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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 37 records · Page 2
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2025

Virtual Engineering: Python framework for engineering process design

Virtual Engineering (VE) is a Python software framework designed to accelerate the research and development of engineering processes that are fundamentally defined by multiple unit operations executed in series. VE supports a wide variety of different multi-physics models and integrates them to simulate a complete end-to-end process. To automate the execution of this model sequence, VE provides (i) a robust method to communicate between models, (ii) a high-level, user-friendly interface to set model parameters and enable optimization, and (iii) an overall model-agnostic approach that allows new computational units to be swapped in and out of workflows. Although the VE framework was developed to support the biochemical conversion of biomass to fuel, we have designed each component to easily accommodate new domains and unit models.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗
DOE OSTI2026

Design of Multi-Engine Freight Locomotive

This final report documents the completed engineering design of a modular, multi-engine renewable natural gas (RNG) hybrid freight locomotive. The project delivered a full systems design, component selection, and production and test plans for a near-zero-emission, Tier 5–capable line-haul locomotive, but did not proceed to fabrication or field testing due to withdrawal of the designated engine supplier.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2025

Genome-scale Design and Engineering of Non-model Yeast Organisms for Production of Biofuels and Bioproducts

The overall goal of this project was to develop genome-scale design and engineering tools for two non-model yeast organisms including Rhodotorula toruloides and Issatchenkia orientalis to produce high-levels of fatty acids-derived products and organic acids, respectively. The project was performed between 9/15/2017 and 9/14/2024 (the last two-years were no-cost extensions). The team consisted of Huimin Zhao (Lead PI) and Christopher Rao (Co-PI) from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), Costas Maranas (Co-PI) from the Pennsylvania State University, Joshua Rabinowitz (Co-PI) and Martin Wuhr (Co-PI) from Princeton University, and Yasuo Yoshikuni (Co-PI) from the DOE Joint Genome Institute. The team has made great progress in both tool development and fundamental understanding of these two non-model yeasts. In total, there were 40 research publications (one of them is still under review) and one patent application as well as numerous oral presentations.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2025

Cyber-Informed Engineering (CIE) Integration into Model- Based Systems Engineering (MBSE)

Engineering design in the field of industrial engineering, such as designing automated factories or warehouses, is critical for the effective operation of facilities. Any design flaws introduced early can result in significant capital expenses to correct. However, early-stage engineering design is inherently complex. The systems are not yet built, requiring designers to integrate various aspects, including digital engineering and cybersecurity, to support virtual representations throughout the design process. In this study, we propose an approach to integrate Cyber-Informed Engineering (CIE) principles into model-based systems engineering (MBSE). This approach facilitates the development of a digital thread for engineering systems, ensuring secure digital artifacts in the design of industrial engineering systems.

42 - ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2024

Integrated Methane Monitoring Platform Design (Final Report)

As the urgency for understanding methane emissions and the number of methane monitoring technologies being deployed have increased in the last two decades, there is an opportunity and a need to integrate the numerous disparate data sources to enable the detection, quantification, contextualization, and reporting of methane emissions along the oil and gas supply chain. Such an integration would enable emissions reductions through early detection of super emitters, data-driven mitigation strategies, and improved greenhouse gas inventories. The GTI Energy (“GTI”) project team (“the team”) worked with a multitude of industry experts, stakeholders, and subject matter experts (SMEs) to collect guidance, insights, and information to inform the requirements and subsequent engineering, design, deployment, and operations of an integrated methane monitoring platform (IMMP). This final report describes the results of the team’s effort to execute the Integrated Methane Monitoring Platform Design project, ultimately providing an engineering, design, deployment, and operating plan (EDDOP) for the IMMP. This final report summarizes and integrates the project tasks' results and outputs.

