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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 271 records · Page 15
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2024

Parallel computing for power system climate resiliency: Solving a large-scale stochastic capacity expansion problem with mpi-sppy

Here we propose a nodal stochastic generation and transmission expansion planning model that incorporates the output from high-resolution global climate models through load and generation availability scenarios. We implement our model in Pyomo and perform computational studies on a realistically-sized test case of the California electric grid in a high performance computing environment. We propose model reformulations and algorithm tuning to efficiently solve this large problem using a variant of the Progressive Hedging Algorithm. We utilize the parallelization capabilities and overall versatility of mpi-sppy, exploiting its hub-and-spoke architecture to concurrently obtain inner and outer bounds on an optimal expansion plan. Initial results show that instances with 360 representative days on a system with over 8,000 buses can be solved to within 5% of optimality in under 4 h of wall clock time, a first step towards solving a large-scale power system expansion planning problem across a wide range of climate-informed operational scenarios.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗
DOE OSTI2024

Fundamental benchmarking of the discharge properties of negative electrodes in lead acid batteries

The unprecedented scale of energy storage deployment needed to allow high penetration of intermittent renewable energy sources into the electrical grid places significant economic cost and performance targets on battery technologies. Lead batteries, owing to their highly abundant and inexpensive raw materials, can be considered an important solution to grid storage as long as they achieve high material utilization, fast recharge rates, and long cycle life. To address the limitations in material utilization, we need to revisit the electrochemical processes during the discharge step and answer the following question: what are the fundamental limits of the discharge reaction? In this work we discuss how well-defined lead metal surfaces with nanometer scale roughness allow us to resolve the accessible discharge capacity for both faradaic and non-faradaic processes as a function of electrolyte concentration and in the presence of traditional additives. The direct connection between PbSO 4 layer morphology and discharge rates gives us important insights on the mechanism of discharge as related to the dissolution and passivation events. In conclusion, this work sets the stage for reimagining the design of lead batteries with implications to grid storage applications.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
DOE OSTI2025

Customized open source renewable energy models validated through PHIL lab experiments

Energy models for power systems require ongoing updates to reflect advancements in equipment technology and the increasing complexity of power electronic devices. This study utilizes a Power Hardware-in-the-Loop (PHIL) experimental setup to validate custom photovoltaic (PV) inverter models, aiming to enhance and expedite the development of advanced renewable energy models. The research compares the performance of a physical inverter with generic Renewable Energy Source (RES) models recommended by the Western Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC). As inverter-based renewable energy sources become more prevalent in modern electrical grids, it is crucial that dynamic models accurately represent their real-world behavior. Accurate models improve our understanding of these energy resources and their interactions with the grid. The proposed model enhancements are designed to better reflect real inverter performance, based on insights from PHIL experiments. These models are developed using the open source Modelica language and the OpenIPSL Modelica Library, allowing integration across various simulation tools without re-implementation. The paper concludes with a thorough assessment, comparing the enhanced models with PHIL experiments on a real PV inverter in a controlled laboratory setting. As a result, the study provides the enhanced WECC RES models and validation data as open source resources, facilitating further research and development.

Modelica↗
DOE OSTI2025

The water use of data center workloads: A review and assessment of key determinants

The global importance of data center water use is increasing with the rapid growth of digitalization and artificial intelligence. This study analyzes the factors influencing workload-level water use, measured in liters consumed per workload, to guide water-saving strategies in data centers. Our findings reveal workload-level water use variations exceeding 10,000-fold, driven by over 1000-fold differences in water consumption per kilowatt hour of server electricity consumed and approximately 10-fold differences in server workload efficiency. Key determinants are ranked as server efficiency, electrical grid water consumption factors, server utilization, cooling system type, infrastructure efficiency, climate zone, inactive server percentage, and server refresh cycle. Notably, there is no single recipe for minimizing water use; instead, optimal outcomes depend on tailored combinations of these factors. This analysis addresses critical knowledge gaps by identifying the determinants of data center water use and exploring their achievable minima under diverse site-specific constraints.

