NEPI, a non-profit organization located at The University of Tulsa (TU), was established to develop and disseminate national energy policy recommendations. Research under this grant covered a wide variety of projects, including research into the future of nuclear power, oil market pricing, and the feasibility of biofuels.

This document is a property certificate form for the subject contract.

Energy Return On Investment (EROI) is an important figure of merit for assessing the viability of energy alternatives. For geothermal electric power generation, EROI is determined by the electricity delivered to the consumer compared to the energy consumed to construct, operate, and decommission the facility. Critical factors in determining the EROI of Engineered Geothermal Systems (EGS) are examined in this work. These include the input energy embodied into the system. The embodied energy includes the energy contained in the materials, as well as, that consumed in each stage of manufacturing from mining the raw materials to assembling the finished plant. Also critical are the system boundaries and value of the energy - heat is not as valuable as electrical energy.

The RACORO aerosol data (cloud condensation nuclei (CCN), condensation nuclei (CN) and aerosol size distributions) need further processing to be useful for model evaluation (e.g., GCM droplet nucleation parameterizations) and other investigations. These tasks include: (1) Identification and flagging of 'splash' contaminated Twin Otter aerosol data. (2) Calculation of actual supersaturation (SS) values in the two CCN columns flown on the Twin Otter. (3) Interpolation of CCN spectra from SGP and Twin Otter to 0.2% SS. (4) Process data for spatial variability studies. (5) Provide calculated light scattering from measured aerosol size distributions. Below we first briefly describe the measurements and then describe the results of several data processing tasks that which have been completed, paving the way for the scientific analyses for which the campaign was designed. The end result of this research will be several aerosol data sets which can be used to achieve some of the goals of the RACORO mission including the enhanced understanding of cloud-aerosol interactions and improved cloud simulations in climate models.

ADA-ES has completed an extensive sorbent screening program funded primarily through DOE NETL cooperative agreement DE-NT0005649 with support from EPRI and industry cost-share participants. Tests were completed on simulated and actual flue gas. The overall project objective is to address the viability and accelerate development of a solid-based postcombustion CO2 capture technology that can be retrofit to the existing fleet of coal-fired power plants. An important component of the viability assessment was to evaluate the state of development of sorbents and measure key performance characteristics under realistic operating conditions.

This was a university-based research project in support of distributed reforming production technologies for hydrogen. Our objective was to examine the steam reforming of bio-ethanol and other related bio-derived liquids over non-precious metal catalyst systems to enable small-scale distributed hydrogen production technologies from renewable sources. The study targeted development of a catalytic system that does not rely on precious metals and that can be active in the 350-550 C temperature range, with high selectivity and high stability. To this end, we adopted a multi-prong research strategy, that included catalyst formulation and synthesis, detailed catalyst characterization, reaction kinetics and reaction engineering, molecular modeling and economic analysis studies. Our approach was an iterative one, where the knowledge gained in one aspect of the study was utilized to modify and fine-tune catalyst development. The research addressed many fundamental and inter-related phenomena involved in the catalytic steam reforming of ethanol that may not be readily studied in an industrial development setting. The outcome of the project was a catalytic system that was able to meet the DOE targets in hydrogen production, with high H{sub 2} yield, high selectivity and stability that could perform efficiently in the 350-550 C temperature range. In addition, we were …

An analysis of improving the power output of small wind turbines by adding a venturi housing was done. Including the effects of back pressure developed at the input to the housing lowers the efficiency gain from a factor of 5 to a factor of 2 for a turbine blade radius of 24 inches. The gain is small enough that only large systems could profit from the application.

This report documents the marketing campaign that has been designed for middle and high school students in New Mexico to increase interest in participation in national security careers at the National Nuclear Security Administration. This marketing campaign builds on the research that was previously conducted, as well as the focus groups that were conducted. This work is a part of the National Nuclear Security Preparedness Project (NSPP) being performed under a Department of Energy (DOE) / National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) grant. Outcome analysis was performed to determine appropriate marketing strategies. The analysis was based upon focus groups with middle school and high school students, student interactions, and surveys completed by students to understand and gauge student interest in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) subjects, interest in careers at NNSA, future job considerations, and student desire to pursue post-secondary education. Further, through the focus groups, students were asked to attend a presentation on NNSA job opportunities and employee requirements. The feedback received from the students was utilized to develop the focus and components of the marketing campaign.

This report documents the research that has been undertaken as background for preparation of a marketing campaign for middle and high school students to increase interest in national security careers at the National Nuclear Security Administration. This work is a part of the National Security Preparedness Project (NSPP), being performed under a Department of Energy (DOE)/National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) grant. Previous research on the development of a properly trained and skilled national security workforce has identified a lack of interest by k-12 students in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) fields. Further, participation in these careers by women and minority populations is limited and is not increasing. Added to this are low educational achievement levels in New Mexico, where the marketing campaign will be deployed.

