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The Customer Damage Function (CDF) Calculator is a free, publicly available web tool that helps users estimate the costs incurred at their site due to an electric grid or water service outage. Developed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) with support from the Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP), the tool is designed to help federal facility owners, building energy managers, and resilience planners understand and quantify the value of resilience to justify investments that would prevent or lessen the impact of a disruption.
Managing the data of scientific projects is an increasingly complicated challenge, which was historically met by developing experiment-specific solutions. However, the ever-growing data rates and requirements of even small experiments make this approach very difficult, if not prohibitive. In recent years, the scientific data management system Rucio has evolved into a successful open-source project that is now being used by many scientific communities and organisations. Rucio is incorporating the contributions and expertise of many scientific projects and is offering common features useful to a diverse re-search community. This article describes the recent experiences in operating Rucio, as well as contributions to the project, by ATLAS, Belle II, CMS, ES-CAPE, IGWN, LDMX, Folding@Home, and the UK's Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC).
In support of the DOE Office of Science, Sandia National Labs is one of nine national laboratories which oversees the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Program. The Sandia ARM team has an obligation to fulfill its mission to provide the nation with data to improve the understanding of climate processes and the representation of those processes in climate models. Sandia’s ARM team’s ability to provide detailed and accurate descriptions of the Earth’s atmosphere in diverse climate regimes assists the DOE in development of sustainable solutions to the nation’s energy and environmental challenges. Sandia Labs manages ARM atmospheric facilities along the North Slope of Alaska (NSA) at Utqiagvik as well as the Tethered Balloon System (TBS). Activities conducted at NSA and with the TBS aide in data collection for the ARM data archive. An overview of these activities for the month of December follows.
The InSPIRE Project is investigating questions around vegetation management and agrivoltaics at solar sites across the US. Results from research at three Enel Green Power pollinator-friendly solar sites in Minnesota have shown that the success of different pollinator-friendly seed mixes depend on the ecoregion and can vary from site to site. Results from the Enel Green Power sites also showed that weed coverage decreases dramatically by three years post seeding. The InSPIRE project has also created resources like The 5 C's of Agrivoltaics and an online agrivoltaics financial calculator to help farmers, land owners, developers, and facility operators with vegetation management at solar facilities. The PV-SMaRT calculator was created by the University of Minnesota in partnership with NREL to help with questions surrounding storm-water runoff at PV sites.
Virtually all activities conducted in the TA-55 FOD (Facility Operations Division) (TA-55, TA-50,RLWTF[Radioactive Liquid Waste Treatment Facility], RLUOB[Radiological Laboratory/Utilities/Office Building], TWF, TA-63 [Transuranic Waste Facility], RANT, TA-54 West [Radioassay Nondestructive Testing Facility], WCRRF [Waste Characterization, Reduction, and Repackaging Facility]and CMR[Chemistry and Metallurgy Research])facilities generate waste. Generation and management of waste arecomplex activitiessubject toFederal and State regulations as well as DOE(Department of Energy)and Laboratory requirements. Improper management of waste can result in civiland/or criminal penalties as well as potential significant impacts to operations.
Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC (LLNS) is submitting the following variance application requesting the use of the State of California’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (Cal/OSHA) Regulations in lieu of Title 10 Code of Federal Regulations Part 851 (10 CFR 851, the Rule), Worker Safety and Health Program, Subpart B (Program Requirements), Subpart C (Specific Program Requirements), and Appendix A (Worker Safety and Health Functional Areas), solely with respect to the construction of the new Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) Emergency Operations Center (EOC) facility. The request is in support of the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) “pilot” to streamline the delivery of commercial-like line item construction projects under $50 million. This pilot is aligned with the approved NA-50 safety approach for the projects in the pilot. This pilot is to test and demonstrate innovation leading to a reduced cost of construction for building commercial type structures at Department of Energy (DOE)/NNSA facilities. The variance proposes to permit local/regional construction businesses contracted to Management & Operation contractor operated facilities to bid, operate, execute, and comply with safety and health standards they utilize in their business outside of the DOE Complex. This will permit compliance to standards that are as safe and healthful as those in 10 CFR 851 without confusion, additional cost, and inefficiencies associated with the burden of compliance to an unfamiliar regulatory spectrum.
