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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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DOE OSTI2026

A critical review on additive manufacturing of refractory alloys from a data analytics perspective- beyond nickel-based superalloys

Refractory alloys (RAs) are promising materials due to their exceptional physicochemical properties, but most research remains at the laboratory scale. For broader adoption, advancements in manufacturing are essential. Because their high stability makes conventional methods like machining and casting difficult, additive manufacturing (AM) is emerging as an effective approach for fabricating refractory alloy components. However, AM's repeated non-equilibrium thermal cycles introduce undesired features (e.g. defects, anisotropic microstructures, and residual stresses), which are magnified due to RAs’ unique properties. This paper comprehensively reviews the state-of-the-art methods of AM for refractory alloys. It explores data analytics techniques to establish design rules based on multi-fidelity experimental and computational methods. Furthermore, it investigates integrated, collaborative efforts to harmonise standalone databases, information, knowledge, and predictive models at multi-physics, multi-stage, and multi-scale. Unlike the existing literature that focuses primarily on material systems or process fundamentals, this work provides an integrated perspective on AM of refractory alloys from a data analytics standpoint, highlighting the roles of integrated computational materials engineering (ICME), verification, validation, and uncertainty quantification (VV&UQ), and digital twin-driven qualification in overcoming data scarcity and accelerating rapid qualification.

Additive manufacturing↗
DOE OSTI2017

M3FT-17OR0301070211 - Preparation of Hot Isostatically Pressed AgZ Waste Form Samples

The production of radioactive iodine-bearing waste forms that exhibit long-term stability and are suitable for permanent geologic disposal has been the subject of substantial research interest. One potential method of iodine waste form production is hot isostatic pressing (HIP). Recent studies at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) have investigated the conversion of iodine-loaded silver mordenite (I-AgZ) directly to a waste form by HIP. ORNL has performed HIP with a variety of sample compositions and pressing conditions. The base mineral has varied among AgZ (in pure and engineered forms), silver-exchanged faujasite, and silverexchanged zeolite A. Two iodine loading methods, occlusion and chemisorption, have been explored. Additionally, the effects of variations in temperature and pressure of the process have been examined, with temperature ranges of 525°C–1,100°C and pressure ranges of 100–300 MPa. All of these samples remain available to collaborators upon request. The sample preparation detailed in this document is an extension of that work. In addition to previously prepared samples, this report documents the preparation of additional samples to support stability testing. These samples include chemisorbed I-AgZ and pure AgI. Following sample preparation, each sample was processed by HIP by American Isostatic Presses Inc. and returned to ORNL for storage. ORNL will store the samples until they are requested by collaborators for durability testing. The sample set reported here will support waste form durability testing across the national laboratories and will provide insight into the effects of varied iodine content on iodine retention by the produced waste form and on potential improvements in waste form durability provided by the zeolite matrix.

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

Building a Cyberinfrastructure for Environmental System Science: Modeling Frameworks, Data Management, and Scientific Workflows, Workshop Report, Potomac, Maryland, April 30-May 1, 2015

The Environmental System Science (ESS) activity within the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Biological and Environmental Research (BER) seeks to advance a robust, predictive understanding of terrestrial environments, extending from bedrock to the top of the vegetative canopy and from molecular to global scales, through an iterative cycle of model-driven experimentation and observation dubbed MODEX. Considerable progress has been made toward achieving this overarching goal, but widely recognized is the fragmentation across projects and disciplines of the relevant modeling and simulation capabilities, observational and experimental data, analysis algorithms, and workflow tools. This fragmentation creates significant challenges for studying impacts and feedbacks in these complex multiscale systems. These challenges are further exacerbated by ongoing disruptive changes in high-performance computational architectures and the exponential growth in the types and volume of data that render obsolete the conventional approaches to software development and data management. Overcoming these challenges will require the development of a BER Climate and Environmental Sciences Division (CESD)–wide enabling cyberinfrastructure to support data management, cross-domain modeling, data analysis, and collaborative research. To explore the potential for working groups to initiate and guide a more integrated and community-based cyberinfrastructure, BER held the ESS Workshop on Model-Data Integration: Modeling Frameworks, Data Management, and Scientific Workflows on April 30-May 1, 2015, following the ESS Principal Investigator Meeting in Potomac, Maryland. Participants included model developers, software engineers, and data management specialists from eight national laboratories, which represented a wide range of projects and programs from CESD as well as cross-cutting projects from DOE’s Office of Advanced Scientific Computing Research (ASCR; both BER and ASCR are operated from within DOE’s Office of Science). A series of plenary talks provided background information and clarified the workshop’s three objectives: (1) develop requirements for this community-based cyberinfrastructure to ensure enhanced scientific productivity of the community as a whole; (2) identify challenges associated with developing this new cyberinfrastructure using a phased approach guided by project-driven use cases; and, given these requirements and challenges, (3) chart a path forward for ESS working groups to lead the phased development of the new cyberinfrastructure.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2025

