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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 91 records · Page 5

Deep Learning-Based Dynamic Modeling of Three-Phase Voltage Source Inverters

Inverter-based resource (IBR) models are necessary to analyze modern power system stability and create effective control strategies. Modeling IBRs in converter-rich power systems is crucial, yet challenging due to the lack of commercial information on converter topologies and control parameters. This paper proposes novel convolutional neural network (CNN)–based data-driven techniques for modeling IBRs, addressing adaptability and proprietary concerns without requiring internal system physics knowledge. The proposed method is tested using real grid-tied commercial IBR transient data and demonstrates effectiveness and accuracy. Furthermore, the developed modeling approach is integrated and implemented in the open-source power distribution simulation and analysis tool, GridLAB-D, to illustrate the potentiality of dynamic analysis of large-scale power systems with high IBRs.

deep learning, artificial intelligence↗

Super‐Droplet Method to Simulate Lagrangian Microphysics of Nuclear Fallout in a Homogeneous Cloud

Abstract Nuclear detonations produce hazardous local and global particles or fallout. Predicting fallout size, chemical components, and location is necessary to inform officials and determine immediate guidance for the public. However, existing nuclear detonation fallout models prescribe the particle size distributions based on limited observations. In this work, we apply the super‐droplet method, which is a numerical modeling technique developed for cloud microphysics, to simulate size distributions of particles in a mushroom cloud formed post‐detonation of a nuclear device. We model fallout formation and evolution with homogeneous nucleation and condensation of a single species and a Monte Carlo coagulation algorithm. We verify the numerical methods representing coagulation and condensation processes against analytical test problems. Additionally, we explore several scenarios for the integral system mass and yield in equivalent kilotons (kt) of TNT (trinitrotoluene). The fallout size distribution median diameter d pg follows a scaling law based on the integral system mass m v 0 kg and yield Y kt: nm. We test the effect of cloud turbulence, enhanced nucleation and growth, and vapor volatility with a sensitivity study. The range in median diameter predictions for simulations of historical tests performed over the Pacific encompass the measurements of particles sampled from the cloud caps. Predicted median particle size ranges up to 217, 123, 86, and 35 nm for historical tests with yields of 0.2, 0.7, 2, and 10 Mt, respectively. This work can be expanded in many different directions to build a more predictive model for fallout formation.

45 MILITARY TECHNOLOGY, WEAPONRY, AND NATIONAL DEF↗

Mini-99 Experiment Design and Target Assembly

Qualification of nuclear fuels requires an understanding of a myriad of fuel performance variables, which requires time-consuming irradiations in test reactors. Accelerating burnup accumulation to reduce the irradiation time has historically been accomplished by increasing the 235 U enrichment in integral fuel tests, which inherently couples the fuel’s temperature and fission heat generation. Separate effects irradiation testing of nuclear fuel, using the MiniFuel target in the Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s (ORNL’s) High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR), offers an approach for decoupling fuel temperature and fission rate by reducing the quantity of the fuel and relying primarily on gamma heating in the surrounding components to drive fuel temperatures. However, if the fission rate is high enough, the fuel temperature will still vary over time as the fission heating changes, primarily due to poor heat conduction between the fuel and the surrounding components. This work details the design, analysis, and fabrication of a MiniFuel target which utilizes sodium bonding to improve the heat rejection from the fuel specimen, enabling the testing of higher 235 U enrichments (~8wt.%) to further accelerate burnup accumulation without prohibitively large temperature variations throughout the course of the irradiation.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

STATISTICAL ANALYSIS OF IN-SERVICE ULTRASONIC INSPECTION DATA OF WASTE TANKS AT THE SAVANNAH RIVER Site-25021

Liquid radioactive waste has been stored in large, underground carbon steel tanks of 4.92-million-liter capacity at the United States Department of Energy's Savannah River Site (SRS) in Aiken, South Carolina since the 1950s. The In-service inspection of the Savannah River Site High Level Waste tanks will be reviewed as well as Ultrasonic testing (UT) for detecting for general wall thinning, pitting and interface attack through accessible regions of the tanks. In-service inspection [1] of the Savannah River Site (SRS) High Level Waste (HLW) tanks is an essential element of a comprehensive structural integrity program. Inspection confirmed the effectiveness of chemistry and temperature controls used to preclude localized and general corrosion of the tanks. Ultrasonic testing is used to detect general wall thinning, pitting and interface attack, as well as vertically oriented cracks through inspection of a 21.59 cm (8.5-in.) wide strip extending over the accessible height of the primary tank wall.

