Science.gov (United States)

The change in the energy flow on land used for brown coal mining is examined. Terrain mapping was used to obtain land use data for a 14 km{sup 2} mining area and its surroundings. The focus is on the proportion of incident solar energy that is changed to latent heat during evapotranspiration. Each land use unit was assigned an average value for evapotranspiration for the growing season. Satellite data of surface temperature and surface wetness values show incident radiation converted to heat. Relationships between evapotranspiration and surface temperature and between wetness index and evapotranspiration were verified. The results confirm the hypothesis that changes in land use can have a significant effect on total average evapotranspiration. 18 refs., 5 figs., 3 tabs.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The terrestrial biosphere can significantly affect the exchange of water and energy at the biosphere-atmosphere interface. Additionally, the land cover type can affect regional atmospheric chemistry and climate via biogenic volatile organic carbon (VOC) emissions and their formation of secondary organic aerosols. The broad goal of this study is to investigate the impact of land cover and vegetation changes on these specific chemistry and climate effects. The Common Land Model (CLM) is used to parameterize the biosphere-atmosphere interface over the Shanghai region in China. Phase 1 of this study, described in this report, generates input parameters for this model based on a time series of actual and derived parameters. Atmospheric forcing data are generated on an hourly temporal resolution based on a 20-year series of monthly and daily averages. Surface data, including ...

Science.gov (United States)

Surface temperature is measured with an infrared thermometer. Measuring Surface Temperature. Nine sample points are selected with a site of uniform land ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The Argonne Boundary Layer Experiments (ABLE) facility, located in south central Kansas, east of Wichita, is devoted primarily to investigations of and within the planetary boundary layer (PBL), including the dynamics of the mixed layer during both day and night; effects of varying land use and land form; the interactive role of precipitation, runoff, and soil moisture; storm development; and energy budgets on scales of 10 to 100 km. Located entirely within the Walnut River watershed, ABLE provides intense measurements within the northeast quadrant (Fig. 1) of the Southern Great Plains (SGP) Cloud and Radiation Testbed (CART) of the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Program (Stokes and Schwarz, 1994). By combining the continuous measurements of ABLE with ancillary continuous measurements of, for example, the ARM and the Global Energy Water cycle Experiment (GEWEX) (Kinster and Shukla, 1990) ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The impact of surface mining for coal on the nature and extent of freshwater wetlands was assessed on 73,200 ha in western Pennsylvania. The influence of mining on wetlands was not uniform across physiographic regions, varying with regional differences in hydrology and soils. Overall, mined lands supported 18% more palustrine wetlands, than unmined lands, primarily because of a 270% gain in permanent, open-water wetlands on mined lands in the glaciated region. Open-water wetlands declined on mined lands in unglaciated regions owing to unfavorable hydrologic conditions. The number and size of emergent wetlands declined as a result of mining. Mined lands supported 81% fewer riverine wetlands than unmined lands. This was caused primarily by avoidance of lands containing streams, and secondarily by a 10% reduction in ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

This paper presents the directional dependence of surface scaling parameters namely roughness length and corresponding friction velocity, for neutral category of Tarapur coastal site. The average roughness length of lowest value of 0.07 m (SW) and the highest value of 0.32 m (E) and average friction velocity of lowest value 1.6 m/sec(SSE) and a highest value 2.8 m/sec (SW) for the year 2006 were observed. Wind profile studies for the coastal site Tarapur with the wind data measured from meteorological tower of 30m which is at 1500m downwind fetch distance from the coastal line in the east direction gave the wind profile index parameter 'p' as 0.4, 0.5 and 0.75 for Unstable, Neutral and Stable weather conditions respectively. Sector Average Turbulent kinetic energy estimated as 17.7m2/s2 and its dissipation rate is 3.1 m2/s3 for the 10m elevation from the surface. A surface drag coefficient CD for the ...

Science.gov (United States)

Programs & Services Technical Resources Land Use Soils Water Snow Survey & Water Supply Water Management Water Quality Watersheds Wetlands Air Plants & Animals Energy Climate...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The twenty-three papers presented at this conference discussed requirements of land reclamation under the Federal surface mining regulations, evaluation techniques for assessing reclaimed land, spoil bank chemistry and its change with time, establishment techniques (vegetative propagation, containerized seedlings, nurse vegetation, nitrogen-fixing tree species, direct seeding, and general cultivation techniques), and results from early land reclamation trials. Twenty-two papers have been abstracted separately. 291 references, 16 figures, 80 tables.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

As part of a larger elastic numerical modeling project, we have been investigating how energy reflected from steeply dipping interfaces is recorded using typical multicomponent acquisition geometries. Specifically, we have been interpreting how rcflection events from the flanks of salt dome structures are distributed on 3C and 4C phones for vertical seismic profiles (VSPs) and ocean bottom seismic (OBS) or land surface surveys. The ultimate goal of this investigation is to improve the structural imaging of steeply dipping interfaces and eventually to evaluate the usc of the recorded elastic wavefield for fluid description near these interfaces. In the current work, we focus on a common assumption used when processing converted wave reflection seismic data that most PP energy is recorded on the vertical geophone and/or the hydrophone and that most PS energy is recorded on the ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Foreward: Preface; Introduction; The natural science of global climate change; Land and water use; Coastal zones and oceans; Energy and industry; Energy and social systems; Technological change; and Sponsoring organizations, International Advisory Board, and project participants.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

This report is submitted to Congress by the Secretary of the Air Force, the Secretary of the Navy, and the Secretary of the Interior pursuant to Section 6 of the Military Lands Withdrawal Act of 1986. It contains an analysis and evaluation of the effects on public health and safety resulting from DOD and Department of Energy (DOE) military and defense-related uses on withdrawn public lands in the State of Nevada and in airspace overlying the State. This report describes the cumulative impacts of those activities on public and private property in Nevada and on plants, fish and wildlife, cultural, historic, scientific, recreational, wilderness and other resources of the public lands of Nevada. An analysis and evaluation of possible measures to mitigate the cumulative effects of the withdrawal of lands and the use of airspace in Nevada for defense-related purposes was conducted, and ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

This BCRS project demonstrates the use of SAR interferometry for measuring and monitoring land subsidence caused by underground coal fires and underground mining in a remote area of north west China. China is the largest producer and consumer of coal in the world. Throughout the N.W., N. and N.E. of China, the coal-seams are very susceptible to spontaneous combustion, causing underground coal fires. As the thick coal seams are burned out, the overburden collapses, causing land subsidence, and producing new cracks and fissures, which allow more air to penetrate and continue the fire to spread. SAR interferometry, especially differential interferometry has been shown to be able to measure small differences in surface height caused by such land subsidence. This report describes the problems, the test area, the procedures and techniques used and the results obtained. It concludes with a description of some ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

This poster presentation dealt with a brief overview of the practices in effect in British Columbia related to metal leaching and acid mine drainage. The metals mined in the province include coal, gold, silver, copper, molybdenum, lead, and zinc. Some mines operate under the surface, while others are strip mines, etc. under a variety of climactic conditions and a host of different mining companies, such as Cominco, Placer Dome and Noranda. The primary objective is the prevention of negative environmental impacts on land and in the water. Salmon and other fish need to be protected. A secondary objective is the minimization of impacts on the biota, which requires a detailed study of ecological risks. The solution often lies in soil covering. To illustrate, the author described the situation at Huckleberry Mines Ltd. and the remedial action that was implemented, and discussed the results on the beavers. In conclusion, the author discussed the ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

No abstract prepared.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Assessing the potential environmental and human effects of deploying renewable energy on private and public lands, along our coasts, on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS), and in the Great Lakes requires a new way of evaluating potential environmental and human impacts. The author argues that deployment of renewables requires a framework risk paradigm that underpins effective future siting decisions and public policies.

Science.gov (United States)

Information about surface soil moisture conditions is of critical importance to real-world applications such as agricultural production, water resource management, flood prediction, fire prediction, water supply, military mobility, etc.. Near-surface soil moisture is currently available from non-ideal sensor configuration observations, and two missions targeted at measuring near-surface soil moisture with ideal sensor configuration are expected before the end of the decade (the European Space Agency (ESA), Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) mission, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Hydrospheric states "Hydros" mission). Though remote sensing can make spatially comprehensive measurements of surface soil moisture, it cannot provide information on the entire land surface hydrologic system, and the measurements represent only a ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Background, aim, and scope Soil as a landscape body contains wide ranges of physical, chemical, morphological, and mineralogical properties, both laterally and vertically. Soils with similar properties and environments are expected to behave similarly. A statement on land use potential will depend in part on the precision and accuracy of the statements that can be made about the soils. This information has some practical applications in optimizing land management and productivity improvement. The spatial patterns and dependence of some selected physicochemical properties of brackish marsh and surrounding soils were investigated using a 2-D kriging analysis in conjunction with a geostatistical (GS+, Michigan) model. Materials and methods Composite (four subsamples) surface samples (0?20?cm)...

CERN Document Server

Land snails move via adhesive locomotion. Through muscular contraction and expansion of their foot, they transmit waves of shear stress through a thin layer of mucus onto a solid substrate. Since a free surface cannot support shear stress, adhesive locomotion is not a viable propulsion mechanism for water snails that travel inverted beneath the free surface. Nevertheless, the motion of the freshwater snail, Sorbeoconcha physidae, is reminiscent of that of its terrestrial counterparts, being generated by the undulation of the snail foot that is separated from the free surface by a thin layer of mucus. Here, a lubrication model is used to describe the mucus flow in the limit of small amplitude interfacial deformations. By assuming the shape of the snail foot to be a traveling sine wave and the mucus to be Newtonian, an evolution equation for the interface shape is obtained and the resulting propulsive ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A solution based on sludge and Olive oil mill effluent (OME) co-digestion, coupled with a management plan, has been implemented, to treat and dispose safely, the mixed residues, into the natural forest and agricultural land. The mixture of up to 25% OME to the sludge improved anaerobic degradation of phenols and fats. High density fat compounds, present in OME, enhanced aggregation, settling and acetoclastic activity of anaerobic sludge. The full scale unit, obtained by modification of a cold digester, allowed to set-up a low capital cost system. The system produced large quantity of biogas and electric energy. Anaerobic degradation of the mixture improved fertilizing properties, making feasible land application of the digested mixture. Regional plan based in Geographical Information System (GIS) selected 800 ha of adequate land area for application near the WWTP. The experience is technically and ...

Science.gov (United States)

The Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs issued the report on a bill to establish a national program for research, development, and demonstration in fuels and energy and for the coordination and financial supplementation of Federal energy research and development; to establish development corporations to demonstrate technologies for shale oil development, advanced power cycle development, geothermal steam development, and coal liquefaction and gasification development; to authorize and direct the Secretary of the Interior to make mineral resources of the public lands available for the development conporations. Comments from governmental agencies on the bill are published. (MCW)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The Danish Ministry of Transportation has prepared a national plan of transportation, for the years until 2005. Official policy concerning land, maritime and air transport, personal and cargo transportation, investments and expenditures is outlined. Environmental impacts of energy consumption and air pollution abatement measures are considered. (EG)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

This book contains the Proceedings of the Conference on Climate and Water under the following groupings: Impacts of climatic variability and change-resulting from the changes in hydrological variables; Aquatic environment; Terrestrial environment; Coastal zones and navigation; Urban and industrial water supply and drainage; Energy production; Intropogenic changes of climate and water management problems; Flood potential; Irrigation and land drainage.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The paper presents experimental investigations of main features of plasma surface interaction and energy transfer to the material surface in dependence on plasma heat loads. The experiments were performed with QSPA repetitive plasma pulses of the duration of 0.25 ms and the energy density up to 2.5 MJ/m2. Surface morphology of the targets exposed to QSPA plasma screams is analyzed. Relative contribution of the Lorentz force and plasma pressure gradient to the resulting surface profile is discussed. development of cracking on the tungsten surface and swelling of the surface are found to be in strong dependence on initial temperature of the target.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The grey-black mudstones of the Sonehat Formation form part of the Middle Jurassic fill of the Jameson Land Basin in East Greenland. The formation is exposed in the southernmost part of the north south-trending, Mesozoic rift system in East Greenland that was part of the epeiric seaway betaveen East Greenland and Norway. Sedimentological observations of the Sortehat Formation indicate deposition in an offshore marine setting that was typically low energy and periodically oxygen-deficient but was influenced by storm currents on occasion. Detailed palynological studies of the Sortehat Formation have resulted in the definition of theee palynological assemblage zones recognised at four localities, namely Enhjoerningen Dal and Pelion (north Jameson Land), the type section at Sortehat (central Jameson Land) and Albuen at Neill Klinter along Hurry Inlet (south-east Jameson Land). In ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A brief review and assessment of field measurement programs that provide data for mixed layer diffusion research is presented. The majority of programs emphasize either the meteorological aspects of the mixed layer or plume characterization. Few programs are available that provide the complimentary blend of plume and appropriate meteorological measurements needed to adequately validate mixed layer diffusion theory. Three major U.S. EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) field programs that provide data bases for model development and validation of mixed layer diffusion processes are described and discussed in more detail. The Regional Air Pollution Study (RAPS) focused on measurements of surface and mixed layer turbulent transport processes in the urban environment. The Tennessee Plume Study (TPS) obtained a database with coincident measurement of boundary layer turbulent structure and plume dispersion for a large coal-fired power plant in nonuniform terrain over ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Potential maximum radiation dose rates were calculated for the former Alba Craft Laboratory site in Oxford, Ohio, which was involved in machining of uranium metal in the 1950s for the U.S. atomic energy program. The site is not currently being used. The residual radioactive material guidelines (RESRAD) computer code, which implements the methodology described in the US Department of Energy`s (DOE`s) manual for establishing residual radioactive material guidelines, was sued in this evaluation. Three potential land use scenarios were considered for the former Alba Craft site; the scenarios vary with regard to the type of site use, time spent at the site by the exposed individual, and sources of food consumed. Scenario A (a possible land use scenario) assumed industrial use of the site; Scenario B (a likely future land use scenario) assumed residential use of the site; and Scenario C ...

