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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 OSTI2022

Control of Grid-Connected Multiport MV Power Electronics Energy Hub: Preprint

In this paper a new concept of multiport modular medium-voltage power electronics hub (M3PE-HUB) is introduced for future power grid. The goal for this project is to design, develop, and demonstrate foundational technologies and capabilities for multiport power electronics energy hubs that can serve as intelligent devices to coordinate and control several different sources and loads. In this paper, the architecture of the controller, the central controls, and its verification is presented.

controls↗
DOE OSTI2022

Ontario International Airport Fleet Electrification Blueprint: Zero-Emission Vehicle Technology Assessment for Energy Optimization [Slides]

Ontario International Airport Authority (OIAA)'s Electric Vehicle (EV) Blueprint project presentation focuses on the possibilities for fleet electrification, including medium heavy duty charging and hydrogen refueling and their associated planning, infrastructure, operation, and maintenance options. This report includes detailed list of available electric ground support equipment (GSE), description of NREL tools for EV infrastructure design and optimization, and analyses of the current fleet and the potential grid impacts of electrification. Key recommendations are made in regard to simulation-based and in-depth system analyses to identify optimal charging infrastructure and long-term grid stability, and to ensure that the selected station architecture will provide enough space and capacity for future expansion and resiliency.

30 DIRECT ENERGY CONVERSION↗
DOE OSTI2026

Supporting multiple hardware architectures at CMS: the integration and validation of POWER9

Computing resources in the Worldwide LHC Computing Grid (WLCG) have been based entirely on the x86 architecture for more than two decades. In the near future, however, heterogeneous non-x86 resources, such as ARM, POWER and Risc-V, will become a substantial fraction of the resources that will be provided to the LHC experiments, due to their presence in existing and planned world-class HPC installations. The CMS experiment, one of the four large detectors at the LHC, has started to prepare for this situation, with the CMS software stack (CMSSW) already compiled for multiple architectures. In order to allow for a production use, the tools for workload management and job distribution need to be extended to be able to exploit heterogeneous architectures. Profiting from the opportunity to exploit the first sizable IBM Power9 allocation available on Marconi100 HPC system at CINECA, CMS developed all the needed modifications to the CMS workload management system. After a successful proof of concept, a full physics validation has been performed in order to bring the system in production. The experiences are of very high value, when it comes to commissioning of the similar (even larger) Summit HPC system at Oak Ridge, where CMS is also expecting a resource allocation. Moreover the compute power of those systems is being provided also via GPUs and this represents an extremely valuable opportunity to exploit the offloading capability already implemented in CMSSW. The status of the current integration including the exploitation of the GPUs, the results of the validation as well as the future plans will be shown and discussed.

Boccali, Tommaso [INFN, Pisa]↗
DOE OSTI2025

Virtual Power Plants: Pilots, Challenges, and Innovations Shaping Future Development

Virtual Power Plants (VPPs) aggregate distributed energy resources (DERs) to provide grid services traditionally delivered by centralized power plants. This article reviews the current state of VPP deployment, highlighting business models, compensation mechanisms, and global pilot projects. While VPPs offer benefits such as grid flexibility, resilience, and cost savings, challenges remain in communication infrastructure, regulatory frameworks, market access, and customer engagement. To address these, we propose a scalable, privacy-preserving hierarchical VPP architecture that coordinates with distribution utilities and preserves customer data. We also present the Integrated T&D Control Room of the Future as a key test bed for validating and accelerating VPP adoption. These innovations can help transition VPPs from pilot programs to integral components of a modern, reliable power grid.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗
DOE OSTI2026

Zinc batteries for grid-scale energy storage: Challenges, opportunities, and future directions

The global electricity sector is undergoing rapid transformation, increasing demand for reliable stationary energy storage and intensifying the need for safe, cost-effective, and scalable technologies for grid-scale applications. While lithium-ion batteries currently dominate the market, concerns over cost, safety, and resource availability motivate the exploration of alternative chemistries. Zinc-based batteries have emerged as a promising option due to the abundance, low cost, and wide geographic distribution of zinc, combined with the inherent safety of aqueous electrolytes. This perspective examines the potential of zinc batteries for stationary energy storage, with particular focus on rechargeable zinc-air systems. We discuss the evolution of zinc battery technologies and compare zinc-air, zinc-bromine, nickel-zinc, and aqueous zinc-ion chemistries, highlighting their advantages for grid applications. Key challenges limiting rechargeable zinc battery performance are analyzed, including dendrite formation and corrosion at the zinc anode, electrolyte degradation from carbonation and evaporation, and sluggish oxygen electrocatalysis at the air cathode. Emerging strategies to address these limitations are reviewed, including advanced electrode architectures, electrolyte engineering, catalyst development, and system-level design improvements. Lastly, we outline future research directions and opportunities for developing durable, efficient, and economically viable zinc-based energy storage systems for grid-scale applications.

