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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 883 records · Page 49

Quantum mechanics based non-bonded force field functions for use in molecular dynamics simulations of materials and systems: The nitrogen and oxygen columns

Accurate Force Fields (FFs) are essential for Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulations of the dynamics of realistic materials in terms of atomic-level interactions. The FF parameters of short-range valence interactions can be derived through Quantum Mechanical (QM) calculations on model systems practical for QM (<300 atoms). Similarly, the dynamic electrostatic interactions can be described with methods such as QEq or PQEq that allow charges and polarization to adjust dynamically. However, accurately extracting long-range van der Waals (vdW) interactions from QM calculations poses challenges due to the absence of a definitive method to distinguish between the different energetic components of electrostatics, polarization, vdW, hydrogen bonding, and valence interactions. To do this we use the Perdew–Burke–Ernzerhof flavor of Density Functional Theory, including empirical D3 vdW corrections, to predict the Equation of State for each element (keeping any covalent bonds fixed), from which we obtain the two-body vdW nonbond potential. Here, we extend these calculations to include non-bonded parameters for the N and O columns of the periodic table so that we now describe columns 15 (N), 16 (O), 17 (F), and 18 (Ne) of the periodic table. For these 20 elements, we find that the two-body vdW potentials can all be mapped to a single universal two-body curve, with just three scaling parameters: Re, De, and L. We refer to this as the Universal NonBond (UNB) potential. We expect this to be useful for new MD simulations and a helpful starting point to obtain UNB parameters for the remainder of the periodic table.

Chemistry↗

Probability Density Function Control for Stochastic Nonlinear Systems using Monte Carlo Simulation

This paper presents a fast implementation framework of output probability density function (PDF) control for a class of stochastic nonlinear systems which are subjected to non-Gaussian noises. The statistical properties of the system outputs can be adjusted by shaping the dynamic output probability density function to track the reference stochastic distribution. However, the dynamic probability density function evolution is very difficult to obtain analytically even if the system model and the stochastic distributions of the noises are known. Motivated by Monte Carlo simulation, the dynamic probability density function can be estimated by sampling data which forms the contribution of this paper. In particular, the sampling points are generated following the stochastic distribution of the noise for each instant. These points go through the system would generate the histogram for system outputs, then the dynamic model can be established based on the dynamic histogram which reflects the randomness and the nonlinear dynamics of the investigated system. Based on the established model, the output probability density function tracking can be achieved and the simulation results and discussions show the effectiveness and benefits of the presented framework.

Zhang, Qichun↗

Phase transitions and dynamic entropy in small two-dimensional systems: Experiment and numerical simulation

The results of experimental and numerical analysis are presented for phase transitions in strongly nonequilibrium small systems of strongly interacting Brownian particles. The dynamic entropy method is applied to analysis of the state of these systems. Experiments are carried out with kinetic heating of the structures of micron-size particles in a laboratory rf discharge plasma. Three phase states of these small systems are observed: crystalline, liquid, and transient. The mechanism of phase transitions in cluster structures of strongly interacting particles is described.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Solar thermophotovoltaic system using nanostructures

This paper presents results on a highly efficient experimental solar thermophotovoltaic (STPV) system using simulated solar energy. An overall power conversion efficiency of 6.2% was recorded under solar simulation. This was matched with a thermodynamic model, and the losses within the system, as well as a path forward to mitigate these losses, have been investigated. The system consists of a planar, tungsten absorbing/emitting structure with an anti-reflection layer coated laser-microtextured absorbing surface and single-layer dielectric coated emitting surface. A GaSb PV cell was used to capture the emitted radiation and convert it into electrical energy. This simple structure is both easy to fabricate and temperature stable, and contains no moving parts or heat exchange fluids.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

