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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2024

Efficient Leaching of Metal Ions from Spent Li-Ion Battery Combined Electrode Coatings Using Hydroxy Acid Mixtures and Regeneration of Lithium Nickel Manganese Cobalt Oxide

Extensive use of Li-ion batteries in electric vehicles, electronics, and other energy storage applications has resulted in a need to recycle valuable metals Li, Mn, Ni, and Co in these devices. In this work, an aqueous mixture of glycolic and lactic acid is shown as an excellent leaching agent to recover these critical metals from spent Li-ion laptop batteries combined with cathode and anode coatings without adding hydrogen peroxide or other reducing agents. An aqueous acid mixture of 0.15 M in glycolic and 0.35 M in lactic acid showed the highest leaching efficiencies of 100, 100, 100, and 89% for Li, Ni, Mn, and Co, respectively, in an experiment at 120 °C for 6 h. Subsequently, the chelate solution was evaporated to give a mixed metal-hydroxy acid chelate gel. Pyrolysis of the dried chelate gel at 800 °C for 15 h could be used to burn off hydroxy acids, regenerating lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide, and the novel method presented to avoid the precipitation of metals as hydroxide or carbonates. The Li, Ni, Mn, and Co ratio of regenerated lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide is comparable to this metal ratio in pyrolyzed electrode coating and showed similar powder X-ray diffractograms, suggesting the suitability of α-hydroxy carboxylic acid mixtures as leaching agents and ligands in regeneration of mixed metal oxide via pyrolysis of the dried chelate gel.

Electrochemistry↗
DOE OSTI2026

Cr plasma-material-interaction in PISCES-RF: D thermal release, retention, and erosion

Pure chromium (Cr) targets were exposed to high-flux deuterium (D) plasmas in the Pisces-RF linear plasma device, and measurements of D retention, release, and erosion were subsequently performed. Post-exposure D retention was quantified using temperature-programmed desorption on Cr targets irradiated by 50 eV ions over a broad range of exposure temperatures (423–873 K) and ion fluences (3 × 10 24 – 3 × 10 26 m −2 ). The retained D inventory was observed to decrease rapidly with increased exposure temperature, from approximately ∼7 × 10 20 m −2 at ∼ 420 K, to then saturate near ∼ 10 20 m −2 for exposure temperatures above ∼550 K. Separately, at fixed exposure temperature (∼450 K), D retention was found to have only a weak dependence on increasing ion fluence. Lastly, the erosion of Cr in D plasma was investigated for ion impact energies in the range 40 ≤ E i ≤ 250 eV. Erosion was inferred using optical emission spectroscopy (OES) from the ratio of emission lines (Cr I (425.4 nm)/D I (656.1 nm)) measured close to the target. Conversion of the OES yield data to net erosion yield was made with singular ion energy target mass-loss measurements. These net erosion yield data were then further corrected to obtain gross erosion yield by accounting for a re-deposition factor, computed using a simple model. The gross erosion yield is found to be 2–4 times lower than predicted by SDTrimSP, consistent with that typically observed for light-ion sputtering under high-flux plasma conditions.

Chromium↗
DOE OSTI2026

Envelope-driven comfort risk in residential demand response

Residential demand response (DR) is a valuable resource for grid reliability, but remains challenging because the highly heterogeneous residential building stock leads to widely varying and hard-to-predict load and comfort responses during DR events. Although prior research has estimated the technical potential of DR-capable technologies for achieving energy demand savings, little is known about how they affect thermal comfort. In particular, it remains unclear how indoor thermal conditions due to DR depend on the thermal envelope characteristics of the housing stock. To address this gap, this study provides a systematic, location-specific assessment of indoor thermal performance during DR-events across the US housing stock using both typical DR weather data and detailed building metadata. We evaluate how envelope characteristics influence indoor temperatures during realistic simulated summer and winter DR events across 37 US locations, applying both temperature threshold and rate of temperature change criteria to estimate region-level probabilities of discomfort. Additionally, we show the impact of distinct weather patterns that intensify or abate thermal stress on comfort outcomes. Results show a near-universal overheating risk in summer DR events, where comfort outcomes are strongly influenced by rapid risk of comfort violations. In contrast, overall winter DR discomfort risk is lower, risk escalation is more gradual and shows greater sensitivity to event duration. These findings offer a data-driven quantification of comfort risk across diverse climates and building envelopes, demonstrating the need for region-specific DR scheduling and discomfort mitigation strategies tailored to local weather patterns and the performance of existing residential buildings.

