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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 253 records · Page 14
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2025

Resilient Distributed Frequency Regulation of Renewable Generators under Communication Interruptions

Modern power systems (MPSs) face significant challenges due to the high penetration of renewable energy sources (RESs) and new types of loads such as electric vehicles (EVs). Traditional load frequency control (LFC) methods struggle with the intermittent, stochastic nature of RESs, the near-zero inertia of power-electronics-based generators, and the mobility of controllable loads and battery systems. This paper introduces a novel resilient distributed frequency regulation method to address these issues. The proposed method employs a state space model to represent the dynamic behavior of participating power sources while accounting for stochastic switching processes to model structural and parameter variations caused by disruptions such as generator connection/disconnection, communication interruptions, and physical faults. By integrating these dynamic and stochastic components, the method treats power grids as a comprehensive stochastic hybrid system. Our method enhances conventional frequency control by incorporating local stability control, neighborhood control decoupling, and coordination feedback. Theoretical analyses establish the stability, convergence, and resilience of the proposed method, and its effectiveness is validated through case studies.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗
DOE OSTI2023

Lithium Metal Battery Quality Control via Transformer–CNN Segmentation

Lithium metal battery (LMB) has the potential to be the next-generation battery system because of its high theoretical energy density. However, defects known as dendrites are formed by heterogeneous lithium (Li) plating, which hinders the development and utilization of LMBs. Non-destructive techniques to observe the dendrite morphology often use X-ray computed tomography (XCT) to provide cross-sectional views. To retrieve three-dimensional structures inside a battery, image segmentation becomes essential to quantitatively analyze XCT images. This work proposes a new semantic segmentation approach using a transformer-based neural network called TransforCNN that is capable of segmenting out dendrites from XCT data. In addition, we compare the performance of the proposed TransforCNN with three other algorithms, U-Net, Y-Net, and E-Net, consisting of an ensemble network model for XCT analysis. Our results show the advantages of using TransforCNN when evaluating over-segmentation metrics, such as mean intersection over union (mIoU) and mean Dice similarity coefficient (mDSC), as well as through several qualitatively comparative visualizations.

Quenum, Jerome (ORCID:0000000271265853)↗
DOE OSTI2025

Graph-based Simulation Framework for Power Resilience Estimation and Enhancement

The increasing frequency of extreme weather events poses significant risks to power distribution systems, leading to widespread outages and severe economic and social consequences. This paper presents a novel simulation framework for assessing and enhancing the resilience of power distribution networks under such conditions. Resilience is estimated through Monte Carlo simulations, which simulate extreme weather scenarios and evaluate the impact on infrastructure fragility. Due to the proprietary nature of power network topology, a distribution network is synthesized using publicly available data. To generate the weather scenarios, an extreme weather generation method is developed. To enhance resilience, renewable resources such as solar panels and energy storage systems (batteries in this study) are incorporated. A customized Genetic Algorithm is proposed to determine the optimal locations and capacities for solar panels and battery installations, maximizing resilience while balancing cost constraints. Experiment results demonstrate that on a large-scale synthetic distribution network with more than 300,000 nodes and 300,000 edges, the proposed framework can efficiently evaluate the resilience, and enhance the resilience through the installations of distributed energy resources (DERs), providing utilities with valuable insights for community-level power system resilience estimation and enhancement.

Wang, Xuesong [Wayne State Univ., Detroit, MI (Uni↗
DOE OSTI2020

Quantification of Load Flexibility in Residential Buildings Using Home Energy Management Systems

With increasing penetration of renewable energy resources, the flexibility of operating behind-the-meter (BTM) resources plays a key role in enhancing grid reliability and resilience. Residential buildings with home energy management systems (HEMS) can provide desired flexibility for the distribution system operator (DSO) while considering customer comfort and preferences. This paper discusses a methodology to quantify the flexibility of BTM resources of residential buildings using HEMS. First, we propose a model predictive control framework to formulate the flexibility band comprising nominal, upper, and lower demand profiles. Second, the paper proposes a dispatch method for HEMS to compute the control signals for each BTM resource (e.g., air conditioner, water heater, home battery system) upon receiving a flexibility service request from the DSO. The case study provides insight into the flexibility provided at the whole-home level with different user preferences and seasons. The results demonstrate that HEMS is capable of providing flexibility service at the request of the DSO while delivering primary services to the building occupants.

