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Comparison of Deterministic and Statistical Models for Water Quality Compliance Forecasting in the San Joaquin River Basin, California

Model selection for water quality forecasting depends on many factors including analyst expertise and cost, stakeholder involvement and expected performance. Water quality forecasting in arid river basins is especially challenging given the importance of protecting beneficial uses in these environments and the livelihood of agricultural communities. In the agriculture-dominated San Joaquin River Basin of California, real-time salinity management (RTSM) is a state-sanctioned program that helps to maximize allowable salt export while protecting existing basin beneficial uses of water supply. The RTSM strategy supplants the federal total maximum daily load (TMDL) approach that could impose fines associated with exceedances of monthly and annual salt load allocations of up to $1 million per year based on average year hydrology and salt load export limits. The essential components of the current program include the establishment of telemetered sensor networks, a web-based information system for sharing data, a basin-scale salt load assimilative capacity forecasting model and institutional entities tasked with performing weekly forecasts of river salt assimilative capacity and scheduling west-side drainage export of salt loads. Web-based information portals have been developed to share model input data and salt assimilative capacity forecasts together with increasing stakeholder awareness and involvement in water quality resource management activities in the river basin. Two modeling approaches have been developed simultaneously. The first relies on a statistical analysis of the relationship between flow and salt concentration at three compliance monitoring sites and the use of these regression relationships for forecasting. The second salt load forecasting approach is a customized application of the Watershed Analysis Risk Management Framework (WARMF), a watershed water quality simulation model that has been configured to estimate daily river salt assimilative capacity and to provide decision support for real-time salinity management at the watershed level. Analysis of the results from both model-based forecasting approaches over a period of five years shows that the regression-based forecasting model, run daily Monday to Friday each week, provided marginally better performance. However, the regression-based forecasting model assumes the same general relationship between flow and salinity which breaks down during extreme weather events such as droughts when water allocation cutbacks among stakeholders are not evenly distributed across the basin. A recent test case shows the utility of both models in dealing with an exceedance event at one compliance monitoring site recently introduced in 2020.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Recover Act. Verification of Geothermal Tracer Methods in Highly Constrained Field Experiments

The prediction of the geothermal system efficiency is strong linked to the character of the flow system that connects injector and producer wells. If water flow develops channels or “short circuiting” between injection and extraction wells thermal sweep is poor and much of the reservoir is left untapped. The purpose of this project was to understand how channelized flow develops in fracture geothermal reservoirs and how it can be measured in the field. We explored two methods of assessing channelization: hydraulic connectivity tests and tracer tests. These methods were tested at a field site using two verification methods: ground penetrating radar (GPR) images of saline tracer and heat transfer measurements using distributed temperature sensing (DTS). The field site for these studies was the Altona Flat Fractured Rock Research Site located in northeastern New York State. Altona Flat Rock is an experimental site considered a geologic analog for some geothermal reservoirs given its low matrix porosity. Because soil overburden is thin, it provided unique access to saturated bedrock fractures and the ability image using GPR which does not effectively penetrate most soils. Five boreholes were drilled in a “five spot” pattern covering 100 m2 and hydraulically isolated in a single bedding plane fracture. This simple system allowed a complete characterization of the fracture. Nine small diameter boreholes were drilled from the surface to just above the fracture to allow the measurement of heat transfer between the fracture and the rock matrix. The focus of the hydraulic investigation was periodic hydraulic testing. In such tests, rather than pumping or injection in a well at a constant rate, flow is varied to produce an oscillating pressure signal. This pressure signal is sensed in other wells and the attenuation and phase lag between the source and receptor is an indication of hydraulic connection. We found that these tests were much more effective than constant pumping tests in identifying a poorly connected well. As a result, we were able to predict which well pairs would demonstrate channelized flow. The focus of the tracer investigation was multi-ionic tests. In multi-ionic tests several ionic tracers are injected simultaneously and the detected in a nearby pumping well. The time history of concentration, or breakthrough curve, will show a separation of the tracers. Anionic tracers travel with the water but cationic tracer undergo chemical exchange with cations on the surface of the rock. The degree of separation is indicative of the surface area exposed to the tracer. Consequently, flow channelization will tend to decrease the separation in the breakthrough. Estimation of specific surface area (the ration of fracture surface area to formation volume) is performed through matching the breakthrough curve with a transport model. We found that the tracer estimates of surface area were confirmed the prediction of channelized flow between well pairs produced by the periodic hydraulic tests. To confirm that the hydraulic and tracer tests were correctly predicting channelize flow, we imaged the flow field using surface GPR. Saline water was injected between the well pairs which produced a change in the amplitude and phase of the reflected radar signal. A map was produced of the migration of saline tracer from these tests which qualitatively confirmed the flow channelization predicted by the hydraulic and tracer tests. The resolution of the GPR was insufficient to quantitatively estimate swept surface area, however. Surface GPR is not applicable in typical geothermal fields because the penetration depths do not exceed 10’s of meters. Nevertheless, the method of using of phase to measure electrical conductivity and the assessment of antennae polarization represent a significant advancement in the field of surface GPR. The effect of flow character on fracture / rock thermal exchange was evaluated using heated water as a tracer. Water elevated 30 degrees C above the formation water was circulated between two wells pairs. One well pair had been identified in hydraulic and tracer testing as well connected and the other poorly connected. Temperature rise was measured in the adjacent rock matrix using coiled fiber optic cable interrogated for temperature using a DTS. This experimental design produced over 4000 temperature measurements every hour. We found that heat transfer between the fracture and the rock matrix was highly impacted by the character of the flow field. The strongly connected wells which had demonstrated flow channelization produced heat rise in a much more limited area than the more poorly connected wells. In addition, the heat increase followed the natural permeability of the fracture rather than the induced flow field. The primary findings of this work are (1) even in a single relatively planar fracture, the flow field can be highly heterogeneous and exhibit flow channeling, (2) channeling results from a combination of fracture permeability structure and the induced flow field, and (3) flow channeling leads to reduced heat transfer. Multi-ionic tracers effectively estimate relative surface area but an estimate of ion-exchange coefficients are necessary to provide an absolute measure of specific surface area. Periodic hydraulic tests also proved a relative indicator of connectivity but cannot prove an absolute measure of specific surface area.

