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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 703 records · Page 39
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2015

A Prospective Phase 2 Trial of Reirradiation With Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy Plus Cetuximab in Patients With Previously Irradiated Recurrent Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Head and Neck

Purpose: Salvage options for unresectable locally recurrent, previously irradiated squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (rSCCHN) are limited. Although the addition of reirradiation may improve outcomes compared to chemotherapy alone, significant toxicities limit salvage reirradiation strategies, leading to suboptimal outcomes. We therefore designed a phase 2 protocol to evaluate the efficacy of stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) plus cetuximab for rSCCHN. Methods and Materials: From July 2007 to March 2013, 50 patients >18 years of age with inoperable locoregionally confined rSCCHN within a previously irradiated field receiving ≥60 Gy, with a Zubrod performance status of 0 to 2, and normal hepatic and renal function were enrolled. Patients received concurrent cetuximab (400 mg/m{sup 2} on day −7 and then 250 mg/m{sup 2} on days 0 and +8) plus SBRT (40-44 Gy in 5 fractions on alternating days over 1-2 weeks). Primary endpoints were 1-year locoregional progression-free survival and National Cancer Institute Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events version 3.0 graded toxicity. Results: Median follow-up for surviving patients was 18 months (range: 10-70). The 1-year local PFS rate was 60% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 44%-75%), locoregional PFS was 37% (95% CI: 23%-53%), distant PFS was 71% (95% CI: 54%-85%), and PFS was 33% (95% CI: 20%-49%). The median overall survival was 10 months (95% CI: 7-16), with a 1-year overall survival of 40% (95% CI: 26%-54%). At last follow-up, 69% died of disease, 4% died with disease, 15% died without progression, 10% were alive without progression, and 2% were alive with progression. Acute and late grade 3 toxicity was observed in 6% of patients respectively. Conclusions: SBRT with concurrent cetuximab appears to be a safe salvage treatment for rSCCHN of short overall treatment time.

62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE↗
DOE OSTI2023

Deep learning Hamiltonians from disordered image data in quantum materials

The capabilities of image probe experiments are rapidly expanding, providing new information about quantum materials on unprecedented length- and timescales. Many such materials feature inhomogeneous electronic properties with intricate pattern formation on the observable surface. This rich spatial structure contains information about interactions, dimensionality, and disorder—a spatial encoding of the Hamiltonian driving the pattern formation. Image recognition techniques from machine learning are an excellent tool for interpreting information encoded in the spatial relationships in such images. Here, we develop a deep learning framework for using the rich information available in these spatial correlations in order to discover the underlying Hamiltonian driving the patterns. We first vet the method on a known case, scanning near-field optical microscopy on a thin film of V⁢O 2 . We then apply our trained convolutional neural network architecture to new optical microscope images of a different V⁢O 2 film as it goes through the metal-insulator transition. We find that a two-dimensional Hamiltonian with both interactions and random field disorder is required to explain the intricate, fractal intertwining of metal and insulator domains during the transition. This detailed knowledge about the underlying Hamiltonian paves the way for using the model to control the pattern formation via, e.g., tailored hysteresis protocols. Finally, we also introduce a distribution-based confidence measure on the results of a multilabel classifier, which does not rely on adversarial training. In addition, we propose a machine-learning-based criterion for diagnosing a physical system's proximity to criticality.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2014

Statistical model based iterative reconstruction (MBIR) in clinical CT systems: Experimental assessment of noise performance

