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Technology Selected for DOE’s Versatile Test Reactor Program

November 20, 2018

Battelle Energy Alliance—the management and operating contractor for the Idaho National Laboratory (INL)—selected GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy’s (GEH’s) PRISM technology to support the U.S. Department of Energy’s Versatile Test Reactor (VTR) program.

The VTR program is expected to accelerate the development of fuels and materials for U.S. advanced reactors, utilizing fast neutron spectrum technology. Rather than producing electricity, the VTR will conduct irradiation testing for fuels, materials, and equipment to be used in rapidly evolving designs for advanced reactors brought forward by U.S. companies, as well as public and private research institutions.

In October, the INL awarded nearly $ 3.9 million in funding through the VTR program for 13 university-led projects to develop instrumentation and tools needed to monitor and conduct experiments in the fast spectrum reactor.

The university-led projects selected for funding were:

University of Pittsburgh	Disruptive Nuclear Technology: Resonance Sensors and Inductive Signal Transmission through Hermetic Walls	$ 450,000
University of Wisconsin – Madison	Miniature Scale Liquid Metal Oxygen Purification and Measurement System	$ 350,000
University of Utah	Development of Experiment Vehicle for Analyzing the Chemistry of Irradiated Molten Salt	$ 450,400
Texas A&M University	Development of Innovative Measurement Techniques for Fission Product Transport Quantification	$ 250,000
Oregon State University	In Situ Mechanical and Corrosion Testing	$ 440,000
University of New Mexico	Preparatory Out-of-pile Lead Loop Experiments to Support Design of Irradiation Test Loop in VTR	$ 450,000
North Carolina State University	VIM for VTR: Holistic Approach to Design and Construction	$ 319,000
Texas A&M University	Rabbit System Design and Demonstration	$ 400,000
Abilene Christian University	Investigation of Instrumentation, Data Analytics, and Simulation Synergies for the Versatile Test Reactor	$ 150,000
Massachusetts Institute of Technology	Advanced Data Acquisition and Simulation with Live Data Supporting VTR Experiments	$ 150,000
University of Idaho	Advanced Molten Salt Flow Sensor	$ 100,000
Colorado School of Mines	Big, Deep, and Smart Data to Support VTR Experiment Design and Validation	$ 169,000
Georgia Tech	IBD Power Monitor for the VTR Experimental Program	$ 196,000

“The VTR is a vital and strategic project for the U.S.…

DOE Steps Up Investments into Electric Generation Technology Research

May 3, 2018

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The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) over the past two weeks has made a string of funding announcements, including nearly a half-billion dollars of new investment in power-related initiatives. The funding backs advancements in cybersecurity, advanced nuclear, solar, bioenergy, fuel cells, geothermal, and energy storage.

$ 25 Million for Cybersecurity.On April 16, the DOE’s Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability’s Cybersecurity for Energy Delivery Systems program issued a $ 25 million funding opportunity announcement (FOA),seeking applications to conduct research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) for innovative approaches to advance cyber-resilient energy delivery systems.

The project hones in on five areas: redesign of cyber-resilient architecture for the power and oil and natural gas (ONG) subsectors; cybersecurity for the ONG environment; cybersecure communications; cybersecure cloud-based technologies in the operation technology environment; and innovative technologies that enhance cybersecurity in the energy sector. Applications are due by June 18, 2018.

$ 105 Million for Solar Technology. On April 17, the DOE’s Solar Energy Technologies Office said it would fund about 70 projects to advance both solar PV and concentrating solar thermal power (CSP) technologies and help them secure facilitated integration into the grid.…

Decade-Old Power Grid Problem Solved by Smart Grid Technology

January 16, 2018

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A control system that smooths out inter-area oscillations—a problem affecting power systems connected by relatively weak tie lines—has been successfully demonstrated by researchers from Sandia National Laboratories and Montana Tech University. The system that uses smart grid technology could allow utilities to push more power through transmission lines, possibly nixing the need for new transmission lines and help to stabilize the grid.

Electric power grids operate well below transmission capacity to avoid widespread outages due to inter-area oscillations, which occur when the standard frequency of 60 cycles per second increases on the utility side of the transmission line while the frequency on the customer side decreases, switching back and forth every second or two. “Most of the time these oscillations are well-behaved and not a problem—they are always there,” explained Sandia engineer David Schoenwald. “But at a moment when you are trying to push a large amount of power, like on a very hot day in the summer, these oscillations start to become less well behaved and can start to swing wildly.”…

Wave and Tidal Power Technology Near Commercialization

September 4, 2017

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Scotland, which is authorized to set its own energy policy separate from London’s Westminster government, has set a goal of generating 100% of the nation’s annual electricity needs through only renewable sources by 2020, and 100% of its entire power and transportation needs from non-carbon energy by 2030. This decision has created an all-of-the-above clean development strategy as well as a stronger commitment to energy self-reliance. By looking inward at what internal resources exist, Scotland is now home to the most-advanced wave and tidal energy development center in the world.

For decades, engineers have been trying to turn the immense potential of tidal energy into electricity. While ocean currents don’t reach the same speeds that wind can, the inherent energy potential by comparison is enormous. Seawater has more than 800 times the density of air, so for the same rotor swept area, water moving at 2.5 meters per second (m/sec)—roughly 5 knots—exerts the same amount of force as would be applied by wind blowing at nearly 100 m/sec (about 195 knots).…

New Technology Offers Hope for Cost-Effective Carbon Capture and Storage Systems

October 13, 2016

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Academics at the University of Sheffield—a public research university in the UK—have begun two new carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects, searching for cheaper methods of capturing carbon dioxide (CO₂) from fossil-fueled power plants.

The work is being funded by the European Commission’s (EC’s) Horizon 2020 Low Carbon Energy program.

Solvents Could Be Game-Changing

The “ROLINCAP” project received €3.2 million to explore how new chemical solvents could be used in a “rotating packed bed” process, which is designed to accelerate chemical reactions. The method may allow CO₂ to be captured more efficiently, with smaller equipment than was previously required.

“Our European consortium will work with experts from South Korea to develop technologies for post-combustion carbon capture and storage. We will explore new solvents and new techniques for process intensification, which I hope will lead to cheaper, more efficient carbon capture,” said Meihong Wang, Professor of Energy Systems in the Department for Chemical and Biological Engineering.

Carbon Clean Solutions Ltd.…