CERN Document Server

CERN earns "Nature & Economie" label for green land management

Environmental Research Database

ObjectivesWe have developed a life cycle perspective inspired conceptual model (CM) that suggests the importance of terrestrial ecosystems as a major repository of ZnO, TiO2, and Ag (Tier 1) manufactured nanomaterials (MNMs) introduced via the land application of MNM-containing biosolids. We propose to investigate the transport, fate, behavior, bioavailability, and effects of MNMs in(to) agroecosystems under environmentally realistic scenarios organized around three key hypotheses: Hypothesis (H1) Surface [continued...]DescriptionWe have developed a life cycle perspective inspired conceptual model (CM) that suggests the importance of terrestrial ecosystems as a major repository of ZnO, TiO2, and Ag (Tier 1) manufactured nanomaterials (MNMs) introduced via the land application of MNM-containing biosolids. We propose to investigate the transport, fate, behavior, bioavailability, and effects of MNMs in(to) agroecosystems under ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

This document is a progress report to the USDOE Atmospheric Radiation and Measurement Program (ARM). The overall project goal is to relate subgrid-cumulus-cloud formation, coverage, and population characteristics to statistical properties of surface-layer air, which in turn are modulated by heterogeneous land-usage within GCM-grid-box-size regions. The motivation is to improve the understanding and prediction of climate change by more accurately describing radiative and cloud processes.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

High energy consumption and the world population increase will lead to a shrinking use of fossil fuels. The combustion of Fossil fuel leads to the increase of carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere which leads to the probable increase of global warming. Therefore, concerns about carbon dioxide emissions may discourage widespread dependence on fossil fuels and encourage the development and use of renewable energy systems employing a variety of technologies Renewable energy systems have themselves an environmental impact. Land use and material employed are two areas that may have an adverse impact to the positive environmental picture of the renewable energy systems. The objective of this paper is to analyze these impacts with the use of a very powerful tool, the Life Cycle Assessment. (author)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), and the Department of Energy-National Energy Technologies Laboratory (DOE-NETL) are evaluating and demonstrating integration of terrestrial carbon sequestration techniques at a coal-fired electric power plant through the use of Flue Gas Desulfurization (FGD) system gypsum as a soil amendment and mulch, and coal fly ash pond process water for periodic irrigation. From January to March 2002, the Project Team initiated the construction of a 40 ha Carbon Capture and Water Emissions Treatment System (CCWESTRS) near TVA's Paradise Fossil Plant on marginally reclaimed surface coal mine lands in Kentucky. The CCWESTRS is growing commercial grade trees and cover crops and is expected to sequester 1.5-2.0 MT/ha carbon per year over a 20-year period. The concept could be used to meet a portion of the timber ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The adsorption of CO2 on a number of activated carbons, thermal carbon black, and oxide materials at 195 K was studied using static and dynamic techniques. The landing surface areas ?(CO2) ? 0.19 nm2 on thermal carbon black and the absolute values of sorption for P/P 0 < 0.4 were determined. The density of adsorbed CO2 in the micropore volume was estimated at ?(CO2) = 0.91 g/cm3. It was demonstrated that the previously found effect of a weakening of the sorption interaction of nitrogen molecules with thin-walled materials (which manifested itself in an analysis of sorption isotherms by a comparative method) was pronounced to a lesser degree for the sorption of CO2. At the same time, the presence of supermicropores in activated carbon samples resulted in overestimated values of surface area...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The central research question of this thesis is: What is the potential of multi-functional biomass systems to improve the costs and the land use efficiency of saving non-renewable energy consumption and reducing GHG (greenhouse gases) emissions in quantitative terms? Therefore, in the following chapters the performance of multi-functional biomass systems is quantified. Biomass system costs are investigated from a societal perspective using e.g. low discount rates. A main focus will be on the review of methodologies for accounting GHG emissions, non-renewable energy consumption, agricultural land use and costs as well as the adaptation of these methodologies to special aspects of multifunctional biomass use. The analysis of the potential benefits of multi-functional biomass systems is carried out by several case studies of biomass systems including various waste treatment technologies for the short term ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Land degradation reduces the ability of the land to perform many biophysical and chemical functions. The main aim of this study was to determine the status of land degradation in the Budgam area of Kashmir Himalaya using remote sensing and geographic information system. The satellite data together with other geospatial datasets were used to quantify different categories of land degradation. The results were validated in the field and an accuracy of 85% was observed. Land use/land cover of the study area was determined in order to know the effect of land use on the rate of land degradation. Normalized differential vegetation index (NDVI) and slope of the area were determined using LANDSAT-enhanced thematic mapper plus (ETM+) data, advanced space borne thermal emission and reflection radiome...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Formulation is introduced for discretizing a boundary integral equation into an indirect boundary element method for the solution of 3-dimensional topographic problems. Yokoi and Takenaka propose an analytical solution-capable reference solution (solution for the half space elastic body with flat free surface) to problems of topographic response to seismic motion in a 2-dimensional in-plane field. That is to say, they propose a boundary integral equation capable of effectively suppressing the non-physical waves that emerge in the result of computation in the wake of the truncation of the discretized ground surface making use of the wave field in a semi-infinite elastic body with flat free surface. They apply the proposed boundary integral equation discretized into the indirect boundary element method to solve some examples, and succeed in proving its validity. In this report, the equation is expanded to deal with ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Florida posseses climatic, land, and water resources favorable for abundant biomass production. Therefore, a statewide program has been initiated to determine adapted species for the available array of production sites. Plant resources under investigation include woody, aquatic, grasses, hydrocarbon, and root crop species. The goal is to produce a continuous stream of biomass for the various biofuel conversion options. Preliminary yields from energy cropping experiments range from about 10 to nearly 90 metric tons per hectare per year, depending on the crop and the production systems employed. (Refs. 15).

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

This document gathers the available presentations (articles and transparencies) given at this annual meeting, the 2007 topic of which was the technological, geopolitical, economical, environmental, societal and development stakes of energy. 1 - technological stakes - which energies for the future: new energies, illusion or solution of the future; the Lorraine region, an energy land: strategies and stakes for a sustainable development; from China to Brazil: understanding the nuclear energy revival; hydroelectric power: renewable and sustainable energy; renewable energies and environment protection: the contribution of biofuels; wind power in Germany between success and contestation; 2 - geopolitical stakes - energy levier of power: the Gulf of Guinea hydrocarbons: between development and geopolitics; ...

Science.gov (United States)

This invention is an improved solar energy cavity receiver for exposing materials and components to high temperatures. The receiver includes a housing having an internal reflective surface defining a cavity and having an inlet for admitting solar radiation thereto. A photothermal absorber is positioned in the cavity to receive radiation from the inlet. A reflective baffle is positioned between the absorber and the inlet to severely restrict the re-radiation of energy through the inlet. The front surface of the baffle defines a narrow annulus with the internal reflective surface of the housing. The front surface of the baffle is contoured to reflect incoming radiation onto the internal surface of the housing, from which it is reflected through the annulus and onto the front surface of the absorber. The back ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

This invention is an improved solar energy cavity receiver for exposing materials and components to high temperatures. The receiver includes a housing having an internal reflective surface defining a cavity and having an inlet for admitting solar radiation thereto. A photothermal absorber is positiond in the cavity to receive radiation from the inlet. A reflective baffle is positioned between the absorber and the inlet to severely restrict the re-radiation of energy through the inlet. The front surface of the baffle defines a narrow annulus with the internal reflective surface of the housing. The front surface of the baffle is contoured to reflect incoming radiation onto the internal surface of the housing, from which it is reflected through the annulus and onto the front surface of the absorber. The back ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

This paper introduces examples of satellite imageries analysis and utilizations for safeguards activities. Recently, many kinds of satellite imageries are available in the world i.e., high-spatial resolution, multi- and hyper-spectral, multi-function, and multi-polarization radars. The problem is that how to obtain the required information from these digital images. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has successfully launched the Advanced Land Observing Satellite (ALOS, the nickname is 'Daichi') on 24th January, 2006. The mission objectives are cartography, regional observation, disaster monitoring etc. ALOS has three instruments, PRISM, AVNIR-2, and PALSAR, to achieve these objectives. An overview of ALOS is provided. ALOS follows the Japanese Earth Resources Satellite- 1 (JERS-1) and the Advanced Earth Observing Satellite (ADEOS) and utilizes advanced land-observing technology. ALOS is fling in a Sun-synchronous orbit with an ...

Science.gov (United States)

... operational AUV and Unmanned Underwater Vehicle (UUV) ... by Brooks with land-based robots [BROOKS 88 ... system for a mobile land robot called ...

Science.gov (United States)

This data set consists of land derived from high resolution imagery and was analyzed according to the Coastal Change ... ...

Science.gov (United States)

This data set consists of land derived from high resolution imagery and was analyzed according to the Coastal Change ... ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Significant development of an oil shale industry has been projected over the next few decades. The nation's largest oil shale reserves exist in the Wyoming Basin and Colorado Plateau physiographic provinces. This study presents a brief description of the environmental setting and land-use pattern of the region, with a review of the major environmental issues associated with each proposed technology for extracting shale oil. Serious effects may be expected from the modification of very large land surfaces through open-pit mining and spent-shale disposal. The impacts include habitat destruction, potential species loss, and deterioration of surface and groundwater quality. In situ retorting of shale may result in major alterations of groundwater quantity, quality, and flow regimes. Mine dewatering from in situ retorting requires the disposal of large volumes of highly saline water, threatening the ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The variation of surface composition and sintering of the binary Pd_7Ag_3 nanoparticles prepared by chemical reduction were studied. The composition of the as-prepared Pd_7Ag_3 nanoparticles across the diameter is inhomogeneous due to different reduction potentials of Pd and Ag. Upon heating, Ag will migrate to the surface because of its lower surface energy. Surface modification results in variation of surface composition during the sintering process. Stearic acid acts as a grain growth inhibitor. The migration of Ag to the surface is suppressed and the sintering is retarded. Modification by polyethylene glycol leads to more migration of Ag atoms from the core to the surface. This makes the nanoparticles easier to sinter.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Passive microwave soil moisture datasets can be used as an input to provide an integrated assessment of climate variability as it relates to agricultural production. The objective of this research was to examine three passive microwave derived soil moisture datasets over multiple growing seasons in contrasting Canadian agricultural environments. Absolute and relative soil moisture was evaluated from two globally available datasets from the Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer for EOS (AMSR-E) sensor using different retrieval algorithms, as well as relative soil wetness at a weekly scale from the Special Sensor Microwave/Imager (SSM/I) sensor. At a daily scale, the Land Parameter Retrieval Model (LPRM) provides a better estimate of surface soil moisture conditions than the National Snow a...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Theoretical and experimental data which have defined and/or extended the effectiveness of remote sensing operations are explored, with consideration given to both scientific and commercial activities. The remote sensing of soil moisture, the sea surface, and oil slicks is discussed, as are programs using satellites for studying geodynamics and geodesy, currents and waves, and coastal zones. NASA, Canadian, and Japanese radar and microwave passive and active systems are described, together with algorithms and techniques for image processing and classification. The SAR-580 project is outlined, and attention is devoted to satellite applications in investigations of the structure of the atmosphere, agriculture and land use, and geology. Design and performance features of various optical scanner, radar, and multispectral data processing systems and procedures are detailed.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Conductive TiN/Si_3N_4 ceramic composites were processed by electrical discharge machining (EDM) and their microstructure and conductivity were investigated. The whole process of tool electrode wear is evaluated by sinker-EDM. The machined surfaces of TiN/Si_3N_4 ceramic composites were examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and profilometry to determine the surface finish. The electrode wear rate of brass is higher than copper electrode for all EDMed tests. The surface texture was found to have greater dependence on pulse energy. It was observed that the sinker-EDM at higher pulse energy caused severe microdamage in the surface. The surface roughness (Ra) values also increase with increasing pulse energy.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Finland has some 10 million hectares of peatland, accounting for almost a third of its total area. Macroclimatic conditions have varied in the course of the Holocene growth and development of this peatland, and with them the habitats of the peat-forming plants. Temperatures and moisture conditions have played a significant role in determining the dominant species of mire plants growing there at any particular time, the resulting mire types and the accumulation and deposition of plant remains to form the peat. While in a natural state the mires of Finland have functioned as carbon dioxide sinks throughout the post-glacial period, but the ditching of peatland for forestry and agriculture, amounting to some 5,7 million hectares in Finland, has affected their water balance, especially over the last hundred years, and has thereby altered the quantity and species composition of the mire vegetation. The invasion of trees and woody plants to replace the typical mire plants following ditching ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2009 p. 200-201 Ukraine Glushkov, AV Odesa State Environmental

