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Examination of entrainment, combustibility, and heat transfer due to cell venting inside simplified battery energy storage enclosures
Battery energy storage systems (ESS) assembled of modules containing lithium-ion batteries can pose fire and explosion hazards during thermal runaway because vented gases may accumulate, combust, or escape enclosures. Here, we propose a prototypical configuration composed of the main components of an ESS rack, where modules are represented as rectangles within an enclosure and vent gas is injected steadily through the top of a module. This idealized geometry allows for exploration of how rack-level characteristics can influence smaller single-cell or module-level scales. Through this geometry, we conduct numerical simulations to understand how variations in the vent velocity, temperature, and vertical location affect entrainment rates, fraction of uncombusted fuel, rich-gas coverage, and heat flux to other modules. At lower vent velocities and vertical positions, buoyancy drives enough entrainment and mixing to react with most of the vent gases on the converging plenum. As jet momentum increases and/or buoyancy decreases via higher vent position in the rack, vent gases can propagate into and burn in the divergence plenum. Heat flux to the impinged module scales strongly with vent momentum and temperature, while heat transfer to upper modules peaks when flames in the diverging plenum reach the surface and declines when combustion is suppressed.
A fast rise-rate, adjustable-mass-bit gas puff valve for energetic pulsed plasma experiments
Not Available
Numerical Simulation and Experimental Comparison of System Analysis Module 1D Mixing Model for Cold Shock Transients in the Gallium Thermal-Hydraulic Mixing Facility
Abstract Liquid metals are being investigated as coolants in many advanced reactor designs because of their high thermal conductivity and effectiveness at high temperatures. However, they often pose challenges to reactor operation and safety because of the complex thermal mixing and stratification in the plenum of pool-type reactor designs. The advanced system analysis code System Analysis Module (SAM) currently under development at Argonne National Laboratory aims to develop and implement thermal mixing models to accurately capture these complex thermal fluid behaviors. In this study, the SAM thermal mixing model was compared against experimental data from the Gallium Thermal-Hydraulic Experiment facility, a scaled liquid metal test facility that uses gallium as a surrogate fluid to investigate the stratification and thermal mixing of low-Prandtl-number fluids in the upper plenum of a liquid metal-cooled reactor. Two cold shock transient cases were used: one with stable stratified flow (Ri = 32) and one with stronger thermal mixing (Ri = 0.5). The resultant temperatures were then compared with the experimental temperatures over the entire plenum to assess the ability of the mixing models to capture the thermal behavior and to better correspond mixing parameters to various flow scenarios. Generally, the zero-dimensional mixing model was more capable of capturing the bulk temperature of the component modeled assuming that an accurate mass flow rate was provided, but it was inherently unable to capture thermal gradients in space. The one-dimensional mixing model was capable of capturing that the thermal gradients provided accurate selection of the mixing coefficients. Further, the temperature at the outlet junction was compared over time for each of the mixing models with the recorded experimental temperature. The implemented mixing models demonstrated the ability to effectively capture the overall thermal behavior for stronger mixing scenarios but struggled with more stably stratified flows. It was found that a system analysis code's covering of the entire range of different operating conditions still remains a challenging task, and it is suggested that further model and closure improvements are necessary to accurately capture complex thermal mixing and stratification phenomena.