15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY↗

Compositing and Characterization of SE Quadrant Waste Exemplars

This report outlines the experimental investigation and characterization of transport properties in Hanford SE quadrant High-Level Waste (HLW). The goal of the study was to establish baseline behaviors of bulk composite rheology and settling characteristics to facilitate waste treatment process design for the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) and avoid waste conditions and properties favorable to bubble cascade gas release events. The study focused on two major objectives: 1) identifying, obtaining, and preparing relevant Hanford tank waste samples for evaluation and 2) quantifying the “as-received” rheology and transport properties of the samples. Twenty-three centrifuged core segments originating from tanks AN-101, AN-106, and AW-105 were selected based on compositional relevance to SE quadrant PUREX cladding waste. These materials were composited into five waste composites enriched with target analytes: aluminum (Al), iron (Fe), phosphate (PO 4 ), uranium (U), and zirconium (Zr). Physical property and transport testing examined particle size distributions, bulk densities, settling behaviors, rheological properties, shear strengths, and just-suspended mixing speeds (NJS). Testing revealed two distinct composite classifications based on rheological characteristics: non-Newtonian composites (Fe and PO 4 ) and Newtonian composites (Al, U, and Zr). The Fe and PO 4 composites exhibited slow settling rates and reduced mobilization proclivity, attributable to strong particle-particle interactions and the formation of yield structures within non-Newtonian slurries. In contrast, the Al, U, and Zr composites displayed rapid settling and dense compaction behaviors, indicative of minimal structuring and interactions. Shear strengths for all composites were generally low relative to prior studies of SE quadrant waste, with only the U composite showing elevated strength approaching values reported in previous literature. Repeat shear strength measurements revealed contributions from dense granular material in the U composite and stronger cohesive properties in the Al composite. Settling data highlighted hindered settling behavior, with rates falling more than one order of magnitude below estimates based on Stokes’ law and rate decreasing as composite UDS content increased. NJS testing demonstrated different mobilization behaviors between cohesive and granular composites. The Fe composite required the highest mixing rate for resuspension, while the Al composite was the easiest to resuspend. Comparison of measured NJS against predictions made using the Zwietering correlation suggests non-Newtonian behavior alters resuspension mechanics, rendering non-Newtonian systems more stable against resuspension lift forces relative to their granular counterparts.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

Integral Reactor Containment Condensation Model and Experimental Validation

This NEUP funded project, NEUP 12-3630, is for experimental, numerical and analytical studies on high-pressure steam condensation phenomena in a steel containment vessel connected to a water cooling tank, carried out at Oregon State University (OrSU) and the University of Wisconsin at Madison (UW-Madison). In the three years of investigation duration, following the original proposal, the planned tasks have been completed: (1) Performed a scaling study for the full pressure test facility applicable to the reference design for the condensation heat transfer process during design basis accidents (DBAs), modified the existing test facility to route the steady-state secondary steam flow into the high pressure containment for controllable condensation tests, and extended the operations at negative gage pressure conditions (OrSU). (2) Conducted a series of DBA and quasi-steady experiments using the full pressure test facility to provide a reliable high pressure condensation database (OrSU). (3) Analyzed experimental data and evaluated condensation model for the experimental conditions, and predicted the prototypic containment performance under accidental conditions (UW-Madison). A film flow model was developed for the scaling analysis, and the results suggest that the 1/3 scaled test facility covers large portion of laminar film flow, leading to a lower average heat transfer coefficient comparing to the prototypic value. Although it is conservative in reactor safety analysis, the significant reduction of heat transfer coefficient (50%) could under estimate the prototypic condensation heat transfer rate, resulting in inaccurate prediction of the decay heat removal capability. Further investigation is thus needed to quantify the scaling distortion for safety analysis code validation. Experimental investigations were performed in the existing MASLWR test facility at OrST with minor modifications. A total of 13 containment condensation tests were conducted for pressure ranging from 4 to 21 bar with three different static inventories of non-condensable gas. Condensation and heat transfer rates were evaluated employing several methods, notably from measured temperature gradients in the HTP as well as measured condensate formation rates. A detailed mass and energy accounting was used to assess the various measurement methods and to support simplifying assumptions required for the analysis. Condensation heat fluxes and heat transfer coefficients are calculated and presented as a function of pressure to satisfy the objectives of this investigation. The major conclusions for those tests are summarized below: (1) In the steam blow-down tests, the initial condensation heat transfer process involves the heating-up of the containment heat transfer plate. An inverse heat conduction model was developed to capture the rapid transient transfer characteristics, and the analysis method is applicable to SMR safety analysis. (2) The average condensation heat transfer coefficients for different pressure conditions and non-condensable gas mass fractions were obtained from the integral test facility, through the measurements of the heat conduction rate across the containment heat transfer plate, and from the water condensation rates measurement based on the total energy balance equation. 15 (3) The test results using the measured HTP wall temperatures are considerably lower than popular condensation models would predict mainly due to the side wall conduction effects in the existing MASLWR integral test facility. The data revealed the detailed heat transfer characteristics of the model containment, important to the SMR safety analysis and the validation of associated evaluation model. However this approach, unlike separate effect tests, cannot isolate the condensation heat transfer coefficient over the containment wall, and therefore is not suitable for the assessment of the condensation heat transfer coefficient against system pressure and noncondensable gas mass fraction. (4) The average condensation heat transfer coefficients measured from the water condensation rates through energy balance analysis are appropriate, however, with considerable uncertainties due to the heat loss and temperature distribution on the containment wall. With the consideration of the side wall conduction effects, the results indicate that the measured heat transfer coefficients in the tests is about 20% lower than the prediction of Dehbi’s correlation, mainly due to the side wall conduction effects. The investigation also indicates an increase in the condensation heat transfer coefficient at high containment pressure conditions, but the uncertainties invoked with this method appear to be substantial. (5) Non-condensable gas in the tests has little effects on the condensation heat transfer at high elevation measurement ports. It does affect the bottom measurements near the water level position. The results suggest that the heavier non-condensable gas is accumulated in the lower portion of the containment due to stratification in the narrow containment space. The overall effects of the non-condensable gas on the heat transfer process should thus be negligible for tall containments of narrow condensation spaces in most SMR designs. Therefore, the previous correlations with noncondensable gas effects are not appropriate to those small SMR containments due to the very poor mixing of steam and non-condensable gas. The MELCOR simulation results agree with the experimental data reasonably well. However, it is observed that the MELCOR overpredicts the heat flux for all analyzed tests. The MELCOR predicts that the heat fluxes for CCT’s approximately range from 30 to 45 kW/m2 whereas the experimental data (averaged) ranges from about 25 to 40 kW/m2. This may be due to the limited availability of liquid film models included in MELCOR. Also, it is believed that due to complex test geometry, measured temperature gradients across the heat transfer plate may have been underestimated and thus the heat flux had been underestimated. The MELCOR model predicts a film thickness on the order of 100 microns, which agrees very well with film flow model developed in this study for scaling analysis. However, the expected differences in film thicknesses for near vacuum and near atmospheric test conditions are not significant. Further study on the behavior of condensate film is expected to refine the simulation results. Possible refinements include but are not limited to, the followings: CFD simulation focusing on the liquid film behavior and benchmarking with experimental analyses for simpler geometries. 16 1 INTRODUCTION This NEUP funded project, NEUP 12-3630, is for experimental, numerical and analytical studies on high-pressure steam condensation phenomena in a steel containment vessel connected to a water cooling tank, carried out at Oregon State University (OrSU) and the University of Wisconsin at Madison (UW-Madison). The experimental results are employed to validate the containment condensation model in reactor containment system safety analysis code for integral SMRs. Such a containment condensation model is important to demonstrate the adequate cooling. In the three years of investigation, following the original proposal, the following planned tasks have been completed: (1) Performed a scaling study for the full pressure test facility applicable to the reference design for the condensation heat transfer process during design basis accidents (DBAs), modified the existing test facility to route the steady-state secondary steam flow into the high pressure containment for controllable condensation tests, and extended the operations at negative gage pressure conditions (OrSU). (2) Conducted a series of DBA and quasi-steady experiments using the full pressure test facility to provide a reliable high pressure condensation database (OrSU). (3) Analyzed experimental data and evaluated condensation model for the experimental conditions, and predicted the prototypic containment performance under accidental conditions (UW-Madison). The results are applicable to integral Small Modular Reactor (SMR) designs, including NuScale, mPower, Westinghouse SMR, Holtec-160 and other integral reactors with small containments of relatively high pressures under accidental conditions. Testing has been conducted at the OrSU laboratory in the existing MASLWR (Multi-Application Small Light Water Reactor) integral test facility sponsored by the US Department of Energy. Its highpressure stainless steel containment model (~2 MPa) is scaled to the NuScale SMR currently under development at NuScale Power, Inc.. Minor modifications to the model containment have been made to control the non-condensable gas fraction and to utilize the secondary loop stable steam flow for condensation testing. UW-Madison has developed a containment condensation model, which leveraged previous validated containment heat transfer work carried out at UW-Madison, and extended the range of applicability of the model to integral SMR designs that utilize containment vessels of high heat transfer efficiencies. In this final report, the research background and literature survey are presented in Chapter 2 and 3, respectively. The test facility description and modifications are summarized in Chapter 4, and the scaling analysis is introduced in Chapter 5. The tests description, procedures, and data analysis are presented in Chapter 6, while the numerical modeling is presented in Chapter 7, followed by a conclusion section in Chapter 8.