Aqueous electrolytes↗
DOE OSTI2026

Building a Trusted Roaming Hub [Slides]

The Trusted Roaming Hub is a U.S. Department of Energy-backed initiative led by the National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR) to address one of the most persistent challenges in electric vehicle (EV) charging: fragmented roaming, inconsistent interoperability, and insufficient digital trust across charging networks. As EV adoption accelerates and charging infrastructure scales nationwide, today's many-to-many integration model between eMobility Service Providers (eMSPs) and Charge Point Operators (CPOs) has become increasingly brittle, costly, and difficult to secure. The Trusted Roaming Hub introduces a neutral, cybersecurity-forward "switchboard" architecture that enables standardized, secure, and scalable roaming interactions across the EV charging ecosystem. Rather than replacing existing networks or commercial relationships, the hub acts as a trusted intermediary that enforces consistent identity, authentication, authorization, and routing across participants improving reliability for drivers, lowering integration burden for industry, and creating a foundation for future grid-interactive charging services. This read-ahead provides an overview of the problem the hub is designed to solve, the core functional and security concepts behind the architecture, the value proposition to key stakeholders, and the near-term trajectory of the work.

33 ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗
DOE OSTI2025

An Introduction to the Federated Architecture for Secure and Transactive Distributed Energy Management Solutions (FAST-DERMS)

Deployment and capability of distributed energy resources (DER) in power systems is growing rapidly. These resources present an opportunity for low-cost provision of energy and grid services. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission recently provided rulings to enable market participation of these distribution-connected resources, but the prevailing strategies for their management may not scale well to meet future needs. This paper introduces the Federated Architecture for Secure and Transactive Distributed Energy Management Solutions (FAST-DERMS) which was designed to address this need. In it we describe the architectural features of the approach, and a reference controls implementation employing a hierarchical coordination that includes stochastic optimization, model predictive control, and a simple real-time management scheme. Sample results from simulation show firm transmission-level service provision measured at the distribution substation.

grid architecture↗
DOE OSTI2024

An Introduction to the Federated Architecture for Secure and Transactive Distributed Energy Management Solutions (FAST-DERMS): Preprint

Deployment and capability of distributed energy resources (DER) in power systems is growing rapidly. These resources present an opportunity for low-cost provision of energy and grid services. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission recently provided rulings to enable market participation of these distribution-connected resources, but the prevailing strategies for their management may not scale well to meet future needs. This paper introduces the Federated Architecture for Secure and Transactive Distributed Energy Management Solutions (FASTDERMS) which was designed to address this need. In it we describe the architectural features of the approach, and a reference controls implementation employing a hierarchical coordination that includes stochastic optimization, model predictive control, and a simple real-time management scheme. Sample results from simulation show firm transmission-level service provision measured at the distribution substation.

DERMS↗
DOE OSTI2024

High Penetration Microgrids Providing Grid Stability Using Frequency-Watt Control Presentation

The U.S. grid is rapidly transitioning towards utilizing inverter-based renewable energy resources such as solar, wind, and batteries, reducing the carbon emission footprint.Inverter-based microgrid control architectures remain a critical focus to address power system stability issues in future high penetration markets lacking spinning generation assets. Idaho National Laboratory (INL) is researching an active layered inverter based frequency-Watt control scheme that provides distribution level stability in high-penetration markets where grid inertia is lacking. Hardware in the loop case study was implemented using INL’s Microgrid Testbed to combat scalable frequency deviations ranging from 60 Hz down to 50 Hz initialized by a hydropower model implementing step loads using a 540-kW grid emulator. Our research findings demonstrate the importance of distribution level, inverter-based active frequency-Watt controls utilizing a battery energy storage system (BESS) to provide adequate frequency support at the point of common coupling without major power infrastructure upgrades.

13 HYDRO ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2024

High-Penetration Microgrids Providing Grid Stability Using Frequency Watt Control

The U.S. grid is rapidly transitioning towards utilizing inverter-based renewable energy resources such as solar, wind, and batteries, reducing the carbon emission footprint. Inverter-based microgrid control architectures remain a critical focus to address power system stability issues in future high penetration markets lacking spinning generation assets. Idaho National Laboratory (INL) is researching an active layered inverter based frequency-Watt control scheme that provides distribution level stability in high-penetration markets where grid inertia is lacking. Hardware in the loop case study was implemented using INL’s Microgrid Testbed to combat scalable frequency deviations ranging from 60 Hz down to 50 Hz initialized by a hydropower model implementing step loads using a 540-kW grid emulator. Our research findings demonstrate the importance of distribution level, inverter-based active frequency-Watt controls utilizing a battery energy storage system (BESS) to provide adequate frequency support at the point of common coupling without major power infrastructure upgrades.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2025

