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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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At least 469 records · Page 26
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2016

Comparison of 3-dimensional dose reconstruction system between fluence-based system and dose measurement-guided system

COMPASS system (IBA Dosimetry, Schwarzenbruck, Germany) and ArcCHECK with 3DVH software (Sun Nuclear Corp., Melbourne, FL) are commercial quasi-3-dimensional (3D) dosimetry arrays. Cross-validation to compare them under the same conditions, such as a treatment plan, allows for clear evaluation of such measurement devices. In this study, we evaluated the accuracy of reconstructed dose distributions from the COMPASS system and ArcCHECK with 3DVH software using Monte Carlo simulation (MC) for multi-leaf collimator (MLC) test patterns and clinical VMAT plans. In a phantom study, ArcCHECK 3DVH showed clear differences from COMPASS, measurement and MC due to the detector resolution and the dose reconstruction method. Especially, ArcCHECK 3DVH showed 7% difference from MC for the heterogeneous phantom. ArcCHECK 3DVH only corrects the 3D dose distribution of treatment planning system (TPS) using ArcCHECK measurement, and therefore the accuracy of ArcCHECK 3DVH depends on TPS. In contrast, COMPASS showed good agreement with MC for all cases. However, the COMPASS system requires many complicated installation procedures such as beam modeling, and appropriate commissioning is needed. In terms of clinical cases, there were no large differences for each QA device. The accuracy of the compass and ArcCHECK 3DVH systems for phantoms and clinical cases was compared. Both systems have advantages and disadvantages for clinical use, and consideration of the operating environment is important. The QA system selection is depending on the purpose and workflow in each hospital.

61 RADIATION PROTECTION AND DOSIMETRY↗
DOE OSTI2014

Monte Carlo simulation of initial breakdown phase for magnetised toroidal ICRF discharges

The radio-frequency (RF) plasma production technique in the ion cyclotron range of frequency (ICRF) attracts growing attention among fusion experts because of its high potential for solving several basic problems of reactor-oriented superconducting fusion machines, such as ICRF wall conditioning in tokamaks and stellarators (T{sub e} = 3−5eV, n{sub e}<10{sup 12}cm{sup −3}), ICRF-assisted tokamak start-up and target plasma production (n{sub e} = 10{sup 13}cm{sup −3}) in stellarators. Plasma initiation by ICRF has been studied intensively using single particle descriptions and basic analytic models. To further improve the present understanding on plasma production employing the vacuum RF field of ICRF antennas in toroidal devices in presence of the toroidal magnetic field, and its parametric dependencies a Monte Carlo code has been developed. The 1D code RFdinity1D describes the motion of electrons, accelerated by the RF field in front of the ICRF antenna, along one toroidal magnetic field line. Dependent on their individual energies and the related electron collision cross sections (ionisation, excitation and dissociation) weighted by a Monte Carlo procedure, an electron avalanche may occur. Breakdown conditions are discussed as function of RF discharge parameters (i) RF vacuum electric field strength, (ii) RF frequency and (iii) neutral pressure (H2). The slope of the exponential density increase, taken as measure for the breakdown speed, shows qualitative agreement to experimental breakdown times as found in literature and experimental data of the ASDEX upgrade and TEXTOR tokamak, and is interpreted by studying the characteristic electron velocity distribution functions.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2015

