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DOE OSTI2024

Application of Banking Scoring and Rating for Coherent Risk Measures in Electricity Systems ABSCORES

This project developed a framework for asset and system risk management that can be incorporated into current electricity system operations to improve economic efficiency and establish an Electric Assets Risk Bureau. We leveraged scoring and ratings from banking and financial institutions alongside current optimization methods in dispatching power systems to help system operators and electricity markets schedule resources. This approach is based on the observation that there are major discrepancies between the power scheduled by a system operator and the actual power generated/consumed. These discrepancies—exacerbated by unplanned contingencies (e.g., natural disasters)—are caused by multiple factors, including the different financial, environmental and risk preferences of power producers, consumers, and aggregators. We developed a framework that counteracts two failures in electricity system operations: imperfect information and missing markets for products. The technical approach included five tasks. Tasks 1 and 2 supported the development of risk scores at the asset level with historical data collected for this project. Tasks 3, 4, and 5 incorporated scoring into decision-making at the system level. The proposed effort achieved PERFORM's Program Objectives because the proposed outputs and algorithms do not exist in the electricity industry and are an innovative approach to managing risk. Since the acknowledged need to better assess and act upon risk profiles for grid assets has not been met by the industry, this project will also impact ARPA-E's Mission Areas, including improving energy efficiency and giving the U.S. a technological lead in advanced energy technologies.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗

DOE OSTI2024

40th Eastern Regional Photosynthesis Conference

Photosynthesis has shaped global biochemistry and geochemistry in its production of almost all atmospheric oxygen, and almost every electron that supports the processes of life on Earth was extracted from water by the light-dependent reactions, many of which were then used to fix carbon in the dark reactions. To humans, that fixed carbon is the originator of all fossil fuels and a critical step in conversion of solar photons to human-usable energy. The Eastern Regional Photosynthesis Conference (ERPC) serves as a forum for advancement of science in this field. As a regional-level conference, it specializes in providing developmental opportunities for early-career researchers from undergraduates to pre-tenure professors, as well as broadening the field in terms of participating scholars and research approaches to produce new interdisciplinary collaborations. Funding from the Department of Energy is used to mitigate registration and attendance costs for junior (non-PI) researchers. The ERPC is one of the three regional conferences in the field of photosynthesis research in the United States, alongside the Western Photosynthesis Conference (currently in California) and the Midwestern Photosynthesis Conference (Turkey Run, Indiana). A longstanding incubator for scientific discourse, discovery, and collaborations, this conference has spawned many collaborations which led to Department of Energy-funded projects and brought two full generations of scientists into the field. In 2023 the landmark 40th such conference was held at the Woods Hole Marine Biological Laboratory in Massachusetts. The conference was held April 14th-16th, 2023. The majority of the total attendees are traditionally undergraduates, graduate students, and postdoctoral researchers, whose scientific development greatly benefits from conferences like these. Almost all talks besides the ones given by invited speakers were given by young scientists who benefited from this award. Many posters presented at this conference were also the work of junior scientists. This conference is many young scientists' first exposure to the photosynthesis research community and its primary goal is to provide a positive atmosphere for those attendees, as exemplified by the three poster sessions and dedicated interactions between senior and junior scientists. Additionally, this was the first year of a successful equitable outreach and speaker recruitment plan to provide fair representation at the conference in line with Department of Energy policies and mission. The central focus of the ERPC is the understanding of energy flow from photons to usable chemical products in both natural and artificial photosynthesis. We support the DOE-BES aim of understanding of the biochemical/biophysical processes of photosynthesis to inform new technology development and field applications. This year’s theme, “Photosynthesis Across Scales,” reflected the scope of work being done from the individual exciton to the crop scale. This research encompasses applied biology, chemistry, physics, and materials engineering. The aim of this conference is to present new discoveries, techniques, and questions which can be sourced from any of these disciplines and provide an audience which is broadly qualified to use or respond to these developments.