03 NATURAL GAS↗
DOE OSTI2025

Corrosion and Mechanical Durability Testing in High Temperature Molten Sulfur (CRADA Final Report)

The overall goal of the project is to explore and identify suitable candidate materials for high-temperature molten sulfur thermal energy storage (TES) operating up to a maximum temperature of 400°C–420°C for industrial process heat applications. A detailed corrosion and strength analysis of coupons subjected to long-term thermal testing in molten sulfur will be conducted to characterize the fundamental corrosion mechanism, corrosion rates, and mechanical durability. The results from the project contribute to the engineering design of sulfur TES systems with desired longevity and lower construction and maintenance costs. The research outcome benefits the TES research and development community by providing detailed corrosion and degradation information for more effective engineering design of the molten sulfur TES containment. It improves the diversity and reliability of the renewable technologies available for the U.S. industries and U.S. power grid.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2025

Design and Engineering of LUPIN: A Test-Bed Radio-Frequency Ion Source for Enhanced Neutral Beam Injection on DIII-D

The Large, Uniform Plasma for Ionizing Neutrals (LUPIN) is a radio-frequency (RF) inductively coupled plasma (ICP) chamber for demonstrating plasma performance of an RF ICP positive ion source upgrade for the DIII-D neutral beam injection (NBI) system. LUPIN will be used to investigate ion source physics, including neutral gas dynamics, plasma density uniformity, interactions with Faraday shields, and power coupling to novel RF antenna designs. LUPIN has an RF generator capable of delivering 20 kW of power at 2 MHz, which is coupled into a cylindrical quartz vessel measuring 20 cm in length and 10 cm in radius. This configuration matches the power density requirements for a full-scale ion source. Target hydrogen and deuterium plasma densities exceeding 10 18 m -3 would relate to extracted ion current densities of 2100 A/m 2 for 10s. Vacuum conductance and gas flow calculations predict a maximum achievable neutral gas flow rate of 1675 Pa ⋅ L/s at 5 Pa of He, which mimics the gas flow of the DIII-D NBI system. Designs have been developed for an internal Faraday shield to mitigate heat flux and ion sputtering on the dielectric vessel. Thermomechanical finite element simulations demonstrated the Faraday shield design to be capable of withstanding anticipated heat loads from worst-case operation scenarios. Finally, results of upcoming experimental investigations on LUPIN will guide the design of a full-scale prototype for DIII-D integration.

Faraday shield↗
DOE OSTI2024

Scalable Control Co-design for Resilient-by-Design Cyber Physical Systems

Critical infrastructure networks, such as power and transportation networks, are often modelled as cyber-physical systems. With ever increasing complexity of these systems, there is a need for newer and more relevant metrics and design tools that will co-optimize the physical system components and control policies to guarantee resilience against cyber and natural threats. To this end, a simulation-based control co-design computational framework that will concurrently determine the system and control parameters of a cyber-physical system to meet pre-specified resilience, operational and economic objectives has been developed. The capabilities of the developed co-design engine are demonstrated by designing the physical components and control parameters of a microgrid system that will meet its resiliency objectives when subjected to various cyber and physical threats.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2025

Process Systems Engineering-Informed Design and Scale-Up of Multi-stage Diafiltration Cascades for Lithium and Cobalt Recovery from Spent Lithium-Ion Batteries

These slides present work jointly completed by Tasks in PrOMMiS. The first half of the presentation motivates the importance of critical materials for national security and how the recovery of critical minerals via membrane separations can be more cost effective than currently used technology. The second half of the presentation presents cost-optimal results for the custom cost model for diafiltration using the superstructure flowsheet developed by CMU. These results highlight how PSE can inform process targets (i.e., product purity targets) and suitable design strategies for scaled-up membrane cascades.

critical materials↗
DOE OSTI2024

FEED Study of CarbonCapture Inc DAC and CarbonCure Utilization Technologies Using United States Steel’s Gary Works Plant Waste Heat (Final Report)