Pressure Response Optimization of an Eddy Current-Driven Flyer Plate Valve for the ITER Shattered Pellet Injection System
One technique for mitigating disruptions in a tokamak is shattered pellet injection (SPI). SPI is a process in which a large solid pellet consisting of deuterium, neon, or argon is desublimated in a pipe gun barsrel and launched downstream. Pellets are shattered just before entering the plasma by an impact with an angled tube. Injection of these materials into the plasma radiates stored thermal energy, limits current decay rates, suppresses the generation of runaway electrons, and dissipates runaway electrons if necessary. A critical element of the SPI system is a fast-acting valve that releases high-pressure gas to dislodge and accelerate pellets directly, or indirectly via a mechanical punch. A prototype valve sized for the ITER SPI system has been designed and fabricated. A pulsed high-voltage power supply energizes the valve’s internal magnetic coil, which induces eddy currents in the adjacent flyer plate resulting in a repulsive force between the flyer plate and the coil. The flyer plate action lifts a valve seat, allowing high-pressure gas to flow from the valve plenum to the downstream (breech) location of the pellet or mechanical punch. All of the valve’s internal components are designed to operate in ITER-level static background magnetic fields. Here, a study was conducted to optimize the downstream pressure response for a range of valve sizes and operating pressures. In particular, the study analyzes the breech pressure response associated with varying plenum pressures as well as varying breech volumes. A computational fluid dynamics simulation was built in STAR-CCM+ and validated against data from laboratory experiments. The resulting simulation outputs, in the form of downstream responses for a variety of initial plenum pressures and breech volumes, will be used as a complement to experimental data to ensure the pressure pulse is suitable for pellet survivability. These data, combined with studies on pellet shear strength and shock response, will be applied to optimization of overall operating parameters of the ITER SPI system.
Optimization of pumping performance in the EAST upgraded divertor
The pumping performance of the EAST tokamak upgraded divertor has been optimized by varying the height and width of the duct that connects the plasma and plenum volumes. The optimization is enacted using a semi-analytic model which predicts the molecular pressure in the plenum given the plasma facing component geometry and plasma parameters along the divertor, specifically electron temperature, electron density, and the ion particle flux. The model is semi-analytic as the plasma parameters can come from experimental data (or plasma transport simulations), and uses a first-flight approximation for neutral transport. This model is computationally inexpensive, allowing for several geometries and sets of plasma parameters to be rapidly evaluated. A duct geometry is discovered that performs well for different plasma equilibria and strike point positions. The semi-analytic model results are compared to two dimensional plasma and neutral transport simulations using the SOLPS-ITER code, suggesting that charge-exchange is a significant contributor to the plenum pressure at low electron temperature. An extension to the semi-analytic model improves the comparison over a broader range of temperature. The conservative prediction of the model and the broad maximum in the pressure contours imply that the inclusion of charge-exchange is not required in the optimization procedure, but that quantitative estimates should be provided with a high-fidelity model such as SOLPS-ITER.
Performance Analysis of a Modular Small-Diamter Air Distribution System
This report investigates the feasibility of using a home-run manifold small-diameter duct system to provide space conditioning air to individual thermal zones in a low-load home. This compact layout allows duct systems to be brought easily within conditioned space via interior partition walls. Centrally locating the air handler unit in the house significantly reduces duct lengths. The plenum box is designed so that each connected duct receives an equal amount of airflow, regardless of the duct position on the box. Furthermore, within a reasonable set of length restrictions, each duct continues to receive similar airflow. The design method uses an additive approach to reach the total needed zonal airflow. Once the cubic feet per minute needed to satisfy the thermal load of a zone has been determined, the total number of duct runs to a zone can be calculated by dividing the required airflow by the standard airflow from each duct. The additive approach greatly simplifies the design effort and reduces the potential for duct design mistakes to be made. Measured results indicate that this plenum design can satisfy the heating load. However, the total airflow falls short of satisfying the cooling load in a hypothetical building. Static pressure inside the plenum box of 51.5 Pa limited the total airflow of the attached mini-split heat pump blower, thus limiting the total thermal capacity. Fan energy consumption is kept to 0.16 to 0.22 watt/CFM by using short duct runs and smooth duct material.