08 HYDROGEN↗

DOE OSTI2024

Mercury Testing with Sludge Batch 10 Tank 40 Simulant

Savannah River Mission Completion (SRMC) requested that researchers at Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) perform testing designed to examine why the Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF) is not collecting elemental mercury in the Mercury Water Wash Tank (MWWT). In order for DWPF to recover mercury, mercuric oxide must first be reduced to elemental mercury. The elemental mercury must then be steam stripped, condense, and coalesce in the Mercury Water Wash Tank (MWWT) during chemical processing in the Sludge Receipt and Adjustment Tank (SRAT). The efficiency of these steps was investigated in a series of laboratory scale SRAT experiments under the nitric-glycolic and nitric-formic flowsheets utilizing Momentive Y-17112 and Antifoam 747. Mercury speciation in the Slurry Mix Evaporator Condensate Tank (SMECT) and condensate streams was also examined. The key conclusions from these experiments are as follows: Mercury II Oxide may not be fully reduced to elemental mercury during acid addition at 93°C. Higher temperatures, i.e., boiling may be necessary to fully reduce Mercury II Oxide. The highest percent mercury recovery (71 %) in the MWWT was observed in the MS-NGA-17112 experiment (nitric-glycolic acid flowsheet with Momentive Y-17112), which is how DWPF is currently operating the SRAT.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

DOE OSTI2026

Characterization of Precipitate Reactor Feed Tank (PRFT) Batches 44 and 49 from the Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF)

The Savannah River Site (SRS) Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF) processes a Monosodium Titanate/Sludge Solids (MST/SS) waste stream received from the Salt Waste Processing Facility (SWPF) via the Precipitate Reactor Feed Tank (PRFT). During processing, DWPF is required to provide evidence of compliance with the Waste Acceptance Product Specifications (WAPS). Savannah River Mission Completion (SRMC) has requested Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) to analyze PRFT samples representing each SWPF salt batch for thirty-two radionuclides. Additionally, elemental analysis of PRFT slurry and MST/SS solids was performed to aid SRMC in further refinement of the inputs and assumptions used in future frit development and Material Tracking Program calculations. The analyses of PRFT Batches 44 and 49, which correspond to material from the processing of Salt Batches (StB) 12 and 11, respectively, are reported herein. The unwashed dried solids of the PRFT Batches 44 and 49 are predominately MST, ~63-59% MST. The two batches have a much higher amount of Fe, Mn, and Ni compared to all previous batches. For Batch 44 this appears to be due to the use of a sludge simulant filter aid during processing of StB 12 and for Batch 49, it is possibly due to the larger amount of insoluble solids for StB 11 in comparison to all previous salt batches. Like previous PRFT batches, a significant amount of the unwashed dried solids are alkaline earth metals. The total sulfate, in mg/kg of slurry, for PRFT Batches 44 and 49 is 119 and 139, respectively, which is well below the current sulfate concentration used in Material Tracking Program calculations and is in agreement with DWPF laboratory sulfate measurements.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

DOE OSTI2024

The Impact of the 8–10 March 2012 Geomagnetic Storm on Inner Zone Protons as Measured by Van Allen Probes

The Relativistic Electron Proton Telescope (REPT) instrument on the Van Allen Probes observed a double-peaked inner zone proton population throughout the 7 year lifetime of the mission. M. Hudson et al. (2023) showed that a strong SEP event accompanied by a CME-shock in early March 2012 provided the Solar Energetic Proton (SEP) source for the higher L trapped proton population, which then diffused radially inward to be observed by REPT at L = 2. The study followed trajectories of SEP protons launched isotropically from a sphere at 7 Re for 2.5 hr in fields calculated by the LFM-RCM global MHD model, which includes electric fields needed to model the transport and trapping of the protons by the shock, and then a radial diffusion simulation was run for 2 years using the result from the test-particle simulation as the initial condition. The simulation result was compared with REPT measurement in November 2013 and showed reasonable agreement. However, the simulation overestimated the Phase Space Density by a factor of four due to lack of field line curvature scattering during the storm in the model. In this study, a test-particle simulation is performed for 2 days following the injection and trapping of protons in March 2012 using TS05 fields to simulate the field line curvature scattering of the trapped SEP due to the buildup of the ring current during the geomagnetic storm. The resulting sample distribution was then weighted using the flux at the end of the two-hour MHD-test particle simulation. A radial diffusion simulation is then run using the initial profile that included the loss effect, with improved comparison with REPT measurements after 2 years.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2026