41 EE - Solar Energy Technologies Office (EE-4S)↗
DOE OSTI2024

Simple Battery Hazard Calculator

SAND2025-00455O Simple Battery Hazard Calculator is a software tool developed in Excel to analyze the electrical hazards of battery systems and determine the required personal protective equipment (PPE) for safe assembly and disassembly. It calculates potential arc flash incident energy, contact thermal hazard level, and recommends PPE based on parameters such as voltage, short circuit current, and over current protection trip time. The calculator uses a recognized method for calculating arc flash incident energy, which was previously inaccessible to most battery workers. Sandia National Laboratories is a multimission laboratory managed and operated by National Technology & Engineering Solutions of Sandia, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Honeywell International Inc., for the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration under contract DE-NA0003525.

Rosewater, David↗
DOE OSTI2022

Pinned Electrode/Electrolyte Interphase and Its Formation Origin for Sulfurized Polyacrylonitrile Cathode in Stable Lithium Batteries

Sulfurized polyacrylonitrile (SPAN) represents one of the most promising directions for high-energy-density lithium (Li)-sulfur batteries. However, the practical application of Li||SPAN is currently limited by the insufficient chemical/electrochemical stability of electrode/electrolyte interphase (EEI). Here, a pinned EEI layer is designed for stabilizing a SPAN cathode by regulating the EEI formation mechanism in an advanced LiFSI/ether/fluorinated-ether electrolyte. Computational simulations and experimental investigations reveal that, benefiting from the nonsolvating nature, the fluorinated-ether can not only act as a protective shield to prevent the Li polysulfides dissolution but also, more importantly, endow a diffusion-controlled EEI formation process. It promotes the formation of a uniform, protective, and conductive EEI layer pinning into SPAN surface region, enabling the high loading Li||SPAN batteries with superior cycling stability, wide temperature performance, and high-rate capability. Finally, this design strategy opens an avenue for exploring advanced electrolytes for Li||SPAN batteries and guides the interface design for broad types of battery systems.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
DOE OSTI2025

Solar and battery can reduce energy costs and provide affordable outage backup for US households

Distributed energy resources are promising solutions for household energy affordability and resilience as weather extremes and aging infrastructure intensify grid reliability risks. This study presents a comprehensive nationwide assessment of over 500,000 U.S. households, evaluating economic and backup viability of solar-battery systems. We find that 60% of households could reduce electricity costs with average savings of 15%, while 63% of households could achieve affordable backup power during power outages covering an average of 51% of their essential energy needs. However, these benefits show limited alignment with areas of greatest need, particularly in regions facing high outage risks. We also identify significant disparities in access to solar and battery, with less-populated and disadvantaged communities showing consistently lower viability. Furthermore, these findings demonstrate the need for targeted policy interventions to ensure equitable access to solar-battery benefits, especially as states transition from net energy metering to other electricity tariff policies.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2021

TEMPO allegro: liquid catholyte redoxmers for nonaqueous redox flow batteries

Redoxmers are organic active molecules storing energy in redox flow batteries (RFBs). Liquid redoxmers represent an extreme scenario where maximum concentration may be achieved by minimizing supporting solvents, thus maximizing the energy density of RFBs. Herein, a series of (2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidin-1-yl)oxyl (TEMPO)-based high potential (catholyte) liquid redoxmers, TEMPO-EG1, TEMPO-EG2, and TEMPO-EG3, were developed by incorporating polyethylene glycol (PEG) chains. Such modifications not only afford dramatic physical changes from solid to liquid and full miscibility in acetonitrile, but also impact the redox behavior. DFT calculations indicate that the incorporated PEG chains impact the charge distribution, which may account for the electrochemical changes. Importantly, compared to our previous liquid catholytes, the new redoxmers exhibit lower viscosity, which is desired for enhancing high concentration cycling performance. Furthermore, by using a hybrid flow cell, TEMPO-EG1 demonstrated more than 70% capacity retention over 100 cycles at 0.1 M and 66% capacity retention at 0.5 M, affording excellent cyclability at various concentrations. The study exemplifies how molecular engineering tuned the rheological properties of redoxmers, such as viscosity, to improve the high concentration cycling performance of RFBs, which may represent a promising avenue for a high energy density and low-cost flow battery system.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
DOE OSTI2024

Enhancing Cycling Stability of Lithium Metal Batteries by a Bifunctional Fluorinated Ether

