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Results for “trajectory option set”

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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Large radial shift experiments in RHIC and their implications for EIC design

The Hadron Storage Ring (HSR) in the future Electron-Ion Collider (EIC) must operate over a broad range of design circumferences. In 2018 preliminary beam studies on the circumference adjustment capabilities of the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) were performed by applying a small momentum offset to the circulating bunches without adjusting any bending magnets. The off-momentum linear optics were corrected back to on-momentum conditions. Applying a similarly small deviation to the dipole fields of a select set of bending magnets provides a large radial shift over much of the RHIC (or HSR) circumference while leaving the design trajectory unchanged in the insertion regions. Here, this paper presents the design of the different lattice configurations foreseen as the most viable options for the required HSR circumference changes, and highlights the modifications necessary for regular operations and to allow for testing these new settings in RHIC. Experimental results from 2021 and 2022 are reviewed and compared to model predictions obtained from both MAD-X and Bmad. The implications of these results for HSR design are discussed.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗

Physics-Informed Machine Learning-Aided System Space Discretization

Decision-making is the process of identifying and choosing alternatives based on an agreed-upon set of metrics and preferences established by the decision-maker. There are options to be considered during the decision-making process and each option offers a different trajectory and associated success profile in moving from a given system state to the desired system state. The decision-making process typically involves uncertainties associated with the current component and system states. In this sense, probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) can be an analytical method and tool for accomplishing the probabilistic aspect of the decision-making process. Dynamic PRA is an evolution of conventional PRA methodology in which driving forces on modeled plant elements and the element behaviors are explicitly modeled over time. In the recent past, risk assessment methodologies have evolved to address risk issues in a continuously evolving environment and a novel probabilistic dynamics framework in continuous time and state-space discretization forms has been proposed. While state-space discretization has shown its strength in both consequence and causal reasoning modes, several challenges, including the computational requirement and physically meaningful system state identification, exist. Conventional system space discretization has usually been done by either the equal width discretization method or a data-driven method. Those methods naturally possess challenges coming from the physical understanding of discretized system space (i.e., system state) and the trajectory moving from a given system state to another system state. The purpose of this paper is to present a physics-based and data-driven system state discretization method such that one can justify what the discretized system space implies and understand the state trajectory from the viewpoint of operational actions.

Kim, Junyung↗

A Preferences Corpus and Annotation Scheme for Human-Guided Alignment of Time-Series GPTs

The process of time-series forecasting such as predicting trajectories of silicon content in blast furnaces is a difficult task. Most time-series approaches today focus on scalar-type MSE loss optimization. This optimization approach, while widely common, could benefit from the use of human expert or process-level preferences. In this paper, we introduce a novel alignment and fine-tuning approach that involves learning from a corpus of preferred and dis-preferred time-series prediction trajectories. Our contributions include (1) a preference annotation pipeline for time-series forecasts, (2) the application of Score-based Preference Optimization (SPO) to train decoder-only transformers from preferences, and (3) results showing improvements in forecast quality. The approach is validated on both proprietary blast furnace data and the UCI Appliances Energy dataset. The proposed preference corpus and training strategy offer a new option for fine-tuning sequence models in industrial settings.

DPO↗

Assessing the levelized cost of energy in South Korea

This study evaluates the levelized cost of energy (LCOE) for various energy technologies in the Republic of Korea (Korea) from 2023 to 2050, highlighting cost trajectories and potential crossovers among competing technologies. The analysis projects that, based on our set of assumptions, utility-scale photovoltaic systems achieve lower LCOEs than nuclear by 2030, while fixed offshore wind is expected to become cost-competitive with coal-fired generation around the same time. Floating offshore wind is projected to reach cost parity with coal in the late 2030s. Co-firing with natural gas and green hydrogen is identified as the highest-cost generation option due to high natural gas and green fuel costs and declining capacity utilization. This study further examines the potential for hybrid systems that integrate renewable energy with energy storage to serve as flexible, cost-effective, zero-emission alternatives to green hydrogen-based generation. Spatial LCOE assessments indicate that near-shore offshore wind sites may achieve lower costs despite modest capacity factors, contingent on site-specific factors such as grid integration and social acceptance. The findings indicate that renewable energy technologies are expected to experience continued cost declines, with solar photovoltaic becoming the most competitive energy source in Korea by 2030–2035. Incorporating social costs accelerates this shift from conventional alternatives.