Automated and Accelerated Continuum Model Development for Electrochemical Systems (Abbreviated Report)

Despite the availability of computational resources and advancements in numerical computing capabilities, the multiscale models core to understanding, predicting the behaviors of, and designing energy and environmental systems involving porous media are still 1.) developed through by-hand derivations and 2.) limited by many methodological assumptions employed during model derivation. As a result, the advancement of effective media models for engineering DOE mission-critical systems (e.g., batteries, flow batteries, electrolyzers, geothermal systems, subsurface chemical storage systems, etc.) is slow (i.e., it takes years for models to traverse from stages of “development” to “practical utilization”), hindering our ability to effectively optimize such systems and stay at the cutting-edge of the energy frontier. In this work, we aimed to address these limitations by 1.) automating and accelerating multiscale model derivation via symbolic computing and 2.) develop a novel multiscale modeling methodology for flow and transport through porous media that avoids the typical assumptions hindering previous models. As a result of our efforts, we 1.) developed a hybrid symbolic-numeric code called Fouriera for fully-automating the implementation of multiphysical and phase-field models via the Fourier spectral method for materials science research, and 2.) advanced a multiscale modeling methodology called The Method of Finite Averages that rigorously predicts the behaviors of flow and transport through heterogeneous porous media under the influence of non-local effects and strong advection. Ultimately, these deliverables provide strong foundations from which further efforts can advance multiscale modeling tools and capabilities that do not intrinsically rely on 1.) the speed and mathematical capabilities of humans, nor 2.) the methodological assumptions limiting current models.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

DOE OSTI2025

Conceptual Model Testing Related to SDU 6 Drainwell Observations

From its inception in the early 1950s through the end of the Cold War in the early 1990s, the Savannah River Site (SRS) produced nuclear materials for national defense in five reactors. Additionally, irradiated reactor fuel and target tubes were dissolved in nitric acid to recover plutonium and uranium using the PUREX (Plutonium Uranium Reduction EXtraction) process. Liquid waste from these chemical separations processes was then stored onsite in 51 underground tanks. Eight waste storage tanks have been operationally closed (i.e. cleaned and grouted) and the remaining tanks hold a mixture of liquids, insoluble solids, and precipitated salts (SRMC-LWP-2022-00001), the latter generated by evaporating water from the liquid waste. Waste is currently being retrieved from tanks and separated into 1) high-radioactivity, low-volume, and 2) low-radioactivity, high-volume components, principally through the Salt Waste Processing Facility (SWPF) (SRMC-LWP-2023-00001). The former waste stream is vitrified in the Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF), stored onsite, and destined for offsite disposal in a deep geologic repository. The latter stream is mixed with dry cementitious materials in the Saltstone Production Facility (SPF) and the wet slurry placed in onsite Saltstone Disposal Units (SDUs) within the Saltstone Disposal Facility (SDF), where it hardens into a cement waste form termed saltstone. A low-infiltration surface cover system will be placed over the SDF at closure, where SDUs will then be in the subsurface post-closure (SRR-CWDA-2019-00001).