Demand response↗
DOE OSTI2025

Tunable shear thickening, aging, and rejuvenation in suspensions of shape-memory-endowed liquid crystalline particles

The morphological features of particles, notably shape anisotropy, critically influence the rheological properties of dense suspensions, spanning both natural and engineered systems. This work explores the potential of using shape memory particles to dynamically regulate suspension fluid flow through controllable shape transformations. First, we synthesize shape-memory particles with programmable anisotropy from liquid crystal elastomers, such that the stiffness and shapes of the particles can be tuned by manipulating temperature. Our findings reveal that suspensions from such particles exhibit significant tunability in shear thickening behavior, transitioning from discontinuous shear thickening to a Newtonian-like response within a narrow temperature range of 60 ° C. This capability to modulate rheological responses in situ presents an approach for addressing processing challenges in many applications where control over flow behavior is paramount. Furthermore, we also show that suspensions composed of these anisotropic particles can undergo physical aging, and evolve into a glassy state. This state can be escaped upon activation of the shape memory effect. This reversibility underscores the potential for using such materials to engineer systems that can enter or come out of kinetic arrest by leveraging internal mechanical responses to external stimuli. The insights gained here not only broaden our understanding of the interplay between particle geometry and suspension dynamics but also pave the way for leveraging ensembles of stimuli-responsive objects to precisely control collective behaviors in many-body systems.

Science & Technology - Other Topics↗
DOE OSTI2024

Neuromorphic overparameterisation and few-shot learning in multilayer physical neural networks

Abstract Physical neuromorphic computing, exploiting the complex dynamics of physical systems, has seen rapid advancements in sophistication and performance. Physical reservoir computing, a subset of neuromorphic computing, faces limitations due to its reliance on single systems. This constrains output dimensionality and dynamic range, limiting performance to a narrow range of tasks. Here, we engineer a suite of nanomagnetic array physical reservoirs and interconnect them in parallel and series to create a multilayer neural network architecture. The output of one reservoir is recorded, scaled and virtually fed as input to the next reservoir. This networked approach increases output dimensionality, internal dynamics and computational performance. We demonstrate that a physical neuromorphic system can achieve an overparameterised state, facilitating meta-learning on small training sets and yielding strong performance across a wide range of tasks. Our approach’s efficacy is further demonstrated through few-shot learning, where the system rapidly adapts to new tasks.

Science & Technology - Other Topics↗
DOE OSTI2026

BISON analyses of TRISO fuel performance, its dependence on time-at-temperature, and possible implications for fuel design and qualification

The Advanced Gas Reactor Fuel Development and Qualification (AGR) program has established a substantial technical foundation to support private entry into the U.S. high-temperature gas-cooled reactor market. However, emerging tristructural isotropic (TRISO)-fueled reactor applications include small modular reactors and microreactors with longer fuel residence times, which may expose fuels to higher time-at-temperature (TAT) values than were explored by the AGR program. Increased TAT could affect diffusive and thermomechanical behaviors such as Pd penetration, fission gas release, creep, and fission product transport. In this work, we applied multiscale best-estimate BISON fuel performance modeling to assess these effects within a representative design space based on the AGR-5/6/7 experiment and analyzed trends in predicted particle and compact fuel performance metrics with possible implications for near-term fuel design and qualification. BISON unambiguously predicted that TRISO fuel performance is sensitive to TAT. Increasing TAT was not predicted to increase the magnitude of failure-inducing tangential stresses in particle coating layers. Predictions obtained using a mechanistic model for Pd penetration indicated that penetration depth does not depend strongly on TAT. While these observations suggest that AGR testing provides a conservative upper bound for the steady-state operation of TRISO particles at lower powers and higher residence times, BISON also predicted that the release of poorly retained Ag would increase with TAT. Because these analyses applied models to extrapolate beyond the available experimental data, the authors recommend performing targeted experiments to confirm these predictions. Nevertheless, these predictions may provide reactor developers with enough confidence to make near-term design decisions associated with the potential fuel performance trade-offs of increasing TAT.