The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) led this project to produce a front-end engineering design (FEED) study of an advanced Direct Air Capture and Utilization System (DACUS) system that can remove a minimum of 5,000 tonnes/yr net of carbon dioxide from air (based on cradle-to-gate LCA) and utilizing the CO 2 to produce low carbon intensity ready mix concrete. The designed system, if built, would be larger than any currently existing Direct Air Capture (DAC) collector in the U.S. Such carbon capture technologies are critical to meeting the goals of the DOE’s program to accelerate climate-critical technology. In addition to the power sector, industrial facilities for the manufacture of steel and cement/concrete are among the major sources of anthropogenic CO 2 . DAC is a promising new technology for reducing CO 2 , a potent greenhouse gas, in the atmosphere but is expensive, in part due to the energy required to adsorb and desorb captured CO 2 during cycles. By integrating CarbonCapture Inc. (CCI) DAC modules at United States Steel's Gary Works (USS) and utilizing the site's waste heat, energy, and location this project evaluates the feasibility of utilizing the captured CO 2 and the logistics of transportation. CarbonCapture Inc. has developed an innovative DAC system using novel adsorbents to cost-effectively capture CO 2 . The captured, liquified gas will be trucked to ready-mix concrete plants within the region, the closest of which is approximately 3.5 miles away, where CarbonCure will inject it into concrete during the mixing process at the facilities. The carbon dioxide reacts with concrete, mineralizing into calcium carbonate (CaCO 3 ), permanently locking the greenhouse gas into the matrix of the building material. This FEED study demonstrated a full CO 2 value chain for DACUS from industrial facilities. It also provided a means for Visage Energy Corp. (Visage) to assess the impact of this holistic approach on job creation, regional economic impact, and environmental justice. The project team also included Sargent & Lundy (S&L) to provide the constructability review and costing of the integration of the DAC with the steel plant. Ecotek Engineering USA, LLC designed the outside battery limit (OSBL) infrastructure to connect the DAC and the plant. Activities performed during the project included: (1) Project Management Plan; (2) Technology Maturation Plan (TMP); (3) Initial Workforce Readiness Plan; (4) Workforce Readiness Plan; (5) Front-End Engineering Design (FEED) Study; (6) Project Design Basis; (7) Hazards and Operability (HAZOP) Study; (8) Constructability Review; (9) Project Cost Assessment; (10) Logistics Analysis of CO 2 Transportation to the Utilization Site; (11) Business Case Analysis; (12) Life Cycle Analysis (LCA); (13) Environmental Health and Safety (EH&S) Analysis; (14) Environmental Justice Analysis; and (15) Economic Revitalization and Job Creation Outcomes Analysis. This report provides a summary of the outcomes and results of the project, which was performed between Oct. 1, 2022, through Sept. 30, 2024.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2024

Solar Design/Install Labor Quantification (Cooperative Research and Development Final Report)

The goals of this project were to quantify the rate and/or total expected labor expenditure of engineers designing solar arrays and electricians installing solar across a spectrum of project sizes and configurations. Specifically, procuring and analyzing labor data from solar engineering firms relating to the amount of time it takes an engineer to design a solar project, the amount of time it takes an engineer to perform a wiring or stringing design, the amount of time it takes an electrician to install a solar project and the amount of time it takes electricians to install the strings of a solar array. Then these details could be analyzed to evaluate labor intensity for solar design/installation. These goals were unable to be completed because the participant was unable to collect the necessary data for analysis.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2026

One Earth Energy FEED Process Design Basis

This report establishes the process design basis for the front-end engineering design (FEED) of a carbon capture and injection facility at One Earth Energy's (OEE) ethanol production plant in Gibson City, Illinois, developed as part of the Illinois Storage Corridor CarbonSAFE Phase III project. The facility is designed to compress and dehydrate up to approximately 458,000 metric tonnes of CO 2 per year, sourced directly from OEE's ethanol fermenters, for permanent injection into a saline aquifer approximately four miles from the plant. At normal operating conditions, the system will process 1,290 metric tonnes of CO 2 per day, assuming 355 operating days per year and an ethanol production rate of 160 million gallons per year. The proposed process trains a multistage centrifugal blower with a five-stage reciprocating compressor, delivering CO 2 to the injection wellhead at up to 1,500 psig. Triethylene glycol (TEG) dehydration, applied after the fourth compression stage, reduces water content to a target of 10 lb/MMscf, well within the 30 lb/MMscf injection limit. Beyond dehydration, no additional treatment is required; trace impurities including oxygen and nitrogen will remain in the injected stream. Key design considerations include the absence of spare cooling tower capacity at the site, necessitating new cooling infrastructure, and the need for a new electrical substation to support large motor loads. The facility is designed for continuous, largely unattended operation, monitored around the clock by existing OEE operations staff. This document serves as the foundational reference for all subsequent detailed engineering activities associated with the OEE CO 2 injection facility.