Purpose: To reduce radiation dose in CT imaging, the statistical model based iterative reconstruction (MBIR) method has been introduced for clinical use. Based on the principle of MBIR and its nonlinear nature, the noise performance of MBIR is expected to be different from that of the well-understood filtered backprojection (FBP) reconstruction method. The purpose of this work is to experimentally assess the unique noise characteristics of MBIR using a state-of-the-art clinical CT system. Methods: Three physical phantoms, including a water cylinder and two pediatric head phantoms, were scanned in axial scanning mode using a 64-slice CT scanner (Discovery CT750 HD, GE Healthcare, Waukesha, WI) at seven different mAs levels (5, 12.5, 25, 50, 100, 200, 300). At each mAs level, each phantom was repeatedly scanned 50 times to generate an image ensemble for noise analysis. Both the FBP method with a standard kernel and the MBIR method (Veo{sup ®}, GE Healthcare, Waukesha, WI) were used for CT image reconstruction. Three-dimensional (3D) noise power spectrum (NPS), two-dimensional (2D) NPS, and zero-dimensional NPS (noise variance) were assessed both globally and locally. Noise magnitude, noise spatial correlation, noise spatial uniformity and their dose dependence were examined for the two reconstruction methods. Results: (1) At each dose level and at each frequency, the magnitude of the NPS of MBIR was smaller than that of FBP. (2) While the shape of the NPS of FBP was dose-independent, the shape of the NPS of MBIR was strongly dose-dependent; lower dose lead to a “redder” NPS with a lower mean frequency value. (3) The noise standard deviation (σ) of MBIR and dose were found to be related through a power law of σ ∝ (dose){sup −β} with the component β ≈ 0.25, which violated the classical σ ∝ (dose){sup −0.5} power law in FBP. (4) With MBIR, noise reduction was most prominent for thin image slices. (5) MBIR lead to better noise spatial uniformity when compared with FBP. (6) A composite image generated from two MBIR images acquired at two different dose levels (D1 and D2) demonstrated lower noise than that of an image acquired at a dose level of D1+D2. Conclusions: The noise characteristics of the MBIR method are significantly different from those of the FBP method. The well known tradeoff relationship between CT image noise and radiation dose has been modified by MBIR to establish a more gradual dependence of noise on dose. Additionally, some other CT noise properties that had been well understood based on the linear system theory have also been altered by MBIR. Clinical CT scan protocols that had been optimized based on the classical CT noise properties need to be carefully re-evaluated for systems equipped with MBIR in order to maximize the method's potential clinical benefits in dose reduction and/or in CT image quality improvement.

62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE↗
DOE OSTI2019

Permanganate Oxidation of Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF) Recycle Collection Tank (RCT) Simulants – Protocol Runs for Nominal and Chemical Process Cell (CPC) Foamover Conditions

Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) has completed a work scope in support of the Savannah River Remediation (SRR) Nitric-Glycolic flowsheet. Glycolic acid will replace formic acid as a reducing agent in the pre-processing of High-Level Waste sludge performed at the Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF). Glycolic acid will perform the same function as formic acid, namely reduction of mercury and adjustment of feed rheology and melter oxidation/reduction potential, while significantly reducing the potential for hydrogen generation in DWPF processing. Development testing has demonstrated glycolic acid virtually eliminates hydrogen production in the pre-processing steps. The Nitric-Glycolic flowsheet significantly improves DWPF’s ability to address one of the Savannah River Site’s key challenges - the incorporation of effluent received from the Salt Waste Processing Facility (SWPF). SWPF will deliver significant effluent volume to DWPF, resulting in a concurrent increase in DWPF effluent returned to the Concentration, Storage and Transfer Facilities (CSTF). This work scope demonstrates that glycolate can be destroyed under the Nitric-Glycolic flowsheet prior to returning the DWPF recycle stream to CSTF. To avoid potential flammability issues due to thermolysis of glycolate in CSTF, SRR tasked SRNL to quantify and mitigate glycolate returns via DWPF’s recycle stream. The development of a strategy for glycolic mitigation was initiated with a system’s engineering workshop. Various chemical and/or physical solutions for how and where to destroy glycolate were considered – consistent with DWPF’s operational capabilities and process requirements. The workshop identified chemical oxidation of glycolate within the DWPF Recycle Collection Tank (RCT) as the most promising option. (The RCT collects offgas condensate from pre-processing, vitrification, and other unit operations performed in DWPF and is the singular return vessel delivering recycle effluent back to CSTF.) A series of down-select experimental tests were performed that showed sodium permanganate was the most effective oxidant. This work was performed to identify an appropriate operational protocol for DWPF implementation. Building upon the downselect experiments, the work targeted an improved description of suitable RCT conditions prior to the strike (pH, etc.), permanganate addition rate, and destruction reaction kinetics. Data collected were also used to determine the best expression of reaction stoichiometry and the effective minimum permanganate addition required.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2023

Enhancing Entanglement: Non-Markovian and Floquet Reservoir Engineering in Many-Qubit Superconducting Quantum Circuits

This is an experimental and theoretical project to leverage dissipation engineering under non-Markovian settings in order to aid in the preparation and stabilization of large, non-trivial, entangled quantum states. This project is a collaborative effort between the Painter group at Caltech and the Clerk group at the University of Chicago. By utilization of superconducting qubits coupled to the metamaterial waveguide described in the proposal, we tackle this goal via two parallel thrusts: (i) non-Markovian dynamics of a superconducting qubit strongly coupled to a slow-light waveguide reservoir and generation of 2D cluster states and (ii) many-qubit waveguide circuit QED for studying quantum many-body physics. In addition to device development and testing, we are also developing theoretical methods for understanding physics in the deep non-Markovian regime and driven-dissipative protocols for preparing and stabilizing the quantum many-body states.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
NASA NTRS1990