Harris, Stephen P.↗

Integrated DM1200 Melter Testing of HLW AZ-102 Composition Using Bubblers (Final Report)

This report documents melter and off-gas performance results obtained on the DM1200 HLW Pilot Melter during processing of simulated HLW AZ-102 feed. The principal objectives of the DM1200 melter testing were to determine the achievable glass production rates for simulated HLW AZ-102 feed; determine the effect of bubbling rate on production rate; characterize melter off-gas emissions; characterize the performance of the prototypical off-gas system components as well as their integrated performance; characterize the feed, glass product, and off-gas effluents; and to perform pre- and post test inspections of system components.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

Planning Roadmap for DER Integration in India: Industry Best Practices and Resource Guide

Ensuring safe, reliable, cost-effective DER integration at scale requires holistic planning, broad stakeholder engagement, and should address key development areas such as standards adoption, equipment testing and certification, interoperability and cybersecurity, interconnection procedures, and advanced forecasting and DER management. Each of these areas currently represent significant challenges for utilities, regulators, OEMs, developers, and even consumers worldwide. India has already seen significant growth of DERs and has announced targets for substantial growth yet to come, with the potential for DERs to make up a non-negligible portion of the country's overall generation capacity. As such, it is of critical importance that Indian stakeholders consider the potential impacts of wide-spread adoption of DERs and take preemptive action related to the five development areas listed here, among others. India should consider strategies including the adoption of key DER standards related to interconnection, testing, and cybersecurity; enabling effective and secure communication channels for DER interoperability; testing and certifying DER equipment in accredited testing laboratories; building robust, streamlined interconnection procedures; and revamping legacy system planning structures to incorporate DERs in a holistic planning framework.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

Unraveling capacity fading in lithium-ion batteries using advanced cyclic tests: A real-world approach

Battery lifespan estimation is essential for effective battery management systems, aiding users and manufacturers in strategic planning. However, accurately estimating battery capacity is complex, owing to diverse capacity fading phenomena tied to factors such as temperature, charge-discharge rate, and rest period duration. In this work, we present an innovative approach that integrates real-world driving behaviors into cyclic testing. Unlike conventional methods that lack rest periods and involve fixed charge-discharge rates, our approach involves 1000 unique test cycles tailored to specific objectives and applications, capturing the nuanced effects of temperature, charge-discharge rate, and rest duration on capacity fading. This yields comprehensive insights into cell-level battery degradation, unveiling growth patterns of the solid electrolyte interface (SEI) layer and lithium plating, influenced by cyclic test parameters. Here, the results yield critical empirical relations for evaluating capacity fading under specific testing conditions.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗

Integrating multimodal data through interpretable heterogeneous ensembles

Motivation: Integrating multimodal data represents an effective approach to predicting biomedical characteristics, such as protein functions and disease outcomes. However, existing data integration approaches do not sufficiently address the heterogeneous semantics of multimodal data. In particular, early and intermediate approaches that rely on a uniform integrated representation reinforce the consensus among the modalities but may lose exclusive local information. The alternative late integration approach that can address this challenge has not been systematically studied for biomedical problems. Results: We propose Ensemble Integration (EI) as a novel systematic implementation of the late integration approach. EI infers local predictive models from the individual data modalities using appropriate algorithms and uses heterogeneous ensemble algorithms to integrate these local models into a global predictive model. We also propose a novel interpretation method for EI models. We tested EI on the problems of predicting protein function from multimodal STRING data and mortality due to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) from multimodal data in electronic health records. We found that EI accomplished its goal of producing significantly more accurate predictions than each individual modality. It also performed better than several established early integration methods for each of these problems. The interpretation of a representative EI model for COVID-19 mortality prediction identified several disease-relevant features, such as laboratory test (blood urea nitrogen and calcium) and vital sign measurements (minimum oxygen saturation) and demographics (age). These results demonstrated the effectiveness of the EI framework for biomedical data integration and predictive modeling.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