Abstract The lifespan of lithium (Li) metal batteries (LMBs) can be greatly improved by the formation of inorganic‐rich electrode‐electrolyte interphases (EEIs) (including solid‐electrolyte interphase on anode and cathode‐electrolyte interphase on cathode). In this work, a localized high‐concentration electrolyte containing lithium bis(fluorosulfonyl)imide (LiFSI) salt, 1,2‐dimethoxyethane (DME) solvent and 1,2‐bis(1,1,2,2‐tetrafluoroethoxy)ethane (BTFEE) diluent is optimized. BTFEE is a fluorinated ether with weakly‐solvating ability for LiFSI so it also acts as a co‐solvent in this electrolyte. It can facilitate anion decomposition at electrode surfaces and promote the formation of more inorganic‐rich EEI layers. With an optimized molar ratio of LiFSI:DME:BTFEE = 1:1.15:3, LMBs with a high loading (4 mAh cm −2 ) lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide (LiNi 0.8 Mn 0.1 Co 0.1 ) cathode can retain 80% capacity in 470 cycles when cycled in a voltage range of 2.8–4.4 V. The fundamental understanding on the functionality of BTFEE revealed in this work provides new perspectives on the design of practical high‐energy density battery systems.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
DOE OSTI2020

Local spring effect in titanium-based layered oxides

Titanium-based layered oxides (TLOs) are one of the most promising electrode material families for sodium-ion batteries (NIBs) due to their smooth charge/discharge profiles and excellent cycle performance. However, the reaction mechanism of these materials, especially the reason for the disappearance of multiple voltage plateaus, is still not clear. Herein, two representative TLOs (Na 2/3 Ni 1/3 Ti 2/3 O 2 and Na 2/3 Co 1/3 Ti 2/3 O 2 ) with the same P2 crystal structure have been studied to scrutinize those unexplained issues. In situ synchrotron high-energy X-ray diffraction revealed a solid solution reaction mechanism for both, suggesting the absence of rigid phase transitions upon electrochemical cycling. An interesting “spring effect” of the TiO 6 octahedron, i.e., the reversible vibration of the central Ti atom inside the local octahedron upon electrochemical redox, was demonstrated by advanced X-ray absorption spectroscopy and theoretical calculations. Such an effect could suppress the rigid phase transitions, and result in smooth charge/discharge profiles and enhanced cycle stability. Finally, this work not only accounts for the disappearance of multiple voltage plateaus of TLOs for NIBs, but also provides an effective local-structure viewpoint to increase the cycle stability of electrode materials for other advanced battery systems.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
DOE OSTI2022

Effect of particle size on thermodynamics and lithium ion transport in electrodes made of Ti 2 Nb 2 O 9 microparticles or nanoparticles

This study compares the charging mechanisms, thermodynamics, lithium ion transport, and operando isothermal calorimetry in lithium-ion battery electrodes made of Ti 2 Nb 2 O 9 microparticles or nanoparticles synthesized by solid-state or sol-gel methods, respectively. First, electrochemical testing showed that electrodes made of Ti 2 Nb 2 O 9 nanoparticles exhibited larger specific capacity, smaller polarization, and better capacity retention at large currents than those made of Ti 2 Nb 2 O 9 microparticles. Furthermore, potentiometric entropy measurements revealed that electrodes made of either Ti 2 Nb 2 O 9 microparticles or nanoparticles showed similar thermodynamics behavior governed by lithium intercalation in solid solution, as confirmed by in situ XRD measurements. However, electrodes made of Ti 2 Nb 2 O 9 nanoparticles featured smaller overpotential and faster lithium ion transport than those made of Ti 2 Nb 2 O 9 microparticles. In fact, operando isothermal calorimetry revealed smaller instantaneous and time-averaged irreversible heat generation rates at electrodes made of Ti 2 Nb 2 O 9 nanoparticles, highlighting their smaller resistive losses and larger electrical conductivity. Finally, the measured total heat generation over a charging/discharging cycle matched the measured net electrical energy loss. Overall, Ti 2 Nb 2 O 9 nanoparticles synthesized by the novel sol-gel method displayed excellent cycling performance and reduced heat generation as a fast-charging lithium-ion battery anode material. These features present major advantages for actual battery systems including larger energy and power densities, simpler thermal management, and enhanced safety.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
DOE OSTI2020

Eutectic Synthesis of the P2-Type Na x Fe 1/2 Mn 1/2 O 2 Cathode with Improved Cell Design for Sodium-Ion Batteries

