Results for “Process Efficiency” — Page 16

DOE OSTI2022

Novel Approaches to the Isolation of Glucaric Acid from Fermentation Broth. Final report

Kalion has successfully demonstrated a fermentation route using glucose as the feedstock. This game-changing technology allows Kalion to economically produce large-scale quantities of high-purity glucaric acid products. Kalion has also developed a novel downstream processing strategy for isolating and purifying glucaric acid forms, including the free acid, monoammonium glucarate, and monopotassium glucarate. Despite the low solubility of these products, significant water removal is needed prior to crystallization, requiring energy intensive evaporation or reverse osmosis. Here, we work in collaboration with the Separations Consortium to develop novel, low-cost means of water removal in Kalion’s glucarate/glucaric acid purification process. This proposed CRADA project with national labs (ORNL, ANL, and NREL) evaluated various technologies developed by the Separations Consortium as applied to glucaric acid purification, intended to generate a scalable, cost-effective, energy-efficient process. Four approaches were evaluated with mock aqueous solutions of glucaric acid or glucarate, and the results analyzed with respect to separation effectiveness and potential cost savings. The leading technology will then be further developed and tested with actual clarified or non-clarified broth (depending on the approach) obtained from 20L fermentations provided by Kalion, that will contain inorganic ions, byproducts, and residual sugars in addition to the product.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

DOE OSTI2021

Nonlinear Optical Microscopy with Ultralow Quantum Light

Nonlinear optical (NLO) microscopy relies on multiple light–matter interactions to provide unique contrast mechanisms and imaging capabilities that are inaccessible to traditional linear optical imaging approaches, making them versatile tools to understand a wide range of complex systems. However, the strong excitation fields that are necessary to drive higher-order optical processes efficiently are often responsible for photobleaching, photodegradation, and interruption in many systems of interest. This is especially true for imaging living biological samples over prolonged periods of time or in accessing intrinsic dynamics of electronic excited-state processes in spatially heterogeneous materials. This perspective outlines some of the key limitations of two NLO imaging modalities implemented in our lab and highlights the unique potential afforded by the quantum properties of light, especially entangled two-photon absorption based NLO spectroscopy and microscopy. Here, we further review some of the recent exciting advances in this emerging filed and highlight some major challenges facing the realization of quantum-light-enabled NLO imaging modalities.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

DOE OSTI2016

Cesium Isotherm Testing with Spherical Resorcinol-Formaldehyde Resin at High Sodium Concentrations

Washington River Protection Solutions (WRPS) is developing a Low-Activity Waste Pretreatment System (LAWPS) to provide low-activity waste (LAW) directly to the Hanford Tank Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) Low-Activity Waste Facility for immobilization. The pretreatment that will be conducted on tank waste supernate at the LAWPS facility entails filtration to remove entrained solids and cesium (Cs) ion exchange to remove Cs from the product sent to the WTP. Currently, spherical resorcinol-formaldehyde (sRF) resin (Microbeads AS, Skedsmokorset, Norway) is the Cs ion exchange resin of choice. Most work on Cs ion exchange efficacy in Hanford tank waste has been conducted at nominally 5 M sodium (Na). WRPS is examining the possibility of processing supernatant at high Na concentrations—up to 8 M Na—to maximize processing efficiency through the LAWPS. Minimal Cs ion exchange work has been conducted at 6 M and 8 M Na concentrations..

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

DOE OSTI2013

Department of Energy Support of Energy Intensive Manufacturing Related to Refractory Research

For many years, the United States Department of Energy (DOE) richly supported refractory related research to enable greater energy efficiency processes in energy intensive manufacturing industries such as iron and steel, glass, aluminum and other non-ferrous metal production, petrochemical, and pulp and paper. Much of this support came through research projects funded by the former DOE Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) Office of Industrial Technologies (OIT) under programs such as Advanced Industrial Materials (AIM), Industrial Materials of the Future (IMF), and the Industrial Technologies Program (ITP). Under such initiatives, work was funded at government national laboratories such as Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), at universities such as West Virginia University (WVU) and the Missouri University of Science and Technology (MS&T) which was formerly the University of Missouri Rolla, and at private companies engaged in these manufacturing areas once labeled industries of the future by DOE due to their strategic and economic importance to American industry. Examples of such projects are summarized below with information on the scope, funding level, duration, and impact. This is only a sampling of representative efforts funded by the DOE in which ORNL was involved over the period extending from 1996 to 2011. Other efforts were also funded during this time at various other national laboratories, universities and private companies under the various programs mentioned above. Discussion of the projects below was chosen because I was an active participant in them and it is meant to give a sampling of the magnitude and scope of investments made by DOE in refractory related research over this time period.