Validation of HELIOS for ATR Core Follow Analyses

This work summarizes the validation analyses for the HELIOS code to support core design and safety assurance calculations of the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR). Past and current core safety assurance is performed by the PDQ-7 diffusion code; a state of the art reactor physics simulation tool from the nuclear industry’s earlier days. Over the past twenty years, improvements in computational speed have enabled the use of modern neutron transport methodologies to replace the role of diffusion theory for simulation of complex systems, such as the ATR. More exact methodologies have enabled a paradigm-shift away from highly tuned codes that force compliance with a bounding safety envelope, and towards codes regularly validated against routine measurements. To validate HELIOS, the 16 ATR operational cycles from late-2009 to present were modeled. The computed power distribution was compared against data collected by the ATR’s on-line power surveillance system. It was found that the ATR’s lobe-powers could be determined with ±10% accuracy. Also, the ATR’s cold startup shim configuration for each of these 16 cycles was estimated and compared against the reported critical position from the reactor log-book. HELIOS successfully predicted criticality within the tolerance set by the ATR startup procedure for 13 out of the 16 cycles. This is compared to 12 times for PDQ (without empirical adjustment). These findings, as well as other insights discussed in this report, suggest that HELIOS is highly suited for replacing PDQ for core safety assurance of the ATR. Furthermore, a modern verification and validation framework has been established that allows reactor and fuel performance data to be computed with a known degree of accuracy and stated uncertainty.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2019

Measurement Concept for a Possible Clearance of Mercury Waste from Nuclear Facilities - 19138

This paper describes the development of a measurement concept for a clearance of mercury waste from the decommissioning of nuclear facilities. A decontamination of mercury is performed after which large parts of the waste could possibly be released into reuse or conventional mercury disposal. The focus of this work is on the development and validation of a gamma-spectrometric measurement setup that is used for decision-making measurements for a possible clearance procedure. The measurement system is validated by a comparison of experimental measurements with nuclear simulations using Monte Carlo N-Particle{sup R} Transport Code (MCNP{sup R}). The validated MCNP{sup R} simulation model is used to determine the energy-dependent photopeak efficiencies and subsequently the sensitivity of the measurements. Preliminary results of gamma spectrometry in combination with MCNP{sup R} simulations indicate that a clearance of elemental mercury should be possible after decontamination. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2017

Determination of Material Constitutive Laws for Inconel 718 Superalloy Under Different Strain Rates and Working Temperatures

In this paper, a special procedure for the prediction of parameters of the Johnson–Cook constitutive material models is proposed based on the experimental data and specially developed MATLAB scripts which allow advanced modeling of complex 3D response surfaces. Experimental investigations concern two various strain rates of 10{sup −3} and 10{sup 1} 1/s and the testing temperature ranging from the ambient up to 700 °C. As a result, a set of mathematical equations which fit the experimental data is determined. The applicability of the experimentally derived constitutive models to the FEM modeling of real machining processes of Inconel 718 alloy is verified.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2018

Minimizing Error Potential Using Computer Applications - 18498

Many Savannah River Site (SRS) liquid waste facility operations depend upon repetitive engineering calculations and operator actions. Although these calculations and actions are formalized in technical reports and paper procedures, they can still be vulnerable to data entry errors, calculation errors, equipment alignment errors, and occasional changes caused by different people performing these activities. Savannah River Remediation (SRR) is using computer automation to reduce these error precursors by standardizing repetitive calculations and by performing plant alignment checks for repetitive operation processes. Data entry can be automated, calculation methodologies can be standardized, and computers can check to see that predefined plant conditions exist before equipment operation. In addition to improving quality, the time required for these activities to generate technical reports, to perform independent reviews, and to perform equipment alignment checks can be significantly reduced. In the case of operator-performed calculations, error precursors involve distractions that can occur over a multi-page paper procedure, confusing displays and controls from equipment, mathematical errors, complacency, and unfamiliarity with the procedure among many others. Repetitive engineering calculations suffer from similar error precursors and are often compounded by high workloads, lack of proficiency, lack of standard methodology, mental shortcuts, and biases. Web-based computer applications can eliminate many of these precursors through standardization. Calculation methods are fixed, inputs are fixed, and computer checks can highlight potentially wrong inputs and outputs. Automated calculations are performed almost instantaneously once input is provided. Operators and engineers can spend more time focusing on the results than on the process to achieve the results. Similarly, when operators use repetitive procedures involving equipment manipulation, the same error precursors apply. Automated operation sequences and equipment checks can be programmed into the distributed control system to provide standard operating processes that reduce and eliminate error precursors. This paper describes how SRR incorporates Human Performance Improvement (HPI) principles when automating calculations and operation processes. Computer applications will be reviewed in detail, highlighting the software development life-cycle that includes requirements gathering, prototyping, design, development, testing, and implementation. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2016