Architectural Approaches for Integrating ADMS and DERMS: Challenges, Comparisons, and Real-World Use Cases

The electrical distribution landscape is rapidly transforming due to the proliferation of distributed energy resources (DERs) such as solar panels, wind turbines, battery storage systems, combined heat and power units, and electric vehicles, introducing variability and uncontrollability that traditional grid operators are ill-equipped to manage. This transformation is further accelerated by advancements in Information and Communication Technology infrastructure that connects control centers with end devices, demanding automation and a deeper understanding of new technologies by utility personnel. Advanced grid control techniques using system-level optimization, Artificial Intelligence, and Machine Learning at the enterprise level and distributed level are evolving to address these issues. There is also an opportunity to utilize the enormous data created by these new DER technologies in the grid. Advanced Distribution Management Systems (ADMS) and Distributed Energy Resource Management Systems (DERMS) are critical in addressing these challenges by automating grid operations and enhancing reliability. Given the relatively recent development of ADMS and DERMS, and the still relatively low level of ADMS and DERMS deployment in the industry, there is a notable deficiency in the comprehensive understanding of the challenges and benefits associated with these new technologies, especially with their complementary natures and integration architectures. This paper aims to bridge the knowledge gap in ADMS and DERMS integration, presenting three distinct integration architectures currently available, and discussing the challenges and benefits of each architecture to guide utilities, industry professionals, and researchers in optimizing grid management and decision-making processes for a resilient and efficient energy future.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗
DOE OSTI2022

Completing the Circuit: Workforce Development for Advanced Building Construction and Grid-Interactive Efficient Buildings

This paper will present key findings from a future-oriented qualitative study investigating likely futures for the next 5-10 years in the architecture, engineering, construction, and operations industry. This research offers an original contribution to the buildings industry by articulating an actionable framework to more effectively build connections between built environment fields. Whereas the ideal of interdisciplinary, research driven practice underlies the approach to pedagogy at many schools of architecture, innovation in the profession, such as the integrated design process, has been limited. This project applies Legitimation Code Theory (LCT) to the analysis of data gathered from interviews and a review of industry reports.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2021

Renewable energy integration and system operation challenge: control and optimization of millions of devices

The electric power infrastructure, originally designed and built on large-scale power plants, is evolving into a more resilient power generation and delivery system in which millions of smaller units of distributed energy generation resources units will be installed in sub-transmission and distribution networks. In order to control, manage and optimize the future grid, a hierarchical design is presented in this chapter which enables the distributed control on grid edge while inheriting the existing centralized control structure. This layered design of large-scale power system operation and control uses the following principle: reactive power control is treated as a primary control for voltage stability, and the real power control is primarily a grid-level control but can also be a supplementary control for voltage support in the case of insufficient reactive power control capacity. For the purpose of active control and operation at the distribution level, a recursive power network model is derived from nodal injection and branch power flow models. Based on the model, the proposed algorithms of hierarchical control, grid-edge inference and dynamic hosting allowance are developed and presented for multi-level controlled operation. And, a co-simulation architecture of integrated T&D system is presented to validate and demonstrate the feasibility and scalability of proposed algorithms.

Xu, Ying↗
NASA NTRS2018

Determination of Best Low-Frequency Microwave Antenna Approach for Future High Resolution Measurements from Space

Microwave remote sensing measurements at L-band (~1.2-1.6 GHz) of geophysical parameters such as soil moisture will need to be at higher spatial resolution than current systems (SMOS/ SMAP/ Aquarius) in order to meet the requirements of land surface, ocean, and numerical weather prediction models in the near future, which will operate at ~9-15 km global grids and 1-3 km regional grids in the next few years. In order to make progress toward these needed spatial resolutions, advancements in technology are necessary which would lead to improved effective (i.e. equivalent) antenna size. An architecture trade study was conducted to quantitatively define the value and limits of different microwave technology paths, and to select the most appropriate path to achieve the high spatial resolution required by science in the future without sacrificing performance, accuracy, and global coverage.

