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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 1,045 records · Page 58

Analytical Study to Use the Excess Digester Gas of Wastewater Treatment Plants

This study presents an analytical method that can be used to enhance the power production rate and the energy-saving at wastewater treatment plants. The digester used at wastewater treatment plants produces digester gas by anaerobic digestion, with which biofuel production can be achieved. Biofuels can be used to meet some of the energy requirements of the wastewater treatment facility through combined heat and power (CHP) gas engines (cogeneration). Using micro gas turbine (MGT), a CHP technology can be introduced in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). The combination of MGTs and absorption chillers is a promising technology as it produces electricity, heating, and cooling simultaneously. The study demonstrated how the waste heat of MGTs could be used to drive absorption chillers. In this analytical study, a detailed technical and economic analysis is provided on the trigeneration system, i.e., the integration of MGTs and absorption chillers driven by waste digester gas of the wastewater treatment plants. It can meet the heating and cooling demands of the plants, which promote the reduction of utility costs. The technology presented is also useful for other thermal energy users.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗

Gap Analysis to Guide DOE R&D in Supporting Extended Storage and Transportation of Spent Nuclear Fuel: An FY2019 Assessment

The Department of Energy(DOE), Office of Nuclear Energy (NE), Spent Fuel and Waste Science and Technology (SFWST) program is performing research and development in the area of commercial spent nuclear fuel (SNF) long term storage and transportation. This program is being conducted under the provisions of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act (NWPA) of 1982 and its amendments that require the DOE to take title to and manage SNF after storage at the utility reactor site. This report is a condensed version of previous gap reports (Hanson 2012 and Hanson 2019) with up-dated gap priority assessments. The gap priorities have been updated from Hanson 2019 because 2019 is based on R&D performed through 2017. Much important work has been done since 2017 that requires a change in a few of the priority rankings to better focus the near-term R&D program. Background material, regulatory positions, operational and inventory status, and prioritization schemes are discussed in detail in Hanson 2012/2019, and are not repeated in this report. One exception is an overview of the prioritization criteria for reference. This is meant to give the reader an appreciation of the framework for prioritization of the identified gaps. A complete discussion of the prioritization scheme is provided in Hanson 2019.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

Preparation and analysis of standardized waste samples for Controlled Ecological Life Support Systems (CELSS)

The preparation and analysis of standardized waste samples for controlled ecological life support systems (CELSS) are considered. Analysis of samples from wet oxidation experiments, the development of ion chromatographic techniques utilizing conventional high pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) equipment, and an investigation of techniques for interfacing an ion chromatograph (IC) with an inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometer (ICPOES) are discussed.

Carden, J. L.↗

Leak detection of the Space Station Freedom U.S. Lab vacuum system using reverse flow leak detection methodology

A vacuum system leak detection technique (reverse flow leak detection) under development for use aboard Space Station Freedom is presented. The technique will be applied to the Vacuum System (VS) and Waste Gas Management Subsystem (WGMS) of the U.S. Lab Module. These two systems contain over 45.7 m of distributed vacuum tubing located in remote utility runs. Fluid flow calculations which utilize known system geometry and measured steady state pressure measurements from the VS and WGMS can be used to identify leak sites within +/- 38 cm. Exact leak position can then be pinpointed by conventional tracer gas leak detection in the identified region. Tests have been performed using a simple, unrestricted 12.8 m length of vacuum tubing with a calibrated air leak attached.

Moore, Jeffrey D.↗

Video Event Trigger

Video event trigger (VET) processes video image data to generate trigger signal when image shows significant change like motion or appearance, disappearance, change in color, change in brightness, or dilation of object. System aids in efficient utilization of image-data-storage and image-data-processing equipment in applications in which many video frames show no changes and are wasteful to record and analyze all frames when only relatively few frames show changes of interest. Applications include video recording of automobile crash tests, automated video monitoring of entrances, exits, parking lots, and secure areas.

Williams, Glenn L.↗

Surviving and Thriving in Space and on Earth's Oceans - Human Logistics and Sustainability Comparisons and Considerations