Evidence of Long Range Dependence and Self-similarity in Urban Traffic Systems

Transportation simulation technologies should accurately model traffic demand, distribution, and assignment parame- ters for urban environment simulation. These three param- eters significantly impact transportation engineering bench- mark process, are also critical in realizing realistic traffic modeling situations. In this paper, we model and charac- terize traffic density distribution of thousands of locations around the world. The traffic densities are generated from millions of images collected over several years and processed using computer vision techniques. The resulting traffic den- sity distribution time series are then analyzed. It is found using the goodness-of-fit test that the traffic density dis- tributions follows heavy-tail models such as Log-gamma, Log-logistic, and Weibull in over 90% of analyzed locations. Moreover, a heavy-tail gives rise to long-range dependence and self-similarity, which we studied by estimating the Hurst exponent (H). Our analysis based on seven different Hurst estimators strongly indicate that the traffic distribution pat- terns are stochastically self-similar (0.5 H 1.0). We believe this is an important finding that will influence the design and development of the next generation traffic simu- lation techniques and also aid in accurately modeling traffic engineering of urban systems. In addition, it shall provide a much needed input for the development of smart cities.

long range dependence↗

Implementation of Parallel Dynamic Simulation on Shared-Memory vs. Distributed-Memory Environments

Power system dynamic simulation computes the system response to a sequence of large disturbance, such as sudden changes in generation or load, or a network short circuit followed by protective branch switching operation. It consists of a large set of differential and algebraic equations, which is computational intensive and challenging to solve using single-processor based dynamic simulation solution. High-performance computing (HPC) based parallel computing is a very promising technology to speed up the computation and facilitate the simulation process. This paper presents two different parallel implementations of power grid dynamic simulation using Open Multi-processing (OpenMP) on shared-memory platform, and Message Passing Interface (MPI) on distributed-memory clusters, respectively. The difference of the parallel simulation algorithms and architectures of the two HPC technologies are illustrated, and their performances for running parallel dynamic simulation are compared and demonstrated.

dynamic simulation↗

Negative differential mobility and trapping in active matter systems

Using simulations, we explore the average velocity as a function of applied drift force for active matter particles moving through a random obstacle array. We find that for low drift force, there is an initial flow regime where the mobility increases linearly with drive, while for higher drift forces a regime of negative differential mobility appears in which the velocity decreases with increasing drive due to the trapping of active particles behind obstacles. A fully clogged regime exists at very high drift forces when all the particles are permanently trapped behind obstacles. We discover for increasing activity that the overall mobility is nonmonotonic, with an enhancement of the mobility for small levels of activity and a decrease in mobility for large activity levels. We show how these effects evolve as a function of disk and obstacle density, active run length, drift force, and motor force.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Dependence of Strain Rate Sensitivity on the Slip System: A Molecular Dynamics Simulation

The strain rate of deformation might affect mechanical properties of metallic materials, especially at elevated temperatures. Due to the nature of dislocation slip, it is anticipated that strain rate sensitivity (SRS) depends on the slip system. While the dependency of SRS on the temperature and strain rate of the deformation is well recognized, its dependence on the slip system is not well understood. Accordingly, the molecular dynamics simulation was used to investigate the dependence of strain rate sensitivity of pure Al single crystals on the slip system. In this study, the embedded atom method (EAM) potential for Al was employed. SRS and shear strength of the material were studied in four different slip systems and at two temperatures of 300 and 500 K. It was found that SRS of the material depends on the slip system in addition to the temperature, and SRS was higher in less compact systems with more difficult slip. The dislocation theories were used to rationalize the simulation results.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

MPMC and MCMD: Free High-Performance Simulation Software for Atomistic Systems

Advancements in parallel computing and hardware have allowed computational exploration of chemical systems of interest with unprecendented accuracy and efficiency. The typical development of molecular simulation software is initially inspired by a particular scientific inquiry. The softwares presented herein, MPMC (Massively Parallel Monte Carlo) and MCMD (Monte Carlo/Molecular Dynamics) were born out of a pursuit to simulate condensed phase physical and chemical interactions in porous materials. MPMC first began in 2005 and has been used for dozens of published results in the literature but has not yet been introduced in a standalone paper. MCMD is a more recent expansion and re-write with some published work, focused on adding molecular dynamics algorithms for transport and other time-dependent properties of chemical systems. Each software functions as a standalone with some unique and other overlapping features. Here, a driving aim of this work is to consider periodic, long-range polarization effects in classical simulation, and both codes are optimized to perform such calculations. Sample results will be presented which highlight methodically that inclusion of explicit polarization produces simulation results with predictive power which in general are in greater agreement with experiment than non-polarizable analogous simulations.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