Project Title: Demonstration High Temperature Superconducting NonPlanar Stellarator Magnet with Advanced Manufactured Assemblies

This is the final report for the project “Demonstration High Temperature Superconducting Non- Planar Stellarator Magnet with Advanced Manufactured Assemblies”, funded by DOE, and performed by Type One Energy from September, 2020, to March 2024 involving the Fusion Technology Institute at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, the Plasma Science and Fusion Center (PSFC) at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS) to design and fabricate the first non-planar HTS (REBCO) coil for a high-field stellarator based on the SPARC tokamak’s VIPER cable concept. Stellarators at high fields make high-temperature superconducting magnets necessary for a compact fusion device. But the asymmetric and non-planar nature of its components, especially the magnets make it difficult for scalable producibility. To address these challenges, two promising technologies have emerged: advanced manufacturing (AM) for the supporting plates for forming the magnets, and high-temperature superconducting (HTS) cables inside the plates. AM has advanced enough to produce stellarator components with the necessary geometric complexity, size, and the precision, leading to potentially significant reductions in production time, cost, and waste. The cost of HTS tape has decreased dramatically, and progress in HTS planar magnet development has reached a point where it can be proposed for application to complex 3D non-planar magnets. The main objective of this project is to develop, demonstrate and pre-commercialize a novel, non-planar HTS coil shape that remains superconducting to achieve production scalable reductions in time and cost and performance. The proposed technology is based on the novel concept of a precision sub-scale HTS nonplanar coil assembly. This project focuses on the design, fabrication, material optimization of cable design, and validation and demonstration of the high current carrying capability of superconducting magnets and their support in a complex 3D shape needed for application to stellarator magnetic plasma confinement. The specific objectives of this research program include: (1) The successful application of metal AM to build a precision sub-scale HTS nonplanar coil, (2) An HTS cable and cross-section design that can conform to the required nonplanar coil shape (bend radii as tight as 10-cm) and remains superconducting at an engineering current density of 1.35 kA/cm 2 at 77 K and 1 tesla at the conductor (5 kA in the cable). To achieve the above challenging goals, we have formed a multidisciplinary research team consisting of members from Type One Energy and UW-Madison, MIT PSFC and CFS with complementary skills and strong facilities. The team worked collaboratively on fundamental and applied research on the following three major technical areas: (1) Design, fabrication, and optimization of non-planar HTS Cable The ultimate goal of the project is to determine if commercial REBCO tapes and additive manufacturing can be used to fabricate high field (≥ 10T) non-planar coils with tight bending radii (≃ 100mm) and with a degradation of the critical current (Ic) smaller than 20% with respect to the expected performance. We started with shorter length cable to evaluate the scalability of the production process and eventually reached multiple turns for higher magnetic fields. Our findings suggest that a stellarator coil system of a relevant size, characterized by its asymmetric and non-planar components, can be fabricated using a formed cable in plate method. This system can be simulated using a large-scale modeling approach. The use of hybrid modeling 3 techniques will be pivotal in reducing the complexity of the model and in assessing expected performance in designs. (2) Modeling and simulation of the non-planar HTS Cable Multiphysics simulations are performed using the commercial software and are carried out in self-field conditions, involving 2D and 3D models and twisted around one slot of twist-pitched VIPER cable. Multiphysics simulations are mainly focused on the coil for the critical current evaluation, the magnetic field map, self-Lorentz forces and mechanical, and magnetothermal behavior and the quench dynamics. The detailed model and prediction of the superconducting performance of a stellarator-relevant demonstration cable from numerical simulations supports the results from the actual testing backing the results. A detailed description and results are provided in the later sections. (3) Design, fabrication, and optimization of support for the non-planar HTS Cable The team developed an additive manufactured (AM) coil positioning plate that formed into the required non-planar geometry (with bend radii as tight as 10-cm) and to acceptable tolerances required for a stellarator magnet: (+0.25-mm from ideal on dimensions of coil positioning plates and up to +1-mm from ideal for position of wound coil). The plate materials is also included in this selection process from fabrication and 3D printing perspective and commensurate with eventual application to a fusion reactor. From the cost effectiveness point of view, the HTS coil and plate has the potential to cost less than that made in conventional methods with less waste (<75% waste) reducing time (<50%) and cost (<50%), especially as the AM field matures. The application of advanced manufacturing in the construction of the support plates will also lead to cost reduction, as the cables can be easily replaced, thereby making the assembly modular. With such high primary cost and time savings, high current densities and magnetic field, the funded R&D work has validated the designs, proven the feasibility, and characterized the performance of the HTS coil and plate assembly, paving the way for a relevant-size stellarator coil system.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2020

