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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 613 records · Page 34
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2016

STEADY STATE MODELING OF THE MINIMUM CRITICAL CORE OF THE TRANSIENT REACTOR TEST FACILITY

With the advent of next generation reactor systems and new fuel designs, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has identified the need for the resumption of transient testing of nuclear fuels. The DOE has decided that the Transient Reactor Test Facility (TREAT) at Idaho National Laboratory (INL) is best suited for future testing. TREAT is a thermal neutron spectrum, air-cooled, nuclear test facility that is designed to test nuclear fuels in transient scenarios. These specific scenarios range from simple temperature transients to full fuel melt accidents. DOE has expressed a desire to develop a simulation capability that will accurately model the experiments before they are irradiated at the facility. It is the aim for this capability to have an emphasis on effective and safe operation while minimizing experimental time and cost. The multi physics platform MOOSE has been selected as the framework for this project. The goals for this work are to identify the fundamental neutronics properties of TREAT and to develop an accurate steady state model for future multiphysics transient simulations. In order to minimize computational cost, the effect of spatial homogenization and angular discretization are investigated. It was found that significant anisotropy is present in TREAT assemblies and to capture this effect, explicit modeling of cooling channels and inter-element gaps is necessary. For this modeling scheme, single element calculations at 293 K gave power distributions with a root mean square difference of 0.076% from those of reference SERPENT calculations. The minimum critical core configuration with identical gap and channel treatment at 293 K resulted in a root mean square, total core, radial power distribution 2.423% different than those of reference SERPENT solutions.

Critical↗
DOE OSTI2013

R and D Programs and Policy within the CEA-AREVA Joint Vitrification Lab (LCV) - 13592

Waste management is a key issue for the reprocessing industry; furthermore, vitrification is considered as the reference for nuclear waste management. In order to further improve and strengthen their historical cooperation in high temperature waste management, the CEA, R and D organization, and AREVA, Industrial Operator, decided, in September 2010, to create a Joint Vitrification Laboratory within the framework of a strategic partnership. The main objectives of the CEA-AREVA Joint Vitrification Laboratory (LCV) are (i) support AREVA's activities, notably in its La Hague plants and for new projects, (ii) strengthen the CEA's lead as a reference laboratory in the field of waste conditioning. The LCV is mandated to provide strong, innovative solutions through the performance of R and D on processes and materials for vitrification, fusion and incineration, for high, intermediate and low level waste. The activities carried out in the LCV include academic research on containment matrices (formulation, long-term behaviour), and the improvement of current technologies/development of new ones in lab-scale to full-scale pilot facilities, in non-radioactive and radioactive conditions, including modelling and experimental tools. This paper focuses on the programs and policy managed within the LCV, as well as the means employed by the CEA and AREVA to meet common short-,mid- and long-term challenges, from a scientific and industrial point of view. Among other things, we discuss the technical support provided for the La Hague vitrification facilities on hot melter and CCIM technologies, the start-up of new processes (decommissioning effluents, UMo FP) with CCIM, the preparation of future processes by means of an assessment of new technologies and containment matrices (improved glasses, ceramics, etc.), as well as incineration/vitrification for organic and metallic mixed waste or metallic fusion. The close relationship between the R and D teams and industrial operators enables the LCV to propose attractive waste management solutions, with appropriate schedules and optimized development costs, making allowance for R and D constraints, engineering requirements and the industrial environment. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2015

First principle calculations of effective exchange integrals: Comparison between SR (BS) and MR computational results

