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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 1,621 records · Page 90

Microstructure and Fission Product Distribution Examination in the UCO kernel of TRISO Fuel Particles

The effect of irradiation and fabrication process on the UCO fuel kernel, kernel-buffer interlayer and fission products, has not been fully studied for UCO fuel kernels of TRISO coated particles. Specifically, the potential correlation(s) with fission product retention, composition and distribution within these structures for the tristructural isotropic (TRISO) fuel performance at normal and accident conditions, are not well reported in literature. Structural and chemical information in the irradiated UCO fuel kernel, e.g., the stoichiometry variations, may further contribute to fuel performance modeling under the Nuclear Energy Advanced Modeling and Simulation (NEAMS) program. The microstructural and micro-chemical evolution of selected irradiated UCO fuel kernels, kernel buffer interfaces and recoil zones were characterized using Scanning Transmission Electron Microscopy (STEM) and Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS) elemental mapping. The fuel kernel of particles from Advanced Gas Reactor (AGR)-2 irradiated to 10.8% fissions per initial metal atom (FIMA), were examined with the following main findings: (1) large fission gas bubbles were mainly identified in the zirconium and molybdenum enriched but oxygen depleted phases in the center of fuel kernel, (2) significant inter-diffusion between the UCO fuel kernel and pyro-carbon buffer layer was observed as a high density of sub-micron sized carbon inclusions was identified at near the interface in the kernel side and some isolated UCO particles were located in the buffer layer, (3) pores filled with free carbon were also observed in the recoil zone specimen. Fuel kernels from two AGR-1 compacts irradiated to 11.4 and 17.4% FIMA respectively, were examined with the following main findings: (1) two primary phases consisting of a “high-Z (atomic mass)” UC(O) phase (rocksalt; a=0.496 nm) that also contained Zr, Mo, and/or Ru and a “low-Z” UO2(C) phase (fluorite structure; a = 0.547nm) in which trace amounts of I, Nd, Pr, and/or Er could be detected. This latter phase contained many precipitates of the “high-Z” phase. Conversely, this latter phase did not contain precipitates of the UO2-type material, (2) Xe bubbles were found almost exclusively in the “high-Z” phase and in the particular example shown, the Zr-containing variant. Further work in this area should address whether this potential Xe preference for just one of the high-Z phases is indeed a real effect.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

Modeling light signals using data from the first pulsed neutron source program at the DUNE vertical drift ColdBox test facility at the CERN Neutrino Platform

In this paper, we present a first quantitative test of detected light signals produced in a pulsed neutron source run in a small vertical drift LArTPC at the CERN Neutrino Platform ColdBox test facility. The ColdBox cryostat, detectors, neutron sources, and particle interactions are modeled and simulated using Fluka. We demonstrate the ability to identify the contribution from neutron interactions using X-ARAPUCA photodetectors, and show first comparisons of data to simulation, which indicate reasonable agreement. A time constant is also fitted from the neutron-beam-off light signal spectrum and found consistent between data and simulation. Several important systematic effects are discussed and serve as guides for future runs at larger LArTPCs.

Detector modelling and simulations I (interaction ↗

Joint Analysis of Program Data Representations using Machine Learning for Improved Software Assurance and Development Capabilities

We explore the use of multiple deep learning models for detecting flaws in software programs. Current, standard approaches for flaw detection rely on a single representation of a software program (e.g., source code or a program binary). We illustrate that, by using techniques from multimodal deep learning, we can simultaneously leverage multiple representations of software programs to improve flaw detection over single representation analyses. Specifically, we adapt three deep learning models from the multimodal learning literature for use in flaw detection and demonstrate how these models outperform traditional deep learning models. We present results on detecting software flaws using the Juliet Test Suite and Linux Kernel.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

MOOSE-based Tritium Migration Analysis Program, Version 8 (TMAP8) for advanced open-source tritium transport and fuel cycle modeling