Resiliency of Degraded Built Infrastructure

Infrastructure resiliency depends on the ability of infrastructure systems to withstand, adapt, and recover from chronic and extreme stresses. In this white paper, we address the resiliency of infrastructure assets and discuss improving infrastructure stability through development of our understanding of cement and concrete degradation. The resiliency of infrastructure during extreme events relies on the condition, adaptability, and recoverability of built infrastructure (roads, bridges, dams), which serves as the backbone of existing infrastructure systems. Much of the built infrastructure in the US has consistently been rated D+ by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). Aged infrastructure introduces risk to the system, since unreliable infrastructure increases the likelihood of failures under chronic and extreme stress and are particularly concerning when extreme events occur. To understand and account for this added risk from poor infrastructure quality, more research is needed on (i) how the changing environment alters the aging of new and existing built infrastructure and (ii) how degradation causes unique failure mechanisms. The aging of built infrastructure is based on degradation of the structural materials, such as concrete and steel supports, which causes failure. Current work in cement/concrete degradation is based on (i) the development of high strength and degradation resistance concrete mixtures, (ii) methods of assessing the age and reliability of existing structures, and (3) modeling of structural stability and the microstructural evolution of concrete/cement from degradation mechanisms (sulfide attack, carbonation, decalcification). Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) has made several investments in studying the durability and degradation of cement based materials, including using SNL-developed codes and methodologies (peridynamics, PFLOTRAN) to focus on chemo-mechanical fracture of cement for energy applications. Additionally, a recent collaboration with the University of Colorado Boulder has included fracture of concrete gravity dams, scaling the existing work to applications in full sized infrastructure problems. Ultimately, SNL has the experience in degradation of cementitious materials to extend the current research portfolio and answer concerns about the resilience of aging built infrastructure.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2022

Thermal Hydraulic Experimental Test Article - Fiscal Year 2022 Final Report

The Thermal Hydraulic Experimental Test Article (THETA) is a METL vessel experiment designed for testing and validating sodium fast reactor components and phenomena. THETA has been scaled using a non-dimensional Richardson number approach to represent temperature distributions during nominal and loss of flow conditions in a sodium fast reactor (SFR), this analysis was detailed in the THETA FY19 report. The facility is being constructed with versatility in mind, allowing for the installation of various immersion heaters, heat pipes, and heat exchangers without significant facility modification. THETA was designed in collaboration with systems code experts to inform the geometry and sensor placement to acquire the highest value code validation data.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2017

CompNanoTox2015: novel perspectives from a European conference on computational nanotoxicology on predictive nanotoxicology

A first European Conference on Computational Nanotoxicology, CompNanoTox, was held in November 2015 in Benahavís, Spain with the objectives to disseminate and integrate results from the European modeling and database projects (NanoPUZZLES, ModENPTox, PreNanoTox, MembraneNanoPart, MODERN, eNanoMapper and EU COST TD1204 MODENA) as well as to create synergies within the European NanoSafety Cluster. This conference was supported by the COST Action TD1204 MODENA on developing computational methods for toxicological risk assessment of engineered nanoparticles and provided a unique opportunity for crossfertilization among complementary disciplines. The efforts to develop and validate computational models crucially depend on high quality experimental data and relevant assays which will be the basis to identify relevant descriptors. The ambitious overarching goal of this conference was to promote predictive nanotoxicology, which can only be achieved by a close collaboration between the computational scientists (e.g. database experts, modeling experts for structure, (eco) toxicological effects, performance and interaction of nanomaterials) and experimentalists from different areas (in particular toxicologists, biologists, chemists and material scientists, among others). The main outcome and new perspectives of this conference are summarized here.

