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DOE OSTI2022

Light Water Reactor Sustainability: Program Materials Research Pathway (FY22 Technical Program Plan)

The Materials Research (MR) Pathway within the Light Water Reactor Sustainability (LWRS) program is charged with performing R&D to develop the scientific basis for understanding and predicting the long-term environmental degradation behavior of materials in nuclear reactors. Furthermore, the mechanistic understanding of degradation phenomena in materials must be leveraged to develop mitigation and repair strategies and new material alternatives for existing components. This research will provide data and methods to assess the performance of systems, structures, and components essential to safe and sustained reactor operations. The R&D products developed from the LWRS program will be used by stakeholders—including utilities, industry groups, and regulators—to inform operational and regulatory requirements for materials in reactor systems, structures, and components subjected to long-term operation conditions, providing key inputs to regulators and industry. Therefore, the intent of this research is to provide options to reduce the operating costs, which may be in the form of offset maintenance costs due to better predictive models for component lifetimes, improved analyses of materials through nondestructive evaluation, reduced costs for repairs, or extended performance of plants through the selection of improved replacement materials. To provide the best options, industry experience and guidance are important because of their role in coordinated or collaborative research projects. The objectives of this report are to describe the motivation and organization of the MR Pathway within the LWRS program; provide details on the individual research tasks within the MR Pathway; describe the outcomes and deliverables of the MR Pathway, including recent technical highlights and progress; and describe the requirements for performing this critically important research.

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗

DOE OSTI2023

Algal Biomass Conversion to Fuels via Combined Algae Processing (CAP): 2022 State of Technology and Future Research

The annual State of Technology (SOT) assessment is an essential activity for platform research conducted under the Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO). It allows for the impact of research progress (both directly achieved in-house at NREL and furnished by partner organizations) to be quantified in terms of economic improvements in the overall biofuel production process for a particular biomass processing pathway, whether based on terrestrial or algal biomass feedstocks. As such, initial benchmarks can be established for currently demonstrated performance, and progress can be tracked toward out-year goals to ultimately demonstrate economically viable biofuel technologies. NREL's algae SOT benchmarking efforts focus both on front-end algal biomass production and separately on back-end conversion to fuels through NREL's "combined algae processing" (CAP) pathway. The production model is based on outdoor long-term cultivation data, enabled by comprehensive algal biomass production trials conducted under Development of Integrated Screening, Cultivar Optimization, and Verification Research (DISCOVR) consortium efforts and driven by data furnished by Arizona State University's (ASU's) Arizona Center for Algae Technology and Innovation (AzCATI) test bed site. The CAP model is primarily based on experimental efforts conducted under NREL research and development projects, with some process parameters provided by partner organizations. Assumptions regarding the wet storage of algae use data provided by Idaho National Laboratory (INL), while parts of the polyurethane production process leverage BETO-funded research from collaborators at Algenesis and the University of California, San Diego (UCSD). This report focuses on back-end conversion of algal biomass through the CAP pathway, highlighting the 2022 updates to minimum fuel selling price (MFSP). This update incorporates improvements to fermentation performance for two biological pathways through carboxylic acid and 2,3-butanediol (BDO) intermediates, as demonstrated through parallel research on the biochemical conversion of corn stover. Improvements are applied to the glucose fraction of the biomass only, while parameters regarding the conversion of the mannose fraction (not a significant component in corn stover) are maintained consistently with prior CAP SOTs. Additional parameters are also updated to reflect the most current understanding of each pathway, including an increase in the catalyst loading requirement in the ketonization step of the acids pathway and a decrease in the fermentation productivity in the BDO pathway. Additionally, the biomass feedstock costs (minimum biomass selling price [MBSP]), yields, and seasonal variability from the upstream cultivation SOT model were also incorporated into downstream Aspen Plus CAP models.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗

DOE OSTI2023

Energy Flexibility-Environmental Outcomes Tradeoffs Workshop Report and Research Roadmap