01 COAL, LIGNITE, AND PEAT↗
DOE OSTI2025

ROTA-CAP™: An Intensified Carbon Capture System Using Rotating Packed Beds (Final Scientific/Technical Report)

GTI Energy and Carbon Clean Solutions Limited successfully designed, constructed, and operated an integrated ROTA-CAP carbon capture skid. ROTA-CAP™ is a process intensification technology, applied for post-combustion carbon capture, which utilizes the centrifugal forces generated from rotation of rotating packed beds as well as advanced solvents to achieve increased mass transfer rates 1-2 orders of magnitude higher than conventional columns while substantially decreasing footprint. The test skid, which consisted of a dual stage RPB absorber with external interstage cooling and a single stage RPB regenerator, was operated at capacities up to 0.5 tonne/day of CO 2 capture with flue gas concentrations ranging from 4% to 22% CO 2 by vol. CO 2 removal rates greater than 95% were achieved, with CO 2 product purity also exceeding 95% by vol. Over 1,600 hours of operation were accumulated throughout the project, including over 1,000 hours of operation of the with real flue gas containing at least 9.8% CO 2 by vol. The skid was operated continuously for 24 hours per day and 7 days per week over the course of 7 long-term test campaigns, with the campaigns ranging from approximately 2-4 weeks per campaign. A techno-economic analysis was performed, and a cost of capture of $\$$41.18/tonne CO 2 was calculated for the ROTA-CAP process, compared to $\$$45.75/tonne for a Cansolv-based process. These results show a cost reduction of approximately 10% compared to the Cansolv-based process. Although this still exceeds the target cost of capture of $\$$30/tonne specified for this project, GTI expects that the cost of capture can be further reduced through further optimization of the design and technology. GTI also performed an engineering design review to determine the scale-up potential of the technology, with the results of the preliminary assessment indicating that it appears to be feasible to scale up the RPB technology to 4,000 TPD. It was also determined that both horizontal and vertical rotor orientations are feasible, though there are mechanical advantages to the vertical orientation.

20 FOSSIL-FUELED POWER PLANTS↗
DOE OSTI2025

Cyber-informed Engineering Battery Analysis Tool

The Cyber-Informed Engineering Battery Analysis Tool (CIEBAT) leverages the Department of Energy’s Cyber-Informed Engineering to prompt engineering designers and operators through an analysis of the critical functions to be supported by a BESS installation, the criticality of those functions, the impacts of denial, disruption or misuse of those functions within the BESS system, and the mitigations which could best prevent impacts to those functions resulting from cyber attack. Through use of this tool, BESS designers and operators can quickly identify appropriate engineering mitigation opportunities to limit impacts from cyber attack and functions where engineering and operational staff can prioritize and guide the application of cybersecurity protections to best support the resiliency of the system.

Lampe, BenjaminR [Idaho National Laboratory (INL),↗
DOE OSTI2024

Insights from FEED studies for retrofitting existing fossil power plants with carbon capture technology

Recent United States Department of Energy (DOE) sponsored front-end engineering design (FEED) studies for retrofitting existing fossil-fueled power plants with state-of-the-art carbon capture technology contain previously overlooked real-world design considerations for near-term deployment of carbon capture. Insights from examining seven recently published FEED study reports are summarized in this paper. This includes a discussion of the design, performance, and cost implications associated with (1) location-specific considerations such as water availability, land availability, and accessibility; (2) host-plant-specific factors such as flue gas specifications, allowable degree of integration between the capture system and host plant, and operational mode; and (3) miscellaneous factors such as market conditions, permitting requirements, and business case incentives. In conclusion, this manuscript highlights (1) water availability as a key design and cost driver, with host plant steam extraction increasing capture system cooling water availability, (2) modularization and constructability impacts on the number of capture trains, (3) the impacts of host plant operational mode and capacity factor on the business case for installing capture, and (4) the merit of continued research, development, and demonstration efforts addressing steam extraction, host plant tie-in at the stack, solvent reclamation and air emissions control.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2024