nanoqsar↗
DOE OSTI2022

NRAP-Open-IAM: NRAP Open Source Integrated Assessment Model

Note: This is the last version (a2.6.1) of NRAP-Open-IAM released during NRAP Phase II in 2022. The latest version of NRAP-Open-IAM is available here: https://edx.netl.doe.gov/dataset/phase-iii-nrap-open-iam NRAP-Open-IAM is an open-source software product that enables quantification of containment effectiveness and leakage risk at storage sites in the context of system uncertainties and variability. NRAP-Open-IAM represents the next-generation in a line of systems-based computational models developed for quantitative geological carbon storage (GCS) risk assessment. The model comprises a set of reduced-order and analytical models of various components of the GCS system, potential leakage pathways, receptors of concern including impact to groundwater resources and the atmosphere, a framework to support stochastic simulation, time stepping, uncertainty quantification, other analytical functionality for scenario and risk-performance evaluation, and a basic graphical user interface to support scenario development, data input simulation definition, and basic post-processing and results display. As the NRAP Open-IAM functionality continues to evolve, we continue to add to its capability to develop quantitative, probabilistic, and time-dependent profiles of the evolution of risk at a GCS site and evaluate the influence of uncertain parameters on uncertainty in predicted risk. It can be used to quantify the dynamics of reservoir saturation plume and pressure-affected area, for evaluation of the area of potential groundwater impact (i.e., Area of Review) and monitoring requirements to support cost and regulatory analysis, and for consideration of different post-injection site care and closure scenarios. This submission contains the current version of NRAP-Open-IAM available for evaluation and testing. To use the NRAP-Open-IAM, download the source code (https://edx.netl.doe.gov/dataset/08f396c8-bc5f-44ad-a028-6e98a6ea6d70/resource/4c24a3da-3b40-4ffe-9892-c807ae9f8760) then open the NRAP-Open-IAM user's guide (https://edx.netl.doe.gov/dataset/08f396c8-bc5f-44ad-a028-6e98a6ea6d70/resource/8b27335a-343c-4836-b8a3-3ad0bdc9e669) to read more about the tool. Installation instructions for Windows, Mac, and Linux can be found in the "installers" folder of the extracted NRAP-Open-IAM folder and describe setup of environment (e.g., Python libraries) needed for proper work of the tool. Test of installation can be done by running "python openiam_setup_tests.py" in the "setup" folder. The installation test also runs a test suite to see if the NRAP-Open-IAM has been installed correctly. To run the test suite separately, run "python iam_test.py" in the "test" folder. User's guide: https://edx.netl.doe.gov/dataset/08f396c8-bc5f-44ad-a028-6e98a6ea6d70/resource/8b27335a-343c-4836-b8a3-3ad0bdc9e669 Developer's guide: https://edx.netl.doe.gov/dataset/08f396c8-bc5f-44ad-a028-6e98a6ea6d70/resource/3bc6ee7d-609d-4eb6-80ba-fa6130ee0313 Reservoir simulation data used in some examples distributed with NRAP-Open-IAM: - Kimberlina: https://edx.netl.doe.gov/dataset/08f396c8-bc5f-44ad-a028-6e98a6ea6d70/resource/eb62cece-61b2-4037-9b6d-32407dde2ab8 - Kimberlina (compartmentalized): https://edx.netl.doe.gov/dataset/08f396c8-bc5f-44ad-a028-6e98a6ea6d70/resource/366f9530-3b32-4b84-affe-ab2df1d9a8b5 - FutureGen 2.0: https://edx.netl.doe.gov/dataset/futuregen-2-0-1008-simulation-reservoir-lookup-table NRAP-Open-IAM GitLab repository: https://gitlab.com/NRAP/OpenIAM Related publications: - Bacon, D., Yonkofski, C., Brown, C., Demirkanli, D. and Whiting, J., 2019. Risk-based post injection site care and monitoring for commercial-scale carbon storage: Reevaluation of the FutureGen 2.0 site using NRAP-Open-IAM and DREAM. International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control 90: 102784. - Bacon, D. Demirkanli, D., and White, S., 2020. Probabilistic risk-based Area of Review (AoR) determination for a deep-saline carbon storage site. International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control 102: 103153. - Harp, D., Oldenburg, C., and Pawar, R., 2019. A metric for evaluating conformance robustness during geologic CO2 sequestration operations. International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control 85: 100-108. - Lackey, G., Vasylkivska, V., Huerta, N., King, S., and Dilmore, R., 2019. Managing well leakage risks at a geologic carbon storage site with many wells, International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, 88 :182-194. - Vasylkivska, V., Dilmore, R., Lackey, G., Zhang, Y., King, S., Bacon, D., Chen, B., Mansoor, K., and Harp, D., 2021. NRAP-Open-IAM: A flexible open-source integrated assessment model for geologic carbon storage risk assessment and management, Environmental Modelling & Software, 143: 105114. Presentations: - Chen, B., Harp, D., and Pawar, R., A data assimilation approach (ES-MDA) coupling with NRAP-Open-IAM for quantifying uncertainty reduction in geological CO2 sequestration. AGUFM 2019: T44A-02. - Chen, B., and Harp, D., Improving risk analysis precision for geologic CO2 sequestration by quantifying the uncertainty reduction before and after acquiring monitoring data. 14th Greenhouse Gas Control Technologies Conference, Melbourne, Australia, 2018, pp. 21-26. - Harp, D., National Risk Assessment Partnership Task 2: Containment Assurance. No. LA-UR-19-28654, Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States), 2019. - Vasylkivska, V., King, S., Bacon, D., Harp, D., Chen, B., Mansoor, K., Onishi, T., Yang, Y., Zhang, Y., and Keating, E., NRAP-Open-IAM: An open-source integrated assessment model, poster, Mastering the Subsurface Through Technology Innovation, Partnerships and Collaboration: Carbon Storage and Oil and Natural Gas Technologies Review Meeting, Pittsburgh, PA, August 13-16, 2018. - Vasylkivska, V., Lackey, G., King, S., Wentworth, A., Huerta, N., Creason, C., DiGiulio, J., Yang, Y., and Dilmore, R., Long-term risk analysis of a geologic CO2 storage project during the post-injection period, SIAM Conference on Computational Science and Engineering, Spokane, WA, February 25-March 1, 2019. - Vasylkivska, V., Overview of the NRAP-Open-IAM tool for carbon storage (beta release), 2019 Annual NRAP Tool Users Meeting, Pittsburgh, PA, August 27, 2019. - Vasylkivska, V., Bacon, D., Chen, B., Dilmore, R., Harp, D., King, S., Lackey, G., Lindner, E., Liu, G., Mansoor, K. and Zhang, Y., NRAP-Open-IAM: A new, open-source code for integrated assessment of geologic carbon storage containment effectiveness and leakage risk, poster, American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting 2020 (virtual meeting), December 2020. - Vasylkivska, V., NRAP open-source integrated assessment model and relevant application, oral presentation, NRAP workshop "NRAP Tools for Geologic Carbon Storage Risk-Based Decision Making" held in conjunction with Groundwater Protection Council (GWPC) 2021 Annual Forum (virtual meeting), Salt Lake City, UT, September 2021. - Vasylkivska, V., NRAP-Open-IAM: open-source integrated assessment model, digital poster/demonstration, software demonstration session, 2022 Carbon Management Project Review Meeting, August 16, 2022

