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At least 613 records · Page 34
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2022

Recent advances in the global rare-earth supply chain

The current global rare-earth element (REE) supply chain is highly imbalanced and tightly controlled by just a few countries. Such an imbalance of the critical metals supply chain poses a significant challenge to the energy-transition strategies and the national security of many countries. As such, this issue of MRS Bulletin delves into the materials science aspects of the REE supply chain, including fundamental REE mineralogy, REE separation and extraction, REE mining economics, the environmental impacts of REE mining and processing, and circular economy potential for REEs. This issue of MRS Bulletin is meant to inform the materials science community of some of the constraints on REE production from the mining of ore deposits, through processing technologies, and then finally, the possibility of recycling.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗
DOE OSTI2011

Y-12 Site Sustainability Plan

The accomplishments to date and the long-range planning of the Y-12 Energy Management and Sustainability and Stewardship programs support the DOE and the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) vision for a commitment to energy efficiency and sustainability and to achievement of the Guiding Principles. Specifically, the Y-12 vision is to support the Environment, Safety and Health Policy and the DOE Strategic Sustainability Performance Plan (SSPP) while promoting overall sustainability and reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Table ES.2 gives a comprehensive overview of Y-12's performance status and planned actions. B&W Y-12's Energy Management mission is to incorporate renewable energy and energy efficient technologies site-wide and to position Y-12 to meet NNSA energy requirement needs through 2025 and beyond. During FY 2011, the site formed a sustainability team (Fig. ES.1). The sustainability team provides a coordinated approach to meeting the various sustainability requirements and serves as a forum for increased communication and consistent implementation of sustainability activities at Y-12. The sustainability team serves as an information exchange mechanism to promote general awareness of sustainability information, while providing a system to document progress and to identify resources. These resources are necessary to implement activities that support the overall goals of sustainability, including reducing the use of resources and conserving energy. Additionally, the team's objectives include: (1) Foster a Y-12-wide philosophy to conserve resources; (2) Reduce the impacts of production operations in a cost-effective manner; (3) Increase materials recycling; (4) Use a minimum amount of energy and fuel; (5) Create a minimum of waste and pollution in achieving Y-12-strategic objectives; (6) Develop and implement techniques, technologies, process modifications, and programs that support sustainable acquisition; (7) Minimize the impacts to resources, including energy/fuel, water, waste, pesticides, and pollution generation; (8) Incorporate sustainable design principles into the design and construction of facility upgrades, new facilities, and infrastructure; and (9) Comply with federal and state regulations, executive orders, and DOE requirements. Y-12 is working to communicate its sustainment vision through procedural, engineering, operational, and management practices. The site will make informed decisions based on the application of the five Guiding Principles for HPSBs to the maximum extent possible.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2012

Plasma Synthesized Doped Boron Nanopowder for MgB 2 Superconductors

Under this program, a process to synthesize nano-sized doped boron powder by a plasma synthesis process was developed and scaled up from 20 gram batches at program start to over 200 grams by program end. Over 75 batches of boron nanopowder were made by RF plasma synthesis. Particle sizes were typically in the 20-200 nm range. The powder was synthesized by the reductive pyrolysis of BCl 3 in hydrogen in an RF plasma. A wide range of process parameters were investigated including plasma power, torch geometry, gas flow rates, and process pressure. The powder-in-tube technique was used to make monofilament and multifilament superconducting wires. MgB 2 wire made with Specialty Materials plasma synthesized boron nanopowder exhibited superconducting properties that significantly exceeded the program goals. Superconducting critical currents, J c , in excess of 10 5 A cm -2 at magnetic fields of 8 tesla were reproducibly achieved. The upper critical magnetic field in wires fabricated with program boron powder were H c2 (0) = 37 tesla, demonstrating the potential of these materials for high field magnet applications. T c in carbon-doped MgB 2 powder showed a systematic decrease with increasing carbon precursor gas flows, indicating the plasma synthesis process can give precise control over dopant concentrations. Synthesis rates increased by a factor of 400% over the course of the program, demonstrating the scalability of the powder synthesis process. The plasma synthesis equipment at Specialty Materials has successfully and reproducibly made high quality boron nanopowder for MgB 2 superconductors. Research and development from this program enabled Specialty Materials to successfully scale up the powder synthesis process by a factor of ten and to double the size of its powder pilot plant. Thus far the program has been a technical success. It is anticipated that continued systematic development of plasma processing parameters, dopant chemistry and concentration, wire processing technology, and collection technology will lead to the commercialization of boron nanopowder as a precursor for MgB 2 superconductors. Potential commercial applications include magnets for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), fault current limiters, wind turbine generators.

