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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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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2024

From Chaos to Clarity: Autonomous Materials Discovery for Extreme Environments

The pursuit of advanced functional materials for energy applications demands an understanding of their behavior under the most challenging conditions. Extreme environments, characterized by intense radiation, high temperatures, and corrosive chemistries, push materials to their limits, often revealing unexpected behaviors and degradation pathways. Traditional materials research approaches, relying on trial-and-error experimentation, are often slow and resource-intensive, ill-suited to the complexities of extreme environments. This talk will explore the transformative potential of autonomous materials science in revolutionizing our understanding of materials synthesis and degradation in extreme environments. By integrating advanced microscopy techniques, artificial intelligence, and robotic experimentation, we can accelerate the discovery and design of resilient materials for a sustainable future. The presentation will highlight recent breakthroughs in autonomous microscopy, computer vision, and machine learning, showcasing their ability to unravel complex material transformations at the atomic scale. The talk will also delve into the challenges and opportunities associated with deploying autonomous systems to probe extreme environments, emphasizing the importance of robust algorithms, real-time data analysis, and adaptive experimentation. Our ultimate goal is to empower scientists with unprecedented capabilities to explore, understand, and engineer materials that can withstand the harshest conditions, paving the way for innovations in energy, aerospace, and beyond.

artificial intelligence↗
DOE OSTI2026

Jupiter Laser Facility Annual Report, FY 2025

Dear JLF community, I cannot believe I am now entering my third year as JLF director — time definitely flies when you are having fun! FY25 was another pivotal year for the Jupiter Laser Facility, marked by both scientific achievement and growing visibility for our community. Building on the successful reopening and refurbishment of the facility, we continued to demonstrate how JLF drives innovation in high energy density and fusion energy science, laser technology, and workforce development. Across Janus, Titan, and COMET, users executed a diverse portfolio of experiments, from dynamic compression and opacity measurements to laser plasma interactions, laboratory astrophysics, and advanced diagnostics. These efforts are highlighted in this report, including the development of new probes that capture the time evolution of plasmas on a single shot, and diagnostics and platforms that are already impacting experiments at NIF and other large facilities. JLF continues to serve as both a testbed for new ideas and a bridge to larger scale campaigns. FY25 also showcased the broader role of JLF within the Laboratory and the national HED science ecosystem. The NIF JLF User Groups Meeting in February brought nearly 180 participants to Livermore and highlighted the scientific progress made during JLF’s first full year of renewed operations. JLF research and users were recognized with Director’s Institutional Awards and Early and Mid Career awards, underscoring the quality and impact of the work performed here. Our team also contributed prominently to national conversations about laser safety, plasma physics, and inertial fusion energy through invited talks, conferences, and professional society leadership. JLF’s integration with LaserNetUS deepened this year as well. We launched a new technical exchange program across LaserNetUS facilities and kicked it off with a JLF team visit to the BELLA Center at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. These exchanges are strengthening operations, sharing best practices, and improving the user experience across the network. Filming for the LaserNetUS “Behind the Scenes” series and participation in the annual LaserNetUS meeting further increased the visibility of our facility and our users. At the same time, JLF continues to play a central role in ambitious new programs, such as the Big Aperture Thulium laser effort funded through one of the DOE Office of Science Microelectronics Science Research Centers, which will use JLF infrastructure to explore next generation high rep rate lasers for EUV and x-ray source development. A core part of our mission remains training the next generation of scientists. In FY25, we welcomed another cohort of summer students, who joined experimental teams on Titan and presented their research at LLNL’s student poster symposium and national inertial fusion energy meetings. JLF users and early career scientists showcased their work at conferences across the country, highlighting experiments performed at the facility. These hands on experiences, and the mentoring provided by our staff and user teams, are central to JLF’s identity as a true user facility. Finally, FY25 reinforced JLF’s role as a focal point for partnerships and outreach. We hosted visits from international collaborators, science leaders, and we shared the story of the facility through venues such as the Big Ideas Lab podcast. These interactions help connect our work to a broader scientific and policy audience and open new pathways for collaboration. As we look ahead, the combination of refurbished hardware, new capabilities like STILETTO and enhanced short pulse performance on Titan, strong partnerships across LLNL and LaserNetUS, and a growing user community positions JLF for an even more ambitious program in the coming years. I am deeply grateful to our technical and operations staff for their dedication, to our LLNL partners for their continued support, and to our users for bringing bold, creative ideas to the facility. I look forward to more experiments, capabilities, partnerships, and groundbreaking science in the years to come! With brightest regards, Félicie Albert, JLF Director.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2025

Demonstration of Super-X divertor exhaust control for transient heat load management in compact fusion reactors

