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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

Roadmap to 100 GWDC: Scientific and supply chain challenges for CdTe photovoltaics

This roadmap highlights pathways to expand the CdTe module manufacturing capacity per year to 100 GW DC by 2030 by improving Te extraction from existing supply chains, minimizing Te usage in modules by leveraging thinner absorbers, and focusing research efforts in key areas to improve module efficiencies. Both scientific and supply chain innovations will be necessary to maintain the high compound annual growth rate of the CdTe photovoltaic (PV) industry and cement its role as a key technology for multi-TW-scale PV deployment.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2024

Roadmap on basic research needs for laser technology

Motivated by the profound impact of laser technology on science, arising from an increase in focused light intensity by seven orders of magnitude and flashes so short electron motion is visible, this roadmap outlines the paths forward in laser technology to enable the next generation of science and applications. Despite remarkable progress, the field confronts challenges in developing compact, high-power sources, enhancing scalability and efficiency, and ensuring safety standards. Future research endeavors aim to revolutionize laser power, energy, repetition rate and precision control; to transform mid-infrared sources; to revolutionize approaches to field control and frequency conversion. These require reinvention of materials and optics to enable intense laser science and interdisciplinary collaboration. The roadmap underscores the dynamic nature of laser technology and its potential to address global challenges, propelling progress and fostering sustainable development. Ultimately, advancements in laser technology hold promise to revolutionize myriad applications, heralding a future defined by innovation, efficiency, and sustainability.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2025

Challenges and Gaps in the Development of Pulsed Power for Fusion Applications: A Preroadmapping Perspective From Industry, Academia, and National Laboratory Experts

Fusion energy meets the twenty-first century World Grand Challenge of sustainable, ubiquitous, and safer energy sources. However, harnessing the promise of fusion energy has proven elusive. The competing approaches to fusion power plant design include inertial confinement fusion, National Ignition Facility (ICF-NIF, Z machine, etc.,) magnetic confinement fusion (MCF-Tokamak, stellarators, etc.), and other approaches that show promise in small- (flow stabilized Z pinches) or large-scale applications. These approaches are being accelerated with private and public funding and seek to demonstrate the feasibility of different approaches to fusion-based power plants. Yet, how can the necessary pulsed power technologies for these disruptive technology bases be accelerated with no clear “Dominant Design?” Roadmapping holds the promise to identify and develop common critical pulsed power components for laboratory, prototype, and commercial fusion, and can accelerate the commercialization of fusion reactor designs. A preroadmapping Workshop on Pulsed Power for Fusion was held at the IEEE International Pulsed Power Conference in San Antonio, TX, USA, in June 2023. The workshop had 177 attendees. Here, the common elements for many of the ICF technologies vying for dominant design were identified. The advancement of these technologies through roadmapping will enhance commercial expectations that require their rapid and innovative development in the next five years, as well as the next five to ten years. The key technologies identified that underpin and limit the advancement of fusion power include pulsed power technologies such as energy storage, high-voltage switching, additive manufacturing, and modular pulsed power circuit topologies. In conclusion, they are the focus of our effort in the following roadmap scenario, which will delineate potential paths to technology development.

Curry, Randy D. [I-Pulse Group, Albuquerque, NM (U↗
DOE OSTI2026

Improving Marine Energy Production Through Commercialization of a Low Cost, Drag-Reducing Slippery Coating (CRADA 679 Abstract)

Marine energy capture systems offer great promise for providing clean energy, but they operate in a challenging and dynamic environment and must be optimized to the highest extent possible. Computational studies predict that drag reduction on marine energy and blue economy systems will result in meaningful improvements in energy efficiency. Based on extensive coating experience, PNNL is proposing to bring to market a new drag-reducing coating called Superhydrophobic Lubricant-Infused Drag-Efficient Coating – SLIDE-Coat. PNNL has a deep knowledge base regarding this class of slippery coatings, and we have a group of enthusiastic industry partners who have committed to partnering, conducting field testing, and providing well over 50% cost share. In addition to validating the technology, the team will create a commercialization roadmap to ensure the commercial success of the technology after the government-sponsored two-year program is complete. The main technical goal is to design, manufacture, and experimentally validate a new coating that can reduce hydrodynamic skin friction drag by 20%. The main commercialization goal is to develop a roadmap that identifies activities needed to complete SLIDE-Coat’s development after the conclusion of this project. Year 1 will focus on adaptation and modification of the existing SLIC coating system to optimize drag reduction and assessment and quantification of drag reduction on relevant materials in a laboratory setting. Year 2 will focus on optimizing and demonstrating drag reduction with preferred coatings. The manufacturability, ease of application, adhesion to relevant surfaces, and consistency will be assessed. Quantification of drag reduction on prototype materials in a relevant marine field setting will be executed.

