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DOE OSTI2023

Multimodal CO2 Transportation Cost Model

This model provides a cost estimate for transporting CO2 via truck or rail in the United States using commercially available equipment and technologies. The model includes an analysis of direct and indirect CO2 emissions to determine costs per net tonne of CO2 transported. Publicly available data and methods published in the peer-reviewed literature are used to the extent possible; references are available at the bottom of the "Calculations" sheet. Upstream (i.e., liquefaction, buffer storage) and downstream (i.e., buffer storage, reconditioning) activities are included in the model of emissions and costs. All capital and operating expenditures are estimated in the "Calculations" sheet. The cost of financing the project is determined in the "FINEX" sheet. All user inputs are done via drop down menus in on the "User Interface" sheet. Summary results are also provided on the "User Interface" sheet.

Myers, CoreyA↗

DOE OSTI2023

Emerging Trends in Freight [Slides]

Freight transportation accounts for only 5% of the vehicles on U.S. roads, but 10% of vehicle miles of travel and 27% of on-road energy use. With rail and water, freight accounts for 28% of U.S. transportation energy and emissions. Trucking is the primary mode for transporting goods, but rail is a significant mode for longer shipments. Economic, technological, and operational trends pose both challenges and opportunities to meet U.S. demand for goods movement as well as national decarbonization goals. This presentation provides a systems perspective for energy efficiency freight mobility and an overview of available NREL analytical tools to address these challenges.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗

DOE OSTI2025

CO 2 Transport Infrastructure Outlook in the United States

Carbon capture and storage (CCS) represents one of the most important methods to mitigate anthropogenic carbon emissions at a large scale, playing a key role in meeting climate change targets (Bui et al., 2018) and for net-zero CO 2 by 2050 scenarios in the United States (Browning et al., 2023). This technology involves capturing CO 2 emissions from industrial processes, transporting them via pipelines, trucks, rails, or ships, and ultimately storing them in underground geological sites, such as saline aquifers or depleted oil reservoirs. Thus, to encourage carbon reduction initiatives, the U.S. Congress enacted the Bipartisan Budget Act in 2018, reforming the 45Q tax credit to benefit operators storing CO 2 in geologic formations (Jones and Sherlock, 2021). Additionally, the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act further expanded these incentives, providing additional support for CCS initiatives (Hackett and Kuehn, 2023). Although numerous studies describe the importance of optimal CO 2 transportation to support the decision-making of CCS projects aligned with the objective of net-zero emissions by 2050 (Abramson and Christensen, 2021; Chen and Pawar, 2023; Greig and Pascale, 2021), further efforts are required to optimize the transport infrastructure for national-scale CCS deployment. Therefore, in this study, we examine three nationwide scenarios with the SimCCS 3.0 tool (Ma et al., 2022, 2023, 2024) along with a novel geospatial splitting approach developed by Velasco-Lozano et al. (Velasco- Lozano et al., 2024a, 2024b). We present optimized pipeline networks that meet the dynamic evolution of annual capture amounts, describing the required total pipeline lengths at each stage as a function of the pipeline diameters. Thus, the cases presented demonstrate the feasibility of CO 2 pipeline infrastructure for large-scale CCS projects.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2022

System Analysis Modeling and Intermodal Transportation for Commercial Spent Nuclear Fuel