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and Norway’s Royal Ministry of Petroleum and Energy signed an Annex to a previously signed memorandum of understanding (MOU) in February 2020 to collaborate on hydropower research and development (R&D). This MOU Annex has brought together the DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Water Power Technology Office and the Norwegian Research Center for Hydropower Technology (HydroCen) to plan and coordinate hydropower R&D activities to increase our understanding of hydropower’s role in the future energy grid and how to minimize and mitigate the subsequent environmental impacts. As part of this MOU Annex, hydropower researchers from the U.S. and Norway have come together to conduct collaborative research on hydropower markets and value, hydropower plant capabilities and constraints, monitoring and control technologies, environmental design solutions, environmental impacts and tradeoffs, flexible operation and planning, and technology innovations. This report presents background information on hydropower environmental regulation in the U.S. and Norway and summarizes content and conclusions from this series of two, three-hour workshops on hydropower generation flexibility and environmental outcomes, that included structured discussions used to identify research priorities and collaborative research opportunities.

13 HYDRO ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2024

Capabilities Development at the University of Texas at El Paso for Hydrogen Generation Research and Education

Gasification-based systems have recently received much attention due to their capability of converting wastes into useful fuels. The gasification of biomass, municipal solid waste (MSW), plastics, and other sustainable resources has shown promise in hydrogen production. When coupled to a CCU or CCS unit, these systems have the potential to achieve carbon neutrality or carbon-negative emissions. In addition, these systems have an edge over conventional incineration or landfill systems by reducing greenhouse gas emissions and recovering useful energy. However, the gasification of MSW and other wastes is still in its early stages. In particular, co-gasification of wastes with biomass has significant unknowns in optimizing the reaction kinetics, operability, design and performance improvements. Currently, Supercritical Water Gasifiers (SCWG) and Plasma Gasifiers are the major systems that are capable of producing high hydrogen amounts from Biomass and MSW, respectively. However, both systems have high capital and operating costs, adversely affecting efficiency and the hydrogen production cost. Additionally, due to lower temperatures, SCWGs are prone to tar formation and fouling in the heat exchangers. Hence, there is a need to look for alternative solutions for MSW and biomass gasifications, particularly in co-gasification. The current effort aims to develop a strategic plan to establish a sustainable gasification facility for hydrogen research at the University of Texas at El (UTEP). A major part of this effort involves an extensive literature survey to identify technological gaps and potential areas of interest. Several concepts were developed in accordance with the current demands from the literature survey. Based on the concepts, a center-wide capability assessment was conducted to measure the current capacity and feasibility of establishing hydrogen research. Afterward, a strategic research plan was developed, and a list of required resources was made for the expansion of hydrogen research at UTEP. In addition, successful partnerships with the local county and the city were developed to pursue hydrogen research. The strategic goal setting and planning of UTEP Aerospace Center resulted in securing $2.5 million in external support to expand the hydrogen research during the project performance period. In addition, during the project period, a course in Hydrogen Energy Systems was developed to expand the energy curriculum at the UTEP Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering Department. The course focused on hydrogen production, storage, supply and delivery and application. The cross-listed course was offered at both undergraduate and graduate levels during the Spring 2024 semester and had 27 enrolled students. Moreover, the students supported under this award were trained in gasification process modeling, CAD, CFD and FEA during the project period. The training enabled the students to move into new projects to support gasification design, integrated gasification combined cycle process plant analysis, gasifier structural and operational analysis, and digitally threading the systems.

08 HYDROGEN↗

DOE OSTI2024

NSTX-U National Research Program: White Paper in Response to Call from FESAC Sub-Committee