16 TIDAL AND WAVE POWER↗
DOE OSTI2025

Laser driven inertial fusion energy technology development

The future of Laser-Based Inertial fusion energy requires the development of efficient diode-pumped laser drivers that can be scaled to megajoule class output operating at ≥ 10-Hz repetition rate. ARPA-E requested a study of the range of possibilities for a 100kJ/10-Hz laser system with >15% wall-plug efficiency operating below 360 nm. The conceptual design of a compact, 1 kJ class module is presented and analyzed for performance relative to the objectives along with a roadmap to demonstrate the technology.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2025

CSP Systems Analysis 2022-2024 (Final Technical Report)

The CSP Systems Analysis project estimates the current market cost of CSP subsystems and technologies for use by the DOE Program and within NREL analysis tools. The project addresses upgrades to NREL's System Advisor Model (SAM) related to CSP, as well as development of new modules within SAM to expand the types of CSP systems that can be simulated and new tools for evaluating CSP subsystem performance or optimizing CSP system layouts, for example, SolarPILOT and SolTrace. The project evaluates the potential cost and performance of new CSP-relevant technologies and generally includes assessment of CSP technologies in support of the DOE subprogram. A primary goal of the CSP System Analysis project is to provide timely and accurate cost data to the DOE to assess the current state of CSP technologies as well as predict performance and cost for pre-commercial and emerging technologies that may impact the industry. Prior work in this task has produced technology cost reports and roadmaps for DOE and highlighted promising research paths that could reduce overall CSP cost, such as the supercritical CO2 power cycle and molten-salt trough systems. CSP Systems Analysis produces modeling tools to evaluate the performance of CSP systems, subsystems, or components, and journal articles, conference papers, technical reports and databases to disseminate information to the CSP industry. CSP technology costs are estimated and tracked using these tools as well as analysis of literature and industry sources. The CSP modeling tools and NREL analysis results are used by researchers; government, financial, and industry analysts; and other CSP stakeholders. The purpose of this final technical report is to summarize the key accomplishments of the past three years of this project. The project was divided into seven separate tasks, and in what follows, we describe the background, objectives, key accomplishments, and path forward for each task within the project, with one section of this report summarizing each task.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2025

Opportunities for gas-phase science at short-wavelength free-electron lasers with undulator-based polarization control

Free-electron lasers (FELs) are the world's most brilliant light sources with rapidly evolving technological capabilities in terms of ultrabright and ultrashort pulses over a large range of photon energies. Their revolutionary and innovative developments have opened new fields of science regarding nonlinear light-matter interaction, the investigation of ultrafast processes from specific observer sites, and approaches to imaging matter with atomic resolution. A core aspect of FEL science is the study of isolated and prototypical systems in the gas phase with the possibility of addressing well-defined electronic transitions or particular atomic sites in molecules. Notably for polarization-controlled short-wavelength FELs, the gas phase offers new avenues for investigations of nonlinear and ultrafast phenomena in spin-orientated systems, for decoding the function of the chiral building blocks of life as well as steering reactions and particle emission dynamics in otherwise inaccessible ways. This roadmap comprises descriptions of technological capabilities of facilities worldwide, innovative diagnostics and instrumentation, as well as recent scientific highlights, novel methodology, and mathematical modeling. The experimental and theoretical landscape of using polarization controllable FELs for dichroic light-matter interaction in the gas phase will be discussed and comprehensively outlined to stimulate and strengthen global collaborative efforts of all disciplines. Published by the American Physical Society 2025

Ilchen, Markus↗
DOE OSTI2026

A Review on Direct Air Capture of Carbon Dioxide: Sorbent Materials, Process Engineering, Industrial Scale-Up, and Future Perspectives