AoR↗
DOE OSTI2022

Preliminary Primary System Thermal Fluids Analysis of a Horizontal Compact HTGR

The Horizontal Compact High Temperature Gas Reactor (HC-HTGR) is being designed by a multi-disciplinary team of nuclear, mechanical, and structural engineers, under the support of a DOE-NE Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program’s Advanced Reactor Concepts-20 (ARC-20) award. The objective of this ARC-20 project is to deliver a conceptual design for the proposed HC-HTGR in 3 years and support its commercialization as a safe, low-cost HTGR. Argonne National Laboratory (Argonne) is collaborating on the thermal hydraulic design and analysis of the HC-HTGR reactor pressure vessel internals. The scope of this work includes ensuring the reactor is able to maintain maximum core temperatures below designated safety thresholds during normal operation, shutdown, and accident conditions. This report documents the preliminary thermal hydraulic analysis of the HC-HTGR core design performed with a 1D fluid-3D solid coupled model built using the System Analysis Module (SAM). This assembly level model was utilized to inform the core assembly design, predict the temperature distribution in the peak power assembly including the peak fuel temperature, coolant channel outlet temperatures, and graphite temperature gradients. A key result of this analysis was the determination that the peak fuel temperature remains below the safety threshold of 1250°C. Additionally, this model was used to assess the assembly coolant channel and bypass flow mass flow rate distribution. Following the assembly level analysis, attention turned to the development of a full core reduced order model to be used to predict the core wide coolant flow distribution and to model certain operational and accidental transients.

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗
DOE OSTI2017

A NEW THERMIONIC RF ELECTRON GUN FOR SYNCHROTRON LIGHT SOURCES

A thermionic RF gun is a compact and efficient source of electrons used in many practical applications. RadiaBeam Systems and the Advanced Photon Source at Argonne National Laboratory collaborate in developing of a reliable and robust thermionic RF gun for synchrotron light sources which would offer substantial improvements over existing thermionic RF guns and allow stable operation with up to 1A of beam peak current at a 100 Hz pulse repetition rate and a 1.5 μs RF pulse length. In this paper, we discuss the electromagnetic and engineering design of the cavity and report the progress towards high power tests of the cathode assembly of the new gun.

RF↗
DOE OSTI2018

Hydropower Development Opportunities for Alaska Native Villages

As a part of the Department of Energy’s (DOE) 2014 study on hydropower new stream-reach development (NSD) opportunities in the U.S., Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) coordinated with the Alaskan Energy Authority (AEA) and the United States Army Corps of Engineers to assess Alaska’s undeveloped hydropower potential at sites where no dams currently exist. That study identified 437 feasible sites with a combined capacity of 4,723 MW (Kao et al., 2014). In 2016, ORNL met with the U.S. Department of Energy-Alaska Office to discuss hydropower development opportunities to support Alaska Native villages. ORNL, with AEA’ collaboration is evaluating opportunities to increase renewable energy generation for these villages based on the NSD assessment, recent project license applications, and candidate Alaska Renewable Energy Fund projects.Using data for village location, population, diesel consumption, generation and cost, and proximity to existing hydropower and transmission, an initial NSD site feasibility study was performed. To screen out villages and potential hydropower sites that did not meet high-level feasibility criteria, seven filters were used. Based on these filter values, only eleven villages passed all criteria. These eleven hydropower sites have a combined potential capacity of 2.95MW and could supply an estimated 12,934 MWh of renewable hydropower annually. Results indicate that these eleven villages could potentially reduce their total diesel usage by 520,000 gallons per year, which amounts to a present-day value of 50-year diesel savings totaling more than $57 million by tapping into this potential. Follow-up data collection, reconnaissance studies, and pre-feasibility analyses could provide more insight into hydropower development opportunities for Alaska Native villages and focus on the most promising development opportunities identified through this initial study.