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

DOE OSTI2026

Comprehensive framework for assessing and optimizing existing research networks

Conservation, monitoring, and research networks, or collections of ecological research sites unified under a common mission of data collection or a research mission, are essential infrastructure for understanding large landscapes. However, most networks developed opportunistically over decades rather than through systematic design, creating potential limitations in the ability to address conservation challenges across entire regions. We developed a framework to evaluate how well an existing research network represents the environmental conditions its members study and devised an approach to rank sites of priority for strategic expansion. Our approach measures performance through environmental representativeness, geographic coverage, and adequacy for scientific inference and thus optimizes limited monitoring resources to maximize scientific impact. We demonstrated this approach with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service Experimental Forests and Ranges Network (EFRN), a 79‐site network across the United States that grew opportunistically over a century. At the national scale, the network effectively captured high‐biomass forests important for carbon cycle research; 82% of forest biomass was in well‐represented areas. Some areas in Texas, Florida, the Rocky Mountains, and the West Coast had no relevant EFRN sites, which limits the ability to make regional inferences. A fundamental challenge for the EFRN was that sites improving regional extent coverage sometimes provided minimal national benefits, which can create conflicts between local and global priorities. Adding the highest‐ranked candidate site provided a relevant site for 17% of currently poorly represented 1‐km pixel cells nationally, but regional and national site rankings varied considerably due to nested spatial inference. This framework provides quantitative tools for strategic infrastructure decision‐making, ensures that limited monitoring resources maximize conservation impact, and can be applied broadly to address the widespread challenge of optimizing conservation and monitoring networks worldwide.

additional site↗

DOE OSTI2026

Graphical User Interface for a Biasing Board for the PSEC6

The PSEC6 is an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) designed for a readout system for a large area picosecond photodetector (LAPPD). The PSEC6 is currently in fabrication and pending testing. The testing system for the PSEC5, the previous iteration of the ASIC, required expensive and non-portable equipment, because the ASIC needs twelve adjustable reference voltages. The new testing system consists of an low-cost, open-source, cross-platform graphical user interface (GUI), a digital system, and a biasing board. The digital system is the interface between the GUI and biasing board, and can be implemented on a microcontroller or field-programmable gate array (FPGA). The biasing board contains twelve digital-to-analog converters (DACs) that are configurable via the GUI, which gives users the ability to write voltage values to all or specific DACs. The GUI was developed in C on Linux using the widget library GTK4 and cross-compiled for Windows compatibility. I2C and SPI protocols were implemented on an Adafruit Feather ESP32-S3 microcontroller to write commands to the DACs and PSEC6. A hardware implementation of the I2C protocol is in development on an FPGA. Since LAPPDs will be used by the Accelerator Neutrino Neutron Interaction Experiment (ANNIE) at Fermilab, the PSEC6 testing system in this internship project can potentially benefit future neutrino research. The project is relevant to the Department of Energy’s microelectronics mission, because the PSEC6 is an ASIC that will handle fast time signals arriving from the detector for readout. It also provided experience with building a cross-platform user interface, practicing digital design and implementation in hardware description language (HDL), and using simulations to inform new design iterations.

Guerrero, Sasha Camila [North Central Coll.]↗

DOE OSTI2026

Graphical User Interface for a Biasing Board for the PSEC6

Guerrero, Sasha Camila [North Central Coll.]↗

DOE OSTI2025

MATHUSLA: An External Long-Lived Particle Detector to Maximize the Discovery Potential of the HL-LHC

We present the current status of the MATHUSLA (MAssive Timing Hodoscope for Ultra-Stable neutraL pArticles) long-lived particle (LLP) detector at the HL-LHC, covering the design, fabrication and installation at CERN Point 5. MATHUSLA40 is a 40 m-scale detector with an air-filled decay volume that is instrumented with scintillator tracking detectors, to be located near CMS. Its large size, close proximity to the CMS interaction point and about 100 m of rock shielding from LHC backgrounds allows it to detect LLP production rates and lifetimes that are one to two orders of magnitude beyond the ultimate reach of the LHC main detectors. This provides unique sensitivity to many LLP signals that are highly theoretically motivated, due to their connection to the hierarchy problem, the nature of dark matter, and baryogenesis. Data taking is projected to commence with the start of HL-LHC operations. We summarize the new 40m design for the detector that was recently presented in the MATHUSLA Conceptual Design Report, alongside new realistic background and signal simulations that demonstrate high efficiency for the main target LLP signals in a background-free HL-LHC search. We argue that MATHUSLA's uniquely robust expansion of the HL-LHC physics reach is a crucial ingredient in CERN's mission to search for new physics and characterize the Higgs boson with precision.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