08 HYDROGEN↗
DOE OSTI2013

Southern Pine Based on Biorefinery Center

This program seeks to develop an integrated southern pine wood to biofuels/biomaterials processing facility on the Recipient’s campus, that will test advanced integrated wood processing technologies at the laboratory scale, including: The generation of the bioethanol from pines residues and hemicelluloses extracted from pine woodchips; The conversion of extracted woodchips to linerboard and bleach grade pulps; and the efficient conversion of pine residues, bark and kraft cooking liquor into a useful pyrolysis oil.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗
DOE OSTI2015

Commercialization Plan Support for Development of Low Cost Vacuum Insulating Glazing: Cooperative Research and Development Final Report, CRADA Number CRD-11-449

During the duration of this CRADA, V-Glass and NREL will partner in testing, analysis, performance forecasting, costing, and evaluation of V-Glass’s GRIPWELD™ process technology for creating a low cost hermetic seal for conventional and vacuum glazing. Upon successful evaluation of hermeticity, V-Glass’s GRIPWELD™ will be evaluated for its potential use in highly insulating window glazing.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2012

Demonstration of LED Retrofit Lamps at the Smithsonian Art Museum, Washington, DC

In the fall of 2010, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory contacted Scott Rosenfeld, Lighting Designer for the Smithsonian American Art Museum, to see if the Museum would be willing to participate in a GATEWAY demonstration project in which light-emitting diode (LED) replacement lamps would be used in exhibit space. At that time, the museum industry was concerned about increased damage potential from LEDs and other energy efficient lighting sources that produce a discontinuous spectrum. The Museum agreed to participate, based on a review of the existing literature conducted by Steven Weintraub of Art Preservation Services for the American Institute of Conservation, and subsequent testing of solid-state lighting sources on light sensitive materials performed by Jim Druzik of the Getty Conservation Institute. Thus began the process, which lasted more than a year, of procuring lamp samples and performance data, testing them in the museum workshop, temporarily installing the lamps in one gallery for feedback, and ultimately replacing all traditional incandescent lamps in one gallery of modernist art at the American Art Museum and partially replacing lamps in two galleries of the Museum’s Renwick Gallery. This report describes the selection and testing process, technology challenges, perceptions, economics, energy use, and mixed results of using LED replacement lamps in art galleries housing national treasures.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2015

Sustainable Biofuels Development Center

The mission of the Sustainable Bioenergy Development Center (SBDC) is to enhance the capability of America’s bioenergy industry to produce transportation fuels and chemical feedstocks on a large scale, with significant energy yields, at competitive cost, through sustainable production techniques. Research within the SBDC is organized in five areas: (1) Development of Sustainable Crops and Agricultural Strategies, (2) Improvement of Biomass Processing Technologies, (3) Biofuel Characterization and Engine Adaptation, (4) Production of Byproducts for Sustainable Biorefining, and (5) Sustainability Assessment, including evaluation of the ecosystem/climate change implication of center research and evaluation of the policy implications of widespread production and utilization of bioenergy. The overall goal of this project is to develop new sustainable bioenergy-related technologies. To achieve that goal, three specific activities were supported with DOE funds: bioenergy-related research initiation projects, bioenergy research and education via support of undergraduate and graduate students, and Research Support Activities (equipment purchases, travel to attend bioenergy conferences, and seminars). Numerous research findings in diverse fields related to bioenergy were produced from these activities and are summarized in this report.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗
DOE OSTI2016

Micro-SHINE Uranyl Sulfate Irradiations at the Linac

Peroxide formation due to water radiolysis in a uranyl sulfate solution is a concern for the SHINE Medical Technologies process in which Mo-99 is generated from the fission of dissolved low enriched uranium. To investigate the effects of power density and fission on peroxide formation and uranyl-peroxide precipitation, uranyl sulfate solutions were irradiated using a 50-MeV electron linac as part of the micro-SHINE experimental setup. Results are given for uranyl sulfate solutions with both high and low enriched uranium irradiated at different linac powers.