Data centers↗
DOE OSTI2026

Circular economy pathways for decarbonizing aluminum and steel automotive body sheet components in the United States

Decarbonizing vehicle production is essential to reducing automotive sector emissions. This study quantifies greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from aluminum and steel auto-body sheet components produced in the US. It evaluates the effectiveness of circular economy (CE) strategies (greater closed-loop recycling of pre-consumer scrap, post-consumer scrap, and increased manufacturing yields) to reduce supply chain emissions across different process technology and electricity grid decarbonization pathways. We combine dynamic material flow analysis (2025–2050) with cradle-to-gate life-cycle modeling to assess production emissions and the potential reductions associated with the CE strategies under frozen, moderate, and aggressive technology and grid decarbonization scenarios. Current emissions intensities are estimated at approximately 12.3 kg.CO₂eq/kg of aluminum and 4.3 kg.CO₂eq/kg of steel sheet embedded in the vehicle. Under the frozen decarbonization scenario and current levels of circularity, annual emissions attributable to US aluminum and steel auto-body sheet supply chains could rise by 54 % and 18 % respectively by 2050. Rapid deployment of the CE strategies can cut these annual emissions in 2050 by 52 % for aluminum and 44 % for steel. However, scrap quality constraints lead to saturation points, limiting these benefits unless addressed. Aggressive deployment of low-carbon production technologies and a low-carbon grid reduces the relative benefit of implementing the CE strategies; however, even under the aggressive technology and grid decarbonization scenario, the CE strategies reduce annual emissions by a further 23 %-54 % by 2050. These findings highlight the urgent need to integrate CE strategies into the sheet metal supply chain to support decarbonization efforts and help meet climate targets.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2025

Energy, economic, and environmental tradeoffs at run-of-river hydropower facilities

Hydropower’s ability to quickly adapt to variability from wind and solar generation by fluctuation flow rates can allow the electricity grid to integrate more renewable capacity. However, these rapid flow fluctuations, required to meet variability needs, can negatively impact aquatic ecosystems. In this study, we quantified energy-economic-environment tradeoffs at five conventional hydropower facilities (i.e. hydropower produced ad a dam on a river channel) across the United States to identify a mix of operational regimes that can provide flexibility to support variable renewable energy integration and environmental protections. Model results show a range of ability to meet demand from 4.7% to 97.8% depending on which case study is considered. Additionally, when modeling the case study facilities on a range of RoR conditions, allowing a % of inflow as discharge, we found the range of 140–200% of inflow allowed as discharge lead to lowest environmental impact while meeting the highest amount of demand. Our sensitivity analysis results demonstrated the Richard-Baker Flashiness Index, used to measure flowrate changes, and Revenue, were negatively correlated with the percent of hydropower generation within the defined Regional Energy Deployment System balancing area (i.e. region in which energy demand and energy supply is balanced based on the Regional Energy Deployment System model) yet positively correlated to the variable renewable energy generation percentage in the defined balancing area. In conclusion, our results suggest hydropower operations can aid in increasing renewable energy generation while limiting environmental impacts when considering a holistic analysis of energy-economic-environment tradeoffs.

Economic impact↗
DOE OSTI2024

Catalytic Reduction of Carbon Monoxide to Liquid Fuels with Recyclable Hydride Donors

