources co-occur. The radiocarbon and RNA-Seq results, while addressing diverse sample properties, indicated a strikingly similar conclusion about the quantitative role of autotrophy in the subsurface microbial community.This data package provides (1) ribosomal RNA (rRNA) sequences for groundwater microbial populations, (2) the taxonomic identity and relative abundance of groundwater microbial populations based on these rRNA sequences, (3) radiocarbon signatures of the rRNA indicating the source of carbon used by the groundwater microbial populations (provided in both Word docx file and pdf file), (4) geochemical measurements for the monitoring well corresponding to these measurements.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2025

A Life Cycle Analysis Framework for Point Source Capture Systems

NETL studies the costs and benefits of PSC for electricity, industry, and mobile applications. Mobile point source capture (MPSC) and storage applied to freight modes captures emissions directly from exhaust. This poster presents a framework for conducting LCA of PSC systems applied to heavy-duty trucks, freight trains, and marine vessels. The framework defines a wheels-to-storage (gate-to-grave) boundary, including energy demands (electricity, heat, and cooling requirements), solvent use and cycling, onboard system components, carbon storage in a saline aquifer, and upstream manufacturing impacts for equipment, with a suggested functional unit of 1 tonne-km. Potential data sources for analysis include material, energy, and operational data from Oak Ridge National Laboratory, GREET (Greenhouse gases, Regulated Emissions, and Energy use in Technologies) model, and scientific literature. The suggested analytical approach includes comparison to publicly available business-as-usual systems without capture across all modes of transportation, sensitivity to composition of the capture solvent, and sensitivity to capture rate variation, all of which would support a wholistic PSC business case analysis. For future consideration, analysis can be augmented with consideration of different sources of electricity (e.g., nuclear), fuel substitution, deploying supportive infrastructure such as pipeline offloading points, and downstream applications like enhanced oil recovery (EOR).

life cycle analysis (LCA)↗

DOE OSTI2021

Characterization of Surrogate Molten Salt Reactor Aerosol Streams

Measuring the aerosol evolution from MSRs is important for monitoring the off-gas system of the reactor and is particularly important for detecting off-normal conditions. In a molten salt reactor (MSR) accident scenario, an aerosol release would be a major factor in the source term. This aerosol stream would likely be generated from a breach in the cover gas system, which causes particles produced from fission itself to escape, or from a salt spill that produces aerosols through splashing and secondary reactions. The particle size of the produced aerosols is anticipated to vary greatly and range from 0.01 to 10 µm. The transport of these aerosols would be dependent on the particle size. A better understanding of aerosol generation, size, and monitoring methods are needed to inform estimation and mitigation of potential aerosolized source terms from MSRs. While salt spill experiments are being performed at Argonne National Laboratory, the development of aerosol characterization and monitoring methods are being developed at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. To generate prototypic aerosols for use in testing monitoring instruments and mitigation methods, a surrogate aerosol stream was produced with a Collison nebulizer, and the particle size distributions were measured with a cascade impactor. The results demonstrated that by changing the nebulizer pressure, the aerosol particle size distribution can be adjusted to best match the region of interest for experiments with higher pressures, driving the particle size down. However, nearly all aerosols formed exceeded 1 µm in diameter, providing a lower bound for the surrogate aerosol stream. In addition to verifying the applicability of this surrogate aerosol stream, this work has shown that a laser induced breakdown spectroscopy monitoring system that is under development is resilient to changes in particle sizes, increasing its robustness for off-gas monitoring.

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗

DOE OSTI2021

Microevolution in the pansecondary metabolome of Aspergillus flavus and its potential macroevolutionary implications for filamentous fungi

Significance Secondary metabolites (SMs) produced by fungi mediate ecological interactions, define fungal niches, and are of profound pharmacological importance to humans. Most work on SMs has focused on a small number of individuals from each species, not fully reflecting the importance of intraspecific diversity. We demonstrate that even in one of the best-studied model fungi, the carcinogen-producing Aspergillus flavus , more than 25% of SM-producing biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs) are novel and/or show population-specific variants. These results support the finding that the organization of BGC diversity into population-specific patterns may sometimes result from ecologically important interactions and may inform evolutionary and etiological inferences of SM capacities within a species. Importantly, our work also presents a vision of sources of potential pharmaceuticals.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2023

Critical Minerals and Rare Earth Elements in Powder River Basin Coal and Associated Sediments, Wyoming, USA