Probabilistic Approach to Enable Extreme-Scale Simulations under Uncertainty and System Faults. Final Technical Report

The current project develops a novel approach that uses a probabilistic description to capture the current state of knowledge about the computational solution. To effectively spread the computational effort over multiple nodes, the global computational domain is split into many subdomains. Computational uncertainty in the solution translates into uncertain boundary conditions for the equation system to be solved on those subdomains, and many independent, concurrent subdomain simulations are used to account for this bound- ary condition uncertainty. By relying on the fact that solutions on neighboring subdomains must agree with each other, a more accurate estimate for the global solution can be achieved. Statistical approaches in this update process make it possible to account for the effect of system faults in the probabilistic description of the computational solution, and the associated uncertainty is reduced through successive iterations. By combining all of these elements, the probabilistic reformulation allows splitting the computational work over very many independent tasks for good scalability, while being robust to system faults.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

Multi-Timescale Integrated Dynamic and Scheduling Model (MIDAS-Solar)

Solar photovoltaic (PV) installations have experienced unprecedented growth in the United States. PV will become not only an energy producer but also a necessary provider of ancillary services at multiple timescales. Conventional methods to simulate power system operations - such as long-term production simulation (which typically considers schedules from hours to minutes by using an optimization framework) and short-term transient studies (which simulate dynamics from seconds to sub-seconds using state variables and differential equations) are not sufficient for studying the multiple-timescale variation of solar generation and its impact on system reliability. Long-term system economics and short-term system dynamics are highly coupled, particularly when the penetration level of renewable generation is extremely high, because the uncertainty and variability of solar generation will impact both power systems steady-state and dynamic performance. This project helps meet and exceed the Solar Energy Technologies Office goal of systems integration by directly addressing this stability and reliability challenge for electric grid planning and operation. This will be accomplished by developing temporally comprehensive, closed-loop simulation models that seamlessly simulate power systems operations from economic scheduling (day-ahead to hours) to dynamic response analysis (seconds to sub-seconds). Both a multi-timescale grid model and an integrated PV model will be developed in this project to accurately study the impacts of PV variability and uncertainty on system reliability at multiple timescales. Using quasi-dynamic simulation methods and data-driven security assessment (DSA) criteria will allow the dynamic characteristics of PV to be fed forward into longer-timescale scheduling models for a complete understanding of the effect of short-term PV dynamics on bulk systems operations (e.g., reserve scheduling and deployment). Upon completion of the proposed model, this project will help operators accurately assess system reliability by deploying energy and reserve scheduling under critical contingency conditions and studying interactions among all types of essential reliability services provided by modern PV power plants.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

Multiscale simulation of integrated energy system and electricity market interactions

Accelerating the deep decarbonization of the world's electric grids requires the coordination of complex energy systems and infrastructures across timescales from seconds to decades. Here, we present a new multiscale simulation framework that integrates process- and grid-centric modeling paradigms to better design, operate, and control integrated energy systems (IESs), which combine multiple technologies, in wholesale energy markets. Traditionally, IESs are analyzed with a process-centric paradigm such as levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) or annualized net revenue, ignoring important interactions with electricity markets. This framework explicitly models the complex interactions between an IES's bidding, scheduling, and control decisions and the energy market's clearing and settlement processes, while incorporating operational uncertainties. Through two case studies, we show the importance of understanding and quantifying complex resource-grid interactions. In case study 1, we demonstrate that optimized bidding from one resource shifts the profit distribution for all energy systems in the market. This result suggests new and more flexible IES technologies can disrupt the economics of all market participants, possibly leading to accelerated retirements of less flexible resources. Interestingly, the optimized bidding has little impact on grid-level aggregate statistics, such as total generation costs and renewable penetration rate. While aggregate modeling strategies may remain valid under some IES adoption scenarios for analysis focused on regional outcomes, direct comparisons of IES technologies at specific locations without considering these interactions may lead to misleading or incorrect conclusions. In case study 2, we consider the design and flexible operation of IESs that hybridize conventional generators with energy storage. Through a sensitivity analysis, we find that as the size of the storage system increases, the total number of start-ups for coal- and natural gas-based IESs reduced by 25% and 33.6%, and the total thermal generator ramping (i.e., mileage) reduced by 86.5% and 62.5%, respectively. This shows the primary benefit of storage may not be reduced operational costs (which do not change significantly) but fewer start-ups and less ramping, which may greatly simplify the design, operation, and control of carbon capture systems. The new modeling and optimization capabilities from this work enable the coupling of rigorous, dynamic process models with grid-level production cost models to quantitatively identify the nuanced interdependencies across these vast timescales that must be addressed to realize clean, safe, and secure energy production. Moreover, the proposed general multiscale simulation framework is applicable to all IES technologies and can be easily extended to consider other energy carriers (e.g., hydrogen, ammonia) and energy infrastructures (e.g., natural gas pipelines).

