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At least 1,351 records · Page 75

Analysis of Venting of a Resin Slurry

A resin slurry venting analysis was conducted to address safety issues associated with over-pressurization of ion exchange columns used in the plutonium uranium redox extraction (PUREX) process at the U. S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Savannah River Site (SRS). If flow to these columns were inadvertently interrupted, an exothermic runaway reaction could occur between the ion exchange resin and the nitric acid used in the feed stream. The nitric acid-resin reaction generates significant quantities of noncondensable gases, which would pressurize the column. To prevent the column from rupturing during such events, rupture disks are installed on the column vent lines. The venting analysis models accelerating rate calorimeter (ARC) tests and data from tests that were performed in a vented test vessel with a rupture disk. The tests showed that the pressure inside the test vessel continued to increase after the rupture disk opened, though at a slower rate than prior to the rupture. The increase in the vessel pressure is modeled as a transient phenomenon associated with expansion of the resin slurry/gas mixture upon rupture of the disk. It is postulated that the maximum pressure at the end of this expansion is limited by energy minimization to approximately 1.5 times the rupture disk burst pressure. The magnitude of this pressure increase is consistent with the measured pressure transients. The results of this analysis demonstrate the need to allow for a margin between the design pressure and the rupture disk burst pressure in similar applications.

42 ENGINEERING↗

Production of Fischer-Tropsch Synfuels at Nuclear Plants

A case study analysis was performed to evaluate nuclear-powered synthetic fuel production in the midwestern United States (U.S.). A Fischer-Tropsch (FT) fuel synthesis plant design was used as the basis for the analysis. The FT plant design was configured to produce a product slate consisting of diesel fuel, jet fuel, and motor gasoline blend stocks from carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) and hydrogen (H 2 ) feedstocks. The CO 2 feedstock for the FT plant was assumed to be sourced from biorefineries in the region around a Midwest light water reactor (LWR) nuclear power plant (NPP). The analysis specifies that power from the LWR is used to produce H 2 via high-temperature steam electrolysis and to operate the FT synfuel production plant. Capital costs were estimated for the FT plant while capital costs for the electrolysis plant were based on previous Idaho National Laboratory (INL) studies. In addition to labor and maintenance costs for the FT and electrolysis plants, operating costs also include the costs for CO 2 feedstock transport. An analysis was performed to determine the cost of transporting CO 2 from the distributed biorefinery sources to the centralized fuel synthesis plant as a function of the synfuel plant capacity and corresponding CO 2 demand. The primary revenue streams are associated with sales of the synthetic fuel products. The synthetic fuel products will likely follow the same market trends as the conventional fuel products. The synfuel price data was thus based on projections made by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2021 Annual Energy Outlook (AEO) for conventional fuel products minus federal and state taxes, as well as marketing and distribution costs. The economic analysis also considered cases that included and excluded revenues from the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) clean hydrogen production tax credit (PTC) of $\$ $3.00/kg for the first ten years of operation. The economic analysis calculated the net present value (NPV) for cases involving steady-state synfuel production for comparison with the NPV for a business-as-usual case in which NPP continues to sell only electric power to the grid. A synfuel production “Reference Case” was considered in addition to sensitivity cases in which the plant capacity, electricity price, and synthetic fuel product prices were perturbed. The synfuel production Reference Case considered a scenario in which the electrolysis and synfuel plants utilized a combined electrical load of 1000 megawatt electrical (MWe) from the LWR with the balance of the LWR power output being sold to the electric grid. The economic analysis suggests that the synfuel production Reference Case evaluated in this analysis would lead to considerable economic potential for near-term deployment of a nuclear-based synfuel production plant. Specifically, the economic analysis suggests that the deployment of a 1000 megawatt (MW) nuclear-powered synfuel plant could result in a NPV increase of approximately $\$ $1.7 billion for a case with no clean synfuel price premium relative to conventional petroleum fuels when accounting for the additional revenues from the 2022 IRA clean hydrogen PTCs of $\$ $3/kg. Sensitivity analysis was performed to evaluate the effect of perturbation of selected model input parameters on the NPV for the synfuel production Reference Case. The sensitivity analysis indicates that the plant capacity has the largest impact on the differential NPV, with a smaller synfuel production capacity resulting in a decrease in revenue when a larger fraction of the power from the NPP is sold to the grid and a smaller fraction of the power is used to produce synthetic fuel products. The synfuel product pricing has the next largest impact on the differential NPV, with lower synfuel prices resulting in decreased NPV from decreased synfuel sales revenue while higher synfuel prices result in increased NPV from increased synfuel sales revenue. Electricity pricing has a smaller effect on the NPV than the fuel sales price since, in the Reference Case, most of the energy from the NPP is used for synfuel production and a smaller amount of the system revenues are associated with electrical power sales. However, the electricity price sensitivity does indicate that the Synfuel Integrated Energy System (IES) would have a greater NPV than the business-as-usual case (e.g., grid power sales only) when electricity market prices are low, suggesting that synfuel production could provide a strategy for decreasing the economic risks to NPPs posed by a loss of revenues attributed to falling electricity market prices.