11 - NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2024

Method for implant and anneal for high voltage field effect transistors

In an example, the present invention provides a method of forming a semiconductor device on a gallium and nitrogen containing material. The method includes providing a substrate member comprising a surface region, the substrate member comprising a gallium and nitrogen bearing material. The method includes causing an implanted species to electrically activate the implant profile while removing one or more crystalline damage from the epitaxial material to change the amorphous state to a single crystalline state, and thereby creating a substantially electrically activated crystalline material.

Shealy, James R.↗
DOE OSTI2023

Challenges and Prospects of Sodium‐Ion and Potassium‐Ion Batteries for Mass Production

The exponential growth of the lithium‐ion (LIB) market is causing a significant disparity between the supply chain and demand for its resources. In this regard, sodium‐ion and potassium‐ion batteries are promising alternatives to LIBs due to their low cost. However, the larger sizes of Na + and K + ions create challenges that prevent them from achieving energy densities comparable to LIBs while maintaining an acceptable cycle life. Here, in this perspective, the aim is to evaluate the status of Na‐ion and K‐ion batteries and the challenges associated with them on both fundamental and commercial levels. The focus is on the structural instability arising from phase transitions during cycling, intricate chemical degradation processes, and potential avenues for enhancing their performance with a specific goal of improving their viability for grid‐scale energy storage. Materials production and abundance limitations for the chemistries of the state‐of‐the‐art materials and account for critical parameters from both the perspective of researchers and investors are analyzed. This analysis aims to provide insights into the strategic trade‐offs required to effectively implement the technology in real‐world applications, such as grid‐scale storage and other areas. Furthermore, the utilization of metals with low or no supply‐chain problems as an important aspect of these trade‐offs is considered.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
DOE OSTI2026

Heliostat sizing methodology for concentrating solar thermal industrial process heat projects

This study presents a method to obtain a heliostat size that minimizes the levelized cost of heat (LCOH) of a heliostat-based concentrating solar thermal system for applications of solar heating for industrial processes at operating temperatures from 565 to 1550°C. The method extends prior work by embedding a routine for system design that obtains near-optimal subsystem sizes, increasing the fidelity of drive cost functions, and adding an optical performance model to supplement the previously developed cost models, which we update to reflect current pricing trends. An illustrative business case is developed for Daggett, California, targeting specified annual thermal energy outputs of 50 to 400 GWh th . Optical performance is modeled using verified estimates from the literature. A surrogate heliostat cost model, derived from commercial heliostat designs and scaled for production volume, installation, and operations and maintenance costs, is used to develop cost functions. Results show that heliostat size strongly affects the LCOH, producing a characteristic U-shaped trend with a robust near-optimal window of 7-20 m 2 ; the heliostat size producing the lowest project cost in our study grows slightly as the project size increases, and is reduced as the operating temperature increases. The findings in this study are consistent with the general trend of smaller heliostats being deployed at existing projects for high-temperature industrial process heat and reflect the significant reduction in power electronics and other per-heliostat costs. The methodology we propose is general and can be tailored to revised cost curves as the technology continues to evolve.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2026

Boron-Based Neutron Scintillator Screen Characterization with X-Rays and Neutrons