Tritium management is critical for the safety, sustainability, and economics of fusion energy systems, and advanced and reliable modeling tools help accelerate the development of tritium technologies. This paper presents the Tritium Migration Analysis Program, Version 8 (TMAP8), an open-source, MOOSE-based application developed to provide state-of-the-art tritium transport and fuel cycle modeling capabilities. TMAP8 aims to expand the capabilities of previous versions (i.e., TMAP4 and TMAP7) by leveraging modern computational techniques, ensuring high software quality assurance standards (key to building trust), and enabling multispecies, multiscale, and multiphysics simulations for integrated tritium transport modeling in complex geometries. This paper outlines TMAP8’s scope and rigorous development practices, emphasizing its transparency, accessibility, modularity, and reliability. We present the current suite of verification and validation cases based on those from TMAP4, demonstrating TMAP8’s accuracy and reliability against analytical solutions and experimental data. Additionally, the paper showcases TMAP8’s integrated fuel cycle modeling capabilities, highlighting its applicability at various scales and levels. The TMAP8 code and documentation are openly available, promoting collaborative development and widespread adoption within the fusion community. Future work will soon expand TMAP8’s verification and validation suite to include those from TMAP7 and other recent experimental studies for validation.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

MONTE CARLO ANALYSES OF THE YALINA THERMAL FACILITY WITH SERPENT STEREOLITHOGRAPHY GEOMETRY MODEL

This paper analyzes the YALINA Thermal subcritical assembly of Belarus using two different Monte Carlo transport programs, SERPENT and MCNP. The MCNP model is based on combinatorial geometry and universes hierarchy, while the SERPENT model is based on Stereolithography geometry. The latter consists of unstructured triangulated surfaces defined by the normal and vertices. This geometry format is used by 3D printers and it has been created by: the CUBIT software, MATLAB scripts, and C coding. All the Monte Carlo simulations have been performed using the ENDF/B-VII.0 nuclear data library. Both MCNP and SERPENT share the same geometry specifications, which describe the facility details without using any material homogenization. Three different configurations have been studied with different number of fuel rods. The three fuel configurations use 216, 245, or 280 fuel rods, respectively. The numerical simulations show that the agreement between SERPENT and MCNP results is within few tens of pcms.

CUBIT↗

Distributionally robust facility location problem under decision-dependent stochastic demand

While the traditional facility location problem considers exogenous demand, in some applications, locations of facilities could affect the willingness of customers to use certain types of services, e.g., carsharing, and therefore they also affect realizations of random demand. Moreover, a decision maker may not know the exact distribution of such endogenous demand and how it is affected by location choices. In this paper, we consider a distributionally robust facility location problem, in which we interpret the moments of stochastic demand as functions of facility-location decisions. We reformulate a two-stage decision-dependent distributionally robust optimization model as a monolithic formulation, and then derive exact mixed-integer linear programming reformulation as well as valid inequalities when the means and variances of demand are piecewise linear functions of location solutions. We conduct extensive computational studies, in which we compare our model with a decision-dependent deterministic model, as well as stochastic programming and distributionally robust models without the decision-dependent assumption. Here, the results show superior performance of our approach with remarkable improvement in profit and quality of service under various settings, in addition to computational speed-ups given by formulation enhancements. These results draw attention to the need of considering the impact of location decisions on customer demand within this strategic-level planning problem.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

Risk-Sensitive Control of Pure Jump Process on Countable Space with Near Monotone Cost

In this article, we study risk-sensitive control problem with controlled continuous time pure jump process on a countable space as state dynamics. We prove multiplicative dynamic programming principle, elliptic and parabolic Harnack’s inequalities. Using the multiplicative dynamic programing principle and the Harnack’s inequalities, we prove the existence and a characterization of optimal risk-sensitive control under the near monotone condition.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

H–J–B Equations of Optimal Consumption-Investment and Verification Theorems

We consider a consumption-investment problem on infinite time horizon maximizing discounted expected HARA utility for a general incomplete market model. Based on dynamic programming approach we derive the relevant H–J–B equation and study the existence and uniqueness of the solution to the nonlinear partial differential equation. By using the smooth solution we construct the optimal consumption rate and portfolio strategy and then prove the verification theorems under certain general settings.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Understanding the El Niño-like Oceanic Response in the Tropical Pacific to Global Warming