This report documents the experimental conditions and results for the testing of the Mirion Technologies CAAS-3S Criticality Accident Alarm System (CAAS) for the Y-12 National Security Complex (Y-12) and Uranium Processing Facility (UPF). The testing was conducted at the Godiva IV Burst Reactor at the National Criticality Experiments Research Center (NCERC) at the Nevada National Security Site (NNSS) during the week of January 11, 2021. The testing was conducted in accordance with 25774-QL-POA-JR00-00002-VDE-27.0, CAAS-3S Radiation Testing of Cabinet Components Test Plan. The tests subjected the CAAS-3S system to intense and short duration mixed neutron and gamma radiation fields and to high integrated radiation doses. The purpose of the test was to environmentally qualify various CAAS-3S components in a radiation environment. Successful completion of the tests was predicated on the collaborative efforts of several organizations. Sandia National Laboratory (SNL) and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) provided dosimetry to estimate photon and neutron dose. Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) manages the NCERC facility, operated the Godiva IV reactor, and provided field support for CAAS-3S placement and communications interface for data acquisition systems supplied by Mirion Technologies. Throughout the test campaign, Y-12 and UPF personnel provided technical support in determining changes to the test schedule, as needed, interpretation of the results, and comparison between the measured dosimetry data and predicted results. Throughout the test campaign, Mirion personnel provided technical support in the operation of the CAAS-3S system itself.
The tritium aspects of the DT fuel cycle embody some of the most challenging feasibility and attractiveness issues in the development of fusion systems. The review and analyses in this paper provide important information to understand and quantify these challenges and to define the phase space of plasma physics and fusion technology parameters and features that must guide a serious R&D in the world fusion program. We focus in particular on components, issues and R&D necessary to satisfy three 'principal requirements': (1) achieving tritium self-sufficiency within the fusion system, (2) providing a tritium inventory for the initial start-up of a fusion facility, and (3) managing the safety and biological hazards of tritium. A primary conclusion is that the physics and technology state-of-the-art will not enable DEMO and future power plants to satisfy these principal requirements. We quantify goals and define specific areas and ideas for physics and technology R&D to meet these requirements. A powerful fuel cycle dynamics model was developed to calculate time-dependent tritium inventories and flow rates in all parts and components of the fuel cycle for different ranges of parameters and physics and technology conditions. Dynamics modeling analyses show that the key parameters affecting tritium inventories, tritium start-up inventory, and tritium self-sufficiency are the tritium burn fraction in the plasma (f b ), fueling efficiency (η f ), processing time of plasma exhaust in the inner fuel cycle (t p ), reactor availability factor (AF), reserve time (tr) which determines the reserve tritium inventory needed in the storage system in order to keep the plant operational for time t r in case of any malfunction of any part of the tritium processing system, and the doubling time (t d ). Results show that η f f b > 2% and processing time of 1–4 h are required to achieve tritium self-sufficiency with reasonable confidence. For η f f b = 2% and processing time of 4 h, the tritium start-up inventory required for a 3 GW fusion reactor is ~11 kg, while it is <5 kg if η f f b = 5% and the processing time is 1 h. To achieve these stringent requirements, a serious R&D program in physics and technology is necessary. The EU-DEMO direct internal recycling concept that carries fuel directly from the plasma exhaust gas to the fueling systems without going through the isotope separation system reduces the overall processing time and tritium inventories and has positive effects on the required tritium breeding ratio (TBR R ). A significant finding is the strong dependence of tritium self-sufficiency on the reactor availability factor. Simulations show that tritium self-sufficiency is: impossible if AF < 10% for any η f f b , possible if AF > 30% and 1% ≤ η f f b ≤ 2%, and achievable with reasonable confidence if AF > 50% and η f f b > 2%. These results are of particular concern in light of the low availability factor predicted for the near-term plasma-based experimental facilities (e.g. FNSF, VNS, CTF), and can have repercussions on tritium economy in DEMO reactors as well, unless significant advancements in RAMI are made. There is a linear dependency between the tritium