First principle calculations of effective exchange integrals (J) in the Heisenberg model for diradical species were performed by both symmetry-adapted (SA) multi-reference (MR) and broken-symmetry (BS) single reference (SR) methods. Mukherjee-type (Mk) state specific (SS) MR coupled-cluster (CC) calculations by the use of natural orbital (NO) references of ROHF, UHF, UDFT and CASSCF solutions were carried out to elucidate J values for di- and poly-radical species. Spin-unrestricted Hartree Fock (UHF) based coupled-cluster (CC) computations were also performed to these species. Comparison between UHF-NO(UNO)-MkMRCC and BS UHF-CC computational results indicated that spin-contamination of UHF-CC solutions still remains at the SD level. In order to eliminate the spin contamination, approximate spin-projection (AP) scheme was applied for UCC, and the AP procedure indeed corrected the error to yield good agreement with MkMRCC in energy. The CC double with spin-unrestricted Brueckner's orbital (UBD) was furthermore employed for these species, showing that spin-contamination involved in UHF solutions is largely suppressed, and therefore AP scheme for UBCCD removed easily the rest of spin-contamination. We also performed spin-unrestricted pure- and hybrid-density functional theory (UDFT) calculations of diradical and polyradical species. Three different computational schemes for total spin angular momentums were examined for the AP correction of the hybrid (H) UDFT. HUDFT calculations followed by AP, HUDFT(AP), yielded the S-T gaps that were qualitatively in good agreement with those of MkMRCCSD, UHF-CC(AP) and UB-CC(AP). Thus a systematic comparison among MkMRCCSD, UCC(AP) UBD(AP) and UDFT(AP) was performed concerning with the first principle calculations of J values in di- and poly-radical species. It was found that BS (AP) methods reproduce MkMRCCSD results, indicating their applicability to large exchange coupled systems.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2017

I. Final Report for DOE SBIR Phase I Project DE-SC0013795 Final Report for DOE SBIR Phase I Project DE-SC0013795 Microtron-based Compact, Portable Gamma-Ray Source

Microtron-based Compact, Portable Gamma-Ray Source. The objective of Phase I of this project was to produce a conceptual design of a prototype compact microtron electron accelerator, which could be designed, built, and demonstrated in Phase II of the project. The conceptual design study included an analysis of the parameters of the microtron and its components, and the expected performance of the prototype microtron as a source of x-rays and/or RF neutrons in the MeV energy range. The major components of the microtron are the magnet, the accelerating system, the power system, the vacuum system, the control system, the beam extraction system and the targets to produce x-rays (and/or neutrons). Our objectives for the design of the prototype were for it to be compact, cost-effective, capable of producing high intensity x-ray (an/or neutron) fluxes. In addition, the prototype was to be easily assembled and disassembled so that components could be easily replaced. The main parameters for the prototype are the following: the range of electron kinetic energies, the output power, the RF frequency band (X-band, C-band, or S-Band), the type of injection (Type I or Type II), the magnet type, i.e. permanent magnet, electromagnet, or a hybrid combination of permanent and electromagnet. The results of the Phase I study and analysis for a prototype microtron are the following: The electron energy range can be varied from below 6 MeV to 9 MeV, the optimal frequency range is S-Band (2-4 GHz) RF frequency, Type II injection (described below), and the magnet type is the hybrid version. The prototype version will be capable of producing gamma ray doses of ~1800 R/min-m and neutron fluxes of up to ~6 x 10 10 n/s with appropriate targets. The results of the Phase I study and analysis are provided below. The proposed Phase II plan was to demonstrate the prototype at low beam power. In the subsequent Phase III, high power tests would be performed, and the design of commercial versions of microtrons with various energies, sizes and types would be produced and marketed, including a more compact and more portable 6 MeV battery-powered model that more closely meets the requirements in the original FOA topic description. In the course of the Phase I study, we also identified another microtron version, one that was larger (not compact) and more powerful than that of the Phase II prototype, which could serve as an intense source of photo- neutrons, up to 4 x 10 12 n/s for use in nuclear medicine, short-lived isotope production, or other applications. In addition, it could produce gamma dose rates up to 130 kR/min-m with a heavy metal bremsstrahlung target. The results and specifications of this were submitted to IPAC16 (Reference [12]) the paper is included in Addendum B. Because this version was beyond the scope of the Phase I project, there is no additional description in the Final Report.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2019

Single-Fuel Reactivity Controlled Compression Ignition Combustion Enabled by Onboard Fuel Reformation (Final Report)

