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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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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2024

Life Cycle Inventory Availability: Status and Prospects for Leveraging New Technologies

The demand for life cycle assessments (LCA) is growing rapidly, which leads to an increasing demand of life cycle inventory (LCI) data. While the LCA community has made significant progress in developing LCI databases for diverse applications, challenges still need to be addressed. This perspective summarizes the current data gaps, transparency, and uncertainty aspects of existing LCI databases. Additionally, we survey and discuss novel techniques for LCI data generation, dissemination, and validation. We propose key future directions for LCI development efforts to address these challenges, including leveraging scientific and technical advances such as the Internet of Things (IoT), machine learning, and blockchain/cloud platforms. Adopting these advanced technologies can significantly improve the quality and accessibility of LCI data, thereby facilitating more accurate and reliable LCA studies.

blockchain platforms↗
DOE OSTI2023

The Role of Cloud–Cloud Interactions in the Life Cycle of Shallow Cumulus Clouds

Some of the climate research puzzles relate to a limited understanding of the critical factors governing the life cycle of cumulus clouds. These factors force the initiation and the various mixing processes during cloud life cycles. To shed some light into these processes, we tracked the life cycle of thousands of individual shallow cumulus clouds in a large-eddy simulation during the Holistic Interactions of Shallow Clouds, Aerosols, and Land-Ecosystems field campaign in the U.S. southern Great Plains. Concurrent evolution of clouds is tracked and their respective neighboring clouds are examined. Results show that the clouds initially smaller than neighboring clouds can grow larger than the neighboring clouds by a factor of 2 within 20% of their lifetime. Two groups of the tracked clouds with growing and decaying neighboring clouds, respectively, show distinct characteristics in their life cycles. Clouds with growing neighboring clouds form above regions with larger surface heterogeneity, whereas clouds with decaying neighboring clouds are associated with less heterogeneous surfaces. Also, those with decaying neighboring clouds experience larger instability and a more humid boundary layer, indicating evaporation below the cloud base is likely occurring before those clouds are formed. Larger instability leads to higher vertical velocity and convergence within the cloud, which causes stronger surrounding downdrafts and water vapor removal in the surrounding area. The latter appears to be the reason for the decaying neighboring clouds. Finally, understanding those processes provide insights into how cloud–cloud interactions modulate the evolution of cloud population and into how this evolution can be represented in future cumulus parameterizations.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS1983

The life cycle of a tornadic cloud as seen from a geosynchronous satellite

The life span of a severe storm is on the order of a few hours. Rapid-scan infrared and visible observations from geosynchronous satellites can be useful for studying the life cycle of a severe convective storm. By using artificial colors for pixels representing blackbody temperatures of the cloud top, convective storms can be observed throughout their life cycles. In this paper clouds associated with a tornadic storm, the Ringwood, OK tornado on May 29, 1977, are compared with those without a tornadic storm to illustrate how the infrared and visible observations from a geosynchronous satellite can be used to study the differences in their life cycles. The instability of the air mass and the meteorological background are discussed based on balloon observations.

Hung, R. J.↗
DOE OSTI2026

Impact of Lithium‐Free Borate Additives on the Cycle Life and Calendar Aging of Silicon‐Based Lithium‐Ion Batteries

Silicon-anode lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) suffer from limited cycle life and poor calendar life, constraining their large-scale commercialization. Integrating additives into electrolytes is a simple and cost-effective strategy to improve these aspects. The effects of lithium-free boron-based additives on cycling and calendar performance of high-loading Si-anode LIBs remain largely unexplored. In this work, the influence of five Li-free borate additives, each with distinct molecular structures and elemental compositions, is systematically investigated. All additives enhance cycle life to varying extents. Notably, the addition of 1 v/v% tri(2,2,2-trifluoroethyl) borate to the baseline electrolyte nearly doubles the cycle life at 50% state of health. This enhancement is attributed to three key factors. Specifically, borate additives 1) improve electrochemical activity, 2) act as anion receptors that interact with [PF6]- anions and carbonate solvents to reduce electrolyte decomposition, and 3) promote the formation of a stable and polymeric solid electrolyte interphase layer. Furthermore, these additives exhibited negligible impact in mitigating leakage current during a 180 h voltage-hold calendar-aging test, indicating their limited effect in calendar life. These findings provide insight into the role of Li-free borate additives in improving cycle life while addressing the knowledge gap regarding their influence on calendar aging.