The demand for Rare Earth Elements (REE) and other critical minerals (CM) required for consumer products, defense-related applications, and low-carbon energy technology is increasing rapidly. Unconventional sources of REE/CM, such as coal and associated sediments, could prove very important in building resilient and ethical energy supply chains. Utilization of existing infrastructure and the highly trained energy workforce in traditionally coal-producing regions in emerging REE/CM industries could provide an economic boost to coal communities. The Powder River Basin (PRB) of Wyoming and Montana, USA, is a prime candidate to investigate the feasibility of extracting REE/CM from coal and associated sediments. The PRB hosts thick (>50 ft) coal seams that are mined at the surface and more than 40% of the coal produced in the US comes from the PRB. Geochemical data from multiple locations in PRB coal systems show REE enrichments at the top and bottom margins and at internal partings in coal seams. This trend is exhibited in two cores drilled at Peabody’s North Antelope Rochelle mine in the east central PRB, the largest coal mine in the world. The two cores include the Wyodak Anderson coal zone as well as the over- and underlying shale units. The Wyodak Anderson coal zone is part of the Paleocene Tongue River Member of the Fort Union Formation in which most of the coal resources in the PRB reside. To understand REE/CM enrichment, a total of 188 samples were analyzed for their major and trace element chemistry from both cores, sampled at one foot or smaller intervals. The two cores show distinct REE enrichments in the uppermost and lowermost 3 to 12 feet of the Wyodak Anderson coal zone, as well as enrichments in bounding carbonaceous shale units. Total REE+Y (REY) concentrations as high as 2510 ppm (all concentrations reported on an ash basis), or 15 times average upper continental crust values (Taylor and McLennan, 1995), were identified in the coal. Partings within the coal zone also show relative REE enrichment, with concentrations up to 485 ppm REY. The remaining interior portions of the coal zone contain lower concentrations of REE, resulting in an average REY for all samples from both cores of 288 ppm. The proportion of high-value critical REE (Nd, Eu, Tb, Dy, Er, Y) compared to REY averages 36%, which is higher than the critical REE proportion in average upper continental crust of 33%. This finding highlights the relative enrichment of middle REE compared to light REE, in contrast to many conventional REE deposits. Other critical trace elements that show enrichments above average upper continental crust include Ga, Nb, and V. Within this sample suite, Ga concentrations range from 2.8 to 213 ppm, with an average of 29 ppm; Nb from 2.9 to 166 ppm with an average of 26 ppm; and V from 27 to 1695 ppm with an average of 188 ppm. None of these trace elements exhibit the same distinct pattern of enrichment as REE in the upper and lower bounding layers and internal partings of the coal zone. Major element chemistry indicates CaO concentrations averaging ~25% in the coal samples from both cores, which has important implications for the extractability of REE from coal. Calcium-rich PRB coal has been shown to be more amenable to REE extraction than lower calcium coals by some methods (Stuckman et al., 2019; Taggart et al., 2016), highlighting the importance of REE extractability in addition to REE concentration in assessing the value of potential feedstocks. The original coal resource in the PRB is estimated at 1.16 trillion short tons (Luppens et al., 2015). Thus, the PRB represents an important potential unconventional source for REE and other CM. Ongoing research to fully characterize the REE/CM resource, identify enrichment mechanisms, and further develop and scale extraction technologies is necessary to understand the full potential of this resource.

Phillips, Erin↗

DOE OSTI2020

Enabling robust offline active learning for machine learning potentials using simple physics-based priors

Abstract Machine learning surrogate models for quantum mechanical simulations have enabled the field to efficiently and accurately study material and molecular systems. Developed models typically rely on a substantial amount of data to make reliable predictions of the potential energy landscape or careful active learning (AL) and uncertainty estimates. When starting with small datasets, convergence of AL approaches is a major outstanding challenge which has limited most demonstrations to online AL. In this work we demonstrate a Δ-machine learning (ML) approach that enables stable convergence in offline AL strategies by avoiding unphysical configurations with initial datasets as little as a single data point. We demonstrate our framework’s capabilities on a structural relaxation, transition state calculation, and molecular dynamics simulation, with the number of first principle calculations being cut down anywhere from 70%–90%. The approach is incorporated and developed alongside AMP torch , an open-source ML potential package, along with interactive Google Colab notebook examples.