Both scientific and technical innovation is needed for the realization of an attractive engineering solution for a timely and cost-effective Pilot Plant, the design and construction of which is the overarching recommendation of the FESAC Long Range Plan, and the 2021 NASEM Pilot Plant reports, which underpin the Bold Decadal Vision. The two most significant plasma physics gaps to close for a Compact Pilot Plant (CPP) are core confinement improvement and heat flux mitigation, neither of which have been closed in an integrated fashion for any planned fusion power production device. High core confinement and stability are essential for producing majority self-driven plasmas in CPPs with reduced size and auxiliary heating power requirements, with an improvement in confinement being the major driver for cost reduction of a CPP. The National Spherical Tokamak Experiment - Upgrade (NSTX-U) is a unique low aspect ratio research facility that will address the fundamental challenge of developing the science and technology basis for a CPP design that integrates high core and edge confinement with the ability to mitigate very high incident heat fluxes. NSTX-U capabilities will enable the high performance, already achieved on NSTX, to extend into physics regimes much closer to those anticipated in Spherical Tokamak (ST)-based CPPs. These confinement and stability properties will be assessed by a full complement of diagnostics and analysis tools, which will also aid in the development of the underlying theory and predictive models needed for further optimization. Both conventional and transformative heat flux mitigation methods, such as liquid lithium plasma-facing components, will be developed and tested in-situ in NSTX-U at incident heat fluxes of ~100 MW/m 2 , and will inform plans and reduce risk for a subsequent major upgrade to the device to fully heated, high-Z wall and full liquid lithium divertor capability, a technology that potentially could then be implemented on any magnetic confinement device at any aspect ratio. NSTX-U research is fully complementary to programs performed on other STs, nationally and internationally. Furthermore, NSTX-U research has a direct connection to the private sector by informing design choices for future power production facilities being developed by these companies. The NSTX-U program will operate as a national User Facility, with collaborating researchers, engineers, and graduate students from 19 outside institutions, and open to participation and experiments led by researchers from both public and private entities. The research program will advance workforce development through training of young scientists, engineers, and technicians, and it will also serve for further diagnostic innovation, especially for high heat flux and high-Z wall environments, and implementation of advanced artificial intelligence (AI) for plasma and heat flux control.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

DOE OSTI2025

Detector Materials Scoping Study: Research and Development Recommendations

Radiation detection materials have a unique role in many nuclear security missions. The variety of different applications requires the use of different materials whose characteristics are determined by the specific application requirements. While baseline capabilities have been established to use radiation detection in these applications, the potential to greatly advance those capabilities still exists through the development of superior radiation detection materials and/or the development of new materials that enable new technologies to be implemented more effectively. In 2024 the Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation Research and Development (DNN R&D) Near Field Detection Portfolio charged a detector materials scoping study, composed of a group of radiation-detection materials subject matter experts, to produce a community-wide consensus view of the current state of radiation materials research and to set recommendations for expanded investment over a ten-year time frame. This scoping study sought to understand and document the landscape of how radiation detection materials are used, what characteristics drive the selection of various materials, and what developments are needed to drive the state of the art. To respond to this charge, the scoping study created three working groups, each focusing on a different topical area in radiation detection materials research - Semiconductor Materials, Inorganic Scintillators and Organic Scintillators - with the task to identify the current state of the art in materials research and to provide mission-relevant research and development recommendations. Each working group was chaired by two members of the project team with widely recognized expertise in the field. Solicitations were sent out to experts at the DOE national laboratories, industry, academia and federal government agencies to participate in these working groups. The working groups met at regular intervals throughout 2024 and early 2025, each delivering a technical roadmap designed to enable the pursuit of R&D more intensely on high-impact materials challenges and detector solutions that are deemed as the greatest strategic value to DNN R&D and its stakeholders. The roadmap is also intended to help communicate recommended programmatic priorities within DNN R&D and across the nonproliferation and research communities.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

DOE OSTI2025

Ensuring High-Purity Liquid Argon for the LBNF FDC: Collaborative Cryogenics Research Between UNICAMP and Fermilab