Hemrick, James Gordon↗

DOE OSTI2017

Multivariate Analysis for Quantification of Plutonium(IV) in Nitric Acid Based on Absorption Spectra

Development of more effective, reliable, and fast methods for monitoring process streams is a growing opportunity for analytical applications. Many fields can benefit from on-line monitoring, including the nuclear fuel cycle where improved methods for monitoring radioactive materials will facilitate maintenance of proper safeguards and ensure safe and efficient processing of materials. On-line process monitoring with a focus on optical spectroscopy can provide a fast, non-destructive method for monitoring chemical species. However, identification and quantification of species can be hindered by the complexity of the solutions if bands overlap or show condition-dependent spectral features. Plutonium (IV) is one example of a species which displays significant spectral variation with changing nitric acid concentration. Single variate analysis (i.e. Beer’s Law) is difficult to apply to the quantification of Pu(IV) unless the nitric acid concentration is known and separate calibration curves have been made for all possible acid strengths. Multivariate, or chemometric, analysis is an approach that allows for the accurate quantification of Pu(IV) without a priori knowledge of nitric acid concentration.

Lines, Amanda M.↗

DOE OSTI2021

Advanced Fuels Campaign Execution Plan

The Advanced Fuels Campaign (AFC) Execution Plan outlines the strategy, mission, scope, near-term and long-term goals, structure, and organization associated with nuclear fuels and materials research, development, and demonstration activities within the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Supply Chain (NFCSC) program. NFCSC has been given responsibility to identify and mature advanced fuel technologies for the DOE using a science-based approach, focused on developing a fundamental understanding of nuclear fuels and materials to drive development of integrated nuclear fuel and materials technology. This science-based approach combines theory, experiments, and multiscale modeling and simulation to achieve a predictive understanding of relevant behaviors ranging from fuel fabrication processes (and their resulting fuel microstructures) through fuel/cladding performance under irradiation (in contrast to more empirical, observation-based approaches frequently used in fuel performance modeling and fuel qualification). The traditional scope of AFC includes the evaluation and development of multiple fuel forms to support two fuel cycle options: once-through and full recycle. The word “fuel” is used generically to include conventional fuels, transmutation targets, and any associated cladding or duct materials. The once-through fuel cycle addresses advanced light water reactor fuels with enhanced performance, extended burnup, and reduced waste generation. In fiscal year (FY) 2012, AFC’s scope expanded to include research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) for light water reactor (LWR) fuels with enhanced accident tolerance. Fuel fabrication activities include the development of innovative methods to enhance process efficiencies, reduce waste, and improve control over as-fabricated fuel microstructural properties to achieve desired in-reactor performance. Using modern modeling and simulation approaches, the objective is to predict fresh fuel properties given the feedstock characteristics and fabrication process parameters. The performance-related activities include small-scale, in-reactor, and out-of-reactor phenomenological testing (distinct from, but synergistic with, integral prototypic testing) and extensive, quantitative characterization (focusing on characterization of fuel and cladding materials at the scale of microstructure) both before and after testing. Larger-scale, prototypic experiments are conducted in concert with phenomenological testing to drive a Fuel Development and Qualification program, incorporating a fundamental understanding of fuel behavior performance characteristics. Then, using the tools developed under the productive science-based approach, fuels will be optimized to meet specific performance requirements, thereby minimizing the need to repeatedly perform large-scale, integral experiments over a wide parametric range as a means of experimental exploration. Two significant initiatives are underway within AFC. First, a gap analysis completed in early FY 2019 identified critical irradiation testing needs that are lacking within the national light water reactor (LWR) fuels testbed since the shutdown of the Halden Reactor in 2018. The identified gaps are for instrumented, prototypic testing of LWR fuels, especially under boiling water reactor conditions, ramp conditions, and conditions leading to fuel failure; these needs exist for supporting current LWR fuels and their possible extension to higher burnups, but are especially urgent relative to near-term development and qualification of accident-tolerant fuels. Recommendations that resulted from the Halden Gap Analysis focused on enhancements at Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) and Transient Reactor Test Facility (TREAT) to fill gaps in testing capabilities relative to these needs. Second, a concerted effort to develop and demonstrate a systematic approach to accelerating the development, testing, and qualification of new fuel systems has been initiated. This is highlighted by a test strategy that combines the considerable advances in multiscale, mechanistic fuel modeling of recent years with a MiniFuel separate effects test program in the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) and a Fission Accelerated Steady-state Testing (FAST) semi-integral accelerated test program in ATR. This approach is being tested/demonstrated using the metallic fuel system, but if successful it is expected to be extensible to multiple fuel types and diverse applications. This document includes an overview of the NFCSC program, a definition of science-based development of nuclear fuels, near-term goals for Advanced LWR fuels (ALFs), and longer-term goals for Advanced Reactor Fuels (ARFs) RD&D. This includes the activities that will be conducted to achieve success toward the grand challenge, as well as the goals and milestones to be achieved over the next few decades of research and development. Long-term goals are based on the DOE Office of Nuclear Energ