DOE OSTI2024

Invasive Plant Species Management Plan for Los Alamos National Laboratory (Rev.3)

Native species are plants and animals that continually occupy a natural range without direct or indirect introduction and/or care by humans. They are adapted to the environmental conditions and processes of the ecosystem in which they reside. A species introduced into a novel ecosystem can either exploit that ecosystem and thrive or be unable to survive in that ecosystem (Hobbs et al. 2006). Alien or non-native species are species that are intentionally or accidentally introduced into a novel ecosystem and are capable of living and propagating within the physical parameters of that ecosystem. Invasive species is a species that is non-native (or alien) to the ecosystem under consideration and a noxious species are those whose introduction causes or is likely to cause economic or environmental harm. The term invasive species is applicable to plants and animals alike; however, this invasive species management plan currently focuses on invasive vegetation. Invasive plant species are usually capable of rapid colonization of disturbed ground, such as after a change in wildfire regime intensity and frequency (Reilly et al. 2020) or anthropogenic ground disturbance (Burke and Grime 1996; Hobbs and Huenneke 1992). Climate change facilitates the spread and establishment of many alien species and creates new opportunities for them to become invasive (Turbelin and Catford 2021). As climate change impacts increase in the coming decades, we may see in an increase in invasive species establishment. See a list of definitions of terms pertinent to this document in Appendix A: Definitions. Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) hosts populations of non-native and invasive species all typical of the northern New Mexico region (Martin 2004; NMDA 2020). By implementing an invasive species management plan, LANL will have readily accessible management strategies for invasive species that are found on-site. The benefits of managing invasive species include a decrease in wildland fire risks, an increase in soil productivity, an increase in (productive or beneficial) wildlife habitat, an increase in water quantity and quality, and the restoration of impacted areas (Burke and Grime 1996; Hobbs and Huenneke 1992; D’Antonio and Hobbie 2005; MacDougall et al. 2013; Reilly et al. 2020). The aforementioned benefits from invasive species management directly enable the LANL mission by ensuring compliance requirements are met and site-wide programs, such as the Vulnerability Assessment and Resilience Plan, are supported for a mutually beneficial outcome. An example for the LANL site specifically, controlling non-native annual plant species, for example, could reduce the costs associated with stabilizing soils during the stormwater pollution prevention compliance process. Roadway and utility right-of-way areas are another place where an integrated vegetation management strategy would promote low growing perennial plants in a way that is mutually beneficial to habitat and the institution through lowered maintenance costs. There is also an economic benefit to managing invasive species. In one nationwide study, invasive plants had an estimated impact cost of $190.45 billion (Fantel-Lepczyk et al. 2022). Investing in preventative measures and surveillance could help to offset future control and management costs of invasive species that have the potential to become established. The State of New Mexico has developed plant species lists and recommendations through the New Mexico Department of Agriculture’s Noxious Weeds Management Act, Article 7D (NM Statute § 76-7D-4 2021); however, effective invasive species management must rely on local knowledge of the site and region. Los Alamos County (LAC) has already compiled a target invasive plant species list and species-specific management objectives (Martin 2004). Therefore, the New Mexico Noxious Weed List and the LAC invasive plant species list, as well as management objectives from those documents, are integrated into LANL’s invasive plant species management plan.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2025