The enhanced central and eastern Pacific SST warming and the associated ocean processes under global warming are investigated using the ocean component of the Community Earth System Model (CESM), Parallel Ocean Program version 2 (POP2). The tropical SST warming pattern in the coupled CESM can be faithfully reproduced by the POP2 forced with surface fluxes computed using the aerodynamic bulk formula. By prescribing the wind stress and/or wind speed through the bulk formula, the effects of wind stress change and/or the wind-evaporation-SST (WES) feedback are isolated and their linearity is evaluated in this ocean-alone setting. Result shows that, although the weakening of the equatorial easterlies contributes positively to the El Niño-like SST warming, 80% of which can be simulated by the POP2 without considering the effects of wind change in both mechanical and thermodynamic fluxes. This result points to the importance of the air-sea thermal interaction and the relative feebleness of the ocean dynamical process in the El Niño-like equatorial Pacific SST response to global warming. On the other hand, the wind stress change is found to play a dominant role in the oceanic response in the tropical Pacific, accounting for most of the changes in the equatorial ocean current system and thermal structures, including the weakening of the surface westward currents, the enhancement of the near-surface stratification and the shoaling of the equatorial thermocline. Interestingly, greenhouse gas warming in the absence of wind stress change and WES feedback also contributes substantially to the changes at the subsurface equatorial Pacific. Further, this warming impact can be largely replicated by an idealized ocean experiment forced by a uniform surface heat flux, whereby, arguably, a purest form of oceanic dynamical thermostat is revealed.

El Niño-like response↗

Combining static analysis and state transition graphs for verification of event-condition-action systems in the RERS 2012 and 2013 challenges

In this work, we present a combination of approaches for the verification of event-condition-action (ECA) systems. The analyzed ECA systems range from structurally simple to structurally complex systems. We address the verification of reachability properties and behavioral properties. Reachability properties are represented by assertions in the program and we determine statically whether an assertion holds for all execution paths. Behavioral properties are represented as linear temporal logic formulas specifying the input/output behavior of the program. Our approach assumes a finite state space. We compare a symbolic analysis with an exhaustive state space exploration and discuss the trade-offs between the approaches in terms of the number of computed states and run-time behavior. All variants compute a state transition graph which can also be passed to an LTL verifier. The variants have a different impact on the number of computed states in the state transition graph which in turn impacts the run-time and memory consumption of subsequent phases. Finally, we evaluate the different analysis variants with the RERS benchmarks.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

Microgrid to enable optimal distributed energy retail and end-user demand response

In the face of unprecedented challenges in environmental sustainability and grid resilience, there is an increasingly held consensus regarding the adoption of distributed and renewable energy resources such as microgrids (MGs), and the utilization of flexible electric loads by demand response (DR) to potentially drive a necessary paradigm shift in energy production and consumption patterns. However, the potential value of distributed generation and demand flexibility has not yet been fully realized in the operation of MGs. This study investigates the pricing and operation strategy with DR for a MG retailer in an integrated energy system (IES). Based on co-optimizing retail rates and MG dispatch formulated as a mixed integer quadratic programming (MIQP) problem, our model devises a dynamic pricing scheme that reflects the cost of generation and promotes DR, in tandem with an optimal dispatch plan that exploits spark spread and facilitates the integration of renewables, resulting in improved retailer profits and system stability. Main issues like integrated energy coupling and customer bill reduction are addressed during pricing to ensure rates competitiveness and customer protection. By evaluating on real datasets, the system is demonstrated to optimally coordinate storage, renewables, and combined heat and power (CHP), reduce carbon dioxide emission while maintaining profits, and effectively alleviate the PV curtailment problem. Finally, the model can be used by retailers and MG operators to optimize their operations, as well as regulators to design new utility rates in support of the ongoing transformation of energy systems.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗

Classification of animal sounds in a hyperdiverse rainforest using convolutional neural networks with data augmentation

To protect tropical forest biodiversity, we need to be able to detect it reliably, cheaply, and at scale. Automated detection of sound producing animals from passively recorded soundscapes via machine-learning approaches is a promising technique towards this goal, but it is constrained by the necessity of large training data sets. Using soundscapes from a tropical forest in Borneo and a Convolutional Neural Network model (CNN), we investigate i) the minimum viable training data set size for accurate prediction of call types (‘sonotypes’), and ii) the extent to which data augmentation and transfer learning can overcome the issue of small and imbalanced training data sets. We found that even relatively high sample sizes (>80 per sonotype) lead to mediocre accuracy, which however improved significantly with data augmentation and transfer learning, including at extremely small sample sizes (3 per sonotype), regardless of taxonomic group or call characteristics. Neither transfer learning nor data augmentation alone achieved high accuracy. Our results suggest that transfer learning and data augmentation could make the use of CNNs to classify species’ vocalizations feasible even for small soundscape-based projects with many rare species. Retraining our open-source model requires only basic programming skills which makes it possible for individual conservation initiatives to match their local context, in order to enable more evidence-informed management of biodiversity.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Control algorithms for dynamic windows for residential buildings