The United States Department of Energy (DOE) has long term goals to develop solutions for managing the nation’s spent nuclear fuel (SNF) and high-level waste (HLW) inventory. The Integrated Waste Management (IWM) program under the DOE office of Nuclear Energy (DOE-NE) is employing system-level engineering and analysis principles to inform potential future waste management system architectures. Managing the spent nuclear waste requires the use of system-level analysis software that takes various aspects of the fuel cycle into account like waste generation, on-site/centralized storage, transportation infrastructure, and long-term disposal. The Next Generation System Analysis Model (NGSAM) is an agent-based model that was developed to simulate the transportation and storage of SNF and HLW. As an agent-based model, NGSAM has the capability to detail the interaction and movement of individual components and groups, such as rail cars and casks. The SNF inventory from commercial nuclear reactors is currently in temporary storage at multiple locations spread across the United States. Shipping of SNF from these locations relies on one of three transportation modes: rail, heavy-haul truck, or barge. Out of the three modes identified, rail is generally the most preferred due to the size of the canisters and casks the SNF would be shipped in. However, under some scenarios, a direct rail route might not be readily available to a reactor site or improving the rail infrastructure at shutdown sites might be too cost-prohibitive for utilities to opt for a direct rail transfer. Under such scenarios, using a barge or heavy haul truck to de-inventory the site and transfer the SNF to a nearby intermodal transfer site with adequate rail infrastructure where the payload could be transferred to a rail car might prove to be an attractive option. This work initially presents the various intermodal transportation options that could be used to transfer SNF from reactor sites to rail cars. This is followed by exploring the operational steps in each of these modes to move the SNF from a reactor site and transfer it to a rail car. This work also presents the procedure of implementing the intermodal transfer methodology in NGSAM using various Java methods. Finally, the process times for accomplishing each of the individual steps are furnished. The implementation ideology, assumptions, and future steps are presented in this work.

Gadey, Harish Reddy↗

DOE OSTI2022

Verification and Validation of the Stakeholder Tool for Assessing Radioactive Transportation (START) – 22323

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Integrated Waste Management is planning for the eventual transportation, storage, and disposal of spent nuclear fuel (SNF) and high-level radioactive waste (HLW) from nuclear power plant and DOE sites. The Stakeholder Tool for Assessing Radioactive Transportation (START) is a web-based, geospatial decision-support tool developed for evaluating routing options and other aspects of transporting SNF and HLW, covering rail, truck, barge, and intermodal infrastructure and operations in the continental United States. The verification and validation (V&V) process is intended to independently assess START to provide confidence in the ability of START to accurately provide intended results. The V&V process checks the START tool using a variety of methods, ranging from independent hand calculations to comparison of START performance and results to those of other codes. The V&V activity was conducted independently from the START development team with opportunities to provide feedback and collaborate throughout the process. The V&V analyzed attributes of transportation routes produced by START, including route distance and both population and population density captured within buffer zones around routes. Population in the buffer zone, population density in the buffer zone, and route distance were all identified as crucial outputs of the START code and were subject to V&V tasks. Some of the improvements identified through the V&V process were standardizing the underlying population data in START, changing the projection of the population raster data, and changes to the methodology used for population density to improve its applicability for expected users. This collaboration also led to suggested improvements to some of the underlying shape file segments within START. A formal series of test routes went through the V&V process from START version 3.2.1 following the implementation of the recommended improvements to START. The V&V of the buffer zone population and distance reported in START were achieved by utilizing a custom workflow developed in QGIS. This platform was chosen because it is fully independent of START. The buffer zone population and route distances in START showed excellent agreement to independent V&V test results. Over 200 route test cases were run; in all cases, the percent difference in the population within the buffer zone was less than +/- 5%, and the majority of cases were below +/- 1%. These cases were also duplicated in ArcMap, which is Environmental Systems Research Institute’s (ESRI) GIS desktop application. The ArcMap results also show good agreement; however, they cannot be considered independent of START because START also uses ESRI software. The V&V tasks are currently addressing population density and estimated radiation dose in START as well as implementing further automation of the V&V process to allow larger suites of test routes to be run more easily and quickly by less experienced GIS users. These improvements to the V&V process will make it a valuable tool for the development team and the stakeholders so that each new iteration of START can easily be checked for quality and consistency. This paper and presentation will describe the V&V process, findings and implications, and ongoing V&V activities.