Nuclear fusion could offer clean, abundant energy. However, managing the power exhausted from the core fusion plasma towards the reactor wall remains a major challenge. This is compounded in emerging compact reactor designs promising more cost-effective pathways towards commercial fusion energy. Alternative Divertor Configurations (ADCs) are a potential solution. In this work, we demonstrate exhaust control in ADCs, employing a novel method to diagnose the neutral gas buffer, which shields the target. Our work on the Mega Ampere Spherical Tokamak Upgrade shows that ADCs tackle key risks and uncertainties for fusion energy. Their highly reduced sensitivity to perturbations enables active exhaust control in otherwise unfeasible situations and facilitates an increased passive absorption of transients, which would otherwise damage the divertor. We observe a strong decoupling of each divertor from other reactor regions, enabling near-independent control of the divertors and core plasma. Our work showcases the real-world benefits of ADCs for effective heat load management in fusion power reactors.

Imaging techniques↗
DOE OSTI2025

Evaluating inkjet dispenser/liquid vortex capture-mass spectrometry for single-cell metabolomics in Hep G2 steatosis caused by tamoxifen

Single-cell mass spectrometry (MS) is advancing our understanding of metabolic pathways in heterogeneous cell populations; however, many techniques are slow or require disruptive sample preparations. This study evaluated coupling a modified HP D100 single-cell inkjet dispenser with liquid vortex capture-mass spectrometry (D100/LVC-MS). The D100 is a single-cell inkjet dispenser capable of titrating solutions and isolating single cells via disposable cassettes equipped with microfluidic channels and an impedance sensor. The LVC-MS enables high-throughput capture, lysis, and ionization of analytes for mass spectrometric analysis. The D100/LVC-MS system was characterized through titration and single-cell experiments. Propranolol titration demonstrated linearity across a broad concentration range using the D100/LVC-MS system. Additionally, Hep G2 hepatocarcinoma cells and Chlamydomonas reinhardtii algae were used to showcase the D100’s high-throughput or low-buffer-volume single-cell dispensing strategies. The D100/LVC-MS system’s performance was validated by evaluating tamoxifen-induced steatosis in Hep G2 cells. Tamoxifen, associated with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in breast cancer patients following long-term use, was tested in Hep G2 cells at 20 µM for 72 h against DMSO-treated controls. High-throughput analysis of 500 cells per condition, completed in 25 min per run, demonstrated the system’s efficiency. The D100/LVC-MS system simultaneously quantified tamoxifen and measured triglycerides and phosphatidylcholines. Triglycerides were upregulated in the tamoxifen-treated cells and the results indicated two distinct cell populations, differing in tamoxifen and phosphatidylcholines levels, suggesting heterogeneity within the treated population. In conclusion, these findings highlight the D100/LVC-MS system as a cost-effective, high-throughput platform for single-cell metabolomics and lipidomics, with significant potential for evaluating metabolic alterations.

Chromatography↗
NASA NTRS2024

Enhancing Metal Additive Manufacturing Training with the Advanced Vision Language Model: A Pathway to Immersive Augmented Reality Training for Non-Experts

This paper introduces an innovative training system for the Renishaw AM400 metal printer, leveraging the synergy of the advanced Vision Language Model (VLM) with Augmented Reality (AR) within the Digital Twins (DT) framework. Aimed at overcoming the limitations of conventional training methods in metal additive manufacturing (AM), our system integrates AR to provide an immersive learning environment, enhancing the real-world experience with interactive digital overlays. The core of the system lies in its use of VLM, which, pre-trained on diverse datasets, excels in processing multi-modal data, thereby offering nuanced and contextually relevant guidance for trainees. Key experiments demonstrate the system’s effectiveness, particularly highlighting the usage of VLM as an Artificial Intelligence (AI) agent to integrate external tools like YOLO-v7 for valve state classification and CRAFT for control panel text recognition. This approach significantly improves recognition accuracy, operational understanding, and human–machine interaction, especially for non-expert users, making complex metal AM operations more accessible. The research not only showcases the potential of AR and VLM in industrial training but also sets a new standard for smart manufacturing practices, indicating broader applications in various industrial domains.

Metal additive manufacturing↗
DOE OSTI2026

Biosynthesis of Minimal C-Phycocyanin Chromophore Assemblies in E. coli Provides a Platform to Dissect Protein-Mediated Tuning of Exciton Transfer