FY24 Task 5: Leachate Disposition

Directly feeding sludge solids to the high-level waste (HLW) Waste Treatment Plant represents an alternative flowsheet seeking to initiate sludge processing as soon as possible. Key processing functions previously captured during baseline pretreatment operations include leaching and washing prior to solids concentration. These operations should be considered in the potential direct feed flowsheets to maximize waste feed loading, minimize HLW volume, and mitigate corrosion challenges associated with vitrification of high phosphate and fluoride concentrations. Additionally, single-shell tank (SST) retrievals and waste transfers to double-shell tanks (DSTs) in a direct feed flowsheet would likely also benefit from some level of leaching, washing, and solids concentration in order to reduce DST space and mission duration. These operations could occur in a new facility or potentially in available DSTs. If washing and leaching are utilized, an effective disposition pathway for the wash water and leachate solutions are needed. Three target species that benefit significantly from leaching and washing are phosphate, fluoride and aluminum. Phosphate (PO 4 3- ) and fluoride (F - ) can contribute substantially to the amount of carrier fluid needed for dissolution, and the resulting volume of liquid generated. Disposition of this retrieval solution should be evaluated in order to prevent crystallization of these anions throughout system processing. Since there is a high probability that any retrieval solutions will be at or near their PO 4 3- and F - solubility limits, evaporation or blending with a high Na supernate (>3.5 M) is not recommended for the wash water streams without a method to remove precipitants prior to solution disposal. Additionally, aluminum present in the southeast quadrant of the Hanford site represents roughly 60% of the waste solids in the initial processing tanks. These aluminum solids are in the form of gibbsite (Al(OH) 3 ) and can pose significant challenges for processing due to the fast-settling times and high solids loading associated with these materials. Easily remediated by caustic addition to the solids, these wash solutions could be processed through crystalline silicotitanate (CST) ion exchange columns to prepare the supernate solutions for disposition. The current target for feed conditions to the Low Activity Waste (LAW) melter are waste streams that contain nominally 5-6 M Na. Fractions within the tanks contain upwards of 0.2 M phosphate and fluoride in solution at 3.5 M Na. Concentrating these solutions above 5 M Na would result in an exceedance of the solubility limits, and potential for uncontrolled precipitation of the phosphate and fluoride crystal material. The resulting crystalline salt material is typically sodium fluoride phosphate, also referred to as natrophosphate (Na 7 FPO 4 ·19H 2 O). Salt phases are of importance in tank waste due to their chemical reactivity, which can result in precipitation, dissolution, or transformation, impacting any downstream processes (Bolling et al. 2020, Russell, Snow, and Peterson 2010). Salt generation and precipitation could pose challenges by causing system plugging and melter corrosion if left in the supernate stream, or limit sodium molarity of the supernate that would be accepted without incident in waste operations. To understand the impact of this salt generation, the crystallization of natrophosphate in multiple simulant feed matrices was studied to understand the implications of various tank waste supernate chemistries. Three matrices were examined: high PO 4 3- /low F - , low PO 4 3- /high F - , and an average matrix. Subsequent testing was performed with the average matrix with the inclusion of CsNO 3 , and a final run with the average matrix including CsNO 3 and a 137 Cs spike for tracer purposes.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

DOE OSTI2025

A small core in Vesta inferred from Dawn’s observations

Vesta’s large-scale interior structure had previously been constrained primarily using the gravity and shape data from the Dawn mission. However, these data alone still allow a wide range of possibilities for the differentiation state of the body. The moment of inertia is arguably the most diagnostic parameter related to the radial density distribution of a planetary body, making it crucial for assessing the body’s state of internal differentiation. Determining the moment of inertia requires additional measurements of the amplitudes of small rotational motions, such as precession and nutation. Here we report an updated estimate of the moment of inertia of Vesta inferred from Dawn’s Doppler tracking via the Deep Space Network and onboard imaging data. The recovered value for Vesta’s normalized polar moment of inertia is $\overline{C}$/MR 2 = 0.4208 ± 0.0047 (where M is the mass of Vesta and R is the reference radius), which is only 6.6% lower than the homogeneous value of 0.4505. This value, combined with the gravity field and global shape, suggests that Vesta’s interior has limited density stratification beneath its howardite–eucrite–diogenite-dominated crust. We propose two possible origin scenarios that are consistent with the observed constraints. In the first scenario, Vesta’s interior did not undergo full differentiation due to late accretion. In the second scenario, Vesta originated as an impact remnant of a larger differentiated body re-accreted with non-chondritic bulk composition produced from a catastrophic impact. Vesta did not experience complete differentiation in either scenario, suggesting that its current state reflects a complex interplay between its accretion timing, thermal evolution, redistribution of 26 Al bearing melt and/or impact processes.