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

DOE OSTI2024

Advanced Fuels Campaign Execution Plan

The Advanced Fuels Campaign (AFC) Execution Plan outlines the strategy, mission, scope, near-term and long-term goals, structure, and organization associated with nuclear fuels and materials research, development, and demonstration activities within the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Supply Chain (NFCSC) program. NFCSC has been given responsibility to identify and mature advanced fuel technologies for the DOE using a science-based approach, focused on developing a fundamental understanding of nuclear fuels and materials to drive development of integrated nuclear fuel and materials technology. This science-based approach combines theory, experiments, and multiscale modeling and simulation to achieve a predictive understanding of relevant behaviors ranging from fuel fabrication processes (and their resulting fuel microstructures) through fuel/cladding performance under irradiation (in contrast to more empirical, observation-based approaches frequently used in fuel performance modeling and fuel qualification). The traditional scope of AFC includes the evaluation and development of multiple fuel forms to support two fuel cycle options: once-through and full recycle. The word “fuel” is used generically to include conventional fuels, transmutation targets, and any associated cladding or duct materials. The once-through fuel cycle addresses advanced light water reactor fuels with enhanced performance, extended burnup, and reduced waste generation. In fiscal year (FY) 2012, AFC’s scope expanded to include research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) for light water reactor (LWR) fuels with enhanced accident tolerance. Fuel fabrication activities include the development of innovative methods to enhance process efficiencies, reduce waste, and improve control over as-fabricated fuel microstructural properties to achieve desired in-reactor performance. Using modern modeling and simulation approaches, the objective is to predict fresh fuel properties given the feedstock characteristics and fabrication process parameters. The performance-related activities include small-scale, in-reactor, and out-of-reactor phenomenological testing (distinct from, but synergistic with, integral prototypic testing) and extensive, quantitative characterization (focusing on characterization of fuel and cladding materials at the scale of microstructure) both before and after testing. Larger-scale, prototypic experiments are conducted in concert with phenomenological testing to drive a Fuel Development and Qualification program, incorporating a fundamental understanding of fuel behavior performance characteristics. Then, using the tools developed under the productive science-based approach, fuels will be optimized to meet specific performance requirements, thereby minimizing the need to repeatedly perform large-scale, integral experiments over a wide parametric range as a means of experimental exploration. Two significant initiatives are underway within AFC. First, a gap analysis completed in early FY 2019 identified critical irradiation testing needs that are lacking within the national light water reactor (LWR) fuels testbed since the shutdown of the Halden Reactor in 2018. The identified gaps are for instrumented, prototypic testing of LWR fuels, especially under boiling water reactor conditions, ramp conditions, and conditions leading to fuel failure; these needs exist for supporting current LWR fuels and their possible extension to higher burnups, but are especially urgent relative to near-term development and qualification of accident-tolerant fuels. Recommendations that resulted from the Halden Gap Analysis focused on enhancements at Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) and Transient Reactor Test Facility (TREAT) to fill gaps in testing capabilities relative to these needs. Second, a concerted effort to develop and demonstrate a systematic approach to accelerating the development, testing, and qualification of new fuel systems has been initiated. This is highlighted by a test strategy that combines the considerable advances in multiscale, mechanistic fuel modeling of recent years with a MiniFuel separate effects test program in the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) and a Fission Accelerated Steady-state Testing (FAST) semi-integral accelerated test program in ATR. This approach is being tested/demonstrated using the metallic fuel system, but if successful it is expected to be extensible to multiple fuel types and diverse applications. This document includes an overview of the NFCSC program, a definition of science-based development of nuclear fuels, near-term goals for Advanced LWR fuels (ALFs), and longer-term goals for Advanced Reactor Fuels (ARFs) RD&D. This includes the activities that will be conducted to achieve success toward the grand challenge, as well as the goals and milestones to be achieved over the next few decades of research and development. Long-term goals are based on the DOE Office of Nuclear Energ