Cyanobacteria are arguably among the most evolutionarily successful organisms on Earth, inhabiting a wide range of ocean, freshwater, soil, and even desert environments on every continent. The cyanobacterial phycobilisome consists of stacks of disk-like light-collecting moieties, allophycocyanin (APC) and phycocyanin (CPC), with covalently bound phycocyanobilin (PCB) pigments. The ways in which the energies of the specific chromophores in these complexes are tuned by the protein to achieve its highly efficient and directional energy transfer are not fully understood, as complex combinations of decay pathways are occurring simultaneously and competitively through this elaborate light-harvesting system. This makes it difficult to extract information about isolated protein-pigment interactions. We provide herein a description of a useful new experimental platform in which we have recombinantly expressed a fully functioning CPC complex and selectively created minimal chromophore sets to study their individual contributions to the overall CPC spectra. Structural and computational analysis of this protein system have provided a greater understanding of how the protein environment serves to alter the photophysics of each of these chromophores. Introduction of a quencher into various positions within CPC confirmed the ability of the protein environment to tune the directionality of energy transport in this assembly. Further mutational analysis suggested the roles of key amino acids surrounding the chromophores, showcasing the utility of heterologous expression techniques for understanding the effects of structure on EET mechanisms in the phycobilisome.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2025

Efficient genetic code expansion tools enable in vivo study of lysine acetylation in non-model bacteria

Recent proteomic advancements have revealed widespread Nε-lysine acetylation in pathways governing pathogenicity, metabolism, and antibiotic resistance in bacteria. The spontaneous, non-specific nature of this modification in prokaryotes obscures its biological role, necessitating prokaryotic specific in vivo interrogation systems. Genetic Code Expansion (GCE) offers a powerful method to investigate the roles and regulation dynamics of acetyl-lysine in vivo with the precise incorporation of a suite of non-canonical amino acids, including acetyl-lysine analogs. However, its use has been largely restricted to E. coli strains due to challenges associated with implementation and optimization of the technology in more diverse bacterial strains. Here, we present a bacterial host-agnostic, readily optimizable GCE platform designed to site-specifically incorporate non-canonical amino acids into target proteins within living bacteria. We further demonstrate the versatility of this technology by showcasing, for the first time, the successful incorporation of acetyl-lysine in a non- E. coli bacterium.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2024

Coal-derived conductive pavement for winter de-icing: prototype, modeling, and simulation

Existing pavement de-icing methods result in high installation and maintenance costs, traffic delays, excessive weariness and corrosion, and negative environmental and safety impacts. To overcome these challenges, this paper presents an innovative pathway to designing and constructing smart self-heating pavements using a low-cost coal-char bearing asphalt material. The conductive asphalt incorporates coal char, i.e., a key byproduct of the coal pyrolysis process, into the Stone Mastic Asphalt (SMA) mixture. This asphalt containing coal-derived solid carbon exhibits highly tailorable electrical conductivity, satisfactory mechanical and thermophysical properties, and superior cost-efficiency as compared to other conductive pavement materials. The de-icing performance was also demonstrated by laboratory experiments on a bench-scale prototype. Furthermore, an efficient thermal network model was developed and validated by experiments to investigate the transient thermal behavior and energy performance of the Ohmic heating pavement system. Furthermore, the whole-year energy simulation case studies were conducted on a bridge pavement with an annual energy use of 24.6–1444.8 kWh/m 2 , showcasing its potential in field applications across cool humid, cold humid, and subarctic/arctic climate zones.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2026

Prime Time for Model-Predictive Control? Assessing the Technical and Market Readiness of Advanced Controls in Buildings

Despite three decades of extensive research and field testing that have consistently validated the benefits of Model Predictive Control (MPC) in building applications, the technology has seen limited market adoption. This paper evaluates the readiness of MPC for widespread deployment, showcases recent demonstrations and field tests across diverse building types, including residential, small commercial, large commercial, and campus settings. Our results demonstrate that MPC can optimize system operations to achieve load shifting, minimize curtailment of on-site generation, and reduce energy costs by up to 80 %, while maintaining or improving occupant comfort. We also show that MPC can effectively control large assets, such as MW-sized thermal storage systems, and respond to dynamic pricing signals. However, achieving scale remains difficult due to labor-intensive workflows, reliance on a “PhD-in-the-loop” for MPC design and maintenance, susceptibility to fragile data infrastructure, and persistent workforce education and acceptance barriers. To bridge this gap, we outline a transition from bespoke, labor intensive prototypes toward streamlined, segment-targeted deployment strategies that leverage model templates, semantic tools, and generative AI. By automating control configuration and reducing engineering effort, these recommendations provide a pathway for transforming successful research demonstrations into scalable, market ready solutions for MPC-based controls.