Stasis PCM Test Results
A phase change material product distributed by Stasis Group, designed to reduce the cooling energy requirements of multi-story commercial buildings, was tested in a side-by-side comparison at FLEXLAB® (LBNL, 2018), a calibrated test facility for low energy building technology solutions. The product was installed according to Stasis recommendations in the ceiling plenum of a 600 ft 2 cell representative of an office space, while an identical cell was operated in the same conditions, except for the night-time pre-cooling sequence and without the product, to gather baseline data. The cells were operated to replicate summer conditions of a candidate office building for retrofit. For the tests conducted at FLEXLAB, two Phase Change Material (PCM) compositions were tested, with the second product having an upgraded composition for thermal performance and upgraded packaging that was used to meet with fire safety requirements for a plenum application. Two rounds of tests were performed, which were designed to collect data for both core (designated as Round 1) and perimeter (Round 2) office space conditions. Following the analysis of the data collected during Round 1, the experimental design was modified to better represent the thermal conditions of a typical office space in relation to the PCM performance. A new product was also brought in for testing in Round 2, which had an improved operational temperature range and packaging properties. In Round 1, multiple tests were conducted to evaluate the performance of the product under different conditions of internal loads, temperature setpoints, pre-cooling strategies and temperature control strategies. In Round 2, the internal conditions were kept constant, while the test conditions only differ in the amount of PCM installed in the test cell plenum and the length of the nighttime pre-cooling sequence. The performance benefits of PCM are generally two-fold: the material may reduce peak cooling energy use during daytime hours (a peak demand energy use benefit) and may allow for energy savings with pre-cooling at night through night flush HVAC controls when night time outside air temperatures are lower, and fan energy use for cooling is more efficient than the use of daytime compressor-based cooling. The focus of this research project was mainly on quantifying the energy savings potential of the latter case although some effects on peak reduction were noted. Between the cell with PCM and nighttime precooling and the reference cell without PCM or precooling, a reduction in cooling load during occupied hours was noted between 7.6 kWh (or 22% of occupied hours cooling load) and 12.5 kWh (or 33% of occupied pg. 7 hours cooling load). Future work can further evaluate the peak cooling load reduction benefits of this product in more detail. This report highlights the results of Round 2, which reflect the performance of the modified PCM product when operated in suitable conditions. The results of Round 1, along with an analysis of the experimental data to identify the factors that prevented the product from performing as desired are presented in Appendix B.
Multiphysics Simulations of MSRE with NEAMS Thermal Hydraulics Tools
This report documents the benchmarks being developed and simulations performed using tools and codes developed under the Nuclear Energy Advanced Modeling and Simulation (NEAMS) program, utilizing MSRE experimental data. In FY23, three main work scopes were investigated under the NEAMS MSR work package at ANL. The first scope investigated the Griffin-SAM coupling model for simulating the pump startup transient experiment of MSRE. The analyses start with a simple model (single-channel, single-lattice), gradually adding more details (multi-channel, full-core) into the model. The results show that the reactivity loss curve is very sensitive to the axial boundary conditions and the radial core discretization. The simple model can predict a similar reactivity trend as that of the more sophisticated model, which is likely due to error cancellation. Accurately modeling the axial boundary condition may further improve the reactivity trend but would require significant efforts to generate the mesh of the MSRE inlet and upper plenum. The core channel radial discretization for the Griffin-SAM coupled model also depends on the flow distribution. Given the complex geometry in the inlet plenum, the flow distribution needed to be calculated from CFD analysis, which was performed using the NekRS code. This analysis employed a MSRE CAD model developed by Copenhagen Atomics. The CAD model was disassembled to keep the inlet plenum region only, which was subsequently cleaned and modified so that the mesh generated is under the memory limit. The results are merged to a few radial regions to show that the flow rate is highest in the central region. This would be useful for future improvement of the Griffin-SAM coupling model of the MSRE core. The last task investigated is tritium transport modeling using the standalone SAM code. This task aimed to initiate the effort to demonstrate and validate the tritium transport model implemented in SAM. The preliminary investigation employed an MSRE model consisting of the primary loop. Three tritium transport pathways were examined including the retention in the graphite, the permeation through the HX tube wall, and the removal from the off-gas system. The results compare well with the MSRE data, but improvements are still needed on the initial conditions (i.e., the present state may not have reached equilibrium), the boundary conditions, the off-gas system modeling, and a better numerical strategy to reach the equilibrium state.
Multi-purpose wind tunnel reaction control model block
A reaction control system nozzle block is provided for testing the response characteristics of space vehicles to a variety of reaction control thruster configurations. A pressurized air system is connected with the supply lines which lead to the individual jet nozzles. Each supply line terminates in a compact cylindrical plenum volume, axially perpendicular and adjacent to the throat of the jet nozzle. The volume of the cylindrical plenum is sized to provide uniform thrust characteristics from each jet nozzle irrespective of the angle of approach of the supply line to the plenum. Each supply line may be plugged or capped to stop the air supply to selected jet nozzles, thereby enabling a variety of nozzle configurations to be obtained from a single model nozzle block.