Reactivity-Controlled Compression Ignition (RCCI) is a promising new advanced, low temperature combustion mode that offers efficiencies equal to or greater than conventional diesel combustion, but significantly lower soot and NOx emissions. Additionally, RCCI has enhanced controllability over the combustion process compared to some of the other advanced combustion modes. Therefore, RCCI combustion has the potential to be of great benefit to the public by increasing the efficiency and reducing the harmful pollutant emissions from transportation. However, RCCI combustion achieves this favorable level of performance through the use of two distinct fuels (e.g., diesel and gasoline, diesel and natural gas, or diesel and ethanol). In a vehicle application, RCCI therefore requires two different fuel tanks and fuel injection systems, which presents a significant drawback to the commercialization RCCI. This project proposed a new concept to enable RCCI combustion from a single parent fuel stored onboard the vehicle in a single fuel tank. Specifically, the parent fuel would be stored in the fuel tank and one branch of the fuel system would deliver the parent fuel, unaltered, to the cylinder, while a second branch of the fuel system would route the parent fuel through a fuel reformer to chemically react the fuel into a gaseous fuel mixture, called “reformate”, that has different properties from the original parent fuel. In this way, there can be two fuels at the engine that have different properties, but only one parent fuel needs to be stored and refilled in the vehicle. This initial, exploratory investigation into the feasibility of this promising new concept included reacting three potential parent fuels (diesel, gasoline, and natural gas) in a fuel reformer and determining the composition of the gaseous reformate fuel that exited the fuel reformer. There are different types of reformation processes, but since this project was a proof-of-concept investigation into the potential of Single-Fuel RCCI and the combustion process in the cylinder, a catalytic partial oxidation (CPOX) reformation process was selected, which is more straightforward to perform and control, and would potentially be easier to implement in a vehicle application compared to other reformation processes. Once the three parent fuels were reformed to varying degrees and their reformate compositions were determined, their autoignition tendencies were experimentally determined by comparing advanced combustion results of the reformate mixtures with known reference fuels. This showed that diesel fuel and its reformate fuel mixture exhibited the largest reactivity separation, which is necessary to enable RCCI combustion in the cylinder. Using diesel fuel as the parent fuel, experimental testing was conducted to provide a better understanding of the operational considerations, benefits, and drawbacks of Single-Fuel RCCI with onboard fuel reformation. The experimental testing was accompanied by computational fluid dynamics and system-level modeling to help complement the experiments and further expand the understanding. The main conclusions are that Single-Fuel RCCI using diesel fuel as the direct injected, high reactivity fuel and diesel’s gaseous reformate mixture as the premixed, low reactivity fuel is viable. The efficiencies were equal to, or sometimes greater than, RCCI with conventional fuel pairs, and the emissions were comparable as well. A key consideration is that gaseous reformate fuel contains a large amount of diluents in the fuel which displace air entering the cylinder and act as EGR inside the cylinder. Additionally, the reactivity separation between diesel and its reformate fuel mixture is larger than diesel-gasoline, but less than diesel-natural gas, and the combustion process therefore responded in a manner that was between the two conventional fuel pairs. Finally, although achievable in the cylinder, there are practical drawbacks or other disadvantages of Single-Fuel RCCI with onboard fuel reformation. First, this project used a CPOX reformation process which is exothermic, meaning that a portion of the fuel’s energy was released in the reformer where it could not be converted into useful work. This constituted an efficiency penalty of the system of on the order of 10% or 4 percentage points. Future research should therefore focus on alternate reforming processes including steam-methane reforming or autothermal reforming where there might not be any energy released in the reformer, or there could even be an energy gain in the reformer (through an endothermic process with waste heat recovery). Practical drawbacks that exist, but were beyond the scope of this preliminary proof-of-concept research project, are the added cost of the fuel reformer, which is a catalyst made of precious metals, transient response of the system, and the lifetime of the fuel reformer.

33 ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗
DOE OSTI2017

Nucleation and crystal growth behavior of nepheline in simulated high-level waste glasses

The Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) has been tasked with supporting glass formulation development and process control strategies in key technical areas, relevant to the Department of Energy’s Office of River Protection (DOE-ORP) and related to high-level waste (HLW) vitrification at the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP). Of specific interest is the development of predictive models for crystallization of nepheline (NaAlSiO4) in HLW glasses formulated at high alumina concentrations. This report summarizes recent progress by researchers at SRNL towards developing a predicative tool for quantifying nepheline crystallization in HLW glass canisters using laboratory experiments. In this work, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) was used to obtain the temperature regions over which nucleation and growth of nepheline occur in three simulated HLW glasses - two glasses representative of WTP projections and one glass representative of the Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF) product. The DWPF glass, which has been studied previously, was chosen as a reference composition and for comparison purposes. Complementary quantitative X-ray diffraction (XRD) and optical microscopy confirmed the validity of the methodology to determine nucleation and growth behavior as a function of temperature. The nepheline crystallization growth region was determined to generally extend from ~ 500 to >850 °C, with the maximum growth rates occurring between 600 and 700 °C. For select WTP glass compositions (high Al2O3 and B2O3), the nucleation range extended from ~ 450 to 600 °C, with the maximum nucleation rates occurring at ~ 530 °C. For the DWPF glass composition, the nucleation range extended from ~ 450 to 750 °C with the maximum nucleation rate occurring at ~ 640 °C. The nepheline growth at the peak temperature, as determined by XRD, was between 35 - 75 wt.% /hour. A maximum nepheline growth rate of ~ 0.1 mm/hour at 700 °C was measured for the DWPF composition using optical microscopy. This research establishes a viable alternative to more traditional techniques for evaluating nepheline crystallization in large numbers of glasses, which are prohibitively time consuming or otherwise impractical. The ultimate objective is to combine the nucleation and growth information obtained from DSC, like that presented in this report, with computer simulations of glass cooling within the canister to accurately predict nepheline crystallization in HLW during processing through WTP.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2022

LLNL 5-2428: Fracture Permeability and Seismic Slip Behavior

Our goal is to develop, apply and validate a holistic thermal, hydrologic, mechanical, and chemical (THMC) workflow that also includes evaluation of induced seismic slip in EGS reservoirs. We will integrate experimental and modelling approaches to reduce parameteruncertainty and better predict and mitigate seismic hazard at Utah FORGE and future EGS sites.We propose a novel approach that incorporates 3D physics-based Earthquake simulations in THMC models, herein referred to as “THMC+E” models. This capability will enable improvedengineering decisions at Utah FORGE and move EGS operations toward repeatable, robust, economically viable, and socially accepted development. Utah FORGE management and future EGS operators may employ results of THMC+E models for decision making purposes throughout the lifetime of the field operation. For example, before production well installation, our THMC+E models will predict circulation scenarios and related seismic hazard for a suite ofpossible well locations and flow rates, thus enabling evaluation of optimal production well placement. Such efforts will be conducted throughout the lifetime of the project, whereby additional laboratory experiments will constrain key model parameters and machine learning (ML) will reduce the size of the parameter space and the associated uncertainty. THMC+E simulations will enable exploration various circumstances that may hinder EGS success and develop mitigation strategies.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2013

Industrial and natural sources of gaseous elemental mercury in the Almadén district (Spain): An updated report on this issue after the ceasing of mining and metallurgical activities in 2003 and major land reclamation works

Two events during the last decade had major environmental repercussions in Almadén town (Spain). First it was the ceasing of activities in the mercury mine and metallurgical facilities in 2003, and then the finalization of the restoration works on the main waste dump in 2008. The combination of both events brought about a dramatic drop in the emissions of gaseous elemental mercury (GEM) to the atmosphere. Although no one would now call the Almadén area as ‘mercury-free’, the GEM levels have fallen beneath international reference safety levels for the first time in centuries. This has been a major breakthrough because in less than one decade the site went from GEM levels in the order of “tens of thousands” to mere “tens” nanogram per cubic meter. Although these figures are per se a remarkable achievement, they do not mark the end of the environmental concerns in the Almadén district. Two other sites remain as potential environmental hazards. (1) The Las Cuevas mercury storage complex, a partially restored ex-mining site where liquid mercury is being stored. The MERSADE Project (LIFE—European Union) has tested the Las Cuevas complex as a potential site for the installation of a future European prototype safe deposit of surplus mercury from industrial activities. Despite restoration works carried out in 2004, the Las Cuevas complex can still be regarded as hotspot of mercury contamination, with high concentrations above 800 μg g{sup −1} Hg{sub soil} and 300 ng m{sup −3} Hg{sub gas}. However, as predicted by air contamination modeling using the ISC-AERMOD software, GEM concentrations fade away in a short distance following the formation of a NW–SE oriented narrow plume extending for a few hundred meters from the complex perimeter. (2) Far more dangerous from the human health perspective is the Almadenejos area, hosting the small Almadenejos village, the so-called Cerco de Almadenejos (CDA; an old metallurgical precinct), and the mines of La Nueva Concepción, La Vieja Concepción and El Entredicho. The CDA is an old metallurgical site that operated between 1794 and 1861, leaving behind a legacy of extremely contaminated soils (mean concentration=4220 μg g{sup −1} Hg) and GEM emissions that in summer can reach levels up to 4,000–5,000 ng m{sup −3}. Thus the CDA remains the sole ‘urban’ site in the district surpassing GEM international reference safety levels. In order to prevent these emissions, the CDA requires immediate action regarding restoration works. These could involve the full removal of soils or their permanent capping to create an impermeable barrier.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2024