Science.gov (United States)

... with dynamic gridding capability to account for material ablation, as well as the addition of energy sources and heat transfer augmentation due to ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The possibility of smoothening aspherical X-ray mirrors by irradiation of the surface with a low-energy ion beam is investigated. Nanofocusing being the primary application of these mirrors the ion beam conditions must be optimized to achieve a surface roughness of the order of 0.1-0.2 nm. To address this issue a first study was performed on silicon flat substrates etched using ion energies ranging from 400 to 1200 eV. A second study consisted of eroding the silicon surface while varying the ion grazing incidence angle between 10 deg. and 90 deg. for a fixed value of the ion energy. The surface topography of the samples was characterized at various scales using atomic force microscopy (probed area: 1-10 ?m2), interferential optical microscopy (probed area: 1 mm2) and X-ray scattering (probed area: 100 mm2). Finally, a study by AFM of the ...

KoreaScience (Korea)

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KoreaScience (Korea)

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Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A small cable yarding system for accumulations of slash on forested land and overstocked non-productive stands is described.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A field experiment was held in the northwestern Taiwan as a part of a long-term research program for studying Taiwan`s local circulation. The program has been named as Taiwan Regional-circulation Experiment (TREX). The particular goal of this research is to investigate characteristics of boundary layer and local Circulation and their impact on the distribution and Variation of pollutants in the northwestern Taiwan during Mei-Yu season. It has been known for quite sometime that land-sea breeze is very pronounced under hot and humid conditions. Extensive network includes 11 pilot ballon stations, 3 acoustic sounding sites, and 14 surface stations in about 20 km by 20 km area centered at National Central University, Chung-Li. In addition, there are ground temperature measurements at 3 sites, Integrated Sounding System (ISS) at NCU, air plane observation, tracer experiment with 10 collecting stations, 3 background upper-air sounding stations, 2 ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Energy-filtered X-ray photoemission electron microscopy (EXPEEM) is a microscopy technique which has the potential to provide surface chemical mapping during surface chemical processes on the nanometer scale. We studied the possibilities of EXPEEM using a Wien filter type energy analyzer in the high energy X-ray region above 1000 eV. We have successfully observed the EXPEEM images of Au islands on a Ta sheet using Au 3d_5_/_2 and Ta 3d_5_/_2 photoelectron peaks which were excited by 2380 eV X-rays emitted from an undulator (BL2A) at Photon Factory. Our recent efforts to improve the sensitivity of the Wien filter energy analyzer will also be discussed.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

We investigated the use of Surface Free Energy (SFE) measurements, describing coherence between surfaces of two solids, in evaluation of affinity between skin surface and foundation, a possible predictor of makeup longevity. We found that the gp values of skin varied significantly among subjects. After discovering that the SFE values of most available conventional foundation products were very different from that of skin, specially formulated experimental foundations with SFE values close to that of the skin surface were prepared using conventional powder ingredients and novel powder ingredients coated with polyethylene glycol. In our usage tests, the SFE-controlled foundations demonstrated superior performance to that of conventional foundations and most of subjects preferred the SFE-cont...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is developing generally applicable environmental standards for land disposal of Atomic Energy Act (AEA) low-level radioactive wastes (LLW) and certain naturally occurring and accelerator-produced radioactive material (NARM) wastes. It is EPA's intention that the LLW standards will protect public health and the environment. The LLW standards would cover disposal of all AEA materials not controlled by other EPA standards and some natural radioactive materials. Coverage of federal waste is significant, because the federal government generates and disposes of >40% of all LLW nationwide, and a uniform standard for all LLW disposal is both a desirable and an achievable goal. Publication of a proposed LLW standard is planned in 1988, and a final standard a year later. This standard will have several important and closely related areas of focus which are discussed in the paper.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

In an attempt to overcome inadequacies perceived in the approach to providing energy to village communities using the conventional Khadi and Village Industries Commission biogas plant as well as the Janata model, a biogas digester has been developed suitable for a farmer having only one hectare of land. The information on gas yields and other data from a variety of substrates in a laboratory digester are presented. The digester itself consists of a chamber underground into which the influent flows through a channel. Gas is collected in a dome which constitutes the upper part of the digestion chamber and is maintained under pressure by water. The dome can be made of any suitable material such as plastic, ferrocement and brick and mortar. The upper part of the chamber itself is exposed to sun light which enhances microbial growth. Water which surrounds the dome ensures a minimum of temperature variation. 3 references.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The oil sands industry in Canada was said to be committed to environmentally sustainable economic development, i.e. a development that recognizes the mutual dependence of a healthy environment and a healthy economy. To indicate progress toward this goal, the report pointed out the investment of millions of dollars in environmental research and tens of millions of dollars in plant equipment already made. These infrastructure investments have paid dividends in terms of energy conservation, reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, land reclamation, air quality monitoring, water conservation, and water quality and biodiversity protection. A number of recommendations governing provincial jurisdictions over regulations were made. Particular concern was expressed over fairness, and overlapping of regulations by different levels of government.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

This study presents and applies a coherent methodological framework to compare biomass cascading chains, i.e. the subsequent use of biomass for materials, recycling and energy recovery, considering land use, CO2 emission reduction and economic performance. Example cascading chains of short rotation poplar wood are compared with each other on the basis of literature data. Results for these chains vary strongly, namely, from CO2 mitigation benefits of 200 euro/Mg CO2 to CO2 mitigation costs of 2200 euro/Mg CO2, and from net CO2 emission reductions per hectare of biomass production of 28 Mg CO2/(ha yr) to net CO2 emissions of 8 Mg CO2/(ha yr). Using a present-value approach to determine CO2 emissions and costs affects the performance of long-term cascading chains significantly, i.e. cost and CO2 emission reduction are decreased. In general, cascading has the potential to improve both CO2 emission reduction per hectare and CO2 mitigation costs of ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

An annealing with the nanosecond laser light pulse is applied for crystal lattice reconstruction of a disturbed near-surface layer, which was created in semiconductor material as a result of the implantation process. Radiation with energy density higher than the threshold value causes the melting of the surface layer and than the epitaxial recrystallization from the melt on a different substrate. Structural changes occurring in the Ge implanted Si crystals after annealing with different energy densities are investigated by means of the cross-section high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. (author)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A simple model based on surface chemistry is developed, based an simple concepts of contact angle, wetting and spreading. Results of the modeling can be stated by two simplified rules of thumb'': (1) A liquid will spread on the surface of a solid if the surface tension of the liquid is lose than the surface free energy of the solid, and (2) The liquid having the surface tension nearest that of the solid will preferentially wet the surface of the solid. These two rules can then be used to define the parameters that constitute a process for formulating a plastic bonded explosive (PBX), which is a crystalline high-explosive material coated with a small amount of plastic polymeric material (the binder). The PBX then can be pressed to a high density, and machined to a specific shape. The pressed and machined explosive material ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Results of self-consistent local-spin-density-functional calculations are reported for the first time for the Ni(110) surface, represented by one-, three-, and five-layer slabs. Calculations for one- and five-layer slabs of Ni(100) are also reported. The behavior of the surface magnetization with varying slab thickness elucidates the nature and origin of the surface magnetic moment. We predict a 13% enhancement of the Ni(110) surface magnetic moment compared to the bulk value. For the Ni(100) surface, we find a smaller surface enhancement about 7%, compared to bulk, which agrees with the results of Jepsen et al. The enhancement of surface magnetic moments on Ni(100) and Ni(110) surfaces is attributed to s-d dehybridization at the surface and to the presence of electrostatic shifts required to ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A first-principles quasiparticle approach to the electronic excitation energies in crystals and at surfaces is described. The quasiparticle energies are calculated within the GW approximation for comparison with photoemission and other spectroscopic experiments. Applications of the method to bulk semiconductors and the Si(111)2[times]l, Ge(111)2[times]l. and H/Si(III) surfaces are presented. In both cases, significant self-energy corrections arising from many-electron effects to the excitation energies are found. Using atomic positions from total energy minimization, the calculated excitation energies explain quantitatively the experimental spectra. This approach thus provides an ab initio means for analyzing and predicting results from spectroscopic probes.

Science.gov (United States)

We report here a new approach to introduce the effect of chemisorption in the Monte-Carlo simulation procedure for studying the segregation behaviour in bimetallic nanoparticles at low pressures. A coordination-dependent pair interaction energy is constructed in terms of partial bond energies and the exchange energy where the partial bond energy can be empirically calculated from the experimental values of dimer energy, the pressure-dependent surface energy and the bulk cohesive energy of the constituent metals. The advantage of this procedure is the ability to estimate the pressure-dependent surface composition of the nanoparticles. The method has been applied to oxygen-adsorbed Pd-Ag systems; and it is found that while Ag segregate in clean particles, at higher oxygen pressures Pd atoms segregate ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The rate and intensity of land use land cover (LULC) change has increased considerably during the past couple of decades. Mining brings significant alterations in LULC specifically due to its impact on forests. Parts of Central India are well endowed with both forests and minerals. Here, the conflict between human interests and nature has intensified over time. Monitoring and assessment of such conflicts are important for land management and policy making. Remote sensing and Geographical Information System have the potential to serve as accurate tools for environmental monitoring. Understanding the importance of landscape metrics in land use planning is challenging but important. These metrics calculated at landscape, class, and patch level provide an insight into changing spatiotemporal d...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

This bill was introduced into the US House of Representatives on June 7, 1991 to provide for the designation of Wetlands Stewardship Trusts. This legislation amended the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to establish special rules for contributions of wetlands and riparian lands to Wetlands Stewardship Trusts. Key features of the bill address the following: tax treatment of donations of wetlands and riparian lands to Wetlands Stewardship Trusts; amortization of expenditures to restore wetlands and riparian lands; expenditures for restoring wetlands and riparian lands; exclusion from gross income for amounts received from compatible uses of wetlands or riparian lands; and income from compatible uses of wetlands or riparian lands.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The Canadian wind energy industry is experiencing rapid and unprecedented growth. The year 2006 saw the installation of 534 MW of wind energy across Canada, representing approximately $1 billion in new investment. It is anticipated that the wind energy industry will help to create jobs and training opportunities for many Canadians, as well as provide ongoing economic benefits to local communities through municipal tax and land lease payments. However, many challenges remain if Canada is to meet, or exceed, its objective of a total of 10,000 MW in installed wind energy by 2015. This conference provided a forum for wind industry member, academics and representatives of both governmental and non-governmental agencies to discuss issues related to wind energy development. The conference was divided into 3 streams. The policy stream examined issues related to the ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The study area is located in the Bekaa plain of Lebanon totaling about 12753 ha. It lies between the eastern foothills of Mount Lebanon chain and expands across the Litani River towards the foothills of the eastern Anti-Lebanon Mountains. Its characteristics, i.e. natural terrain, climate and socio-economy, make it vulnerable especially due to soil pollution. This paper tries to identify the nature and level of soil pollution by heavy metals. Valley slopes represent a complex landform and lithology that contributed to the formation of different soil. Agriculture in the plain is being practiced mainly with cash, field crops and vegetables. Throughout the central part of the plain, groundwater table is abundant and relatively high (<1.0 m. locally) that multiplies the vulnerability of the soil-groundwater system. There are different sources of pollution, such as industrial (tanneries, batteries, leather manufacturing), solid and liquid wastes, and agricultural due to uncontrolled ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The primary methodology that is used for disposal of municipal solid waste is the use of land fills; 80--85% of the municipal solid waste (MSW) produced in the country currently is land filled. The two other disposal alternatives used are recycling and incineration. Waste-to-energy technology (WTE) which incinerates MSW to produce electricity and/or steam is attractive in other cases since it reduces landfill volume, reduces the consumption of fossil and other fuels, and produces a revenue stream from the sale of the electricity or steam. The gaseous effluents from landfills can also be used to fuel power plants. Recycling and material separation programs can have a substantial impact on the throughput and heating value of MSW collected and thus impact WTE plant economics; the magnitude of the impact will depend upon a number of factors such as what materials and what fraction are separated and recycled, the design of the ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The initial growth process and surface structure of thin Pd(silicide) films on clean Si(111)-7x7 surfaces have been studied by low energy ion scattering (ISS) and LEED-Auger techniques. Considerable reaction between Pd and Si at room temperature is observed to extend up to 25 ML thickness of deposited Pd. Heat treatment of the room temperature film produced epitaxial silicide Pd/sub 2/Si(0001) films covered with the accumulated elementary Si layers of 1-2 ML thickness. Deposition of 1/3 ML Pd onto a heated substrate gives a Pd-embedded ordered surface of Si(111)-..sqrt..3x..sqrt..3R30/sup 0/, the feature being similar to the cases of Ag, Au/Si(111) systems.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