Hadjerioua, Boualem↗
DOE OSTI2016

Post-Fukushima Safety Enhancement Activities in Canada

In the immediate aftermath of the common-cause seismic and tsunami events that triggered the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident on March 11, 2011, the nuclear regulator, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC), requested that all Cass I nuclear facilities re-examine the safety cases for their nuclear facilities. Lessons-learned task forces were established by the CNSC, and the nuclear utilities, Ontario Power Generation (OPG), Bruce Power (BP), and New Brunswick Power (NBP). The purposes of these independent task forces was to develop relevant lessons learned issues for the Candu nuclear power plants operating in Canada and to identify actions that could enhance safety. Subsequently, a CNSC Integrated Action Plan was developed to address the recommendations arising from the CNSC Task Force Report, and the licensees aligned their actions with this plan. The actions were grouped into four categories, as follows. 1. Strengthening defence in depth; Actions included re-assessment of a site-specific external hazards using PSA; physical plant changes to add further cooling water make-up capability to heat sinks; development of new Canadian standards and updated regulatory documents that address requirements for Beyond Design Basis Accidents (BDBA), Probabilistic Safety Assessment (PSA) and Period Safety Review (PSR); development of a new and novel methodology for assessing multi-unit risk that is consistent with the IAEA construct of defence-in-depth (including a safety goal hierarchy and complementary risk analysis methods that address 'Black Swan' events); enhanced management of hydrogen combustion challenges; and enhanced Severe Accident Management Guidelines (SAMG). 2. Enhancing emergency response; Actions included provision of Emergency Mitigation Equipment (EME) such as transportable diesel-driven pumps or fire engines, transportable diesel generators for AC and instrument power; pre-installed connections to in-plant equipment via easily accessible and protected quick-connect points for water and electrical power; upgraded emergency response centres; enhanced communication systems and protocols; and enhanced emergency response programs, training and exercises. 3. Improving the regulatory framework and processes; 4. Enhancing international collaboration. Actions assigned under categories 3 and 4 were placed upon the regulator. This presentation will focus on the assigned actions in categories 1 and 2. The underlying motivation, objectives, and safety benefits associated with the actions will be described within the context of broader aspects of severe accident mitigation in water-cooled reactors. (author)

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗
DOE OSTI2016

Association Mapping of Cell Wall Synthesis Regulatory Genes and Cell Wall Quality in Switchgrass