CNEOS 2014-01-08 bolide↗

DOE OSTI2024

Small arms suppression project (LLNL final report)

US Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) was seeking a technological leap in small firearms weapon suppressor technology, because anticipated enemy capabilities are requiring the operators to have smaller detection cross sections to ensure the safe execution of missions. Suppressors have been developed almost exclusively through trial-and-error methods since the time of the original design by Hiram Maxim over one hundred years ago. Consequently USSOCOM deemed it prudent to perform a physicsbased study of weapon suppression to understand performance limits and possibly identify breakthrough technologies. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s (LLNL’s) high performance production level computational tool called ALE3D (Arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian 3D and 2D) has unique physics models and numerical algorithms for modeling suppressor dynamics. The flexible and extendable code framework supports fully integrated hydrodynamics, heat transfer, solid and fluid dynamics, and chemistry that can be applied to simulating propellant-driven motion of a bullet down a gun barrel, the transfer of heat from the burning propellant to the barrel and suppressor, the chemistry of muzzle flash, and the shock/acoustic/optical signatures in the near-field. LLNL’s originally anticipated role was to augment ALE3D for this task, by developing the software and analysis methodologies specific to the simulation of blast and muzzle flash phenomena. It was believed that insights provided by our ALE3D simulations in tandem with a coordinated experimental component by our other team members from Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and the U. S. Army Armament, Research, Development and Engineering Center (ARDEC), would have excellent prospects of yielding useful suppressor design improvements that could be transitioned to industry and utilized by US Special Operations Command. The three year effort has come to fruition with the development of revolutionary suppressor designs that far outperform any previous or current design by anyone outside this multi-lab team.

42 ENGINEERING↗

DOE OSTI2025

Collaborative: in situ visual analytics technologies for extreme scale combustion simulations

This project aims to drastically enhance the usability of in situ analysis and visualization for extreme-scale scientific simulations. Current exascale computing capabilities promise to offer greater predictive ability of simulations and to further push the frontiers of science and technology. However, to validate the simulation output at extreme scale, examine the modeled phenomena, and discover previously unknowns from the output data, the output must be reduced or transformed in situ as it is being generated during the simulation such that the amount of data to examine and store is kept to a minimum. Such in situ approaches allow us to process and analyze the data and any embedded geometry to an extent that would be prohibitively expensive, if not impossible, to perform as a post hoc task. While in situ processing has been demonstrated to be a feasible and promising approach, its full potential has not yet been leveraged. In this project, we have developed comprehensive enhancements to in situ technology based on probability distributions in data. Our research focuses on jointly developing new ways of interacting with massive statistical samples while creatively utilizing new state-of-the-art computational resources to push the boundaries of in situ exploration. Moreover, we have developed new time-dependent techniques to enable previously unattainable capabilities in areas such as intelligent simulation steering and precise feature identification. We have experimentally studied our design and implementation at NERSC and OLCF, and are able to leverage existing in situ infrastructures whenever possible. While the exemplar in this project is combustion, many other fields for which turbulent transport is important, e.g., fusion, climate, astrophysics among others, encounter similar issues as simulations scale up to the exascale. This project shows its potential to generate high impact on DOE missions since the resulting technology promises to improve scientists’ ability to rapidly and correctly interpret and tune extreme-scale simulations, leading to new scientific understanding and advancements.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