Solar light absorption and catalysis are physically separated processes in natural photosynthesis. Natural cofactors, such as nicotinamide adenine dinucleotides (NADH), transport electrons and hydrogen to regulate and activate enzymes at remote locations. The physical separation of light absorption from catalysis provides some inspiration for artificial photosynthesis. One rather extreme implementation is to use copper wires to transport carriers from photovoltaic cells to dark electrodes, where catalysis occurs. Indeed, with a futuristic electrical grid powered solely by photovoltaics, solar capture could be separated from catalysis by hundreds of miles. An alternative approach, that bares more similarity to natural photosynthesis, employs mobile NADH/NAD + -like species that shuttle between the light absorber and a proximate, yet unilluminated, location where catalysis occurs. Additionally, such a remote approach to solar photocatalysis was recently proposed for the reduction of carbon oxides, CO 2 and CO, to methanol by cascade catalysis. This developing artificial photosynthetic approach offers the promise of catalytic generation of methanol and oxygen gas with sunlight as the sole energy source and CO 2 and water as the only chemical feedstocks. This Viewpoint evaluates the strengths and weaknesses of this approach with an emphasis on CO reduction catalysis with photorecyclable hydride donors while looking forward to what might reasonably be achieved with continued research.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2025

Spacetime pq theory for AC and DC electric power systems

The 50/60 Hz alternating current (AC) electric power has been the standard and most flexible energy source powering our modern societies for one and a half centuries since the war of the currents: AC versus direct current (DC). A reactive power concept that was introduced at the beginning of the AC power was very useful for circuit/system analysis, design, control, optimization, and ultimately for more efficient and stable generation, transmission, distribution, and consumption. The initial reactive power theory was based on single-phase sinusoidal AC power to capture inductive and capacitive power that yields to net-zero average power over one fundamental cycle. Soon it was expanded to non-sinusoidal AC power and finally to instantaneous three-phase AC power. However, these reactive power theories remain separate and limited to special cases and have never been consolidated and made valid to all cases. Today, more widespread adoption of power electronics and renewable energy is bringing back DC power into the electric grids. The reactive power concept has never been applied to DC power systems. There is no reactive power in DC power systems according to the existing reactive power theories. Do DC power systems really have no reactive power? Capacitors and inductors are widely used in DC just like in AC power systems. Are they not reactive power components? Why are they different from their AC counterparts? Furthermore, are batteries active or reactive power components? What about active devices like power converters (or inverters) with AC (or DC) on one side and DC (or AC) on the other? Do they generate or consume reactive power? Finally, what about AC and DC hybrid power systems? How to define reactive power in such a complex power system that has a multitude of loads, buses, and sources? Is there reactive power between any two loads, any two buses, or any two sources in a power system and what is the total reactive power in such a complex power system as a whole? As the motivation and goal of this paper to answer the above basic questions, to unify the existing AC reactive power theories and to ultimately provide theoretical and insightful guidance for system analysis, design, control, efficiency, optimization, and operation of complex power systems, a concept of spacetime (both spatial and temporal) active and reactive power (pq) theory—the spatiotemporal aspect of active and reactive power—is developed for both AC and DC power systems. The theoretical definitions and physical meanings of the spacetime reactive power will be developed, and real applications and thought experiments/cases/exercises will be explored and discussed. The developed mathematics to define the active (or real) and reactive (or imaginary) power— p and q respectively by dot (scalar) and cross (vector) products of multi-dimension spacetime vectors and time-space mapping principle/law can have some fundamental implications as well.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗
DOE OSTI2024

Life-cycle analysis of lithium chemical production in the United States

To achieve its ambitious national decarbonization goals, the United States has incentivized the domestic production of materials critical to decarbonization technologies, including lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). These materials include battery-grade lithium chemicals (Li-chemicals), for which the U.S. is encouraging domestic production from resources (sedimentary clays and low Li-content brines (LLCBs)) that differ substantially from conventional sources (Salar brines and spodumene ores). Here, we conduct the first-ever comparative life-cycle analysis of Li-chemical production from all alternative resources (in the U.S.) and conventional sources based on data from company literature for U.S.-related production efforts. Two energy sources (electricity and natural gas), four material inputs (HCl, NaOH, Na 2 CO 3 , and CaO), and process carbon emissions dominate the life-cycle impacts (≥90% share) of U.S.-based Li-chemical production. Comparatively, the life-cycle impacts of alternative sources-based Li-chemicals lie between those for Li-chemical production from Salar brines and from spodumene ores. At the battery level, the shift in Li-chemical sourcing causes a notable change in LIB's life-cycle impacts (by ~5–15%), independent of the cathode chemistry employed. Our study highlights the relevance of a decarbonized electric grid and the capture and sequestration of process carbon emissions generated during Li-chemical and upstream material production in decarbonizing Li-chemical production from alternative sources. Further decarbonization would necessitate using decarbonized material inputs and a shift away from natural gas towards renewable energy for alternative resource-based Li-chemical production processes.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2024