The human species has a yearning for exploration as evidenced by the extensive historical ocean voyages and expeditions which have led to a massive advancement in the scientific and geodetic knowledge about planet Earth. These global explorations via the oceans have also had strategic, economic, cultural and religious implications and impacts, which have drastically changed the state of humanity and its condition. The transportation network created by ships traveling across the oceans has been supplemented by other transportation networks on land and in the air, creating a global economy that, in general, has improved the human condition leading to better health, longer lives, lower child mortality, better education, political freedom, higher gross national product (GNP) and improved hygiene. The logical extension of this societal trend is to extend the transportation network and human civilization into outer space, beyond the cradle of planet Earth. Our solar system contains vast amounts of natural resources which can be harnessed and used to bootstrap a space economy and related infrastructure by using advanced technologies. Sailing journeys from hundreds of years ago required large vessels and large crews, (in comparison with today’s space capsules). Modern sailors of today are able to complete large voyages, in small vessels, with a minimal crew, comparable in magnitude to modern space travel. This paper will use a systems engineering approach (e.g. using the NASA Human Integration Design Handbook (HIDH), NASA-SP-2010-3407, 2010 and the “Advanced Life Support Baseline Values and Assumptions Document, (BVAD)” NASA-CR-2004-208941, 2004.), to examine and compare the logistics and sustainability aspects of a small crew traveling on Earth's oceans in sailing vessels versus humans traveling in space. The “Mālama Honua Worldwide Voyage” of the Hokule’a, a replica of an ancient Hawaiian double hulled sailing canoe, will be used as a case study. This is the best comparison case since the Polynesian exploration of the vast (and virtually empty) Pacific Ocean is the closest analogue to modern space travel. “"Both are voyages of exploration.” –Shuttle astronaut Lacy Veach. Minimizing waste and maximizing re-use and re-cycling will lead to more efficient logistics and sustainability. In addition, In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) strategies, based on successful Earth based strategies used for many years by sailors will be considered and evaluated for their usefulness. For example, human logistics for a typical space mission are shown in Table 1 and Table 2 (Lopez et al, 2015). Studies show that typical human water consumption in space is projected to be 3.2 kg/day per crew member as shown in Table 2. Data from human sailing voyages around the globe will be examined. Anecdotal evidence indicates that knowledgeable and well-equipped modern sailors, who conserve water, can comfortably live using 1.5 to 5 kg/day per person. This paper will investigate key logistics and sustainability aspects of living in space and compare them quantitatively to similar aspects of living on ocean faring sailing vessels on Earth. Mutually beneficial observations, advanced technologies and modern considerations will be applied within confines of a remote sailing environment, which could be of immense value to both the space faring community and the ocean sailing community.

Space↗

Zero Energy Districts

This presentation shows how NREL is approaching Zero Energy Districts, including key opportunities, design strategies, and master planning concepts. The presentation also covers URBANopt, an advanced analytical platform for district that is being developed by NREL.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

Systems and Tools to Facilitate Aging Management Inspections of Used Nuclear Fuel Dry Storage Systems - 18382

The Used Nuclear Fuel (UNF) dry storage systems (DSSs) are currently used at almost all the nuclear plants in the USA for the storage of their UNF as the spent fuel pools are running out of capacity to store any additional discharged fuel. Even though these DSSs are supposed to be at the reactor site for a short amount of time, they are expected to be at the reactor sites for an extended duration due to the unavailability of Interim Storage Facilities (ISF) or a permanent disposal sites like Yucca Mountain. Maintaining the integrity of the DSS canisters and storage overpacks so they can safely protect the fuel and maintain the integrity of UNF is of utmost importance during storage at reactor site ISFSI or at the ISF. Comprehensive and robust Aging Management Program (AMP) is an important aspect for DSSs to satisfy these requirements. In order to address this industry need, TN Americas have developed an enhanced NUHOMS{sup R} DSS licensed by NRC under 10 CFR Part 72 regulations and a comprehensive AMP development which includes prevention, inspection, monitoring and mitigation of any corrosion or degradation of DSS components. For DSC and HSM inspection, two remotely operating delivery systems have been developed using non-destructive examination (NDE) methods including robotic crawler and inspection ring system. This paper describes details of these developments and status of their deployment for implementation at various utility ISFSI sites. TN Americas completed the detailed design of the DSC inspection system and conducted functional tests of the inspection system on a DSC mockup and the system is ready for deployment at any NUHOMS{sup R} ISFSI site. TN Americas is committed to offer the most robust and comprehensive AMP systems, tools and services to the industry to assure the safety of the deployed DSS at the utility sites. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

Process and Applications Development for Recycled Mixed-Stream Composites

The goal of this IACMI Phase II Technical Collaboration Project was to establish the viability of producing affordable, recycled composite parts, which were produced from fibers with the properties in the range of those reclaimed through the controlled pyrolysis technology demonstrated in Phase I. For the purpose of this report, we use the terms “recovered carbon fiber” (rCF) and “recovered glass fiber” (rGF) as the material reclaimed from controlled pyrolysis. This fiber recycling technology utilizes the inherent energy in composites for fuel and preserves the structural value of glass fiber (GF) and carbon fiber (CF) for reuse. It can also be used for recycling other waste streams at the same facility, thus spreading capital risk and recovery across multiple industries and achieving economy of scale. A second goal to be addressed was the viability of using recycled fibers as reinforcing materials in additive manufacturing applications.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