Canopy reflectance spectra and photographs (raw data), Seward Peninsula, Alaska, 2022

Measurements of full-range (350–2500 nm) canopy spectral reflectance of Arctic plant species, plots, and transects at the Next Generation Ecosystem Experiment Arctic (NGEE Arctic) Teller Mile Marker (MM27) and Kougarok Fire Complex (KFC) sites, Seward Peninsula, Alaska. Spectra were collected in July 2022 using a handheld SVC HR-2014i spectroradiometer. All spectra were collected as calibrated surface radiance and converted to surface reflectance using 99.99% reflective Spectralon white reference standard. This data package includes unprocessed instrument output of the spectra signals (.sig) and, for some canopy measurements, photographs of the target taken by the SVC instrument camera or handheld digital camera (.jpg), GPS locations and file metadata (.csv).The Next-Generation Ecosystem Experiments: Arctic (NGEE Arctic), was a 15-year research effort (2012-2027) to reduce uncertainty in Earth System Models by developing a predictive understanding of carbon-rich Arctic ecosystems and feedbacks to climate. NGEE Arctic was supported by the Department of Energy's Office of Biological and Environmental Research.The NGEE Arctic project had two field research sites: 1) located within the Arctic polygonal tundra coastal region on the Barrow Environmental Observatory (BEO) and the North Slope near Utqiagvik (Barrow), Alaska and 2) multiple areas on the discontinuous permafrost region of the Seward Peninsula north of Nome, Alaska.Through observations, experiments, and synthesis with existing datasets, NGEE Arctic provided an enhanced knowledge base for multi-scale modeling and contributed to improved process representation at global pan-Arctic scales within the Department of Energy's Earth system Model (the Energy Exascale Earth System Model, or E3SM), and specifically within the E3SM Land Model component (ELM).

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2014

Small modular reactor: First-of-a-Kind (FOAK) and Nth-of-a-Kind (NOAK) Economic Analysis

Small modular reactors (SMRs) refer to any reactor design in which the electricity generated is less than 300 MWe. Often medium sized reactors with power less than 700 MWe are also grouped into this category. Internationally, the development of a variety of designs for SMRs is booming with many designs approaching maturity and even in or nearing the licensing stage. It is for this reason that a generalized yet comprehensive economic model for first of a kind (FOAK) through nth of a kind (NOAK) SMRs based upon rated power, plant configuration, and the fiscal environment was developed. In the model, a particular project’s feasibility is assessed with regards to market conditions and by commonly utilized capital budgeting techniques, such as the net present value (NPV), internal rate of return (IRR), Payback, and more importantly, the levelized cost of energy (LCOE) for comparison to other energy production technologies. Finally, a sensitivity analysis was performed to determine the effects of changing debt, equity, interest rate, and conditions on the LCOE.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Cloud Atlas: High-precision HST/WFC3/IR Time-resolved Observations of Directly Imaged Exoplanet HD 106906b

