Award Data

AltaRock Energy, Inc will develop a technique using in-situ mineralization to manipulate subsurface permeability in an active injector at NGP Blue Mountain Geothermal Power Plant near Winnemucca, Nevada; specifically, blocking a high-permeability pathway typically known as a “thief interval”, “loss zone”, “short circuit”, or “breakthrough interval” in the industry- The well in ques ...

There is a fundamental need for a high-performance computing (HPC) approach to computational electromagnetics (CEM) modeling tools suitable for designing and optimizing the next generation photonics devices- The dramatic grown of telecommunications bandwidth requirements is fueling demand for advanced manufacturing methods of next-generation devices capable of incorporating new phenomena such as p ...

A primary goal of the Department of Energy (DOE) Isotope Program is to support research and development of methods and technologies that assure availability of critical radioisotopes. High-purity isotope products are essential for high-yield protein radiolabeling for radiopharmaceutical use. This project will develop a system to automate the production of alpha-emitting therapeutic radionuclides s ...

This proposal addresses the challenge of measuring the hydrogeologic response of geologic formations in-situ and at high-resolution to determine flow and storage parameters governing groundwater availability, contaminant fate, and other dynamic subsurface processes. How this problem is being addressed: We will develop direct-push and borehole instrumentation and methods for efficiently acquiring h ...

Development of high performance downhole components and materials is necessary to enable geothermal exploration and production capabilities in high pressure and high temperature applications. Conventional well materials are poorly suited for corrosive environments. Steel casing, screens, and other wellbore components are susceptible to corrosion in extreme geothermal conditions. An ideal replaceme ...

The recent events at the Fukushima nuclear power plant highlight the need for enhanced accident tolerance. Of particular concern is the overheating of standard zirconium alloy cladding in a loss of coolant accident (LOCA). One of the leading candidates for future claddings is a silicon carbide (SiC) composite. However, it is clear that due to the inherent brittle nature of ceramics and the intrins ...

Seawater contains about 3 parts per billion of uranium. With a total ocean volume of approximately 1.3109 km3, there is at least 4.5 billion tons of uranium in seawater which is about 1000 times the amount of uranium known to exist in terrestrial ores. Mining uranium from seawater is economically feasibility if an efficient, reusable and low-cost adsorbent could be developed. In the past year, ...

There is a clear and unmet need for technologies to improve power generation flexibility to enable cost effective and reliable high renewable energy fractions in modern grids. Specifically, gas turbine generator turndown ratio may be improved by extending combustion lean flammability limits. This project will deliver a prototype plasma reformer system integrated with gas turbine combustors to allo ...

Neutron scattering is one of the most useful methods of studying the structure and dynamics of matter. These methods require large installations at national laboratories, such as Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and other facilities constructed or planned in the US and around the world. These facilities serve a large and diverse community ...

Launching radio frequency (RF) waves from the high-field side (HFS) of a tokamak has the potential to be an efficient off-axis current drive method while reducing the plasma-material interaction issues of the antenna. Researchers at the Plasma Science and Fusion Center (PSFC) at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have proposed to reuse existing equipment at MIT, including CPI klystron ...