Li, Defu↗
NASA NTRS2004

Security Risks: Management and Mitigation in the Software Life Cycle

A formal approach to managing and mitigating security risks in the software life cycle is requisite to developing software that has a higher degree of assurance that it is free of security defects which pose risk to the computing environment and the organization. Due to its criticality, security should be integrated as a formal approach in the software life cycle. Both a software security checklist and assessment tools should be incorporated into this life cycle process and integrated with a security risk assessment and mitigation tool. The current research at JPL addresses these areas through the development of a Sotfware Security Assessment Instrument (SSAI) and integrating it with a Defect Detection and Prevention (DDP) risk management tool.

securiy↗
DOE OSTI2020

The Significance of Environmental Attributes as Indicators of the Life Cycle Environmental Impacts of Packaging and Food Service Ware

The environmental impacts of packaging and food service ware (FSW) are increasingly the subject of government policy, public discourse, and industry commitments. While some consideration is given to reducing the impacts of packaging across its entire life cycle, most of the focus is on packaging waste or feedstock substitution. Efforts typically focus on specific packaging characteristics, or material attributes, commonly perceived to be environmentally preferable. This article summarizes an extensive meta-review of existing published literature that was performed to determine whether the material attributes recyclability, recycled content, compostability, and biobased, commonly considered to be environmentally beneficial, correlate with lower net environmental impacts across the full life cycle of the packaging and FSW. Seventy-one unique life cycle assessment (LCA) studies that quantify the environmental impacts throughout the entire life cycle of packaging and FSW were analyzed. These studies included over 5000 comparisons for 13 impact categories commonly analyzed in LCA studies. The results from the meta-review identified a number of instances where material attributes do not correlate with environmental benefits for packaging and FSW. Rather, other characteristics such as material choice or mass of the packaging/FSW products can have higher influence in determining life cycle impacts.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS2005

Life-Cycle Cost/Benefit Assessment of Expedite Departure Path (EDP)

This report presents a life-cycle cost/benefit assessment (LCCBA) of Expedite Departure Path (EDP), an air traffic control Decision Support Tool (DST) currently under development at NASA. This assessment is an update of a previous study performed by bd Systems, Inc. (bd) during FY01, with the following revisions: The life-cycle cost assessment methodology developed by bd for the previous study was refined and calibrated using Free Flight Phase 1 (FFP1) cost information for Traffic Management Advisor (TMA, or TMA-SC in the FAA's terminology). Adjustments were also made to the site selection and deployment scheduling methodology to include airspace complexity as a factor. This technique was also applied to the benefit extrapolation methodology to better estimate potential benefits for other years, and at other sites. This study employed a new benefit estimating methodology because bd s previous single year potential benefit assessment of EDP used unrealistic assumptions that resulted in optimistic estimates. This methodology uses an air traffic simulation approach to reasonably predict the impacts from the implementation of EDP. The results of the costs and benefits analyses were then integrated into a life-cycle cost/benefit assessment.

Wang, Jianzhong Jay↗
DOE OSTI2021

Life cycle of carbon in macroalgae for various products

This paper seeks to understand the life cycle and permanence of carbon sequestration for the many possible products of offshore cultivated macroalgae, compared to natural growth, habitat restoration, and intentional sinking. The paper will systematically review existing life cycle analyses (LCAs) for various macroalgae products to identify information gaps and compare the carbon sequestration potential throughout each product life cycle. The sequestration potential of macroalgae is well documented (e.g. Chung et al., 2011; Krause-Jensen & Duarte, 2016) but the permanence of the capture is not understood for harvested macroalgae or end products, which may or may not release the stored carbon dioxide in processing or consumption. This information is necessary to avoid overestimating the benefit and impacts of federal investment in large-scale seaweed aquaculture. The goal of this report is to: 1) Review published LCAs for various macroalgae products and uses; 2) Identify knowledge gaps (experiments and monitoring) to understand the flow of carbon on various time scales; 3) Develop preliminary ranking of macroalgae products by carbon capture effectiveness and permanence.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2025

Energy, greenhouse gas, and water life cycle analysis of synthetic graphite anode production in the United States