HD 106906b is an ∼11M{sub Jup}, ∼15 Myr old directly imaged exoplanet orbiting at an extremely large distance from its host star. The wide separation (7.″11) between HD 106906b and its host star greatly reduces the difficulty in direct-imaging observations, making it one of the most favorable directly imaged exoplanets for detailed characterization. In this paper, we present HST/WFC3/IR time-resolved observations of HD 106906b in the F127M, F139M, and F153M bands. We have achieved ∼1% precision in the lightcurves in all three bands. The F127M lightcurve demonstrates marginally detectable (2.7σ significance) variability with a best-fitting period of 4 hr, while the lightcurves in the other two bands are consistent with flat lines. We construct primary-subtracted deep images and use these images to exclude additional companions to HD 106906 that are more massive than 4 M{sub Jup} and locate at projected distances of more than ∼500 au. We measure the astrometry of HD 106906b in two HST/WFC3 epochs and achieve precisions better than 2.5 mas. The position angle and separation measurements do not deviate from those in the 2004 HST/ACS/HRC images for more than 1σ uncertainty. We provide the HST/WFC3 astrometric results for 25 background stars that can be used as reference sources in future precision astrometry studies. Our observations also provide the first 1.4 μm water band photometric measurement for HD 106906b. HD 106906b’s spectral energy distribution and the best-fitting BT-Settl model have an inconsistency in the 1.4 μm water absorption band, which highlights the challenges in modeling atmospheres of young planetary-mass objects.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2019

Enhanced Performance Fast Reactors with Engineered Passive Safety Systems

This report summarizes the work and results of NEUP Project #15-8251, "Enhanced Performance Fast Reactors with Engineered Passive Safety System," performed from 2015-2018 at UC Berkeley and Argonne National Laboratory. This project concerns the incorporation of a novel engineered passive safety system, called the Autonomous Reactivity Control (ARC) system, into Sodium-cooled Fast Reactors (SFRs) to improve their transient and economic performance. The first part of this project consisted of fleshing out the basic principles and the manufacturing process for an SFR fuel assembly with the ARC system installed, with the details provided in high-quality, step-by-step CAD drawings. Once the detailed design is laid out, high-fidelity simulations were performed to optimize the dimensions of important ARC system components and to quantify the standalone time-response of ARC systems in a typical SFR environment. These high-fidelity simulations were used to create reduced-order models of ARC system response which could be incorporated into the SAS4A/SASSYS-1 whole-core transient models. In order to accurately account for the time-response of ARC systems in whole-core transient simulations, modifications were made to the SAS4A/SASSYS-1 transient code. These new capabilities were tested and incorporated into the production version of the code, and have been used extensively in this analysis. Before performing whole-core transient calculations, the two reference cores selected for this study to cover a wide design space were simulated and characterized. The two reference cores, (1) a medium-sized oxide-fueled Advanced Burner Reactor and (2) a large metal-fueled Breed-and-Burn core, challenge conventional means of achieving passive safety. Because the two cores vary substantially, simulating the ARC system in both allows for conclusions to be drawn about the applicability of ARC systems in different SFRs. Once both cores were fully characterized, transient calculations were performed to understand the complicated interplay between the ARC system and other inherent reactivity feedback mechanisms. By performing parametric studies of the transient behavior, ARC system designs that best improve transient performance in each core were identified. Once transient improvements were established, the transient calculations were extended to improve reactor economics through design modifications. Upon establishing the potential benefits of ARC system inclusion, the study examines the negative neutronic implications of incorporating ARC systems into the reference cores. The study concludes by discussing a number of knowledge gaps that exist which may have important implications for ARC system implementation. Ultimately, the results of this project indicate that ARC systems may provide an effective means to improve transient performance in certain types of systems. The transient simulations in the oxide Advanced Burner Reactor showed that significant margin to coolant boiling and fuel melting could be gained through the use of a properly designed ARC system, thus improving inherent safety. While oscillatory behavior was induced in the transient response for certain combinations of ARC system parameters, the oscillation-free design space that can be effectively used to improve performance was found to be large, and the additional margin was demonstrated to allow economical improvements to the core design. Conversely, difficulties were encountered in the Breed-and-Burn core due to fundamental aspects of the core design. The combination of a particularly strong positive coolant void feedback and the use of metallic fuel allowed for diverging oscillations to manifest in response to certain transient initiators, and in the end it was found that the current ARC system design could not simultaneously enable passive safety in all transients examined. In order for complete passive safety to be achieved, a mechanism for slowing the reverse actuation of ARC systems is necessary. Regardless, the standard ARC system was able to improve the performance of two out of the three examined transients by increasing the margin to boiling in Loss of Heat Sink transients and avoiding boiling in Transient Overpower accidents. Additionally, no significant barriers to implementation were found, although the issue of tritium production should be closely monitored in any core incorporating ARC systems. Still, a number of technology gaps exist, and these are discussed at the conclusion of the report to recommend directions for future work.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Evaluation of CMIP5 continental precipitation simulations relative to satellite-based gauge-adjusted observations