Response function of single crystal synthetic diamond detectors to 1-4 MeV neutrons for spectroscopy of D plasmas

A Single-crystal Diamond (SD) detector prototype was installed at Joint European Torus (JET) in 2013 and the achieved results have shown its spectroscopic capability of measuring 2.5 MeV neutrons from deuterium plasmas. This paper presents measurements of the SD response function to monoenergetic neutrons, which is a key point for the development of a neutron spectrometer based on SDs and compares them with Monte Carlo simulations. The analysis procedure allows for a good reconstruction of the experimental results. The good pulse height energy resolution (equivalent FWHM of 80 keV at 2.5 MeV), gain stability, insensitivity to magnetic field, and compact size make SDs attractive as compact neutron spectrometers of high flux deuterium plasmas, such as for instance those needed for the ITER neutron camera.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2015

Mock Quasar-Lyman-α forest data-sets for the SDSS-III Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey

We describe mock data-sets generated to simulate the high-redshift quasar sample in Data Release 11 (DR11) of the SDSS-III Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey (BOSS). The mock spectra contain Lyα forest correlations useful for studying the 3D correlation function including Baryon Acoustic Oscillations (BAO). They also include astrophysical effects such as quasar continuum diversity and high-density absorbers, instrumental effects such as noise and spectral resolution, as well as imperfections introduced by the SDSS pipeline treatment of the raw data. The Lyα forest BAO analysis of the BOSS collaboration, described in Delubac et al. 2014, has used these mock data-sets to develop and cross-check analysis procedures prior to performing the BAO analysis on real data, and for continued systematic cross checks. Tests presented here show that the simulations reproduce sufficiently well important characteristics of real spectra. These mock data-sets will be made available together with the data at the time of the Data Release 11.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2016

A controlled statistical study to assess measurement variability as a function of test object position and configuration for automated surveillance in a multicenter longitudinal COPD study (SPIROMICS)

Purpose: A test object (phantom) is an important tool to evaluate comparability and stability of CT scanners used in multicenter and longitudinal studies. However, there are many sources of error that can interfere with the test object-derived quantitative measurements. Here the authors investigated three major possible sources of operator error in the use of a test object employed to assess pulmonary density-related as well as airway-related metrics. Methods: Two kinds of experiments were carried out to assess measurement variability caused by imperfect scanning status. The first one consisted of three experiments. A COPDGene test object was scanned using a dual source multidetector computed tomographic scanner (Siemens Somatom Flash) with the Subpopulations and Intermediate Outcome Measures in COPD Study (SPIROMICS) inspiration protocol (120 kV, 110 mAs, pitch = 1, slice thickness = 0.75 mm, slice spacing = 0.5 mm) to evaluate the effects of tilt angle, water bottle offset, and air bubble size. After analysis of these results, a guideline was reached in order to achieve more reliable results for this test object. Next the authors applied the above findings to 2272 test object scans collected over 4 years as part of the SPIROMICS study. The authors compared changes of the data consistency before and after excluding the scans that failed to pass the guideline. Results: This study established the following limits for the test object: tilt index ≤0.3, water bottle offset limits of [−6.6 mm, 7.4 mm], and no air bubble within the water bottle, where tilt index is a measure incorporating two tilt angles around x- and y-axis. With 95% confidence, the density measurement variation for all five interested materials in the test object (acrylic, water, lung, inside air, and outside air) resulting from all three error sources can be limited to ±0.9 HU (summed in quadrature), when all the requirements are satisfied. The authors applied these criteria to 2272 SPIROMICS scans and demonstrated a significant reduction in measurement variation associated with the test object. Conclusions: Three operator errors were identified which significantly affected the usability of the acquired scan images of the test object used for monitoring scanner stability in a multicenter study. The authors’ results demonstrated that at the time of test object scan receipt at a radiology core laboratory, quality control procedures should include an assessment of tilt index, water bottle offset, and air bubble size within the water bottle. Application of this methodology to 2272 SPIROMICS scans indicated that their findings were not limited to the scanner make and model used for the initial test but was generalizable to both Siemens and GE scanners which comprise the scanner types used within the SPIROMICS study.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2015