It has been shown by recent experiments that bulk immiscible metals (e.g. Ag/Cu, Ag/Co and Au/Ni) can form binary alloys on certain surfaces where the substrate mediates the elastic misfits between the two components, thus relieving the elastic strain in the overlayer. These novel surface alloys exhibit a rich phase structure. We formulate a two-component Frenkel-Kontorova model in one dimension to study surface alloy formation. This model can naturally incorporate dislocation formation that plays a crucial role in determining the actual structure of the system. Using energy minimization calculations we provide a phase diagram in terms of average alloy composition and the energy of mixing. Monte Carlo simulations were also performed to study the structure and interaction of the emerging dislocations.

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

We used two high profile articles as cases to demonstrate that use of fishery landings data can lead to faulty interpretations about the condition of fishery ecosystems. One case uses the mean trophic...Full Text Available

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The optical emission of excited H reflected from clean Cu(110) after impingement of H/sup +/ and H/sub 2//sup +/ in the energy range of 250 eV to 20 keV per nucleon at 70/sup 0/ angle of incidence to the surface normal was measured. For incident 10 keV H/sub 2//sup +/, the highest excited hydrogen state detected was the n=10 level. The Hsub(..cap alpha..) yield was found to be fluence and energy dependent. This effect is attributed either to fast sputtered hydrogen, surface roughness or to an increase with hydrogen concentration in electron states of p-like symmetry near the Fermi level of copper. The Hsub(..cap alpha..) yield per reflected nucleon shows approximately an exponential dependence on both projectile energy per nucleon and scattered particle reciprocal velocity perpendicular to the surface.

Science.gov (United States)

A glass heat pipe is adapted for use as a solar energy absorber in an evacuated tube solar collector and for transferring the absorbed solar energy to a working fluid medium or heat sink for storage or practical use. A capillary wick is formed of granular glass particles fused together by heat on the inside surface of the heat pipe with a water glass binder solution to enhance capillary drive distribution of the thermal transfer fluid in the heat pipe throughout the entire inside surface of the evaporator portion of the heat pipe. Selective coatings are used on the heat pipe surface to maximize solar absorption and minimize energy radiation, and the glass wick can alternatively be fabricated with granular particles of black glass or obsidian.

Wastenet

governance through land use planning and mechanisms to deal with informal urban settlements in a manner that will facilitate improvements in

Science.gov (United States)

... addition, the Department of Homeland Security works closely with The Combating Terrorism Technical Support Working Group (TSWG), to ensure ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Measurements of the Kapitza conductance to liquid helium II across the (100) surface of single crystals of copper are presented. The temperature range of these measurements was 1.6-- 2.1 K. The sample surfaces were subjected to several different treatments. Some surfaces were cleaned by low-energy argon ion bombardment, annealed in an ultrahigh-vacuum system, and preserved under vacuum until purified liquid helium was admitted. Other surfaces were intentionally damaged by machining and/or exposure to the atmosphere. The conductance after these latter treatments was found to be about a factor of three higher than that of the more ideally cleaned and annealed surfaces, and a significant difference in the temperature dependence of the conductance was also observed. Conductances were reproducible for similarly treated surfaces and correlated ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Commercial development of oil shale resources will produce vast quantities of processed shale waste. The presence of potentially toxic trace elements, inorganic salts, and potentially toxic residual organic constitutents make the disposal of vast quantities of processed shale a potential environmental problem. To be environmentally acceptable, processed shale disposal must: result in a physically stable structure, prevent or minimize release of potentially toxic compounds, and provide an economically acceptable post-land use. Water is the common element underlying all factors important to the environmental stability of disposed solid waste. The leaching and transport of solubles by water in processed shale embankments may result in degradation of local surface and groundwater quality. The major purpose of this research is to physically model, study, and describe the redistribution and movement of water and percolates in lifts of disposed ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The implementation of satellite remote sensing data for monitoring anthropogenic pollution in the USSR is described. Space-based monitoring systems offer the opportunity to identify pollution sources, track the spread of pollutants on the surface and in the air, and characterize land use patterns that cause erosion. Furthermore, vegetation under attack by polluting agents can be recognized by color changes, and water pollution in lakes, coastal zones, and in rivers near industrial areas and ports can be measured for the total affected area. The data have thus far been taken with instrumentation on board the Salyut space station, the Meteor-Priroda satellite, and from the Landsat MSS scanner. It is noted that the transboarder transport of pollutants necessitates sharing data with agencies of other nations, and that a data base must be developed to define procedures and instrumentation for given pollutants, algorithms for processing the data, and ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Neutron reflectometry (NR) was used to measure the concentration profile of a symmetric PEP/dPEP polymer blend with nanometer-scale resolution in the one-phase region. The shape of the profile near the surface was found to differ significantly from mean-field theory predictions for all bulk concentrations and temperatures surveyed. The profile shape is flattened at the surface over a distance about half the bulk correlation length, a length scale far greater than that of the dispersive forces that are the dominant microscopic interaction in such blends. We introduce a new method for extracting the surface energy difference that drives segregation based on the Gibbs adsorption equation (GAE) and compare it to a previous method based on mean-field theory. While both methods produce qualitatively similar results (the surface energy of pure dPEP is {approx}0.21 ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The steady state surfaces of ion bombarded 3C-, 4H- and 6H-SiC samples were studied by means of reflected electron energy loss spectroscopy (REELS). The REELS exhibit a well-defined loss peak in the region of about 20 eV. The position of the maximum of the loss peak depends on the bombarding ion energy (decreasing with increasing ion energy), and on the primary electron beam energy (increasing with increasing primary energy). This behavior can be explained if we suppose that the plasmon energy in the altered layer (produced by ion bombardment) is different from that of the unaltered bulk. In this case the measured loss peak is the sum of two overlapping plasmon peaks. With modeling the system as a homogeneous altered layer and a homogeneous unaltered substrate the plasmon energy in the altered layer was derived to be ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

During the past 2 yr, significant progress has been made in several areas related to the safety and environmental (S and E) aspects of inertial fusion energy (IFE). An updated methodology has been developed, and accident analyses have been performed for two IFE conceptual power plants and a target fabrication facility. Parallel to the consequence analyses of different accident scenarios, ongoing studies of accident initiating events are being used to support safety assessment and create a basic framework of types of events to consider in future risk characterization of new plant designs. Target designers/fabrication specialists have been provided with ranking information related to the S and E characteristics of candidate target materials. We have revisited waste management options for IFE, introducing the concept of clearance versus the traditional shallow land burial. A brief summary of results in each of these activities is given, and plans ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

This report documents a computable general equilibrium (CGE) model of the economy of Haiti, emphasizing energy use in agriculture. CGE models compare favorably with econometric models for developing countries in terms of their ability to take advantage of available data. The model of Haiti contains ten production sectors: manufacturing, services, transportation, electricity, rice, coffee, sugar cane, sugar refining, general agriculture, and fuelwood and charcoal. All production functions use functional forms which permit factor substitution. Consumption is specified for three income categories of consumers and a government sector with a linear expenditure system (LES) of demand equations. The economy exports four categories of products and imports six. Balanced trade and capital accounts are required for equilibrium. Total sectoral allocations of land, labor and capital are constrained to equal the quantities of these inputs in the Haitian ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Court decisions available so far do not primarily consider the problems linked to the commissioning of an expert and his mandate, as well as the legal status of the commissioning of an expert as an administrative act which might be legally contestable. Thus there are at present no court decisions that would create legal certainty in matters of the act of commissioning a nuclear expert opinion. The current legal situation is such that an independent order for commissioning of an expert opinion in compliance with section 19 III AtG (Atomic Energy Act), which in general is given in response to the refusal of the facility operator to do so, can be independently contested on the basis of section 44 a, sentence 2 VwGO (Rules of Administrative Courts). The current practice of conflict-oriented, or nuclear power phase-out-oriented, implementation of the nuclear law poses a threat to our constitutional state and to our democracy. The supply of energy as ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A module is described with a receiver having a solar energy acceptance opening and supported by a mounting ring along the optic axis of a parabolic mirror in coaxial alignment for receiving solar energy from the mirror, and a solar flux modulator plate for varying the quantity of solar energy flux received by the acceptance opening of the module. The modulator plate is characterized by an annular, plate-like body, the internal diameter of which is equal to or slightly greater than the diameter of the solar energy acceptance opening of the receiver. Slave cylinders are connected to the modulator plate for supporting the plate for axial displacement along the axis of the mirror thereby shading the opening with respect to solar energy flux reflected from the surface of the mirror to the solar energy acceptance opening.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

This paper describes the unique challenges involved in achieving compliance with the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (Public Law 94-580) Land Disposal Restrictions (LDR) treatment standards for four types of mixed wastes generated throughout the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) complex: (1) radioactively contaminated lead acid batteries; (2) radioactively contaminated cadmium-, mercury-, and silver-containing batteries; (3) mercury-bearing mixed wastes; and (4) radioactive lead solids. For each of these mixed waste types, the paper identifies the strategy pursued by DOE's Office of Pollution Prevention and Resource Conservation Policy and Guidance (EH-43) in coordination with other DOE elements and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to meet the compliance challenge. Specifically, a regulatory interpretation was obtained from EPA agreeing that the LDR treatment standard for wastes in the D008 'Radioactive Lead Solids' ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Results are reported of photoemission studies using laser pulses of 10 ps duration and 4.66 eV photon energy on metal cathodes. These included thin wires, flat surfaces and an yttrium cathode with a grainy surface. The measurements of current density and quantum efficiency under low and high surface fields indicate that field assisted efficiencies exceeding 0.1% and current densities exceeding 10/sup 5/ A/cm/sup 2/ are obtainable. The results are compared to the requirements of switch power applications. 24 refs., 13 figs., 1 tab.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The decontamination factor is studied as a function of laser fluence for three kinds of clad surfaces viz., plain zircaloy, autoclaved zircaloy and SS with cesium as the test contamination. It has been found that the decontamination factor exhibits a maximal behaviour with the laser fluence and its maximum value occurs at different laser fluences in the three cases. The maximal behaviour is attributed to reduced coupling of energy from the laser beam to the substrate due to the initiation of surface-assisted optical breakdown. The results obtained in the experiment carried out in helium environment qualitatively support this explanation (author)

Science.gov (United States)

Geometrical structures and energetic properties for different tautomers of adenine are calculated in this study, using multi-configurational wave functions. Both the ground and the lowest singlet excited state potential energy surfaces are studied. Four t...

