2021 Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internship (SULI) Program Participants & Projects

Student: Jorge Higuera

Mentor: Alona Tyber

Project Title: GRID Electrification Simulation for Residential Buildings

Project Description: Providing 100% clean energy for all has been a growing concern in the United States, particularly in the state of California. Existing electrical grid technologies challenge the conventional model of reliable, clean, and efficient electricity for every customer; therefore, a change is needed. Electrification refers to the process of replacing residential technologies that emit carbon dioxide such as wood, oil, propane, and natural gas with technologies that use electricity. Electrification within residential sectors is of immense importance as it accounts for 13% of the total US greenhouse emissions. My project consisted of working with the Grid integration systems and Mobility team to create a model that could demonstrate different electrification scenarios on the residential sector to analyze the future effect on the electrical grid. This work is in the effort to prepare the electrical grid for the increase in the electrical load due to the transition of residential appliances from natural gas to electric. Within the model created, different parameters that can be studied within a simulation. All of this was created with the help of GridLAB-D, a new power distribution system simulation and analysis tool that provides valuable information to users who design and operate distribution systems.

My first research experience as a SULI Intern has confirmed my desire to pursue a PhD in Environmental Engineering. Working on impactful projects such as this one is what I want to do with my career. The skills and experiences I have acquired at SLAC have expanded my curiosity and determination to continue pursuing opportunities such as this one. Ever since I was a child, I always wondered how I could change the world; my contribution at SLAC made this possible.

Student: Nicholas Snyder

Mentor: Dr. Johanna Nelson Weker and Dr. David Agyeman-Budu.

Project Title: Modeling battery cycling in zinc-based batteries using COMSOL Multiphysics®

Project Description: As part of the Department of Energy SULI program at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, I conducted research on zinc-based batteries under the guidance of Dr. Johanna Nelson Weker and Dr. David Agyeman-Budu. In comparison to lithium, zinc's relative abundance, lower cost, higher volumetric capacity, and ability to be paired with aqueous electrolytes make it an attractive option for next generation batteries. However, zinc-based batteries have traditionally struggled with low rechargeability due to uneven plating of zinc on the negative electrode during battery cycling. An attractive approach to combat inhomogeneous zinc plating and achieve uniform zinc electrodeposition over multiple battery cycles involves adjusting the geometry of the negative electrode. During the ten-week program, I used COMSOL Multiphysics® to create a model that simulates the changes in the structure of a zinc negative electrode in a battery. This model serves as a foundation for negative electrode optimization in the future, in which the geometry of the electrode is designed to be more conducive to uniform zinc electrodeposition over numerous battery cycles. Without prior experience using COMSOL Multiphysics®, I learned to use this software to model electrodeposition processes in both two- and three-dimensions. Additionally, I bolstered my knowledge of fundamental electrochemistry principles and applied that knowledge to improve my model. Beyond the scientific insight acquired, I learned great lessons in communication and perseverance. Talking with my research mentors on a regular basis in addition to presenting my work to an audience of my peers enhanced my ability to convey my results to people from a variety of scientific backgrounds. Furthermore, in taking on a project of my own, I experienced the roadblocks and successes that go along with research and learned to persist even when a problem initially seems unsolvable.

Student: Nicholas Boyd

Mentor: Sang-Jun Lee

Project Title: Calibration Algorithm for the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource Transition Edge Sensor

Project Description: The Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource transition edge sensor (TES), consisting of 240 microcalorimeter cells, obtains soft x-ray spectra from samples by measuring the energy of the photons emitted from the sample indirectly through the temperature change of the microcalorimeter upon absorption of those photons. This project aims to develop an algorithm to more precisely calibrate the energy sensitivity of the TES. We use kernel density estimations (KDE’s) to statistically model the temperature pulse heights into a spectrum. We use a third order polynomial stretch in conjunction with known 525, 750, and 900 eV peaks to convert the pulse heights into x-ray energy as well as to eliminate any detector non-linearity. We also aim to increase the calibration accuracy even more by eliminating any low energy tailing behavior resulting from imperfect detector thermalization by using asymmetric kernels with complimentary high energy tails. Finally, we add individually calibrated energy spectra from different channels to obtain a high-resolution x-ray spectrum.