Sol–gel synthesis of iodosodalite precursors and subsequent consolidation with a glass binder made from oxides and sol–gel routes

Radioiodine accumulates in aqueous solutions and off-gas streams during nuclear fuel reprocessing due to its solubility in aqueous solutions and volatility, respectively. Additionally, radioiodine is highly mobile in geological environments and iodine-129 has been found to be one of the largest long-term contributors to chronic dose to humans in scenarios of radionuclide migration from geological repositories. Most of the radioiodine can be captured during fuel reprocessing in off-gas streams using solid sorbents and scrubbing solutions. Once iodine is captured, it must be stored in a durable form for eventual disposal. Iodosodalite has been investigated as a waste form for radioiodine, however these synthesis processes typically result in mixed products and iodine volatilization during consolidation. Therefore, this paper proposes a novel approach to synthesizing iodosodalite utilizing a sol-gel method. This method was chosen to lower processing temperatures and improve product yield. Preliminary experiments conducted to determine the viability of this synthetic method are presented. Additionally, consolidation of sol-gel derived iodosodalite with a glass-binder was explored using three different methods: 1) incorporating the glass-binder during gel preparation using alkoxide precursors; 2) separately preparing the glass binder using a sol-gel method; and 3) separately preparing the glass-binder using a melt-quench technique. Glass-bonded iodosodalite was successfully synthesized using these novel sol-gel approaches.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Design and Development of a Residential Gas-Fired Heat Pump

Heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning equipment consumes 43% of the total primary energy consumption in U.S. households. Presently, conventional gas furnaces have maximum heating efficiencies of 98%. Electric air conditioners used in association with the furnace for cooling have a minimum seasonal energy efficiency ratio (SEER) of 14.0. A residential gas-fired heat pump (RGHP) was developed and tested under standard rating conditions, resulting in a significant increase in heating efficiency of over 40% versus conventional natural gas furnaces. The associated efficiency of the RGHP in cooling mode is comparable in efficiency to an electric air conditioner (14.0 SEER) when compared on a primary energy basis. The RGHP is similar in nature to a conventional heat pump but with two main differences. First, the primary energy savings are higher, based on a site versus source comparison, as the result of using natural gas to supply shaft power to the compressor rather than an electric motor. Second, waste heat is recovered from the engine to supplement space heating and reduce the energy input. It can also be used to provide supplemental water heating. The system utilizes a programmable logic controller that allows variable-speed operation to achieve improved control to meet building loads. RGHPs significantly reduce peak electric use during periods of high demand, especially peak summer loads, as well as peak winter loads in regions with widespread use of electric heating. This contributes to leveling year-round gas loads, with the potential to increase annual gas demand in some regions. The widespread adoption of RGHPs will contribute to significant reductions in primary energy consumption and carbon emissions through improved efficiencies.

energy efficiency↗

On the possibility of reprocessing spent nuclear fuel and radioactive waste by plasma methods

The concept of plasma separation of spent nuclear fuel and radioactive waste is presented. An approach that is based on using an accelerating potential to overcome the energy and angular spread of plasma ions at the separation region inlet and utilizing a potential well to separate spatially the ions of different masses is proposed. It is demonstrated that such separation may be performed at distances of about 1 m with electrical potentials of about 1 kV and a magnetic field of about 1 kG. The estimates of energy consumption and performance of the plasma separation method are presented. These estimates illustrate its potential for technological application. The results of development and construction of an experimental setup for testing the method of plasma separation are presented.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

Probabilistic cost estimation methods for treatment of water extracted during CO 2 storage and EOR

Extraction and treatment of in situ water can minimize risk for large-scale CO 2 injection in saline aquifers during carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS), and for enhanced oil recovery (EOR). Additionally, treatment and reuse of oil and gas produced waters for hydraulic fracturing will conserve scarce fresh-water resources. Each treatment step, including transportation and waste disposal, generates economic and engineering challenges and risks; these steps should be factored into a comprehensive assessment. We expand the water treatment model (WTM) coupled within the sequestration system model CO 2 -PENS and use chemistry data from seawater and proposed injection sites in Wyoming, to demonstrate the relative importance of different water types on costs, including little-studied effects of organic pretreatment and transportation. We compare the WTM with an engineering water treatment model, utilizing energy costs and transportation costs. Specific energy costs for treatment of Madison Formation brackish and saline base cases and for seawater compared closely between the two models, with moderate differences for scenarios incorporating energy recovery. Transportation costs corresponded for all but low flow scenarios (<5000 m 3 /d). Some processes that have high costs (e.g., truck transportation) do not contribute the most variance to overall costs. Other factors, including feed-water temperature and water storage costs, are more significant contributors to variance. These results imply that the WTM can provide good estimates of treatment and related process costs (AACEI equivalent level 5, concept screening, or level 4, study or feasibility), and the complex relationships between processes when extracted waters are evaluated for use during CCUS and EOR site development.