This report documents the inclusion of the STEM focus in the annual competition theme for the Innoventure youth project. The STEM concepts have always played a part in the selection of the theme. However, this year, STEM is intentionally mentioned in the description of the theme to emphasize the importance of these concepts. This work is a part of the National Security Preparedness Project (NSPP), being performed under a Department of Energy (DOE)/National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) grant.

One of the most promising methods of capturing CO{sub 2} emitted by coal-fired power plants for subsequent sequestration is chemical looping combustion (CLC). A powdered metal oxide such as NiO transfers oxygen directly to a fuel in a fuel reactor at high temperatures with no air present. Heat, water, and CO{sub 2} are released, and after H{sub 2}O condensation the CO{sub 2} (undiluted by N{sub 2}) is ready for sequestration, whereas the nickel metal is ready for reoxidation in the air reactor. In principle, these processes can be repeated endlessly with the original nickel metal/nickel oxide participating in a loop that admits fuel and rejects ash, heat, and water. Our project accumulated kinetic rate data at high temperatures and elevated pressures for the metal oxide reduction step and for the metal reoxidation step. These data will be used in computational modeling of CLC on the laboratory scale and presumably later on the plant scale. The oxygen carrier on which the research at Utah is focused is CuO/Cu{sub 2}O rather than nickel oxide because the copper system lends itself to use with solid fuels in an alternative to CLC called 'chemical looping with oxygen uncoupling' (CLOU).

The Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC) has developed an interactive, Web-based decision support system (DSS{copyright} 2007 EERC Foundation) to provide power generation utilities with an assessment tool to address water supply issues when planning new or modifying existing generation facilities. The Web-based DSS integrates water and wastewater treatment technology and water law information with a geographic information system-based interactive map that links to state and federal water quality and quantity databases for North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Wyoming, Montana, Nebraska, Wisconsin, and Iowa.

The purpose of the project was to assist U.S. Steel in the evaluation, selection, planning, design, and testing of potential approaches to help meet U.S. Steel's goal for low-particulate matter emissions and regulatory compliance. The energy-intensive process for producing iron pellets includes treating the pellets in high-temperature kilns in which the iron is converted from magnetite to hematite. The kilns can be fired with either natural gas or a combination of gas and coal or biomass fuel and are equipped with wet venturi scrubbers for particulate control. Particulate measurements at the inlet and outlet of the scrubbers and analysis of size-fractionated particulate samples led to an understanding of the effect of process variables on the measured emissions and an approach to meet regulatory compliance.

This report describes the process of creating continuity and sustainability for demonstration and validation (DEMVAL) assets at the National Security Technology Incubator (NSTI). The DEMVAL asset program is being developed as part of the National Security Preparedness Project (NSPP), funded by Department of Energy (DOE)/National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA). The mission of the NSTI program is to identify, incubate, and accelerate technologies with national security applications at various stages of development by providing hands-on mentoring and business assistance to small businesses and emerging or growing companies. Part of this support is envisioned to be research and development of companies’ technology initiatives, at the same time providing robust test and evaluation of actual development activities. This program assists companies in developing technologies under the NSTI program through demonstration and validation of technologies applicable to national security created by incubators and other sources. The NSPP also will support the creation of an integrated demonstration and validation environment. Development of the commercial potential for national security technologies is a significant NSTI focus. As part of the process of commercialization, a comprehensive DEMVAL program has been recognized as an essential part of the overall incubator mission. A number of resources have been integrated into …

This report documents the identification of key barriers in the development of an adequate national security workforce as part of the National Security Preparedness Project, being performed under a Department of Energy/National Nuclear Security Administration grant. Many barriers exist that prevent the development of an adequate number of propertly trained national security personnel. Some barriers can be eliminated in a short-term manner, whereas others will involve a long-term strategy that takes into account public policy.

This marketing plan was developed as part of the National Security Preparedness Project by the Arrowhead Center of New Mexico State University. The vision of the National Security Technology Incubator program is to be a successful incubator of technologies and private enterprise that assist the NNSA in meeting new challenges in national safety and security. The plan defines important aspects of developing the incubator, such as defining the target market, marketing goals, and creating strategies to reach the target market while meeting those goals. The three main marketing goals of the incubator are: 1) developing marketing materials for the incubator program; 2) attracting businesses to become incubator participants; and 3) increasing name recognition of the incubator program on a national level.