The relentless accumulation of anthropogenic greenhouse gases has driven atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations to approximately 426 ppm, necessitating the aggressive deployment of negative-emission technologies to achieve net zero by 2050. Direct air capture (DAC) offers a scalable, location-independent approach to atmospheric carbon removal; however, it is fundamentally constrained by the significant thermodynamic barriers associated with capturing CO 2 from ultradilute ambient conditions, requiring minimum thermodynamic energy inputs substantially higher than those for postcombustion point sources. This comprehensive review critically examines the technological landscape of DAC, focusing on the interdependent triad of sorbent material design, contactor engineering, and regeneration thermodynamics. We evaluate the fundamental boundaries of adsorption, emphasizing that an optimal adsorption enthalpy and isosteric heat of adsorption must balance the high CO 2 uptake capacity with the energetic penalties of sorbent regeneration. A systematic, comparative analysis of state-of-the-art sorbents is presented, encompassing mesoporous silicas, zeolites, carbon-based materials (CBMs), metal−organic frameworks (MOFs), porous organic polymers (POPs), and polymeric membranes. Special attention is devoted to surface functionalization strategies, particularly amine grafting and impregnation, which transition capture mechanisms from physisorption to chemisorption to enhance selectivity under ambient moisture and low partial pressures. Furthermore, we assess the operational merits of various reactor configurations, including gas−solid, gas−liquid, and membrane contactors, alongside regeneration cycles such as temperature, vacuum, pressure, and moisture swing adsorption. Finally, the review bridges fundamental materials science with industrial application by chronicling the scale-up milestones of pioneering entities and providing a strategic roadmap for advancing DAC technology readiness levels toward global deployment.

Adsorption↗
DOE OSTI2024

Inspecta Technical Report

Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) is in the process of creating Inspecta (International Nuclear Safeguards Personal Examination and Containment Tracking Assistant), an Artificial Intelligence (AI)-powered smart digital assistant (SDA) with robotic capabilities, aimed at enhancing the effectiveness, efficiency, and safety of international nuclear safeguards inspections. This innovative tool is designed to assist inspectors on-site by supporting or automating tasks that are typically mundane, hazardous, or susceptible to errors. In 2021, the development team established the specifications for Inspecta by analyzing International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) documents and consulting with former IAEA inspectors and subject matter experts. This process involved aligning in-field inspection tasks with existing commercial or open-source technologies to outline a roadmap for the initial prototype of Inspecta, while also identifying areas needing further research and development. From 2022 – 2024, the focus has shifted to integrating a critical inspection activity, the examination of seals, into an early version of Inspecta. This has involved developing both the software and hardware capabilities necessary for this task. This report outlines the ongoing advancements in Inspecta's functionalities, specifically those supporting the seal examination process.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
DOE OSTI2025

Inspecta Technical Report

Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) has developed Inspecta (International Nuclear Safeguards Personal Examination and Containment Tracking Assistant), an AI-powered smart digital assistant (SDA) equipped with robotic capabilities. This innovative tool aims to enhance the effectiveness, efficiency, and safety of international nuclear safeguards inspections. Inspecta is designed to assist inspectors on-site by supporting or automating tasks that are often mundane, hazardous, or prone to errors. In 2021, the development team established the specifications for Inspecta by thoroughly analyzing International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) documents and consulting with former IAEA inspectors and subject matter experts. This process involved aligning in-field inspection tasks with existing commercial and open-source technologies, thereby creating a roadmap for the initial prototype of Inspecta and identifying areas requiring further research and development. From 2022 to 2025, the focus shifted to integrating a critical inspection activity—the examination of seals—into an early version of Inspecta. This phase has involved the development of both software and hardware capabilities essential for this task. This report outlines the advancements in Inspecta’s functionalities, particularly those that support the seal examination process.

98 NUCLEAR DISARMAMENT, SAFEGUARDS, AND PHYSICAL P↗
DOE OSTI2026

Report on the Update and Codification of Expert Knowledge into ASTM Standard Practice E521

The overall purpose of the Grand Challenge Integrated Research Project (IRP), Accelerating the Qualification of Materials to Enable Rapid Deployment of Advanced Reactors, is to fulfill several objectives. The first objective is to complete and demonstrate/establish the process for predicting the microstructure and properties of structural materials in reactor and at high doses using ion irradiation as an accurate predictive tool for assessing behavior under reactor irradiation. The second objective is for this process to be adopted as part of an ASTM standard, and to work with the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission to utilize this standard in licensing decisions on advanced reactor designs for which such data are nonexistent or impractical to achieve. The need for standardized procedures is apparent based on the outcomes of a recent round-robin experiment from laboratories using ion beams for radiation damage studies and the roadmap for ion beam technologies to address challenges for the advancement of nuclear energy technologies.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2026