10 SYNTHETIC FUELS↗

NPP ATMS Snowfall Rate Product

Passive microwave measurements at certain high frequencies are sensitive to the scattering effect of snow particles and can be utilized to retrieve snowfall properties. Some of the microwave sensors with snowfall sensitive channels are Advanced Microwave Sounding Unit (AMSU), Microwave Humidity Sounder (MHS) and Advance Technology Microwave Sounder (ATMS). ATMS is the follow‐on sensor to AMSU and MHS. Currently, an AMSU and MHS based land snowfall rate (SFR) product is running operationally at NOAA/NESDIS. Based on the AMSU/MHS SFR, an ATMS SFR algorithm has been developed recently. The algorithm performs retrieval in three steps: snowfall detection, retrieval of cloud properties, and estimation of snow particle terminal velocity and snowfall rate. The snowfall detection component utilizes principal component analysis and a logistic regression model. The model employs a combination of temperature and water vapor sounding channels to detect the scattering signal from falling snow and derive the probability of snowfall (Kongoli et al., 2015). In addition, a set of NWP model based filters is also employed to improve the accuracy of snowfall detection. Cloud properties are retrieved using an inversion method with an iteration algorithm and a two‐stream radiative transfer model (Yan et al., 2008). A method developed by Heymsfield and Westbrook (2010) is adopted to calculate snow particle terminal velocity. Finally, snowfall rate is computed by numerically solving a complex integral. NCEP CMORPH analysis has shown that integration of ATMS SFR has improved the performance of CMORPH‐Snow. The ATMS SFR product is also being assessed at several NWS Weather Forecast Offices for its usefulness in weather forecast.

Forecasting↗

Mapping Rare Earths and Toxics in E-Waste via Hyperspectral Imaging and Machine Learning

Electronic waste (e-waste) presents a mounting challenge to environmental sustainability due to its complex composition, which includes high-value rare earth elements, hazardous organic compounds, and non-recyclable plastics. Accurate and scalable material classification is essential for enabling efficient resource recovery and safe recycling practices. This study introduces a confidence-aware classification pipeline that combines mid-infrared hyperspectral imaging (HSI), spectral angle mapping (SAM), and iterative machine learning to perform pixel-level material identification across e-waste devices. A curated spectral library encompassing artificial materials (e.g., plastic iron oxide, galvanized metals), minerals (e.g., allanite, hematite), and organic compounds (e.g., benzanthracene, toluene) was used to generate pseudo-labels, each assigned a confidence score based on SAM-derived spectral similarity. High-confidence samples from seven consumer electronics—digital cameras, keyboards, laptop fans, modems, motherboards, TV remotes, and speakers—were iteratively expanded and classified using models such as Support Vector Machine (SVM), Random Forest, Gradient Boosting Classifier, Partial Least Squares Discriminant Analysis (PLSDA) and Logistic Regression. The best-performing classifiers achieved macro F1 scores approaching 1.0. Results revealed widespread plastic content (dominated by plastic iron oxide), the presence of rare earth-bearing minerals like cerium-containing allanite, and pervasive detection of hazardous organics such as benzanthracene. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) visualizations and confusion matrices confirmed high separability and robust classification performance. This methodology enables precise, non-destructive, and scalable classification of heterogeneous e-waste streams. It supports automated, hazard-aware sorting in recycling workflows, facilitating selective recovery of critical materials and compliance with circular economy goals. The confidence-aware framework provides a foundation for real-time deployment in industrial settings, offering significant implications for smart e-recycling infrastructure and policy-driven material stewardship.