This study presents a comprehensive life cycle analysis of potential synthetic graphite battery anode material (BAM) production in the U.S. based on industrial-scale data. The analysis focuses on three impacts: greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, total energy use, and water consumption. We also conducted sensitivity analyses to evaluate the effect of variation in process parameters and energy sources used for synthetic graphite BAM production on its life cycle GHG emissions. A detailed supply chain analysis of graphite BAM in the U.S. was also undertaken, along with a study of its associated GHG emissions. The results show GHG emissions of 29.7 kg CO 2 -eq. per kg BAM, total energy use of 580 MJ kg −1 BAM, and water consumption of 121 L kg −1 BAM for the baseline condition. The graphitization step is a major process hotspot, contributing to over 74% of all impacts. This is attributed to the energy and material input requirements for this step, particularly through the use of crucibles. Across the entire synthetic graphite production process, electricity is the primary contributor, followed by crucibles used in graphite block production, and then calcined petroleum coke. Sensitivity analyses indicate that improvement in micronization yield, reuse of crucibles, and use of low-carbon nuclear energy can significantly reduce GHG emissions of potential domestic graphite production (by ∼70%). Supply chain analysis identified major graphite BAM sources in the U.S. and showed that the U.S. has a competitive advantage in domestic production of synthetic graphite BAM in terms of reduced life cycle GHG emissions compared to present-day imported sources (by ∼20%).

Battery anode↗
NASA NTRS1993

Life cycle cost modeling of conceptual space vehicles

This paper documents progress to date by the University of Dayton on the development of a life cycle cost model for use during the conceptual design of new launch vehicles and spacecraft. This research is being conducted under NASA Research Grant NAG-1-1327. This research effort changes the focus from that of the first two years in which a reliability and maintainability model was developed to the initial development of a life cycle cost model. Cost categories are initially patterned after NASA's three axis work breakdown structure consisting of a configuration axis (vehicle), a function axis, and a cost axis. The focus will be on operations and maintenance costs and other recurring costs. Secondary tasks performed concurrent with the development of the life cycle costing model include continual support and upgrade of the R&M model. The primary result of the completed research will be a methodology and a computer implementation of the methodology to provide for timely cost analysis in support of the conceptual design activities. The major objectives of this research are: to obtain and to develop improved methods for estimating manpower, spares, software and hardware costs, facilities costs, and other cost categories as identified by NASA personnel; to construct a life cycle cost model of a space transportation system for budget exercises and performance-cost trade-off analysis during the conceptual and development stages; to continue to support modifications and enhancements to the R&M model; and to continue to assist in the development of a simulation model to provide an integrated view of the operations and support of the proposed system.

Ebeling, Charles↗
DOE OSTI2025

Toward a sustainable circular economy of multilayer plastic films: Life cycle and techno-economic assessment with a focus on end-of-life treatment and multiple recovery cycles

This study presents a life cycle assessment (LCA) and techno-economic analysis (TEA) of end-of-life technologies for treating polyethylene–polyamide barrier film waste, focusing on quality degradation across recovery cycles. Novel treatment methods are experimentally validated, while others are drawn from literature and industry consultations. A displacement approach, assuming no quality loss, is first applied. Results show that solvent-based recycling via the solvent-targeted recovery and precipitation (STRAP) process outperforms alternatives across environmental indicators, reducing global warming potential (GWP) by 40% compared to landfilling. Incineration performs worst in most categories, particularly eutrophication (80% higher than landfilling), due to nitrogen emissions. Experimentally validated downcycling (pelletizing) proves more economically viable. The assumption of infinite recoverability is overly optimistic. To address this, we propose a mathematical framework accounting for a finite number of recovery cycles. This refined model shows reduced GWP and cost savings for solvent recovery, making its benefits less pronounced than initially estimated. Sensitivity and uncertainty analyses reveal strong dependence on recovered material quality and solvent recovery efficiency, underscoring the need for optimized process design. Finally, hotspot analysis identifies greenhouse gas emissions from the polyamide supply chain as the dominant GWP contributor. In conclusion, the results underscore potential trade-offs across pathways and show that solvent-based recovery’s sustainability depends heavily on process conditions.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2023

Life-cycle analysis of battery metal recycling with lithium recovery from a spent lithium-ion battery

Demand for critical materials (nickel, cobalt, manganese [NCM], and lithium) for use in batteries is increasing rapidly due to the expansion of the battery-electric vehicles market. Battery metal recycling (BMR) is an important technology that can potentially realize environmental and economic benefits in cathode active material (LiNi x Mn y Co z O 2 ) production using recycled materials. While current major battery recycling technologies recover cathode materials (NCM) and other metals (steel, aluminum, copper, etc.) from the spent battery, the lithium (Li) recovery rate is less than 1% in the world. In this study, we analyze the environmental benefits of a BMR process that recovers lithium in the form of lithium hydroxide monohydrate (LiOH∙H 2 O) along with other cathode materials. Using life-cycle analysis (LCA), we evaluate the life-cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, criteria air pollutant emissions, and water consumption of the new BMR technology in terms of lithium hydroxide production and cathode active material production. The LCA results show that the life-cycle GHG emissions recycled LiOH are 37–72% lower than those of virgin LiOH production from Chilean brine and Australian ore, respectively. In addition, the life-cycle GHG emissions of NCM811 produced using the recycled materials are 40–48% lower compared to virgin cathode active material production. Furthermore, recovering lithium from the spent batteries reduces associated air pollutant emissions and water consumption relative to using the virgin materials or materials from other recycling technologies without LiOH recovery.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
NASA NTRS2002