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

To assemble into functional structures, biopolymers search for global minima through their folding potential energy surfaces to find the native conformation. However, this process can be hindered by...Full Text Available

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

This paper deals with the electronic structure of ruthenium. Synchrotron radiation in the range from 15 to 45 eV and angle-resolved ultraviolet photoemission are used to map the energies of the electronic states. The Fermi surface of Ru is determined using angle-resolved ultraviolet photoemission spectroscopy. The experimental results are compared with calculated photoemission spectra obtained within the framework of the one-step model of photoemission. (author)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The effects of intradot electron-electron interaction on the photon-assisted Andreev tunneling of a superconductor/carbon-nanotube/superconductor system are studied by using nonequilibrium Green's function technique. The inverse supercurrent reflecting the #pi#-junction transition emerges in the spin-split energy-levels regime polarized by the Coulomb interaction. For the positive tunneling case, the supercurrent reaches its maximum when the spin-degenerate energy-levels are nearest to the Fermi surface. Conversely, for the negative tunneling case, the supercurrent reaches its maximum when two split energy-levels are symmetric with respect of the Fermi surface. The sign and the amplitude of the Andreev tunneling depend distinctly on the energy-level spacing tuned by photon-assisted tunneling. In order to fully understand the transport characteristics, the ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Secondary-electron emission (SEE) spectra have been obtained with the Scanning Probe Energy Loss Spectrometer at a tip-sample distance of only 50 nm. Such short working distances are required for the best theoretical spatial resolution (<10 nm). The SEE spectra of graphite, obtained as a function of tip bias voltage, are shown to correspond to unoccupied states in the electronic band structure. The SEE spectra of thin gold films demonstrate the capability of identifying (carbonaceous) surface contamination with this technique.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

In the framework of the development of new generations of surface ships, the Royal Netherlands Navy is studying the option of the all-electric ship concept. Background is the growing demand of electric power on board of naval ships for various services (including weapons and sensors). Important features of such an all-electric ship concept are decentralized electric energy generation and storage. In such an all-electric ship concept, fuel cells are expected to play an important role in the future, not only for reasons of energy efficiency and low emissions, but also because of their potential military advantages. Especially polymer electrolyte fuel cell systems appear to be very interesting for this application.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

By using a plasma nitriding procedure at the PUPR Mirror Cusp Plasma machine, surface hardness is increased in 302/304-type stainless steel samples by exposing them to high-ion-density plasma at high vacuum. This method successfully dopes the surface of the material with strengthening nitrogen ions, without the use of chemical procedures that sacrifice the resistance to corrosion of the given material. A 500 V negative bias is placed on the sample exposed to the nitrogen plasma, where high-energy ions are therefore attracted and immersed into the metallic matrix microns into the surface of the stainless steel. This potential maintains a constant surface temperature at approximately 800 deg. C. The plasma parameters including ion density and plasma temperature were diagnosed using single Langmuir probes. The stainless steel samples were then tested using scanning electron microscopy ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The energy distribution of ion beams is important especially for low energy ion beam applications. The energy distributions of negative-ion beams produced through secondary ion emission by sputtering were measured and compared with theoretically estimated distributions by use of four different negative-ion production probability equations (modified surface ionization model, exponential velocity dependence model, and our modified exponential velocity dependence models (modified decaying factor model and combination model of velocity dependence and surface ionization)). In the measurements, the energy distributions of C"- and Ag"- beams had a peak at a few to several eV and the full width at half maximum were 15 eV and 11 eV, respectively. These results could be well explained by the estimated distributions by virtue of our combination model or the modified ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

One third of the microstructure of glassy carbon (GC) consists of closed pores. Density measurements indicate that the total pore volume depends only on the heat treatment temperature and not on the heat treatment time, a characteristic of coarsening. The kinetics of coarsening of these pores on heat treatment has been investigated by analyzing the changes in specific surface area of the pores as determined by the small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) technique. A part of the surface area change is due to thermal expansion induced microcracking. Both the superposition method after correcting the thermal expansion induced surface area change and the curve fitting method give an activation energy of 64 +/- 10 kcal/mole. This value is compared with the activation energies of various rate processes in graphite. A model of coarsening of the pores based on a vacancy migration mechanism is ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The mass asymmetry of fragments from nuclear fission of heavy nuclei is reviewed. While mass asymmetry is a common and well-known phenomenon for low-energy fission of the lighter actinides, more recent experiments have demonstrated that, for the heaviest actinides, the mass distribution switches to a symmetric one. On the other hand, it has been discovered that, though for fissioning nuclei with mass numbers A< or #approx#225 the mass distribution is basically symmetric, an asymmetric component is clearly to be identified for nuclei down to the Pb-region. In the absence of a generally accepted dynamical theory of fission, the above experimental findings are discussed in terms of static energy considerations. Triggered from the outset by the structure of the potential energy surface at the saddlepoint, the energy balance at the scission point between the available ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The relaxations of the Ti(0001) and Zr(0001) surfaces are studied using the plane-wave-basis pseudopotential method within the local-density approximation. We find that the first interlayer spacings of Ti(0001) and Zr(0001) are contracted with respect to the bulk spacings by 6.8% and 6.1%, respectively. Such large relaxations for the close-packed surfaces of Ti and Zr are in good agreement with recent linear-augmented-plane-wave calculations. In addition, we predict a weak vibrational effect on the surface relaxation of Zr(0001) by considering the free energy in the quasiharmonic approximation. This result can be attributed to a very strong bonding between the first- and second-layer Zr atoms as a consequence of the bond-order endash bond-length correlation. copyright 1997 The American Physical Society.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

In earlier works, the inelastic mean free path (IMFP) of electrons was determined by elastic peak electron spectroscopy (EPES) using Ni and Ag reference standard samples, but fully neglecting surface excitation. Surface excitation that is characterized by the surface excitation parameter (SEP), and may affect considerably the elastic peak for the sample and the reference material. The SEP parameters of selected conducting polymers (polythiophenes, polyaniline and polyethylene) were determined by EPES using Si and Ge reference samples. Experiments were made with a hemispherical analyzer of energy resolution 100-200 meV in the E = 0.2-2.0 keV energy range. The composition of the sample surfaces was determined by in situ XPS, their surface roughness by AFM. The experimental SEP parameter data of eight polymer samples were determined by our new ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The general responses proposed to reduce CO{sub 2} emissions to the atmosphere are conservation, improved efficiency and fuel substitution. These are valid options but other alternatives such as CO{sub 2} capture and disposal may be more attractive for specific areas. There are good reasons why the capture and disposal option fits the situation in Western Canada. The first and obvious reason is the importance of hydrocarbon energy to the regional economy. Here the economy is based on the production, utilization and sale of hydrocarbons such as coal, oil and natural gas and we intend to stay in business. Besides meeting the Canadian demand, natural gas from Alberta is used in the US as far away as Boston and Los Angeles. Canadian heavy crude oil serves much of the American Midwest and coal from the Canadian Rocky Mountains is exported to Japan. Although many may consider these hydrocarbon reserves and fossil fuel production as part of the greenhouse gas problem, ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A review of the various solidification agents and techniques that are currently available or potentially applicable for the solidification of low-level radioactive wastes is presented. An overview of the types and quantities of low-level wastes produced is presented. Descriptions of waste form matrix materials, the wastes types for which they have been or may be applied and available information concerning relevant waste form properties and characteristics follow. Also included are descriptions of the processing techniques themselves with an emphasis on those operating parameters which impact upon waste form properties. The solidification agents considered in this survey include: hydraulic cements, thermoplastic materials, thermosetting polymers, glasses, synthetic minerals and composite materials. This survey is part of a program supported by the United States Department of Energy's Low-Level Waste Management Program (LLWMP). This work provides input into ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Full text.Increased environmental concerns and the emphasis on material and energy recovery are gradually changing the orientation of municipal solid waste (MSW) management and planning. In this context, the application of optimization techniques have been introduced to design the least cost solid waste management systems, considering the variety of management processes (recycling, composting, anaerobic digestion, incineration and land filling) and the existence of uncertainties associated with the number of system components and their interrelations. This study presents a model that was developed and applied to serve as a solid socio-economic and environmental considerations. The model accounts for solid waste generation rates, composition, collection, treatment, disposal as well as potential environmental impacts of various MSW management techniques. The model follows a linear programming formulation with the framework of dynamic ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

This conference and trade show provided a forum to present new, emerging and existing technologies that will play a key role in ensuring that hydrocarbon exploitation occurs in a sustainable manner, where costs and resource recovery are optimized while minimizing environmental impacts. The challenge of developing maturing basins, frontier lands and unconventional resources was discussed. In particular, the application of thermal recovery methods such as steam assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) for the in-situ recovery of heavy oils and bitumens was reviewed and compared with the performance of alternative enhanced energy recovery technologies such as vapor extraction (VAPEX). The conference was attended by local and international participants in the petroleum sector, including managers, engineers, technologists, geologists, and other petroleum industry specialists. The conference featured 132 presentations addressing topics such as improved ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The current situation in the development of nuclear power in the world and in Czechoslovakia is briefly outlined and the possibilities are discussed of alternative energy resources. The environmental impact is described of conventional power plants firing coal; sulphur and nitrogen oxides are mentioned and their environmental impacts shown. Their quantities and the quantities of other gaseous, liquid and soid wastes produced by coal power plants are given. Annual estimates are presented of radioactive material emissions; trace amount emissions of toxic metals and their ecological risks are shown. Concern over the increasing concentration of CO_2 in the atmosphere is voiced. For nuclear power plants, the amount of radionuclides in stack emission and of those released into water flows is tabulated. Their effect on the aqueous ecosystem is characterized as is thermal pollution of water flows and the environmental impact of cooling towers. Other factors are also ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

This report identifies individual contaminants and contaminant mixtures that have been measured in the ground at 91 waste sites at 18 US Department of Energy (DOE) facilities within the weapons complex. The inventory of chemicals and mixtures was used to identify generic chemical mixtures to be used by DOE's Subsurface Science Program in basic research on the subsurface geochemical and microbiological behavior of mixed contaminants (DOE 1990a and b). The generic mixtures contain specific radionuclides, metals, organic ligands, organic solvents, fuel hydrocarbons, and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in various binary and ternary combinations. The mixtures are representative of in-ground contaminant associations at DOE facilities that are likely to exhibit complex geochemical behavior as a result of intercontaminant reactions and/or microbiologic activity stimulated by organic substances. Use of the generic mixtures will focus research on important mixed ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wind River Resources Corporation (WRRC) received a DOE grant in support of its proposal to acquire, process and interpret fifteen square miles of high-quality 3-D seismic data on non-allotted trust lands of the Uintah and Ouray (Ute) Indian Reservation, northeastern Utah, in 2000. Subsequent to receiving notice that its proposal would be funded, WRRC was able to add ten square miles of adjacent state and federal mineral acreage underlying tribal surface lands by arrangement with the operator of the Flat Rock Field. The twenty-five square mile 3-D seismic survey was conducted during the fall of 2000. The data were processed through the winter of 2000-2001, and initial interpretation took place during the spring of 2001. The initial interpretation identified multiple attractive drilling prospects, two of which were staked and permitted during the summer of 2001. The two initial wells were drilled in September and October of ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The objective of this project is to increase oil recovery from fractured reservoirs through improved fundamental understanding of the process of spontaneous imbibition by which oil is displaced from the rock matrix into the fractures. Spontaneous imbibition is fundamentally dependent on the reservoir surface free energy but this has never been investigated for rocks. In this project, the surface free energy of rocks will be determined by using liquids that can be solidified within the rock pore space at selected saturations. Thin sections of the rock then provide a two-dimensional view of the rock minerals and the occupant phases. Saturations and oil/rock, water/rock, and oil/water surface areas will be determined by advanced petrographic analysis and the surface free energy which drives spontaneous imbibition will be determined as a ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ab initio total energy calculations within the framework of density functional theory have been performed for atomic hydrogen and oxygen chemisorption on the (0001) surface of double hexagonal packed (dhcp) americium using a full-potential all-electron linearized augmented plane wave plus local orbitals method. Chemisorption energies were optimized with respect to the distance of the adatom from the relaxed surface for three adsorption sites, namely top, bridge, and hollow hcp sites, the ad-layer structure corresponding to the coverage of a 0.25 monolayer in all cases. Chemisorption energies were computed at the scalar-relativistic level (no spin-orbit coupling NSOC) and at the fully relativistic level (with spin-orbit coupling SOC). The two-fold bridge adsorption site was found to be the most stable site for O at both the NSOC and SOC theoretical levels with chemisorption ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