Report on the Update and Codification of Expert Knowledge into ASTM Standard Practice E521

The overall purpose of the Grand Challenge Integrated Research Project (IRP), Accelerating the Qualification of Materials to Enable Rapid Deployment of Advanced Reactors, is to fulfill several objectives. The first objective is to complete and demonstrate/establish the process for predicting the microstructure and properties of structural materials in reactor and at high doses using ion irradiation as an accurate predictive tool for assessing behavior under reactor irradiation. The second objective is for this process to be adopted as part of an ASTM standard, and to work with the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission to utilize this standard in licensing decisions on advanced reactor designs for which such data are nonexistent or impractical to achieve. The need for standardized procedures is apparent based on the outcomes of a recent round-robin experiment from laboratories using ion beams for radiation damage studies and the roadmap for ion beam technologies to address challenges for the advancement of nuclear energy technologies.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2026

Efficient Routing of Quantum LDPC Codes on Programmable 2D Toric Architectures

Quantum low-density parity-check codes are promising candidates towards scalable fault-tolerant quantum computation. Among these, bivariate bicycle (BB) codes offer superior encoding rates and large code distance compared to surface codes. However, their requirement on long-range stabilizer measurements poses significant challenges for implementation on realistic hardware with limited connectivity, such as superconducting circuit platforms. In this work, we introduce a novel hardware-software co-design that leverages a programmable communication network architecture to address these limitations. Our approach utilizes a 2D toric network of oscillators as a flexible communication fabric linking qubits at each site. Such architecture significantly reduces the number of long-range couplers required from O ( n ) to O (√ n ). Dual-rail qubits, along with native gates including Swap-Wait-Swap gates and beamsplitter SWAPs, ensure that long-range two-qubit gates can be executed with high fidelity and low latency. To further enhance performance, our qubit layout and routing algorithm utilize symmetries of the codes and enable maximum parallelism for long-range two-qubit gates, maintaining a low syndrome extraction cycle duration and scalability over the code length. We perform circuit-level simulation with realistic noise modeling based on experimental hardware parameters, observing an logical error rate per logical qubit per cycle of 3.06% for [[18,4,4]] BB code, 2.6× less than the existing experimental result. These findings provide a practical roadmap and identify key technological advancements needed to achieve low-overhead fault-tolerant quantum computing at scale.

Liu, Kun [Yale Univ., New Haven, CT (United States↗
DOE OSTI2024

Maximum Switching Throughput Density Estimator

SAND2024-11125O The Maximum Switching Throughput Density Estimator software performs a simple analysis that estimates the maximum logic switching throughput density that’s achieved in various CMOS technology nodes on the International Roadmap for Devices and Systems. This software utilizes simple device models and optimization techniques, performing a simple sweep over a range of possible logic supply voltages, and analytically calculating the maximum switching frequency for the given logic voltage that meets the power density constraint. It does this by using simple models of power dissipation in conventional and fully adiabatic switching. Sandia National Laboratories is a multimission laboratory managed and operated by National Technology & Engineering Solutions of Sandia, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Honeywell International Inc., for the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration under contract DE-NA0003525.

Frank, Michael↗
DOE OSTI2024

CCUS Perspectives: Assessing Historical Contexts, Current Realities, and Future Prospects

CCUS technologies are crucial solutions for mitigating climate change by reducing CO2 emissions from industrial operations and energy sectors. This review critically examines the current state of CCUS technologies, and highlights advancements, challenges, regulatory frameworks, and future directions. It comprehensively analyzes carbon capture methods, such as pre-combustion, post-combustion, and oxy-fuel combustion capture, while comparing their efficiencies and limitations. The review also explores carbon utilization techniques, such as direct and indirect utilization, emphasizing their potential applications and technological constraints. Additionally, it assesses various carbon storage methods, focusing on geological, ocean, and mineralization storage, and discusses their capacity, feasibility, and environmental implications. The study reviews the policy and regulatory frameworks, economic viability, market trends, and environmental sustainability of CCUS. By identifying research gaps and recommending future research priorities, this review aims to guide the development of more efficient/effective, and cost-effective CCUS technology, ensuring their role in a sustaining low-carbon future. This review provides a forward-looking perspective, a critical and interdisciplinary analysis that assesses the current state of CCUS technologies, and further provides a roadmap for future development.

Energy & Fuels↗