CW copper injector for SRF industrial cryomodules

Compact SRF industrial linacs can provide unique parameters of the beam (>1 MW and >1-10 MeV) hardly achievable by normal conducting linacs within limited space. SRF technology was prohibitively expensive until the development of conduction cooling which opened the way for compact stand alone SRF systems suitable for industrial and research applications. Limited cooling capacity puts strict requirements on the beam parameters with zero losses of the beam on the SRF cavity walls. This implies strict requirements on the beam energy to be accepted by the cryomodule and most importantly the beam bunching with zero particles in between. We designed a CW normal conducting RF injector which consists of a gridded RF gun integrated with a first cell of a copper booster cavity to satisfy these requirements. Here we present a complete design of a booster cavity including beam dynamics, RF, thermomechanical and engineering design.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2026

Persistent Elevated Soot Emissions Induced by Clustered Stochastic Preignition Events

Stochastic Preignition (SPI) is an abnormal combustion phenomenon that can occur in spark-ignition engines particularly under high-load operation. SPI is characterized by uncontrolled initiation of combustion prior to spark discharge, an abnormal combustion process that can lead to severe knock events and significant engine damage. SPI has been associated with fuel properties, lubricant composition, and engine design and operation. Here, in this work, a single-cylinder test engine with a dry-sump oil system was utilized to study the SPI response of E10 and E25 fuels with a range of Reid Vapor Pressure (RVP). An automated test procedure was employed, consisting of ten square-waved load profile segments, with each segment composed of 5 min of low-load operation followed by 25 min of sustained high-load operation. These tests were replicated across multiple days of testing including a lubricant triple flush between tests, and an online Fuel in Oil diagnostic measurement. Exhaust particulate emissions were continuously measured by an AVL microsoot sensor (MSS). Elevated particulate matter emissions were observed to occur concurrently with SPI events as blooms of soot. Particularly after clustered events (i.e., multiple SPI cycles occurring within 10 consecutive engine cycles), high soot emissions were observed to persist over several days of sequential operation despite daily lubricant changes, a complete warm-up procedure, and sustained low-load operation between test segments. This result implies that the particulate emissions trends may be dominated by deposit-based effects, where higher load operation is needed to alter deposition and formation processes. The observed soot blooms were also found to correspond to a reduction in the engine fueling and the fuel engine oil dilution rate despite the engine exhaust remaining at stoichiometric exhaust operation. These observations suggest that post-SPI events, pathways for lubricant migration and consumption into the combustion chamber may occur until these pathways are closed from deposit formation or ring dynamics during extended operation. These observed sooting propensity persisted with all fuels tests, but a linear correlation was observed between the summation of soot and particulate matter index (PMI) value for each fuel as well as SPI events, proving that PMI is a crucial fuel property for reducing SPI.

Splitter, Derek [Oak Ridge National Laboratory (OR↗
DOE OSTI2026

Primary Heat Transport System Design Considerations for Xcimer Energy’s Athena Fusion Pilot Plant

Fusion energy promises a reliable, carbon-free source of power; however, significant challenges remain before it can be deployed as an economical energy source. In addition to achieving fusion conditions, power plants must operate under extreme temperatures, radiation, and mechanical loads while maintaining high efficiency and availability. These requirements place strong demands on engineering design and plant operation. This work focuses on the engineering challenges associated with balance of plant analysis for inertial fusion energy systems. In particular, this paper examines the design considerations for primary heat transfer systems in fusion pilot plants employing molten fluoride salt coolants, with particular emphasis on system layout optimization and the balance between competing design objectives using the Xcimer Energy Athena inertial pilot plant design as a case study. Through systematic analysis of candidate system configurations and parametric sensitivity studies, we identify key engineering trade-offs governing salt inventory, pumping power requirements, and operational flexibility. The analysis employs system-level modeling tools to explore the design space and establish relationships between geometric parameters and system performance metrics.

Greenwood, Scott [ORNL] (ORCID:0000000333480736)↗