start-up inventory and the fusion power. The required tritium start-up inventory for a fusion facility of 100 MW fusion power is as small as 1 kg. Since fusion power plants will have large powers for better economics, it is important to maintain a 'reserve' tritium inventory in the tritium storage system to continue to fuel the plasma and avoid plant shutdown in case of malfunctions of some parts of the tritium processing lines. But our results show that a reserve time as short as 24 h leads to unacceptable reserve and start-up inventory requirements. Therefore, high reliability and fast maintainability of all components in the fuel cycle are necessary in order to avoid the need for storing reserve tritium inventory sufficient for continued fusion facility operation for more than a few hours. The physics aspects of plasma fueling, tritium burn fraction, and particle and power exhaust are highly interrelated and complex, and predictions for DEMO and power reactors are highly uncertain because of lack of experiments with burning plasma. Fueling by pellet injection on the high field side of tokamak has evolved to be the preferred method to fuel a burning plasma. Extrapolation from the DIII-D penetration scaling shows fueling efficiency expected in DEMO to be <25%, but such extrapolations are highly uncertain. The fueling efficiency of gas in a reactor relevant regime is expected to be extremely poor and not very useful for getting tritium into the core plasma efficiently. Gas fueling will nonetheless be useful for feedback control of the divertor operating parameters. Extensive modeling has been carried out to predict burn fraction, fueling requirements, and fueling efficiency for ITER, DEMO, and beyond. The fueling rate required to operate Q = 10 ITER plasmas in order to provide the required core fueling, helium exhaust and radiative divertor plasma conditions for acceptable divertor power loads was calculated. If this fueling is performed with a 50–50 DT mix, the tritium burn fraction in ITER would be ~0.36%, which is too low to satisfy the self-sufficiency conditions derived from the dynamics modeling for fusion reactors. Extrapolation to DEMO using this approach would also yield similarly low burn fraction. Extensive analysis presented shows that specific features of edge neutral dynamics in ITER and fusion reactors, which are different from present experiments, open possibilities for optimization of tritium fueling and thus to improve the burn fraction. Using only tritium in pellet fueling of the plasma core, and only deuterium for edge density, divertor power load and ELM control results in significant increase of the burn fraction to 1.8–3.6%. These estimates are performed with physics models whose results cannot be fully validated for ITER and DEMO plasma conditions since these cannot be achieved in present tokamak experiments. Thus, several uncertainties remain regarding particle transport and scenario requirements in ITER and DEMO. The safety standard requirements for protection of the public and release guidelines for tritium have been reviewed. General safety approaches including minimizing tritium inventories, reducing tritium permeation through materials, and decontaminating material for waste disposal have been suggested.
The Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) user facility is a US Department of Energy Office of Science user facility that is managed and operated through a collaborative effort led by nine US Department of Energy national laboratories. The ARM Data Center, located at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, is responsible for the timely collection, processing, and delivery of data products to the scientific community. The ARM Data Center holds more than 11,000 data products, including metadata collected from field campaigns, instruments, value-added products, and principal investigator–contributed data. These data sets are checked for successful transfer (for most data, this transfer is carried out automatically via the network; however, some of the largest data sets and some of the most remote sites require manual shipping of hard disks) and both the data and metadata are processed to a standard format, which is an ARM-standardized structure, via the Network Common Data Form. The Network Common Data Form is a self-describing binary format with many compatible software tools. Once processed, the data are cataloged, stored in the ARM Data Archive, and made discoverable through association with an array of metadata-characterizing information, such as location and measurement classification. These metadata enable powerful search capabilities through the ARM Data Center Data Discovery interface. This paper discusses the workflow of how the new discovery system has been redesigned from user requirements and how the data are distributed to the scientific community.