START, DOE, Transporation, dose, GIS↗

DOE OSTI2023

Progress in the Verification and Validation Efforts for START: A Spent Fuel Routing Tool

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Nuclear Energy (DOE-NE) is planning for an integrated waste management approach to transport, store, and dispose of spent nuclear fuel (SNF) and other high-level radioactive waste (HLW) as part of the Integrated Waste Management (IWM) program [1]. In support of this effort, the Stakeholder Tool for Assessing Radioactive Transportation (START) is being developed within the IWM program [2, 3]. This is a web-based decision support tool that can be used to analyze geospatial data related to the transportation of SNF and HLW. START is designed as a web-based application using an ArcGIS server through which the user can select the origin and destination of the route [4]. This is followed by selection of the mode of transportation of choice based on user preference. Some of the modes available to the user include rail, heavy haul truck, and barge. The option of utilizing more than one mode of transportation (intermodal transportation) is also implemented in START. A few examples of intermodal transportation include barge to rail, and heavy haul truck to rail. It must be noted that some routes might not have access to all modes of transportation, depending on the infrastructure availability at the origin and destination sites. Users can also select any stops or barriers they would like to introduce in the routes. This is followed by selection of the routing criteria of interest. Three primary routing options available to the user include minimum population, minimum distance, and minimum time. Apart from that, a few other options include accounting for a weighted average of the three aforementioned routing options. The next step involves the selection of the buffer distance of interest which includes the two choices available of 800 m and 2500 m, respectively. Finally, an option to select any prohibited rail carriers that the user does not wish to use is available. After making these selections, a route is ready to be created.

Gadey, Harish Reddy↗

DOE OSTI2020

Use of Multi-Attribute Utility Analyses to Assess Transportation Routes from ISFSIs - 20535

With two consolidated interim storage facilities for used nuclear fuel (UNF) having applied for storage licenses, there is the potential need to transport UNF in the U.S. from shutdown reactor sites to complete the site cleanup and from operating reactor sites who may be running out of storage options (e.g., spent fuel pools are nearly full and dry storage facilities are reaching licensed capacity). At some of the shutdown reactor sites, only the independent spent fuel storage installation (ISFSI) exists and often there remains a degraded transportation infrastructure for performing shipments from these sites. At other sites (e.g., operating reactor plants), the existing transportation infrastructure on the site is unchanged and sufficient for moving UNF, but the environment around the route may have changed (e.g., what was once a rural setting has transformed into a more urban setting) and/or local stakeholders want their input taken into consideration in UNF transportation activities. So, although preliminary evaluations have been performed to identify viable modes of transport from these sites using rail, barge, and/or heavy haul truck, if multiple options exist for moving the UNF from the site (e.g., multiple truck routes or a truck and a barge route both exist) then an evaluation that takes input from multiple stakeholders should be considered to identified the preference (e.g., ranking) of routes from a site. Orano has supported the development of several studies examining the viable routes for removing UNF from some of these sites and has utilized a multi-attribute utility analysis (MUA) to establish a ranking of routes and associated modes to move the UNF from the ISFSIs to a Class I rail carrier. The ultimate result from the MUA is a list(s) of the most to the least favored/preferred routes from the site. This paper provides an overview of the MUA methodology and provides an example of its application to a site with a shutdown reactor. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

DOE OSTI2023

Biofuel Production and Greenhouse Gas Reduction Potential

Under two biomass supply scenarios presented in this study, between 56 and 81 B GGE/year of biofuel could be produced. The corresponding GHG reduction potential is between to 410 million 635 billion Mt CO2e/year. This volume of biofuel is sufficient to replace a majority of fuel demand in hard-to-electrify aviation, marine, rail and off-road transportation by 2050. Through pathway selection and process design, sufficient sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) could be produced to exceed the projected 35 B gpy of domestic aviation fuel demand by 2050. The external hydrogen required to produce this volume of fuel is estimated to be between 3.5 to 5.2 Mt/year.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗

DOE OSTI2022

Preliminary Safety Analysis for a 400-kW Molten Salt Nuclear Battery

The Molten Salt Nuclear battery (MsNB) is a microreactor based on technology developed and operated at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in the 1960s [1]. But the MsNB has been simplified by removing pumps and valves for improved reliability and safety. The MsNB can safely provide up to 10 MWe of power for up to 10 years and potentially it can be transported by air, truck, and rail thanks due to to its small footprint. A computer model has been developed to represent a prototypical 400-kW MsNB using the ANL system code SAM [2]. The model has been used to produce a reactor thermal-hydraulic performance map and perform analysis of unprotected loss of heat sink accident scenario.