In addition to ceramics, alloys such as tool steel and nickel- and iron-based superalloys are being considered for high temperature applications such as missile bearings and low heat rejection engines. Studies were made to lubricate a nickel-based superalloy at 500{degrees}C, by using a vaporized aryl phosphate ester, at a concentration of 0.1% in air. From deposition and wear studies it was found that it was impossible to form a good polymeric coating on the superalloy surface. Energy dispersive X-ray analyzer (EDXA) analysis showed that this was due to minute quantities of aluminum in the alloy segregating to the surface, upon being heated to 500{degrees}C, forming a passive oxide coating. It was necessary to activate the surface, in order to lubricate the material successfully. A method of activation by electrodepositing the surface with a layer of iron oxide was developed. Once ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kinetic Monte Carlo simulations are used to analyze the ripening and dissolution of small Si interstitial clusters and #left brace#113#right brace# defects, and its influence on transient enhanced diffusion of dopants in silicon. The evolution of Si interstitial defects is studied in terms of the probabilities of emitted Si interstitials being recaptured by other defects or in turn being annihilated at the surface. These two probabilities are related to the average distance among defects and their distance to the surface, respectively. During the initial stages of the defect ripening, when the defect concentration is high enough and the distance among them is small, Si interstitials are mostly exchanged among defects with a minimal loss of them to the surface. Only when defects grow to large sizes and their concentration decreases, the loss of Si interstitials through diffusion to the surface prevails, ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The research supported by this Department of Energy contract has primarily been devoted to the study of the electronic properties of surfaces with sub-micron size. In previous years, we have studied the photoexcitation of electrons from field emission tips by a focussed Argon-ion laser beam tuned to operate at specific photon energy. The photoexcited electrons escape into the vacuum by tunneling through a surface potential barrier which is distorted by the application of a strong electric field. The interest in these experiments lies in a better understanding of the photoexcitation process at low photon energies. The techniques that have been developed directly measure the excited state energy distribution of electrons emitted through the surface potential barrier. The basic information gained from this research is relevant to ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The reduction of transient enhanced diffusion (TED) with reduced implantation energy has been investigated and quantified. A fixed dose of 1x10"1"4 cm"-"2 Si"+ was implanted at energies ranging from 0.5 to 20 keV into boron doping superlattices and enhanced diffusion of the buried boron marker layers was measured for anneals at 810, 950, and 1050 degree C. A linearly decreasing dependence of diffusivity enhancement on decreasing Si"+ ion range is observed at all temperatures, extrapolating to #approx#1 for 0 keV. This is consistent with our expectation that at zero implantation energy there would be no excess interstitials from the implantation and hence no TED. Monte Carlo modeling and continuum simulations are used to fit the experimental data. The results are consistent with a surface recombination length for interstitials of <10 nm. The data presented here demonstrate that in the range of ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The research supported by this Department of Energy contract has primarily been devoted to the study of the electronic properties of surfaces with sub-micron size. In previous years, we have studied the photoexcitation of electrons from field emission tips by a focussed Argon-ion laser beam tuned to operate at specific photon energy. The photoexcited electrons escape into the vacuum by tunneling through a surface potential barrier which is distorted by the application of a strong electric field. The interest in these experiments lies in a better understanding of the photoexcitation process at low photon energies. The techniques that have been developed directly measure the excited state energy distribution of electrons emitted through the surface potential barrier. The basic information gained from this research is relevant to ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

A mixture of aminoacids was irradiated by a scattered proton beam, its energy varying from 4 to 6.6 MeV, by doses up to 5 x 10"1"1 proton/cm"2 for studying the potentiality of abiogenic synthesis of biologically important compounds in space. It was ascertained that increase in the radiation dose and reduction of proton energy involve increase in effectiveness both of destruction of the initial aminoacid (tryptophan, tyrosine, glycine) and synthesis of the relevant dipeptide. Essential influence of mineral substrate on abiogenic synthesis of natural nucleotides under the action of diverse energy sources was pointed out

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A time-of-flight mass spectrometer has been constructed to measure the energy spectra of particles scattered by 10/sup 0/ with primary energies between 200 eV and 15 keV. The energy resolution ..delta..E/E of the system is between 0.1 and 0.4%. Energy spectra of scattered molecules and their dissociation products are shown for 570 eV H/sub 2//sup +/ and 4430 eV N/sub 2//sup +/ as projectiles. Electron capture into unbound states of the neutral molecule, with perhaps some contribution from mutual scattering within the molecule, appears to explain the observed dissociation product energy spectra peak widths.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

SKB is currently performing site investigations at two potential sites for a final repository for spent nuclear fuel. This report presents results of water flow and solute transport modelling of the Forsmark site. The modelling reported in this document focused on the near-surface groundwater, i.e. groundwater in Quaternary deposits and shallow rock, and surface water systems, and was performed using the MIKE SHE tool. The most recent site data used in the modelling were delivered in the Forsmark 2.3 dataset, which had its 'data freeze' on March 31, 2007. The present modelling is performed in support of the final version of the Forsmark site description that is produced during the site investigation phase. In this work, the hydrological modelling system MIKE SHE has been used to describe near-surface groundwater flow and the contact between groundwater and surface water at the Forsmark ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The purpose is to describe problems associated with the establishment of vegetation on mined lands and practical rehabilitation and restoration methods for establishing a rehabilitation plan. Land disturbed by mining should be restored to its original state, when the mine is decommissioned, but before that can be attained, site problems such as toxicity, moisture supply, and texture must be rectified. The land may need to pass through several conditioning stages, and links need to be formed to maintain a functioning ecosystem. A key aspect to rehabilitation is the need to increase the organic matter content of the substrate. This improves soil structure, increases the moisture holding ability, and provides a pool for nutrient cycling. 11 refs., 2 tabs.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Overhead, high power transmission lines have secured rights of way on agricultural lands in Minnesota. The economic impact of such utility crossings, including effects on land price, was investigated. Sale records and survey data were analyzed. Buyers, sellers, and brokers were interviewed concerning inconvenience, radio interference, appearance, and loss of irrigation possibilities due to the transmission lines. In nine affected sales, there was only one case in which less money was indicated for the farm because of the presence of a transmission line.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Two new species of the genus Microplana are described from the Iberian Peninsula. The new taxa are compared with congeneric species. Distributional records for two other European species, Microplana monacensis (Heinzel, 1929) and Microplana groga Jones et al. 2008, are presented and the presence of Microplana terrestris (Muller, 1774) is confirmed on the Iberian Peninsula. A partial re-description of Microplana nana Mateos, Giribet and Carranza, 1998 is provided. The finding of a new and probably introduced, but unidentified, species of land planarian is reported. Land planarians were generally found in the vicinity of deciduous trees and rivers.

Science.gov (United States)

Nat'l Training Center Contact Us Directory Email Us BLM > Socioeconomic Impacts > Timber Print Page Socioeconomic Impacts from Timber BLM-administered lands yielded $337...

Science.gov (United States)

... 36 7 Corrugated Steel Pipe Concept Layout--Elevation ..... 37 viii ... revetment. 3. Land Use ... Corner modules and capping blocks are available. ...

Science.gov (United States)

... and regional land, sea, air, and space-based systems, and ... means of delivery of weapons where such ... a separable and divisible part of the weapon. ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

In order to analyze changes in human settlement in Xuzhou city during the past 20 years, changes in land cover and vegetation were investigated based on multi-temporal remote sensing Landsat TM images. We developed a hierarchical classifier system that uses different feature inputs for specific classes and conducted a classification post-processing approach to improve its accuracy. From our statistical analysis of changes in urban land cover from 1987 to 2007, we conclude that built-up land areas have obviously increased, while farmland has seen in a continuous loss due to urban growth and human activities. A NDVI difference approach was used to extract information on changes in vegetation. A false change information elimination approach was developed based on prior knowledge and statistic...

Science.gov (United States)

Dec 9, 2005 ... Classification of high resolution imagery is not as straightforward as more ... The challenges of classifying high resolution imagery stems ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Extracting mining subsidence land from remote sensing (RS) images is one of important research contents for environment monitoring in mining area. The accuracy of traditional extracting models based on spectral features is low. In order to extract subsidence land from RS images with high accuracy, some domain knowledge should be imported and new models should be proposed. This paper, in terms of the disadvantage of traditional extracting models, imports domain knowledge from practice and experience, converts semantic knowledge into digital information, and proposes a new model for the specific task. By selecting the Luan mining area as a study area, this new model is tested based on GIS and related knowledge. The result shows that the proposed method is more precise than traditional methods and can satisfy the demands of land subsidence monitoring in mining area. 10 refs., 4 figs., 1 tab.

Science.gov (United States)

Wildlife Refuge, CA Rare and endangered endemic plants Diana Anderson Northern Arizona University Geomorphology Kathryn Thomas USGS, Flagstaff, AZ Vegetation dynamics John...

Science.gov (United States)

Fuel treatments are being implemented on public and private lands across the western United States. Although scientists and managers have an understanding ... ...

Science.gov (United States)

but one test point on the flight cards was achieved before we hit our "bingo," or minimal fuel remaining, and we had to land. The radar was developed by NASA's Jet Propulsion...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

In the utilization of the thermal energy by ocean temperature difference and factory waste heat, the high performance heating surfaces in pipes from which scale can be removed are required. As the method of removing scale, the method using sponge balls seems most suitable, but for applying this method, as the form of the protrusions attached to the inner surfaces of pipes, smooth circular are form is desirable. The promotion of heat transfer with the rows of circular arc protrusions like this is strongly related to the mode of flow and such structure as separation, recirculation flow, readhesion and turbulent energy generation. In this study, as the basic research to optimize the heating surface with the rows of smooth protrusions, the flow characteristics and the heat transfer characteristics including the turbulent structure of the wake of protrusions were experimentally ...

Science.gov (United States)

An abundance of waste corn, a key food of many wildlife species, has helped make possible the widespread success of wildlife management in the United States over the past half century. We found waste corn post harvest in Nebraska declined by 47% from 1978 to 1998 due primarily to improvements in combine headers resulting in a marked decline in ear loss. The reduction in waste coincided with major declines in fat storage by sandhill cranes and white-fronted geese during spring migration. Sandhill cranes, northern pintails, white-fronted geese, and lesser snow geese avoided soybeans while staging in spring in the Rainwater Basin Area and Central Platte River Valley. These findings and other literature suggest soybeans are a marginal food for wildlife particularly during periods of high energy requirements. Soybean acreage has increased by 600% in the United States since 1950 and now comprises nearly one-quarter of the nation>'s cropland. With over 80% of the ...

Science.gov (United States)

The MISR instrument aboard NASA's Terra satellite participated in the UAE-2 campaign, August-October 2004. This campaign represented a unique opportunity to study the complex aerosol situation in the Arabian Gulf region, in the context of a first-rate collection of aircraft and surface-based instruments, giving us the opportunity to do some groundbreaking satellite aerosol validation work. We aimed (1) to validate MISR aerosol retrieval results for dust and pollution particles over dark and light surfaces, and (2) to contribute regional maps of aerosol optical thickness (AOT) and particle micro-physical properties, giving spatial context to the field-instrument measurements, and moving toward a satellite-based regional aerosol climatology. The validation effort benefited from the combination of an instrumented aircraft and a regional network of surface-based sun photometers. We obtained high-quality sub-orbital data ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

We demonstrate tuning of Schottky energy barriers in organic electronic devices by utilizing chemically tailored electrodes. The Schottky energy barrier of Ag on poly[2-methoxy], 5-(2{prime}-ethyl-hexyloxy)- 1,4-phenylene was tuned over a range of more than 1 eV by using self-assembled monolayers (SAM{close_quote}s) to attach oriented dipole layers to the Ag prior to device fabrication. Kelvin probe measurements were used to determine the effect of the SAM{close_quote}s on the Ag surface potential. {ital Ab} {ital initio} Hartree-Fock calculations of the molecular dipole moments successfully describe the surface potential changes. The chemically tailored electrodes were then incorporated in organic diode structures and changes in the metal/organic Schottky energy barriers were measured using an electroabsorption technique. These results demonstrate the use of self-assembled ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Microorganisms are ubiquitous in subsurface environments although their populations sizes and metabolic activities can vary considerably depending on energy and nutrient inputs. As a result of their metabolic activities and the chemical properties of their cell surfaces and the exopolymers they produce, microorganisms can directly or indirectly facilitate the biotransformation of radionuclides, thus altering their solubility and overall fate and transport in the environment. Although biosorption to cell surfaces and exopolymers can be an important factor modifying the solubility of some radionuclides under specific conditions, oxidation state is often considered the single most important factor controlling their speciation and, therefore, environmental behavior.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The energy spectra of few-nucleon transfer reactions obtained by bombarding a /sup 197/Au nucleus with the 341 MeV /sup 20/Ne beam of the Berkeley cyclotron have been analysed successfully in terms of direct surface transfer reactions populating the continuum states. At the grazing angle we are dealing with one-step processes; at forward angle two-step processes have to be taken into account.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Indirect evaporative air coolers that use air-to-air plate-type heat exchangers show good promise (compared with compression air-conditioning systems) of extending the energy savings from arid, low-humidity areas to more widespread climatic conditions. However, no systematic experiment had been done concerning the effect of the wettability of aluminum plates on the effectiveness of the indirect evaporative cooling system. In this study, a testing apparatus was built where only one secondary channel and two primary channels were used so that different surfaces could be easily tested to determine the system`s effectiveness and the heat transfer coefficient. The advantage of this experimental apparatus is that plates of the heat exchanger can be easily changed in the test section instead of fabricating a complete heat exchanger for each test. A dynamic contact analyzer was used to quantitatively measure the wetting properties in terms of advancing ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The Ti-6Al-4V alloy was treated by inductively coupled rf plasma nitriding. The effects of plasma-processing time in the range of 5-35 min on the microstructure and the mechanical properties of the plasma-nitrided Ti-6Al-4V samples were studied. The plasma power input was adjusted at 450 W and pure N_2 gas was introduced to establish a treatment pressure of 8.0-8.4 x 10"-"2 mbar. The characteristics of the nitrided layers have been investigated by microhardness testing, surface roughness measurements, optical microscopy, and x-ray diffraction. The results show that the surface microhardness increases as the plasma-processing time increases to reach 2000 HV0.1 at a plasma-processing time of 35 min. A high nitriding rate of 2.81 #mu#m"2 s"-"1 at a plasma-processing time of 25 min was achieved. The formation of the hard phases TiN, Ti_2N, and Ti(N) in the Ti-6Al-4V surfaces are found to be the reason for the increased ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Radio frequency (RF) plasma nitriding using different input plasma processing powers (250-600 W) improves the surface of titanium by forming hard phases of TiN, Ti_2N, and Ti (N) into the surface. The characteristics of the compound layer have been investigated by optical microscopy, microhardness measurements, and X-ray diffraction. The effect of plasma power on the sample temperature, electron temperature, and plasma density was studied using Langmuir double probe. The measured surface hardness value of the compound layer is 2190 HV 0.1 for treated sample at plasma power 500 W. The compound thickness continuously increases as the plasma power increases. The highest nitriding rate of 5.88 #mu#m"2/s was recorded when the input plasma power was adjusted at 550 W. This high nitriding rate of treated titanium samples is ascribed to the high concentration of active nitrogen species in the plasma atmosphere and the formed ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vacuum glazing consists of an evacuated space between two sheets of glass. Vacuum glazing has a large effect on energy savings in houses and buildings. Vacuum glazing can achieve higher insulating performance than conventional insulated glazing. Nippon Sheet Glass has successfully developed conventional vacuum glazing. In this study we investigated an advanced form of vacuum glazing. Its thermal insulation ability is equivalent to 100 mm thick glass wool thermal insulation. This vacuum glazing contained a SnO_2:F low emissivity surface. The influence of the residual gas in a vacuum space on heat flow is important to performance. For long-term thermal stability, it is very important to maintain vacuum stability. To understand this better, we studied the behavior of outgassing from the inside glass surfaces exposed to an external energy source. We have studied the behavior of outgassing from a glass ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