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

Combining molecular dynamics with mesoscopic Green’s function reaction dynamics simulations

In many reaction-diffusion processes, ranging from biochemical networks, catalysis, to complex self-assembly, the spatial distribution of the reactants and the stochastic character of their interactions are crucial for the macroscopic behavior. The recently developed mesoscopic Green’s Function Reaction Dynamics (GFRD) method enables efficient simulation at the particle level provided the microscopic dynamics can be integrated out. Yet, many processes exhibit non-trivial microscopic dynamics that can qualitatively change the macroscopic behavior, calling for an atomistic, microscopic description. We propose a novel approach that combines GFRD for simulating the system at the mesoscopic scale where particles are far apart, with a microscopic technique such as Langevin dynamics or Molecular Dynamics (MD), for simulating the system at the microscopic scale where reactants are in close proximity. This scheme defines the regions where the particles are close together and simulated with high microscopic resolution and those where they are far apart and simulated with lower mesoscopic resolution, adaptively on the fly. The new multi-scale scheme, called MD-GFRD, is generic and can be used to efficiently simulate reaction-diffusion systems at the particle level.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

EMT and Phasor-Domain Co-simulation of a Low Frequency AC Transmission System for Offshore Wind Integration

This work investigates system level interactions of multi-terminal low frequency high-voltage alternating current (LF-HVac) system using back-to back converters and grid-level 60 Hz system. A co-simulation framework by integrating high- fidelity dynamic model of multi-terminal LF-HVac system in electromagnetic transient (EMT) simulation platform and phasor model of IEEE 39 bus system in transient-stability (phasor) program. The co-simulation framework for multi-terminal LF- HVac system with offshore wind integrated in a bulk power system is developed successfully and its steady state and dynamic operation is demonstrated and compared with EMT simulation. The co-simulation results show accurate representation of the dynamic responses with reduced computation burden and time compared to EMT platform.

low-frequency transmission, co-simulation, electro↗

Improving Power System Modeling. A Tool to Link Capacity Expansion and Production Cost Models

Capacity expansion models (CEM) provide a high-level long-term view at the prospects of the evolving power system. In simulating the possibilities of long-term capacity expansion, it is important to maintain the viability of power system operation in the short-term (daily, hourly and sub-hourly) scales. Production-cost models (PCM) simulate routine power system operation on these shorter time scales using detailed load, transmission and generation fleet data by minimizing production costs and following reliability requirements. When based on CEM 'predictions' about generating unit retirements and buildup, PCM provide more detailed simulation for the short-term system operation and, consequently, may confirm the validity of capacity expansion predictions. Further, production cost model simulations of a system that is based on capacity expansion model solution are 'evolutionary' sound: the generator mix is the result of logical sequence of unit retirement and buildup resulting from policy and incentives. The above has motivated us to bridge CEM with PCM by building a capacity expansion - to - production cost model Linking Tool (CEPCoLT). The Linking Tool is built to onset capacity expansion model prescriptions onto production cost model inputs. NREL's ReEDS and Energy Examplar's PLEXOS are the capacity expansion and the production cost models, respectively. Via the Linking Tool, PLEXOS provides details of operation for the regionally-defined ReEDS scenarios.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

Look-ahead Dynamic Simulation

Look-ahead dynamic simulation software system incorporates the high performance parallel computing technologies, significantly reduces the solution time for each transient simulation case, and brings the dynamic simulation analysis into on-line applications to enable more transparency for better reliability and asset utilization. It takes the snapshot of the current power grid status, functions in parallel computing the system dynamic simulation, and outputs the transient response of the power system in real time.