Green hydrogen↗

Automated experimental design of safe rampdowns via probabilistic machine learning

Abstract Typically the rampdown phase of a shot consists of a decrease in current and injected power and optionally a change in shape, but there is considerable flexibility in the rate, sequencing, and duration of these changes. On the next generation of tokamaks it is essential that this is done safely as the device could be damaged by the stored thermal and electromagnetic energy present in the plasma. This works presents a procedure for automatically choosing experimental rampdown designs to rapidly converge to an effective rampdown trajectory. This procedure uses probabilistic machine learning methods paired with acquisition functions taken from Bayesian optimization. In a set of 2022 experiments at DIII-D, the rampdown designs produced by our method maintained plasma control down to substantially lower current and energy levels than are typically observed. The actions predicted by the model significantly improved as the model was able to explore over the course of the experimental campaign.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

A conservative approach to scaling magneto-inertial fusion concepts to larger pulsed-power drivers

The Magnetized Liner Inertial Fusion (MagLIF) experimental platform [M. R. Gomez et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 113, 155003 (2014)] represents the most successful demonstration of magneto-inertial fusion (MIF) techniques to date in pursuit of ignition and significant fusion yields. The pressing question remains regarding how to scale MIF concepts like MagLIF to more powerful pulsed-power drivers while avoiding significant changes in physical regimes that could adversely impact performance. In this work, we propose a conservative approach for scaling general MIF implosions, including MagLIF. Underpinning our scaling approach is a theoretical framework describing the evolution of the trajectory and thickness of a thin-walled, cylindrical, current-driven shell imploding on preheated, adiabatic fuel. By imposing that scaled implosions remain self-similar, we obtain a set of scaling rules expressing key target design parameters and performance metrics as functions of the maximum driver current I max . We identify several scaling paths offering unique, complementary benefits and trade-offs in terms of physics risks and driver requirements. Remarkably, when scaling present-day experiments to higher coupled energies, these paths are predicted to preserve or reduce the majority of known performance-degrading effects, including hydrodynamic instabilities, impurity mix, fuel energy losses, and laser-plasma interactions, with notable exceptions clearly delineated. In the absence of α heating, our scaling paths exhibit neutron yield per-unit-length scaling as $\tilde{Y}$∝[I$3\atop{max}$,I${4.14}\atop{max}$] and ignition parameter scaling as χ∝[I max ,I${2.14}\atop{max}$]. By considering the specific physics risks unique to each scaling path, we provide a roadmap for future investigations to evaluate different scaling options through detailed numerical studies and scaling-focused experiments on present-day facilities. Overall, these results highlight the potential of MIF as a key component of the national ignition effort.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

New experimental approach to understanding the chemical reactivity of oxide surfaces

Metal oxides have been an attractive option for a range of applications, including hydrogen sensors, microelectronics, and catalysis, due to their reactivity and tunability. The properties of metal oxides can vary greatly on their precise surface structure; however, few surface science techniques can achieve atomistic-level determinations of surface structure, and fewer yet can do so for insulator surfaces. Low energy ion beam analysis offers a potential insulator-compatible solution to characterizing the surface structure of metal oxides. As a feasibility study, we apply low energy ion beam analysis to investigate the surface structure of a magnetite single crystal, Fe 3 O 4 (100). We obtain multi-angle maps using both forward-scattering low energy ion scattering (LEIS) and backscattering impact-collision ion scattering spectroscopy (ICISS). Both sets of experimental maps have intensity patterns that reflect the symmetries of the Fe 3 O 4 (100) surface structure. However, analytical interpretation of these intensity patterns to extract details of the surface structure is significantly more complex than previous LEIS and ICISS structural studies of one-component metal crystals, which had far more symmetries to exploit. To gain further insight into the surface structure, we model our experimental measurements with ion-trajectory tracing simulations using molecular dynamics. Our simulations provide a qualitative indication that our experimental measurements agree better with a subsurface cation vacancy model than a distorted bulk model.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