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗

Value of Geothermal Energy Storage for Supply-Side and Demand-Side Applications

This report presents the results of a study examining the value potential for geothermal energy storage (GES), a long-duration energy storage resource that stores thermal and/or geomechanical energy in the subsurface. GES could benefit the overall U.S. power system by temporally shifting electricity generation (supply-side) or meeting building heating and cooling load (demand-side). This report analyzes supply-side and demand-side opportunities independently because of differences in applications and models. Currently there is significant uncertainty about the development costs for GES, with only a limited number of demonstration plants for electric energy storage and building heating and cooling storage developments. In this report, we estimate the value of supply-side and demand-side GES to the bulk power system in the contiguous United States. Because of the significant uncertainty about GES development costs, this analysis does not consider GES deployment costs but instead focuses on the value of GES to the U.S. electricity system. The estimated values of GES provide reference points for economically competitive commercial cost targets. Supply-side GES is modeled as part of an enhanced geothermal system (EGS) generation plant in NREL's Regional Energy Deployment System (ReEDS) capacity expansion model (Ho et al. 2021). In contrast to conventional geothermal plants, which generate constant power, EGS plants have unique features that may allow for in-reservoir energy storage for flexible generation. Demand-side GES for heating and cooling, including seasonal hot and cold storage and short-duration heat pump storage, is incorporated into a price-taker model using Cambium electricity marginal cost projections. To establish an upper bound for the value of GES, analysis focused on favorable scenarios for storage with high generation from zero marginal cost, variable renewable energy resources. High penetrations of variable renewable energy generation can increase hourly electricity price variability, which increases the value of temporal energy arbitrage for storage technologies like GES.

15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY↗

Optimization-Based Dynamic Voltage Support of Microgrids Using Energy Storage Systems

A microgrid network is characterized by a high R/X ratio, making the voltage more sensitive to active power changes compared to bulk power systems, where the voltage is regulated primarily by reactive power. Due to its sensitivity, voltage control approaches for microgrids should also consider the active power input coupling, making it very different from conventional power systems. Additionally, as the energy costs associated with active and reactive powers are different and the operational conditions of microgrids connected to active distribution systems vary over time, the ideal controller to provide voltage support must be flexible enough to handle these technical and operational constraints. This paper proposes a model predictive control approach to provide dynamic voltage support using energy storage systems. This approach uses a simplified predictive model of the system to solve the model predictive control problem. By proper selection of model predictive control weighting parameters, the quality of service provided can be adjusted to achieve the desired performance. A simulation study in MATLAB/Simulink validates the proposed approach for the Cordova, Alaska microgrid. Results show that the performance of the voltage support can be adjusted depending on the choice of weight and constraints of the controller.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

Electronic Spin Relaxation and Clustering in High-Pressure High-Temperature Synthesized Microcrystalline Diamond Particles with Reduced Nitrogen Content