Circular economy↗

Process for Conducting a Cost Benefit Analysis for New Radiation Portal Monitors

The Domestic Nuclear Detection Office (DNDO) has deployed over 1,400 radiation portal monitors (RPMs) around the United States to enhance border security. DNDO is now considering deployment of a newer generation of RPMs, intended to have equal or better sensitivity but a considerably lower nuisance alarm rate due to Naturally Occurring Radioactive Material (NORM) that is common in the stream of commerce. If the nuisance alarm rate is sufficiently reduced at a site, US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) may be able to reduce the staffing necessary to respond to nuisance alarms generated by the RPMs. This document provides an overview of some possible processes for conducting a cost benefit analysis to place a reliable dollar amount on the value of these new systems. While there is no hard and fast guide for conducting a cost benefit analysis, an austere method is provided for quick estimating. Two robust methods are also provided, one taking guidance from an Office of Management and Budget circular and the other from the Government Accountability Office.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗

SUPRATHERMAL ELECTRON STRAHL WIDTHS IN THE PRESENCE OF NARROW-BAND WHISTLER WAVES IN THE SOLAR WIND

We perform the first statistical study of the effects of the interaction of suprathermal electrons with narrow-band whistler mode waves in the solar wind (SW). We show that this interaction does occur and that it is associated with enhanced widths of the so-called strahl component. The latter is directed along the interplanetary magnetic field away from the Sun. We do the study by comparing the strahl pitch angle widths in the SW at 1 AU in the absence of large scale discontinuities and transient structures, such as interplanetary shocks, interplanetary coronal mass ejections, stream interaction regions, etc. during times when the whistler mode waves were present and when they were absent. This is done by using the data from two Cluster instruments: Spatio Temporal Analysis of Field Fluctuations experiment (STAFF) data in the frequency range between ∼0.1 and ∼200 Hz were used for determining the wave properties and Plasma Electron And Current Experiment (PEACE) data sets at 12 central energies between ∼57 eV (equivalent to ∼10 typical electron thermal energies in the SW, E{sub T}) and ∼676 eV (∼113 E{sub T}) for pitch angle measurements. Statistical analysis shows that, during the intervals with the whistler waves, the strahl component on average exhibits pitch angle widths between 2° and 12° larger than during the intervals when these waves are not present. The largest difference is obtained for the electron central energy of ∼344 eV (∼57 ET).

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Analysis of penetration and mixing of gas jets in supersonic cross flow

The JETPEN analysis for gas jets in a supersonic cross flow developed earlier at APL/JHU has been extended in several important ways. First, the treatment of cases with injection at angles other than 90 deg has been redone. Next, the second of the three regions formerly treated has been eliminated. Third, the region downstream of the Mach disk for underexpanded cases has been reformulated such that turbulent entrainment of main stream fluid into the plume is modeled, and the equations of motion are solved marching downstream. These changes now permit prediction of the variation in composition, mixing area growth and all other flow variables along the plume. The analysis has been verified by comparison of predictions and experiment over a wide range of conditions. The result is an analysis capable of reliable predictions of the major flowfield variables that can be run on a PC.