11 - NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

DOE OSTI2023

O’Hare Airport Short-Term Ground Transportation Modal Demand Forecast Using Gaussian Processes

Here, the principal objective of this study is to analyze the spatial and temporal variation of ground transportation airport demand and provide demand forecast to inform planning capability and explore alternatives for investments to accommodate airport growth. Because of its good adaptability and strong generalization ability for dealing with high-dimensional input, small-sample, and nonlinear spatial data, Gaussian process (GP) regression is used to provide forecast estimates using data from transportation network company (TNC) trips and urban rail passengers at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport. TNC airport trips differ significantly, with three times more distance, more than twice the travel time, and half of the share requests compared with nonairport trips. This highlights the need for separate demand models. Hourly analysis of the rail service indicates that this is likely heavily used by airport workers, whereas TNC services focus on travelers because of variations in the peak demand hours. Heteroscedastic GP regression is implemented because of differences in trip variance between night and day hours. Estimates are given for weekdays and weekend trips, and the 95% confidence intervals are calculated. The introduction of flight schedule information into the models shows marginal improvements in their performance. However, fitting a GP regression becomes computationally expensive with increased sample size and the introduction of spatial components. Transportation planners and policymakers can use the results and methods implemented in this study to optimize transportation assets and provide long-range simulations of the current and future conditions in the area.

42 ENGINEERING↗

DOE OSTI2024

SimCCS 3.0 User GUIDE

Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) is an important technology aimed at reducing CO 2 emissions and contributing to the mitigation strategies of climate change. The process involves three main steps: CO 2 capture, transport, and storage. Specifically, CO 2 is captured from industrial facilities, such as coal-fired power plants and natural gas processing plants. It is then transported through infrastructure networks, such as pipelines, rails, and ships, and injected into underground geological formations, such as depleted oil and gas reservoirs or deep saline aquifers, for permanent storage. The entire CCS value chain encompasses multiple components, including CO 2 sources, transport networks, and storage sites. The proper design of CCS transport infrastructure is an essential step for the deployment of CCS technology. However, the design is not a trivial process, as it presents many challenges and requires consideration of numerous economic, social, and environmental factors.

42 ENGINEERING↗

DOE OSTI2023

Designing a GIS-based supply chain for producing carinata-based sustainable aviation fuel in Georgia, USA

Carinata is a potential crop for sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) production in the southern USA. However, as a novel crop, the cost-effectiveness and environmental feasibility of carinata feedstock are unknown, and there are questions about the optimal supply chain configuration for carinata-based SAF production. This study aims to design a supply chain model for carinata-based SAF production by optimizing the location of farms and facilities (e.g. storage units, crushing mills, biorefineries) for a minimum transportation cost under a set of supply and demand conditions. An integrated mixed-integer linear programming (MILP) model was combined with geographical information system (GIS) analysis to design a spatially explicit supply chain configuration. The GIS-based network analysis considered all of the counties in Georgia to set the candidate locations of carinata farms and facilities, and determined minimum cost and emission routes between those counties and the airport using existing transportation networks and modes (e.g. road, rail and pipeline). The MILP model determined the final selection of the farms and the number of facilities and their locations over those minimum-cost routes. With this supply chain configuration, the minimum price of SAF was $\$$0.92 L –1 , which is $\$$0.44 higher than conventional aviation fuel (CAF). The associated carbon intensity of SAF was estimated at 940.7 g CO 2 e L –1 , a reduction of 66% relative to the carbon intensity of equivalent CAF. The study found that a carbon tax (or subsidy) of $\$$230.48 t CO 2 e –1 would be needed to overcome the cost differential with CAF and promote carinata-based SAF in Georgia.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗

DOE OSTI2025

Idaho National Laboratory’s Mobile Hot Cell Transportation: Engineering Solutions for Global Disused Sealed Radioactive Sources.