Recent work on boron-based neutron scintillator screens suggests these screens can offer superior performance when compared to commonly used screens. Borated neutron scintillator screens perform well in terms of light output (5-6 times greater than a standard Gadox screen) and detection effi-ciency (larger than standard LiF+ZnS screens). However, previously manu-factured boron-based screens have exhibited non-uniform surface coating and a poor mixture between phosphor and converter particles. The objective of this work was to evaluate newly fabricated scintillator screens to deter-mine if enhanced fabrication methods produced a more homogeneous distribution between neutron converter and scintillation phosphor particles. Uniformity of scintillator material deposition was also inspected. This new iteration of screens appeared more uniform than previous generations with the new coating method improving surface chemistry and scintillator material homogeneity. Additionally, a new methodology for screen characterization, involving the correlation of a neutron image taken with a borated scintillator screen to X-ray computed tomography of that same screen, was demonstrated to elucidate a relationship between scintillator screen thickness and relative light output of the screen under neutron exposure. This method suggested that the ideal thickness of scintillator material was ~150 µm to maximize light output of the screen.

36 - MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI1996

Nuclear Safety [Vol. 37, No. 1, January-March 1996]

Nuclear Safety is a journal that covers significant issues in the field of nuclear safety. Its primary scope is safety in the design, construction, operation, and decommissioning of nuclear power reactors worldwide and the research and analysis activities that promote this goal, but it also encompasses the safety aspects of the entire nuclear fuel cycle, including fuel fabrication, spent-fuel processing and handling, and nuclear waste disposal, the handling of fissionable materials and radioisotopes, and the environmental effects of all these activities. Table of Contents for this issue follows. GENERAL SAFETY CONSIDERATIONS: 1 A Decision Support System for Maintenance Management of a Boiling-Water Reactor Power Plant, J. H. Shen, A. Ray, and S. Levine; ACCIDENT ANALYSIS: 12 On Prediction of the Ignition Potential of Uranium Metal and Hydride, M. Epstein, W. Luangdilok, M. G. Plys, and H. K. Fauske; 26 An Overview of the Primary Parameters and Methods for Determining Condensation Heat Transfer to Containment Structures, J. Green and K. Almenas; DESIGN FEATURES: 49 Modem Tornado Design of Nuclear and Other Potentially Hazardous Facilities, J. D. Stevenson and Y. Zaho; U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION INFORMATION AND ANALYSES: 73 1994 Accident Sequence Precursor Program Results, R. J. Belles, J. W. Cletcher, D. A. Copinger, B. W. Dolan, J. W. Minarick, and P. D. O'Reilly; ANNOUNCEMENTS: 93 American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AlChE) Spring 1997 National Meeting; 94 European Safety and Reliability Association International Conference on Safety and Reliability ESREL ’97; 95 Criticality Safety Challenges in the Next Decade; 96 21st International Symposium on the Scientific Basis for Nuclear Waste Management; 84 The Authors; 88 Letter to the Editor; 90 Indexes to Nuclear Safety, Volume 36.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2024

Enhancement of the Physical and Mechanical Properties of Cellulose Nanofibril-Reinforced Lignocellulosic Foams for Packaging and Building Applications

Biobased foams have the potential to serve as eco-friendly alternatives to petroleum-based foams, provided they achieve comparable thermomechanical and physical properties. We propose a facile approach to fabricate eco-friendly cellulose nanofibril (CNF)-reinforced thermomechanical pulp (TMP) fiber-based foams via an oven-drying process with thermal conductivity as low as 0.036 W/(m·K) at a 34.4 kg/m3 density. Acrodur®, iron chloride (FeCl3), and cationic polyacrylamide (CPAM) were used to improve the foam properties. Acrodur® did not have any significant effect on the foamability and density of the foams. Mechanical, thermal, cushioning, and water absorption properties of the foams were dependent on the density and interactions of the additives with the fibers. Due to their high density, foams with CPAM and FeCl3 at a 1% additive dosage had significantly higher compressive properties at the expense of slightly higher thermal conductivity. There was slight increase in compressive properties with the addition of Acrodur®. All additives improved the water stability of the foams, rendering them stable even after 24 h of water absorption.