20 FOSSIL-FUELED POWER PLANTS↗

West Virginia University Industrial Assessment Center (Final Progress Report)

The Industrial Assessment Center at West Virginia University has been successful in workforce development, and in generation of energy savings for manufacturing facilities during the period 2016 to 2021. Graduate and undergraduate students have benefited from energy assessment experience and most of them have found good positions as energy engineers and analysts in the industrial sector. Several peer reviewed research papers in archival journals as well as conference papers on the topic of energy engineering and assessment have been published. The implemented energy savings for manufacturing facilities have been significant in the areas of lighting, compressed air, process heating, steam, HVAC, chillers and cooling towers, and motors. In addition, water use reduction, smart manufacturing applications to save energy, cyber security evaluation, energy management, productivity improvements and waste reduction opportunities that lead to energy intensity reductions have been explored. The students have obtained an opportunity to interact with energy efficiency and productivity improvement professionals at various conferences and workshops and their research has generated important results. In summary, the West Virginia University Industrial Assessment Center (WVU-IAC) has fulfilled its mission in regard to workforce development, energy efficiency for manufacturing facilities, and laid a strong platform enhancing sustainability through reductions in carbon emissions achieved through energy efficiency and energy management initiatives and reductions in water usage and waste reduction. During the project period (2016-2021) the WVU-IAC has made numerous energy efficiency, water use reduction, waste reduction, and productivity improvement recommendations, a significant number of them having been implemented by the manufacturing facilities. The research adds significant understanding to the area of energy efficiency, water and waste reduction, and productivity improvement. The technical effectiveness and economic feasibility of the methods and techniques investigated and demonstrated through this project have been exemplary, resulting in significant recommended and implemented resource savings and reductions in carbon emissions. The project has been of significant benefit to the public owing to replication of results within the industrial sector, thus reducing operating costs for businesses that result in increase of growth and employment, as well as community benefits in terms of reductions in carbon emissions.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

Enabling Partnership between South Carolina and NREL for Advancing Opportunities in Plastics Recycling Research (EPSCOR for Plastics Recycling)

Proposal Objectives: 1. Utilize depolymerization/fractionation techniques to recover highly processable and reactive feedstocks for polymer synthesis from lignin. 2. Synthesize lignin‐derived non‐isocyanate polyurethane, epoxy, and polyamide using non‐ toxic, biobased route designed for chemical recycling. Characterize resulting materials. 3. Design a high‐yielding chemical recycling process for as‐synthesized materials yielding usable building blocks for many generations of polymer synthesis. 4. Optimize chemical recycling of PET waste for the synthesis of lignin‐based polymers. Compare properties to commercial materials. 5. Optimize reaction conditions and recycling steps to facilitate enhanced sustainability of the synthetic steps and final properties of materials. 6. Complete a lifecycle assessment of lignin utilization and chemical recycling to compare their environmental performance to that of materials produced from virgin material. Identify hot spots and benefits using the chemical recycling process.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Bare Fiber Bragg Gratings embedded into concrete buffer Supercontainer concept for nuclear waste storage

We present the preliminary results obtained with bare fiber Bragg grating-based sensors embedded into half-scale Belgian Supercontainer concept. Being temperature and strain sensitive, some sensors were placed into aluminum tubes to monitor only temperature and results were compared with thermocouples data. The utility of using bare fiber Bragg gratings, knowing that these ones are very fragile, is to have a direct contact between the high alkaline environment of the concrete and silica fibers and to determine its impact over a very long time. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

Reduction of Pertechnetate by Chemical and Photochemical Approaches and Incorporation of Tc(IV) into Titanium Dioxide

Technetium-99 is a prevalent fission product from nuclear waste. The long half-life (211,000 yr) and environmental mobility of pertechnetate (TcO 4 - ) render Tc particularly challenging to isolate and stabilize. Here, in this study, we present two approaches for development of potential wasteforms using titanium dioxide, TiO 2 . Approach 1 is a low temperature chemical synthesis of TiO 2 doped with Tc(IV) from TcO 4 - intended to mimic the Tc waste stream from the UREX family of separations and removes 98.5 % of the Tc, mainly present as edge-shared Tc(IV) pairs. Approach 2 utilizes TiO 2 to photocatalytically reduce TcO 4 - to Tc(IV) stabilized on the surface of or within the TiO 2 lattice. The %Tc removed from solution and adsorbed to TiO 2 is pH dependent, with the maximum Tc(IV) adsorbed at pH 3–4 as either TcO 2 or edge-sharing Tc(IV) octahedra. The Tc(IV)-TiO 2 composites materials formed by both approaches are suitable for consolidation into a dense wasteform by Hot Isostatic Pressing (HIPing).

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