We report de Haas--van Alphen measurements of the Fermi surface of lutetium at temperatures down to 0.3 K and in fields up to 150 kG in the (1010) and (1120) planes. Lutetium, having a filled 4f shell, serves as a nonmagnetic prototype of the structurally similar (hcp), trivalent, heavy rare-earth elements from Gd to Tm. The fact that no complete frequency branches were observed indicates that there are no closed pieces of the Fermi surface. We observed all but one orbit predicted by relativistic augmented-plane-wave calculations of Keeton and Loucks and by recent spin-orbit--linearized-augmented-plane-wave calculations of Tibbetts and Harmon. The data support a geometry similar to that of yttrium, and in good qualitative agreement with energy-band theory.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Considerable interest has focused recently on the use of lignocellulosic fibers as a reinforcement for thermoplastic polymers. The combination of these dissimilar materials, however, is characterized by a widespread incompatibility that leads to a weak fiber/polymer interface and poor performance properties for the composite. In an effort to improve compatibility a number of fiber surface modification approaches have been investigated including plasma, ozone, and polymer grafting treatments. Evaluation of adhesion improvements has been complicated by processing variables that are difficult to control. This paper will discuss the use of the-micro-debond test in quantifying the interfacial shear strength (ISS) in wood fiber/polystyrene composites. Wood fibers were modified to different degrees with styrene-maleic anhydride copolymers that varied in their composition. The effect of fiber modification on surface energetics was determined using ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

In-situ TEM investigations during thermal treatment of amorphous Pd{sub 81}Si{sub 19} have been performed. It was found that crystalline nuclei are formed near the perforation edge of the hole produced by electrochemical polishing. After impinging with neighboring crystals, a crystallization front formed which was aligned parallel to the perforation edge. The crystallization front moved in the direction perpendicular to the perforation edge. Crystal growth was found to proceed faster in thinner parts of the specimen than in thicker parts. The results are described qualitatively within a thermodynamic model taking into account volume-, surface- and interfacial free energies and an appropriate specimen geometry.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

He ions incident at grazing angles on Cu(110) and Ni(110) surfaces are neutralised into triplet and singlet states, of which the 3p, 3d and 4d upper states are accessible to optical spectroscopy. In the energy range from 500 eV to 15 keV no significant energy dependence of the relative intensities of singlet and triplet lines was observed for scattering on Cu(110). The intensities from Ni(110) are higher and the singlet to triplet intensity ratio of the 3d to 2p transition is about 6% smaller than that from Cu(110). The results can be explained well by assuming resonant charge capture into excited He and intermediate formation of negative He"- states. (orig.).

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A new class of low aspect ratio toroidal hybrid stellarators is found using more general plasma confinement optimization criterion than quasi-symmetrization. The plasma current profile and shape of the outer magnetic flux surface are used as control variables to achieve near constancy of the longitudinal invariant J* on internal flux surfaces (quasi-omnigeneity), in addition to a number of other desirable physics target properties. We find that a range of compact (small aspect ratio A), high {beta} (ratio of thermal energy to magnetic field energy), low plasma current devices exist which have significantly improved confinement both for thermal as well as energetic (collisionless) particle components. With reasonable increases in magnetic field and geometric size, such devices can also be scaled to confine 3.5 MeV alpha particle orbits.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The existence of problems with wild pigs (Sus scrofa) is nothing new to the Western Hemisphere. Damage by these introduced animals was reported as far back as 1505 by the early Spanish colonies in the Caribbean, where wild pigs were killing the colonists cattle. Droves of these animals also ravaged cultivated crops of maize and sugarcane on islands in the West Indies during this same time period. These wild pigs reportedly were very aggressive and often attacked Spanish soldiers hunting rebellious Indians or escaped slaves on these islands, especially when these animals were cornered. The documentation of such impacts by introduced populations of this species in the United States has subsequently increased in recent years, and continued up through the present (Towne and Wentworth. 1950, Wood and Barrett 1979, Mayer and Brisbin 1991, Dickson et al. 2001). In spite of a fairly constant history in this country since the early 1900s, wild pigs have had a dramatic recent increase in both ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

This paper provides a review of current air and spaceborne remote sensing techniques which can be used in land use planning and resource management. Emphasis is placed on the development of geographic information systems (GS). It is expected remote sensing will become the preferred tool for data acquisition, while GIS will be used to manage and distribute georeferenced land information.

International Science & Technology Center (ISTC)

Development of Technology for Metal Surface Decontamination in Aqueous Solutions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Environmental factors, phytoplankton biomass (Chl a) and primary production of two water areas in Daya Bay (Dapeng'ao Bay and Aotou Bay) were investigated during the transition period from spring to summer. Chl a ranged from 3.20 to 13.62 and 13.43 to 26.49 mg m"-"3 in Dapeng'ao Bay and Aotou Bay respectively, if data obtained during red tides are excluded. Primary production varied between 239.7 and 1001.4 mgC m"-"2 d"-"1 in Dapeng'ao Bay. The regional distribution of Chl a and primary production were mostly consistent from spring to summer in both bays. Seasonal transition characters have been found in Daya Bay from spring to summer, including high values of DO, nitrate and silicate. Size structures of phytoplankton and its primary production do not change very much from spring to summer, with micro-phytoplankton dominating and contributing about 50% of the whole. In Daya Bay, phytoplankton is limited by nitrogen in spring, and by phosphate in summer. Artificial impacts are evident ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The climate modeling community has focused recently on improving our understanding of certain processes, such as cloud feedbacks and ocean circulation, that are deemed critical to climate-change prediction. Although attention to such processes is warranted, emphasis on these areas has diminished a general appreciation of the role played by the large-scale dynamics of the extratropical atmosphere. Lack of interest in extratropical dynamics may reflect the assumption that these dynamical processes are a non-problem as far as climate modeling is concerned, since general circulation models (GCMs) calculate motions on this scale from first principles. Nevertheless, serious shortcomings in our ability to understand and simulate large-scale dynamics exist. Partly due to a paucity of standard GCM diagnostic calculations of large-scale motions and their transports of heat, momentum, potential vorticity, and moisture, a comprehensive understanding of the role of large-scale dynamics in GCM ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The authors investigate the optimisation of solar-heated cavity receivers in which solar energy collected by a paraboloid collector is converted into electrical energy. The focussed solar energy enters the receiver through an aperture to heat the working fluid, which flows inside the receiver tubes and is compressed by the compressor of a gas turbine system, to the highest process temperature. A method of calculating the distribution on the inner receiver surfaces of the solar radiation reflected by the paraboloid collector is presented to begin with. The interchange of radiant energy inside the receiver cavity can be calculated on this basis, including the radiation loads, the temperatures of the inner receiver walls, and the radiative and convective losses. The temperature fields in the tube walls must be known for determining the strength required of receiver tubes; they can be ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

We report a detailed augmented-plane-wave energy-band study and wave-function analysis of stoichiometric PdH which shows that, even though the Fermi surface of PdH is qualitatively similar to that of silver, the simple ''proton model'' is not valid. Instead, the screening of the proton in PdH is found to be larger than in an isolated H atom due, in part, to the formation of a H-Pd bonding band below the bottom of the d-band complex. This result, which is in qualitative agreement with Switendick's earlier calculation, is confirmed by ultraviolet photoemission experiments. A partial density-of-states (DOS) analysis in the energy range spanned by the six valence and conduction bands reveals the quantitative details of the bonding mechanism between the Pd and H constituents. At the Fermi energy, the high Pd d to H s DOS ratio approx. 10.3 is found to be far higher than expected in silver, despite the fact ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Most of the anthropogenic emissions of carbon dioxide result from the combustion of fossil fuels for energy production. Photosynthesis has long been recognized as a means, at least in theory, to sequester anthropogenic carbon dioxide. Aquatic microalgae have been identified as fast growing species whose carbon fixing rates are higher than those of land-based plants by one order of magnitude. Physical Sciences Inc. (PSI), Aquasearch, and the Hawaii Natural Energy Institute at the University of Hawaii are jointly developing technologies for recovery and sequestration of CO{sub 2} from stationary combustion systems by photosynthesis of microalgae. The research is aimed primarily at demonstrating the ability of selected species of microalgae to effectively fix carbon from typical power plant exhaust gases. This report covers the reporting period 1 January to 31 March 2004 in which PSI, Aquasearch and University of Hawaii ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The industrial application of anaerobic digestion is a relatively new, yet proven waste treatment technology. Anaerobic digestion reduces and upgrades organic waste, and is a good way to control air pollution as it reduces methane and nitrous gas emissions. For environmental and energy considerations, anaerobic digestion is a nearly perfect waste treatment process. However, its economic viability is still in question. A number of parameters - type of waste (solid or liquid), digester system, facility size, product quality and end use, environmental requirements, cost of alternative treatments (including labor), and interest rates - define the investment and operating costs of an anaerobic digestion facility. Therefore, identical facilities that treat the same amount and type of waste may, depending on location, legislation, and end product characteristics, reveal radically different costs. A good approach for evaluating the economics of anaerobic digestion is to ...