GLOBAL PROPERTIES OF FULLY CONVECTIVE ACCRETION DISKS FROM LOCAL SIMULATIONS

We present an approach to deriving global properties of accretion disks from the knowledge of local solutions derived from numerical simulations based on the shearing box approximation. The approach consists of a two-step procedure. First, a local solution valid for all values of the disk height is constructed by piecing together an interior solution obtained numerically with an analytical exterior radiative solution. The matching is obtained by assuming hydrostatic balance and radiative equilibrium. Although in principle the procedure can be carried out in general, it simplifies considerably when the interior solution is fully convective. In these cases, the construction is analogous to the derivation of the Hayashi tracks for protostars. The second step consists of piecing together the local solutions at different radii to obtain a global solution. Here we use the symmetry of the solutions with respect to the defining dimensionless numbers—in a way similar to the use of homology relations in stellar structure theory—to obtain the scaling properties of the various disk quantities with radius.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2016

Development of High Alumina Glass Property Data for Hanford High-Level Waste Glass Models - 16231

Roughly half of the projected Hanford high-level waste batches will have waste loadings limited by relatively high concentration of Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}. Individual glasses have been formulated and tested to demonstrate that it is possible to increase the loading of these high-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} wastes in glass by as much as 50%. To implement such increases in waste loading in the Hanford Tank Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant, the impact of composition on the properties of high-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} waste glasses must be quantified in the form of validated glass property-composition models. To collect the data necessary for glass property-composition models, a multi-phase experimental approach was developed. In the first phase of the study, a set of 46 glass compositions were statistically designed to most efficiently backfill existing data in the composition region for high-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} (15 to 30 wt%) waste glasses. The glasses were fabricated and key glass properties were tested: - Product Consistency Test (PCT) on quench (Q) and canister centerline cooled (CCC) samples - Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP) on Q and CCC samples - Crystallinity as a function of temperature (T) at equilibrium and of CCC samples - Viscosity and electrical conductivity as a function of T The measured properties of these glasses were compared to predictions from previously existing models developed over lower Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} concentration ranges. Areas requiring additional testing and modeling were highlighted. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2014

Forward fitting of experimental data from a NE213 neutron detector installed with the magnetic proton recoil upgraded spectrometer at JET

In this paper, we present the results obtained from the data analysis of neutron spectra measured with a NE213 liquid scintillator at JET. We calculated the neutron response matrix of the instrument combining MCNPX simulations, a generic proton light output function measured with another detector and the fit of data from ohmic pulses. For the analysis, we selected a set of pulses with neutral beam injection heating (NBI) only and we applied a forward fitting procedure of modeled spectral components to extract the fraction of thermal neutron emission. The results showed the same trend of the ones obtained with the dedicated spectrometer TOFOR, even though the values from the NE213 analysis were systematically higher. This discrepancy is probably due to the different lines of sight of the two spectrometers (tangential for the NE213, vertical for TOFOR). The uncertainties on the thermal fraction estimates were from 4 to 7 times higher than the ones from the TOFOR analysis.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2015

Development of a 3D optical scanning-based automatic quality assurance system for proton range compensators