Title: Idaho National Laboratory’s Mobile Hot Cell Transportation: Engineering Solutions for Global Disused Sealed Radioactive Sources. Abstract: The Mobile Hot Cell (MHC), currently under development by Idaho National Laboratory (INL) for the Off-Site Source Recovery Project (OSRP), is designed to help international partners meet the unique challenges of end-of-life radioactive material management. The MHC will provide a critical resource for countries that require assistance securing and disposing of Disused Sealed Radioactive Sources (DSRS) and orphaned sources in challenging environments, allowing these sources to be secured against misuse and nefarious activities. The MHC is a rapidly deployable system for conditioning and preparing end-of-life radioactive sources for transportation or storage. It is designed to handle sources of up to 1,000 Ci Co-60 equivalent while maintaining full radiological and biological containment. It will be deployable within 48 hours of an alert, making it ideal for emergency situations. The MHC features an operational suite for control, support racks for electronics, pneumatics, and welding systems, and a modular robust steel structure providing radiological shielding and internal robotic support. This design allows configurations for multiple device types to be conditioned and the ability to safely manage routine issues such as leaking or damaged sources. The MHC has been designed with the transportation challenges of rapid deployment to difficult environments in mind. The system weighs approximately 150,000 pounds, with individual systems breaking down into pieces not exceeding 20,000 pounds. Components are to be transportable on standard 20ft ISO containers, with shielding shells on 20ft flat racks. It is estimated that a total of eight containers and flat racks will be required. The use of 20ft containers, as opposed to 40ft containers, minimizes the impact on less developed road infrastructures, enabling the MHC to be positioned in constrained environments such as hospital parking lots. The system’s modularity also allows for deployment using smaller equipment, such as a 10-ton boom truck or forklift, which is crucial given the potential logistical challenges in different countries. This transportation strategy, evaluated in collaboration with Utah State University, ensures the MHC can be deployed via ground, rail, sea, or air, addressing the primary concern of international transport logistics.

99 - GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗

DOE OSTI2021

Transport Cost for Carbon Removal Projects With Biomass and CO2 Storage

Strategies to remove carbon from the atmosphere are needed to meet global climate goals. Promising strategies include the conversion of waste biomass to hydrogen, methane, liquid fuels, or electricity coupled with CO 2 capture and storage (CCS). A key challenge for these projects is the need to connect geographically dispersed biomass supplies with geologic storage sites by either transporting biomass or CO 2 . We assess the cost of transport for biomass conversion projects with CCS using publicly available cost data for trucking, rail, and CO 2 pipelines in the United States. We find that for large projects (order of 1 Mt/yr CO 2 or greater), CO 2 by pipeline is the lowest cost option. However, for projects that send most of the biomass carbon to storage, such as gasification to hydrogen or electricity production, biomass by rail is a competitive option. For smaller projects and lower fractions of carbon sent to storage, such as for pyrolysis to liquid fuels, CO 2 by rail is the lowest cost option. Assessing three plausible example projects in the United States, we estimate that total transport costs range from $24/t-CO 2 stored for a gasification to hydrogen project traversing 670 km to $\$ 36$/t for a gasification to renewable natural gas project traversing 530 km. In general, if developers have flexibility in choosing transport mode and project type, biomass sources and storage sites can be connected across hundreds of kilometers for transport costs in the range of $20-40/t-CO 2 stored. Truck and rail are often viable modes when pipelines cannot be constructed. Distances of 1,000 km or more can be connected in the same cost range when shared CO 2 pipelines are employed.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗

DOE OSTI2025

Geospatial analysis of freight accessibility and job attraction: The role of interstate ramps, airports, ports, and rail