Blood plasma analyses can provide researchers, aquaculture facilities and fisheries managers with valuable insights into the physiological state and welfare of fish. For example, glucose and lactate are part of the secondary stress response system, and elevated concentrations are indicators of stress. However, analysing blood plasma in the field can be logistically difficult and typically involves sample storage and transport to quantify concentrations in a laboratory setting. Portable glucose and lactate meters offer an alternative to laboratory assays and have shown to be relatively accurate in fish, but these tools have only been validated for a few fish species. The objective of this study was to investigate if portable meters could be reliably used in Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha). As part of a larger stress response study, juvenile Chinook salmon (157 ± 17 mm fork length [mean ± standard deviation; SD]) were exposed to stress-inducing treatments and sampled for blood. Laboratory reference glucose concentrations (milligrams per deciliter; mg/dl; n = 70) were positively correlated with the Accu-Check Aviva meter (Roche Diagnostics, Indianapolis, IN) measurements (R 2 = 0.79), although glucose values were 1.21 ± 0.21 (mean ± SD) times higher in the laboratory than with the portable meter. Lactate concentrations (milliMolar; mM; n = 52) of the laboratory reference were also positively correlated (R 2 = 0.76) with the Lactate Plus meter (Nova Biomedical, Waltham, MA) and were 2.55 ± 0.50 times higher than portable meter. Our results indicate both meters could be used to measure relative glucose and lactate concentrations in Chinook salmon and provide fisheries professionals with a valuable tool, particularly in remote field settings.
Lighting systems in patient rooms must balance energy efficiency concerns with the holistic needs of patients, families, and medical caregivers. This paper reports survey responses from 138 individuals working in medical-surgical units in four hospitals, with three of the hospitals having traditional lighting systems and the other hospital having a more contemporary lighting system. The results add to a growing evidence base on the effects of lighting on nurses’ job performance, job satisfaction, and overall perceptions of the environment, and provide evidence that innovative lighting approaches and technologies are worth considering as an investment by hospital administrators looking to improve employees’ and patients’ perceptions of the patient room environment. This knowledge is intended to help facility designers and managers incorporate nurses’ perspectives in their decisions, as well as to inform technologists and engineers developing future generations of lighting systems for patient rooms. These future systems will utilize solid-state lighting technologies, such as LEDs, and will provide new opportunities for adapting the intensity, distribution, and spectrum of light to better satisfy the holistic needs of patients and caregivers at different times of day or night.
This final report provides a summary of the methodology, findings, lessons learned, and insights from an investigation into the feasibility of the Operational Technology Behavioral Analytics (OTBA) cybersecurity approach. The concept was evaluated with data from the National Carbon Capture Center (NCCC) – a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) funded facility that is managed and operated by Southern Company Services, Inc. at Alabama Power Company’s E. C. Gaston generating power plant in Wilsonville, Alabama. Appropriate data sources for the post-combustion carbon capture system were identified. Infrastructure was deployed to monitor, capture and archive data for the system. Critical parameters for each subsystem were identified and analyzed. Machine-learning algorithms were used to establish and characterize normal operations and subsequently identify anomalies. This effort yielded valuable insights and formed the basis of a data-centric strategy for detecting cyber-attacks along with a coordinated response philosophy. A significant takeaway is that the OTBA cybersecurity approach is quite portable; it can be applied to other critical infrastructure beyond fossil power generation.
An internal preliminary evaluation of Critical Technology Elements (CTEs) for the LANSCE Modernization Project (LAMP) was completed. Corresponding Technical Readiness Levels (TRLs) were also determined for all subsystems using the criteria of DOE G 413.3-4A, Technical Readiness Assessment Guide. The scope of the evaluation was limited to the project Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) elements as defined for the RFQ Injector and Drift Tube Linac (DTL) systems only. Integration of Instrumentation and Controls (I&C) and Safety Systems was not considered, although specific technologies as related to the RFQ and DTL systems were included. Other elements of the project such as Shielding, System Design, Technical Management, and additional facility integration needed to enable off-line testing and pre-installation commissioning were also not evaluated. Each technical subsystem element was evaluated for technical readiness, however, not all were found to meet the criteria for a CTE. Only two subsystem elements were determined to meet the CTE criteria. Their associated TRLs are summarized in the table below. These subsystem elements of the project have the lowest technical readiness due to either being new, novel or modified, requiring additional R&D before being capable of meeting the project Key Performance Parameters (KPPs) and subsystem requirements, or present technology exists but has not yet been demonstrated in a relevant environment. All other subsystems were determined to have a TRL of 8, indicating that actual operating systems exist having similar performance requirements as needed for LAMP. Details of the technical readiness evaluation for each subsystem is given in the following sections of this report.