Highball: A high speed, reserved-access, wide area network

A network architecture called Highball and a preliminary design for a prototype, wide-area data network designed to operate at speeds of 1 Gbps and beyond are described. It is intended for applications requiring high speed burst transmissions where some latency between requesting a transmission and granting the request can be anticipated and tolerated. Examples include real-time video and disk-disk transfers, national filestore access, remote sensing, and similar applications. The network nodes include an intelligent crossbar switch, but have no buffering capabilities; thus, data must be queued at the end nodes. There are no restrictions on the network topology, link speeds, or end-end protocols. The end system, nodes, and links can operate at any speed up to the limits imposed by the physical facilities. An overview of an initial design approach is presented and is intended as a benchmark upon which a detailed design can be developed. It describes the network architecture and proposed access protocols, as well as functional descriptions of the hardware and software components that could be used in a prototype implementation. It concludes with a discussion of additional issues to be resolved in continuing stages of this project.

Mills, David L.↗
NASA NTRS2001

Inductively-Coupled RF Powered O2 Plasma as a Sterilization Source

Low-temperature or cold plasmas have been shown to be effective for the sterilization of sensitive medical devices and electronic equipment. Low-temperature plasma sterilization procedures possess certain advantages over other protocols such as ethylene oxide, gamma radiation, and heat due to the use of inexpensive reagents, the insignificant environmental impacts and the low energy requirements. In addition, plasmas may also be more efficacious in the removal of robust microorganisms due to their higher chemical reactivity. Together, these attributes render cold plasma sterilization as ideal for the surface decontamination requirements for NASA Planetary Protection. Hence, the work described in this study involves the construction, characterization, and application of an inductively-coupled, RF powered oxygen (O2) plasma.

Sharma, S. P.↗
NASA NTRS2007

Using Virtual Observatory Services in Sky View

For over a decade Skyview has provided astronomers and the public with easy access to survey and imaging data from all wavelength regimes. SkyView has pioneered many of the concepts that underlie the Virtual Observatory. Recently SkyView has been released as a distributable package which uses VO protocols to access image and catalog services. This chapter describes how to use the Skyview as a local service and how to customize it to access additional VO services and local data.

McGlynn, Thomas A.↗
NASA NTRS2009

Implementations of Sensor Webs Utilizing Uninhabited Aerial Systems

In this paper we describe the web services, processes, communication protocols and ad-hoc service chains utilized in the late summer and early fall 2007 Ikhana UAS response to the wildfires burning in southern California. Additionally, we describe the lessons learned that will be applied to the upcoming Global Hawk UAS Aura Satellite Validation Experiment planned for early 2009.

Sullivan, Donald V.↗
DOE OSTI2019

Density functional theory based neural network force fields from energy decompositions

In order to develop force fields (FF) for molecular dynamics simulations that retain the accuracy of ab initio density functional theory (DFT), in this work we developed a machine learning protocol based on an energy decomposition scheme that extracts atomic energies from DFT calculations. Our DFT to FF (DFT2FF) approach provides almost hundreds of times more data for the DFT energies, which dramatically improves accuracy with less DFT calculations. In addition, we use piecewise cosine basis functions to systematically construct symmetry invariant features into the neural network model. We illustrate this DFT2FF approach for amorphous silicon where only 800 DFT configurations are sufficient to achieve an accuracy of 1 meV/atom for energy and 0.1 eV/A for forces. We then use the resulting FF model to calculate the thermal conductivity of amorphous Si based on long molecular dynamics simulations. The dramatic speedup in training in our DFT2FF protocol allows the adoption of a simulation paradigm where an accurate and problem specific FF for a given physics phenomenon is trained on-the-spot through a quick DFT precalculation and FF training.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2020

An effective survey method for studying volant species activity and behavior at tall structures