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

DOE OSTI2025

Denoising Seismograms in the Time Domain Using a Deep Learning Model

Deep learning has emerged as a transformative tool for enhancing the extraction of reliable information from seismograms, addressing the increasing demand for precise and efficient seismic data analysis. We introduce an innovative encoder–decoder deep learning model, named WaveDenoiser, designed for noise reduction in the time domain, thereby eliminating the need for spectrogram computations that have been used for existing deep learning tools and significantly improving processing speed. Utilizing the benchmark dataset that is Stanford Earthquake Dataset, we developed three models of varying sizes: base, medium, and large. Notably, the large (referred to as WaveDenoiser) model demonstrated superior performance, achieving a median signal‐to‐noise ratio improvement of 8.8 dB on in‐distribution unseen data (in the same geographic region) and 7.7 dB on out‐distribution unseen data (in a new geographic region), outpacing both the base and medium models. Further evaluation of the WaveDenoiser model revealed a reduction in median arrival‐time errors by 0.02 s for P waves and 0.01 s for S waves when processing waveforms prior to phase picking using PhaseNet on in‐distribution unseen data. When tested on out‐distribution unseen data, the model also effectively reduced the P‐wave median arrival‐time error by 0.02 and 0.01 s in median arrival‐time error for S waves. Importantly, the application of WaveDenoiser resulted in a significant reduction of phase picking outliers by 1.1% to 3.6% for both P and S waves. In addition, we achieved over five times acceleration in processing speed compared with the seisBench implementation of DeepDenoiser. Our findings underscore the potential of WaveDenoiser as a powerful tool for improving seismic data analysis and processing efficiency.

P-waves↗

DOE OSTI2013

Characterization of CLYC Detectors for a Next-Generation Unattended Sensor

We are developing a next-generation unattended sensor for detecting anomalous radiation sources. The system uses a scintillator material with dual sensitivity to gamma rays and neutrons, Cs 2 LiYCl 6 :Ce (CLYC), to reduce the size and complexity of the design. CLYC also offers a best-case energy resolution under 4% full width at half maximum at 662 keV, and allows for particle discrimination by pulse amplitude as well as pulse shape. The unattended sensor features sixteen one-inch CLYC detectors, each read out by a photomultiplier tube and custom readout electronics. A field-programmable gate array implements a suite of efficient processing algorithms for anomaly detection and isotope identification, and transmits alarm information to a base station via a wireless link. The system is designed to operate on battery power for several weeks. In this paper, we report the energy resolution, linearity, detection efficiency, and temperature stability of the first CLYC detectors acquired for the project. Rather than characterizing the scintillator material under ideal conditions, we evaluate the detectors with the components selected for the unattended sensor, acknowledging the tradeoffs imposed by small size, limited power budget, and uncontrolled environmental conditions.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

DOE OSTI2018

Development of a Technology Roadmap for Online Monitoring of Nuclear Power Plants