This study analyzes the influence of control algorithms for dynamic windows on energy consumption, number of hours of retracted shades during daylight and shade operations. Five different control algorithms - heating/cooling, simple rules, perfect citizen, heat flow and predictive weather were developed and compared. The performance of a typical residential building was modeled with EnergyPlus. The program Widow was used to generate a Bi-Directional Distribution Function (BSDF) for two window configurations. The BSDF was exported to EnergyPlus using the IDF file format. The EMS feature in EnergyPlus was used to develop custom control algorithms. The calculations were made for four locations with diverse climate. The results showed that: (a) use of automated shading with proposed control algorithms can reduce the site energy in the range of 11.6-13.0%; in regard to source (primary) energy in the range of 20.1-21.6%, (b) the differences between algorithms in regard to energy savings are not high, (c) the differences between algorithms in regard to number of hours of retracted shades are visible, (e) the control algorithms have a strong influence on shade operation and oscillation of shade can occur, (d) additional energy consumption caused by motor, sensors and a small microprocessor in the analyzed case is very small.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

Solving the duck curve in a smart grid environment using a non-cooperative game theory and dynamic pricing profiles

With the intermittency that comes with electricity generation from renewables, utilizing dynamic pricing will encourage the demand-side to respond in a smart way that would minimize the electricity costs and flatten the net electricity demand curve. Determining the optimal dynamic pricing profile that would leverage distributed storage to flatten the curve is a novel idea that needs to be studied. Moreover, the economic feasibility of utilizing distributed electrical energy storage is still not given in the literature. Therefore, in this paper, a novel way of solving a citywide dynamic model using a bilevel programming algorithm is introduced. The problem is developed as a novel non-cooperative Stackelberg game that utilizes air-conditioning systems and electrical storage through the end-users to determine the optimal dynamic pricing profile. The results show that the combined effect of utilizing demand-side air-conditioning systems and distributed storage together can flatten the curve while employing the optimal dynamic pricing profile. An economic study is performed to determine the economic feasibility of 20 different cases with different battery designs and the level of solar penetration. Three metrics were used to evaluate the economic performance of each case: the levelized cost of storage, the levelized cost of energy, and the simple payback period. Most cases had levelized cost of storage values lower than 0.457 $/kWh, which is the lower bound available in the literature. Seven out of 16 cases have a simple payback period shorter than the lifetime of the system (25 years). The case with a 100 MW PV power plant and a battery storage of size 597 MWh, was found to be the most promising case with a simple payback period of 12.71 years for the photovoltaic plant and 19.86 years for the demand-side investments.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗

Revenue prediction for integrated renewable energy and energy storage system using machine learning techniques

Revenue estimation for integrated renewable energy and energy storage systems is important to support plant owners or operators’ decisions in battery sizing selection that leads to maximized financial performances. A common approach to optimizing revenues of a hybrid hydro and energy storage system is using mixed-integer linear programming (MILP). Although MILP models can provide accurate production cost estimations, they are typically very computationally expensive. To provide a fast yet accurate first-step information to hydropower plant owners or operators who consider integrating energy storage systems, we propose an innovative approach to predicting optimal revenues of an integrated energy generation and storage system. In this study, we examined the performance of two prediction techniques: Generalized Additive Models (GAMs) and machine learning (ML) models developed based on artificial neural networks (ANN). Predictive equations and models are generated based on optimized solutions from a market participation optimization model, the Conventional Hydropower Energy and Environmental Resource System (CHEERS) model. The two predicting techniques reduce the computational time to evaluate annual revenue for one set of battery configurations from 3 h to 1 to 4 min per run while also being implementable with significantly less data. The model validation prediction errors of developed GAMs and ML models are generally below 5%; for model testing predictions, the ML models consistently outperform the regression equations in terms of root mean square errors. This new approach allows plant owners, operators, or potential investors to quickly access multiple battery configurations under different energy generation and market scenarios. This new revenue prediction method will therefore help reduce the barriers, and thereby promoting the deployment of battery hybridization with existing renewable energy sources.

13 HYDRO ENERGY↗