The effects of anthropogenic modification of air space on wildlife, particularly volant species, is not fully understood. Thus, it is essential to understand wildlife-interactions with tall structures to implement effective mitigation strategies. Yet, we are currently lacking standard protocols for visual surveys of wildlife behavior at such heights. Our study sought to determine an effective, repeatable method using readily available night vision and thermal technology to survey wildlife at tall structures. Using bats as the taxonomic group of interest, we (1) created a key to identify bats and their behavior, (2) compared the effectiveness of 2 different technologies, and (3) assessed optimal equipment placement to visually capture bat activity and behavior in proximity to wind turbine towers. For the latter, we tested thermal cameras at four distances from the base of the tower. The results of our study revealed that thermal cameras captured ∼34% more flying animals than night vision at a 2 m distance. However, due to the heat signature of the turbine towers themselves, it was challenging to identify behaviors and interactions that occurred in close proximity to the towers. In contrast, it was difficult to identify bats approaching the towers using night vision, yet we were able to clearly observe interactions with the towers themselves. With regards to equipment placement, we visually captured more bats with the thermal cameras placed 2 m from the tower base compared to farther distances. From our findings, we recommend that when using either thermal or night vision technology at tall structures, they be placed 2 m from the base to effectively observe interactions along the length of these structures. In addition, we further recommend that consideration be given to the use of these two technology types together to effectively conduct such surveys. If these survey techniques are incorporated into standard protocols, future surveys at a variety of tall structures are likely to become comparable and repeatable, thereby more effectively informing any mitigation strategies that may be required.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS2006

BAE Systems Radiation Hardened SpaceWire ASIC and Roadmap

An Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) that implements the SpaceWire protocol has been developed in a radiation hardened 0.25 micron CMOS, technology. This effort began in March 2003 as a joint development between the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) and BAE Systems. The BAE Systems SpaceWire ASlC is comprised entirely of reusable core elements, many of which are already flight-proven. It incorporates a 4-port SpaceWire router with two local ports, dual PC1 bus interfaces, a microcontroller, 32KB of internal memory, -and a memory controller for additional external memory use. The SpaceWire ASlC is planned for use on both the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites (GOES)-R and the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO). Engineering parts have already been delivered to both programs. This paper discusses the SpaceWire protocol and those elements of it that have been built into the current SpaceWire reusable core. There are features within the core that go beyond the current standard that can be enabled or disabled by the user and these will be described. The adaptation of SpaceWire to BAE Systems' On Chip Bus (OCB) for compatibility with the other reusable cores will be discussed. Optional configurations within user systems will be shown. The physical imp!ementation of the design will be described and test results from the hardware will be discussed. Finally, the BAE Systems roadmap for SpaceWire developments will be discussed, including some products already in design as well as longer term plans.

Berger, Richard↗
DOE OSTI2013

Glass Frit Clumping and Dusting

DWPF mixes a slurry of glass frit (Frit 418) and dilute (1.5 wt%) formic acid solution with high level waste in the Slurry Mix Evaporator (SME). There would be advantages to introducing the frit in a non-slurry form to minimize water addition to the SME, however, adding completely dry frit has the potential to generate dust which could clog filters or condensers. Prior testing with another type of frit, Frit 320, and using a minimal amount of water reduced dust generation, however, the formation of hard clumps was observed. To examine options and behavior, a TTQAP [McCabe and Stone, 2013] was written to initiate tests that would address these concerns. Tests were conducted with four types of glass frit; Frit 320, DWPF Frit 418, Bekeson Frit 418 and Multi-Aspirator Frit 418. The last two frits are chemically identical to DWPF Frit 418 but smaller particles were removed by the respective vendors. Test results on Frit Clumping and Dusting are provided in this report. This report addresses the following seven questions. Short answers are provided below with more detailed answers to follow. 1. Will the addition of a small amount of water, 1.5 wt%, to dry DWPF Frit 418 greatly reduce the dust generation during handling at DWPF? a. Yes, a small scale test showed that adding a little water to the frit greatly reduced dust generation during handling. 2. Will the addition of small amounts of water to the frit cause clumping that will impair frit handling at DWPF? a. No, not with Frit 418. Although clumps were observed to form when 1.5 wt% water was mixed with DWPF Frit 418, then compressed and air-dried overnight, the clumps were easily crushed and did not form the hardened material noted when Frit 320 was tested. 3. What is the measured size distribution of dust generated when dry frit is handled? (This affects the feasibility and choice of processing equipment for removing the dust generating fraction of the frit before it is added to the SME.) a. The size distribution for the dust removed from fresh DWPF Frit 418 while it was being shaken in a small scale LabRAM test was measured. The median size on a volume basis was 7.6 μm and 90% of the frit particles were between 1.6 and 28 μm. The mass of dust collected using this test protocol was much less than 1% of the original frit. 4. Can the dust be removed in a small number of processing steps and without the larger frit particles continuing to spall additional dust sized particles? a. Test results using a LabRAM were inconclusive. The LaRAM performs less efficient particle size separation than the equipment used by Bekeson and Multi-Aspirator. 5. What particle size of frit is expected to create a dust problem? a. The original criterion for creating a dusting problem was those particle sizes that were readily suspended when being shaken. For that criterion calculations and Microtrac size analyses indicated that particles smaller than 37 μm are likely dust generators. Subsequently a more sophisticated criterion for dust problem was considered, particle sizes that would become suspended in the air flow patterns inside the SME and possibly plug the condenser. That size may be larger than 37 μm but has not yet been determined. 6. If particles smaller than 37 μm are removed will bulk dust generation be eliminated? a. Video-taped tests were performed using three gallons each of three types of frit 418, DWPF frit, Bekeson frit and Multi-Aspirator frit. Frit was poured through air from a height of approximately eight feet into a container half filled with water. Pouring Bekeson frit or Multi-Aspirator frit generated markedly less visible dust, but there was still a significant amount, which still has the potential of causing a dust problem. 7. Can completely dry frit be poured into the SME without having dust plug the condenser at the top of the vessel? a. Because of the complexity of air currents inside the SME and the difficulty of defensible size scaling a more prototypical test will be required to answer this question. We recommend construction of a full scale mockup of the top half of the SME with a shallow basin of water at the bottom and a simulated condenser at the top. It could be made from simple materials such as PVC pipe, cardboard and clear plastic and tested with dry frit. Depending on results, this may need to be coupled with the proposed pneumatic transfer system.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2022