Connecting ambient toxicity testing with community-level responses of benthic macroinvertebrates in an impacted stream in East Tennessee, USA

Single-species laboratory toxicity tests are a standard tool for evaluating potential impairment of freshwater systems; however, it remains uncertain how well they reflect community-level impacts in natural environments. This study presents a multi-decadal dataset (2005-2025) pairing ambient toxicity testing with macroinvertebrate surveys along Bear Creek on the Oak Ridge Reservation (Tennessee, USA) downstream of an industrial complex to assess the ability of laboratory tests using stream water to track community-level effects. Biannual three-brood Ceriodaphnia dubia tests from 2005 to 2025 often showed reduced reproduction at select sites. Integrating water quality data showed strong positive correlations between sublethal toxicity and specific conductance. Macroinvertebrate diversity metrics, family-level occurrence, and densities were also associated with conductance and contemporaneous C. dubia responses. Laboratory-measured sublethal toxicity was a stronger indicator of macroinvertebrate change than conductance alone, although responses varied among sites and seasons. At the site with the highest diversity, densities and richness of Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, Trichoptera (EPT) and non-EPT taxa were significantly related to C. dubia reproduction, with greater toxicity corresponding to lower diversity. At the family level, some pollution-tolerant taxa were more prevalent and at higher densities during periods of sublethal toxicity, while some sensitive families were absent or reduced. These patterns may reflect site-specific mixtures of acute and chronic stressors, with laboratory toxicity tests more effectively capturing short-term impacts. Overall, these multi-decadal observations suggest that laboratory toxicity tests can help track water-quality changes linked to shifts in aquatic community diversity, despite variable responses reflecting the complexity of dynamic stressors in this impacted freshwater system.

Stevenson, Louise [ORNL] (ORCID:0000000349679897)↗

Highly Integrated Wide Bandgap Power Module for Next Generation Plug-In Vehicles (Final Report)

Wide bandgap devices are key enablers for high power density traction inverters. A highly integrated wide bandgap (WBG) power module enables higher temperature operation, higher inverter efficiency and overall smaller die area with the same power delivery. However, it requires careful design of the power module to take advantage of all the superior material properties that silicon carbide (SiC) provides over conventional silicon (Si) Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor (IGBT) based design. This project developed an efficient and densely packed SiC power module for an automotive traction inverter application. Extensive study was performed to select the best performing SiC die considering a wide range of temperature variation, suitability to integrate into target packaging, robust body diode performance and overall high electrical efficiency. Multiple design ideas were explored to achieve lower stray inductance for both power loop and signal loop, uniform current distribution, compact form factor, and very high thermal performance. The final power module package includes all six inverter switches in the same module (six-pack) with die sintered at both bottom and top surfaces utilizing high performance substrate to achieve high electrical and thermal performance. Two power module variants were developed using 900 V and 1200 V devices for operating at two different high voltage levels (> 600 V HV battery). Both power modules were comprehensively characterized, and high efficiency operation of the inverter was confirmed through analysis. Finally, a complete functional inverter was built with the 1200V power modules using other essential components (HV capacitors, gate driver board, controller board, current sensor, connectors etc.) and tested using GM’s standard test procedure. There are several challenges associated with adopting WBG devices for high voltage operation. In order to assess and mitigate those challenges, GM and subrecipients of this project have conducted multiple detailed studies. This includes phase current reconstruction using integrated Rogowski coil, device junction temperature estimation using on-state gate resistance, modeling and testing the effect of high voltage and fast switching on motor insulation and bearings, partial discharge inception voltage measurement under different environmental conditions. Findings of all these studies are summarized in this report.