Billig, F. S.↗

Streams, cascades, and pools: various water cluster motifs in structurally similar Ni(ii) complexes

Hydrogen bonding (HB) interactions are well known to impact the properties of water in the bulk and within hydrated materials. A series of Ni(II) complexes based on chelates containing N-(2-aminoethyl)-1-methylimidazole-2-carboxamide have been synthesized and fully characterized by single crystal X-ray diffraction, spectroscopic methods, and thermal analysis. The complexes reveal a variety of water cluster motifs dependent on the packing arrangement in the solid state. A key feature is the orientation of the carboxamide moiety, which leads to the formation of void spaces that accommodate water through HB interactions. The water motifs contain 1D water chains (streams), 2D tapes of infused rings (cascades), and isolated water dimers (pools). The HB motifs in the hydrated structures vary as a function of the crystal packing of the host molecules. Thermal analyses show a correlation between the HB motif in the hydrated crystals and the temperature range of the dehydration process. The conductivity of the hydrated crystals varies as a function of the crystal packing interactions between metal complexes.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

An analysis of the flow field near the fuel injection location in a gas core reactor.

An analytical study is presented which shows the effects of large energy release and the concurrent high acceleration of inner stream fluid on the coaxial flow field in a gas core reactor. The governing equations include the assumptions of only radial radiative transport of energy represented as an energy diffusion term in the Euler equations. The method of integral relations is used to obtain the numerical solution. Results show that the rapidly accelerating, heat generating inner stream actually shrinks in radius as it expands axially.

Weinstein, H.↗

Low pressure gas flow analysis through an effusive inlet using mass spectrometry

A mass spectrometric method for analyzing flow past and through an effusive inlet designed for use on the tethered satellite and other entering vehicles is discussed. Source stream concentrations of species in a gaseous mixture are determined using a calibration of measured mass spectral intensities versus source stream pressure for standard gas mixtures and pure gases. Concentrations are shown to be accurate within experimental error. Theoretical explanations for observed mass discrimination effects as they relate to the various flow situations in the effusive inlet and the experimental apparatus are discussed.

Brown, David R.↗

Managing Multi-Instrument Data Streams in Secure Environments

The capture and curation of all primary instrument data is a potentially valuable source of added insight into experiments or diagnostics in laboratory experiments. The data can, when properly curated, enable analysis beyond the current practice that uses just a subset of the as-measured data. Complete curated data can also be input for machine learning and other data exploration tools. Conveniently storing and accessing instrument data requires that the instruments are connected to databases and users through a networking infrastructure. This infrastructure needs to accommodate a wide array of instruments which can range from single laboratory mounted probes for environment monitoring to computers managing multiple instruments. These resources may also include mobile devices on which researchers record instrument and experiment state related notes. These varied data sources bring with them the challenges of different communications capabilities and protocols as well as the primary data typically being produced in proprietary formats. These challenges are further compounded when the instruments need to operate in secure environments such as required in national laboratories. We will discuss the SmartLab, an ongoing effort to set up a system for instrument and simulation data curation at NASA Langley Research Center. We will outline the challenges faced in managing the data sources required for ongoing research activities and the solutions that are being considered and implemented to address those challenges.

instrument data management↗

Xrootd monitoring for the CMS experiment

During spring and summer of 2011, CMS deployed Xrootd-based access for all US T1 and T2 sites. This allows for remote access to all experiment data on disk in the US. It is used for user analysis, visualization, running of jobs at computing sites when data is not available at local sites, and as a fail-over mechanism for data access in jobs. Monitoring of this Xrootd infrastructure is implemented on three levels. Basic service and data availability checks are performed by Nagios probes. The second level uses Xrootd's summary data stream, this data is aggregated from all sites and fed into a MonALISA service providing visualization and storage. The third level uses Xrootd's detailed monitoring stream, which includes detailed information about users, opened files and individual data transfers. A custom application was developed to process this information. It currently provides a real-time view of the system usage and can store data into ROOT files for detailed analysis. Detailed monitoring allows us to determine dataset popularity and to detect abuses of the system, including sub-optimal usage of the Xrootd protocol and the ROOT prefetching mechanism.