Shuaibi, Muhammed↗

DOE OSTI2023

Iodine Air Sampling: Installation and Preliminary Results

The F-Area wetlands are a known sink for radioiodine generated at the Savannah River Site (SRS). Wastewater containing iodine-129 ( 129 I) was discharged into the F-Area Seepage Basins for disposal, but the acidity of the wastewater mobilized some of the contaminants from the basin soil through the vadose zone and into the groundwater; ultimately creating a groundwater plume that extends towards Fourmile Branch and its associated wetland areas. Dissolved radioiodine specifically has migrated to the nearby F-Area wetlands, where it persists as a contaminant of concern. Accumulation and resurfacing of 129 I in the wetlands and nearby areas creates a potential secondary source zone where changes in biogeochemical conditions could result in the release of this sequestered 129 I to the air. Monitoring data has indicated that 129 I has a seasonal behavior at several surface water stations, with high concentrations during summertime and low concentrations during wintertime. Still, it is not known which factors control the seasonal behavior of 129 I. Further, it has been reported that 129 I contributed approximately 23% to the 2019 SRS offsite air pathway dose to the representative person for that year (SRNS, 2020), but air measurements of 129 I have never been taken in the F-Area wetlands. Because air emissions of 129 I from the wetlands have never been investigated, it is not known if this could be a potential release pathway that needs to be included in the site conceptual model. To address these unknowns, the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) has an applied research task to investigate whether 129 I in the wetlands is emitted to the air and, if so, whether air concentrations exhibit seasonal variation. This report presents information about the system recently installed in the F-Area wetlands for measuring 129 I, as well as analysis results for samples collected June through August 2023. Quantification of this constituent will provide a better understanding of the contribution of airborne 129 I from the F-Area wetlands to the offsite dose and better inform ongoing and future remedial actions.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2025

Integrated Biorefinery of Brewer’s Spent Grain for Second-Generation Ethanol, Mycoprotein, and Bioactive Vinasse Production

Brewer’s spent grain (BSG), the main lignocellulosic by-product of the beer industry, represents an abundant yet underutilized resource with high potential for valorization. This study presents an integrated biorefinery approach to convert BSG into second-generation (2G) ethanol, bioactive vinasse for plant growth promotion, and fungal biomass as a potential mycoprotein source. The biomass was first subjected to biological delignification using the white-rot fungus Ganoderma lucidum, after which two valorization routes were explored: (i) evaluation of the fungal biomass as a mycoprotein candidate and (ii) alcoholic fermentation for ethanol production. For the latter, three pretreatment strategies were assessed (diluted sulfuric acid and two deep eutectic solvents (DESs) based on choline chloride combined with either glycerol or lactic acid) followed by a one-pot enzymatic saccharification and fermentation using Kluyveromyces marxianus SLP1. The highest ethanol yield on substrate (YP/S) was achieved with [Ch]Cl:lactic acid pretreatment (0.46 g/g, 89.32% of theoretical). Vinasse, recovered after distillation, was characterized for organic acid content and tested on Solanum lycopersicum seed germination, showing promising biostimulant activity. Overall, this work highlights the potential of BSG as a sustainable feedstock within circular economy models, enabling the production of multiple bio-based products from a single residue.

Ganoderma lucidum↗

DOE OSTI2024

Preliminary Analysis of Advanced Reactors Storage, Transportation, and Disposal

Based on the higher interest in Advanced Reactor (AR) deployment (e.g., ARDP[1]) for potential new fuel cycles, the Spent Fuel & Waste Science and Technology (SFWST) Program has begun to evaluate the possible implications of long-term management and final disposition of potential Advance Reactor spent nuclear fuels (SNF) that would be generated in potential advanced reactors. Safely managing and dispositioning the potential future AR SNF, and any other associated radioactive wastes, is the primary focus of this initial preliminary assessment of those. This paper summarizes the efforts by the Spent Fuel & Waste Science and Technology (SFWST) in evaluating characteristics and packaging options for advanced reactor spent nuclear fuel forms. The fuel forms were categorized into three types: (1) tristructural isotropic (TRISO), (2) metallic, and (3) fuel salt. This work emphasized TRISO and metallic SNF and waste streams because of the near-term anticipated operation of the Xe-100 and the Natrium reactors as advanced-reactor demonstrations. Preliminary information for the spent-fuel salts discharged from molten-salt reactors (MSRs) is also examined to provide a baseline for future efforts. All calculations and assumptions used publicly available information. The following characteristics are calculated or estimated for use in the preliminary assessments: SNF volume and mass, radiation/activity levels through time, thermal conditions through time, potential radionuclide source terms, chemical interactions and evolutions, disposal inventories, and waste-form lifetime. Using those characteristics, calculations to determine the applicability of existing canister designs were performed. These evaluations included geometric (e.g., dimension, volume) and mass/weight considerations, known operational approaches and loading procedures, physical and chemical considerations/conditions for storage environments, as-loaded radiation, thermal, and criticality analyses to identify constraints for storage, transportation, and disposal. The paper also includes a literature review and analysis on the storage, transportation, and disposal evaluations and experiences from reactors with similar fuel forms. Advanced-reactor vendors cite past experiences with Fort St. Vrain for TRISO and the Experimental Breeder Reactor II (EBR-II) for metallics that have major influences on fuel design. Finally, the paper includes preliminary concepts of operation for advanced-reactor SNF. This encompasses storage, transportation, potential treatment, and disposal activities from both a per-canister and systems-integration perspective.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