Ensuring High-Purity Liquid Argon for the LBNF FDC: Collaborative Cryogenics Research Between UNICAMP and Fermilab R. Doubnik1, M. Adamowski1, F. de M. Blaszczyk1, A. Hahn1, D. Montanari1, R. Mrowca1, Z. West1, C. Adriano2, T. P.M. Alegre2, D. Correia2, A. A. B. Machado2, E. Segreto2, R. G. Gonçalves3, E. M. Assaf6, J. M. Assaf3, D. Cardoso3, M. B. Fontes4, H. Da Motta4, D. Noriler5, P. J. G. Pagliuso2. 1 Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, PO Box 500, Batavia IL 60510, United States. 2 “Gleb Wataghin” Institute of Physics, UNICAMP, Campinas-SP, 13083-859, Brazil. 3 CPqMAE - Research Center on Advanced Materials and Energy, Federal University of São Carlos (UFSCar), São Carlos, 13565-905, Brazil. 4 The Brazilian Center for Research in Physics (CBPF), Rio de Janeiro-RJ, 22290-180, Brazil. 5 School of Chemical Engineering, UNICAMP, Campinas-SP, 13083-859, Brazil. 6 São Carlos Institute of Chemistry, University of São Paulo, São Carlos-SP, 13566-590, Brazil. Email: rdoubnik@fnal.gov Abstract. The Long-Baseline Neutrino Facility (LBNF) located at the Sanford Underground Research Facility (SURF) in Lead, South Dakota, hosts the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE). This experiment employs cryostats containing nearly 70,000 metric tons of high-purity liquid argon (LAr). Ensuring LAr purity is critical for achieving the required electron lifetime, which directly impacts the experiment’s signal-to-noise ratio. The Horizontal Drift (HD) detector demands an electron lifetime exceeding 3 ms within its 3.5 m drift, equivalent to less than 100 parts-per-trillion (ppt) Oxygen contamination, while the Vertical Drift (VD) detector requires over 6 ms electron lifetime within its 6.0 m drift, corresponding to less than 50 ppt Oxygen contamination. To mitigate Nitrogen (N2) quenching of scintillation light, N2 contamination must remain below 1 ppm, as higher levels can result in up to a 20 % loss of light. The Brazil State University of Campinas (UNICAMP) significantly contributes to LBNF FDC through the development of argon purification and regeneration systems for HD and VD cryostats. UNICAMP designed and constructed the Purification Liquid Argon Cryostat (PuLArC), a small-scale test facility holding approximately 90 liters of LAr. Tests using PuLArC demonstrated that 1.2 kg of Li-FAU zeolite could reduce N₂ contamination from 20-50 ppm to 0.1-1.0 ppm within 1-2 hours. Tests at Fermilab’s Iceberg cryostat (2,596 liters) confirmed scalability, with 3 kg of Li-FAU reducing N₂ contamination from ~5 ppm to <1 ppm over 96 hours cycles without active circulation. This presentation will detail the research methods, test setups, and results, showcasing the potential of Li-FAU as an alternative to Molecular Sieve 4A for large-scale LAr systems. This advancement enhances DUNE's precision and demonstrates the impact of international collaboration on cryogenic research.

Doubnik, Roza [Fermilab]↗

DOE OSTI2025

Basic Research Needs for Inverse Methods for Complex Systems under Uncertainty

Inverse problems, which aim to infer unknown properties of a system using experimental and observational data, are central to addressing many of the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) most critical scientific and engineering challenges. Accurate, computationally efficient, and data-efficient solutions to inverse problems are essential for advancing DOE mission-critical science drivers, including analyzing data from large-scale experimental facilities, optimizing fusion reactor performance, accelerating materials discovery, enhancing geophysical imaging, improving wildfire predictions, and enabling autonomous systems and digital twins. However, these problems are becoming increasingly complex, often involving nonlinear, highdimensional, and interconnected systems and models that span multiple physics and scales, while relying on data with varying quantity, quality, and information content. Compounding these challenges is the uncertainty inherent in DOE-relevant systems, where errors in inputs, noise in data, incompleteness of data, and discrepancies between models and reality constrain the accuracy and precision of solutions. At the same time, the convergence of recent scientific computing trends—scientific machine learning, artificial intelligence, and computing advances such as exascale computing—is creating unprecedented opportunities for tackling these challenges. The cross-cutting nature of inverse problems, combined with their growing complexity and rapidly evolving data and algorithmic demands, strongly motivates the formulation of a prioritized research agenda to maximize their capabilities and impact. In response to this need, DOE’s Advanced Scientific Computing Research (ASCR) program in the Office of Science convened the Workshop on Basic Research Needs for Inverse Problems for Complex Systems Under Uncertainty in June 2025. This workshop brought together experts across disciplines to identify grand challenges and major opportunities in the field. Through collaborative discussions, the workshop defined transformative research directions aimed at addressing the mathematical, statistical, and computational challenges posed by inverse problems under uncertainty. As a result of these efforts, four priority research directions (PRDs) were identified to guide future research and development in this area. These PRDs, summarized below, represent a roadmap for advancing the foundational science and mathematics of inverse problems, enabling robust, scalable, and uncertainty-aware solutions that are critical for DOE applications.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

DOE OSTI2024

Early Inference of Nuclear Technology-Directed Research Activities of Authors from Scientific Publications