On the additivity of climate responses to the volcanic and solar forcing in the early 19th century

The early 19th century was the coldest period over the past 500 years, when strong tropical volcanic events and a solar minimum coincided. The 1809 unidentified eruption and the 1815 Tambora eruption happened consecutively during the Dalton minimum of solar irradiance; however, the relative role of the two forcing (volcano and solar) agents is still unclear. In this study, we examine the responses from a set of early 19th century simulations with combined and separated volcanic and solar forcing agents, as suggested in the protocol for the past1000 experiment of the Paleoclimate Modelling Intercomparison Project – Phase 4 (PMIP4). From 20-member ensemble simulations with the Max Planck Institute Earth system model (MPI-ESM1.2-LR), we find that the volcano- and solar-induced surface cooling is additive in the global mean/large scale, regardless of combining or separating the forcing agents. The two solar reconstructions (SATIRE (Spectral and Total Irradiance REconstruction-Millennia model) and PMOD (Physikalisch-Meteorologisches Observatorium Davos)) contribute to a cooling before and after 1815 of ~0.05 and ~0.15 K monthly average near-surface air cooling, respectively, indicating a limited solar contribution to the early 19th century cold period. The volcanic events provide the main cooling contributions, inducing a surface cooling that peaks at ~0.82 K for the 1809 event and ~1.35 K for Tambora. After the Tambora eruption, the temperature in most regions increases toward climatology largely within 5 years, along with the reduction of volcanic forcing. In the northern extratropical oceans, the temperature increases slowly at a constant rate until 1830, which is related to the reduction of seasonality and the concurrent changes in Arctic sea-ice extent. The albedo feedback of Arctic sea ice is found to be the main contributor to the Arctic amplification of the cooling signal. Several non-additive responses to solar and volcanic forcing happen on regional scales. In the atmosphere, the stratospheric polar vortex tends to strengthen when combining both volcano and solar forcing, even though the two forcing agents separately induce opposite-sign changes in stratospheric temperatures and zonal winds. In the ocean, when combining the two forcings, additional surface cold water propagates to the northern extratropics from the additional solar cooling in the tropics, which results in regional cooling along the propagation. Overall, this study not only quantifies the surface responses from combinations of the volcano and solar forcing, but also highlights the components that cannot be simply added from the responses of the individual forcing agents, indicating that a relatively small forcing agent (such as solar in early 19th century) can impact the response from the large forcing (such as the 1815 Tambora eruption) when considering regional climates.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2022

ETF Grout Expansion: Effects of Different Slags and Struvite Precipitation Protocols (Stirring Time)