An engaging area of research in sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) has been focusing on discovery, design, and synthesis of high-capacity cathode materials in order to boost energy density to levels close enough to that of state-of-the-art lithium-ion batteries. Of particular interest, P2-type layered oxide, Na 2/3 Fe 1/2 Mn 1/2 O 2 , has been researched as a potential cathode in SIBs based on its high theoretical capacity of 260 mA h/g and use of noncritical materials. However, the reported synthesis methods are not only complex and energy-demanding but also often yield inhomogeneous and impure materials with capacities less than 200 mA h/g under impractical test conditions. Here, we report a novel synthesis route using low-temperature eutectic reaction to produce highly homogeneous, crystalline, and impurity-free P2-Na x Fe 1/2 Mn 1/2 O 2 with enhanced Na-ion diffusivity and kinetics. The overall electrochemical performances of the Na-ion cells have been improved by pairing the P2-cathode with presodiated hard carbon anodes, leading to reversible capacities in the range of 180 mA h/g. This new approach is a contribution toward the simplification of synthesis and scalability of sodium-based cathodes with high crystallinity and fine-tuned morphology and the realization of a sodium-ion battery system with lower cost and improved electrochemical performance.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
DOE OSTI2025

Advancing Pumped Thermal Energy Storage Performance and Cost Using Silica Storage Media

Pumped Thermal Energy Storage (PTES) is an electricity storage system that is suitable for long-duration energy storage (10-1000 h) due to its low marginal cost of energy capacity. We present a techno-economic model of a PTES system that uses particle thermal energy storage. Particles have low costs and can be operated over a wide temperature range leading to increased efficiency and reduced costs compared to other PTES designs. We show how the round-trip efficiency, specific power output, capital cost, and levelized cost of storage (LCOS) depend on parameters such as the pressure ratio, heat exchanger approach temperature and pressure loss, and maximum temperature. We compare particle-PTES (P-PTES) performance to PTES which uses liquid thermal energy storage - i.e. molten salt hot storage and methanol cold storage (MS-PTES). We find that using silica particles for storage advances PTES technology: P-PTES can be operated at higher maximum temperatures than MS-PTES. Furthermore, P-PTES can achieve lower approach temperatures in the heat exchangers than MS-PTES without increasing capital costs, because P-PTES uses direct-contact heat transfer in fluidized bed heat exchangers. As a result, we find that P-PTES systems achieve higher round-trip efficiency than MS-PTES (66 % versus 57 %) and lower LCOS (e.g. 0.115 +- 0.03 $/kWhe versus 0.171 +- 0.04 $/kWhe for 10 h discharge). The low cost of particles and containment means that P-PTES can provide long-duration energy storage at low capital cost per unit energy capacity. For example, the total capital cost per unit energy reduces from 245 $/kWhe at 10 h to 38 $/kWhe at 100 h. These costs are considerably lower than MS-PTES (72 $/kWhe at 100 h) and also outcompete current and future Li-ion battery system projections (100-265 $/kWhe).

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
DOE OSTI2022

Synergistic effects of chlorine substitution in sulfide electrolyte solid state batteries

All-solid-state battery is considered as one of the most promising competitors to Li ion batteries. Two widely known performance metrics for solid electrolytes, among others, are ionic conductivity and stability. In this study, it is found that both can be improved by the synergistic effects of chlorine substitution in sulfide-based solid electrolytes. Particularly, instabilities arising from both bulk decompositions and interfacial reactions to electrodes can be better inhibited in the chlorine substituted sulfide solid electrolytes through the increased susceptibility to the mechanical constriction induced enhancement of voltage stability. As a result, the stability window of some chlorine-rich Li-argyrodites can be systematically higher than some other chlorine-deficient or chlorine-free electrolytes, especially under the implementation of the mechanical constriction battery assembly and test conditions. Thus, a solid-state battery system of 4 V to 5 V-class cathodes paired with lithium metal anode is demonstrated using these chlorine-rich Li-argyrodites without additional coatings. Furthermore, since Cl composition modulates the stability and instability of Li-argyrodite at low voltages, it allows us to design a multilayer configuration with a hierarchy of Li metal stabilities to demonstrate the stable cycling at relatively high current densities for solid-state batteries. It is found that a moderate Cl composition in the electrolyte is the best to inhibit Li dendrite penetration as the central electrolyte layer, emphasizing a slightly increased “instability” as the hidden performance metric of relevance here, in addition to the two well-known metrics of stability and ionic conductivity. The understanding of the chlorine substitution effect in sulfide electrolytes provides an important design principle for all-solid-state batteries.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
DOE OSTI2023