Software security checklist for the software life cycle

A formal approach to security in the software life cycle is essential to protect corporate resources. However, little thought has been given to this aspect of software development. Due to its criticality, security should be integrated as a formal approach in the software life cycle.

software security checklist security tools securit↗
DOE OSTI2026

Comparison of ammonia with methanol, liquefied natural gas and conventional marine transportation fuels through life cycle cost and emissions analysis

This work evaluates ammonia as a potential marine fuel for a SUEZMAX tanker and compares it with methanol, liquefied natural gas, and conventional fuel oils. The motivation arises from the need to identify low-emission, cost-competitive fuel options that can reduce greenhouse gas emissions from international shipping. The central hypothesis is that ammonia produced from renewable energy sources can achieve lower well-to-wake greenhouse gas emissions with varying life cycle costs based on the region. Life cycle assessment and techno-economic analysis were performed for a thirty-year vessel lifetime on two representative trade routes: from Saudi Arabia to Japan and from Saudi Arabia to the Netherlands. Four ammonia production pathways were assessed: natural gas, natural gas with carbon capture, natural gas pyrolysis, and renewable electricity–based synthesis. Results show that wind-based ammonia produced in Saudi Arabia achieved the lowest life cycle well-to-wake greenhouse gas emissions, between 0.58 and 0.64 million metric tons, among all fuels when using regional grid process electricity. With renewable process electricity, ammonia produced from natural gas pyrolysis in Saudi Arabia showed comparable emissions of 0.37 to 0.44 million metric tons with wind-based ammonia of 0.37 to 0.43 million metric tons. Liquefied natural gas exhibited the lowest life cycle cost, between 402 and 412 million United States dollars, and the only negative carbon abatement cost, ranging from −277 to –322 United States dollars per metric ton of greenhouse gas, compared with high sulfur fuel oil. The findings indicate that renewable ammonia offers a promising long-term pathway for reducing shipping emissions, while liquefied natural gas remains the most cost-effective option in the near term.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2023

Techno-economic life cycle assessment of CO 2 -EOR operations towards net negative emissions at farnsworth field unit

Optimizations of CO 2 Water Alternating Gas(WAG)- systems with multi-objectives of incremental recovery and maximization of CO 2 storage are challenging. Here, the incorporation of a total Greenhouse gas (GHG) life cycle assessment is mostly ignored leading to inaccurate estimation of overall net carbon emissions of their operations. In this study, the effect of a total GHG life cycle assessment on a multi-objective CO 2 -WAG optimization with integrated techno-economic assessment (TEA) which factors carbon tax credit is conducted. A life cycle assessment (LCA) was conducted utilizing a 20 -year optimized post history matched data from a high fidelity reservoir simulation model. Using data generated from the optimum result, a techno-economic life cycle analysis was further conducted. The first scenario classified as the base model had an estimated 81% of purchased CO 2 sequestered. The results through a comprehensive techno-economic LCA model yielded a net estimate of 73% of purchased CO 2 . The optimized forecasted model which considered key operational and reservoir factors such as WAG ratio, injection rates and periods, and well specification resulted in an improved sequestration of 92% of purchased CO 2 . However, this also dropped to 84% after taking it through LCA. These results clearly indicate a significant amount of net CO 2 is not accounted for when operations are not analyzed through LCA. From the LCA, direct flaring volumes of CO 2 , energy consumption and efficiency of unit equipment were noticed to be the major causes of these reductions. Considering ten main sources of energy as source of energy generation, a comparative techno-eco LCA was conducted. The results confirmed a lower net volume and NPV for energy sources with higher carbon footprints and vice versa. Thus, a total LCA of CO 2 -WAG greatly influences net storage factor of purchased CO 2 and hence project NPV where tax credit/incentives per ton of CO 2 sequestered is considered. Although operational conditions are optimized for best results, there are significant factors that leads to minimization of net storage factor. This study therefore provides an insightful information for optimizing CO 2 -WAG multi-objectives to achieve minimum GHG emission.