The ETF ammonia tolerant grout waste form was developed by the Vitreous State Laboratory (VSL) to stabilize ammonium and thereby prevent emission of ammonia vapor during solidification of an ammonium-rich, concentrated sodium sulfate aqueous waste stream generated at the Hanford Effluent Treatment Facility (ETF). VSL personnel did not observe expansion in samples prepared during the waste form development work. However, Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) personnel detected expansion, in a few ETF grout samples, up to ~ 20 percent vertical expansion, while preforming work scope to evaluate the effect of ETF brine compositional ranges on the precipitation and solidification processes. The initial work requests can be found in Washington River Protection Services (WRPS) Statement of Work (SOW, Requisitions #: 339922 Revisions 0 and 1, March 11, 2021, and November 2021, respectively. As a result of the waste form expansion observed by SRNL, additional evaluation was requested by WRPS SOW Requisitions #: 356730 Revision 0 and Revision 1, February 1, 2022, and July 11, 2022, respectively. The goal of these requests was to determine whether differences in the slags and / or in sample preparation protocols used by VSL and SRNL were the cause of the expansion observed in the SRNL samples. G. Chen, WRPS, arranged a materials exchange between VSL and SRNL and coordinated the VSL protocol(s) for grouting and curing 1L batches of Base Case ETF base case simulant. Materials were exchanged between VSL and SRNL. Both laboratories performed the VSL struvite precipitation-solidification protocol and cured samples for at least 28 days. Differences in VSL and SRNL slag compositions, mineralogy and particle size results in themselves or combined were determined to not be the cause of the expansion because all samples expanded regardless of whether the VSL or SRNL slags were used. The fundamental cause of the observed expansion could not be attributed to minor variations in the following: 1) chemistry of the slag and other reagents, 2) container wall thickness, 3) ambient bench top curing conditions at VSL and SRNL, 4) pH adjustments to 7 ± a few tenths of unit, nor 5) stirring time between the precipitation and solidification process steps. Additional observations include: grout samples prepared with VSL slag expanded less than those prepared with the SRNL slag and, based on a very limited sample set, some samples stirred for longer times expanded less than those stirred for 20 minutes.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2019

Approach to pediatric renal tumors: an imaging review

Renal tumors comprise 7% of all childhood cancers. A wide variety of renal tumors can affect the pediatric kidneys, which can be broadly classified as primary benign tumors, primary malignant tumors, and metastatic lesions. This article aims to enumerate usual benign and malignant renal tumors that can occur in childhood and emphasizes the characteristic imaging appearances which aid in their differential diagnosis. Additionally, the leading role of the Radiologist in primary diagnosis of renal infiltration by hematological malignancies and contiguous invasion by neuroblastoma is also introduced and unraveled. Imaging protocol comprises initial Ultrasound evaluation with subsequent computed tomography (CT) and/or Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), all of which are invaluable in confirming the diagnosis, documenting the organ of origin, describing extent of local and distant spread. The complimentary role of nuclear medicine studies in delineating differential renal function, post-operative complications, and metastasis is also highlighted.

62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE↗
DOE OSTI2025

Strongly Correlated States of Transition Metal Spin Defects: The Case of an Iron Impurity in Aluminum Nitride

We investigate the electronic properties of an exemplar transition metal impurity in an insulator, with the goal of accurately describing strongly correlated defect states. Here, we consider iron in aluminum nitride, a material of interest for hybrid quantum technologies, and we carry out calculations with quantum embedding methods, density matrix embedding theory (DMET) and quantum defect embedding theory (QDET), and with spin-flip time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT). We show that both DMET and QDET accurately describe the ground state and low-lying excited states of the defect and that TDDFT yields photoluminescence spectra in agreement with experiments. In addition, we provide a detailed discussion of the convergence of our results as a function of the active space used in the embedding methods, thus defining a protocol to obtain converged data directly comparable with experiments.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2016

Designing of smart home automation system based on Raspberry Pi

Locally networked or remotely controlled home automation system becomes a popular paradigm because of the numerous advantages and is suitable for academic research. This paper proposes a method for an implementation of Raspberry Pi based home automation system presented with an android phone access interface. The power consumption profile across the connected load is measured accurately through programming. Users can access the graph of total power consumption with respect to time worldwide using their Dropbox account. An android application has been developed to channelize the monitoring and controlling operation of home appliances remotely. This application facilitates controlling of operating pins of Raspberry Pi by pressing the corresponding key for turning “on” and “off” of any desired appliance. Systems can range from the simple room lighting control to smart microcontroller based hybrid systems incorporating several other additional features. Smart home automation systems are being adopted to achieve flexibility, scalability, security in the sense of data protection through the cloud-based data storage protocol, reliability, energy efficiency, etc.

42 ENGINEERING↗