Nuclear research articles can provide information about early nuclear proliferation indicators such as influential research entities and technology capability levels of a country, but detection of nuclear activities typically occurs after they have started. We investigate the extent to which nuclear research articles can be used to infer whether a research entity will acquire or develop a nuclear technology before it happens. Early detection of nuclear proliferation or technology development indicators from data is challenging due to partial observability, sparse and unlabeled information, and confounding signals from multiple concurrent activities. This paper presents the early detection problem as a sequential decision-making, goal inference problem, where the objective is to characterize and predict an individual’s, organization’s, or a country’s intent (unobserved goal-directed behavior) towards developing a nuclear capability from partially observed sequences of their research publications, using inverse reinforcement learning and Bayesian goal inference methods. A computational framework is presented, and its application demonstrated using 29,196 Scopus records for a case study related to a civil nuclear capability. The case study results serve as a proof-of-concept demonstration for inference of technology-directed research activity of authors who publish in the nuclear domain. The inference method, combined with advanced computing, may be used to assess and monitor activities pertaining to early developmental stages of a nuclear technology or capability, which in turn can help to identify and prioritize activities with nuclear proliferation potential for further investigation.

98 NUCLEAR DISARMAMENT, SAFEGUARDS, AND PHYSICAL P↗

DOE OSTI2023

Cross-cutting concepts to transform agricultural research

Agriculture is an important link to many issues that challenge society today, including adaptation to and mitigation of climate change, food security, and communicable and non-communicable diseases in animals and humans. Transformation of agriculture and food systems has become a priority for a range of federal agencies and global organizations. It is imperative that food and agricultural researchers effectively harness the global convergence of priorities to overcome research “silos” through deep and sustained systemic change. Herein, we identify intersections in federal and global initiatives encompassing climate adaptation and mitigation; human health and nutrition; animal health and welfare; food safety and security; and equity and inclusion. Many agencies and organizations share these priorities, but efforts to address them remain uncoordinated and opportunities for collaboration untapped. Based on the interconnectedness of the identified priority areas, we present a research framework to catalyze agricultural transformation, beginning with the research enterprise. We propose that transformation in agricultural research should incorporate (1) innovation, (2) integration, (3) implementation, and (4) evaluation. This framework provides approaches for food and agricultural research to contribute to sustainable, flexible, and coordinated transformation in the agricultural sector.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2022

Design and Implementation of Smart Buildings: A Review of Current Research Trend

The building sector is one of the largest contributors to the world’s total energy use and greenhouse gas emissions. Advancements in building energy technologies have played a critical role in enhancing the energy sustainability of the built environment. Extensive research and new techniques in energy and environmental systems for buildings have recently emerged to address the global challenges. This study reviews existing articles in the literature, mostly since 2000, to explore technological advancement in building energy and environmental systems that can be applied to smart homes and buildings. This review study focuses on an overview of the design and implementation of energy-related smart building technologies, including energy management systems, renewable energy applications, and current advanced smart technologies for optimal function and energy-efficient performance. To review the advancement in building energy-related technologies, a systematic review process is adopted based on available published reviews and research types of articles. Review-type articles are first assessed to explore the current literature on the relevant keywords and to capture major research scopes. Research-type papers are then examined to investigate associated keywords and work scopes, including objectives, focuses, limitations, and future needs. Throughout the comprehensive literature review, this study identifies various techniques of smart home/building applications that have provided detailed solutions or guidelines in different applications to enhance the quality of people’s daily activities and the sustainability of the built environmental system. This paper shows trends in human activities and technology advancements in digital solutions with energy management systems and practical designs. Understanding the overall energy flow between a building and its environmentally connected systems is also important for future buildings and community levels. This paper assists in understanding the pathway toward future smart homes/buildings and their technologies for researchers in related research fields.

renewable system integration↗

DOE OSTI2025

Blockchain Research and Development Activities Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy and Utility Sector