02 PETROLEUM↗
DOE OSTI2023

Operational Energy Life Cycle Data Development for the National Institute of Standards And Technology (NIST) Building Industry Reporting and Design for Sustainability (BIRDS) Neutral Environmental Software Tool (NEST)

For this analysis, regionalized life cycle assessment (LCA) results for environmental impacts (using the Tool for Reduction and Assessment of Chemicals and Other Environmental Impacts [TRACI] 2.1) and cumulative energy demand (using the Federal Life Cycle Analysis Commons Elementary Flow List [FEDEFL] Inventory Methods v1.0.0) were evaluated for the production and utilization of electricity, natural gas, fuel oil, and propane as commodities within residential and commercial buildings. These results can used as a framework for future research into net zero, high-performance buildings, such as done here for the Building Industry Reporting and Design for Sustainability (BIRDS) database by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Engineering Laboratory. The geographical results were assigned to each United States (U.S.) Zone Improvement Plan (ZIP) code based on the ZIP code location and corresponding Balancing Authority Area, natural gas basin, and Petroleum Administration for Defense Districts (PADDs). Additionally, previously developed models were utilized to develop future life cycle profiles. Projections were based on data available from the U.S. Energy Information Administration Annual Energy Outlook 2022 through 2050 (AEO 2022). Electricity LCA models were updated based on AEO 2022 projected annual generation mixes, while the natural gas baseline model was updated based on projected shares of natural gas types (conventional, shale, tight, and coalbed methane). Projections of crude oil production rates and export rates were applied to the petroleum baseline model in five-year increments to investigate their effects on the life cycle profile of fuel oil and propane. While only 100-year Global Warming Potential (GWP-100) with climate carbon feedback (CC-FB) and Cumulative Energy Demand are shown in Section 4: Results, the complete results, including Acidification Potential, Eutrophication Potential, Freshwater Ecotoxicity Potential, GWP-100 without inclusion of CC-FB, Human Health Impacts Potentials (Cancer, Non-Cancer), Ozone Depletion Potential, Particulate Matter Formation Potential, and Photochemical Smog Formation Potential, are tabulated for each ZIP code in the Excel worksheets that accompany this analysis. For the Excel spreadsheet tools associated with this report, please go to https://www.netl.doe.gov/energy-analysis/details?id=f8890fac-be55-44ac-aaa9-e2888bfabe93

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
NASA NTRS2007

Full Life-Cycle Defect Management Assessment: Initial Inspection Data Collection Results and Research Questions for Further Study

It is often the case in software projects that when schedule and budget resources are limited, the Verification and Validation (V&V) activities suffer. Fewer V&V activities can be afforded and moreover, short-term challenges can result in V&V activities being scaled back or dropped altogether. As a result, too often the default solution is to save activities for improving software quality until too late in the life-cycle, relying on late-term code inspections followed by thorough testing activities to reduce defect counts to acceptable levels. As many project managers realize, however, this is a resource-intensive way of achieving the required quality for software. The Full Life-cycle Defect Management Assessment Initiative, funded by NASA s Office of Safety and Mission Assurance under the Software Assurance Research Program, aims to address these problems by: Improving the effectiveness of early life-cycle V&V activities to make their benefits more attractive to team leads. Specifically, we focus on software inspection, a proven method that can be applied to any software work product, long before executable code has been developed; Better communicating this effectiveness to software development teams, along with suggestions for parameters to improve in the future to increase effectiveness; Analyzing the impact of early life-cycle V&V on the effectiveness and cost required for late life-cycle V&V activities, such as testing, in order to make the tradeoffs more apparent. This white paper reports on an initial milestone in this work, the development of a preliminary model of inspection effectiveness across multiple NASA Centers. This model contributes toward reaching our project goals by: Allowing an examination of inspection parameters, across different types of projects and different work products, for an analysis of factors that impact defect detection effectiveness. Allowing a comparison of this NASA-specific model to existing recommendations in the literature regarding how to plan effective inspections. Forming a baseline model which can be extended to incorporate factors describing: the numbers and types of defects that are missed by inspections; how such defects flow downstream through software development phases; how effectively they can be caught by testing activities in the late stages of development. The model has been implemented in a prototype web-enabled decision-support tool which allows developers to enter their inspection data and receive feedback based on a comparison against the model. The tool also allows users to access reusable materials (such as checklists) from projects included in the baseline. Both the tool itself and the model underlying it will continue to be extended throughout the remainder of this initiative. As results of analyzing inspection effectiveness for defect containment are determined, they can be shared via the tool and also via updates to existing training courses on metrics and software inspections. Moreover, the tool will help satisfy key CMMI requirements for the NASA Centers, as it will enable NASA to take a global view across peer review results for various types of projects to identify systemic problems. This analysis can result in continuous improvements to the approach to verification.

Shull, Forrest↗