soil moisture↗
DOE OSTI2026

Three-Dimensional Grid Visualization for Planning Activities: A Dubai Case Study

National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR), in collaboration with the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) and Infra-X, has undertaken the Energy Visualization Analysis Project. The aim of this project is to enhance analytical and 3D visualization capabilities for distribution network planning and renewable energy integration. As modern grid continues to evolve with large-scale solar PV deployment and emerging distributed energy resources (DERs), the ability to effectively analyze, visualize, and communicate complex grid behaviors has become increasingly critical. The project focuses on developing empirical use cases based on real distribution feeder data and engineering workflows, ensuring the outcomes are directly aligned with operational environment. Through time-series power flow simulations and nodal hosting capacity analysis, the study quantifies the impacts of high PV penetration on voltage and thermal limits within representative 11 kV feeders. These analyses identify specific nodes and conditions where DER integration challenges arise. Furthermore, a Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) optimization algorithm was applied to determine the optimal size and placement of storage systems that can mitigate network constraints and enhance hosting capacity. The comparative results between base-case and BESS-augmented scenarios clearly demonstrate improvements in network stability and load management efficiency. In parallel, the NLR team developed an immersive 3D visualization framework, enabling interactive exploration of grid simulations using commodity head-mounted display (HMD) systems. This framework transforms conventional 2D simulation data into spatially intuitive visual environments - allowing engineers to analyze feeder conditions, PV hosting potential, and BESS effects in real time. This report represents the first foundational phase in establishing a visualization-driven analytical ecosystem. It provides a methodological foundation for data integration, visualization architecture, and simulation-based decision support, paving the way for large-scale adoption of immersive visualization across DEWA's Smart Grid Initiative, R&D activities, and future network resilience studies.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗
DOE OSTI2022

Cyber–physical vulnerability and resiliency analysis for DER integration: A review, challenges and research needs

High penetration of renewable and sustainable Distributed Energy Resources (DER) into the traditional distribution system requires a well-coordinated control strategy for the improvement of system-wide reliability and resiliency. Implementation of such a holistic control architecture requires a flexible, near real-time, and bi-directional communication framework for facilitating the participation of various agents in a multi-vendor heterogeneous smart grid. While the sustainability of energy generation is ensured, this exposes the smart grid to extrinsic cyber threats, and appropriate defense mechanism(s) must be deployed to guarantee continued reliability and resiliency of the power grid. Further, the comprehensive literature review presented in this paper discusses the latest trends in the DER control schemes with fast communication requirements and their accompanying cyber–physical vulnerabilities. These control schemes are compared and contrasted for various traits. A three-level DER system architecture has been depicted, facilitating the deployment of these control schemes. The current developments of standard communication protocols, key security mechanisms, and best practices along major standards and guidelines are explored. The impacts of different attack types with miscellaneous DER functions based on various control schemes and associated mitigation solutions are also provided. Finally, challenges and future research directions for limiting cyber-power susceptibility to enhance resiliency are summarized. The work presented here will help us enabling a cyber-resilient and sustainable smart electric grid.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗
DOE OSTI2025

A Reinforcement Learning Approach to Augment Conventional PID Control in Nuclear Power Plant Transient Operation

The ability of nuclear reactors to operate their power conversion cycles more flexibly will enhance their value to energy grids with variable pricing. Current nuclear control systems are typically classical controllers that are often based on proportional-integral-derivative (PID) control. This paper presents a method of augmenting the existing PID control for difficult transient operations in nuclear power plants using a reinforcement learning–derived feedforward signal applied in real time. The agents, which are trained on a test thermal load-following problem, are designed to improve steam generator outlet temperature control for a range of fast load-following scenarios covering ramp rates from 9%/min to 15%/min. Several reinforcement learning algorithms were initially investigated for the training of the feedforward agents with deep Q-learning (DQN) and proximal policy optimization (PPO) networks, which were found to be the most promising. The DQN controllers utilize discrete actions, giving them a better disturbance rejection at steady state but inconsistent response to initial temperature deviations. In contrast, PPO-trained agents, which take continuous actions except for a dead zone around zero, were shown to have the best combination of high disturbance rejection at steady state and good tracking of the desired temperature value. The ability of the PPO agent was also examined, with the average time of decision making found to be on the order of 1 ms. The fault properties of the controller under the loss of the reinforcement learning agent feedforward signal were also examined. The controller showed strong performance in situations of “no-signal” faults. but was less good at handling “stuck-at” faults, where the feedforward signal remains at a set value. In both cases, however, the PID was able to successfully maintain stability, eventually returning the system to a steady state. It is hoped that this work will allow for the proposed control architecture to be examined for more difficult control problems such that it may eventually be used to adapt existing nuclear plants for more aggressive load-following on grids of the future.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
NASA NTRS1993

Techniques and resources for storm-scale numerical weather prediction

The topics discussed include the following: multiscale application of the 5th-generation PSU/NCAR mesoscale model, the coupling of nonhydrostatic atmospheric and hydrostatic ocean models for air-sea interaction studies; a numerical simulation of cloud formation over complex topography; adaptive grid simulations of convection; an unstructured grid, nonhydrostatic meso/cloud scale model; efficient mesoscale modeling for multiple scales using variable resolution; initialization of cloud-scale models with Doppler radar data; and making effective use of future computing architectures, networks, and visualization software.

Droegemeier, Kelvin↗