Inefficient conversion of biomass to biofuels is one of the main barriers for biofuel production from such materials. Approximately half of polysaccharides in biomass remain unused by typical biochemical conversion methods. Conversion efficiency is influenced by the composition and structure of cell walls of biomass. Grasses such as wheat, maize, and rice, as well as dedicated perennial bioenergy crops, like switchgrass, make up ~55% of biomass that can be produced in the United States. Grass cell walls have a different composition and patterning compared with dicotyledonous plants, including the well-studied model plant, Arabidopsis. This project identified genetic determinants of cell wall composition in grasses using both naturally occurring genetic variation of switchgrass and gene network reconstruction and functional assays in rice. In addition, the project linked functional data in rice and other species to switchgrass improvement efforts through curation of the most abundant class of regulators in the switchgrass genome. Characterizing natural diversity of switchgrass for variation in cell wall composition and properties, also known as quality, provides an unbiased avenue for identifying biologically viable diversity in switchgrass cell walls. To characterizing natural diversity, this project generated cell wall composition and enzymatic deconstruction data for ~450 genotypes of the Switchgrass Southern Association Collection (SSAC), a diverse collection composed of 36 switchgrass accessions from the southern U.S. distribution of switchgrass. Comparing these data with other measures of cell wall quality for the same samples demonstrated the complementary nature of the diverse characterization platforms now being used for biomass characterization. Association of the composition data with ~3.2K single nucleotide variant markers identified six significant single nucleotide variant markers co-associated with digestibility and another compositional trait. These markers might be used to select switchgrass genotypes with improved composition in breeding programs for biofuel and forage production. Because the SSAC continues to be characterized by collaborators in the bioenergy community, the data generated will be used to identify additional markers in higher resolution genotyping data to approach identifying the genes and alleles that cause natural variation in switchgrass cell wall quality. For example, these markers can be surveyed in the 2100-member Oklahoma Southern and Northern Lowland switchgrass collections that this project also characterized. An orthogonal approach to biodiversity studies, using comparative functional genomics permits systematic querying of how much regulatory information is likely to be transferable from dicots to grasses and use of accumulated functional genomics resources for better-characterized grass species, such as rice, itself a biomass source in global agriculture and in certain regions. The project generated and tested a number of specific hypotheses regarding cell wall transcription factors and enzymes of grasses. To aid identification of cell wall regulators, the project assembled a novel, highdepth and -quality gene association network using a general linearized model scoring system to combine rice gene network data. Using known or putative orthologs of Arabidopsis cell wall biosynthesis genes and regulators, the project pulled from this network a cell wall sub-network that includes 96 transcription factors. Reverse genetics of a co-ortholog of the Arabidopsis MYB61 transcription factor in rice revealed that this regulatory node has evolved the ability to regulate grass-specific cell wall synthesis enzymes. A transcription factor with such activity has not been previously characterized to our knowledge, representing a major conclusion of this work. Changes in gene expression in a protoplast-based assay demonstrated positive or negative roles in cell wall regulation for eleven other transcription factors from the rice gene network. Eight of fifteen (53%) of these have not previously been examined for this function. Some of these may represent novel grass-diverged cell wall regulators, while others are likely to have this function across angiosperms. A parallel effort of this project to expand knowledge of enzymes that have evolved to function in grass cell wall synthesis, revealed that a grass-diverged enzyme in rice, OsAT 5 , ferulates monolignols that are naturally incorporated into grass cell walls. This finding opens potential natural selection avenues for improving biomass composition for downstream processing by weak base pretreatment. Thus, this project has significantly expanded knowledge of cell wall synthesis and regulation in rice, information that can be used in reverse genetics and synthetic biology approaches to re-engineer cell walls for improved production of biofuel and high-value products. To lay the foundation for translating these results directly for switchgrass improvement, the project employed a comparative phylogenetic analysis of the major group of cell wall transcription factors that have been found to function in cell wall regulation, the R 2 R 3 MYBs. This analysis concluded that known cell wall regulators are largely conserved across switchgrass, rice, maize, poplar, and Arabidopsis. This interpretation is also largely consistent with the gene network analysis described above, though both approaches provide evidence that some co-orthologs of Arabidopsis regulators have diminished or increased in importance based on gene expression patterns. Also, several clades containing dicot cell wall regulators have expanded, consistent with the evolution of new cell wall regulators. This latter result is supported by functional analysis of the R 2 R 3 MYB protein SWAM 1 in a collaboration between this project and the DOE-funded group of Dr. S. Hazen at the University of Massachusettes. The curation of the switchgrass genome through this project provides specific targets for future engineering of switchgrass cell wall regulation and may also facilitate identification of regulators that underlie the molecular markers that are genetically linked to differences in cell wall quality. With the goal of spurring further research and technological developments in lignocellulosic biofuel production, this work has been communicated to the bioenergy and cell wall communities though various presentations and publications. To date, three manuscripts have been published, two others are near to publication, three others are in an advanced state, and two to four more are likely to be written based on analyses still in progress. In addition, project participants have presented thirteen posters and talks at regional, national, and international meetings about aspects of this project. In sum, the work supported by this funding has made and communicated significant progress in identifying the genes that grasses use for cell wall synthesis and regulation, information that will be used by project participants and others to improve the efficiency of conversion of lignocellulosic biomass to biofuels.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗
DOE OSTI2016

Creating a ‘Collaboratory’ environment to transcend traditional research barriers: Insights from the United States

Today’s scientific endeavors often resemble a large lecture hall partitioned into separate sectors. Scientists, engineers and students study big questions largely in isolation. Here, local factors drive their activities, but the groups have overlapping interests and capabilities for tackling big questions about our planet’s energy future.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗
DOE OSTI2018

Test Result of 650 MHz, Beta 0.61 Single Cell Niobium Cavity

VECC has been involved in the design, analysis and development of 650 MHz, beta 0.61 (LB650), elliptical Superconducting RF linac cavity, as part of research and development activities on SRF cavities and associated technologies under Indian Institutions Fermilab Collaboration (IIFC). A single-cell niobium cavity has been indigenously designed and developed at VECC, with the help of Electron Beam Welding (EBW) facility at IUAC, New Delhi. Various measurements, processing and testing at 2K in Vertical Test Stand (VTS) of the single-cell cavity was carried out at ANL and Fermilab, USA, with active participation of VECC engineers. It achieved a maximum accelerating gradient(Eacc) of 34.5 MV/m with Quality Factor of 2·10⁹ and 30 MV/m with Quality Factor of 1.5·10¹⁰. This is probably the highest accelerating gradient achieved so far in the world for LB650 cavities. This paper describes the design, fabrication and measurement of the single cell niobium cavity. Cavity processing and test results of Vertical Test of the single-cell niobium cavity are also presented.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Analysis of Organic Electron Materials using Neutron Scattering (Final Report)