38 RADIATION CHEMISTRY, RADIOCHEMISTRY, AND NUCLEA↗
DOE OSTI2017

DIissolution of low enriched uranium from the experimental breeder reactor-II fuel stored at the Idaho National Laboratory

The Idaho National Laboratory (INL) is actively engaged in the development of electrochemical processing technology for the treatment of fast reactor fuels using irradiated fuel from the Experimental Breeder Reactor-II (EBR-II) as the primary test material. The research and development (R&D) activities generate a low enriched uranium (LEU) metal product from the electrorefining of the EBR-II fuel and the subsequent consolidation and removal of chloride salts by the cathode processor. The LEU metal ingots from past R&D activities are currently stored at INL awaiting disposition. One potential disposition pathway is the shipment of the ingots to the Savannah River Site (SRS) for dissolution in H-Canyon. Carbon steel cans containing the LEU metal would be loaded into reusable charging bundles in the H-Canyon Crane Maintenance Area and charged to the 6.4D or 6.1D dissolver. The LEU dissolution would be accomplished as the final charge in a dissolver batch (following the dissolution of multiple charges of spent nuclear fuel (SNF)). The solution would then be purified and the 235 U enrichment downblended to allow use of the U in commercial reactor fuel. To support this potential disposition path, the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) developed a dissolution flowsheet for the LEU using samples of the material received from INL.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2019

A High Efficiency, Ultra-Compact Process for Pre-Combustion CO 2 Capture

The key objective of this lab-scale study was to prove the technical feasibility of the membraneand adsorption-enhanced water gas shift (WGS) reaction process that employs a carbon molecular sieve (CMS) membrane reactor (MR) followed by an adsorption reactor (AR) for pre-combustion carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) capture, while demonstrating progress towards achievement of the overall fossil energy performance goals of 90% CO 2 capture rate with 95% CO 2 purity, at a cost of electricity of 30% less than the baseline capture approaches. Such a WGS system combining a MR and an AR in tandem can produce an ultra-pure hydrogen (H 2 ) product (without the need for using a post-processing step) continuously, until the adsorbent (hydrotalcite-based) in the AR unit is saturated for regeneration via a pressure swing adsorption (PSA) and/or temperature swing adsorption (TSA) operation. The project effort was led by the University of Southern California (USC) with assistance from the University of California - Los Angeles (UCLA) and Media and Process Technology, Inc. (M&PT).

20 FOSSIL-FUELED POWER PLANTS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Development of a Cost-Effective Extraction Process for the Recovery of Heavy and Critical Rare Earth Elements from the Clays and Shales Associated with Coal

The primary objective of the project was to investigate and develop a novel process technology that can extract and concentrate rare earth elements (REE) from coal refuse material, namely shales and clays, to a concentration of greater than or equal to 2% by weight. The extraction and recovery technologies developed in this project leverage the low-cost ion-exchange leaching techniques that are currently applied for commercial heavy rare earth production in South China. In addition to the ion-exchange extraction technology, the project also investigated a novel method of solution concentration and recovery based on ion and/or precipitate flotation.

01 COAL, LIGNITE, AND PEAT↗
DOE OSTI2021

Usability Evaluation of the Innovation Portal and Integrated Capability Analysis Platform

The usability evaluation of the ICAP and IP tools was conducted as part of the United States (U.S.) Department of Energy (DOE) Light Water Reactor Sustainability (LWRS) ION effort with two evaluators for the Idaho National Laboratory. Many nuclear operations in the United States are facing challenges of increased business, operations, and maintenance costs due to subsidized renewables and natural gas. The commercial NPP industry has looked to other industries to develop methods such as Integrated Operations (IO) to use available technologies to reduce operating costs. One concept for reducing costs that has been developed is the Integrated Operations for Nuclear (ION). A capability Stack model was developed as part of the ION effort to break down information related to People, Technology, Processes, and Governance (PTPG). The Innovation Portal (IP) and Integrated Capability Analysis Platform (ICAP) were created from the Capability Stack model as part of the ION effort to help utilities reduce O&M costs by identifying work reduction opportunities. Two heuristic evaluations and a cognitive walkthrough of the ICAP and IP tools were completed to identify usability issues to further develop the tools for use in the ION effort. Usability issues identified were rated by priority levels and across both tools. The priority levels identified were high (5), medium (11), and low (10). Recommendation were made to help reduce usability issues of the systems and help increase the user response rate of using the systems once they are implemented for utilities. Future work on designs for the IP tool and additional heuristic evaluations and external testing are being developed to continue refinement of the ICAP and IP tools for the ION effort.