Numerous studies have emphasized that climate simulations are subject to various biases and uncertainties. The objective of this study is to cross-validate 34 Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5) historical simulations of precipitation against the Global Precipitation Climatology Project (GPCP) data, quantifying model pattern discrepancies and biases for both entire data distributions and their upper tails. The results of the Volumetric Hit Index (VHI) analysis of the total monthly precipitation amounts show that most CMIP5 simulations are in good agreement with GPCP patterns in many areas, but that their replication of observed precipitation over arid regions and certain sub-continental regions (e.g., northern Eurasia, eastern Russia, central Australia) is problematical. Overall, the VHI of the multi-model ensemble mean and median also are superior to that of the individual CMIP5 models. However, at high quantiles of reference data (e.g., the 75th and 90th percentiles), all climate models display low skill in simulating precipitation, except over North America, the Amazon, and central Africa. Analyses of total bias (B) in CMIP5 simulations reveal that most models overestimate precipitation over regions of complex topography (e.g. western North and South America and southern Africa and Asia), while underestimating it over arid regions. Also, while most climate model simulations show low biases over Europe, inter-model variations in bias over Australia and Amazonia are considerable. The Quantile Bias (QB) analyses indicate that CMIP5 simulations are even more biased at high quantiles of precipitation. Lastly, we found that a simple mean-field bias removal improves the overall B and VHI values, but does not make a significant improvement in these model performance metrics at high quantiles of precipitation.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2020

Future projections and uncertainty assessment of precipitation extremes in the Korean peninsula from the CMIP5 ensemble

Abstract Projections of changes in extreme climate are sometimes predicted by multimodel ensemble methods that combine forecasts from individual simulation models using weighted averaging. One method to assign weight to each model is the Bayesian model averaging (BMA) in which posterior probability is used. For the cases of extreme climate, the generalized extreme value distribution (GEVD) is typically used. We applied the approach of GEV‐embedded BMA to a series of 35 years of the annual maximum daily precipitation data (both historical data and data gathered from simulation experiments for future periods) over the Korean peninsula as simulated by the models in the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5). Simulation data under two Representative Concentration Pathway (RCP) scenarios, namely RCP4.5 and RCP8.5, were used. Observed data and 17 CMIP5 models for 12 gird cells in Korea have been examined to predict future changes in precipitation extremes. A simple regional frequency analysis of pooling observations from three stations in each cell was employed to reduce the estimation variance and local fluctuations. A bias correction technique using the regression‐type transfer function was applied to these simulation data. Return levels spanning over 20 and 50 years, as well as the return periods relative to the reference years (1971–2005), were estimated for two future periods, namely Period 1 (2021–2050) and Period 2 (2066–2095). From these analyses, relative increase observed in the spatially averaged 20‐year (50‐year) return level was approximately 23% (16%) and 45% (36%) in the RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 experiments, respectively, by the end of the 21st century. We concluded that extreme rainfalls will likely occur two times and four times more frequently in the RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 scenarios, respectively, as compared to in the reference years by the end of the 21st century.

Lee, Youngsaeng↗
DOE OSTI2016

The Aeras Next Generation Global Atmosphere Model

The Next Generation Global Atmosphere Model LDRD project developed a suite of atmosphere models: a shallow water model, an x-z hydrostatic model, and a 3D hydrostatic model, by using Albany, a finite element code. Albany provides access to a large suite of leading-edge Sandia high-performance computing technologies enabled by Trilinos, Dakota, and Sierra. The next-generation capabilities most relevant to a global atmosphere model are performance portability and embedded uncertainty quantification (UQ). Performance portability is the capability for a single code base to run efficiently on diverse set of advanced computing architectures, such as multi-core threading or GPUs. Embedded UQ refers to simulation algorithms that have been modified to aid in the quantifying of uncertainties. In our case, this means running multiple samples for an ensemble concurrently, and reaping certain performance benefits. We demonstrate the effectiveness of these approaches here as a prelude to introducing them into ACME.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2017