This article provides an in-depth analysis of blockchain research in the energy sector, focusing on projects funded by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and comparing them with industry-funded initiatives. A total of 110 funded activities within the U.S. power industry were successfully tracked and mapped into a newly developed categorization framework. This framework is designed to help research agencies to systematically understand their funded portfolio. Such characterization is expected to help them make effective investments, identify research gaps, measure impact, and advance technological progress to meet national goals. In line with this need, the proposed framework proposes a 2-D categorization matrix to systematically classify blockchain efforts within the energy sector.Under the proposed framework, the Energy System Domain serves as the primary classification dimension, categorizing use cases into 30 distinct applications. The second dimension, Blockchain Properties, captures the specific needs and functionalities provided by Blockchain technology. The aim was to capture blockchain’s applicability and functionality: where and why blockchain? Principles behind the selection of the viewpoint dimensions were carefully defined based on consensus obtained through the Blockchain for Optimized Security and Energy Management (BLOSEM) project. The mapped results show that activities within the Grid Automation, Coordination, and Control (31.8%), Marketplaces and Trading (25.5%), Foundational Blockchain Research (19.1%), and Supply Chain Management (17.3%) domains have been actively pursued to date. The three leading specific use case applications were identified as Transactive Energy Management for Marketplaces and Trading, Asset Management for Supply Chain Management, and Fundamental Blockchain for Foundational Blockchain Research. The Marketplaces and Trading and Retail Services Enablement domains stood out as being favored by industry by a factor greater than 2 (2.3 and 2.6, respectively), yet there seemed to be little to zero investment from DOE. Approximately 76% of the total projects prioritized Immutability, Identity Management, and Decentralization and/or Disintermediation compared to Asset Digitization and/or Tokenization, Automation, and Privacy and/or Anonymity. The greatest discrepancies between DOE and industry were in Asset Digitization and/or Tokenization and Automation. The industry efforts (36% in Asset Digitization/Tokenization and 22% in Automation) was 14 times and 2.4 times, respectively, more intensive than the DOE-sponsored efforts, indicating a significant discrepancy in industry versus government priorities. Overall, quantifying DOE-sponsored projects and industry activities through mapping provides clarity on portfolio investments and opportunities for future research.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

DOE OSTI2020

D and D Research on KM-IT Platform - 20494

The Knowledge Management Information Tool (KM-IT) is a web-based system developed to maintain and preserve the Department of Energy's (DoE's) knowledge base. The system was developed by Florida International University's Applied Research Center (FIU-ARC) with the support of the D and D community including the DOE Office of Environmental Management, and with the collaboration and support of the DoE's Energy Facility Contractors Group (EFCOG) and the former ALARA Centers at Hanford and Savannah. The KM-IT system is a community driven system tailored to serve the technical issues faced by the workforce across the DOE Complex. This KM-IT web-based interactive system is operational and available for use at www.dndkm.org and is currently comprised of the following modules: Web Crawler, Hotline, Technology, Hanford's ALARA Center Reports, Specialist Directory, Lessons Learned, Best Practices, Video/Picture Library, Vendors and Industry News. The Web Crawler dynamically searches through the KM-IT repository as well as the web and displays search results based on the search criteria. The Hotline allows registered users to post questions/problems related to D and D and to receive solutions from a subject-matter specialist. The Technology module serves as repository of D and D technologies and contains technology/ demonstration fact sheets and vendor information. D and D community members can add Lessons Learned, Best Practices, and Pictures/Videos to the D and D repository, after a formal approval process. The Vendor module provides a directory of commercial vendors who provide D and D related technologies, supplies, and services. KM-IT makes an excellent use of the knowledge that exists within the D and D community by allowing D and D project managers around the DOE complex to collaborate by sharing innovative ideas, past experiences, and practices and by maintaining a directory of subject matter specialists. FIU has developed the dedicated module on KM-IT platform to publish D and D research being performed at FIU. This module highlights current EM research efforts and activities in support of D and D being performed at FIU/SRNL associated with fixatives and intumescent products. FIU will expand this module to include the recent and current D and D research being performed across multiple DOE EM sites, national labs and universities. FIU will collaborate with SRNL, INL, ANL and other universities to explore and publish D and D research activities on KM-IT. As a result, the user community will have a centralized location to review new D and D related research across the DOE EM complex. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