The negatively charged nitrogen-vacancy (NV – ) color center in diamonds is widely studied because of numerous applications of this unique quantum system in sensing and quantum information sciences. While substitutional nitrogen is required to form the NV – centers in diamond, it also yields other paramagnetic defects─primarily the neutrally charged substitutional nitrogen centers (P1)─that decrease NV – spin coherence, which in turn degrades performance in applications. Herein, we investigate high-pressure high-temperature synthesized diamond microparticles (ca. 140–185 μm) having lower─ranging from 3 to 38 ppm─than the typical nitrogen content of type 1b diamond ( ca. 100 ppm and higher) typically used for the production of fluorescent diamond particles with NV – centers. A suite of electron paramagnetic resonance, optically detected magnetic resonance, and nuclear magnetic resonance methods are used to characterize spin properties of P1 and NV – centers in the particles. Upon decreasing the nitrogen content from 29 to 3 ppm, the ensemble NV – T 2 relaxation time increased by about 3-fold as measured directly in the Hahn Echo experiment at magnetic field of 1.2 T. Analysis of electronic relaxation of P1 centers revealed the existence of at least two distinct populations of P1 centers, consisting of fast and slower relaxing spins and allowed for an estimation of local concentrations. Even with <10 ppm nitrogen contents, the analysis indicated a highly heterogeneous distribution of P1 centers, suggesting the possibility of P1 spin clustering even at low nitrogen concentrations. The combined data demonstrate that the particles prepared from HPHT diamond with a low nitrogen content offer improved spin properties that are beneficial for NV – sensing applications.

Carbon↗

Hadron collider potential for excited bosons search

The e {sup +} e {sup −} and μ{sup +}μ{sup −} dilepton final states are the most clear channels for a new heavy neutral resonance search. Their advantage is that usually in the region of expected heavy-mass resonance peak the main irreducible background, from the Standard Model Drell-Yan process, contributes two orders of magnitude smaller than the signal. In this paper we consider the future prospects for search for the excited neutral Z*-bosons. The bosons can be observed as a Breit-Wigner resonance peak in the dilepton invariant mass distributions in the same way as the well-known extra gauge Z′ bosons. However, the Z* bosons have unique signatures in transverse momentum, angular and pseudorapidity distributions of the final leptons, which allow to distinguish them from the other heavy neutral resonances. At present only the ATLAS Collaboration has looked for such new excitations at the Large Hadron Collider and has published its results for 7 TeV collision energy. After successful comparison of our evaluation with these official results we present our estimations for the discovery potential and the exclusion limits on the Z*-boson search in pp collisions at higher centre-of-mass energies and different luminosities. In particular, LHC Run 2 can discover Z*-boson with its mass up to 5.3 TeV, while the High Luminosity LHC can extend that reach to 6.2 TeV. The High Energy LHC (with collision energy of 33 TeV) will be able to probe two times heavier resonance masses at the same integrated luminosities.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Aerosol Vertical Profiling at Oliktok Point (AVPOP) Field Campaign Report

Aerosols are an important component of the atmospheric system through their various impacts on climate. Notably, the largest uncertainty of the energy budget (i.e., radiative forcing estimate) is the aerosol indirect effect. Aerosol-induced microphysical modifications influence cloud lifetime and albedo. However, constraining aerosol-cloud impacts in climate models, specifically in regions such as the Arctic, remains a significant challenge due to limited observations. The efficacy of an aerosol to impact the arctic energy budget largely depends on its concentration, composition, and source. While ground-based measurements will provide a consistent, high-resolution time series of aerosol observations, the arctic atmosphere can be stratified, and thus what is observed on the ground may not be representative of the aerosol aloft. A key gap in arctic aerosol research is routine vertical profiling of abundance and source characterization. Previous work outside of the Arctic has focused on using launched or tethered balloon systems (LBS and TBS, respectively) to measure vertical profiles of aerosol size distributions and has demonstrated the utility of such observations (e.g., Hofmann et al. 1989; Hofmann 1993; Iwasaka et al. 2003; Kim et al. 2003; Tobo et al. 2007). More specifically, particle spectrometers have also been deployed via TBS systems (de Boer et al. 2018; Greenberg et al. 2009; Maletto et al. 2003; Renard et al. 2016; Wehner et al. 2007; Siebert et al. 2004) affording information on aerosol layer locations and evolution by means of multiple profiles. Filter samples for post-processing of aerosol composition and ice nucleation properties have also been conducted in mid-latitudes (Creamean et al. 2018). However, while these studies present novel measurements of aerosol vertical profiling via balloon systems, few exist to date in the Arctic. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) user facility TBS is composed of a variety of winches, balloons, and instrumentation that flies within ARM’s Restricted Airspace (R-2204) at the third ARM Mobile Facility (AMF3) at Oliktok Point, Alaska (Figure 1). The system payload comprises instruments that can simultaneously collect in situ data on horizontal winds, ice microphysics, turbulence, thermodynamic state, aerosols, and the cloud-top environment (https://www.arm.gov/capabilities/instruments/tbs). Recent campaigns at AMF3 have involved the use of the ARM helikite, which is a balloon-kite hybrid that uses lighter-than-air principles to obtain its initial lift and a kite to achieve stability and dynamic lift. Additional information on the specifications of the helikite TBS can be found in the ARM TBS handbook (Dexheimer 2018).