Jin, Shuangshuang↗

The Method of Finite Averages

The Method of Finite Averages (MoFA) is a rigorous multiscale modeling methodology for efficiently modeling multi-physical phenomena in heterogeneous porous media. The code developed in this project aims to perform the numerical calculations required to formulate, implement, and verify MoFA models for Earth and Energy systems (i.e., model verification refers to performing fully-resolved simulations of the systems and comparing their results to those of the models). In general, MoFA transforms partial differential equations (PDEs) describing the fine-scale physics of a system into coupled ordinary differential equations (ODEs)---in time---that describe the coarse-scale---or "average"---physical behaviors of the system. This transformation significantly expedites system simulation, as the coarse-scale ODEs involve vastly fewer degrees of freedom than the fine-scale PDEs. The code developed under this project will allow users to 1.) generate system geometries and numerical meshes, 2.) solve the PDE and ODE systems required for MoFA model formulation and implementation, 3.) solve the PDE systems required to obtain fully-resolved simulation results for model verification, and 4.) compare and plot results (e.g., the model and fully-resolved simulation solutions, the error between the solutions, etc.).

Pietrzyk, KyleM [Lawrence Livermore National Labor↗

Multi-Timescale Integrated Dynamics and Scheduling for Solar (MIDAS-Solar) (Final Technical Report)

Solar photovoltaic (PV) installations have experienced unprecedented growth in the United States. PV will become not only an energy producer but also a necessary provider of ancillary services at multiple timescales. Conventional methods to simulate power systems operations - such as long-term production simulation (which typically considers schedules from hours to minutes by using an optimization framework) and short-term transient studies (which simulate dynamics from seconds to sub-seconds using state variables and differential equations) - are not sufficient for studying the multiple-timescale variation of solar generation and its impact on system reliability. Long-term system economics and short-term system dynamics are highly coupled, particularly when the penetration level of renewable generation is extremely high, because the uncertainty and variability of solar generation will impact both power system steady-state and dynamic performance. This project helps meet and exceed the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Solar Energy Technologies Office goal of systems integration by directly addressing this stability and reliability challenge for power grid planning and operation. We have developed a temporally comprehensive, closed-loop simulation model, named Multi-timescale Integrated Dynamics and Scheduling (MIDAS), that seamlessly simulates power system operations from economic scheduling (day-ahead to hours) to dynamic response analysis (seconds to sub-seconds). For schedules with very high levels of inverter-based resources (IBRs), up to and including 100%, the stability of grid controls has been evaluated through electromagnetic transient (EMT) simulations and power-hardware-in-the-loop (PHIL) simulations of key transient events at key schedule points. Specifically, MIDAS provides: 1) a closed-loop simulation framework for simulating timescales from economic scheduling to dynamic stability analysis; 2) machine learning-based stability assessment; 3) EMT modeling and analysis for large-scale power systems; 4) MIDAS PHIL test bed. We worked with Hawaii Electric Companies to apply the MIDAS study framework to a Maui grid study. The entire island's transmission system was modeled in detail - from a yearly scheduling model, to a second-level frequency dynamic model, down to a sub-second-scale EMT model to address critical stability issues. The project demonstrated how MIDAS can help system planners and operators assess system reliability and stability while the power grid is marching toward a high-renewable, high-IBR future. In this Maui grid study, we found that 100% instantaneous IBR operation is achievable in EMT simulation and PHIL testing, and grid planners and operators might need new analysis/simulation tools to assess grid reliability and stability in the scheduling stage. MIDAS will bring Maui and other systems closer to 100% clean and stable energy futures. (In this study, we examined transient stability. Other topics necessary for 100% IBR operation, such as protection and resource adequacy, were not examined.)

100% Renewables↗