Bauerdick, L. A.T.↗

Uncertainty Analysis of the GeoNEX Top-of-Atmospheric Reflectance Products Generated from the Third-Generation Geostationary Satellite Sensors

The GeoNEX (Geostationary-NASA Earth eXchange) Level-1G products consist of top-of-atmosphere (TOA) bi-directional reflectance factor (BRF) and brightness temperature generated with data streams from the latest geostationary (GEO) sensors including GOES-16/17 ABI, Himawari-8/9 AHI, and GK-2A AMI on a global tiled common grid (60oN-60o and 180oW-180oE) in geographic coordinates. With their 16 spectral bands, 0.01o/0.02o nadir spatial resolution, and 10-minute temporal resolutions, these products provide exciting opportunity to monitor Earth surface processes. However, the unique Sun-Target-Satellite geometry of geostationary sensors demands special attention in analyzing/interpreting these datasets. In this study we present a systematic analysis on the relationship between the radiometric uncertainties of the GeoNEX TOA reflectance and the corresponding solar/satellite zenith angles. We show that the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the BRF are positively proportional to the square roots of the cosine of solar illuminating zenith angles. That is, the BRF data are noisier earlier in the morning or later in the afternoon than in the mid of the day. The cosine of satellite viewing zenith angles do not directly influence the SNR of the TOA BRF. However, they positively regulate the relative importance of the surface component in the TOA BRF. This means that variations in surface reflectance are more difficult to detect for pixels with larger view zenith angles, even when the SNR of the TOA BRF is the same. We are developing metrics to specify such illumination-view geometry related uncertainties in the GeoNEX L1G TOA BRF products so that this key information can be easily accessed by the user community.

Geostationary satellite↗

Analysis of Return and Forward Links from STARS' Flight Demonstration 1

Space-based Telemetry And Range Safety (STARS) is a Kennedy Space Center (KSC) led proof-of-concept demonstration, which utilizes NASA's space network of Tracking and Data Relay Satellites (TDRS) as a pathway for launch and mission related information streams. Flight Demonstration 1 concluded on July 15,2003 with the seventh flight of a Low Power Transmitter (LPT) a Command and Data Handler (C&DH), a twelve channel GPS receiver and associated power supplies and amplifiers. The equipment flew on NASA's F-I5 aircraft at the Dryden Flight Research Center located at Edwards Air Force Base in California. During this NASA-ASEE Faculty Fellowship, the author participated in the collection and analysis of data from the seven flights comprising Flight Demonstration 1. Specifically, the author examined the forward and return links bit energy E(sub B) (in Watt-seconds) divided by the ambient radio frequency noise N(sub 0) (in Watts / Hertz). E(sub b)/N(sub 0) is commonly thought of as a signal-to-noise parameter, which characterizes a particular received radio frequency (RF) link. Outputs from the data analysis include the construction of time lines for all flights, production of graphs of range safety values for all seven flights, histograms of range safety E(sub b)/N(sub 0) values in five dB increments, calculation of associated averages and standard deviations, production of graphs of range user E(sub b)/N(sub 0) values for the all flights, production of graphs of AGC's and E(sub b)/N(sub 0) estimates for flight 1, recorded onboard, transmitted directly to the launch head and transmitted through TDRS. The data and graphs are being used to draw conclusions related to a lower than expected signal strength seen in the range safety return link.

Gering, James A.↗

Lift hysteresis at stall as an unsteady boundary-layer phenomenon

Analysis of rotating stall of compressor blade rows requires specification of a dynamic lift curve for the airfoil section at or near stall, presumably including the effect of lift hysteresis. Consideration of the magnus lift of a rotating cylinder suggests performing an unsteady boundary-layer calculation to find the movement of the separation points of an airfoil fixed in a stream of variable incidence. The consideration of the shedding of vorticity into the wake should yield an estimate of lift increment proportional to time rate of change of angle of attack. This increment is the amplitude of the hysteresis loop. An approximate analysis is carried out according to the foregoing ideas for a 6:1 elliptic airfoil at the angle of attack for maximum lift. The assumptions of small perturbations from maximum lift are made, permitting neglect of distributed vorticity in the wake. The calculated hysteresis loop is counterclockwise. Finally, a discussion of the forms of hysteresis loops is presented; and, for small reduced frequency of oscillation, it is concluded that the concept of a viscous "time lag" is appropriate only for harmonic variations of angle of attack with time at mean conditions other than maximum lift.