Oliktok Point, North Slope of Alaska,, tethered ba↗

Acquisition and Early Losses of Rare Gases from the Deep Earth

Direct observations show that the deep Earth contains rare gases of solar composition distinct from those in the atmosphere. We examine the implications of mantle rare gas characteristics on acquisition of rare gases from the solar nebula and subsequent losses due to a large impact. Deep mantle rare gas concentrations and isotopic compositions can be obtained from a model of transport and distribution of mantle rare gases. This model assumes the lower mantle closed early, while the upper mantle is open to subduction from the atmosphere and mass transfer from the lower mantle. Constraints are derived that can be incorporated into models for terrestrial volatile acquisition: (1) Calculated lower-mantle Xe-isotopic ratios indicate that the fraction of radiogenic Xe produced by I-129 and Pu-244 during the first about 10(exp 8) yr was lost, a conclusion also drawn for atmospheric Xe. Thus, either the Earth was made from materials that had lost >99% of rare gases about (0.7-2) x 10(exp 8) yr after the solar system formed, or gases were then lost from the fully formed Earth. (2) Concentrations of 3He and 20Ne in the lower mantle were established after these losses. (3) Neon-isotopic data indicates that mantle Ne has solar composition. The model allows for solar Ar/Ne and Xe/Ne in the lower mantle if a dominant fraction of upper mantle Ar and Xe are subduction-derived. If Earth formed in the presence of the solar nebula, it could have been melted by accretional energy and the blanketing effect of a massive, nebula-derived atmosphere. Gases from this atmosphere would have been sequestered within the molten Earth by dissolution at the surface and downward mixing. It was found that too much Ne would be dissolved in the Earth unless the atmosphere began to escape when the Earth was only partially assembled. Here we consider conditions required to initially dissolve sufficient rare gases to account for the present lower mantle concentrations after subsequent losses at 10(exp 8) yr. It is assumed that equilibration of the atmosphere with a thoroughly molten mantle was rapid, so that initial abundances of gases retained in any mantle layer reflected surface conditions when the layer solidified. For subsequent gas loss of 99.5% and typical solubility coefficients, a total pressure of 100 atm was required for an atmosphere of solar composition. Calculations of the pressure at the base of a primordial atmosphere indicate that this value might be exceeded by an order of magnitude or more for an atmosphere supported by accretional energy. Surface temperatures of about 4000 K would have been produced, probably high enough to melt the deep mantle. Initial distributions of retained rare gases would then be determined by the history of surface pressure and temperature during mantle cooling and solidification, i.e., the coupled cooling of Earth and atmosphere. The Earth's thermal state was determined by its surface temperature and the efficiency of convection in the molten mantle, estimated to be sufficient to maintain an adiabatic gradient. Because the melting curve is steeper than the adiabat, solidification of the mantle proceeded outward from the interior. Incorporation of atmospheric gases in the mantle therefore occurred over a range in surface temperature of a few thousand degrees Kelvin. The thermal state of the atmosphere was controlled by total luminosity of the Earth (energy) released by accreting planetesimals and the cooling Earth), nebular temperature and pressure, and atmospheric opacity. The energy released by accretion declined with time as did nebular pressure. Analytical solutions for an idealized (constant opacity radiative atmosphere show that declining energy sources under constant nebular conditions result in slowly diminishing surface temperature but dramatically increasing surface pressure. For such an atmosphere with declining nebular pressure but constant total luminosity, surface pressure decreases gradually with decreasing temperaure. A decline in accretion luminosity might be compensated by energy released as the mantle cools for about 10(exp 5) year, after which luminosity must decline. The total complement of dissolved rare gases will depend on the particular evolutionary path determined by the declining accretional luminosity, the Earth thermal history, removal of the nebula, and opacity variations of the atmosphere. Models for these coupled evolutionary histories for Earth's acquisition of nebular-derived noble gases are in progress. The later losses required at about 10(exp 8) yr (depleting the interior concentrations of the sequestered solar gases by a factor of > 100) were presumably related to the major impact in which the Moon formed.

Porcelli, D.↗

Real-Time Multiregional Market-to-Market Congestion Management Through Exchange of Relief Cost Curve

This paper introduces a novel method for multiregional market-to-market (M2M) coordinated congestion management. It identifies shortcomings in existing M2M approaches, where Regional Transmission Organizations (RTOs) exchange shadow prices and relief requests to optimize congestion relief allocations across interconnected regions. Two methods are proposed to enhance flow and price convergence. The first method proposes that both Regional Transmission Organizations (RTOs) use state-estimator flows directly to determine relief requirements, eliminating delays and potential oscillations caused by using market flows calculated from the prior period under existing M2M approach. The second method involves exchanging transmission relief cost curves, enabling each RTOs to integrate other RTOs' relief costs curve into its real-time security-constrained economic dispatch (SCED). This method can effectively extend the coordination to multiple transmission lines and across more than two RTOs. The alternating direction method of multipliers (ADMM) is also applied to the M2M coordination problem and compared with the proposed methods. Case studies on small and large-scale systems demonstrate the effectiveness of these approaches.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

Heavy-Duty Vehicle Activity Updates for MOVES Using NREL Fleet DNA and CE-CERT Data

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) Motor Vehicle Emission Simulator (MOVES) is a publicly available tool used by researchers and policymakers to help understand motor vehicle emission sources at a national, county, and project level. Estimates of heavy-duty activity in the most recent version of the model at the time this work was conducted, MOVES2014, was identified as an area in need of improvement. The start activity in MOVES2014 is based on a limited and dated data set. In addition, MOVES2014 relies on drive cycles that represent on-network activity but do not account for idling activity that occurs on off-network roads, such as at a distribution center, while the truck is queuing or during loading and unloading. As a result, MOVES2014 may currently underestimate the number of starts and idle and soak time for heavy-duty trucks in real-world operation. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has previously leveraged its expansive Fleet DNA database of heavy-duty vehicles to idle and start activity for six of the nine heavy-duty vehicle source types of classes in the MOVES model. The data available in Fleet DNA from 416 conventional, diesel-powered vehicles provided activity estimates from more than 120,000 hours of operation throughout 14,682 vehicle days between October 2006 and January 2016. NREL calculated start fraction, starts per day, soak fraction, and idle fraction by hour of the day for each vehicle type, state, and vocation, and provided results in .CSV files that can be translated to MOVES table inputs. The idle and start activity from this initial analysis of Fleet DNA data was used to develop default idle and start data for heavy-duty vehicles in MOVES3. Satisfied with the results from the Fleet DNA data used for MOVES3, the EPA asked NREL to extend this start/soak/idle analysis using additional data from a larger number of vehicles for a potential future update to the MOVES model. Such a data set was achieved from a project led by the University of California at Riverside, College of Engineering, Center for Environmental Research & Technology (CE-CERT) and funded by California Air Resources Board. Specifically, this data set consists of 90 heavy-duty vehicles operated mainly in California, which can be separated into five of the nine heavy-duty vehicle classes in the MOVES model. In addition, the heavy-duty activity database collected by CE-CERT provided activity estimates from more than 44,000 hours of operation throughout 4,724 vehicle days between November 2014 and September 2016. This report details the analysis of the heavy-duty activity database collected from the University of California at Riverside by providing graphical analysis and context for the start, soak, and idle distributions. The comparison of the related results from both the Fleet DNA and CE-CERT data sets are documented as well.