The number of jobs within an industry is significantly influenced by geographical location, with transportation infrastructure playing a key role. While previous research has largely focused on how access to jobs affects employment, less attention has been given to how transportation infrastructure impacts business operations and job attraction. Here, this study addresses this gap by examining how the ease of transporting products to key transportation facilities affects job numbers in freight-intensive industries. Using job data from the Longitudinal Employment Household Dynamics dataset at the Census Tract level, we applied a non-parametric model to assess the impact of proximity to interstate ramps, rail intermodals, ports, and airports. Our analysis revealed that closer transportation infrastructure generally has a greater impact on employment. Specifically, interstate ramps are crucial for attracting jobs, particularly in rural areas, while airport proximity is essential for industries dealing with high-value, time-sensitive goods, as seen notably in Massachusetts. The importance of transportation facilities varies considerably across states and industries. The findings and method in this study can be used by transportation agencies for freight planning.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗

DOE OSTI2020

Large-scale inflatable structures for tunnel protection: a review of the Resilient Tunnel Plug project

The protection of underground civil infrastructure continues to be a high priority for transportation and transit security agencies. In particular, rail transit tunnels running under bodies of water are susceptible to disruptions due to flooding caused by extraordinary climatic events such as hurricanes or other events resulting from human activities. Several events have taken place in the past decades that have demonstrated the need to mitigate vulnerabilities or, at least, minimize the consequences of catastrophic events. Although it is impossible to prevent all situations that can lead to flooding, damage can be substantially decreased by reducing the area affected by the event. To minimize the effects of an event, a possible approach is to compartmentalize the tunnel system by creating temporary barriers that can contain the propagation of flooding until a more permanent solution can be implemented. One way to create a temporary barrier is by the deployment of a large-scale inflatable structure, also known as an inflatable plug. In such an application, the inflatable structure is prepared for placement, either permanently or temporally, and maintained ready for deployment, inflation, and pressurization when needed. The internal plug pressure imparts a normal force against the tunnel wall surface with the friction between the plug and tunnel surfaces opposing axial movement of the plug. The sealing effectiveness depends on the ability of the inflatable structure to self-deploy and fit, without human intervention, to the intricacies of the perimeter of the conduit being sealed. Primary design constraints include having the plug stowed away from the dynamic envelope of the trains and being able to withhold the pressure of the flooding water. This work presents a compilation of the main aspects of the activities completed for the development of large-scale inflatable structures as part of the Resilient Tunnel Plug (RTP) Project. The main test results and lessons learned are presented to demonstrate the viability of implementing large-scale inflatable plugs for the containment of flooding in rail tunnels systems. Over 400 coupon and specimen tests, 200 reduced scale tests, and 100 full-scale tests were conducted to demonstrate the efficacy of the design of different prototypes over a 10-year research and development project. The culmination of the work was 12 large-scale flooding demonstrations where the inflatable tunnel plug was shown able to be deployed remotely and withstand a simulated flooding event.

42 ENGINEERING↗

DOE OSTI2020

Summary of Expansions and Updates in GREET® 2020

The GREET® (Greenhouse gases, Regulated Emissions, and Energy use in Technologies) model has been developed by Argonne National Laboratory with the support of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). GREET is a life-cycle analysis (LCA) tool, structured to systematically examine the energy and environmental effects of a wide variety of transportation fuels and vehicle technologies in major transportation sectors (i.e., road, air, marine, and rail) and other end-use sectors, and energy systems. Argonne has expanded and updated the model in various sectors in GREET 2020, and this report provides a summary of the release.

33 ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗

DOE OSTI2022

Summary of Expansions and Updates in GREET ® 2022

The GREET ® (Greenhouse gases, Regulated Emissions, and Energy use in Technologies) model has been developed by Argonne National Laboratory (Argonne) with the support of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and other federal agencies. GREET is a life cycle analysis (LCA) tool, structured to systematically examine the energy and environmental effects of a wide variety of transportation fuels and vehicle technologies in major transportation sectors (i.e., road, air, marine, and rail) and other end-use sectors, and energy systems. Argonne has expanded and updated the model in various sectors in GREET 2022, and this report provides a summary of the release.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