Purpose: A new automatic quality assurance (AutoRCQA) system using a three-dimensional scanner (3DS) with system automation was developed to improve the accuracy and efficiency of the quality assurance (QA) procedure for proton range compensators (RCs). The system performance was evaluated for clinical implementation. Methods: The AutoRCQA system consists of a three-dimensional measurement system (3DMS) based on 3DS and in-house developed verification software (3DVS). To verify the geometrical accuracy, the planned RC data (PRC), calculated with the treatment planning system (TPS), were reconstructed and coregistered with the measured RC data (MRC) based on the beam isocenter. The PRC and MRC inner surfaces were compared with composite analysis (CA) using 3DVS, using the CA pass rate for quantitative analysis. To evaluate the detection accuracy of the system, the authors designed a fake PRC by artificially adding small cubic islands with side lengths of 1.5, 2.5, and 3.5 mm on the inner surface of the PRC and performed CA with the depth difference and distance-to-agreement tolerances of [1 mm, 1 mm], [2 mm, 2 mm], and [3 mm, 3 mm]. In addition, the authors performed clinical tests using seven RCs [computerized milling machine (CMM)-RCs] manufactured by CMM, which were designed for treating various disease sites. The systematic offsets of the seven CMM-RCs were evaluated through the automatic registration function of AutoRCQA. For comparison with conventional technique, the authors measured the thickness at three points in each of the seven CMM-RCs using a manual depth measurement device and calculated thickness difference based on the TPS data (TPS-manual measurement). These results were compared with data obtained from 3DVS. The geometrical accuracy of each CMM-RC inner surface was investigated using the TPS data by performing CA with the same criteria. The authors also measured the net processing time, including the scan and analysis time. Results: The AutoRCQA system accurately detected all fake objects in accordance with the given criteria. The median systematic offset of the seven CMM-RCs was 0.08 mm (interquartile range: −0.25 to 0.37 mm) and −0.08 mm (−0.58 to 0.01 mm) in the X- and Y-directions, respectively, while the median distance difference was 0.37 mm (0.23–0.94 mm). The median thickness difference of the TPS-manual measurement at points 1, 2, and 3 was −0.4 mm (−0.4 to −0.2 mm), −0.2 mm (−0.3 to 0.0 mm), and −0.3 mm (−0.6 to −0.1 mm), respectively, while the median difference of 3DMS was 0.0 mm (−0.1 to 0.2 mm), 0.0 mm (−0.1 to 0.3 mm), and 0.1 mm (−0.1 to 0.2 mm), respectively. Thus, 3DMS showed slightly better values compared to the manual measurements for points 1 and 3 in statistical analysis (p < 0.05). The average pass rate of the seven CMM-RCs was 97.97% ± 1.68% for 1-mm CA conditions, increasing to 99.98% ± 0.03% and 100% ± 0.00% for 2- and 3-mm CA conditions, respectively. The average net analysis time was 18.01 ± 1.65 min. Conclusions: The authors have developed an automated 3DS-based proton RC QA system and verified its performance. The AutoRCQA system may improve the accuracy and efficiency of QA for RCs.

07 ISOTOPE AND RADIATION SOURCES↗
DOE OSTI2016

SHARP User Manual

SHARP is an advanced modeling and simulation toolkit for the analysis of nuclear reactors. It is comprised of several components including physical modeling tools, tools to integrate the physics codes for multi-physics analyses, and a set of tools to couple the codes within the MOAB framework. Physics modules currently include the neutronics code PROTEUS, the thermal-hydraulics code Nek5000, and the structural mechanics code Diablo. This manual focuses on performing multi-physics calculations with the SHARP ToolKit. Manuals for the three individual physics modules are available with the SHARP distribution to help the user to either carry out the primary multi-physics calculation with basic knowledge or perform further advanced development with in-depth knowledge of these codes. This manual provides step-by-step instructions on employing SHARP, including how to download and install the code, how to build the drivers for a test case, how to perform a calculation and how to visualize the results. Since SHARP has some specific library and environment dependencies, it is highly recommended that the user read this manual prior to installing SHARP. Verification tests cases are included to check proper installation of each module. It is suggested that the new user should first follow the step-by-step instructions provided for a test problem in this manual to understand the basic procedure of using SHARP before using SHARP for his/her own analysis. Both reference output and scripts are provided along with the test cases in order to verify correct installation and execution of the SHARP package. At the end of this manual, detailed instructions are provided on how to create a new test case so that user can perform novel multi-physics calculations with SHARP. Frequently asked questions are listed at the end of this manual to help the user to troubleshoot issues.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
NASA NTRS2019