33 ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗

Internal-Gelation Production of Uranium Oxide Sol-Gel Particles for Forensic Applications

The purpose of this project was to develop and demonstrate a novel method for the production of uranium oxide microsphere particles with tunable chemical compositions via a sol-gel process using a 3D-printer setup. These particles can serve several purposes in research and development as a forensic training tool or as standard reference materials. A key component of the project was to demonstrate the ability to control physical and chemical parameters of the particles created. First, we demonstrated the ability to employ an internal gelation sol-gel process to create individual uranium oxide particles. The particles were successfully dispensed using a unique 3D-printing setup onto a substrate to react and then were collected and thermally processed. A series of temperatures for the annealing process was tested on individual samples to investigate the effect on the sol-gel chemical composition and physical integrity. Next, we demonstrated the ability to control matrix composition of the particles by separately incorporating fission product isotopes as well as Np-237 into the sol-gel solution. It was shown by gamma-ray spectroscopy that these matrix elements were successfully retained during the gelation process. We studied the retention of the elements across a series of annealing temperatures. Additionally, we demonstrated the ability to quantitatively control the isotopic composition of the particles by altering the U-237/U-238 ratio to a controlled value. Finally, X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) was used to investigate the oxidation state of the sol-gel after annealing at different temperatures.

37 - INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL AND ANALYTICAL C↗

Salt Sampling FY21 Technical Report

The goal of the salt sampling program at Argonne is to develop and deploy automated molten salt sampling approaches to enable high-precision in-process salt sample analysis to improve the timeliness of sampling-based accountancy measurements. Tools currently under development in support of this goal include (1) a modular vacuum sampler with an accompanying sample handling method for coupling vacuum sampling with high-precision at-line sample analysis, (2) a pneumatic sample generator that enables high-throughput sample analysis to improve the precision of existing analytical techniques, and (3) a windowless flow cell to enable on-line optical analysis of molten salt in a sampling loop. Compared to point sampling approaches (i.e., dip probes), vacuum sampling systems and on-line sampling loops facilitate access to a larger cross-section of a process fluid. This is known to improve the characterization of the process fluid by producing more representative samples and by enabling the analysis of a larger cross section of the fluid. A vacuum sampling approach for molten salts eliminates the risk of dross contamination of samples and avoids the use of moving parts in the salt. In FY21, two methods for integrating a vacuum sampler with a pneumatic sample generator were tested. These included direct fluidic coupling and coupling using a solid salt transfer mechanism. Solid salt transfer was ultimately selected over fluidic coupling, primarily to enable the transport of samples over longer distances to support automated at-line integration with high-precision techniques (such as microcalorimetry) that cannot withstand the extreme conditions near an electrorefining process. To facilitate rapid solid salt coupling, new mechanisms were developed for rapidly charging and discharging salt sample tubes at the vacuum sampler and pneumatic sample generator, respectively. While the charging mechanism will be deployed in FY22, the tube transfer method and discharge mechanism were tested in FY21. These were deployed at one of Argonne’s engineering-scale electrorefiners to implement at-line high-throughput pneumatic micro-sample generation capabilities. The method was used to generate precise uranium- and lanthanide-bearing electrorefiner micro-samples with the specific dimensions requested by researchers at Los Alamos National Laboratory for use in testing their novel microcalorimeter x-ray techniques. The solid salt transfer mechanism proved not only to be an effective means of integrating the precision sample generator with vacuum sampling, but also improved the performance of the sampler generator. Because the modular sampling approach described here eliminates the need for new high-radiation sample handling capabilities, salt-wetted seals, salt-wetted moving parts, and heated transfer lines outside the electrorefiner, it will address most of the remaining technical challenges for the at-line deployment of high-precision analytical techniques. This will enable significant reductions in the time delay for sampling-based accountancy measurements by eliminating the need for manual off-line sample processing and analysis. On-line optical analysis of molten salt in a sampling loop would provide complementary information to at-line and in-situ techniques. In FY21, an open-aperture molten salt gravity flow cell with windowless optical access to flowing salt was successfully demonstrated. Future work should include the refinement and performance testing of the on-line and at-line sampling tools, integration of additional analysis techniques, stakeholder outreach and collaboration, evaluation of the integrated methods, and analyses to determine how the various tools might fit into an integrated safeguards monitoring system of unattended near real time monitoring tools.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗

Integration of a grey-box refrigerated case model in EnergyPlus via Python plugin