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Low-Cost, High Performance Catalyst Coated Membranes for PEM Water Electrolyzers (Final Technical Report)

In this project, the objective was to develop reduced-cost manufacturing techniques capable of producing proton exchange membrane water electrolyzer (PEMWE) catalyst coated membranes (CCMs) with further improved performance relative to then-current 3M CCM technology. Processes to be developed would enable 1) production of 0.5 m wide CCMs (approximately 2x wider than produced by the current laboratory/pilot-scale processes) and 2) 3x higher net-effective linear rates (lineal-meters of CCM produced per cumulative process time) than the baseline CCM process. In combination, the wider width CCM and increased net-effective linear rates would result in a 6-fold decrease in CCM manufacturing cost (defined as cumulative machine and labor time) per m 2 of CCM produced. PEMWE CCMs produced with these optimized processes were targeted to produce 1) 0.25 A/cm 2 or greater at 1.5 V, 2) 2.0 A/cm 2 or greater at 1.75 V and 3) 4 A/cm 2 or greater at 1.95V, 4) with total catalyst platinum-group metal (PGM) loadings of ≤ 0.50 mg/cm 2 , measured in a cell with 50 cm 2 active area (or larger) at 80°C cell temperature and ambient outlet pressures.

08 HYDROGEN↗
DOE OSTI2022

Development of Cast Valve Bodies For High Temperature Service

Gen 3 Concentrating Solar-Thermal Power (CSP) system components are required to operate at 750°C - 800°C to achieve the Sunshot target of 6 cents/kWh. Haynes ® 282 and IN ® 740H are preferred alloys for the construction of these components due to their high tensile and creep strengths for service at temperatures greater than 750°C. There is significant motivation to lower the cost of materials and components so that the capital costs can be minimized. One approach to reduce costs is to fabricate castings at the lowest possible cost. To obtain the lowest cost in castings, there is a significant need to maximize yields in castings by decreasing rejects due to casting defects and to minimize wastage in material lost in the gating systems. However, very little work has been performed to develop cast products using Haynes ® 282. Although preliminary work has established the feasibility of casting Haynes ® 282 using investment and sand casting, there are no commercial cast components available. In particular, there is significant interest in the development of casting design and process technology for the fabrication of components such as valve bodies using Haynes ® 282.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2021

DOE SNF Packaging Demonstration Project: Worktable and Canister Loading Sleeve Design [Slides]

This presentation is a briefing for summer interns and others outside the project, to give them a summary of ongoing design activities. The DOE SNF Packaging Demonstration Project is an effort to develop and demonstrate the designs, technology, processes, and regulatory framework for packaging DOE-managed spent nuclear fuel (SNF) for road ready dry storage (RRDS). The project is to remotely load and seal two types of DOE-managed SNF from the CPP-603 facility into DOE Standard Canisters, place the sealed DOE Standard Canisters into commercial vendor over-canisters (equivalent to commercial MPCs), seal and place the over-canisters into commercial vendor storage overpacks, and place the storage system (over-canister and storage overpack) onto the CPP-2707 cask pad.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2022

Code of Record: DOE Standard Canister (DOESC)

The United States Department of Energy (DOE) Spent Nuclear Fuel (SNF) Packaging Demonstration seeks to develop and demonstrate the designs, technology, processes, and regulatory framework for packaging DOE SNF for road-ready dry storage (RRDS); and establish the processes that will be used in a future production facility. The Packaging Demonstration will utilize the DOE Standard Canister (DOESC) for packaging select DOE-managed SNF types for interim storage, transportation and disposal as part of RRDS. Placing DOE-managed SNF into RRDS is part of the strategic framework for SNF on the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) site. To comply with DOE, INL and Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) requirements, this Code of Record establishes the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC), Section III, Division 3 as the Code that will govern DOESC and internal support structure constructioni, with certain clarifications. This Code of Record establishes a rationale for proceeding without construction certification of the DOESC (i.e., “N-stamping) and the extent to which a Registered Professional Engineer is required for the DOE Spent Fuel Packaging Demonstration. Given the (i) standard industry practice to pursue independent licensure of commercial storage casks and transportation packages by the NRC in lieu of ASME certification and (ii) guidance provided by 10 CFR 830, DOESC construction activities need not be certified (i.e., “stamped”) to the ASME BPVC. However, additional quality assurance requirements will apply as outlined in this Code of Record.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