Moore, Franklin K↗

Structure and evolution of compound streams at not greater than 1 AU

Two cases of compound stream formation and evolution at heliocentric distances of not greater than 1 AU have been studied using simultaneous data from both multipoint in situ and global sources. The sequences of events analyzed occurred around December 16, 1978, and February 19, 1979, respectively. The sources of the multipoint observations were Helios A, Helios B, IMP 8, and ISEE 3. The global observations were obtained by interplanetary scintillation analysis of radio sources. It was found that the radio and in situ data complemented each other and that both were needed for a unique interpretation of complex, time-dependent flows. The cases studied show that a single corotating stream can interact with different transient flows at different times, and a single transient flow can interact with different corotating streams at different times. In each instance, a compound stream is formed. This work further shows that the cosmic ray intensity at a point depends on the global compound stream configuration in the vicinity of the point.

Burlaga, L. F.↗

Design of a low-cost, compact SRF accelerator for flue gas and wastewater treatment

Funding is being requested pursuant to a proposal that was submitted and reviewed through the Portfolio Analysis and Management System (PAMS). PAMS Proposal ID: 222439. The proposed project consists of the design of a novel superconducting continuous-wave accelerator capable of providing a beam current of ~1 A at an energy of 1-2 MeV for the treatment of flue gases and wastewater streams. The novel approach consists on studying the feasibility of using a single-cell Nb cavity coated with a thin Nb3Sn layer of the inner surface and conductively cooled by to 4.2 K by cryocoolers inside a compact cryomodule. The proposed study will include beam transport simulations, thermal and mechanical engineering analysis of the cryomodule and a cost analysis for both the fabrications costs and the operational and maintenance costs of such accelerator. The outcome of the project will be a report summarizing the analysis and results from the design study.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗

On numerical errors to the fields surrounding a relativistically moving particle in PIC codes

The particle-in-cell (PIC) method is widely used to model the self-consistent interaction between discrete particles and electromagnetic fields. It has been successfully applied to problems across plasma physics including plasma based acceleration, inertial confinement fusion, magnetically confined fusion, space physics, astrophysics, high energy density plasmas. In many cases the physics involves how relativistic particles (those with high relativistic γ factors) are generated and interact with plasmas. However, when relativistic particles stream across the grid, both in “vacuum” and in plasma, many numerical issues may arise which can lead to unphysical results. We present a detailed analysis of how discretized Maxwell solvers used in PIC codes can lead to numerical errors to the fields that surround particles that move at relativistic speeds across the grid. Expressions for the axial electric field as integrals in k space are presented that reveal two types of errors. The first arises from errors to the numerator of the integrand and leads to unphysical fields that are antisymmetric about the particle. Furthermore, the second arises from errors to the denominator of the integrand and lead to Cherenkov like radiation in “vacuum”. These fields are not anti-symmetric, extend behind the particle, and cause the particle to accelerate or decelerate depending on the solver and parameters. The unphysical fields are studied in detail for two representative solvers - the Yee solver and the FFT based solver. Although the Cherenkov fields are absent, the space charge fields are still present in the fundamental Brillouin zone for the FFT based solvers. In addition, the Cherenkov fields are present in higher order zones for the FFT based solvers. Comparison between the analytical solutions and PIC simulation results are presented. A solution for eliminating these unphysical fields by modifying the k operator in the axial direction is also presented. Using a customized finite difference solver, this solution was successfully implemented into OSIRIS [1]. Results from the customized solver are also presented. Additionally, this solution will be useful for a beam of particles that all move in one direction with a small angular divergence.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