The nuclear power industry has recently recognized the potential cost saving that can be achieved from migrating the current manual and labor dependent surveillance and preventive maintenance activities to data-driven online monitoring methods. Since then, several efforts have been launched with various degrees of momentum to tackle specific surveillance or preventive maintenance activities. The light water reactor sustainability program (LWRS) program has anticipated this need and launched an effort that aimed to develop a technology roadmap for the nuclear power industry. Because the roadmap has to be focused towards the user or application’s value, and because nuclear power plants have different process efficiencies and deficiencies, the technology roadmap has to be plant independent. Achieving this objective required optimizing the extent of details described by a technology roadmap. The approach followed is for the roadmap to describe the sequence of activities needed to automate a process or equipment activity, but not describe the sequence of processes or equipment to target. For example, the steps required to migrate the inspection of a pump are plant independent. However, defining that the migration of feed water pumps inspections to online monitoring should be performed before inspections of feed water valves is dependent on multiple plant factors such as the plant requirements, labor work capacity, and process or equipment conditions. The technology roadmap was broken down into six elements, four of which have a sequential path of advancement, while the other two are supporting elements to the sequential elements. The sequential part of the roadmap analyzes data collection, analytics, visualization, and management. For these elements of the technology roadmap, the migration of an activity is defined in three states. The base state is defined as the most primitive, manual, and labor dependent process used by some nuclear power plants. The modern state is defined as the state that can be achieved if the activities are augmented or replaced by current technologies that are commercially available or are soon to be available. The state of the art is defined as using technologies of the future, i.e. concept and technologies that are being researched. The data collection part of the technology roadmap defines three states of every process performed in a nuclear power plant. However, the data analytics part is described based on equipment, because automating an activity performed on one equipment required considering multiple data sources. The visualization and data management elements are process or equipment independent. Visualization describes the means to use human factor science and technologies advancement in presenting the data collected and the data analytics results. The data management targets storage, communication, and computational power need, in addition to data integration and sharing. Since storage, communication, and computational power technologies and path for deployment are known to any information technology organization, this effort targeted the cost of data management. This has a direct impact on the feasibility of the automation effort. The supporting elements analyzes the value of automating the activity and the change challenges to tackle. For the support elements, the roadmap targeted describing activities that need to be performed as part of the roadmap development. The value element of the roadmap describes how to analyze the cost saving and the associated risk. The change management identifies multiple factors to consider such as regulation, cybersecurity, resource availability, supporting infrastructure availability, feasibility (power, fitness, environment tolerance, facilities), and cultural change.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

DOE OSTI2017

Final Report An in situ, streaming, data- and compute-intensive platform for experimental data

Data-intensive and compute-intensive applications are the two essential methods supporting the scientific discovery process. Until recently, the development of technologies supporting the corresponding schemes evolved along two independent paths. Born and matured before the Big Data era, high-performance computing (HPC) scientific-oriented applications were not designed for Big Data streaming frameworks. But an efficient processing framework offered by the Spark computational platform has resolved many of the barriers to enable compute-intensive applications from within a data-intensive environment. Our Phase I project extended Spark with pipelines that utilize HPC applications. As a result, the project immediately addressed emerging high-throughput experiments driven by a new generation of X-ray instruments. After successful completion of Phase I, we are in a strong position for proposing a successful Phase II project.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