DOE OSTI2024

FY23 Laboratory Directed Research & Development Annual Report

At Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL), we put science to work to protect the environment and address nuclear security challenges. Through our transformative science and technology efforts, SRNL provides solutions to the Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Environmental Management (EM) for the safe cleanup of environmental legacy resulting from nuclear weapons development and government-sponsored nuclear energy research. SRNL also supports DOE’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) as it maintains the nation’s nuclear stockpile and reduces the threat of nuclear proliferation around the world. Investments through SRNL’s Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) program drive exploratory research foundational to advancements in mission critical technologies for EM, NNSA and other offices of DOE. Our LDRD program also provides meaningful development opportunities for the people central to innovation. Seven Laboratory Director’s Postdoctoral Research Fellows were supported by LDRD during fiscal year 2023. These named postdoctoral fellows are driving SRNL’s scientific and technical core competencies forward through their dedication to research and advancement of technologies. The LDRD program supports established researchers to explore new concepts, while fueling opportunities for the next generation of scientists to join the SRNL workforce, contributing to the global scientific community through scientific publications. Enjoy reading this Annual Report which summarizes the innovative science and engineering contributions of SRNL staff supported by the LDRD Program. Dr. Vahid Majid

Majidi, Vahid↗

DOE OSTI2022

Need for research and training reactors for advanced reactor designs

Full text of publication follows. Research and training reactors have served a valuable role in helping train workforce for currently operating fleet of light water reactors. These research and training reactors have been used in reactor laboratory classes to familiarize the students with such vital concepts as approach to criticality, reactor period, neutron moderation, reactivity, flux distribution and leakage, etc. As the industry moves toward advanced non-light-water reactor designs, it is critical that research and training reactors be developed and deployed at university campuses to help train the new generation of nuclear and non-nuclear engineers who are likely to design, build, and operate these advanced reactors. Among the designs currently being pursued for nuclear power generation include molten salt, sodium cooled, and gas cooled designs, with options for various fuel forms. Thus, industry and DOE in collaboration with academic institutions should devise plans on how to familiarize the next generation of nuclear workforce with hands-on experience necessary for such designs. These research and training reactors will play a vital role in familiarizing the future workforce with hands-on experience with concepts associated with fast spectrum reactors, gas cooled reactors, and other features not associated with light water reactors. In addition to classical nuclear engineering concepts, these advanced research and training reactors can also be used for hands-on training as well as for research on features being considered in the design of GEN-IV reactors: cyber security for digital control room operations, hybrid energy system, hydrogen generation, district heating, autonomous control... (author)

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗

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 OSTI2022

Conducting more inclusive solar geoengineering research: A feminist science framework

Solar geoengineering, or deliberate climate modification, has been receiving increased attention in recent years. Given the far-reaching consequences of any potential solar geoengineering deployments, it is prudent to identify inherent biases, blind spots, and other potential issues at all stages of the research process. Here we articulate a feminist science-based framework to concretely describe how solar geoengineering researchers can be more inclusive of different perspectives and potentially contradictory conclusions, in the process illuminating potential implicit bias and enhancing the conclusions that can be gained from their studies. Importantly, this framework is an adoptable method of practice that can be refined, with the aim of conducting better research in solar geoengineering. As an illustration, we retrospectively apply this framework to a well-read solar geoengineering study (also led by the first author of this study), improving transparency by revealing its implicit values, conclusions made from its evidence base, and the methodologies that study pursues. We conclude here with a set of recommendations for the geoengineering research community whereby more inclusive research can become a regular part of practice. Throughout this process, we illustrate how feminist science scholars can use this approach to study climate modeling.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2026

Reproducibility, Replicability, and Research Quality in Homogeneous Catalysis

Researchers from all sectors of homogeneous catalysis convened in response to concerns regarding reproducibility in science to analyze the issue and provide recommendations. In addition to an in- person workshop, the group engaged the broader homogeneous catalysis community through a webinar series and virtually during the workshop. Results of the project affirm that homogeneous catalysis is not in a reproducibility crisis, as evidenced by the field’s current and past contributions to society that have led to economic growth and advances in a range of industries from agriculture to consumer goods to human health. However, it is not uncommon for researchers to encounter obstacles related to reproducibility. Ensuring reproducibility remains the responsibility of the community, both in current work and in training future researchers. This report is intended to engage key stakeholders, including disciplinary societies, publishers, employers, research leaders, and researchers, in practices that maximize reproducible homogeneous catalysis and ensure continued innovation and translatable discoveries. Recommendations made herein are also framed to be applicable beyond homogeneous catalysis, empowering the broader chemical if not scientific community.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