Security constrained optimal power shutoff for wildfire risk mitigation

Abstract Electric grid faults are increasingly the source of ignition for major wildfires. To reduce the likelihood of such ignitions in high risk situations, utilities use preemptive de‐energization of power lines, commonly referred to as Public Safety Power Shutoffs (PSPS). Besides raising challenging trade‐offs between power outages and wildfire safety, PSPS removes redundancy from the network at a time when component faults are likely to happen. This may leave the network particularly vulnerable to unexpected line faults that may occur while the PSPS is in place. Previous works have not explicitly considered the impacts of these outages. To address this gap, the Security Constrained Optimal Power Shutoff problem is proposed which uses post‐contingency security constraints to model the impact of unexpected line faults when planning a PSPS. This model enables, for the first time, the exploration of a wide range of trade‐offs between both wildfire risk and pre‐ and post‐contingency load shedding when designing PSPS plans, providing useful insights for utilities and policy makers considering different approaches to PSPS. The efficacy of the model is demonstrated using the EPRI 39‐bus system as a case study. The results highlight the potential risks of not considering security constraints when planning PSPS and show that incorporating security constraints into the PSPS design process improves the resilience of current PSPS plans.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2024

Multiparameter optical fiber sensing for energy infrastructure through nanoscale light–matter interactions: From hardware to software, science to commercial opportunities

Monitoring of energy infrastructure through robust yet economical sensing platforms is becoming an area of increased importance, with ubiquitous applications including the electrical grid, natural gas and oil transportation pipelines, H2 infrastructure (storage and transportation), carbon storage, power generation, and subsurface environments. Plasmonic and functional nanomaterial enabled fiber optic sensors show excellent promise for a wide range of sensing applications due to their versatility to be engineered for specific analytes of interest while retaining inherent advantages of the optical fiber sensor platform. Through the design of novel sensing layers, the optical transduction mechanism and wavelength dependence can also be tailored for ease of integration with low-cost interrogation systems enabling an inexpensive yet highly functional optical fiber sensing platform. In addition, recent advances in artificial intelligence and machine learning theoretical methods have been leveraged to simultaneously extract multiple parameters through multi-wavelength interrogation such that unique wavelengths can also serve as unique sensing elements, analogous to electronic nose sensor technologies. The concept of an optical fiber based “photonic nose” via multiple interrogation wavelengths and/or sensor nodes offers a compelling platform technology to realize multiparameter speciation of chemical analytes within complex gas mixtures. In this Perspective, we further generalize the notion of multiparameter sensing through the novel “photonic nervous system” concept based upon low-cost, functionalized optical fiber sensor probes monitoring a variety of distinct analyte classes (physical, chemical, electromagnetic, etc.) simultaneously to provide broad situational awareness via integrated sensors.

Su, Yang-Duan (ORCID:0000000214820902)↗
DOE OSTI2026

A rapid embodied carbon assessment tool for priority materials

Embodied carbon limits within building materials are a driving factor in global trade, generating new research and analysis tools in industry. These product assessments, which require utilizing life-cycle assessment (LCA) across broad supply chains, can be expensive, time and data-intensive, and subject to significant variations. Existing methods and tools, such as specific environmental product declarations, typically do not capture these variations and dynamics in supply and manufacturing. Moreover, models and tools must enable stakeholders to assess customized supply chains and future scenarios. In this study, we present the Rapid Embodied Carbon Assessment and Target-setting for Emissions-intensive Materials (REDuCE) tool for building materials. We developed a tool that allows users to select production technologies, transportation mode and distances, concrete carbonation, fuel sources, and regional electricity mixes to supply customization for cement and concrete produced and consumed in California. We generated and integrated a material demand model using residential building stock projections. We provide the user with a wide range of mitigation alternatives through low-carbon production pathways, material use efficiency, transportation modes, and projected electricity grid mixes. In a case study application through four mitigation scenarios, we find emission savings up to 80% by maximizing user mitigation alternatives, primarily driven by reductions in material use intensities. This work represents a foundation for expanding LCA and embodied carbon tools to better enable stakeholders to rapidly and accurately assess customized supply chains while meeting trade requirements.