For more than 30 years, the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) user facility, which is managed by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science, has provided freely available data and resources to scientists worldwide. Providing these services effectively requires getting out in the field and engaging with the science community. With COVID travel restrictions behind us, we are focused on connecting in person with ARM users, establishing new partnerships, and supporting fieldwork that might have waited during the pandemic.
Facilities that process special nuclear material (SNM) generally have a variety of equipment, shielding, and nearby radiation sources, which can pose challenges when performing nondestructive analysis (NDA) within the facility, as shown in Figure 1. In this figure, the left image features two individuals performing a holdup measurement of a large duct at a posting, utilizing a detector probe attached to a yardstick to reduce some aspect of the measurement uncertainty. Note that the distance to the holdup within the pipe from the posting cannot be accounted for. The right image similarly features several individuals guiding a holdup measurement of a ducting pipe several meters overhead, by attaching a detector probe to a long handle and lining that up with a posting on the outside of the pipe. SNM processing begets SNM holdup, and this difficulty with accurate NDA can result in unaccounted accumulation of SNM holdup within a process or area. Normal SNM processing operations can accumulate holdup within filters, pumps, pipes, ducts, other equipment, and facility support systems, as demonstrated by Figure 2. It is important for deactivation and decommissioning (D&D) gloveboxes and their ancillary equipment, material accountability, criticality safety, facility operations, waste management, radiation safety, and security to accurately characterize the location, composition, and quantity of this holdup to minimize these associated risks and potential diversion pathways. Current NDA techniques for assay of holdup are expensive, time consuming, and have high uncertainty.
Tuning the accelerator during operational hours is a tedious yet essential aspect of managing any experimental facility. This process significantly reduces the beam time available for experimenters, as diagnosing issues and making corrections can take hours. Automating or facilitating the normal beam line tuning process would be highly beneficial.
An internal preliminary evaluation of Critical Technology Elements (CTEs) for the LANSCE Modernization Project (LAMP) was completed in 2023. This included determining corresponding Technical Readiness Levels (TRLs) for all subsystems using the criteria of DOE G 413.3-4A, Technical Readiness Assessment Guide. This revised report includes a summary of the recent design modifications required to meet the project Key Performance Requirements (KPPs), some of which may reduce technical risk to the project. These recent design modifications include: • Further optimization of the low-energy and medium-energy beam transport regions (LEBT and MEBT, respectively), including relocation of various functional elements (ie choppers, kickers, and bunchers). • An additional H - ion source to separate ion-source function based on beam delivery requirements. • A high-repetition-rate pulsed kicker magnet to select/merge the two H ion beams into a common low-energy beam transport. • Modification and further optimization to a more conventional RFQ design. Performance of the RFQ has been optimized to deliver the required three types of beams while meeting the project KPPs. • The addition of a second chopper in the medium-energy beam transport (MEBT) line to reduce the required pulser voltages. The scope of the evaluation was limited to the project Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) elements as defined for the RFQ Injector and Drift Tube Linac (DTL) systems only. Integration of Instrumentation and Controls (I&C) and Safety Systems was not considered, although specific technologies as related to the RFQ and DTL systems were included. Other elements of the project such as Shielding, System Design, Technical Management, and additional facility integration needed to enable off-line testing and pre-installation commissioning were also not evaluated. Each technical subsystem element was evaluated for technical readiness, however, not all were found to meet the criteria for a CTE. Three subsystem elements were determined to meet the CTE criteria. Their associated TRLs are summarized in the table below. These subsystem elements of the project have the lowest technical readiness due to either being new, novel or modified, requiring additional R&D before being capable of meeting the project Key Performance Parameters (KPPs) and subsystem requirements, or present technology exists but has not yet been demonstrated in a relevant environment. All other subsystems were determined to have a TRL of 8, indicating that actual operating systems exist having similar performance requirements as needed for LAMP. Details of the technical readiness evaluation for each subsystem is given in the following sections of this report.