Neutron scattering is a powerful suite of measurement techniques that enable unique analysis of structure and dynamics of a wide variety of materials. Specifically, neutrons interact strongly with protons, which enables excellent contrast in light element organic materials that cannot be obtained with any other measurements. This series of three proposals focused on using inelastic neutron scattering (INS) to study the vibrations (dynamics) of the organic molecules involved in organic electronic devices. Our main goals were to demonstrate that INS is capable of elucidating new, useful, and unique knowledge about organic electronic samples that could be used to improve the function of devices or to solve outstanding problems that could not be solved using other measurement techniques. Since all of the goal involved using INS or other neutron techniques to do something “new” a large part of the effort was focused on complex data interpretation and development of modeling workflows that could be used by other members of the organic electronics community to study their materials. To facilitate the goal of making INS measurements more accessible to a broader community and for a wider range of materials, we optimized and engineered the computational workflows to be well documented, publicly available, and user friendly. The individual titles of the three sequential DOE-BES awards are: (1) Engineering doping profiles in organic semiconducting materials, (2) Measurement and modeling of molecular dopant structure and dynamics, and (3) Quantification of Dynamic Disorder in Electronic and Excitonic Organic Materials. For readability, this report is organized to highlight the progress of the research thematically. Many of the ideas started in one grant period and then spilled over into later awards and collaborative research.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2022

Use of novel refractory design and installation techniques for improved energy efficiency in iron and steel and other energy intensive industries

This paper describes the planned work to be performed under a United States Department of Energy funded project to bring together the key players necessary to develop and deploy new technology which could increase the thermal efficiency of the steel industry as well as other energy intensive industries. It is hoped that such improvements in energy efficiency will reduce the overall energy and environmental footprint of domestic industry, as well as provide economic benefit to the individual companies. The described project brings together a vertically integrated collaborative team consisting of the end user (U.S. Steel), material producers/suppliers (Allied Mineral Products and Reno Refractories), raw material suppliers (American Metallurgical Services, Minerals Manufacturing), and research organizations (Oak Ridge National Laboratory, National Energy Technology Laboratory and University of Alabama-Birmingham) with the objective of designing and producing new refractory materials based on novel aggregates, improved particle packing, and engineered surface texture. In addition, the recycling and use of spent refractory materials will be investigated and a novel installation technique will be developed taking advantage of new additive manufacturing technology and existing refractory shotcrete technology. It is hoped that the combination of these new technologies will allow for the improvement of the energy, environmental, and economic efficiency of the steel industry while also reducing the environmental footprint of the refractory and steel industries. Additionally, the developed technology is expected to be applicable to other energy intensive industries such as cement, glass, pulp and paper, and non-ferrous metals processing.

Hemrick, James↗
DOE OSTI2012

Advanced reprocessing developments in Europe contribution of European projects ACSEPT and ACTINET-I3

Nuclear energy has more than ever to demonstrate that it can contribute safely and on a sustainable way to answer the international increase in energy needs. Actually, in addition to an increased safety of the reactors themselves, its acceptance is still closely associated to our capability to reduce the lifetime of the nuclear waste, to manage them safely and to propose options for a better use of the natural resources. Spent fuel reprocessing can help to reach these objectives. But this cannot be achieved only by optimizing industrial processes through engineering studies. It is of a primary importance to increase our fundamental knowledge in actinide sciences in order to build the future of nuclear energy on reliable and scientifically-founded results, and therefore meet the needs of the future fuel cycles in terms of fabrication and performance of fuels, reprocessing and waste management. At the European level, both the collaborative project ACSEPT and the Integrated Infrastructure Initiative ACTINET-I3 work together to improve our knowledge in actinides chemistry and therefore develop advanced separation processes. These tools are complementary and work in close connection on some specific issues such as the understanding of the selectivity of extracting organic ligands. By offering trans-national access to the main nuclear research facility in Europe, ACTINET-I3 aims at increasing the knowledge in actinide sciences by gathering all the expertise available in European nuclear research institutes or university and giving them the opportunity to come and work in hot-labs (ITU, Atalante...) or beamlines (ESFR, ANKA, PSI) ACSEPT is focused on the development of advanced separation processes, both aqueous and pyrochemical. Head-end steps, fuel re-fabrication, solvent treatment, waste management are also taken into account. In aqueous process development, the SANEX and innovative SANEX flowsheets demonstration were successfully achieved. Chemical systems were selected for GANEX and a hot-test under finalization thanks to an important collaboration between European teams. In pyrometallurgy, studies on actinide back-extraction from aluminium and exhaustive electrolysis allowed the validation of two flowsheets developed from more then 10 years in Europe. In addition, efforts were made to increase collaborations, mutualize and homogenise procedures and share good practices. A training and education program including seminars, workshops, brainstorming meeting but also student exchanges and support to post-doctorate fellowships was a key point for maintaining and increasing a high expertise level in actinide separation sciences in Europe. The second ACSEPT International workshop, organised as a specific session of the next Atalante 2012 International Conference, will conclude the ACSEPT project. (authors)

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