33 ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗

THE MOLECULAR GAS IN LUMINOUS INFRARED GALAXIES. II. EXTREME PHYSICAL CONDITIONS AND THEIR EFFECTS ON THE X{sub co} FACTOR

In this work, we conclude the analysis of our CO line survey of luminous infrared galaxies (LIRGs: L{sub IR} {approx}> 10{sup 11} L{sub Sun }) in the local universe (Paper I) by focusing on the influence of their average interstellar medium (ISM) properties on the total molecular gas mass estimates via the so-called X{sub co} = M(H{sub 2})/L{sub co,1-0} factor. One-phase radiative transfer models of the global CO spectral line energy distributions (SLEDs) yield an X{sub co} distribution with (X{sub co}) {approx} (0.6 {+-} 0.2) M{sub Sun} (K km s{sup -1} pc{sup 2}){sup -1} over a significant range of average gas densities, temperatures, and dynamic states. The latter emerges as the most important parameter in determining X{sub co}, with unbound states yielding low values and self-gravitating states yielding the highest ones. Nevertheless, in many (U)LIRGs where available higher-J CO lines (J = 3-2, 4-3, and/or J = 6-5) or HCN line data from the literature allow a separate assessment of the gas mass at high densities ({>=}10{sup 4} cm{sup -3}) rather than a simple one-phase analysis, we find that near-Galactic X{sub co} {approx} (3-6) M{sub Sun} (K km s{sup -1} pc{sup 2}){sup -1} values become possible. We further show that in the highly turbulent molecular gas in ULIRGs, a high-density component will be common and can be massive enough for its high X{sub co} to dominate the average value for the entire galaxy. Using solely low-J CO lines to constrain X{sub co} in such environments (as has been the practice up until now) may have thus resulted in systematic underestimates of molecular gas mass in ULIRGs, as such lines are dominated by a warm, diffuse, and unbound gas phase with low X{sub co} but very little mass. Only well-sampled high-J CO SLEDs (J = 3-2 and higher) and/or multi-J observations of heavy rotor molecules (e.g., HCN) can circumvent such a bias, and the latter type of observations may have actually provided early evidence of it in local ULIRGs. The only way that the global X{sub co} of such systems could be significantly lower than Galactic is if the average dynamic state of the dense gas is strongly gravitationally unbound. This is an unlikely possibility that must nevertheless be examined, with lines of rare isotopologues of high gas density tracers (e.g., H{sup 13}CN, high-J{sup 13}CO lines) being very valuable in yielding (along with the lines of the main isotopes) such constraints. For less IR-luminous, disk-dominated systems, we find that the galaxy-averaged X{sub co} deduced by one-phase models of global SLEDs can also underestimate the total molecular gas mass when much of it lies in an star-formation-quiescent phase extending beyond a central star-forming region. This is because such a phase (and its large X{sub co}) remains inconspicuous in global CO SLEDs. Finally, detailed studies of a subsample of galaxies find ULIRGs with large amounts ({approx}10{sup 9} M{sub Sun }) of very warm ({>=}100 K) and dense gas ({approx}>10{sup 5} cm{sup -3}), which could represent a serious challenge to photon-dominated regions as the main energy portals in the molecular ISM of such systems.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Herbaceous Feedstock 2018 State of Technology Report

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) promotes the production of advanced liquid transportation fuels from lignocellulosic biomass by funding fundamental and applied research that advances the state of technology (SOT). As part of its involvement with this mission, Idaho National Laboratory (INL) completes an annual SOT report for biomass feedstock logistics. This report summarizes supply system impacts of Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO)-funded research and development efforts at INL and elsewhere (such as the High-Tonnage Feedstock Logistics projects (Webb et al. 2013a, Webb et al. 2013b, Webb et al. 2013c, Webb and Sokhansanj 2014, Sokhansanj et al. 2014) that lead to improvements in feedstock supply systems. These include improvements to and observed performance of innovative harvest and collection methods, storage technologies, transportation and handling approaches, and advanced preprocessing technologies. Biomass quality and variability, and the interface between feedstock quality and conversion performance are key drivers in addition to delivered feedstock cost. In this report, we estimate the benefits of R&D improvements to individual supply system unit operations, and present the status of feedstock logistics technology development for converting biomass into biofuels. These analyses are supported by experimental data where possible, and help to align the SOT relative to the cost goals defined in the Multi-Year Program Plan. The 2018 Herbaceous SOT aligned feedstock logistic design with current biorefinery’s design capacity utilized by biochemical conversion platform. Currently biochemical conversion platform utilizes a 725,000 dry ton/year biorefiney design for the techno economic analysis. Hence, feedstock delivered cost in the 2018 Herbaceous SOT is calculated based on biorefinery’s 725,000 dry ton design capacity instead of 800, 000 dry ton capacity utilized in the 2017 Herbaceous SOT. Biomass availabilities in this SOT were updated to year 2018 data from the 2016 Billion-Ton Report (BT16) (DOE 2016a), with the exception of switchgrass, for which the 2018 Herbaceous SOT utilized the 2019 switchgrass availability data from BT16. The BT16 report (DOE 2016a) does not project switchgrass availability in 2018; the soonest switchgrass is available in the BT16 report is 2019. Therefore, availability of switchgrass for this analysis was that projected for 2019. The 2018 Herbaceous SOT incorporates same technologies utilized in the 2017 Herbaceous SOT. However, a sensitivity analysis is performed to understand the impact of variation of process parameters on those technologies on feedstock logistic cost. New R&D data that shows the variations of process parameters affecting process performance is incorporated in the 2018 SOT to measure the variations in delivered feedstock cost. The 2018 Herbaceous SOT has also provided projected delivered feedstock of 2022 design case based on near term technical target under BETO funded R&D project. Finally, updated biorefinery size of 725,000 dry ton/year was incorporated within least-cost formulation model to select optimal siting and depot scales during optimization of the least cost blend. This modification to the optimization algorithm allows the trade-off between the cost of increased supply radius and the savings from selecting biomass from higher producing counties to be assessed. Such optimization has also showed the economic benefit of decentralized depots in comparison to centralized preprocessing co-located with the biorefinery by decoupling the biorefinery and feedstock locations. The 2018 Herbaceous SOT report documents the current modeled cost of a herbaceous feedstock supply system (from harvest to the pretreatment reactor throat, including grower payment) for hydrocarbon fuel production via biochemical conversion, based on equipment and processes now available or potentially available in the near term. The modeled cost also considers both the required quality and the availability of the biomass resources. The 2018 Herbaceous SOT predicts a modeled delivered feedstock cost of $83.67/dry ton (2016$); this is a $0.23/dry ton (2016$) decrease from the 2017 Herbaceous SOT. The modification of biorefinery’s designed capacity and increased projected biomass availability in the same supply shed contributed to this modeled cost reduction. The least-cost formulation model to optimally site and scale local distributed preprocessing depots also contributed to the cost reduction by considering county-level grower payment and distance from the biorefinery as variables in the optimization algorithm. Sensitivity analysis on various process parameters that affect delivered feedstock cost in the 2018 Herbaceous SOT shows that the delivered cost could varies from $80.45-$88.83/dry ton. The top factors that causes such variations are: effective baling rate, bale density, hammer mill throughput, interest rate and storage dry matter loss.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗

Subsurface Characterization and Machine Learning Predictions at Brady Hot Springs Results

Geothermal power plants typically show decreasing heat and power production rates over time. Mitigation strategies include optimizing the management of existing wells - increasing or decreasing the fluid flow rates across the wells - and drilling new wells at appropriate locations. The latter is expensive, time-consuming, and subject to many engineering constraints, but the former is a viable mechanism for periodic adjustment of the available fluid allocations. Data and supporting literature from a study describing a new approach combining reservoir modeling and machine learning to produce models that enable strategies for the mitigation of decreased heat and power production rates over time for geothermal power plants. The computational approach used enables translation of sets of potential flow rates for the active wells into reservoir-wide estimates of produced energy and discovery of optimal flow allocations among the studied sets. In our computational experiments, we utilize collections of simulations for a specific reservoir (which capture subsurface characterization and realize history matching) along with machine learning models that predict temperature and pressure timeseries for production wells. We evaluate this approach using an "open-source" reservoir we have constructed that captures many of the characteristics of Brady Hot Springs, a commercially operational geothermal field in Nevada, USA. Selected results from a reservoir model of Brady Hot Springs itself are presented to show successful application to an existing system. In both cases, energy predictions prove to be highly accurate: all observed prediction errors do not exceed 3.68% for temperatures and 4.75% for pressures. In a cumulative energy estimation, we observe prediction errors that are less than 4.04%. A typical reservoir simulation for Brady Hot Springs completes in approximately 4 hours, whereas our machine learning models yield accurate 20-year predictions for temperatures, pressures, and produced energy in 0.9 seconds. This paper aims to demonstrate how the models and techniques from our study can be applied to achieve rapid exploration of controlled parameters and optimization of other geothermal reservoirs. Includes a synthetic, yet realistic, model of a geothermal reservoir, referred to as open-source reservoir (OSR). OSR is a 10-well (4 injection wells and 6 production wells) system that resembles Brady Hot Springs (a commercially operational geothermal field in Nevada, USA) at a high level but has a number of sufficiently modified characteristics (which renders any possible similarity between specific characteristics like temperatures and pressures as purely random). We study OSR through CMG simulations with a wide range of flow allocation scenarios. Includes a dataset with 101 simulated scenarios that cover the period of time between 2020 and 2040 and a link to the published paper about this project, where we focus on the Machine Learning work for predicting OSR's energy production based on the simulation data, as well as a link to the GitHub repository where we have published the code we have developed (please refer to the repository's readme file to see instructions on how to run the code). Additional links are included to associated work led by the USGS to identify geologic factors associated with well productivity in geothermal fields. Below are the high-level steps for applying the same modeling + ML process to other geothermal reservoirs: 1. Develop a geologic model of the geothermal field. The location of faults, upflow zones, aquifers, etc. need to be accounted for as accurately as possible 2. The geologic model needs to be converted to a reservoir model that can be used in a reservoir simulator, such as, for instance, CMG STARS, TETRAD, or FALCON 3. Using native state modeling, the initial temperature and pressure distributions are evaluated, and they become the initial conditions for dynamic reservoir simulations 4....

15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY↗

Fan-beam intensity modulated proton therapy

Purpose: This paper presents a concept for a proton therapy system capable of delivering intensity modulated proton therapy using a fan beam of protons. This system would allow present and future gantry-based facilities to deliver state-of-the-art proton therapy with the greater normal tissue sparing made possible by intensity modulation techniques.Methods: A method for producing a divergent fan beam of protons using a pair of electromagnetic quadrupoles is described and particle transport through the quadrupole doublet is simulated using a commercially available software package. To manipulate the fan beam of protons, a modulation device is developed. This modulator inserts or retracts acrylic leaves of varying thickness from subsections of the fan beam. Each subsection, or beam channel, creates what effectively becomes a beam spot within the fan area. Each channel is able to provide 0–255 mm of range shift for its associated beam spot, or stop the beam and act as an intensity modulator. Results of particle transport simulations through the quadrupole system are incorporated into the MCNPX Monte Carlo transport code along with a model of the range and intensity modulation device. Several design parameters were investigated and optimized, culminating in the ability to create topotherapy treatment plans using distal-edge tracking on both phantom and patient datasets.Results: Beam transport calculations show that a pair of electromagnetic quadrupoles can be used to create a divergent fan beam of 200 MeV protons over a distance of 2.1 m. The quadrupole lengths were 30 and 48 cm, respectively, with transverse field gradients less than 20 T/m, which is within the range of water-cooled magnets for the quadrupole radii used. MCNPX simulations of topotherapy treatment plans suggest that, when using the distal edge tracking delivery method, many delivery angles are more important than insisting on narrow beam channel widths in order to obtain conformal target coverage. Overall, the sharp distal falloff of a proton depth-dose distribution was found to provide sufficient control over the dose distribution to meet objectives, even with coarse lateral resolution and channel widths as large as 2 cm. Treatment plans on both phantom and patient data show that dose conformity suffers when treatments are delivered from less than approximately ten angles. Treatment time for a sample prostate delivery is estimated to be on the order of 10 min, and neutron production is estimated to be comparable to that found for existing collimated systems.Conclusions: Fan beam proton therapy is a method of delivering intensity modulated proton therapy which may be employed as an alternative to magnetic scanning systems. A fan beam of protons can be created by a set of quadrupole magnets and modified by a dual-purpose range and intensity modulator. This can be used to deliver inversely planned treatments, with spot intensities optimized to meet user defined dose objectives. Additionally, the ability of a fan beam delivery system to effectively treat multiple beam spots simultaneously may provide advantages as compared to spot scanning deliveries.