Chemistry↗
DOE OSTI2026

Influence of microstructure and temperature on impact toughness of H13 steel produced by binder jet additive manufacturing

Binder Jet Additive Manufacturing (BJAM) is a promising manufacturing pathway to produce H13 steel dies and tooling with complex geometries for applications in high pressure aluminum die casting, hot stamping, and injection molding. While fully dense H13 coupons produced using BJAM have been subjected to detailed microstructure characterization, properties which are critical and relevant to the aforementioned applications, such as impact toughness, have not been reported. Here, this work evaluated the influence of microstructural characteristics and test temperature on the impact toughness of H13 produced by BJAM. Coupons were produced from three different powder size distributions (PSDs), with nominal powder size ranges of −22 μm, 10-32 μm, and 15-53 μm. Coupons were printed, sintered, hot isostatically pressed (HIPed), and heat treated by quenching and tempering. After HIPing, the measured porosities of the different PSDs were all less than 0.015 vol%. The −22 μm PSD BJAM material exhibited the best impact toughness of all three PSDs across the entire test temperature range from 25 to 400 °C, and also exhibited an ambient temperature impact toughness of 10.9 J at a hardness of 46 HRC, equivalent to minimum threshold requirements for premium grade H13. However, all three BJAM PSDs exhibited moderately lower impact toughness than premium grade wrought H13 from RT to 400 °C. We attribute this in part due to the very large prior-austenite grain (PAG) sizes near 400 μm and segregation from former liquid channels leading to greater amounts of carbide precipitation on PAG boundaries. Technical pathways for optimizing processing and chemistry of BJAM H13 to further improve impact toughness are discussed.

Binder jet additive manufacturing↗
DOE OSTI2026

Reduction of baseplate distortion during directed energy deposition using compliant features

Distortion in additive manufacturing (AM) remains a barrier to its adoption in precision industries. Baseplate warpage is one such issue which compromises the feasibility of post-process precision machining. The restriction to thermal contraction of the deposited part, imposed by the baseplate, generates bending moments, that in turn causes warpage. A novel distortion mitigation strategy using baseplates with integrated compliant features, which enables thermal contraction of the build is presented. Six unique design concepts are evaluated, including a solid reference, using two deposition geometries. A laser, hot-wire, directed energy deposition (DED) process is used to deposit a symmetric cylindrical part (C-part) and a T-shaped asymmetric part (T-part). Flatness deviation of baseplates is measured using structured light 3D scanning. Measurements reveal a reduction in net flatness deviation of 58.8% for the C-part and 40.9% for the T-part, compared to the solid reference. While most designs yielded reductions exceeding 30% and 20% for the C- and T-parts, respectively, one configuration resulted in increased deviation. Finite element (FE) simulations are performed to elucidate the underlying mechanisms affecting distortion of compliant baseplates during DED. Despite variations between predictions and measurements, agreement in the general trend is observed. It also revealed that initial flatness errors in baseplates significantly affect its deviation during deposition. Predictions indicate that compliant features significantly affect the thermal distribution as well as the evolution of flatness deviation in the baseplate during deposition. Notably, one design exhibited a reduction in distortion during cooling, following its initial increase during deposition. FE predictions show a maximum reduction of 60.9% and 38.8% in net flatness deviation for the C- and T-parts, respectively. The performance of compliant baseplates is found to be governed by both its the thermal and mechanical characteristics, which are crucial factors to be considered during design.

Mathews, Ritin [ORNL] (ORCID:0000000301440828)↗
DOE OSTI2026

Effects of high-dose neutron irradiation at light-water reactor relevant temperature on the mechanical properties of SiC/SiC composites

For this study, the neutron dose-dependent evolutions and the underlying mechanisms of properties of SiC fiber-reinforced SiC matrix (SiC/SiC) composites at a temperature relevant to light-water reactors (∼600 K) were investigated and analyzed. Chemical vapor infiltrated (CVI) SiC/SiC composites reinforced with Hi-Nicalon Type S or Tyranno SA3 fiber were neutron-irradiated to doses up to 30 dpa. The irradiated composites retained their flexural strengths. The thermal diffusivity and dimensional changes were mostly retained from 2.0 to 30.2 dpa. Discrepancies in irradiation responses among CVI SiC/SiC composites from different sources were found. Additional microstructural analysis using Raman spectroscopy and numerical analysis on irradiation effect on residual stress were used to explain how the microstructural variables, especially of carbon interphases, affect the mechanical properties in the 30–40 dpa dose range.