Sensitivity Analysis of Effectiveness of FLEX Strategies Using a CDF-Based Importance Measure Under Accident Conditions

One of the lessons learned from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant (NPP) accident is strengthening the station blackout (SBO) mitigation capabilities by enhancing defense in depth for all existing and new NPPs. One of the possible remedies is diverse and flexible coping strategies (FLEX). The objective of this study is to address the benefits of FLEX in various accident scenarios in terms of both risk and cost. FLEX was originally devised against SBO accidents. In this research, we investigate the fundamental plant responses against accidents considering two fundamentally different cases: accidents that lead to high pressure on the primary side and accidents that lead to low pressure on the primary side. Several uncertainties are associated with the characteristics of the FLEX portable equipment. Specifically, the time for FLEX deployment may depend on several factors such as type of accident, point of injection, availability of safety systems, battery backup timings, and human actions. This study utilizes a dynamic risk assessment framework to analyze accident scenarios and suggests a novel importance measure, which is a cumulative distribution function– based importance metric that characterizes the influence of input distribution on complete output distribution. The importance of the existing and newly developed FLEX strategy based on risk significance is illustrated with examples. The suggested measure provides clear insight into how FLEX affects risk of the whole system and additional risk margins thanks to new safety systems.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2023

A Robust Method to Secure Multi-Inverter Grid Tied PV and Battery Energy Storage Systems Against Cyber Intrusions

This paper details a robust method to secure a multi-inverter grid tied system that interfaces photovoltaic (PV) and battery energy storage against potential cyber-attacks. The method can be applied to any third-party inverter systems without a need to modify their internal controls. A small random private excitation signal termed "watermark" is injected into the DC input voltage terminals (via a series transformer) connected to the PV/battery inverter system. An external robust cyber intrusion detector (CID) hardware consisting of a digital signal processor (DSP) generates the "watermark" and also receives the sensor signals that control the setpoints of the PV/battery grid tied system. The CID algorithm is shown to detect all possible cyber intrusions (such as false data injection(FDI)) on external sensor signals such as P and Q measured by a smart meter that control the overall system operation. The proposed CID computes online system ID and two variance tests in real time on each sensor signal and is able pinpoint intrusion location in a multi-inverter system. Results on a hardware in the loop (HIL) of a two-inverter grid connected system demonstrate effectiveness of the proposed CID system for FDI and unobservable FDI. Test results on a laboratory prototype will be discussed in the conference presentation.

Ibrahim, Hasan↗
DOE OSTI2025

Data-driven design of electrolyte additives supporting high-performance 5 V LiNi 0.5 Mn 1.5 O 4 positive electrodes

LiNi 0.5 Mn 1.5 O 4 (LNMO) is a high-capacity spinel-structured material with an average lithiation/de-lithiation potential at ca. 4.6–4.7 V vs Li + /Li, far exceeding the stability limits of electrolytes. An efficient way to enable LNMO in lithium-ion batteries is to reformulate an electrolyte composition that stabilizes both graphitic (Gr) negative electrode with solid-electrolyte-interphase and LNMO with cathode-electrolyte-interphase. In this study, we select and test a diverse collection of 28 single and dual additives for the Gr||LNMO battery system. Subsequently, we train machine learning models on this dataset and employ the trained models to suggest 6 binary compositions out of 125, based on predicted final area-specific-impedance, impedance rise, and final specific-capacity. Such machine learning-generated new additives outperform the initial dataset. This finding not only underscores the efficacy of machine learning in identifying materials in a highly complicated application space but also showcases an accelerated material discovery workflow that directly integrates data-driven methods with battery testing experiments.

batteries↗
DOE OSTI2026

Low-Cost All-Temperature Zinc-Pulp Battery for Stationary Storage

WH-Power Final Technical Report — Low-Cost All-Temperature Zinc-Pulp Battery This is the final scientific/technical report for ARPA-E CREATE program award DE-AR0001796, covering work from September 2023 through September 2025. The WHP–UMD–Yale team set out to develop a safe, low-cost, wide-temperature zinc battery for grid-scale stationary storage. What was built: A zinc-pulp (Zn/CNF) battery system pairing an aqueous high-entropy electrolyte (HEE) with a cellulose-derived ion-conducting membrane.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