A series of numerical simulations of carbon dioxide (CO{sub 2}) injection were conducted as part of a program to assess the potential for geologic sequestration in deep geologic reservoirs (the Rose Run and Copper Ridge formations), at the American Electric Power (AEP) Mountaineer Power Plant outside of New Haven, West Virginia. The simulations were executed using the H{sub 2}O-CO{sub 2}-NaCl operational mode of the Subsurface Transport Over Multiple Phases (STOMP) simulator (White and Oostrom, 2006). The objective of the Rose Run formation modeling was to predict CO{sub 2} injection rates using data from the core analysis conducted on the samples. A systematic screening procedure was applied to the Ohio River Valley CO{sub 2} storage site utilizing the Features, Elements, and Processes (FEP) database for geological storage of CO{sub 2} (Savage et al., 2004). The objective of the screening was to identify potential risk categories for the long-term geological storage of CO{sub 2} at the Mountaineer Power Plant in New Haven, West Virginia. Over 130 FEPs in seven main classes were assessed for the project based on site characterization information gathered in a geological background study, testing in a deep well drilled on the site, and general site conditions. In evaluating …

This report documents the status of educational efforts for the preparation of a national security workforce as part of the National Security Preparedness Project, being performed by the Arrowhead Center of New Mexico State University under a DOE/NNSA grant. The need to adequately train and educate a national security workforce is at a critical juncture. Even though there are an increasing number of college graduates in the appropriate fields, many of these graduates choose to work in the private sector because of more desirable salary and benefit packages. This report includes an assessment of the current educational situation for the national security workforce.

This report documents the status of the national security workforce as part of the National Security Preparedness Project, being performed by the Arrowhead Center of New Mexico State University under a DOE/NNSA grant. This report includes an assessment of the current workforce situation. The national security workforce is an important component of national security for our country. With the increase of global threats of terrorism, this workforce is being called upon more frequently. This has resulted in the need for an increasing number of national security personnel. It is imperative to attract and retain a skilled and competitive national security workforce.

This document was developed by the Arrowhead Center of New Mexico State University as part of the National Security Preparedness Project (NSPP), funded by a DOE/NNSA grant. The NSPP has three primary components: business incubation, workforce development, and technology demonstration and validation. The document contains a survey of test and demonstration assets in New Mexico available for external users such as small businesses with security technologies under development. Demonstration and validation of national security technologies created by incubator sources, as well as other sources, are critical phases of technology development. The NSPP will support the utilization of an integrated demonstration and validation environment.

This report documents the creation of a mission, goals, and objectives for the New Mexico Workforce Development Advisory Team as part of the National Security Preparedness Project (NSPP), being performed by the Arrowhead Center of New Mexico State University under a DOE/NNSA grant. The goal of workforce development under the NSPP grant is to assess workforce needs in national security and implement strategies to develop the appropriate workforce. To achieve this goal, it will be necessary to involve the workforce development advisory team in determining the current status of the national security workforce and the educational efforts to train such a workforce. Strategies will be developed and implemented to address gaps and to make progress towards a strong, well-trained workforce available for current and future national security employers.

This report documents the input from key stakeholders of the National Security Technology Incubator (NSTI) in developing a new technology incubator and related programs for southern New Mexico. The technology incubator is being developed as part of the National Security Preparedness Project (NSPP), funded by a Department of Energy (DOE)/National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) grant. This report includes identification of key stakeholders as well as a description and analysis of their input for the development of an incubator.

Highway Fuel Economy Test (HWFET) and Federal Test Procedure 75 (FTP-75) tests were conducted on four 2007 model vehicles; a Chevrolet Impala flex-fuel and three non-flex-fuel vehicles: a Ford Fusion, a Toyota Camry, and a Chevrolet Impala. This investigation utilized a range of undenatured ethanol/Tier II gasoline blend levels from 0% to 85%. HWFET testing on ethanol blend levels of E20 in the flex fuel Chevrolet Impala and E30 in the non-flex-fuel Ford Fusion and Toyota Camry resulted in miles-per-gallon (mpg) fuel economy greater than Tier 2 gasoline, while E40 in the non-flex-fuel Chevrolet Impala resulted in an optimum mpg based on per-gallon fuel Btu content. Exhaust emission values for non-methane organic gases (NMOG), carbon monoxide (CO), and nitrogen oxides (NO{sub x}) obtained from both the FTP-75 and the HWFET driving cycles were at or below EPA Tier II, Light-Duty Vehicles, Bin 5 levels for all vehicles tested with one exception. The flex-fuel Chevrolet Impala exceeded the NMOG standard for the FTP-75 on E-20 and Tier II gasoline.

This document contains a business plan for the National Security Technology Incubator (NSTI), developed as part of the National Security Preparedness Project (NSPP) and performed under a Department of Energy (DOE)/National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) grant. This business plan describes key features of the NSTI, including the vision and mission, organizational structure and staffing, services, evaluation criteria, marketing strategies, client processes, a budget, incubator evaluation criteria, and a development schedule. The purpose of the NSPP is to promote national security technologies through business incubation, technology demonstration and validation, and workforce development. The NSTI will focus on serving businesses with national security technology applications by nurturing them through critical stages of early development. The vision of the NSTI is to be a successful incubator of technologies and private enterprise that assist the NNSA in meeting new challenges in national safety, security, and protection of the homeland. The NSTI is operated and managed by the Arrowhead Center, responsible for leading the economic development mission of New Mexico State University (NMSU). The Arrowhead Center will recruit business with applications for national security technologies recruited for the NSTI program. The Arrowhead Center and its strategic partners will provide business incubation services, including hands-on mentoring …