Predictive Modeling for Differential Diagnosis and Mortality Risk Assessment

The prevalence of electronic health record (EHR) systems has brought prodigious biomedical informatics opportunity. Automated machine learning methods can effectively utilize such data and have become common tools for healthcare predictive modeling. Researches in medical informatics have explored the potential of deep learning and classical models in emergent care scenarios. In particular, predicting differential diagnoses for admissions have proven useful in decreasing unnecessary lab tests and improving inpatient triage decision-making. Moreover, identification of high-risk patients for in-hospital mortality is vitally important to maximize allocation of medical resources.The Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care (MIMIC-III) database, containing de-identified critical care inpatient was used in our study. This data set captures hospital patient laboratory measurements, pharmacologic prescriptions, diagnostic data and procedure event recordings. When considering adult patients and discounting admissions with ICU length of stay less than 24 hours, there were 37,787 unique admissions and 30,414 total patients. We examined the top 25 most prevalent ICD-9 group-level disease specificities in MIMIC-III using a multi-label classification model. In-hospital mortality was modeled as binary classification with 4,155 (13%) adult patients that expired, of which 3,138 (75.5%) were in the ICU setting. The metrics AUC, F1 score, sensitivity and specificity values calculated for each disease label measured prediction performance.The usage of ICD-9 group codes reduced feature dimension from 14,567 to 942 and greatly improved distribution of patient diagnostic categories. Disease temporal patterns were captured by considering the most frequently sampled 6 vital signs and 13 laboratory values. Missing data were imputed at each time-stamp. Time-series raw hourly average values were converted into 5 summary features (mean, standard deviation, number of observations, min & max values). Patient demographic variables such as age, gender, marital status and ethnicity were also factored into the modeling. Choi et al showed that contextual embedding of medical data, diagnostic and procedural codes alone can predict future diagnoses with sensitivity as high as 0.79. We utilized an embedding technique called word2vec which allowed sparse representations of medical history to be transformed into dense word vectors. The mappings captured contextual information by treating each admission as a sentence and learning the most likely neighboring words in a sliding window fashion. Binary and multi-label classification was achieved via collapse models, which do not consider temporal information, as well as recurrent neural networks with regularization, Softmax output layer activation together with categorical cross-entropy as the loss function.

US Army collaboration↗
DOE OSTI2016

Experimental study of the downstream effect of LOCA-generated debris on the pressure drop of full scale fuel assembly

The emergency core cooling system (ECCS) works to cool the reactor core in the event of a postulated loss-of-coolant accident (LOCA). The long-term reactor cooling water of ECCS comes from containment sump. Usually, the containment sump contains one or more screens to prevent the components of the ECCS from debris which could be washed into the sump. Large debris is blocked by the sump screens. However, some of the debris, such as fibrous, chemical precipitates and small particles may be ingested into the ECCS and subsequently into the reactor coolant systems (RCS), which would challenge the long-term core cooling (LTCC) and threaten the reactor core safety. NRC address this concern Generic Letter 2004-02. Westinghouse has evaluated the AP1000 1/4 height fuel assembly head-loss test in response to the issue. AVERA also perform the scaled 1/3 height mock-up fuel assembly test. The debris effect on the pressure drop of half-length mock-up PLUS7 fuel assembly of APR1400 were performed in KHNP. Numerical simulation by RELAP5-3D were performed for the debris-generated core blockage and full core as well as core bypass blockage condition were considered. However, the test in the works mentioned above use the scaled down FA (1/4, 1/3 or 1/2 length of a full FA), and didn't give the relationship between pressure drop and debris batches. The purpose of this study was to extend the debris effect to the full scale PWR fuel assembly, and identified batch by batch effect of debris to head loss of FA. The specific experimental procedure is concluded. The pressure drop test without adding debris is performed at the beginning and then three kinds of debris are added to the test loop step by step to test their effect on the pressure drop of fuel assembly. Two kinds of tests have been carried out, and the quantitative pressure data are obtained and analysis is provided. This work provides reliable and quantitative data for nuclear power plant (NPP) downstream effect analysis and safety analysis program, which is important to for licensing of NPP and further benchmark exercise. (authors)