Micro-fluid exchange coupling apparatus
In a macro-fluid exchange, a hollow needle, such as a syringe needle, is provided for penetrating the fluid conduit of the animal. The syringe needle is coupled to a plenum chamber having an inlet and outlet port. The plenum chamber is coupled to the syringe needle via the intermediary of a standard quick disconnect coupling fitting. The plenum chamber is carried at the end of a drive rod which is coupled to a micrometer drive head. The micrometer drive head is slidably and pivotably coupled to a pedestal for adjusting the height and angle of inclination of the needle relative to a reference base support. The needle is positioned adjacent to the incised trachea or a blood vessel of a small animal and the micrometer drive head is operated for penetrating the fluid conduit of the animal.
Investigation of Aerodynamic and Icing Characteristics of Recessed Fuel-Vent Configurations
An investigation has been conducted in the NACA Cleveland icing research tunnel to determine the aerodynamic and icing characteristics of several recessed fuel-vent configurations. The vents were investigated aerodynamically to obtain vent-tube pressures and pressure distributions on the ramp surface as functions of tunnel-air velocity and angle of attack. Icing investigations were made to determine the vent-tube pressure losses for several icing conditions at tunnel-air velocities ranging from 220 to 440 feet per second. In general, under nonicing conditions, the configurations with diverging ramp walls maintained, vent-tube pressures greater than the required marginal value of 2 inches of water positive pressure differential between the fuel cell and the compartment containing the fuel cell for a range of angles of attack from 0 to 14deg at a tunnel-air velocity of approximately 240 feet per second. A configuration haying divergIng ramp sldewalls, a 7deg ramp angle; and vent tubes manifold,ed to a common plenum chamber opening through a slot In the ramp floor gave the greatest vent-tube pressures for all the configurations investigated. The use of the plenum chamber resulted in uniform pressures in all vent tubes. In a cloud-icing condition, roughness caused by ice formations on the airfoil surface ahead of the vent ramp, rather than icing of the vent configuration, caused a rapid loss in vent-tube pressures during the first few minutes of an icing period. Only the configuration having diverging ramp sidewalls, a 7 ramp angle, and a common plenum chamber maintained the required vent-tube pressures throughout a 60-minute icing period, although the ice formations on this configuration were more severe than those observed for the other configurations. No complete closure of vent-tube openings occurred for the configurations investigated. A simulated freezing-rain condition caused a greater and more rapid vent-tube pressure loss than was observed for a cloud-icing condition.
Experiments in a three-dimensional adaptive-wall wind tunnel
Three dimensional adaptive-wall experiments were performed in the Ames Research Center (ARC) 25- by 13-cm indraft wind tunnel. A semispan wing model was mounted to one sidewall of a test section with solid sidewalls, and slotted top and bottom walls. The test section had separate top and bottom plenums which were divided into streamwise and cross-stream compartments. An iterative procedure was demonstrated for measuring wall interference and for adjusting the plenum compartment pressures to eliminate such interference. The experiments were conducted at a freestream Mach number of 0.60 and model angles of attack between 0 and 6 deg. Although in all the experiments wall interference was reduced after the plenum pressures were adjusted, interference could not be completely eliminated.
A two-dimensional adaptive-wall test section with ventilated walls in the Ames 2- by 2-foot transonic wind tunnel
The first tests conducted in the adaptive-wall test section of the Ames Research Center's 2- by 2-Foot Transonic Wind Tunnel are described. A procedure was demonstrated for reducing wall interference in transonic flow past a two-dimensional airfoil by actively controlling flow through the slotted walls of the test section. Flow through the walls was controlled by adjusting pressures in compartments of plenums above and below the test section. Wall interference was assessed by measuring (with a laser velocimeter) velocity distributions along a contour surrounding the model, and then checking those measurements for their compatibility with free-air far-field boundary conditions. Plenum pressures for minimum wall interference were determined from empirical influence coefficients. An NACA 0012 airfoil was tested at angles of attach of 0 and 2, and at Mach numbers between 0.70 and 0.85. In all cases the wall-setting procedure greatly reduced wall interference. Wall interference, however, was never completely eliminated, primarily because the effect of plenum pressure changes on the velocities along the contour could not be accurately predicted.