building materials↗
DOE OSTI2024

Inertia Estimation Under High Penetration of Inverter-based Resources

Many types of renewable energy sources, especially solar and wind generation, are connected to the electric grid through power-electronic-based interfaces (inverters). These inverter-based resources (IBRs) are mechanically decoupled from the grid, which reduces system inertia and thus may compromise its stability and reliability. In this study, we examine the impact of high penetration of IBRs on the power grid’s inertia. To achieve this, we intentionally introduce disturbances into a simulation case study, such as a step load change, to observe and record the system’s frequency responses. This study offers a nuanced understanding of how the integration of IBRs affects grid stability, and it provides essential guidance for future grid management and resilience strategies.

Yadav, Ajay↗
DOE OSTI2024

Enabling DER visibility using a distributed dissemination network

The electrical grid is currently undergoing a series of rapid transformational changes that have resulted in the introduction of new actors and operational schemes that have fragmented the data and control planes. To help address the issue, this paper describes the implementation of a sensor-oriented, distributed data dissemination network that seeks to eliminate data silos. The implementation is based on the DGSS architecture previously described in [1]. The developed product seeks to facilitate the seamless integration of multi-operator, multi-origin, multi-domain sensor data by using a distributed systems approach. The proposed solution decouples the sensor’s data streams from the application-specific infrastructure and migrates them into a software-defined databus that can be configured to suit the end application’s demands. To further validate DGSS capabilities, a DER oriented use case has been developed.

Sensor Dissemination Networks, Enhanced DER visibi↗
DOE OSTI2024

Verification of Adaptive Protection in Hardware in the Loop for Coordination with Solar Variability

As inverter-based resources continue to be installed at all levels of the electric grid, the fixed protection schemes used at the distribution level will continue to be stressed until they no longer ensure the protection of the grid. Adaptive protection has been proposed as a solution with the ability to update the protection schemes in near real-time to ensure reliability and increase the resilience of the grid. However, weather variability poses a significant challenge to the ability of these methods to keep the selectivity and reliability of these schemes coordinated. If the ramp rates, due to solar variability, of the inverter-based resources change faster than the adaptive protection can issue new settings, the protection system could be uncoordinated, with the wrong device responding to a system fault. The proposed adaptive protection method ensures that due to solar variability, communication, and protection calculation latency, it can issu e coordinated protection settings promptly, in one minute or less. The hardware-in-the-loop results show the protection settings being issued and maintaining system coordination in under a minute.

Summers, Adam↗
DOE OSTI2024

Nanosecond Transient Validation of Surge Arrester Models to Predict Electromagnetic Pulse Response

The impact of high-altitude electromagnetic pulse events on the electric grid is not fully understood, and validated modeling of mitigations, such as lightning surge arresters (LSAs) is necessary to predict the propagation of very fast transients on the grid. Experimental validation of high frequency models for surge arresters is an active area of research. Further, this article serves to experimentally validate a previously defined ZnO LSA model using four metal-oxide varistor pucks and nanosecond scale pulses to measure voltage and current responses. The SPICE circuit models of the pucks showed good predictability when compared to the measured arrester response when accounting for a testbed inductance of approximately 100 nH. Additionally, the comparatively high capacitance of low-profile arresters show a favorable response to high-speed transients that indicates the potential for effective electromagnetic pulse mitigation with future materials design.

42 ENGINEERING↗