Commercial buildings, in particular grocery stores (due mainly to their large refrigeration load), provide opportunities for energy cost reductions. Grocery stores could offer substantial load flexibility to the power grid through participation in demand response programs because of their usage patterns and relatively high energy intensity. This load flexibility could come from modifying the control of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems, refrigeration systems, or both. Although estimation of the HVAC system’s load flexibility potential is relatively targeted in the literature, estimating load flexibility of refrigeration systems is nascent and has been a challenge, in part because of the lack of proper simulation tools that capture the dynamics in the refrigeration cases. The existing refrigerated case model within EnergyPlus, a whole building energy simulation program, assumes a constant case temperature throughout the simulation period and does not explicitly model the cycling of the compressor serving the refrigerated case. In addition, it does not encompass modeling of temperatures of the product inside the refrigerated case. This difference between modeled and actual operation can be a barrier to the development of demand control algorithm and accurate analysis of load flexibility potential. In this paper, we present a grey-box model for modeling refrigerated cases in grocery stores, which include medium temperature and low temperature. Four cases are modeled; two are low-temperature closed cases and two are medium-temperature cases with one closed and one open. Data from an experimental facility are used to train and test the models. Results demonstrate the efficacy of the grey-box models in predicting the temperatures. This model is integrated into EnergyPlus to capture the dynamic effects of case temperature on the environment and enhance the calculation of sensible and latent heat exchange with the environment (case credits). These enhancements can be leveraged more broadly to model advanced refrigeration controls such as defrost, develop and test unique algorithms that could affect refrigeration interactions with HVAC, and refine store design for any commercial building with refrigeration.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗

Statistical Steady-State Stability Analysis for Transmission System Planning for Offshore Wind Power Plant Integration

This paper presents a statistical steady-state stability analysis for transmission system planning studies in order to identify operational issues inherent in the integration of offshore wind power plants. It includes normal and contingency operation. This study considers the integration of a 1000-MW offshore wind power plant into the FirstEnergy/PJM service territory in the U.S. Great Lakes region as a case study and uses a realistic computer model of the U.S. Eastern Interconnection, a 63,000-bus test system. The results show the utility of this statistical analysis tool and its effectiveness in identification of the operational impacts as a result of the integration of offshore wind power plant.

Sajadi, Amirhossein↗

ROADRUNNER MiniFuel Experiment: Readiness for Insertion

The Research On ADvancing the peRformance of UraNium Nitrides in Extreme enviRonments (ROADRUNNER) campaign is a collaborative irradiation experiment designed to evaluate the performance of uranium nitride (UN) fuel fabricated with controlled variations in density and impurity content. Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s MiniFuel irradiation platform and the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) are being used to irradiate six targets containing 36 UN miniature disks. These targets have been assembled to systematically investigate burnup and temperature effects under accelerated irradiation conditions. This report documents the finalized test plan, describes the experiment assembly and subcapsule integration process, and confirms the readiness of all ROADRUNNER targets for HFIR insertion. All targets have passed quality control procedures, and five have begun irradiation. The campaign will provide critical performance data to support fuel model validation and future UN qualification efforts.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

ROADRUNNER MiniFuel Experiment: Readiness for Insertion

The Research On ADvancing the peRformance of UraNium Nitrides in Extreme enviRonments (ROADRUNNER) campaign is a collaborative irradiation experiment designed to evaluate the performance of uranium nitride (UN) fuel fabricated with controlled variations in density and impurity content. Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s MiniFuel irradiation platform and the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) are being used to irradiate six targets containing 36 UN miniature disks. These targets have been assembled to systematically investigate burnup and temperature effects under accelerated irradiation conditions. This report documents the finalized test plan, describes the experiment assembly and subcapsule integration process, and confirms the readiness of all ROADRUNNER targets for HFIR insertion. All targets have passed quality control procedures, and five have begun irradiation. The campaign will provide critical performance data to support fuel model validation and future UN qualification efforts.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

The Effects of Gamma Ray Integrated Dose on a Commercial 65-nm SRAM Device

Here this work shows that the static random access memory (SRAM) error rate for a commercial 65-nm device in a dose rate environment can be highly dependent upon the integrated dose (dose rate × pulse duration). While the typical metric for such testing is dose rate upset (DRU) level in rad(Si)/s, a series of dose rate experiments at Little Mountain Test Facility (LMTF) shows dependence on the integrated dose. The error rate is also found to be dependent on the core voltage, and the preradiation value of the bits. We believe that these effects are explained by a well charge depletion caused by gamma ray photocurrent.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