DOE OSTI2024

Hydrodynamic Test Requirements Process Improvements

Hydrodynamic testing at Los Alamos National Laboratory would benefit from a process improvement for the requirements process. Cameo was used as a digital solution for requirements management to allow Lead Engineers to track requirements more effectively. This was identified as a process improvement throughout this Capstone project. This report includes a project proposal, business case, literature review, methodology, project plan, data analysis, decision-making report, financial analysis report, discussion, and conclusion. Initially, this project focused on figuring out a solution for the hydrotest requirement process improvements. The scope narrowed to focus on the use of Cameo for requirement capture and management. During this Capstone, four tests had digital models produced for requirements management in Cameo. The initial model was the baseline, with core requirements used across the tests. Commonalities in tests were used and the core requirements allowed for process efficiencies. In the data analysis, it was seen that overall, the implementation of using Cameo for requirements resulted in a decreasing trend for both schedule and normalized cost. Tests have different complexity levels which is also a factor in how long the requirements process will take. Additional data is needed to continue analyzing process improvements. Through decisionmaking and financial analysis, the recommendation was to use Cameo for requirements process improvement. Multiple experts provided feedback for requirements that were then captured within models. Numerous tangible and intangible benefits were identified with this process improvement. For return on investment, the metric of success was schedule reduction, which was overall seen. Four tests were analyzed, so future analysis will be needed. There is also not a great financial risk because the main cost would be purchasing more licenses. Individuals must generate requirements whether using this software or not. Overall, training is needed to help improve the skillsets of Lead Engineers but is already being supported on a regular frequency. A desktop guide was started associated with explaining the process, however, it is a work in progress. The team plans on adding additional information in the digital models to help status when requirements are met using verification methods and artifacts. From working on this project an improved understanding of Cameo and requirements was the result. There are future opportunities to extend the usage for requirements management and progress will continue after this project.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗

NASA NTRS1981

A unique approach to fabricating precision space structures elements

A procedure of fabricating graphite epoxy columns used in the assembly of large space platforms is described. The requirement for precise dimensional control led to a unique hot resin injection process. Dry, high modulus fiber is wound over a vertically mounted steam-heated mandrel. A steam-heated sleeve or caul is slipped over the wound mandrel and resin is injected and cured in place. Approximately 200 column elements have been fabricated using this efficient process.

Cohan, H.↗

NASA NTRS2012

Projection of Stabilized Aerial Imagery Onto Digital Elevation Maps for Geo-Rectified and Jitter-Free Viewing

As imagery is collected from an airborne platform, an individual viewing the images wants to know from where on the Earth the images were collected. To do this, some information about the camera needs to be known, such as its position and orientation relative to the Earth. This can be provided by common inertial navigation systems (INS). Once the location of the camera is known, it is useful to project an image onto some representation of the Earth. Due to the non-smooth terrain of the Earth (mountains, valleys, etc.), this projection is highly non-linear. Thus, to ensure accurate projection, one needs to project onto a digital elevation map (DEM). This allows one to view the images overlaid onto a representation of the Earth. A code has been developed that takes an image, a model of the camera used to acquire that image, the pose of the camera during acquisition (as provided by an INS), and a DEM, and outputs an image that has been geo-rectified. The world coordinate of the bounds of the image are provided for viewing purposes. The code finds a mapping from points on the ground (DEM) to pixels in the image. By performing this process for all points on the ground, one can "paint" the ground with the image, effectively performing a projection of the image onto the ground. In order to make this process efficient, a method was developed for finding a region of interest (ROI) on the ground to where the image will project. This code is useful in any scenario involving an aerial imaging platform that moves and rotates over time. Many other applications are possible in processing aerial and satellite imagery.

Ansar, Adnan I.↗

NASA NTRS2018

GPM Mission's Best Practices: PERP

Similar to other missions, the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Core Observatory's Command and Data Handling (C&DH) subsystem is critical for operations of the spacecraft. The onboard C&DH system comprises of two fully redundant boxes - a primary and a cold backup. Within each box, amongst other components, is a Single Board Computer (SBC) that hosts the flight software (FSW) system. In the event of an SBC reset, the Flight Operations Team (FOT) is poised with a lengthy task of restoring the SBC to nominal configuration. Due to the complexity of the C&DH system, this may take many days at a time to complete. The spacecraft's FSW applications are located in Electronically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory (EEPROM) and are copied into Random Access Memory (RAM) upon SBC initialization/reset. Each SBC has two banks of EEPROM, with each bank containing a copy of the FSW. Since launch, there have been many configuration changes to tables and applications that have been loaded into just RAM. Unfortunately, these changes are vulnerable to being wiped during a SBC initialization/reset, when the RAM is overwritten by the EEPROM. Although the EEPROM loads the default FSW configurations, the process to command non-default individual table and application changes is very cumbersome and time consuming. This consequentially increases the time until the spacecraft is back into nominal Mission Science Mode (MSM) drastically. The GPM Power-On Reset (POR) Expedited Recovery Process (PERP) Design introduces a method of consolidating commands into a single file load which the SBC can process independently of the ground - decreasing recovery time, the level of TDRS support reliance, and human error. This tested design can be implemented across many other missions that utilize a similar core Flight Executive (cFE) platform; hence providing an easy-to-follow, safe, and efficient process that can be applied across the board.