DOE OSTI2026

Securing The Future: 2026 Manufacturing & Critical Infrastructure Threat Landscape

This report outlines the current state of manufacturing weaknesses introduced by the complexities of modern environments, including cloud services and Internet of Things (IoT) devices, with particular attention paid to the unique vulnerabilities encountered by SMMs. It also highlights CyManII’s strategic initiatives and collaborative solutions to mitigate these risks and strengthen the cybersecurity posture of the manufacturing ecosystem. Utilizing data from 2025 to inform forward-looking mitigation strategies, this report provides manufacturers with a clear understanding of both current and emerging cybersecurity threats, as well as practical opportunities to strengthen their cyber ecosystems. The following sections detail key vulnerabilities and threat vectors, along with actionable mitigation strategies, many of which have been developed or piloted through CyManII-led efforts. A thorough understanding of these risks and mitigation strategies is essential for manufacturers seeking to strengthen the security and resilience of their manufacturing operations.

3D Printing↗

DOE OSTI2024

Research Reactors Division Infrastructure Investment Plan for the High Flux Isotope Reactor

The High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) is a unique national asset. Operational for nearly 60 years, continued investment into the aging infrastructure is necessary to ensure operation for another 6 decades. Additionally, growing missions require HFIR as well as important upgrades. Consequently, carefully integrated planning is required to ensure that infrastructure investments are timely executed to ensure long-term, reliable operation of HFIR. Concerns about challenges to the operational reliability of HFIR resulted in a recommendation from the 2023 Operations Review by the US Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Basic Energy Sciences that a HFIR management strategy be developed to address the infrastructure needs. This report defines the investment needs, which are evolving as new upgrade efforts are better defined. HFIR is part of the three-source strategy within the Neutron Sciences Directorate (NScD) and contributes to the five strategic science areas outlined in the NScD 10 Year Strategic Science Plan: quantum materials, soft matter, materials and engineering, chemistry, and biosciences. Fundamental to this strategy are three core values: operational excellence, responsible stewardship, and servant leadership. These values guide our mission of safe and reliable operation of the reactor and require a strong and just nuclear safety culture, a solemn respect for responsible care of the facility, good workforce development, robust procedures and processes, an effective communication strategy, world-class asset management, a determined customer focus, and a commitment to protecting the environment, the safety and health of the public and our people, and the quality of work performed within our facility. These principles are all essential to operate HFIR at a world-class level. The Research Reactors Division (RRD) will lead a new era of neutron science and isotope production at HFIR through responsible and purposeful leadership and unwavering support of the science community. The approach outlined in this plan highlights the direction leadership is taking to ensure that HFIR is ready to support the science challenges and national needs of the future and that the United States maintains world leadership in neutron sciences. The plan is in alignment with the DOE’s desire to continue operating HFIR and with the NScD strategic science goals for the future. HFIR is an aging facility with numerous infrastructure challenges and needs. It has an aging workforce in relation to the general population of Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), with many expected retirements over the next 5–10 years. With an increase in work scope caused by changing national priorities and science goals, several critical hires have been identified. To manage HFIR’s infrastructure needs, a prioritized list of equipment upgrades has been identified along with an analysis of future staffing requirements. A desire to operate HFIR at eight cycles per year will necessarily require some significant changes to procedures and processes currently in place as well as targeted staffing additions. Many of the equipment upgrades identified in this plan will significantly increase the reliability of the plant, thus contributing to the effort to reach the goal of safely operating eight cycles per year. A plan to attain eight-cycle operation is being prepared in parallel with the activities identified in this plan, although the actions identified to satisfy both plans will overlap. This plan identifies new infrastructure needs—for both plant equipment and staffing—thus necessitating formulation of future budget requests to fund the increased work scope and improvement activities. Some activities are currently being scheduled with the expectation that funding will be received. Any delays to funding or reductions of funding from the identified cost estimations will directly and negatively affect the plan’s implementation.

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