Advanced Fuels Campaign Execution Plan

The Advanced Fuels Campaign (AFC) Execution Plan outlines the strategy, mission, scope, near-term and long-term goals, structure, and organization associated with nuclear fuels and materials research, development, and demonstration activities within the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Supply Chain (NFCSC) program. NFCSC has been given responsibility to identify and mature advanced fuel technologies for the DOE using a science-based approach, focused on developing a fundamental understanding of nuclear fuels and materials to drive development of integrated nuclear fuel and materials technology. This science-based approach combines theory, experiments, and multiscale modeling and simulation to achieve a predictive understanding of relevant behaviors ranging from fuel fabrication processes (and their resulting fuel microstructures) through fuel/cladding performance under irradiation (in contrast to more empirical, observation-based approaches frequently used in fuel performance modeling and fuel qualification). The traditional scope of AFC includes the evaluation and development of multiple fuel forms to support two fuel cycle options: once-through and full recycle. The word “fuel” is used generically to include conventional fuels, transmutation targets, and any associated cladding or duct materials. The once-through fuel cycle addresses advanced light water reactor fuels with enhanced performance, extended burnup, and reduced waste generation. In fiscal year (FY) 2012, AFC’s scope expanded to include research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) for light water reactor (LWR) fuels with enhanced accident tolerance. Fuel fabrication activities include the development of innovative methods to enhance process efficiencies, reduce waste, and improve control over as-fabricated fuel microstructural properties to achieve desired in-reactor performance. Using modern modeling and simulation approaches, the objective is to predict fresh fuel properties given the feedstock characteristics and fabrication process parameters. The performance-related activities include small-scale, in-reactor, and out-of-reactor phenomenological testing (distinct from, but synergistic with, integral prototypic testing) and extensive, quantitative characterization (focusing on characterization of fuel and cladding materials at the scale of microstructure) both before and after testing. Larger-scale, prototypic experiments are conducted in concert with phenomenological testing to drive a Fuel Development and Qualification program, incorporating a fundamental understanding of fuel behavior performance characteristics. Then, using the tools developed under the productive science-based approach, fuels will be optimized to meet specific performance requirements, thereby minimizing the need to repeatedly perform large-scale, integral experiments over a wide parametric range as a means of experimental exploration. Two significant initiatives are underway within AFC. First, a gap analysis completed in early FY 2019 identified critical irradiation testing needs that are lacking within the national light water reactor (LWR) fuels testbed since the shutdown of the Halden Reactor in 2018. The identified gaps are for instrumented, prototypic testing of LWR fuels, especially under boiling water reactor conditions, ramp conditions, and conditions leading to fuel failure; these needs exist for supporting current LWR fuels and their possible extension to higher burnups, but are especially urgent relative to near-term development and qualification of accident-tolerant fuels. Recommendations that resulted from the Halden Gap Analysis focused on enhancements at Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) and Transient Reactor Test Facility (TREAT) to fill gaps in testing capabilities relative to these needs. Second, a concerted effort to develop and demonstrate a systematic approach to accelerating the development, testing, and qualification of new fuel systems has been initiated. This is highlighted by a test strategy that combines the considerable advances in multiscale, mechanistic fuel modeling of recent years with a MiniFuel separate effects test program in the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) and a Fission Accelerated Steady-state Testing (FAST) semi-integral accelerated test program in ATR. This approach is being tested/demonstrated using the metallic fuel system, but if successful it is expected to be extensible to multiple fuel types and diverse applications. This document includes an overview of the NFCSC program, a definition of science-based development of nuclear fuels, near-term goals for Advanced LWR fuels (ALFs), and longer-term goals for Advanced Reactor Fuels (ARFs) RD&D. This includes the activities that will be conducted to achieve success toward the grand challenge, as well as the goals and milestones to be achieved over the next few decades of research and development. Long-term goals are based on the DOE Office of Nuclear Energ

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