Pritoni, Marco↗
DOE OSTI2026

A simulation framework for evaluating electronic order workflows in integrated health records

Electronic health record (EHR) systems are critical to modern healthcare delivery, yet the dynamic workflows that govern electronic order processing remain underexplored. Inefficiencies in these digital pathways can cause delays in care, repetitive workloads, and even patient harm. This study presents a discrete-event simulation framework used to reconstruct and evaluate EHR-based order workflows in a large integrated healthcare system. Using real-world data extracted from the Veterans Health Administration’s Corporate Data Warehouse, the authors mapped order events to standardized state transitions and modeled their progression across different facilities of varying complexity levels. After being calibrated with empirical distributions of transition times and validated against observed time-in-system metrics, the simulation demonstrates close alignment with historical performance. Scenario analyses reveal that resource capacity constraints significantly amplify the impact of electronic order surges, which are reflected in the disproportionate growth in backlogs and processing delays. Adjustments in transition probabilities further increased recirculation and extended workflow paths. Network-based analysis identified Reserved, InProgress, and Completed as structurally critical states that function as hubs within the process network but the transitions in-between also act as major bottlenecks. These results showcased the effectiveness of simulation-based approaches in monitoring EHR order processing performance and evaluating consequences of workflow changes on healthcare network resources planning. The proposed simulation framework provides a scalable data-driven tool to support operational decision-making and improve the efficiency of electronic order management in complex healthcare environments.

Engineering↗
DOE OSTI2026

The Hydropower Game: An Interactive Learning Tool for the Future Hydropower Workforce

This report documents a Seedling project supported by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Water Power Technologies Office (WPTO), conducted by Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) and the National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR). The Seedling and Sapling Program provides small grants over short duration to enable early-stage research at national laboratories. This funding mechanism is intended to cultivate innovative ideas and expand research road maps in hydropower and marine energy technologies. Under this Seedling award, the project team developed an educational outreach tool, or “serious game”, built in Python and powered by the Pygame library, aimed at teaching fundamental hydropower concepts through an engaging, interactive learning experience. The game features multiple lessons covering several hydropower topics while allowing for expansion and customization in the instance of future funding availability: • Hydropower Plant Types: Players explore and compare the mechanics and applications of run-of-river, dam hydropower, and pumped-storage hydropower. • Flow Dynamics and Power Generation: Interactive tasks demonstrate how release rate and hydraulic head combine to determine power output. • Grid Operations and Load Following: Simulations illustrate how hydropower facilities respond to fluctuating electricity demand to balance the grid. • Market Integration: Levels scaffold understanding of how hydropower interfaces with the broader energy market, including operational and economic considerations. The tool was showcased at several science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) outreach events, where it was demoed to students, educators, and the general public. These events provided valuable opportunities to collect feedback on the gameplay, storyline, and educational objectives from a wide audience. The game was presented at STEMapalooza, Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day, STEMCON, and Clean Currents 2025. Insights gathered during these demonstrations informed refinements to the game’s user experience and strengthened its effectiveness as an educational tool for teaching hydropower concepts. This report outlines the game’s design philosophy, educational objectives, technical implementation, user experience insights, and potential for broader deployment within educational and workforce development contexts. It emphasizes how gamified learning can demystify complex hydropower science and inspire interest in water-power technologies. The project’s success demonstrates the value of Seedling funding in fostering creative, lowcost educational tools that support DOE’s mission to advance energy literacy and innovation. The report concludes with recommendations for expanding the tool by adding new levels, integrating assessment metrics, and exploring commercialization or deployment pathways through future Sapling funding. The official webpage of the Hydropower Game, which includes a link to the educational tool, can be accessed at www.anl.gov/hydropower/hydropower-game.

13 HYDRO ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2025

Conformational Dynamics and Catalytic Backups in a Hyper-thermostable Engineered Archaeal Protein Tyrosine Phosphatase

Protein tyrosine phosphatases (PTPs) are a family of enzymes that play important roles in regulating cellular signaling pathways. The activity of these enzymes is regulated by the motion of a catalytic loop that places a critical conserved aspartic acid side chain into the active site for acid–base catalysis upon loop closure. These enzymes also have a conserved phosphate-binding loop that is typically highly rigid and forms a well-defined anion-binding nest. The intimate links between loop dynamics and chemistry in these enzymes make PTPs an excellent model system for understanding the role of loop dynamics in protein function and evolution. In this context, archaeal PTPs, which have often evolved in extremophilic organisms, are highly understudied, despite their unusual biophysical properties. We present here an engineered chimeric PTP (ShufPTP) generated by shuffling the amino acid sequence of five extant hyperthermophilic archaeal PTPs. Despite ShufPTP’s high sequence similarity to its natural counterparts, it presents a suite of unique properties, including high flexibility of the phosphate binding P-loop, facile oxidation of the active-site cysteine, mechanistic promiscuity, and, most notably, hyperthermostability, with a denaturation temperature likely >130 °C (>8 °C higher than the highest recorded growth temperature of any archaeal strain). Our combined structural, biochemical, biophysical, and computational analysis provides insight both into how small steps in evolutionary space can radically modulate the biophysical properties of an enzyme and showcases the tremendous potential of archaeal enzymes for biotechnology, to generate novel enzymes capable of operating under extreme conditions.

archaea↗