Continuous fiber-reinforced ceramic matrix composi↗
DOE OSTI2026

Galaxy Size and Rotation Curve Diversity in ΛCDM with Baryons

The observed rotation curves of dwarf galaxies exhibit significant diversity at fixed halo mass, challenging galaxy formation within the cold dark matter (CDM) model. Previous cosmological galaxy formation simulations with baryonic physics fail to reproduce the full diversity of rotation curves, suggesting that there is a flaw in baryonic feedback models, observational bias, or that an alternative to CDM must be invoked. In this work, we use the Marvelous Massive Dwarf zoom-in simulations, a suite of high-resolution dwarf simulations with M 200 ∼ 10 10 –10 11 M ⊙ and M * ∼ 10 7 –10 9 M ⊙ , designed to target the mass range where the galaxy rotation curve diversity is maximized, i.e., between and 100 km s −1 . We add to this a set of low-mass galaxies from the Marvel Dwarf Zoom Volumes to extend the galaxy mass range to lower values. Our fiducial star formation and feedback models produce simulated dwarfs with a broader range of rotation curve shapes, similar to observations. These simulations both create dark matter cores via baryonic feedback, reproducing the slower-rising rotation curves, while also allowing for compact galaxies and steeply rising rotation curves. Our simulated dwarfs also reproduce the observed size–M * relation, including scatter, producing both extended and compact dwarfs for the first time in simulated field dwarfs. However, the slowly rising and high baryon mass fraction, as well as the steeply rising and low baryon mass fraction, remain missing. We explore star formation and feedback models and conclude that previous simulations may have had feedback that was too strong to produce compact dwarfs.

Cruz, Akaxia [Flatiron Institute, New York, NY (Un↗
DOE OSTI2026

Enhanced matter power spectrum from axion kination after Big Bang nucleosynthesis

Despite stringent constraints from Big Bang Nucleosynthesis (BBN) and cosmic microwave background (CMB) observations, it is still possible for well-motivated particle physics models to substantially alter the cosmic expansion history between BBN and recombination. In this work we consider two different axion models that can realize a period of first matter domination, then kination, in this epoch. We perform fits to both primordial element abundances as well as CMB data and determine that up to a decade of late axion domination is allowed by these probes of the early universe. We establish the implications of late axion domination for the matter power spectrum on the scales 1/Mpc ≲ k ≲ 10 3 /Mpc. Our 'log' model predicts a relatively modest bump-like feature together with a small suppression relative to the standard ΛCDM predictions on either side of the enhancement. Our 'two-field' model predicts a larger, plateau-like feature that realizes enhancements to the matter power spectrum of up to two orders of magnitude. These features have interesting implications for structure formation at the forefront of current detection capabilities.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2024

Chiral kinematic theory and converse vortical effects

Response theories in condensed matter typically describe the response of an electron fluid to external electromagnetic fields, while perturbations on neutral particles are often designed to mimic such fields. Here, we study the response of fermions to a space-time-dependent velocity field, thereby sidestepping the issue of gauge charge. First, we use a semiclassical chiral kinematic theory to obtain the local density of current and extract the orbital magnetization. The theory immediately predicts a "converse vortical effect," defined as an orbital magnetization driven by linear velocity. It receives contributions from magnetic moments on the Fermi surface and the Berry curvature of the occupied bands. Then, transcending semiclassics via a complementary Kubo formalism reveals that the uniform limit of a clean system receives only the Berry curvature contribution while other limits sense the Fermi surface magnetic moments too. We propose CoSi as a candidate material and suggest magnetometry of a sample under a thermal gradient to detect the effect. Overall, our study sheds light on the effects of a space-time-dependent velocity field on electron fluids and paves the way for exploring quantum materials using new probes and perturbations.

Chen, Kai [University of Houston]↗