61 RADIATION PROTECTION AND DOSIMETRY↗

High Energy Storage Capacity Low Cost Iron Flow Battery

A new flow battery was proposed that utilizes low cost materials: iron as the only active element, cheap aqueous electrolytes, and inexpensive separators. During charging, ferrous iron (Fe 2+ ) is oxidized to ferric iron (Fe 3+ ) at the positive electrode while it (Fe 2+ ) is reduced to form iron metal (Fe 0 ) at the negative electrode. Because iron is plated at the negative electrode during charging, conventional electrode structures couple the energy storage capacity and the power rating of the battery. In order to decouple the energy and power ratings and regain the economic advantages of a flow battery, a slurry electrode design was proposed for use as the negative electrode. The slurry electrode is made by flowing electrically conductive particles in an electrolyte containing the dissolved iron species. On charging, iron is plated onto the particles. The particles can then carry the iron metal out of the cell to be stored in external reservoirs. This project looked to develop a slurry for the negative electrode of the all-iron flow battery that can operate at 200 mA/cm 2 with <100 mV overpotential, be pumped with parasitic energy costs < 10%, and promote plating on the particles. A scalable and stackable cell design of 1100 cm 2 was developed. The project was initially under contract in mid-January 2013. The project was converted from a one-year proof of concept seedling to an additional two-year program, then extended with an 18-month plus-up, and finally with an additional 6-month approved cost-overrun. During the seeding project, the concept of plating on carbon particles in a slurry was demonstrated. However, this was accomplished with high-cost multi-walled carbon nanotubes as the slurry material. The following two-year program discovered several low-cost carbon blacks that could also be used in this application. These findings were supported by an analysis that demonstrated the effectiveness of the carbon that takes into account not just the effective electronic conductivity of the slurry, but also the surface area per volume of the slurry. It was demonstrated that stable, flowable slurries could be created with these carbons, even when the carbons where fully loaded with iron during charging. During the two-year program, laboratory-scale 50 cm 2 single-cells demonstrated charge-discharge cycling at current densities of 150 mA/cm 2 and energy efficiencies of >50%. Meanwhile, cost modeling continued to show promise for this energy storage approach. Following the conversion period, the overall objective of the nominally 18-month plus up period was to close the technical gap of a 25X scale-up and reduce risk to enable commercial investment required to develop a slurry iron flow battery product. A specific objective was to demonstrate 150 cycles of performance exceeding 70% energy efficiency with a 10-cell stack of 1156 cm 2 cells operating at 100 mA/cm 2 . The 10-cell short stack was designed to have a power delivery rating of approximately 1 kW, which represents a size commensurate with the requirements of our commercialization partner at that time. A complete battery support system for the full-size cell was designed, fabricated, and tested. This includes pumps (multiple types were considered, and constant volume hose pumps were found to be acceptable for performance and cost), electrolyte rebalance reactor, and sensors and control systems. The support system proved to be well-behaved and worked well. A new low-cost membrane was developed for this system based on a microporous polymer support with a layer of hydrogel polymer. The membrane had low resistivity, and significantly reduced pressure driven fluid flow across the membrane (as compared to the un-coated microporous support). This membrane approach was scaled-up in conjunction with a commercial toll coating company, and a large amount of membrane was manufactured to support large cell and stack testing. A new concept for an electrolyte rebalance reactor to react hydrogen gas from the negative electrolyte (from plating inefficiency) with excess ferric ion in the positive electrolyte was developed. This design was very simple, low cost, and effective. The full scale 1156 cm 2 single-cell was designed, modeled, fabricated and tested. Modeling showed that uniform flow-distribution should be obtained with the designed flow distributor. The design took into consideration the need to stack the cells, and components were fabricated for a ten-cell stack. Testing of the cell for charge and discharge demonstrated current densities of 50 mA/cm 2 with efficiencies of 50%. However, optimization and long cycling could not be accomplished because the slurry electrode would plug within the cell and block the flow. This would shut down the cell after several charge-discharge cycles. Various approaches were pursued to address this problem with some progress. However, there was not adequate time to find solutions to the problem although several promising approaches were identified for future work. The final deliverable for this proposed 18-month effort was to be a 1 kW, 6 kWh slurry flow battery, with complete balance of plant, ready for testing at an ARPA-E ‘Charges’ site with an estimated capital cost less than $\$ $45/kWh for a six-hour system (excluding power electronics). The deliverable milestone was not achieved for reasons mentioned above related to the slurry plugging. At the completion of this project, it was determined that the cost targets are achievable. The cost estimate for a 1 MW system with a one-hour capacity was estimated at $\$ $140/kWh (including power electronics) and for a six-hour system was estimated at $\$ $40/kWh (including power electronics). These costs include the battery, the balance of plant, the power conditioning and a concrete pad. This program resulted in three patents including the slurry-based iron flow battery, the rebalance reactor, and the membrane separator. At the time of this report, slurry-based iron flow battery patents have been issued in the US, China, Japan, Korea, and Europe. The other patent applications were under various stages of examination. A licensee was identified and the company initiated a scale-up and development program to take this technology to the marketplace, and CWRU staff have transferred their know-how and knowledge base to the company. This technology will enhance the economic and energy security of the United States by enabling the use of intermittent renewable energy technology, such as wind and solar power, as dispatchable resources. This report summarizes the results of this research and development program.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