Two-dimensional adaptive-wall tests in the NASA Ames two- by two-foot transonic wind tunnel
The first tests conducted in the adaptive-wall test section of the Ames Research Center's 2- by 2-Foot Transonic Wind Tunnel are described. A procedure was demonstrated for reducing wall interference in transonic flow past a two-dimensional airfoil by actively controlling flow through the slotted walls of the test section. Flow through the walls was controlled by adjusting pressures in compartments of plenums above and below the test section. Wall interference was assessed by measuring (with a laser velocimeter) velocity distributions along a contour surrounding the model, and then checking those measurements for their compatibility with free-air far-field boundary conditions. Plenum pressures for minimum wall interference were determined from empirical influence coefficients. An NACA 0012 airfoil was tested at angles of attack of 0 and 2, and at Mach numbers between 0.70 and 0.85. In all cases the wall-setting procedure greatly reduced wall interference. Wall interference, however, was never completely eliminated, primarily because the effect of plenum pressure changes on the velocities along the contour could not be accurately predicted.
Adaptive-wall wind-tunnel research at Ames Research Center: A retrospective
This paper reviews adaptive-wall wind-tunnel research conducted at Ames Research Center between 1978 and 1988. This research focused on developing ways to apply the concept of adaptive walls in transonic test sections with ventilated walls. In the approach pursued at Ames, local mass flow through slotted test-section walls was controlled by adjusting the pressure in compartments of a segmented plenum; the flow measurements required to test compatibility of the wind-tunnel flow with free-air boundary conditions were made using a laser velocimeter; empirical influence coefficients were used to predict how pressure changes in the plenum would effect the flow. Both two- and three-dimensional proof-of-concept experiments were conducted in a small indraft wind tunnel. Subsequently, a two-dimensional test section was demonstrated in the Ames 2x2 ft. Transonic Wind Tunnel-a wind tunnel representative of a production facility. The 2x2 ft.tests showed large reductions of wall interference; however, the time required to make the necessary flow measurements and plenum pressure adjustments far exceeded what would be acceptable for production testing. This was primarily because the imaginary surface where free-air compatibility was tested had to be separated from the test section walls to avoid the complex, viscous flow adjacent to the walls. It is unlikely that the Ames approach to adaptive walls will be applied in production wind tunnels. The two biggest unresolved problems are how to quickly and accurately make the necessary flow measurements and how to predict the effects of wall adjustments. In contrast, flexible-wall technology for two-dimensional testing is ready for application in production wind tunnels. However, neither the ventilated- nor flexible-wall approach has been shown to be a technically viable and cost-effective solution to the three-dimensional adaptive wall problem.
AMTEC vapor-vapor series connected cells
An alkali metal thermoelectric converter (AMTEC) having a plurality of cells structurally connected in series to form a septum dividing a plenum into two chambers, and electrically connected in series, is provided with porous metal anodes and porous metal cathodes in the cells. The cells may be planar or annular, and in either case a metal alkali vapor at a high temperature is provided to the plenum through one chamber on one side of the wall and returned to a vapor boiler after condensation at a chamber on the other side of the wall in the plenum. If the cells are annular, a heating core may be placed along the axis of the stacked cells. This arrangement of series-connected cells allows efficient generation of power at high voltage and low current.
Control and Augmentation of Passive Porosity through Transpiration Control
A device for controlling pressure loading of a member caused by a fluid moving past the member or the member moving through a fluid. The device consists of a porous skin mounted over the solid surface of the member and separated from the solid surface by a plenum. Fluid from an area exerting high pressure on the member may enter the plenum through the porous surface and exit into an area exerting a lower pressure on the member, thus controlling pressure loading of the member. A transpirational control device controls the conditions within the plenum thus controlling the side force and yaw moment on the forebody.