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Reconstruction of the primordial power spectrum of curvature perturbations using multiple data sets

Detailed knowledge of the primordial power spectrum of curvature perturbations is essential both in order to elucidate the physical mechanism ('inflation') which generated it, and for estimating the cosmological parameters from observations of the cosmic microwave background and large-scale structure. Hence it ought to be extracted from such data in a model-independent manner, however this is difficult because relevant cosmological observables are given by a convolution of the primordial perturbations with some smoothing kernel which depends on both the assumed world model and the matter content of the universe. Moreover the deconvolution problem is ill-conditioned so a regularisation scheme must be employed to control error propagation. We demonstrate that 'Tikhonov regularisation' can robustly reconstruct the primordial spectrum from multiple cosmological data sets, a significant advantage being that both its uncertainty and resolution are then quantified. Using Monte Carlo simulations we investigate several regularisation parameter selection methods and find that generalised cross-validation and Mallow's C{sub p} method give optimal results. We apply our inversion procedure to data from the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe, other ground-based small angular scale CMB experiments, and the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. The reconstructed spectrum (assuming the standard ΛCDM cosmology) is not scale-free but has an infrared cutoff at k∼<5 × 10{sup −4} Mpc{sup −1} (due to the anomalously low CMB quadrupole) and several features with ∼ 2σ significance at k/Mpc{sup −1} ∼ 0.0013–0.0025, 0.0362–0.0402 and 0.051–0.056, reflecting the 'WMAP glitches'. To test whether these are indeed real will require more accurate data, such as from the Planck satellite and new ground-based experiments.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2016

CT-Guided Percutaneous Radiologic Gastrostomy for Patients with Head and Neck Cancer: A Retrospective Evaluation in 177 Patients

PurposeThe purpose of this study was to assess the technical success rate and adverse events (AEs) associated with computed tomography (CT)-guided percutaneous gastrostomy for patients with head and neck cancer (HNC).Materials and MethodsThis retrospective study included patients with HNC who had undergone CT-guided percutaneous gastrostomy between February 2007 and December 2013. Information regarding the patients’ backgrounds, CT-guided percutaneous gastrostomy techniques, technical success rate, and AEs were obtained from the medical records. In all patients, the stomach was punctured under CT fluoroscopy with a Funada gastropexy device.ResultsDuring the study period, 177 patients underwent CT-guided percutaneous gastrostomy. The most common tumor location was the oral cavity, followed by the pharynx and maxilla. The indication for CT-guided percutaneous gastrostomy were tumor obstruction in 78 patients, postoperative dysphagia in 55 patients, radiation edema in 43 patients, and cerebral infarction in 1 patient. The technical success rate was 97.7 %. The overall mean procedure time was 25.3 min. Major AEs occurred in seven patients (4.0 %), including bleeding (n = 4), colonic injury (n = 1), gastric tear (n = 1), and aspiration pneumonia (n = 1). Minor AEs occurred in 15 patients (8.5 %), which included peristomal leakage (n = 6), irritation (n = 4), inadvertent removal (n = 2), peristomal hemorrhage (n = 1), peristomal infection (n = 1), and wound granulation (n = 1). The mean follow-up period was 111 days (range 1–1106 days).ConclusionOur study suggests that CT-guided gastrostomy may be suitable in patients with HNC.

62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE↗