Constraining the H i–Halo Mass Relation from Galaxy Clustering

We study the dependence of galaxy clustering on H i mass using ∼16,000 galaxies with redshift in the range of 0.0025 10{sup 8} M{sub ⊙}, drawn from the 70% complete sample of the Arecibo Legacy Fast ALFA survey. We construct subsamples of galaxies with M{sub HI} above different thresholds and make volume-limited clustering measurements in terms of three statistics: the projected two-point correlation function, the projected cross-correlation function with respect to a reference sample, and the redshift-space monopole moment. In contrast to previous studies, which found no/weak H i mass dependence, we find both the clustering amplitudes on scales above a few megaparsecs and the bias factors to increase significantly with increasing H i mass for M{sub HI}>10{sup 9} M{sub ⊙}. For H i mass thresholds below ∼10{sup 9} M{sub ⊙}, the inferred galaxy bias factors are systematically lower than the minimum halo bias from mass-selected halo samples. We extend the simple halo model, in which the galaxy content is only determined by halo mass, by including the halo formation time as an additional parameter. A model that puts H i-rich galaxies into halos that formed late can reproduce the clustering measurements reasonably well. We present the implications of our best-fitting model on the correlation of H i mass with halo mass and formation time, as well as the halo occupation distributions and H i mass functions for central and satellite galaxies. These results are compared with the predictions from semianalytic galaxy formation models and hydrodynamic galaxy formation simulations.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2026

Value of Geothermal Energy Storage for Supply-Side and Demand-Side Applications

This report presents the results of a study examining the value potential for geothermal energy storage (GES), a long-duration energy storage resource that stores thermal and/or geomechanical energy in the subsurface. GES could benefit the overall U.S. power system by temporally shifting electricity generation (supply-side) or meeting building heating and cooling load (demand-side). This report analyzes supply-side and demand-side opportunities independently because of differences in applications and models. Currently there is significant uncertainty about the development costs for GES, with only a limited number of demonstration plants for electric energy storage and building heating and cooling storage developments. In this report, we estimate the value of supply-side and demand-side GES to the bulk power system in the contiguous United States. Because of the significant uncertainty about GES development costs, this analysis does not consider GES deployment costs but instead focuses on the value of GES to the U.S. electricity system. The estimated values of GES provide reference points for economically competitive commercial cost targets. Supply-side GES is modeled as part of an enhanced geothermal system (EGS) generation plant in NREL's Regional Energy Deployment System (ReEDS) capacity expansion model (Ho et al. 2021). In contrast to conventional geothermal plants, which generate constant power, EGS plants have unique features that may allow for in-reservoir energy storage for flexible generation. Demand-side GES for heating and cooling, including seasonal hot and cold storage and short-duration heat pump storage, is incorporated into a price-taker model using Cambium electricity marginal cost projections. To establish an upper bound for the value of GES, analysis focused on favorable scenarios for storage with high generation from zero marginal cost, variable renewable energy resources. High penetrations of variable renewable energy generation can increase hourly electricity price variability, which increases the value of temporal energy arbitrage for storage technologies like GES.

15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2020

Understanding the use of message passing interface in exascale proxy applications

The Exascale Computing Project (ECP) focuses on the development of future exascale-capable applications. Most ECP applications use the message passing interface (MPI) as their parallel programming model with mini-apps serving as proxies. This paper explores the explicit usage of MPI in such ECP proxy applications. We empirically analyze 14 proxy applications from the ECP Proxy Apps Suite. We use the MPI profiling interface (PMPI) to collect MPI usage patterns in ECP proxy apps. Our analysis shows that a small subset of features from MPI is commonly used in the proxies of exascale-capable applications, even when they reference third-party libraries. Overall, this study is intended to provide a better understanding of the use of MPI in current exascale applications. The findings can help focus software investments made for exascale systems in the MPI middleware including optimization, fault-tolerance, tuning, and hardware-offload.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