Science.gov (United States)

The metal-semiconductor solar cell is a potential candidate for converting solar energy to electrical energy for space and terrestrial application. In this paper, a method for obtaining parameters of practical antireflection (AR) coatings for the metal-semiconductor solar cells is given. This method utilizes the measured equivalent index of refraction obtained from ellipsometry, since the surface to be AR coated has a multilayer structure. Both the experimental results and theoretical calculations of optical parameters for Ta/sub 2/O/sub 5/ AR coatings on Au-GaAs and Au-GaAs/sub 0.78/P/sub 0.22/ solar cells are presented for comparison. (AIP)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Evolution of rapid (?10 ns) Ohmic overheating of a microprotrusion on a surface in contact with a plasma by emission current is studied taking into account the energy carried by plasma ions and electrons, as well as Ohmic heating, emissive source of energy release (Nottingham effect), and heat removal due to heat conduction. Plasma parameters were considered in the range of n = 1014-1020 cm-3 and Te = 0.1 eV-10 keV. The threshold value of energy transferred to the surface from the plasma is found to be 200 MW/cm2; above this value, heating becomes explosive (namely, an increase in the temperature growth rate (?2T/?t2 > 0) and in passing current (?J/?t > 0) is observed in the final stage at T ? 104 K and j ? 108 A/cm2). In spite of the fact that Ohmic heating does not play any significant role for plasmas with a density lower than 10 18 cm-3 because the current is limited by ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

We describe a new apparatus that combines pulsed laser excitation in a molecular beam with surface-science methods for preparation of clean single-crystal surfaces and detection of adsorbates to enable state-selected studies of gas-surface reaction dynamics. Reactant molecules are prepared in specific vibrationally excited states via overtone pumping using tunable, narrow-band laser radiation. The collision-free environment of the molecular beam prevents relaxation of the prepared molecules before impact on the target surface and enables complete control over the collision energy and incidence angle. Chemisorption products are detected after a given deposition time by Auger electron spectroscopy. To achieve sufficient beam flux of state-selected reactant molecules for product detection by standard surface-science techniques, we use a high-intensity, short-pulse ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Spent nuclear wastes are inevitable issues to use nuclear power as a sustainable energy. Therefore, every country has their fuel cycles which are best for their environmental and/or political circumstances for the use of nuclear energy. These days agreements are made that spent nuclear fuels should be recycled to minimize waste volume and its toxicity all around the world. Republic of Korea also has a plan to recycle the spent nuclear fuels by using Gen-IV concept burner reactors and pyro-process plants. Not many options of national nuclear strategies are exist because Korea has too many people for its limited land space. KAERI already has been proposing a national fuel cycle concept called 'KIEP-21' that encompasses all the requirements of the advanced nuclear fuel cycle such as reduction of volume, toxicity, HLW heat load and so on. Authors suggest non-national fuel cycle concept called 'PyroGreen' for the sustainable ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

We present an atomistic simulation of the Ostwald ripening of extrinsic defects (clusters, #left brace#1 1 3#right brace#s and dislocation loops) which occurs during annealing of ion implanted silicon. The model describes the capture and emission of Si interstitial atoms to and from extrinsic defects of sizes up to thousands of atoms and includes a loss term due to the flux of interstitials to the recombining surface. Key input parameters of the simulation are the variations of the formation energy and of the capture efficiency with the size of the different defects. This model shows that the kinetics of the well-known dissolution of #left brace#1 1 3#right brace# defects is only driven by the recombination efficiency at the surface and the distance from the defects to the sample surface. We have subsequently used this model to study defect evolution in low and ultra low energy ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gas-solid chromatography was used to determine the Henry`s law second gas-solid virial coefficients within the temperature range of 314--615 K for ethane, propane, butane, isobutane, pentane, hexane, heptane, chloromethane, dichloromethane, trichloromethane, tetrachloromethane, trichlorofluoromethane (Freon 11), chlorodifluoromethane (Freon 22), dichlorodifluoromethane (Freon 12), methyl ether, ethyl ether, and sulfur hexafluoride with Carbopack B, a microporous carbon adsorbent. The temperature dependence of the second gas-solid virial coefficients of these adsorbates was used in conjunction with analyses based on a graphical method, a single-surface numeric integration method, a single-surface analytic expression method, and a two-surface analytic expression method to determine the gas-solid interaction energies and other parameters. The interaction energies were correlated with a ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A quantitative transmission electron microscopy (TEM) study on the depth profile of extended defects, formed after Si implantation, has been carried out. Two different Si{sup +} implant conditions have been considered. TEM analysis for the highest energy/dose shows that {l_brace}1 1 3{r_brace} defects evolve into dislocation loops whilst the defect depth distribution remains unchanged as a function of annealing time. For the lowest energy/dose, {l_brace}1 1 3{r_brace} defects grow and dissolve while the defect band shrinks preferentially on the surface side. At the same time, extraction of boron transient enhanced diffusion (TED) as a function of depth shows a decrease of the supersaturation towards the surface, starting at the location of the defect band. The study clearly shows that in these systems the silicon surface is the principal sink for interstitials. The results provide a ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The work is devoted to a microscopic analysis of the reactive capacity of chitin. An algorithm for modeling the deacetylation reaction in a monomeric unit of chitin is described. The reaction coordinate and the potential energy surface topography are determined taking into account the electron-vibrational interaction and low-symmetry perturbations within Jahn-Teller theory. Based on this algorithm, the topological modeling of the deacetylation process is performed for the first time and a mechanism of the biological activity of chitosan is proposed.

Science.gov (United States)

The authors have determined quantitative characteristics for oxide films forming on (111) surfaces of cadmium telluride single crystals on anodic oxidation in 0.1 M KOH: the constants in the Guenterschulze-Betz equation and the film growth constant, which is 2.4 nm/V, from which the activation energy for cadmium telluride electrooxidation has been calculated.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The invention relates to a pulsed laser ablation method of metals and/or dielectric films from the surface of a wafer, printed circuit board or a hybrid substrate. By utilizing a high-energy ultra-short pulses of laser light, such a method can be used to manufacture electronic circuits and/or electro-mechanical assemblies without affecting the material adjacent to the ablation zone.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The contribution of pulsar accelerated nuclei to the cosmic rays inside the Galaxy is calculated assuming that a significant part of the pulsar rotational energy is lost on acceleration of iron nuclei extracted from the surface of the neutron star. Different models of the galactic pulsar population are discussed. It is shown that the best description of the observed cosmic ray spectrum and the mass composition between a few 10{sup 15} eV and a few 10{sup 18} eV is obtained for the model B of Lorimer et al. (1993)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

We have investigated the characteristics of ion-beam-induced spontaneous etching (IBISE) of GaAs in Cl_2 ambient by using a Ga-focused ion beam (FIB) with an energy ranging from 3 to 15 keV. The etched depth of the irradiated region was more than 20 times greater than that of unirradiated region. When the sputtered depth by FIB irradiation amounted to around 8 A at each ion energy, the etched depth in Cl_2 ambient for 1 hour became saturated. The saturated etched depths were 450, 550, 750 and 800 A at the ion energy of 3, 5, 10 and 15 keV, respectively. The residual damage of the etched surface was also investigated by photoluminescence (PL) measurement. The maximal PL intensity was obtained at around the threshold dose of IBISE and increased with decreasing ion energy. The full recovery of PL intensity was observed at the ion energy of 3 keV after annealing at ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

We treat symmetric semi-infinite nuclear matter in the relativistic mean-field approximation for the scalar-vector field theoretical model. Using special-type Dirac spinors the nucleonic Dirac equation is decoupled into two sets of differential equations for the spin-orientation dependent orbital nucleon Dirac spinors. We also rewrite the Dirac equation in terms of second-order differential equations with the spin-orbit interaction appearing explicitly. These equations can be solved if the spin-orbit part is left out. The spin-orbit effects thus can be isolated, and are shown to reduce the surface energy coefficient a/sub s/ as well as the surface thickness t in such a way that their ratio remains practically unchanged. For realistic lagrangians - in linear as well as non-linear forms - consistent with the empirical spin-orbit single-partial level splittings, a/sub s/ is reduced by nearly 10%. We also discuss nuclear ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Functionalizing nanoparticle surfaces is essential for achieving homogeneous dispersions of monodisperse particles in polymer nanocomposites for successful utilization in engineering applications. Functionalization reduces the surface energy of the nanoparticles, thereby limiting the tendency to agglomerate. Moreover, reactive groups on the surface can also participate in the polymerization, creating covalent bonds between the inorganic and organic phases. In this paper, a fluidized bed inductively coupled plasma (FB-ICP) reactor is used to break apart the agglomerates and functionalize commercial TiO2 nanoparticle powders in a batch of several grams. The fluidized bed could be implemented into a continuous flow reactor, potentially making this a viable method to treat larger quantities of commercial powders. The particles are treated with acrylic acid (AA) and tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS) plasma and ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A device for detecting neutrons includes a semi-insulated bulk semiconductor substrate having opposed polished surfaces. A blocking Schottky contact comprised of a series of metals such as Ti, Pt, Au, Ge, Pd, and Ni is formed on a first polished surface of the semiconductor substrate, while a low resistivity ("ohmic") contact comprised of metals such as Au, Ge, and Ni is formed on a second, opposed polished surface of the substrate. In one embodiment, n-type low resistivity pinout contacts comprised of an Au/Ge based eutectic alloy or multi-layered Pd/Ge/Ti/Au are also formed on the opposed polished surfaces and in contact with the Schottky and ohmic contacts. Disposed on the Schottky contact is a neutron reactive film, or coating, for detecting neutrons. The coating is comprised of a hydrogen rich polymer, such as a polyolefin or paraffin; lithium or lithium fluoride; or a heavy metal fissionable ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A solar energy collection and conversion system is disclosed in which a cassegrain mirror system is rotated about a diurnal axis, which axis is adjusted for seasonal variations in the incidence of the sun's rays on the earth's surface. A black body absorption cavity filled with translucent or transparent fluid material is used for direct absorption of the sun's rays. The incident solar energy is absorbed directly by the fluid medium. The fluid within the cavity may be maintained under extremely high pressures and temperatures in order to utilize this fluid as a heat storage medium. Such heat storage is facilitated by apparatus which permits a change in the volume of the reflective cavity in response to the temperature or pressure of the fluid within the cavity.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The energy available from tidal currents is substantial and considerable work has been conducted into determining the size of the resource and what the large-scale consequences of extraction might be. This paper describes the work conducted to establish a laboratory-scale model, by using the commercial computational fluid dynamics (CFD) code FLUENT trademark, in order to predict local-flow consequences resulting from the extraction of energy in two and three dimensions from within the water column in a tidal flow. As might be expected, a wake is formed but there is considerable localized flow acceleration around and, most especially, under an extraction zone. The wake behind the device is shown to be associated with a drop in the free surface which, in turn, is associated with the decline in the wake itself. (author)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cheap air conditioning from oceanic temperature differences is a possible new competitor for coal in coastal regions. Coal suppliers planning expansion in growing economies need to be aware of the possibilities and limitations of this new competitor. Ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC) used to be uneconomic but the National Energy Laboratory of Hawaii (NELH) has developed a very economic method of utilising the temperature difference between warm ocean surface and cold deep ocean to generate energy for air conditioning. The article outlines the process and mentions demonstrations of OTEC technology to produce electricity and air conditioning at a site in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. Indonesia and India have viable sites for OTEC installations, and NELH is working with Madras State on a project to construct a commercial OTEC plant in India. 2 photos.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Different semi precious alloys (Pd-Ag, Pd-Au) have been studied after thermal oxidation treatments to analyze the mechanical improvement of the interface between the metal and the ceramic. Using the four point bending test, the authors have analyzed the different steps corresponding to the mechanical evolution of the bi-material : cracking energy on the surface, relaxation energy after first cracking, propagation energy of cracks at the interface zone. It has been shown that some alloys only have a high resistance to the interface cracking and the role played by the interface reactions to improve this property. (orig.).

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Etching of SiO_2 rods has been obtained with a dc torch with argon as the process gas in an air environment at atmospheric pressure; the high temperature of the plasma jet causes vaporization of the exposed area. The apparatus and torch operative parameters have been set up to obtain a depth etch rate of up to 0.6 mm min"-"1 corresponding to 0.826 g min"-"1. An enthalpy probe has been employed to monitor the plasma conditions before the thermal plasma etching process and from the experimental etch rate a surface rod temperature of T_s_u_r = 2057 K has been derived. Etching has been obtained with uniformity over the entire exposed area with peak to peak differences below 1%. The plasma to rod heat transfer has been simulated using a commercial CFD code Fluent (copyright). The model consists of a non-steady two-dimensional simulation for a compressible turbulent fluid, with an adapted grid calculation. Boundary conditions have been set out using the enthalpy probe ...

CERN Document Server

The behavior of silver and lead azides (scaly and threadlike crystals, and compacted powders) in initiation of explosive decomposition by laser pulsed radiation has been investigated. Initiation energy thresholds in irradiation at wavelengths of 1064 nm, 532 nm, 354.7 nm, 266 nm corresponding to four laser radiation harmonics have been measured. Samples both uncovered and covered with a transparent dielectric (a quartz plate) with the compressive force of up to 0.5GPa were initiated. In the transparent spectral region (the first and second laser harmonics) of the heavy metal azide matrix the effect of covering the sample surface with a plate on initiation energy threshold was insignificant, whereas, in the region of bandgap absorption (the fourth harmonic) strong dependence of the initiation threshold on whether the surface under irradiation is uncovered or covered. The results obtained have been ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The transport of air pollutants in coastal regions has been known to be strongly affected by the mesoscale atmospheric circulations such as sea-land breezes. These mesoscale atmospheric circulations depend on synoptic weather conditions. In this study, a three-dimensional sea-land breeze model was developed to evaluate the effects of the sea and land breezes on the atmospheric dispersion of radioactive materials released from nuclear power plants in Korea. In the model, the hydrostatic primitive equations in the terrain-following coordinate system were used. The mesoscale atmospheric circulation simulation were carried out under various synoptic weather conditions for all seasons around the Wolsung nuclear power plant site.