recovery↗

DOE OSTI2024

Enhancing Nitrogen Activation in Electrochemical Reduction: The Role of Rare Earth Oxide Surface Configurations

The pursuit of sustainable ammonia synthesis has prompted the exploration of ambient electrochemical nitrogen reduction reaction (e-NRR) as an alternative to the energy-intensive Haber-Bosch process. Here, this study conducted a theoretical investigation into the use of rare earth oxide materials, specifically dysprosium oxide (Dy 2 O 3 ), as potential electrocatalysts for NRR. Utilizing spin-polarized density functional theory calculations, we explored the interaction between Dy 2 O 3 surfaces and nitrogen (N 2 ) molecules, examining the capability of Dy 2 O 3 to adsorb and activate N 2 under ambient conditions. The results indicate that Dy 2 O 3 surfaces exhibit diverse configurations and bonding environments, providing a variety of reactive sites that display different behaviors in N 2 adsorption and activation. The distinctive electronic structure and surface chemistry of a particular Dy 2 O 3 surface configuration were found to significantly enhance the activation of N 2 by promoting charge transfer, which facilitates the NRR process. This research provides deep insights into the mechanistic pathways of N 2 reduction over Dy 2 O 3 , highlighting the surface properties as pivotal in catalysis. These theoretical insights serve as a foundation for the development of novel rare earth-based electrocatalytic materials for efficient ambient e-NRR, potentially transforming ammonia production into a greener and more energy-efficient process.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

DOE OSTI2013

Investigation of processing advanced waste forms in Cold Crucible Induction Melter systems

The Cold Crucible Induction Melter (CCIM) technology has been identified in several independent reviews and studies as a potential alternative or supplemental vitrification technology for specific U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) high level radioactive waste (HLW) streams. These inventories have unique chemistries, such as high alumina, high iron, high chromium, etc., that are not amenable to efficient immobilization in conventional borosilicate glass (BSG) matrices. Advanced waste forms, such as iron phosphate glass (FePG), high crystalline BSG (HC-BSG), and alumino-silicate glass-ceramic (GC) have been shown to provide significantly improved immobilization matrices for these challenging waste streams, including dramatically improved waste loadings; however, they are difficult to efficiently process in the baseline joule-heated ceramic melters (JHCMs). The CCIM technology can effectively process these advanced waste forms at the desired high waste loadings. This paper describes the most recent collaborative activities between the DOE Office of Environmental Management (DOE EM) and various Russian institutions in modeling, development and testing of advanced waste forms in CCIMs, including FePG and HC-BSG formulations. Additionally, past interactions with other international partners, including France and Korea, are described. Finally, recent enhancements to CCIM processing related to modeling, draining techniques and automated control, which were collaboratively developed, will be discussed. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

DOE OSTI2021

Recent advances in CO 2 hydrogenation to value-added products — Current challenges and future directions

Climate change, global warming, fossil fuel depletion and rising fuel prices have created great incentives to seek alternative fuel production technologies. CO 2 transformation to value-added products using renewable H 2 has proven to be an emerging solution to enable this goal. In this regard, three different promising processes, namely methane, methanol and hydrocarbon synthesis via CO 2 hydrogenation are thoroughly discussed. In addition, the influential factors affecting process efficiencies such as catalyst design and mechanistic insight, operating conditions as well as reactor types are investigated, with key pathways that dictate catalyst activity and selectivity of the most promising materials described. Furthermore, a brief overview of the reactor configuration and its crucial role in the improving process viability is analyzed. Accordingly, fixed-bed, fluidized-bed, annular and spherical reactors along with H 2 O/H 2 perm-selective membrane reactors are disscussed for hydrocarbon production. In addition, different reactor configurations are compared to assess the best one that is adjustable depending on the reaction mechanism. In conclusion, a corrugated-wall dual-type membrane reactor is proposed as an emerging alternative for CO 2 hydrogenation to value-added products.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